MODERN COMPOSERS i) Modern Com- posers of Europe Being an account of the most recent musical progress in the various European nations, with some notes on their history^ and critical and biographical sketches of the contemporary musi- cal leaders in each country jt jk jt jt jt, By ARTHUR ELSON Author of "Woman's Work in Music," "A Critical History of Opera," etc. Illustrated BOSTON L. C* PAGE ^ > ^ COMPANY Publishers Copyright, 1904 BY L. C. PAGE & COMPANY (INCORPORATED) All rights reserved Second Impression, October, 1907 Fifth Impression, January, 1914 ^ I G fc I fU K / S THE COIX3NIAL PflESS C. H. 8IMONDS & CO., BOSTON, U. S. A. CONTENTS CHAPTER I. RICHARD STRAUSS II. GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS . 27 III. GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS .... 60 IV. BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 9 1 V. THE ELDER FRENCHMEN . US VI. THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY . . . 137 VII. ITALY l6 VIII. THE NETHERLANDS l8 4 IX. ENGLAND 20 3 X. THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES . . . .224 XI. THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS . . .246 XII. THE NEW RUSSIANS z6 7 IMDEX .285 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PACK NICOLAI ANDREJEVITCH RIMSKY - KORSAKOFF (See page 261) Frontispiece RICHARD STRAUSS 6 SlEGMUND VON HAUSEGGER 28 GUSTAV MAHLER -34 FELIX WEINGARTNER .38 SIEGFRIED WAGNER 80 HUGO WOLF 86 BEDRICH SMETANA 94 ANTONIN DVORAK 100 CHARLES - CAMILLE SAINT - SAE"NS . . . .116 JULES EMILE FREDERIC MASSENET . . . .122 CSAR AUGUSTE FRANCK 132 VINCENT D'INDY 138 ALFRED BRUNEAU 146 GUSTAVE CHARPENTIER 150 DON LORENZO PEROSI 162 PIETRO MASCAGNI . . . . . . .166 GIACOMO PUCCINI 170 PAUL GILSON 188 GUILLAUME LEKEU 190 EDGAR TINEL 192 EDWARD WILLIAM ELGAR 204 SAMUEL COLERIDGE - TAYLOR 210 EDWARD GERMAN 218 vii Viii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PAGB 'EDWARD HAGERUP GRIEG 224 JEAN SIBELIUS 244 MILY ALEXEJEVITCH BALAKIREFF .... 250 CESAR ANTONOVITCH Cui 252 MODEST PETROVITCH MOUSSORGSKY . . -^ssStf 2 & ALEXANDER PORPHYRJEVITCH BORODIN . . . 258 ALEXANDER CONSTANTINOVITCH GLAZOUNOFF . . 270 ANTON STEPANOVITCH ARENSKY .... 272 LIBRARY HOSPUAL MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE CHAPTER I. RICHARD STRAUSS IN the latter part of the nineteenth century the musical world was overshadowed by one of the few great geniuses that the art has produced, Richard Wagner. It seemed almost as if he summed up in his works the whole range of musical possibilities, almost as though he had reached the Ultima Thule, beyond which no further progress was possible. He towered above his fellows like a veritable giant, and he stood as an apparently unapproachable ex- ponent of the school which he himself had founded and forced upon the public. In the elder days, Bach exemplified by his works all that was greatest in the polyphony of the six- 2 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE teenth and seventeenth centuries, transfusing it with the lasting vigour of his own genius. Then came the era of homophony, of melody supported by chords, of a form that depended on clear-cut themes and judicious contrasts rather than on intricate inter- weaving of parts. Handel, Haydn, and Mozart built up this school, and the classical period reached its zenith in the works of Beethoven. Here we may find another climax of the art, and no less a man than Robert Franz has expressed his belief, not only by words, but by his own deeds in the musical arena, that, after Beethoven, no one should attempt the larger forms. Yet the melody of Schubert, the grace of Mendelssohn, and the deeper emotion of Schumann are prized to-day, in spite of such a sweeping dictum. Then came a newer school again, this time making radical departures from form. Wagner has long stood as the founder of this school. Because of the publication of his theories in literary shape, and the controversy which they aroused, it has been assumed that he invented the school of free harmonic modu- lations. The reason is not hard to find ; for the new style, being a radical departure from the old, could not at once make its way into the concert hall, but found a more speedy mode of gaining a public hearing on the operatic stage. Thus orchestral form RICHARD STRAUSS 3 was not banished at one stroke, but a sort of neutral territory was found, where its laws were set aside and something else adopted in their place. That something else was the principle of dramatic unity, so much in need of a champion because of the baleful crimes perpetrated against it by Rossini and his school, at least in the opera seria. It was in the proper union of music and action, then, with its accompanying dogmas of Leit-Motiven and endless melodic recitative, that Wagner's truly marvellous gifts found their expression. The new aspirant for fame could now sing as he pleased, un- trammelled by the set form of the older masters. Walther could intone his lyre with the surety that the world would sometime grow to understand; for the step from diatonic harmony to chromatic modu- lation was a natural one, and bound to come, even if it came slowly. Yet even at this time there were at least two men who could claim to have introduced the same style on the symphonic platform. Berlioz, with his ex- perimental boldness, had announced his belief that music could express actual ideas far more closely than the public dreamed of. His Symphonic Fan- tastique, and the " Childe Harold " symphony, actually undertook to tell a story in tones, and were, in large measure, successful. Yet here, if the story 4 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE is not enacted before our eyes, it is placed before the audience upon the printed page. The other bold pioneer, the founder of the Symphonic Poem as we know it to-day, was Franz Liszt. In his works we see the form, if, indeed, it may properly be called a form, assuming its present shape and becoming an orchestral rhapsody whose main outlines are suffi- ciently indicated to the audience by some general title or some very brief explanation. Meanwhile, the name of Wagner had come to dominate the world by sheer force of genius. The modulatory style had only recently been adopted, and here was a man, it seemed, able to explore and exploit its utmost recesses and possibilities. Small wonder, then, that many repeated the error of Franz, mutato nomine, and asserted that, after Wagner, no one again could attain such vast heights. Even at present, many years after his death, the world still looks with amazement on his truly stupendous achievements. Where else, even now, do we find the fierce power of the Ride of the Valkyries, the fascinating beauty of the Magic Fire music, the com- pelling charm of the Waldesweben, or the ineffable human tenderness that pervades the score of " Die Meistersinger? " But granting Richard Wagner's right to a place among the few real masters of all time, this was RICHARD STRAUSS 5 no valid reason why others should not rise to great- ness. Yet for more than a dozen years after his death, no one seemed worthy to wear the mantle of the departed. One would imitate his use of guid- ing motives; another would rush wildly to super- natural or traditional lore for a gory plot to be illustrated with still more gory music. At last, however, a new star has arisen in the firmament. In Richard Strauss, not inaptly called Richard the Second, the world has again found a man who dares to say what he wants in his own way, and who utters his orchestral convictions in no uncertain tone. Richard Strauss, to-day reckoned as the world's leading composer, was born at Munich, June n, 1864. His father, Franz Strauss, was first horn- player in the court orchestra of Bavaria, his mother being a daughter of the brewer Pschorr. Like Mozart, Brahms, and many another prodigy, the young Richard gave proof of his gifts in early child- hood. Of the two requisites for this much-desired effect, precocity in the child, and a musical atmos- phere in the home, both were present. As a result, he began playing the piano at the early age of four, and two years later entered the arena as a composer, his first productions being a three-part song and a polka. These immature first-fruits were followed by piano pieces, songs, and even an orches- 6 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE tral overture. In the manuscript of a " Christmas Song," belonging to this period, the handwriting of the child was still too large and irregular for the limited space, and the mother wrote the words. A course of four years at the elementary schools was followed by eight years in the Gymnasium, dur- ing which he continued his musical outpourings by scribbling themes on the paper covers of his books. His more serious artistic studies began at this time, and in 1875 he started theory and composition with the court Kapellmeister, Fr. W. Meyer. Among his works of this period may be mentioned a chorus for the " Electra " of Sophocles, several songs, an overture, and a symphony. In 1881 his String Quartette in A (Op. 2) was heard in public, and the symphony was given a few days later. Two years of university life now followed, during which the over- ture received a Berlin performance. Before the end of the year 1884, many of Strauss's earlier works had been completed. Among these were a 'cello sonata, a violin concerto, piano pieces, a horn concerto, the noble piano quartette, and the dignified F-minor symphony. In all of this period the composer was influenced entirely by classical models, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, and Brahms. A setting of Goethe's " Wanderer's Sturmlied," for six voices and orchestra (Op. 14), shows the Brahms RICHARD STRAUSS RICHARD STRAUSS J influence plainly, and bears some general resem- blance to the " Ode of Destiny." A fortunate meeting with Von Biilow led to the composer's appointment as Kapellmeister and assist- ant conductor in the Meiningen orchestra. The decision was reached at Munich, where the young Strauss was compelled to stand before a small orches- tra and conduct, without rehearsal, his serenade (Op. 7) for thirteen wind-instruments. This so pleased the veteran leader that he adopted both the composer and the composition. A year later, when Von Biilow left Meiningen, Strauss became his suc- cessor as leader of the efficient orchestra. It was at this time that the young classicist met Alexander Ritter, a man of radical tendencies and intellectual breadth. This new friend was destined to change the entire career of the composer, and transform him from a strict adherent of form into the freest of modern musical tone-poets. Through Ritter, Strauss became interested in the music and the ideas of Berlioz, Liszt, and Wagner. Soon to become a most brilliant conductor, Strauss now began giving his attention to the extreme modern school. In 1886 the Meiningen post was given up, and a trip to Italy ensued. On his return, Strauss gave the world his impressions of that country in the 8 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE form of a symphonic fantasie entitled " Aus Italien," and it is in this work that he first showed his con- version to the newer school of subjective emotion- painting in free form. Four years of conducting at the Munich court theatre followed, these in turn be- ing succeeded by two seasons at Weimar. It was in the latter city that Strauss became the recognized champion of the most modern school of music, and reached the full maturity of his genius in conducting and composing. Here were produced three of the series of great symphonic poems that have made his name famous throughout the musical world. Of the three, " Don Juan " was first published, but " Macbeth," dedicated to Alexander Ritter, wajs composed a year earlier, in 1887. Both were fol- lowed by " Tod und Verklarung," composed in 1889. The long years of hard work told on the young man, and in 1892 an illness of the lungs declared itself. This necessitated an extended trip to Greece, Egypt, Sicily, and other Southern countries, during which the invalid devoted himself to the completion of his first opera, " Guntram." On his return it was produced at Weimar, without lasting success, but with much import for his domestic life ; it was dedi- cated to his parents, and Pauline de Ahna, who took RICHARD STRAUSS 9 the heroine's part, became his wife soon after that event. The Weimar position was now given up, and Strauss returned with his bride to Munich. There, after three years in his former post, he became chief conductor, on the retirement of Levi. At this time he conducted the Berlin Philharmonic concerts also, but the task of travelling to and fro became too exhausting, and he gave up the Berlin leadership, being succeeded by Arthur Nikisch. In 1898, how- ever, he became permanently settled in Berlin, as leader of the Royal Opera in that capital. In recent years his fame has become so great that he has received many acceptable offers for single appear- ances in other places. These trips have taken him to nearly every musical centre in Europe, from Paris to Moscow, from London to Madrid. Bay- reuth has vibrated to his baton, and Holland has vied with Switzerland in giving tribute to his excel- lence as an orchestral leader. Even more recent in date is the American concert tour made by Strauss in 1904. Personally, he is most informal and delightful, and not at all the metaphysical mysticist that some of his works would indicate. His domestic life seems entirely filled with happiness. His wife sings his songs in public, and each vies with the other in IO MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE modestly declining the applause. At home he is much given to frolicking with his boys. He has a very human fondness for jollity, and it is reported that he even likes beer, perhaps out of respect to his maternal ancestry. One of his favourite pas- times is the formidable German card game of Skat. Tall and thin, he seems almost fragile, but the numerous quick tours to his credit show that his wiry frame is possessed of great vigour. He con- ducts with the utmost spirit, and his excitement is catching. Many who had heard his works under other leaders called them involved, obscure in spite of their great conceptions, and often lacking in beauty; but under the inspired and inspiring guid- ance of his own master hand, everything grew clear, and those who had hitherto shaken their heads in doubt were now ready to jump from their seats and shout with enthusiasm. Of the works, which many claim will found a new school, " Guntram " was followed by " Till Eulen- spiegel," in 1895, while a year later came " Also Sprach Zarathustra," followed in its turn by " Don Quixote." Somewhat later came " Ein Helden- leben," representing a year and a half of work. The one-act opera " Feuersnoth," his second work for the stage, appeared at Dresden in 1901, and in 1904 came the new " Sinfonia Domestica." RICHARD STRAUSS II In the F-minor symphony Strauss showed himself a thorough devotee of strict form, and a devout follower of the Brahms lead. Yet the work is by no means dry or abstruse, but displays much pleasing vigour and directness, in spite of the composer's youth. It is said that Strauss, while at the Hoch- schule in Munich, was walking in the gardens with two comrades, Horatio W. Parker and Ludwig Thuille, when one of the three suggested that they all try their hands at writing a symphony. If the other two works were composed, that of Strauss seems the only one ever brought to public notice. Its dignified allegro, a bright scherzo, with unexpectedly romantic trio, an expressive slow movement, and the elaborate finale are all effective, giving only tran- sient glimpses of the involved style of the later Strauss. The use of the same figure at the beginning and end of the work gives it a pleasing aspect of unity. It was in " Aus Italien " that the composer began his works in the freer style. The very title, " Sym- phonic Fantasy," shows that the classical plan is no longer followed. There are four movements, to be sure, but they are not the four of the older form, and each is a complete tone-picture in itself. Strauss now adopted the idea of emotion-painting that seems to underlie nearly all modern music, and 12 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE by means of a brief title gave the hearer a clue to the general meaning, and let his imagination supply the details. The first movement, " On the Campagna," gives a vivid picture of limitless space and solitude, with here and there a hint of the pageants or the battles that the great Roman field has witnessed. The second picture, " Amid Rome's Ruins," aims also to give " fantastic pictures of vanished splen- dour, feelings of sadness in the midst of the sunlit present." The third movement, " On the Shores of Sorrento," corresponds nearly to the symphonic scherzo, while the finale gives an animated and brilliant picture of " Neapolitan Folk-Life." When this work was first brought out, it appeared abstruse and meaningless. At present, when compared with the orchestral spasms in some of the later works, it seems a model of clearness. " Macbeth," the first of the Strauss tone-poems to be composed, marks another important advance into the field of pure emotion-painting. The form is now that of the symphonic poem, wholly free, with the several movements absorbed in one long whole. The orchestral colours are laid on with a bolder, freer hand. First comes the picture of Macbeth himself, ambitious, cruel, yet timid at heart. This part of the work is most ably developed, but a RICHARD STRAUSS 13 stronger climax comes with the appearance of Lady Macbeth. On the score are written the words, " Hie thee hither, That I may pour my spirit in thine ear, . And chastise with the valour of my tongue All that impedes thee from the golden round Which Fate and metaphysic aid doth seem To have thee crowned withal." This baleful utterance has inspired the composer to most magnificent orchestral expression, and the work, like many of its followers, can be made into a tremendous tour de force. " Don Juan " is founded on the poem of Lenau, rather than the old libretto of Da Ponte. The hero, no longer a ruffian adventurer, is here depicted as devoted to the attractive qualities of all women, which are not to be summed up in the individual. Don Juan becomes an arch pessimist, never finding true satisfaction, and willing to resign life itself at the end. Restless and uncertain melodies are heard in the opening of the score, followed by the knightly theme of the Don himself. Then comes the first love- episode, perchance with Zerlina as heroine, pictured by attractive and enticing measures, but ending in a chromatic phrase of disgust. Then follows a more lengthy episode, with a new theme that may be 14 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE typical of the countess, but with the same unsatis- fied ending. A third affair, gentler in tone, meets a similar close, and the hero rushes forth on his wild career. He flings himself into the carnival, where he may enjoy wine and woman to the full; nor is he temperate in his potations. A ludicrous imita- tive phrase on the glockenspiel doubtless indicates that he is very deep in his cups, while an organ-point of twenty-four measures gives intimation of the sub- sequent state of coma. Then come more recklessness and more disgust, followed by sudden silence and the cutting theme of a trumpet announcing the end. In "Tod und Verklarung " (Death and Trans- figuration), the composer reached new heights of power and beauty. A poem is written on the first page of the score, depicting the quiet of a sick-room while the exhausted patient sleeps, his renewed battle with the powers of Death, *a review, in frenzied dreams, of the sick man's whole life, and the final struggle, with the apotheosis that conquers even Death. For some time it was thought that the poem inspired the music, but, as a matter of fact, the poem was written hy Alexander Ritter after he had heard the music. Strauss himself laughs at those commentators who would read the most detailed meaning into his works, and gives only general outlines for guidance, RICHARD STRAUSS 1 5 yet in this case the poem fits the music well. It is best, however, to accept with hesitation the analysis of William Mauke, who goes so far as to identify two distinct fever-themes. Judged from a musical standpoint, the work may be divided into four sec- tions. First comes a largo passage, repressed, brood- ing, sombre, that may well suggest the exhaustion of the fever-stricken sufferer. More tender passages may indicate regretful thoughts of lost youth. The second part, harsh, discordant, powerful, may well picture a fierce contest with the powers of disease, ending in defeated exhaustion. Then follow, in the third part, the beautiful themes suggesting memories of the morning of life. The tender melody of the first part ushers in passages of joyous enthusiasm and noble aspiration, well depicting the high hope of youth and the glorious achievement of manhood. Then comes renewed struggle, with sudden close, as if at the imperious bidding of Fate ; the orchestral fury of the sickness recurs, bringing the end and the knell of death. The fourth part, the apotheosis, is a glorious climax of triumph. In " Till Eulenspiegel," the subject is no longer tragic, and Strauss transfers his allegiance from Melpomene to Thalia. Till (or Tyll) is a mediaeval rogue, the hero of an old German tale. A wander- ing Brunswick mechanic, he does anything but tend 1 6 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE to business. His madcap pranks, in which he always comes out ahead, have become immensely popular in Germany, and the story has been translated for English readers. In the composition, Strauss has given full rein to his fancy, and depicted with sure hand the fantastic jokes, the sly humour, and the rol- licking disposition of the graceless rogue. The work is in rondo form, with definite themes to typify the omnipresent practical joker. These themes per- vade the entire score, and are varied or developed with the infinite skill of a master of orchestral irony. According to the tonal version, Till meets a speedy and well-merited end, a passage not wholly unlike the execution in the Symphonic Fantastique of Ber- lioz, but in the story his usual luck attends him, and he cheats the gallows by escaping at the last moment. In " Also Sprach Zarathustra," Strauss takes his hearers into the realm of Nietzsche's mystic philoso- phy. Zarathustra, or Zoroaster, aims to teach a deification of life, the " Over-man," who rises be- yond good and evil into realms of joy. First comes a picture of the " Hinterweltlern," or dwellers in the Rear- World of narrow humanity. Their yearn- ings are portrayed, their joys and passions, and their sorrows find voice in a tender " Grave-Song." Science and its futility are represented by a fugue re- RICHARD STRAUSS IJ plete with chromatics. Then follows a passage en- titled " The Convalescent," showing the defeat of the spirit of sorrow and trouble, and the triumph of joy and laughter. Then follows the wild, chaotic, but wonderfully effective " Dance-Song," the exul- tation of the " Over-man." Yet the success is not lasting, for at the close, after a sudden stroke of the bell, comes the weird " Song of the Night- Wan- derer," and the work ends mystically in two keys, as if representing eternal doubt. Strange as the piece may seem, its effect is one of vast sublimity, and Nietzsche's wild philosophy has been translated into tone by a master of grand orchestral effects. " Don Quixote " is a more definite example of tone-painting, and aims to portray actual events instead of emotions or ideas. It is cast in variation form, but it goes utterly beyond the limits implied by that term, and the thematic material sometimes assumes wholly new forms in the different episodes. The introduction contains the motive of the hero himself, at first clear, but becoming involved in wild tumult and strange, illogical harmonic progres- sions as the knight gradually loses his sanity. He is represented by a solo 'cello, while the faithful Sancho (oddly enough) appears mostly on the viola. The journey begins, and the various adventures form a set of more or less clear tone-pictures. The attack 1 8 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE on the windmills results in a disastrous fall. The flock of sheep are heard, bleating in full chorus on muted brass instruments until put to flight. The knight and squire dispute, with some feeling, over the glories of chivalry. The band of pilgrims ap- proach, with ecclesiastic melodies, only to be dis- persed as robbers. The knight's vigil is depicted, and a meeting with the commonplace Dulcinea of real life. The ride through the air is made real- istic by the use of a wind-machine, a large wooden cylinder with a serrated edge, which is ground against canvas at varying speeds. The voyage in the enchanted boat ends in capsizing, the two peaceful monks are put to flight as base magicians, and the Don fights his fierce battle with the knight of the White Moon. The finale shows the returning reason of the hero, and the lucid period before his death is marked by the disappearance of all the distorted harmonies and the return of the theme in a clarified form. The next great work, " Ein Heldenleben," is a bit of autobiography on the composer's part. " There is no need of a programme," Strauss has said. " It is enough to know there is a hero fighting his enemies." Yet the work may be clearly divided into six well- marked sections. First comes the hero himself, portrayed by definite themes that are worked up to RICHARD STRAUSS 1 9 a great orchestral climax. Then come his enemies, those who refuse to acknowledge his greatness, depicted with remarkable irony by a medley of cack- ling, snarling figures for wood-wind. The hero's helpmate is represented by a solo violin, and in this section are a love-duet and other music of most bliss- ful sweetness. Then comes the hero's battle-field, and a flourish of trumpets introduces a fierce orches- tral struggle, ending with a song of victory. The hero's works of peace are then described, and the autobiographical nature of the composition is made evident by the introduction of a number of themes from the composer's earlier works, " Don Juan," " Eulenspiegel," " Tod und Verklarung," and the rest, as well as the song, " Traum durch die Damme- rung." One writer asserts that there are twenty- three reminiscences in all, introduced with such consummate skill that they seem component parts of the piece. The final section shows the hero's de- parture from an ungrateful world. The work is grandly planned, and superbly orchestrated, but, like many others of the composer, it lacks something in melodic invention. Strauss paints with themes that are direct enough, but commonplace, often even repellent. Yet his use of them is wonderful, and he creates unexampled climaxes. The " Helden- leben " is grand in conception, but its harmonic 2O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE ugliness caused one of his critics to remark, " Das muss ein fiirchterliches Leben sein ! " A more recent orchestral story is the " Sinfonia Domestica," depicting a day in his family life. It is a very boisterous day, according to appearances, and the butterfly of domestic bliss is broken on the wheel of orchestral intricacy. There are three themes, one apiece for father, mother, and child. The composer has given out no complete analysis, but ingenious critics pretend to see the advent of aunts and other relatives, and the comparison of the child with each of his parents. " The work begins in the afternoon," said Strauss, in conversation with the author, " and lasts overnight until the next morn- ing. The final fugue represents the education of the child." In the field of opera, Strauss has made two at- tempts so far, and has already planned a third, in the shape of a one-act drama. " Guntram," the earliest venture, has not won popular success, and has been practically laid aside since its appearance at Wei- mar in 1894. Guntram belongs to a mystic fra- ternity aiming to convert the world by the power of song. In the land of the tyrannical Duke Robert, he rescues Freihild, who is about to drown herself to escape marriage with the hated ruler. Guntram is taken to court by Freihild's grateful RICHARD STRAUSS 21 father, but his praises of peace and love serve only to anger the fiery duke. Robert draws his sword and rushes upon Guntram, who is forced to kill him. Though all agree that Guntram is blameless, because he has acted in self-defence, his own conscience tells him that rivalry in love was his motive, and to main- tain the standard of his knightly brotherhood, he is forced to renounce Freihild for ever. " Feuersnoth," a later work, is based on an old Oudenarde legend of a scornful maiden who is pun- ished, for her pride, by transformation into the only source of fire in town, and consequent exposure to the eyes of the multitude. In the opera, the heroine is Diemut, daughter of the Burgomaster of Munich. A mysterious stranger, Kunrad, comes on the scene, and the pair fall in love. When the children, accord- ing to custom, make bonfires through which true lovers must jump, Kunrad invites Diemut to take the leap, and kisses her before the crowd. But she resents this public avowal, and plans revenge. As in the legend, he tries to ascend to her room in a basket, but is left hanging in mid-air. He takes vengeance, in his turn, by casting spells that put out all fire in the town. He utters bitter reproaches against all the people, and their needed fire is re- turned to them only through Diemut's renewed allegiance to her lover. 22 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE The orchestral part of the work is its chief glory. The final love-scene and climax form the chief con- cert excerpt from the work, but the gaiety and mockery of the populace is perhaps the most success- ful touch. The colours are laid on in broad masses, with a sure hand. This singular opera also contains the touch of autobiography, and Kunrad's re- proaches of the people are made to indicate clearly the impatience of Strauss with critics blinded to his genius, even as they had been to that of Wagner before him. For the rest, Strauss himself calls the work a comic opera, and its legendary nature and popular character certainly give credence to the assertion. Yet its irony and symbolism make it more than this, and although some regard it as a huge joke, others see in it a new defence of a new genius. What shall be the verdict passed on the works of such a man? That he has genius of the very highest quality is undeniable. The world had scarcely grasped the full meaning of Wagner's rich orchestral colours when this quiet young iconoclast came on the scene, and adopted an orchestral lan- guage that went beyond Wagner's in intricacy. His technique in instrumentation is absolutely unrivalled, absolutely marvellous. Although the forces of the modern orchestra are so great that many men are RICHARD STRAUSS 23 overwhelmed in the effort to direct them, he not only wields them, but plays with them in careless mastery. The musical world of to-day is still in a state of astonishment at the consummate ease with which he throws the great masses of colour upon his immense musical canvases. But back of it all arise doubts. Has he used his colours for the best effects, or has he gone astray in the labyrinth of musical impressionism? These great outbursts of tone, these glorious combinations of instruments, are means to an end, and not the end itself. Strauss uses them in an attempt to make music tell a definite story, or paint an actual picture. " Musicians have all done the same," said Strauss to the author ; " even Beethoven wrote programme music." " Yes, the Pastoral Symphony, of course," he continued, in answer to a question, " but also the ninth, the Eroica, in fact, all of them." The use of a definite programme, or character, or scheme of events for the composer to work upon, is neces- sary to him. " I cannot write without it," he con- fessed. Yet it seems almost as if he had reached the confines of his art, the Ultima Thule beyond which music could not go. Already in the " Sinfonia Domestica " he appears to have overstepped the sublime and become ridiculous. Yet we must hearken to the musical warnings of himself and his 24 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE friends, and remember that Wagner, and even Beethoven, were bitterly assailed in their early years. It may be that the next generation will accept these orchestral intricacies as its daily bread; but it is more than likely that a more rational school will follow these wild though Titanic strivings. Not all the music of the world has been of the programme variety. The suites of Bach, uniting crystalline beauty with their polyphonic character, tell no story. The symphonies of Haydn and Mozart charm by melodious themes and well- balanced contrasts. Beethoven himself, Strauss to the contrary notwithstanding, did not always aim to elucidate a plot in his lofty measures. Schubert sang his " native wood-notes wild " with regard for nothing but their ineffable tenderness and beauty. Even Schumann and Mendelssohn, landscape artists both, have left us music that is attractive without the printed explanation. After these composers the question arose, could we do, on the symphonic stage, what Wagner did for opera ? The answer was in the affirmative ; Berlioz, Liszt, and now Strauss, have proved amply that a story can be told in tones. But the further question now confronts us, is that the highest function of music? Some say yes, some no. It is not impossible that a genius may yet arise who shall combine the RICHARD STRAUSS 2$ orchestral mastery of a Strauss or a Wagner with the direct appeal of Schubert or Mozart. That Strauss himself can write music of exquisite charm, is fully shown by his songs. Contain- ing many modulations that sound strange at first, and some that seem needless, they are imbued with an exquisite melodic charm that is all the more wonderful in contrast with the unpleasing character of many of his orchestral themes. Some of them are priceless musical gems of the purest water. In- volved though they seem at first, they gradually shine forth as possessing the utmost unity and direct- ness. Their free modulations separate them from the earlier German Lieder, and almost make of them a new school ; but in appealing, irresistible beauty, they are among those that go directly to the heart and charm away the pain of the world. The vocal works of Strauss include other than solo numbers. Besides the hundred songs with piano, many of which have received also an orches- tral setting, there are a couple of sixteen-voiced anthems. " Enoch Arden," set as melodrama (i. e. for spoken voice and piano), is not a mere experi- ment, but a work of great beauty, in which the com- poser has too modestly limited the dimensions of the piano part. There are also some effective male choruses and ballads with orchestra, such as Uh- 26 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE land's " Das Thai," and " Taillefer." Taken as a whole, these show that if Strauss is really astray in his orchestral paths of musical ugliness, he has gone in that direction from definite choice, and not from lack of ability to win laurels in more melodious fields. CHAPTER II. GERMAN TONE - POETS AND SYMPHONISTS IF Richard Strauss is young, Siegmund von Hausegger is still younger. He was born in Graz, Austria, on August 16, 1872. He was a member of a musical family, for his father, Friedrich von Hausegger, gave up a barrister's career, while still in his early years, to devote himself to the art. The elder musician became professor of theory and his- tory at the University of Graz, published various pamphlets, such as " Musik als Ausdriick," " Wag- ner und Schopenhauer," and so on, and contributed regularly to a number of music journals. Here again we find the auspicious combination of keen childish intelligence and a musical atmos- phere, so it is not surprising to read that the youthful Siegmund showed his talents at a very early age. In his school-days he amused himself by composing " musical pictures " of Hercules and Epaminondas. While still in the Gymnasium, he produced a Mass, 27 28 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE which was given in concert, under his own leader- ship, in May, 1899. After a few years at the uni- versity he devoted himself wholly to music, studying score-reading with Degener, and composition with his father. With the aid of the local Wagner society, which his father had founded, he gave excerpts from " Parsifal " and other works, culminating with a complete performance of the " Ring," which he accompanied on the piano while reading from the orchestral score, a feat that astonished the audi- ence. The piano sonatas and chamber music of his boy- hood were now supplemented by a piano quartette, a fantasia, and other works. In the orchestral field, the young man began to win his laurels by the ballad " Odinsmeeresritt." This was followed by the one- act opera " Helfried," for which he wrote both words and music. This opera, wholly in the Wag- nerian vein, scored a decided success at Graz in 1893. Two years later Siegmund and his father travelled to Berlin, hoping to interest the managers and public of the capital in a second opera, " Zinnober; " but their efforts were in vain. The new work, however, was given a hearing at the Munich court theatre, under Strauss, in 1898. The libretto is based on a fanciful tale of Hoffmann, and the title role, the dwarf Zinnober, is not sung, but spoken. SIEGMUND VON HAUSEGGER. GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 29 A number of songs and choruses followed, all of unusual merit. Then came the first revelation of Hausegger's real greatness, in the form of his " Dionysiac Fantasie," a symphonic poem for full orchestra. This was followed by a still more im- portant work, in the same field, the symphonic poem " Barbarossa," first performed in March, 1900, and many times repeated in Europe and America. In these works the composer achieved a surety of orchestral utterance, a full grasp of in- strumental resources, and, above all, a thorough mastery of melodic charm and harmonic richness. If not yet the equal of Strauss in variety and power, Hausegger has certainly surpassed him in direct loveliness. A single work does not create a new school, but " Barbarossa " seems a step in the right direction. Its beauties are clear, sane, unforced, and when the frenetic school of impressionists have had their day, this composition will surely come into its own. The tale of Barbarossa is widely known, and ap- peals strongly to the Teutonic heart. The old emperor, like many another legendary hero, from King Arthur to the Hussite warriors of Bohemia, is not dead, but sleeps, according to tradition, in the depths of the mountain Kyffhauser. Whenever the needs of his people become too pressing, and 3O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE their burdens too heavy to be borne, Barbarossa will awake, and lead his downtrodden subjects to victory once more. The first of the three parts, or movements, into which the work is divided, represents the distress of the people. Power and nobility are in the open- ing themes, and a simple grandeur. There are not wanting passages of more appealing tenderness, of almost pastoral simplicity. Not yet is the emperor needed, for the exuberant joyousness of the music tells us that all is still well. But the picture fades, the glad opening measures are transformed into a sombre presage of coming woe. Wild blasts of pain follow, a picture of universal lamentation. In vain do the more beautiful themes reassert them- selves ; the tumult breaks out afresh. Suddenly all is hushed, and for the first time the Barbarossa theme is heard, as if to tell the people that in him is their only hope. Again the uproar resounds, and the movement closes in wild confusion. Then comes a picture of the enchanted mountain and the sleeping king. It is shadowy, weird, alto- gether mysterious in effect. Soft, delicate, almost spectral themes are woven and interwoven to pro- duce the most ghostly effects. Barbarossa him- self is suggested by his theme. There are strange horn-calls; echoes that die away; drums that roll GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 3! in subdued intensity. The picture of the emperor awakens hope, delight; but he is still asleep, and the movement ends with renewed mystery. The last movement represents the awakening and triumph. There are trumpet-calls, faint and far off as from the depths of the mountain. All is sus- pense, expectation. Again the trumpets are heard. At last the emperor and his knights ride forth, with martial fanfares. Their march grows more and more excited, until it merges into a battle-scene, terminated by a climax of triumph, and a long, happy thanksgiving. There is but one defect in the work, it is too extended. Its rare beauty prevents it from seeming spun out, but it would become even more effective if reduced by a third or a quarter of its extreme length. If Hausegger uses so much material in one work, there is danger that he may find little of new interest for later compositions. But even if he has produced another work only after a long interval, his " Barbarossa " is one of the few great master- pieces of the modern school. He conducted this work in person, when it was first given, at one of the Kaim concerts in Munich. Its beauty may have aided him in obtaining appoint- ment as assistant conductor of that orchestra, but he had already gained considerable experience in 32 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE leading the operas and concerts of his native Gra2 He remained in Munich three years, leaving that city to become leader at the Frankfort Museum. At one time he thought of retiring to Graz, and devoting himself wholly to composition, but this plan was not carried out, and he is still in Frankfort. One of the great events of the 1904 Tonkiinstler- fest, which he led in that city, was the production of a new symphonic poem, " Wieland der Schmied." Wieland is the cunning smith, who makes wonder- ful swords that can cut off a head so cleanly that it remains in place. But even his skill does not satisfy him, and he feels a wild longing to scale heaven itself. From the celestial regions appears the maid Schwanhilde, whom he would claim for his own; but she, terrified by earthly passion, re- tires to her lofty abode, and leaves him to vain lamentation. A second part of the work shows Wieland's despair ; Schwanhilde is forgotten, and he is as one dead. At last, however, her image revives him with a hope. He uses all his skill to forge for himself a pair of wings (third movement), and rises aloft, where she awaits him. In the last move- ment, the joyful pair leave the dull world behind, and take their flight to regions of eternal sunlight. As conductor, Hausegger displays amazing gifts. It is the usual thing at present for an orchestral GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 33 leader to dispense with certain scores, but the absolute sureness displayed by Hausegger in direct- ing from memory such works as the " Don Juan " of Strauss, or the " Dante " symphony of Liszt, bor- ders on the marvellous. His manner on the plat- form, however, has been called decidedly ungainly. He seems almost like an awkward schoolboy, but his youthful spirits and boundless enthusiasm are sure to infect the audience as well as the orchestra. He leads without pauses for applause, except at the end of a work. He aims to have unity of effect in his programmes, giving, for instance, the two great Schubert symphonies in one concert, and symphonies by Brahms and Bruckner in another. Altogether, he is well worthy of his place among those foremost few who are teaching us the worth of the modern orchestra, whether they play on it or write for it. Another composer who won his first laurels as conductor is Gustav Mahler. He was born at Kalisht, in Bohemia, on July 7, 1860. His early education was obtained at Iglau and Prague, after which came a period of further development at the Vienna University, joined with two years of study under Bruckner at the conservatory. But this happy epoch came to an end, and Mahler found himself compelled to work for his bread and butter, to use "^^^t^r . *' v. *' 'T^^V his own words. / 34 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Like many other struggling artists, he began his career in the smaller theatres. His quick musical understanding served him in good stead during this part of his life, for he had to lead many works which he had never even heard before, and he found himself thus forced to give his own interpretations. Prague, Cassel, Leipzig, and Pesth became in suc- cession the scene of his labours. In 1888 his accom- plishments were so marked that he was selected by Pollini to take full charge of a Hamburg theatre, and he soon made the operatic performances of that city famous through Europe. At this time his activity in composition began to bear fruit. An incomplete opera, " Die Argo- nauten," and another on the popular subject of " Riibezahl," were examples of a formative period in his work. Then followed some beautiful vocal numbers, a fragrant bouquet of songs, with piano or orchestral accompaniment. " Das Klang- ende Lied," a more ambitious choral work, won decided recognition, and gave new evidence of the composer's growth, but it is in the symphonic field that Mahler's genius has become fully evident. Mahler is sometimes regarded as the successor of Bruckner, with the distinction that he succeeded where Bruckner failed. The struggles and partial successes of the earlier master are now a matter of GUSTAV MAHLER. GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 35 history, and his efforts to express worthy ideas in the symphonic form, if not always effective, have won many admirers. Another interesting compari- son is frequently made between Mahler and Strauss. Both are adepts in handling the modern orchestra, and both are, in large measure, devoted to pro- gramme-music. But while Strauss has developed the symphonic poem and the single movement idea, Mahler has tried to broaden the symphony itself. Like Strauss, he gives no definite analysis of his works ; but he avoids the mistake of trying to make music express too concrete ideas. He is a tone-poet, in the highest sense of the word. His second symphony, given at Vienna in 1900, was the first work to arouse wide-spread enthusiasm, and this only after a partial failure in Berlin. It is entitled " Ein Sommermorgentraum," and expresses a pessimism that finds its cure in simple faith. The first movement depicts despair that is hardly con- soled by the beauties of nature, rejects all dreams of future glory, and is untouched as yet by the religious contemplation hinted at in the closing choral. Then comes an idyllic movement ending with the same unsatisfied struggles. The third movement shows the hero seeking the haunts of men, and becoming disgusted with their eternal, restless bickering. The fourth movement, entitled " Ur- 36 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE licht," consists of an alto solo, supported by orches- tra, with the following words, taken from " Des Knaben Wunderhorn " : " O Roschen Rot, Der Mensch liegt in grosster Not, Der Mensch liegt in grosster Pein, Ja lieber mOcht' im Himmel sein. Da kam ich auf einen breiten Weg ; Da kam ein Engelein und wollt' mich abweisen ; Ach, nein, ich liess mich nicht abweisen, Ich bin von Gott, ich will wieder zu Gott. Der liebe Gott wird mich ein Lichtchen geben, Wird leuchten mir bis an das ewig selig Leben." After this movement, which is worked up to a beautiful climax, comes the finale, at first an orches- tral apotheosis, but ending with a grand chorus of triumphant faith. The success of this work drew renewed attention to Mahler's first, or " Titan " symphony. These were soon followed by a third, entitled " Natur- leben," in which the vocal innovations are again employed. This time the work portrays a pantheis- tic idea of the exaltation of nature and life. The first movement, wholly separate in idea from the others, again represents the search for a satisfactory solution of this world's life. Then follow a delight- ful minuet and a charming scherzando, bubbling GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 37 over with the joy of nature. The fourth movement introduces the usual alto voice, this time with the words of the " Brummglocke," by Nietzsche. 1 The fifth movement is not unlike a joyous carol, given by a boy-choir, and accompanied by an orchestra in which the tinkling of bells plays a prominent part. The final movement, as before, is an apotheosis. Still another symphony, depicting the joys of immortality, and ending with the chorus, " Das ist das himmlische Leben," has not been so well re- ceived by the critics, in spite of some beauties in its earlier movements. In this, as in all his work, Mahler shows qualities in many cases the reverse of those possessed by Strauss. Where the latter is involved and chromatic, Mahler has aimed at the more direct effects of a grand simplicity. His clear melodies and delightful rhythm have made more than one critic compare him with Bizet, though the like- ness is not fully apparent. With this thematic simplicity, however, goes an orchestration that is of 1 The mystic words of Nietzsche, written for the strokes of the bell tolling the hour, are as follows : One ! O Man, take heed 1 Two ! What says the deep midnight ? Three ! I have slept, I have slept ; Four ! I have awakened from a deep dream ; Five ! The world is deep ; Six I And deeper than the day showed ; Seven ! Deep is its woe ; Eight I Joy, deeper still than heart-sorrow ; Nine ! Woe bids us pass away ; Ten I Yet all joy wants eternity ; Eleven ! Wants deep, deep eternity) Twelve 1 38 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE the utmost modern intricacy, at times giving ap- parent unclearness to works that often show true poetic feeling. For the last few years Mahler has been conductor of the Philharmonic concerts in Vienna, as Richter s successor, and director of the court opera, posi- tions which he still holds. His rank as orchestral leader is of the very highest, and his notable achievements in composition will soon make him known in all civilized lands. The steady and con- sistent growth shown in his works is an indication that he may reach even greater heights in the future. Another orchestral leader of world-wide fame is Felix Weingartner. He was born June 3, 1863, in the Dalmatian town of Zara, where his father was chief of the telegraph service. On the death of the latter, in 1868, his mother removed to Graz, where the boy began his musical studies, at first with her, then under Dr. Wilhelm Mayer, director of the Styrian musical union. His first published works were three groups of piano pieces, which appeared in 1880. In the next year we find him deep in study at the Leipzig conservatory, where he won the Mozart prize. In 1882 came the first meeting with Liszt, whose lively interest led the young student to settle in FELIX WEINGARTNER. GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 39 Weimar two years later. Thus began a lasting friendship, marked on one side by the most active sympathy for the struggling artist, and on the other by the greatest reverence for the renowned pianist and composer. Weingartner adds his tribute of praise to the wide-spread adulation of the Weimar master, who was beloved no less for his high ideal- ism than for his services to art. Through Liszt's aid, Weingartner's first opera, " Sakuntala," was produced in the Weimar court theatre. Not blessed with wealth, Weingartner now found himself obliged to make his own way, and adopted the career of orchestral leader. A year at the Konigsberg Stadttheater was followed by two at Dantzig, during which a second opera, " Malawika," received a performance at Munich. The composer now alludes to these two as youthful indiscretions, but a third opera, " Genesius," dealing with Chris- tianity in old Rome, though not well received in Berlin, has met with success in many other German cities. Weingartner had profited much by a thorough study of Wagner's " Nibelungen-Ring," and this influence is plainly evident in his " Orestes." This is a later work, consisting of three one-act music dramas, after x^Eschylus, " Agamemnon," " Das Todtenopfer," and " Die Erynien." Wein- gartner always writes or arranges his own librettos. 40 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Two years of directing at Hamburg were marked by friction with Von Billow, and decided disagree- ments with his successor, Pollini. They were fol- lowed by two years as court leader in Mannheim, which led to a similar position in Berlin. Of the troubles in the lesser theatres of his earlier days, Weingurtner speaks with decided disgust, although he admits that the experience was of great value in his later concert career. " Through these en- gagements," he writes to the author, " I became acquainted with the wretchedness of the lesser theatres. The salary was small, 150 marks ($37.50) a month, for seven months and a half, nothing for the rest of the year. ... In Dantzig there were but four or five first violins, two contra- basses, third-rate singers, a miserable chorus, and no chance for proper rehearsals, as the directors insisted on such an extensive repertoire." The harsh criticisms of " Genesius " in Berlin, against which Weingartner protested, led to a long series of attacks upon him, ending only in 1896. Meanwhile he had been also leader of the royal symphony concerts, and by raising these to their present high standard he won his first recognition as one of the few really great conductors of to-day. In 1897 he was compelled by nerve troubles to resign his theatrical post, and since then he has won GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 4! fresh laurels as leader of the Kaim orchestra in Munich. He still travels to Berlin to conduct the symphony concerts, and besides this makes many European tours, sometimes playing in chamber music. His recent appearance in New York was a personal triumph, over which he expresses himself as highly pleased. His compositions include many songs and piano works, all widely popular. In recent years he has produced much chamber music, notably three string quartettes and a sextette. In the orchestral field his two new symphonies, though displaying great skill in thematic treatment, are less important than the symphonic poems, " King Lear," and " The Elysian Fields." The former is a musical version of the well-known tragedy, displaying much dra- matic power. This was the work chosen by the composer in his American appearance. The latter was inspired by Arnold Bocklin's enchanting pic- ture, " Die Gefilde der Seligen," and is marked by great beauty. Weingartner has written several pamphlets, among them one on " The Symphony after Bee- thoven." His outspoken ideas are well calculated to renew discussion of the symphonic poem and its functions. The orchestral works of Liszt, as well as those of Strauss, show that the subject must be 42 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE one that is well-known, so that the audience may fol- low the musical thought without having to read arbitrary printed notes. Liszt's great pictures " Dante," " Tasso," " Faust," and the rest depict familiar characters, and in large measure explain themselves. Mahler's titles give a broad, general plan, easy to grasp. So, too, do many of the Strauss creations, but not all. In " Don Quixote " the pro- gramme grows arbitrary, while the " Sinfonia Domestica " becomes a veritable puzzle, until the composer deigns to give us the key. If he wishes this work taken seriously, then the least he can do is to invite the musical public to spend a day at his home, so that they may be able to judge the com- position intelligently. Hausegger's " Barbarossa " is at least a well-known legend, and Bocklin's pic- ture, if not made visible to every concert audience, may still be described in print, and represents a sub- ject fraught with poetical meaning. Bocklin has had another and an even more direct musical tribute to his paintings, in the shape of Hans Huber's second symphony. This work, which the composer intended to call the " Bocklin Sym- phony," aims to translate into tone the moods sug- gested by an entire series of the artist's canvases. Not movements merely, but themes themselves, are taken to represent certain definite pictures. Thus, GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 43 according to commentators, a tender theme near the beginning of this musical catalogue typifies the beautiful meadow scene, " Es lacht die Au' " ; the scherzo illustrates the fauns and satyrs that the artist loved to depict; while the slow movement is in- spired by the " Sacred Grove," and the " Hymn of Spring." In the finale the analyst need no longer rack his brains, for the musical variations are each given the title of one of the artist's pictures. The attempt to reproduce in tone some of the great compositions of famous painters is certainly legitimate, according to musical standards. Here there is no question of any involved story, needing a detailed plot for the hearer's use, but the mere title will often prove sufficient to aid him in threading the tonal labyrinth. Many examples of this point may be found in the works of Liszt, whose " Hunnen- schlacht," after Kaulbach, and " Dance of Death," after Orcagna, preceded by many years the works of Huber and Weingartner. Hans Huber is a native and a resident of Switzer- land. He was born at Schonewerd, June 28, 1852. His musical studies brought him under Richter and Reinecke, at Leipzig. He soon obtained a promi- nent post in the music school at Basel, of which he has been director for the past eight years. He numbers among his important works two operas, 44 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE " Kundrun," and " Weltfriihling " ; many beautiful works for voices and orchestra, such as the " Nord- seebilder " and " Pandora " overtures; a violin con- certo, two piano concertos; and three symphonies, the first entitled " Wilhelm Tell." He is also to be credited with chamber-music, songs, choruses, and organ works. He shows imagination, and some freshness of melodic invention, but there is an un- evenness and an excess of ingenuity in his compo- sitions that prevents their being classed with the great works of the preceding composers. It may be mentioned, in passing, that if Switzer- land possesses no musical genius of the first rank, she yet has many composers who deserve at least a brief notice, and who may do excellent work in the future. Such are E. Jaques-Dalcroze, of Geneva, who tries to combine modern French tendencies with folk-song effects; Gustave Doret, a protege of Saint-Saens, whose " Hymne a la Beaute " displays much passionate strength ; Rudolf Ganz, of Zurich, whose youthful exuberance is now developing into more mature talent; Otto Bar- blan, who displays much originality; and Georg Haeser, of Zurich, whose choral work is excel- lent. Prominent in chamber music and lesser vocal numbers are such men as Fritz Niggli, Hermann Suter, Richard Franck, or Joseph Lauber. Edward GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 45 Combe, of Geneva, and A. Denereaz, of Lausanne, have won success in the smaller orchestral forms, while Lothar Kempter, of Zurich, has produced an effective tenor scena entitled " Lethe." But it is probable that all these men would receive lesser notice in a greater country. An attempt to give modern tone-painting a new application was made by Hans Koessler, whose symphonic variations aim to picture the different traits of Brahms. Although suitable in depicting world-famous characters, this method loses much force when applied to less prominent subjects. Even Beethoven's third symphony seems loftier, when dedicated to the unnamed hero, than if it were a personal portrait of Napoleon, with every self-con- stituted analyst free to expound its meaning. There have been various attempts to picture people in tone, but the best have been interesting rather than suc- cessful. Elgar's most recent variations, depicting some of his friends, are frankly little more than a sly joke in tonal portraiture, and base their fame on intrinsic musical worth. After lamenting the death and burial of Brahms, Koessler aims to show him as friend, as lover of children, as wor- shipper of nature, as humourist, and as a glorious example for all to emulate ; but the composer grows prolix in the effort. Hans Koessler, born January I, ST. FRANCIS SEMINARY. 46 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE 1853, at Waldeck, has also won renown as teacher at Dresden and Buda-Pesth, and has brought forth a symphony, a violin concerto, a good cantata, and many lesser works; but his attempt at character- drawing in music is hardly a success, and even the placid Brahms was not as dull as the variations would make him out. The name of Hugo Kaun should be of especial interest to Americans, because of his long sojourn in this country, and his choice of American subjects. Born at Berlin, on March 21, 1863, he received his chief training in composition under Kiel, at the Meisterschule. After serving his time in the army, he came to the United States, and in 1887 made Milwaukee his home. There he founded the Man- nerchor of that city, which gave concerts with the Thomas Orchestra, and there he composed many important works, some of which were given by Thomas at Chicago. In 1902 he returned to Berlin, where he is now devoting himself wholly to com- position. Kaun numbers among his works two operas, " Der Pietist," in one act, and " Der Maler von Antwerpen," the overture to which was performed at Chicago. A great festival march, dedicated to the American nation, was also given there, as well as the symphony, " An Mein Vaterland," a work of GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS tf much virility. He has written several large choral numbers, notably the cantata " Normannenal> schied ; " also about sixty songs and piano works. A " Carnival " suite won much success at Milwau- kee, in 1891. During the same year an early symphonic poem, " Vineta," received a performance. His works in this form are clear, tasteful, and de- cidedly effective. " Hiawatha " has not yet been given in America, but " Minnehaha," a companion work, has received decided recognition. The third of this set, " Minnehaha's Death," is still in manu- script. Before his return to Berlin, Kaun won a decided triumph in that capital by a concert devoted wholly to his own works, and his new " Maria Magdalena " was given in 1904 by the Meiningen orchestra. At the head of this well-known concert organi- zation is Wilhelm Berger, a native of Boston. Born August 9, 1 86 1, he was taken to Bremen by his parents, afterward studying in Berlin with the great Kiel. For many years he made his home in the German capital, where he devoted himself to composition. In 1898 he won a prize with his set- ting of Goethe's " Meine Gottin," and his " Gesang der Geister," for mixed chorus and orchestra, was also well received. His " Todtentanz," an earlier work, received a Boston Symphony performance. 48 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE His present activity in conducting has not made him withdraw from the field of composition. Another important name familiar to Americans is that of Georg Henschel. He was born in Breslau, on February 18, 1850. After studying there and at Leipzig, ht won success as a baritone singer, and in 1 88 1 he became familiar as the first conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. After leaving this organization, he founded the London Symphony concerts, and became professor in the Royal College of Music. He has composed two operas, " Friedrich der Schone," and " Nubia," also the operetta, " A Sea Change." His many beautiful songs have been made familiar by the concerts given by his American wife, with his aid, and her loss inspired his noble Requiem. Familiar to many Americans by reason of his long career as a teacher is Karl Reinecke, who was born at Altona, on June 23, 1824. During his youth he was famous as a pianist, and made many tours. His teaching began in 1851, at Cologne, and has been carried on at Barmen, Breslau, and finally Leipzig. He was at one time conductor of the famous Gewandhaus concerts. His long list of compositions includes two Masses, three symphonies, five overtures, the opera, " King Manfred," several lighter dramatic works, four concertos, a number of GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 49 cantatas, and much children's music, all delightfully fresh and melodious. Famous in Germany, if not too well known out- side of that country, is Jean Louis Nicode. He was born August 12, 1853, and is, therefore, some- what older than many of the modern tone-poets. After tuition from his father, Kullak, and Kiel at Berlin, he became piano professor in the Dresden Royal Conservatory. His influence has become ex- tensive through his teaching, as well as his compo- sitions. After a time he, too, entered on the career of conductor, and led the Dresden Philharmonic concerts. In a couple of years he gave this up in order to compose, but in 1893 we ^ n ^ mm resuming the baton. At present he is living in Berlin, as pianist and teacher. His works show many examples of the pro- gramme tendency in symphonic poems. Among these are his " Carnival Pictures," " Maria Stuart," a short orchestral introduction and scherzo called " Die Jagd nach dem Gliick," and some Italian dances. There are also, for orchestra, a " Jubilee March," and a violin " Romanza." The lesser works include two 'cello sonatas, many piano solos and duets, and numerous songs. But the two com- positions that have done most to establish his fame are the Symphonic Variations, Op. 27, and " Das 5O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Meer," a work for male chorus, soloists, orchestra and organ. This is not a cantata, though contain- ing voice parts; rather it is a great suite, in which vocal movements are judiciously contrasted with purely orchestral numbers. All of Nicode's music reaches a remarkably high level, and his larger works are planned with the most imposing orchestral architecture. His latest composition is the choral symphony, " Gloria," a romantic " Sturm und Sonnen-Lied." George Alfred Schumann was born at Konigstein, Saxony, on October 25, 1866. After lessons from his father, who was city musical director, he con- tinued his studies at Dresden. A period at the Leipzig conservatory resulted in the production of two symphonies, an orchestral serenade, and many lesser works, all of which gained him the Beethoven prize in 1887. A period of five years as conductor of the Dantzig Gesangverein was followed by a simi- lar length of time in Bremen, where he led both the Philharmonic Orchestra and the chorus organiza- tion. In 1900 he settled in Berlin, as conductor of the Singakademie. His first noteworthy work was " Amor and Psyche," for chorus and orchestra. His symphonic variations on a seventeenth-century choral crossed the ocean, and made his name familiar in America. GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 51 This was followed by an overture, " The Dawn of Love," in which Love dawns in a rather noisy fashion. His variations and double fugue on a gay theme are, at times, somewhat forced in their gaiety, but the " Totenklage," for chorus and orchestra, with words from Schiller's " Braut von Messina," is decidedly effective. Altogether, he is a composer whose works show much merit, but often a lack of any great delicacy in thought, and a heavy hand in instrumentation. Friedrich Gernsheim, born at Worms on July 17, 1839, belongs to an older generation. In spite of the easy circumstances resulting from the fact that he came of a wealthy family, he displayed great earnestness in his early studies. Lessons at home, in Mainz, and in Frankfort culminated in the cus- tomary finishing period at Leipzig, under Moscheles, Richter, and others. A sojourn in Paris followed, during which Gernsheim became an ardent supporter of the abortive Wagner movement, and where he enjoyed the friendship of Saint-Saens, Lalo, and other notables. In 1861 he returned to his native land, to succeed Levi as director at Saarbriicken. A long period of conservatory teaching in Cologne was followed by a call to Rotterdam. There, as director -of the Society for the Encouragement of Musical Art, he entered upon a career of varied 52 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE activity that lasted sixteen years. In 1890 he be- came head of the Stern Singing Society, and teacher in the Stern Conservatory in Berlin, where he has since then made his home. In recent years he has been prominent in the National Academy of Art, and in 1901 he was placed in charge of a so-called Masterschool for Composition. His numerous works display the most solid worth, even though the academic quality is present at times. Of his four symphonies, the first and the last are most frequently given. For mixed chorus and orchestra he has composed several great works, " Die Nordische Sommernacht " and " Der Nornen Wiegenlied " being among these. Of his male choruses, also with orchestra, such works as " Salamis," and the mediaeval " Wachterlied," are in the repertoire of every German Mannerchor. There are many worthy examples of chamber music by him, and a violin concerto that won a Boston success under Paur. Robert Kahn, born at Mannheim on July 21, 1865, received his musical education under such teachers as Kiel, Rheinberger, and even Brahms. He has published little in the larger forms, but his lesser works display a thematic excellence and a smoothness in leading the voices that have won him wide recognition. Leipzig was the scene of his early GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 53 activity, but in 1893 he became piano teacher in the Berlin Hochschule. Five years later he took charge of the theory and composition, and in 1903 was named Royal Professor. An Elegiac Overture in C minor, played from manuscript at one of Paur's Boston concerts, proved extremely effective. It is a shapely work, with a rather dissonant introduction, but clean-cut themes and an excellent climax. Ferdinand Thieriot, another of the elders, was born in Hamburg, April 7, 1838. After lessons at Altona and Vienna, he too came under the much- admired Rheinberger, whose guidance was of the greatest value. A small theatre position in Ansbach was followed by the leadership of the Glogau Singa- kademie, after which came fifteen years of activity in Graz, both as conductor and composer. Thieriot still reverts with pleasure to his stay at the Austrian city. " In the beautiful Alpine landscape," he writes, " I passed an extremely happy and inspiring time, in the midst of a set of people all highly cultivated, and all so enthusiastic over music." Among these people was the elder Hausegger, whose delightful " Snow-Fable " Thieriot set to music. After a long stay in Leipzig, devoted to composition, he returned to his native Hamburg, where he now resides. Among his eighty published works, the orchestral fantasie, " Loch Lomond," takes a high place, 54 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE although Thieriot affords another proof that Ger- man earnestness cannot always assimilate the light- ness of the Scotch style. The Sinfonietta and over- ture to " Turandot " are well known, the former having received a Boston performance under Nikisch. Four manuscript symphonies are some- times heard abroad, one in C major being especially preferred. There is also much chamber music and choral work by Thieriot, and an opera, " Renata." Josef Rheinberger, who died in 1902, still lives in the memory of his many famous pupils, and de- serves more than a passing mention. Born in 1837, he played the piano at five, and the organ at seven years of age. His long career as teacher in the Royal School of Music, at Munich, was supple- mented by his many works as a composer. In the orchestral field he produced the Florentine Sym- phony, a tone-picture, " Wallenstein," a fantasia, three overtures, and several piano and organ con- certos. He composed also two operas, " Die Sieben Raben," and " Des Thiirmers Tochterlein." There is much chamber music, and an excellent Mass. All these are marked by attractive harmonies and smooth leading of the voices. An unfinished Mass, in A minor, was completed by one of Rheinberger's Boston pupils, Mr. L. A. Coerne. Another well-known composer who died recently - GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 55 (1902) was August Klughardt. A native of Kothen, he pursued his studies at Dresden, and be- came court conductor at Neustrelitz and Dessau. His symphonic poem, " Leonore," is a notable work, and his three symphonies are worthy examples of the stricter style of composition. He won further fame by several effective overtures and four operas. Moritz Moszkowski, widely known as piano com- poser and performer, has produced several orches- tral works also. His opera, " Boabdil," was suc- cessfully given in Berlin, while his symphonic poem, " Jeanne d'Arc," has also attracted attention. Besides these there are two orchestral suites, a fantasie, a violin and a piano concerto. Yet in spite of the merit of these works, his piano pieces win him most renown. He seems gifted with natural ability to assume any style he pleases, from Spanish dances to Hungarian czardas. His Humoreske, the " Moments Musicaux," the sere- nades, minuets, barcarolles, waltzes, etudes, and other works, are too well known among pianists to need enumeration. His beautiful four-hand suite, " Aus Allen Landern," and many other four-hand pieces, are equally familiar. Of all salon composers, he is the worthiest, the most classical in style. That he is not lacking in humour is shown by the autobiography which he sent recently to the Boston 56 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE pianist, Ernst Perabo. After bewailing the fact that his birth (August 23, 1854) was not marked by any great natural cataclysms, he continues : " Embit- tered by this injustice, I determined to avenge myself on the world by playing piano, which I con- tinued in Dresden and Berlin as Kullak's pupil. In spite of the theoretical instruction of Kiel and Wuerst, a desire to compose was early aroused in me. I perpetrated in time an overture, a piano concerto, two symphonies, piano and violin pieces, songs, etc. . . . My prominence as a pianist is known to you. Besides these extensive acquire- ments, I can play billiards, chess, dominoes, and violin, and can ride, imitate canary birds, and relate jokes in the Saxon dialect. I am a very tidy, ami- able man, and your devoted friend and colleague, Moritz Moszkowski." Another of the old guard is Max Bruch, born at Cologne, on January 6, 1838. He studied first at Bonn, and a four-year Frankfort scholarship which he obtained enabled him to work under Hiller, Reinecke, and Breuning. At fourteen, he began with a symphony. At twenty, he set Goethe's Singspiel, " Scherz, List, und Rache." Four years later came the opera " Lorelei," and the great male chorus-cantata " Frithjof." Soon after this, at Coblentz, came his remarkable G-minor violin con- GERMAN TONE- POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 57 certo. Conducting in Berlin, Liverpool, and Bres- lau followed, with a return to Berlin in 1892. He wrote three symphonies, an oratorio, " Moses," and a second opera, " Hermione," based on " The Winter's Tale," but he found his special field in the epic cantata. The ringing measures of " Frithjof " found a worthy counterpart in the noble dignity of " Odysseus." " Arminius," another heroic cantata, is not so great, though the composer likes it best. Other works in the same vein are " Achilleus " and " Das Lied von der Glocke," and for male chorus " Salamis," " Leonidas," and " Normannenzug." Bruch's activity is by no means ended, and new works by him still appear from time to time, such as the cantata " Damajanti." The Scharwenka brothers have won fame by composing, as well as by teaching. They are natives of Samter, Posen, where Ludwig Philipp was born in 1847, an d Franz Xaver in 1850. After studying at Kullak's Berlin Akademie, they soon founded a conservatory of their own. In 1891 they repeated this performance in New York. Philipp soon re- turned, to merge the Berlin institution with that of Klindworth, and Xaver afterward became director of the new school. Both now reside in Berlin. Philipp has composed the two choral cantatas " Herbstfeier " and " Sakuntala," two symphonies, 58 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE an " Arcadian Suite," a serenade, a festival overture, and other lesser works, reaching the opus number of 112. Xaver has won some fame as conductor and pianist, as well as in the creative field. His opera, " Mataswintha," was given in Weimar, and he is also known through a symphony and three piano concertos. Among many other excellent composers who might be named, Paul Geisler, of Leipzig, has pro- duced a round dozen of symphonic poems, among them " Der Rattenfanger von Hameln," nd " Eu- lenspiegel." The " Fata Morgana," a work in the same form by Karl Gleits, of Berlin, was produced there by Nikisch in 1898. Max Puchat, a native of Breslau, is responsible for such works as " Eupho- rion " and the " Tragodie eines Kunstlers." Otto Dorn, of Wiesbaden, is credited with a " Prome- theus " symphony, also the opera " Afraja," and the overtures " Herrmannschlacht " and " Sappho." Hans von Bronsart, husband of the famous Inge- borg, has written a symphony, " In den Alpen." Less known is August Reuss, a pupil of Thuille. His symphonic prologue, " Der Thor und der Tod," is a dramatic picture of a dialogue between Death and a blind skeptic who has wasted his life. A sym- phonic poem, " Johannisnacht," is also winning suc- cess. Josef Joachim, famous in the violin world, GERMAN TONE -POETS AND SYMPHONISTS 59 has composed several good overtures, including " Hamlet," and some excellent symphonic varia- tions. Hans Winderstein, the young but enthu- siastic concert leader in Leipzig, is responsible for a serenade, a suite, a valse caprice, and a funeral march for orchestra. Gustav Satter, of Vienna, lived for a time in Paris and received high praise from Berlioz. His works include the opera "Olanthe," the overtures "Lorelei," "An die Freude," and " Julius Csesar," also two symphonies. An extended tour in America finds expression in his tone-picture entitled " Washington." All these men rise to a high standard of excellence, and would be great in a lesser country. But in Germany, where musical knowledge is widely disseminated, it is only to be expected that there should be a large number of talents to echo the work of her leading geniuses. CHAPTER III. GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS RANKING among the very foremost, not only of his own country, but of the musical world, is Carl Goldmark, whose long and honourable career is marked by an activity still unabated. He has won laurels in many fields. His symphonies and over- tures are known and prized wherever orchestral music is cultivated; his concertos and chamber music are still favourites with aspiring soloists ; and his operas, if not all popular, are marked by sincerity of method and beauty of style, as well as richness of colouring. Goldmark was born at Keszthely, Hungary, May 1 8, 1830. Son of a cantor who possessed a remark- ably fine voice, young Carl soon showed musical gifts, and at the age of twelve appeared in public as a violinist. He continued his work in theatre orchestras until 1848, when he was obliged to enter the army of Germany, his adopted country, as one of 60 GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 6 1 the Landsturm. After the service came some con- servatory lessons at Vienna, obtained through the aid of an elder brother, Joseph; but as Joseph's connection with the revolution forced him into exile in America, the tuition soon came to an end. But Goldmark's ambition would not let him rest. Too poor to take piano lessons, he managed, out of his tiny salary, to hire a small instrument for him- self, and, after returning from his theatrical work, he would often practise half the night. He taught himself piano and singing, with such success that he was soon able to give lessons to others. He studied the scores of the great masters with the utmost thoroughness. Not content with music alone, he made himself acquainted with several languages, and became an enthusiastic student of philosophy. It was in 1855 that he began his life-work as com- poser, though none of his earlier pieces were pub- lished. His first decided success came some years later, with the " Sakuntala " overture. Based on the East Indian legend of the nymph Sakuntala, who is wooed and won by King Dushianta, then forgotten through the magic of a jealous priest, but finally remembered because of a ring the king had given her, the overture is deeply imbued with the rich, oriental colouring and warmth of instrumentation that have made Goldmark famous. Of his other 62 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE overtures, " Penthesilea " and " Im Friihling " dis- play the same vivid sensuousness, while " Prome- theus Bound," of later date, is more severe in style but altogether dignified and noble. Of symphonies, Goldmark has produced two, that is, providing that the term may be properly ap- plied to the series of instrumental pictures that go to form the " Rustic Wedding." A wedding-march with nearly a dozen variations, a bridal song, a sere- nade and garden scene with love-duet, and a dance- finale, are hardly the best example of strict form; but they show a wealth of melodic beauty that pos- sesses a perennial charm. A second symphony, in E-flat, is less often heard, but an orchestral scherzo shows the true rollicking spirit of its name, and a violin concerto remains widely popular. Some excellent chamber music and delightful vocal work have won further laurels for the composer. But it was his first opera, " The Queen of Sheba," that brought him to the notice of the musical world, by its phenomenal success. The temptations and weakness of Assad, who is so bewitched by the Queen of Sheba, at Solomon's Court, that he deserts his betrothed, Sulamith, even at their wed- ding ceremony, only to die banished in the desert as a punishment, have charmed audiences in America as well as Europe. The impressive scenes, the gor- GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 63 geous festivals, and the intensely dramatic passages have been set to music that is a constant delight. The intrigues that delayed its first production, in Vienna, only intensified the enthusiasm of its re- ception, and the composer received nearly forty re- calls. In regard to his music, Goldmark is as interested in the performances as he is conscientious in the composition. On one occasion, while travelling to see his new work given, he was drawn into an ani- mated conversation with a lady who sat next to him. At the end, he thought to please her by introducing himself as the " composer of the ' Queen of Sheba.' ' " Oh, indeed! " was the reply; " and does the post pay well ? " From the success of the opera, it is certain that the post did pay, but since then Gold- mark has been known as " court composer to the Queen of Sheba." In " Merlin," Goldmark tried to adopt a style less exclusively oriental in effect. He certainly suc- ceeded in producing music of the most luscious charm, but a confused libretto has acted as a handi- cap to the work. In the beginning, King Arthur wins against treachery and supernatural enemies by Merlin's aid; but the demon, learning that the wizard's power ceases when he begins to love, per- suades Viviane to tempt him. After the victorious 64 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE warriors return, Viviane and her maids appear, but Merlin, though greatly attracted, remains master of himself. Then comes the wonderful scene of Mer- lin's magic garden, where Viviane, introduced by the demon, first causes delightful spirit-dances, and then enters on a love-scene with Merlin, and on his revolt changes the place to a desert. Merlin's power being now gone, he must pledge his soul to the demon to save Arthur; but Viviane, who really loves him, redeems him by sacrificing herself. The music of " Merlin," when given on the concert stage, shows all of Goldmark's usual gorgeousness of style, and it is not improbable that the opera will be better appreciated in the future than it is now. " Heimchen am Herd " is an example of the simpler style introduced by Humperdinck in " Hansel and Gretel." Based on Dickens's " Cricket on the Hearth," it fallows the story quite closely. John Peerybingle's happiness is destroyed by the sight of a stranger, whom he has brought home, in close conversation with his wife. Old Tackleton, who brings the matter to John's attention, is a suitor for the hand of the beautiful orphan May, who still pines for a departed sweetheart. John is calmed by a dream, this time in a summer rose- garden inhabited by elves and fairies, while the stranger declares himself and marries May just GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 65 when Tackleton had made his wedding preparations. The simple charm and direct pathos of the music seem almost a reminder of the days of Lortzing and Kreutzer, and the vocal numbers are full of a natural freshness and beauty that cannot be too highly praised. Especially attractive are the elfin music, the prelude to the third act, and the series of lively marriage choruses that introduce the finale. " Die Kriegsgefangene " is based on an episode of the Trojan War. Achilles, mourning for Patro- clus, has killed Hector and dragged the body three times around Troy. He now buries Patroclus, but refuses funeral rites to Hector. His mother Thetis cannot move him, but Briseis, warned by the shade of Patroclus, prevails upon him to do that act of justice. Priam appears, and begs the body ; the war- riors object, but at the persuasion of Briseis the hero again yields. Briseis is now free, but she loves Achilles, and the climax of the work comes with his discovery that he returns her love. The music is a happy combination of classic simplicity with modern orchestral effects, and some critics have been bold enough to rank it as Goldmark's best work. Among the effective touches are the choruses that die away in the distance after the funeral of Patro- clus, the orchestral interlude before the last act, and the complaint of Priam. The role of Briseis is full 66 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE of captivating scenes, such as her prayer to Aphro- dite, her ballad-like song bewailing the martial harshness of Achilles' youth, and the great love- duet that ends the work. Still more recent operas by Goldmark are " Gotz von Berlichingen " ( 1903), and " Der Fremdling," not yet ( 1904) performed. In the last two decades German opera has cen- tred about Wagner. For a time, his music dramas overshadowed all else. Then it became a question of his successor, and many lesser aspirants for fame began to follow in his tracks. Now there is also an effort to find something new, or to apply the old methods in some original manner. The work of nearly all the younger Germans, in opera, divides itself into these two classes. Engelbert Humperdinck sounded a new note when he produced his " Hansel and Gretel," in 1893. The composer is certainly a great admirer of Wag- ner, whose protege he was in the later Bayreuth days. This opera, however, with its attractive fairy atmosphere, is by no means an imitation, but pos- sesses its own distinctive charm. The troubles of the children with their harsh stepmother, their wander- ings in the forest, and their adventures at the house of the witch, whom they finally push into her own oven and bake into gingerbread, are brought upon the stage in a way that charms children of a larger GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 67 growth than those for whom the work was first written. The charming tunefulness of the music, well supported by its rich scoring, took the world by storm, and marked the beginning of what may be termed the new romantic school of Germany. Its effect is not unlike that of Weber's folk-operas, but with modern orchestral colouring. The forest scene, where the children say their prayers in simple faith, and the fourteen angels do really descend from heaven to guard their slumbers, is endowed with ineffable beauty. This work marked the reaction from the four- hour style modelled after the Bayreuth dramas, and it has opened the way for a large number of short but charming fairy operas. Humperdinck himself has essayed one or two further attempts in this vein, but with less success. Born near Bonn, in 1854, his early career was devoted to architecture, not music. After Hiller persuaded him to transfer his allegiance, he studied earnestly, and won many prizes. He has been conservatory professor in Barcelona, publisher's associate at Mainz, teacher in a musical institution at Frankfort, and critic of the Zeitung in that city. His operas, mostly written for the amusement of youthful relatives at family reunions, include " Dornroschen," " Die Konigs- kinder," " Saint-Cyr," and " Die Sieben Geislein." 68 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE A Moorish Rhapsodic for orchestra is not essentially great, and " Hansel and Gretel " remains his only real success. Another of the younger composers who has shown decided originality is Wilhelm Kienzl. A native of Waizenkirchen, in Upper Austria, where he was born on January 17, 1857, he pursued his studies at Graz, at Prague, at Leipzig, and finally under Liszt at Weimar. Lectures, writings, and a concert tour were succeeded by theatre directorships at Amsterdam and Crefeld. A sojourn at Graz as symphonic conductor and vocal director was fol- lowed by theatre positions at Hamburg and Munich, after which came a return to the delightful atmos- phere of the Austrian city. Kienzl still lives at Graz, as composer and as critic of the Tageblatt. His first opera, " Urvasi," based on a subject from Kalidasa, won some meed of success on its appear- ance at Dresden in 1886. But its melodic charm and brilliant instrumentation did not wholly atone for a certain lack of dramatic effect, and it is not often heard now. A second work, " Heilmar der Narr," deals with the magic healing qualities of a seventh son, who loses his power if rewarded. He cures the beautiful Maya, but is not as successful with her mother, because he now has interested motives. When he is sought after to cure a pesti- GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 69 lence in a neighbouring community, Maya sees why his power has departed, and sacrifices herself in his arms, that he may regain it. This work, well re- ceived in its time, has been recently remodelled, and still holds the boards. But Kienzl's greatest triumph was the " Evangeli- mann." Its plot is founded on fact, and is an ex- ample of the criminal intrigue that is often found in small villages and towns far more enlightened than the Austrian hamlet of Gottweih, where the events took place. Two brothers, Mathias and Johannes, both love the same girl, Martha. Her preference for Mathias arouses the ire of Johannes, who sets fire to a barn where the lovers are meeting, and then denounces Mathias as the incendiary. Martha tries in vain to save her lover, who is sentenced to twenty years of imprisonment. At the expiration of this period, Johannes, who has prospered and lived com- fortably, is confronted at his death-bed by Mathias, who forgives his wicked brother even as he himself wishes absolution from sin, and eternal salvation. This play has met with marvellous success, having been given in no less than 168 different theatres. It has been translated into seven languages, and per- formed in such different countries as Germany, Aus- tria, Poland, Russia, Switzerland, and England, be- sides being in preparation for Paris, Brussels, and 7O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Italy. America has not yet heard the work, but America is notoriously far behind the times in operatic novelties. The composer himself has often been called to direct it, and has been the recipient of many honours. The music is pleasing in character, and its inspiration is everywhere acknowledged. The scene depicting the assembled multitude, in the first act, is replete with humourous touches, and if Mathias becomes a trifle long-winded in the mono- logue describing his imprisonment, the final scenes are treated with true dramatic instinct. Kienzl's fourth opera, the tragi-comedy " Don Quixote," depicts that hero reading in his study, dreaming of knighthood, and deciding on that peril- ous career, despite his niece Mercedes. Then comes the scene at Tirante's Inn, where he takes the guests for nobles, and insists on receiving the accolade. His attack on the wine-skins causes great tumult, from which the duke and duchess withdraw him to their castle. There (Act II.) follow the ride through the air, and other entertaining episodes, after which (Act III.) Mercedes sends her lover Carrasco, as Knight of the White Moon, to bring back the wan- derer, who returns to sanity and death. Kienzl is not only an opera composer, but has written numer- ous orchestral works, some chamber music, and many piano pieces and songs. One of his male GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS Jl choruses, " Das Volkslied," won a prize at the im- perial contest held at Frankfort in 1903, and caused the German emperor himself to present the composer with an autographed picture. Max Schillings is another upholder of the Wag- nerian traditions. Born at Diiren, in 1868, he studied law at first, in Munich, but, like Schumann, gave it up for music, and at the age of twenty-two composed his first great opera, " Ingwelde." He, too, was one of the Bayreuth enthusiasts, and directed the stage management there in 1892. The production of his opera by Mottl, two years later, brought him to Karlsruhe. He now lives in Munich, where his early legal efforts are forgotten, and his fame as a composer is everywhere known. " Ingwelde " is to some extent modelled on the Bayreuth plan. It is one of the many viking operas that have sprung up in the wake of " Tristan." Yet it has enough merit of its own to hold the stage, and has won its composer his chief renown. The heroine, who has the title role, is wife of Gest of Gladgard. Klause, the viking of Thorstein, invades the city to carry her off, but is struck apparently dead by Gest. On her uttering a mocking oath that she would follow only Gest's victims, Klause arises and claims her. At his castle, whither she is taken, Ingwelde sends him on a false errand, and through 72 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE the treachery of his brother Bran, who loves her also, he is killed. Ingwelde returns to Gladgard, but Bran pursues and kills Gest. His love prevents him from killing Ingwelde, while she refuses to avenge herself on him. Influenced by the woe and trials of hapless love, the pair push off in Bran's boat, and meet death by setting it on fire. The music to this gory plot displays much melodic beauty and expressive power, but the story is certainly a re- minder of Isolde's love-death. " Der Pfeifertag," this time evidently inspired by " Die Meistersinger," is a rather confused account of various adventures on " Pipers' Day," celebrated by that guild on the Tuesday following the Virgin's birthday. The chief episodes in the plot are the reduction of an excessive toll paid by the pipers, the pretended death of one of the guild, who thus obtains the eulogy which a rival would not grant him during life, and the pairing off of two loving couples after various obstacles are overcome. The score is criticized as being rather too earnest and heavy for its subject, though of course it is not lacking in musical worth. Among purely orchestral works, Schillings has produced two symphonic fantasias, entitled " Meergruss " and " Seemor- gen ; " also the broad and solemn symphonic prologue to the " GEdipus Rex " of Sophocles. GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 73 Cyrill Kistler was at one time looked upon as the certain successor of Wagner. Yet the public, after growing enthusiastic over his works, has almost forgotten them, and they are seldom chosen by the managers. This ambitious and thorough composer was born near Augsburg, in 1848. Gifted with musical appreciation, his studies were delayed by the loss of his parents, which forced him to earn a living as school-teacher for several years. Returning to the study of music at Munich, he became a devout Wag- nerian, in spite of opposition from his teachers. Once, when the hidebound Lachner expressed his surprise, Kistler replied, " If you had written * Tannhauser,' ' Lohengrin/ and the ' Ring,' I would have been a Lachner enthusiast." Of his operas, " Kunihild," the first, depicts a magic castle, along the top of whose walls any suitor must ride in order to obtain Kunihild's hand. Sigun announces himself as a suitor, but because of his likeness to his twin brother, Sighr.rt, appears faithless. Kunihild learns, from a hermit's solilo- quy, that the ride must be made on a white horse, chosen without knowledge of this condition. The hermit, on discovering her, threatens to kill her, but Kunibert, another brother of Sigun, rescues her, and the pair fall in love. Kunibert chooses a white horse, and accomplishes the dangerous ride, but his 74 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE wedding is interrupted by Sighart. Kunihild's father had formerly taken the castle from the family of Kunibert and Sighart, and the latter now com- pletes the long-planned revenge by preventing recon- ciliation and killing the bridegroom, whereupon Kunihild throws herself from the walls. A comic opera, " Eulenspiegel," preceded by ten years the symphonic poem of Strauss on the same subject. Then came another serious drama, " Baldur's Tod," based on the beautiful saga of Baldur's love for Nana. Odin, fearful for Baldur, seeks the advice of the Wala, who tells him only to " Bless the plants." This he does, in an impressive scene, but he forgets the mistletoe. Loki seeks Hodur and betrays Baldur's love for a mortal, but Odin, happy at seeing the dearest of his sons once more, is soon appeased. He then has the spears brought for a festival contest. Baldur hurls one with the other contestants, but while he watches it, the blind Hodur, led by Loki, strikes him down with the fatal mistletoe. The dying Baldur foretells the decline of the gods and the dawn of Christianity. Nana, too, dies of sorrow. The gods stand about in anxiety and dismay, when suddenly the scene changes to a temple, with men kneeling before the altar, and solemn voices intone " Glory to God in the highest!" GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS J$ Kistler's friend, Bruno Wieland, strove to draw him into a more popular vein, and produced the libretto, " Im Honigmond," which the composer made into a delightful stage idyl. A larger work in the romantic style is the successful " Roslein im Hag," in the plot of which, however, the atmos- phere of " Die Meistersinger " is again apparent. In a mediaeval town, where Rose dwells and raises her flower-garden, the rich Jacob, a master smith, woos her in vain. The minstrel Frank, a fugitive from the ducal court, wins her pity and her love and, in order to be near her, becomes apprentice to Jacob. Rose wishes to be wooed and won by song, so Jacob pays Frank to sing for him, for one day, and makes appropriate gestures at a serenade, while Frank, now aware of his false position, does the singing to fulfil his promise. Meanwhile the town clerk, Florian, eager to catch Frank, and win the duke's favour, captures the astonished Jacob. The people are aroused, and a riot scene occurs, but Florian escapes with his prey. Jacob, to win Rose, tries to maintain the deception, but the duke rates him roundly, and the tones of Frank's song, sung by himself, explain the situation. The day's service is over, and Frank, now pardoned by the duke, is free to claim Rose for his own. The score is full of a pleasing sprightliness, and had not Wagner's 76 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE opera shown the path first, this work would, un- doubtedly, rank as a great masterpiece. Its success will surely mean a wider public recognition for Kistler, who is now at work on another opera, entitled " Der Vogt von Miihlstein." The work of August Bungert is planned on a grander scale than any of the operas already described. He has attempted nothing less than a hexalogy, dealing with the Homeric epics, as Wag- ner handled the Norse mythology. Born at Miihl- heim, his musical studies took him successively to Cologne, Paris, and Berlin. His later life has been passed in a pleasant home near Genoa, where he planned and completed his great work. It is divided into two groups ; " Achilles " and " Klytem- nestra " are taken from the Iliad, while the material of the Odyssey is used in the " Kirke," " Nausikaa," " Odysseus Heimkehr," and " Odysseus Tod." The profound impression made by those operas that have come before the public proves that the task has not been a failure, but time alone can show whether these works have the enduring qualities of the Wagnerian dramas. The librettos certainly afford many scenes of wonderful beauty and power, and if the composer has done adequate work in even a few of them, his operas will prove well worth hearing. GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS JJ Of those already given, " Kirke " is the first in order of plot. A prelude shows the gigantic form of Gaea, whose children struggle blindly in a world made bearable only by the rule of Eros. Then the gods on Olympus decree the wanderings of Odys- seus, after which we find that hero in the cave of Polyphemus. The blinding of the giant allows the escape of his prisoners, but arouses the anger of Poseidon, who sends a tempest that drives the ship to ^Easa. There the first act shows Circe, ruler of a beautiful realm, but lonely in spite of her magic power. Odysseus, protected by the herb moly, is safe from her arts, but falls in love with her, despite the desire of his companions to depart. The second act shows these faithful followers build- ing a ship, the sight of which arouses Odysseus to action. But Helios, the father of Circe, blinds him, and his only cure is the darkness of the nether world, which, with Circe's aid, he visits. In the realm of shades he is released from his passion, and in the third act, after a scene of storm on Olympus, he takes leave of Circe in an effective passage, where the vengeance of Helios is stayed by Zeus. Circe is left alone, and, after a reminis- cence of the fateful opening chorus, the ship of Odysseus is seen in the moonlight that hovers on the distant sea. 78 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE The prelude to " Nausikaa " is devoted to the episode of the sirens. Then the princess is seen, dancing and playing ball with her maids in the land of the happy Phseacians. Odysseus is awak- ened, and, after receiving garments from her, is welcomed by Alcinous. In the second act, Eury- alus, wooing Nausicaa too boldly, is restrained by Odysseus, with whom Nausicaa now falls in love. The third act shows the games of strength, and the prowess of Odysseus, no less than his song, makes Nausicaa recognize him. Alcinous gives him -a ship for his homeward voyage, and, when Poseidon arouses the waves, Nausicaa sacrifices herself to appease him. In the prelude to " Odysseus Heimkehr," the suitors, with the exception of the young and in- genuous Hyperion, conspire to kill Telemachus before he can set out to seek his father. The first act shows a point of land, with the hut of Eumaeus above, a Naiad grotto below, and the hill of Neriton in the background. Odysseus sleeps, while the Naiads welcome him home. He awakes in time to defend Telemachus, and with the aid of the shepherds puts the suitors to flight. Eumaeus rec- ognizes him, the shepherds prove loyal, and Laertes appears, to join in a finale of remarkable beauty. The second act shows Penelope in her chamber, 79 defended from the unwelcome advances of Antinous by Hyperion, who sacrifices his life. Her unwind- ing of the web is discovered, and, with the consent of Odysseus, disguised as a beggar and unknown save by his dog, she agrees to decide between the suitors on the morrow. The third act brings the feast of Apollo, the failure of the arrogant suitors to bend the bow, and the vengeance of Odysseus. The last opera, " Odysseus Tod," follows the final poem of the old epic cycle, and the hero falls an accidental victim to Telegonos, son of himself and Circe. In speaking of the music to these works, the critics seem unanimous in praise. The songs are richly melodic, the ideas excellently expressed, and the guiding motives remarkably characteristic. At the few performances which have already taken place, a decided success has been chronicled. It may surely be assumed that if the music gives even a faint and far-off echo of the beauties of the poems, these dramas will appeal to every cultivated audience. Bungert is also responsible for an opera in lighter vein, " Die Studenten von Salamanca." He has worked in the purely orchestral field, too, as is shown by his " Tasso " overture, and his symphonic poem, " Auf der Wartburg." A so- called Florentine quartette gained a prize in 1878, 80 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE and his settings of Carmen Sylva's poems have won much attention. Siegfried Wagner, as the son of his father, has certainly an undisputed right to carry on the tradi- tions of his family; and his three operas show that he has made the effort to do so. He was born at Triebschen, near Lucerne, on June 6, 1869. The world will certainly envy him the musical atmos- phere of his home; yet his early efforts were devoted to architecture. The net result of his youthful studies in that line is a rather commonplace monument to his father at Bayreuth. But the young Siegfried soon began to aspire for his musical heritage, and took lessons of Kniese and Humper- dinck. His first laurels were won as a conductor, and although his energetic methods were criticized on his first appearance at the Wagncrverein in Berlin, his later efforts have been crowned with success. He conducts with his left hand, and puts decided aggressiveness into his movements. He has appeared in Austria, Italy, and England, as well as his native country; and a trip to Paris was the signal for much adulation, as a tardy recompense for the coldness of his father's recep- tion in that capital. " Der Barenhauter," his first opera, is in the romantic style, with decided leanings toward the SIEGFRIED WAGNER. GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 8 1 comic. Hans Kraft, the hero, is a soldier in the Thirty Years' War, but returns to his native village to find himself an orphan and in poverty. He yields to temptation, and sells his soul to the devil, though his ultimate salvation is assured by Peter, who wins his soul at dice. Meanwhile he wanders about in his bearskin, with his magic food-sack and purse, awaiting redemption through the faith of some maid who will remain true three years. At the inn near Kulmbach, the youngest daughter of the host brings him release, after her two elder sisters have failed. Hans must be baptized in the Rhine to be rid of his bear-hide, and is again tempted by the devil and the water-nixies, but he remains firm, and is saved. " Herzog Wildfang," the second opera, is another example of the " Meistersinger " influence. The duke, who is made unpopular by the craft of his adviser, Matthias Blank, is led by the latter to mistake the beautiful Osterlind for a wild animal in his game-preserve. He shoots and wounds her, whereupon the people drive him out and give the power to Blank. Soon afterward, the duke re- turns in disguise, and pays court to Osterlind in her father's garden. To release herself from Blank's attentions, she consents to a race for her hand, in which the contestants, disguised, must 82 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE fetch some cresses from a brook in the meadow near by. Blank and his satellite, the tailor Zwick, acting on the fable of the hare and the hedgehog, arrange to disguise alike, so that the former need only run from the brook, and not to it. Meanwhile Osterlind's real lover, Reinhart, returns, and enters the race. Blank of course comes in first, but Rein- hart, returning second with Zwick, exposes the deception. Blank has long been suspected of theft from the public treasury, and now a tame crow, lighting on his shoulder with a gold-piece, confirms the suspicions. In the ensuing tumult the duke declares himself and wins back his position, while Blank meets well-deserved punishment. Siegfried Wagner's third opera, " Der Kobold," but recently produced, deals with the legend that the souls of murdered children must wander about, in the form of kobolds, until released by the sacri- fice of the last of their generation. The heroine is Verena, who gives up her life to save her brother's spirit. There are many humourous scenes, dealing with the kobolds' magic power to aid good men and torment the bad; but as a whole the plot is rather confused. The music displays talent, as shown in clever scoring, good orchestral mastery, and some excellent characterization; but, in spite of these excellences, and a clear, almost popular GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 83 style, there is little real greatness to be found in any of the works. Siegfried Wagner has also written a symphonic poem, " Sehnsucht," after Schiller's text. He is now ( 1904) at work upon a fourth opera, " Bruder Lustig," based upon an Aus- trian legend. Eugen (or Eugene Francis Charles) d' Albert was born in Glasgow, April 10, 1864, of German parentage. After a scholarship in London, and lessons from such men as Pauer, Stainer, Prout, and Sullivan, he went to the Continent, and en- tered a new atmosphere under Richter and Liszt. So much did he prize his later studies that he re- nounced England altogether, and even now is always ready to scoff at its plodding academic standards. His success as a pianist is known to all the civilized world ; even in his youth, Liszt called him " the young Tausig," and his subsequent fame has jus- tified the term. As a composer, too, he has shown unusual attain- ments, and, what is more unusual still, a steady growth. His orchestral creations include such works as the two piano concertos, a 'cello concerto, the " Esther " and " Hyperion " overtures, and a worthy if lengthy symphony. All of D' Albert's compositions show an excellent sense of thematic beauty, a richness of harmony and instrumentation, 84 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE a romantic tenderness of feeling, and a discretion and sanity of effect that are in delightful contrast with many of the modern musical excesses. In opera, his first venture was " The Ruby," based on Hebbel's version of an Oriental tale. The daughter of the Caliph of Bagdad is imprisoned in a ruby, because of her refusal to give three drops of blood to an evil magician. Asaf, a needy young man, gets possession of the gem by theft, finds a way to free the princess for an hour at midnight, is arrested when discovered with the ruby, and by throwing it away fulfils the unknown condition that will release the princess; after which, of course, he receives her hand and a rich reward. " Ghismonda " tells of love at first sight between the princess of that name and a handsome youth of low degree. He is surprised by the king, but dies rather than reveal the secret of the princess. She, however, proclaims his chivalry to the world, and takes poison. This work was followed by " Gernot," an elfin opera with much delicate music. Then came " Die Abreise," in which a married couple, drifting apart after the cooling of their first love, are brought together again by the un- welcome attentions of an over-amorous cavalier; and the departure, for which the husband prepared at first, is finally taken by the unsuccessful gallant. GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 85 The rise of the one-act school caused D'Albert to produce his " Kain." This is a weirdly effective biblical drama, in which Cain, despondent because of the fall, is led by Lucifer to believe that death means an end of sorrow. The night passes, and, in the morning, when Abel wishes to make a sacri- fice on the altar, Cain dissuades him at first, and finally kills him. Cain is then horrified at his own deed, and in madness tries to end his son's life too; but Adam prevents him, his wife Adah joins Eve in quieting the violence, and Cain departs over the mountain-side amid lightning and thunder. This remarkably impressive work was followed by " Der Improvisator," in which some excellent music was united to a rather superficial libretto based on Hugo's " Angelo, Tyrant of Padua." The composer's latest opera is " Tiefland," based on a Spanish tale, in which true love balks the amours of a dissolute Alcalde. Another composer who has made his mark in opera is Ignaz Brull. Born in Moravia, on Novem- ber 7, 1846, he devoted himself to the piano at first, making several tours and becoming piano- professor at the Horak Institute in Vienna, where he is now codirector. He was a decided favourite with Brahms, who often chose the young artist to interpret his new works. Brull has also made sue- 86 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE cessful tours with Georg Henschel, of American memory. Among Briill's many orchestral works are found a symphony, three serenades, several overtures, in- cluding " Macbeth," two piano concertos, and a violin concerto. He has also been prolific in chamber music and solos for piano and violin, while many of his songs are highly prized. But his chief fame rests upon his semi-romantic, semi- comic operas. After an early work, " Die Bettler von Sammarkand," came " Das Goldene Kreuz," which captivated Germany and even penetrated into other countries. His latest successes include " Grin- goire," " Der Landfriede," " Konigin Mariette," " Das Steinerne Herz," " Schach dem Konig," and the very successful " Der Husar." Hugo Wolf is no longer alive to witness the growing appreciation of his works. Born in Vienna, March 13, 1860, he began his studies at an early age, and took lessons from the local con- servatory. From youth onward, his life was a constant struggle to uphold his ideals in the face of extreme poverty, and only in the very last years of his life did the Wolf-Verein and other helping friends establish him in some degree of comfort. Then, in 1898, began the brain-paralysis that was to carry him off four years later. HUGO WOLF. GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 8? It is pathetic to read, in his letters and elsewhere, the account of his efforts to make both ends meet. Yet he was confident through it all. " My time will come," he wrote to Hugo Faisst, " but it is a pity that one grows old and morose in the mean- while." His happiness at the long-deferred pro- duction of his opera was equalled only by the keen disappointment of finding that even the paltry two hundred marks ($50) that it brought him had been mislaid or stolen. Meanwhile he struggled pa- tiently on, writing songs whose passionate strength and intense originality have made his name known and respected in two continents. His opera, " Der Corregidor," is a sprightly work, in comic vein, with the strongly humourous scenes on the stage reproduced with remarkable skill and fidelity in the orchestra. The Corregidor, or Spanish magistrate, not content with the pos- session of a charming wife, pays his court to the beautiful Frasquita, wife of the miller Tio Lucas. After the pair have played him many tricks, he decides to force matters, and sends directions for the miller's arrest. But the prisoner escapes from the bibulous Alcalde. Meanwhile the Corregidor, on the way to prosecute his suit, falls into a brook by the mill, and when Frasquita goes in search of her husband, he dons a suit of Lucas and enters 88 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE the miller's chamber. Lucas, returning, sees the Corregidor's attire, and in fancied revenge puts it on and proceeds to the magistrate's house. Mean- while the Alcalde arrests the disguised Corregidor, who declares himself and proceeds to his home, where he gains admission and unravels the plot only after the further trial of being taken for an impostor. Fragments of a second opera, " Das Fest auf Solhaug," are too incomplete to be fin- ished. Wolf's fame is further increased by " Die Christnacht " and " Der Feuerreiter," both choral works with orchestral accompaniment. Ludwig Thuille, a friend of Strauss, made a failure with his " Theuerdank," because the music lacked originality. The fable " Lobetanz " was well received, however, and now his romantic " Gugeline " is meeting with much applause. It tells of the love of a prince, who has been too strictly brought up, for the most beautiful maiden of the district, and introduces effective stage pictures in the scenes where the prince is offered the choice of three princesses, and Gugeline is expected to decide between three rustic wooers. Thuille is given high praise by all who know him, and his work will bear watching. He studied for a time with Carl Baermann, the well-known pianist. Robert Fuchs, the man of many serenades, pur- GERMAN OPERA COMPOSERS 89 sued his studies at Vienna, where he is now a teacher in the conservatory. His orchestral works include also a successful symphony. In the operatic field, the drama, " Die Teufelsglocke," and the comedy, " Die Konigsbraut," have won much favour. Among the many others who have worked in the romantic field, Heinrich Zollner stands well to the fore. Known in America by his work at Cleveland and the Chicago fair, his fame abroad rests upon four operas, of which the most popular is a setting of Hauptmann's delicate " Versunkene Glocke." Gustav Kulenkampf is responsible for the one-act work, " Der Page," the three-act " Mohrenfiirst," " Die Braut von Cypern," and the very successful " Konig Drosselbart." Hans Pfitzner, after producing " Der Arme Heinrich," increased his fame by the romantic forest-opera, " Die Rose von Liebesgarten," while Edmund Kretschmer's " Folkhunger " and " Heinrich der Lowe," of earlier date, are still well received. E. Klose's fairy opera, " Ilsebill," has scored some success. Leo Blech has done some excellent work in " Das War Ich," a picture of village intrigue, and his " Alpenkonig und Menschenfeind " is now on the boards. Waldermar von Baussnern, besides over- 90 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE tures and a symphony, has produced " Dichter und Welt," " Durer in Venedig," and " Herborg und Hilde." His " Bundschuh," on a subject from the Peasants' War, is his most recent success. The viking vein has also been adopted by Reinhold Becker, whose " Ratbold " followed the earlier " Frauenlob." In similar style is " Helga," from the pen of Hector von Woikowsky-Biedau. These, and many others of lesser import, serve to enter- tain the most musically cultivated nation on earth, and, if there is at present no operatic giant in sight, a host of worthy aspirants have made brave and laudable attempts to fill the vacancy. CHAPTER IV. BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS THE mtusic of Bohemia, in an artistic sense, is an affair of the past half-century. Its popular music, however, dates much farther back, and begins with the introduction of Christianity in the ninth cen- tury. We may read that the litanies of Adalbert, Bishop of Prague, composed a few decades later, were used by the soldiers in camp and in battle. The religious style seemed to dominate, and the Kyrielles of Bishop Arnest in the fourteenth cen- tury, as well as the sacred strains of Cybulovsky in the seventeenth, show that it has held its own down to fairly recent times. In this school we find also Cernohorsky, the teacher of Gluck. The long dura- tion of this severe and pure style finds an echo in the frequent contrapuntal excursions indulged in by the more secular Bohemian composers of later date. The names of Novak, Brixi, Skojowski, Bozan, and Kozeluch may be mentioned, but they do not compare in importance with their contem- 91 92 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE poraries in other musical countries. The lofty power of Kopriva and the voluminous productions of Ryba are of little significance to-day. At this period it was customary for every artist to display an astonishing amount of virtuosity. An instance is furnished by a certain Kocvara, who played violin, piano, flute, 'cello, oboe, and bassoon, to say nothing of his position as contrabass player in a London orchestra. Between 1750 and 1850 Bohemia had its quota of composers, even though not in close touch with the outer world. Such men as Pokorny, Pichl, Jelinek, the Dusseks, and others, were famous enough in their time. In the last century, the taste and originality of Tomasek, the excellent work of Vorisek, and the suavity of Kalliwoda may be worth a passing mention. The introduction of the polka gave a great impetus to dance music, while Hnilicka, Jyrovec, and Myslivecek made attempts in the operatic field. Although their works strove to be national in style, they were not always dis- tinctive, and the first really national expression came in the operas of Skraup. Frantisek Skraup (1801 62) was renowned for his conducting as well as his compositions. His orchestral leadership took him at first to Prague, where he grew very progressive, and gave many BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 93 of Wagner's earlier operas. His later home was Rotterdam, where he died after a successful career. His sacred and chamber music shows excellent taste, and much feeling for harmonic colour. His songs have a style of their own, and even his dances are treated with some earnestness. Many of the songs have become actual Volkslieder, having been adopted by the whole Bohemian nation. Such, for instance, is the patriotic hymn, " Where Is My Fatherland ? " His operas abound with attractive popular numbers, and achieved great success. Among them are " Dratenik," first in importance, the " Fete des Cordonniers," in lighter vein, the " Swiss Family," " Udalrich and Bozena," a national subject, and the posthumous " Columbus." The advent of Smetana brings on the scene a really great composer, one whose work, not even yet fully known to outside nations, has won him the right to be reckoned among the world's few masters of music. Bedrich, or Frederick, Smetana was born in 1824, at the village of Leitomischl. His father did not wish him to be a musician, but he evidently received lessons in spite of this, for at the age of six he played in a local festival with such success that his father's scruples were wholly overcome. He began his serious studies under Proksch, at 94 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Prague, but soon found his way to Schumann, who became the ideal of his early years. That com- poser recommended a course under Mendelssohn; but as Smetana was too poor for this, he advised a study of Bach's works. Smetana soon became imperial concertmeister at Prague, where he married the pianist Katharin Kolar, and with her help founded a piano school. Smetana at this time became an ardent a'dmirer of Liszt, who aided him in publishing some early piano works. Of the great master's symphonic poems, he said, " They mark the limit of possibility in the direction of musical suggestiveness." But he did not live long enough to hear the frenzied rhapsodies of Richard Strauss. While visiting 1 Liszt at Weimar, he heard Herbeck say that the Czechs were merely reproductive, whereupon he took a solemn vow to use all his efforts in building up a national school in Bohemia. The world has not even now fully realized how well he fulfilled his promise. From 1856 to 1861 Smetana occupied the post of conductor of the Philharmonic Orchestra at Gothenburg, Sweden. He had previously written a Festival Overture and a Triumph Symphony, but the three symphonic poems produced during this period show a surer hand and a riper genius. BEDRICH SMETANA. BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 95 The subject of the first is Richard III., as por- trayed by Shakespeare, and the music gives a vivid picture of the early triumphs and final fall of that deformed and cruel monarch. Shakespeare was evidently a favourite with the composer, for soon afterward he wrote a festival march for the poet's three hundredth birthday, and just before his death he sketched the opera " Viola," based on " Twelfth Night." Another symphonic poem is " Wallen- stein's Camp," while " Hakon Jarl " depicts a Norse subject. On his return to Bohemia, after the sickness and death of his first wife, Smetana began work upon the first of the eight operas which have made him so famous in his native country. Wagner was his model in this field, but Smetana was not a mere imitator. " We cannot write as Wagner writes," he said; but he was artist enough to admire and employ the continuous melodic style, with music that should follow the dramatic scheme and never disturb or interrupt it. His first opera, " The Brandenburgers in Bo- hemia," was promptly attacked by the critics. He was accused of being a wolf in sheep's clothing, a traitor who was trying to subvert his national music to the German school. This wounded Sme- tana, who loved his country well and knew inti- 96 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE mately its life and its legends; so he determined to produce a work in lighter vein, to show that he too could employ the popular style. The result was " Prodaiia Nevesta " (the bartered bride), which has won him renown in all nations, and is now considered the best light opera since the days of Weber. The plot depends on the incognito preserved by Hans, son of the peasant Micha by his first wife. Driven away by a stepmother, he has returned after some years, to fall in love with the beautiful Marenka. Her mother agrees to the proposal of the marriage broker, Kezal, that Marenka should wed Wenzel, the half-brother of Hans. The broker offers to bribe Hans if he will resign his claims, and Hans agrees on condition that Marenka should marry " the son of Micha." Marenka is much pained at the apparent desertion, but in the end Hans reveals himself and regains his sweetheart. The music to this lively story is of the most delightful character. Smetana's works as a whole display an exquisite colour, a delicate elegance, a most refined charm. Not lacking in vigour, they never become brutal by abuse of force; endowed with inimitable grace, they never become affected. The symphonic poems at times show the fault of needless contrapuntal complexity, but the " Bar- BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 97 tered Bride " is altogether natural, spontaneous, and bubbling over with the most joyous vivacity. It is not surprising that in 1892, on its introduc- tion to German audiences at the Vienna musical exhibition, every one asked, " How is it possible that such a genius has passed without recognition for so long? " A return to the serious vein resulted in " Dali- bor," produced in 1868. The hero, who bears the title role, kills a tyrannical count, is denounced by the oppressor's sister Mlada, awakens her love by his manly bearing, and is consoled by her in prison. She has disguised herself as a youth to reach his cell and tell him of coming rescue; but the plans are discovered, and Dalibor condemned to die. The people rush in to save him, but in the struggle Mlada is mortally wounded, whereupon he resigns his life willingly. The music of this work has been called Wagnerian, but it must not be classed with the overswollen medleys of operatic noise that are so often and so wrongly named as results of the Bayreuth master's lead. Of Smetana's later operas, " Two Widows " and " The Kiss " have won much success upon the comic stage. The latter, especially, is often held to be a perfect model for light opera. In 1882 came " The Secret," another popular exponent of 98 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE the same style. " Libusa," which followed in 1881, was again a music-drama in loftier vein. " The Devil's Wall," a year later in date, was the last of Smetana's complete operas, and shows traces of his failing powers. The delicate grace and polyphonic skill are now replaced by an almost childish simplicity; yet there are still to be found many passages of dramatic effect. The subject is based on the legendary origin of a natural wall of rocks, said to have been piled up by the devil in his efforts to divert a river and flood a monastery. In the " Carnival of Prague " and the string quar- tette, " Aus Meinem Leben," as in the piano trio and lesser works, are found all of Smetana's usual skill, combined with real depth of feeling; but his loftiest work is the cycle of symphonic poems en- titled "Ma Vlast" (My Fatherland), consisting of six pictures from Bohemian history and legend. In the first, " Vysehrad," the minstrel Lumir, in- spired by that historic fortress, evokes pictures of the festivals, the combats, and the victories of long ago, contrasting them with the desolate ruins that remain. Near at hand is " Vltava," the Moldau, portrayed in the second poem. Its origin in the peaceful forest, its course through woods filled with joyous huntsmen, past smiling meadows echoing with the rustic strains of wed- BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 99 ding-music, into moonlit scenes where sylvan nymphs disport, to reflect the martial glories of Prague, and at last disappear in the distance, are told in inspired measures. " Sarka," subject of the third poem, is the legendary amazon who charmed the male warriors by her beauty, and drew them into the ambush where her comrades lay in wait for them. Bo- hemia's groves and meadows offer an effective pastoral theme for the fourth poem. The fifth depicts " Tabor," the camp of the Hussite war- riors, and is inspired by their martial bravery; while the last picture, " Blanik," represents the mountain upon which they sleep, ready to rise again at their country's need. Smetana's life was hardly one of happiness. Never really strong, his excessive work brought on nervous troubles and gradual deafness. In 1874, after enjoying an opera, his hearing left him wholly. He was troubled by loud buzzing and roaring in his head, and whistling noises; at a later date came a constantly recurring chord, employed by him in the string quartette. Like Beethoven, he did not stop composing; in fact, his four latest operas and nearly the whole of " Ma Vlast " were written while in this condition. The cold reception of " The Devil's Wall " broke his spirit. A few bene- IOO MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE fit performances helped him somewhat, but in 1884, when the whole nation honoured his sixtieth birth- day with a festival, he was a complete wreck. His nerves had given way, and on April 20, 1884, in the Prague asylum where his friend Srb had placed him, he died an artist of rare genius, whose works were not to receive their due appreciation until many years after his death. The greatest of Smetana's pupils and followers was Antonin Dvorak. Dvorak was born September 8, 1841, at Miihlhausen (Nehalozeves), in Bo- hemia. His father was a butcher by trade, and wished to make the boy follow in his footsteps. But bands of wandering musicians aroused his ambition, so he persuaded the village schoolmaster to give him lessons in singing and violin, and soon was able to perform in the church music on Sun- days and holidays. At twelve, he went to a more advanced school, at Zlonitz, where he could study composition. It was while there that he wrote a polka, to surprise his relatives. This result he certainly accomplished, for he had written without considering the transposing instruments, and the performance created fearful and wonderful discords. In 1857 he went to Prague, where he spent three years in the organ school. The slight allowance from his father ceased after a time, and he was ANTONIN DVORAK BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS IOI obliged to support himself, as best he could, by playing violin in various cafes. Soon he was able to win by his compositions the state aid that Austria granted to needy composers, four, five, and six hundred florins in successive years. But better even than the financial aid was the acquaintance it gained him with such men as Herbeck, Hanslick, and finally Brahms. Through them, too, the pub- lishers became interested in him, and he was able to continue his creative work without fear of a premature death from hunger. Of his many compositions at this period, operas, symphonies, chamber music, few exist to-day. Dvorak spoke of his time as spent in " hard study, occasional composition, much revision, a great deal of thinking, and little eating." After his marriage, in 1873, he used to delight in saying that he ate less and gave more lessons than ever. On being asked if he gained much from any special teacher, he would reply, " I studied with God, with the birds, the trees, the rivers, myself; " an appro- priate response, for if ever there was a natural genius it was certainly Dvorak. He worshipped Wagner, whose " Meistersinger " created a furor at Prague. He was eager to write an opera for the new National Theatre, and pro- duced his " Konig und Kohler." But it was " plus IO2 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE royaliste que le roi," and its music was infinitely harder and more intricate than that of Wagner. It was withdrawn, destroyed, and rewritten in 1875. " Being now not only easy," said the composer, " but national, instead of Wagnerian, it had a gen- uine success." Less purely national than Smetana, Dvorak still was influenced by the music of his native land, which he loved with his whole heart. If his themes are his own inspired creation, rather than an echo of the melodies of his people, the folk-tunes must still have played an important part in his de- velopment. The elegiac " Dumka " and the wild " Furiant," with which he enriched the symphonic form, are distinctively national. Of his own method of composition, Dvorak wrote that he would play over his musical ideas many times, until they were exactly in the shape he desired, after which the manuscript work took little time. Dvorak's first patriotic work was a patriotic hymn, or cantata. There followed other operas, "Wanda," " Selma Sedlak," " Turde Palice," " Dimitri," and, at a later time, " The Jacobins." They have won national fame, but little apprecia- tion outside of Bohemia. " Dimitri," because of its Russian subject, bids fair to hold its own in the musical circles of Eastern Europe. It deals with BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 103 the fortunes of the pretended Demetrius, son of Ivan. At the head of the Polish forces, he appears before Moscow, is acclaimed by the people, and by his manly bearing wins the support of Marfa, who knows that he is not the real Demetrius (her son), but is willing to have him rule. But there are conspiracies against him, and his wife, Marina, jealous as well as ambitious, ultimately exposes him and causes his doom. The performance of Dvorak's " Stabat Mater " in London, in 1883, led to the composer's sojourn in England. In the next year he conducted his " Husitzka " overture, previously written for the opening of the new Bohemian theatre in Prague. In this work his fiery patriotism is again in evi- dence, and it has become a favourite concert selec- tion. The cantata, " The Spectre's Bride," written for the Birmingham festival of 1885, won still more marked success. It is a Czech version of the legend treated in Burger's " Lenore." At first the maiden is seen mourning her lost parents, and praying for her lover's return. He appears, and bids her come away with him. On their wild midnight journey he persuades her to throw away prayer-book, chaplet, and crucifix. Arrived at the churchyard, he leaps over the wall, making her promise to follow; but she takes fright, and hides. Her refuge proves 104 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE to be a charnel-house, where ghosts and spectres dance in frenzied fashion about the unburied corpses. She prays to the Virgin, the crowing of the cock announces the dawn, and she is saved. " Saint Ludmila," written a year later for the Leeds festival, did not please so well. It treats of the introduction of Christianity among the Czechs, by the Apostle Ivan. In the first part come the heathen festivities, brought to an abrupt end by a lightning-bolt, which shatters the idol. Then the Princess Ludmila, who has bowed to the might of the cross, is married to Duke Borivoj, and the piece concludes with their wedding-feast at the castle Velehrad. It may have been the partial failure of this work which caused the composer to leave England afterward, and to remark that " the English do not love music; they respect it." If so, then England's loss was our gain, for in 1892 Dvorak came to New York to lead the National Conservatory of Music. By this time his great works were fairly numer- ous, and familiar to many concert audiences. They included the overtures, " Mein Heim," " Othello," " In der Natur," and the " Carneval ; " four great symphonies, not including the discarded works of his youth ; the famous " Slavic Dances," the Slavonic Rhapsodies, and the " Scherzo Capric- BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 105 cioso ; " three orchestral ballades, a Hero Song (the origin of " Heldenleben? "), and much beauti- ful chamber and piano music. Dvorak had always held to his ideas of nation- alism in music, and now his sojourn in America inspired him to show how the songs of that country might be employed in building up ah American school. Performed first in 1893, his glorious symphony, " Aus der Neuen Welt" (From the New World), still possesses all its pristine fresh- ness and beauty. The lively allegro, the infinitely sweet largo, the bright scherzo, and the powerful finale make up a work of eternal charm. Dvorak was certainly wise in his choice of ma- terial for this symphony. While our native com- posers were running amuck on outlandish Indian themes that had no beauty in themselves and were often based on different scales from our own, he went directly to the music of our plantations, and drew from it themes that would appeal straight to the heart of his hearers. In doing this he followed the only true path to success in musical nationalism. A school is not built from above downward, any more than a house is begun at the roof. The foun- dation must be there before the superstructure can be raised; and in the musical edifice the only sure foundation is the folk-music, the songs that are IO6 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE sung and felt and loved by all the people. When these are employed by the great composers to build their beautiful structures of orchestral or vocal architecture, then a worthy school is produced one whose works are not artificial creations, but appeal directly to the love of a nation or a race. If our popular music is still vastly below that of Germany, Bohemia, or Russia, Dvorak showed that we have at least one variety of it that is worthy and valuable. His American string quartette em- phasized the fact still more, and his " American Flag " cantata, if not so great, is another tasteful tribute to our nation. In 1895, love of country proved too strong for the composer, and he returned to his native land, where habit and memory took him to the same house in which he had dwelt before, in a busy quarter of Prague. There, amid familiar scenes and faces, he gave up writing foreign symphonies and can- tatas, to devote himself wholly to opera, which had won him renown in his own nation. The new romantic school, awakened by " Hansel and Gretel," had made itself felt in Bohemia as elsewhere, and Dvorak, too, began to produce Volksopern. " Ru- salka, the Water Nixie," won a success at the National Theatre in 1901. Another work that received some notice was " Der Teufel und die BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS Kathe," in which a beautiful but cold-hearted vil- lage girl, refused by all others, is willing to dance with the devil himself, but is afterward rescued from his clutches by a faithful shepherd. Other works in this field were planned by the composer, including the successful " Armida," when suddenly the world learned that on May i, 1904, he was stricken with apoplexy, and had passed away at the age of sixty-three. Though his ideals were national, Dvorak's gifts were such that he won the worship of the entire musical world. He possessed an endless fund of melody, always fresh, always quaintly individual, never cheap or commonplace. He showed exquisite mastery of the varying colours of the orchestra, from the most delicate touches to the broadest strokes. His music was eminently sane, robust, healthy. So, too, was his personality, as acknowl- edged by all who came in contact with him, at New York or elsewhere. His was a genius that can ill be spared, in a period when our great sym- phonists are leading us astray on the path of morbid programmes pictured by arbitrary tonal devices. A name famous in Bohemia, though less well known outside, is that of Zdenko Fibich. Born at Vseborics in 1851, he studied music at Vienna and Prague, afterwards going to Leipzig. There he wrote 108 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE many pieces, including a symphony, and became a warm admirer of Schumann. After further study at Paris and Mannheim, he returned to his native land, and soon made Prague his home. After a few years of conducting, he devoted himself wholly to composition, producing a formidable list of works. He is credited with two published symphonies, and a number of symphonic poems, which show the influence of Liszt. Among the latter are " Othello," " Der Lenz," " Der Sturm " (Shakespeare's " Tem- pest '?),* Die Vigilien," and " Am Abend," as well as other subjects of more purely national interest. There are also overtures, " Eine Nacht auf Karl- stein," for the historical comedy of Jaroslav Vrch- litzky, the " Lustpiel " and " Komensky - Fest " overtures, and two others without special titles. These, with an extensive series of chamber and choral works, songs, and various instrumental pieces, not to mention an orchestral suite, are cer- tainly enough to establish Fibich's reputation for industry. Yet it is upon the operatic stage that he has won his chief laurels. He devoted much earnest effort to the field of melodrama, at first employing Schumann's " Manfred " as a model, then adopting a more independent style. Of the half-dozen single works in this form, his " Weihnachtstag," " Der BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 1 09 Blumen Rache," "Die Ewigkeit," and " Konigin Emma " are written for piano, while " Der Wasser- mann " and " Hakon Jarl " have orchestral accom- paniments. More ambitious still is the trilogy " Hippodamia," consisting of " The Wooing of Pelops," " The Atonement of Tantalus," and " Hip- podamia's Death." In opera, Fibich is reckoned a close second to Smetana, and like that earlier master he adopted a national style in his music. His first work, " Bukovin," with a poor text, shows some skill in motives, but no real grasp of the modern resources. " Blanik," on the same subject as Smetana's tone- poem, is a Wagnerian imitation of the " Sturm und Drang " period. " Die Braut von Messina," after Schiller's poem, shows much beauty, and more detail. " Der Sturm " is a stage setting of " The Tempest," with much cleverness in adopting Wag- ner's later style, while " Hedy " draws its subject from another English poem, this time Byron's " Corsair." " Sarka " is again on a native subject, and gives a glowing picture of the adventures of this noble amazon, who is here depicted as not wholly heartless, but ready to save the knight whom she has charmed into ambush, and who has suc- ceeded in winning her love. Fibich died in 1900, I JO MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE before the production of his last opera, " Pad Arkuna." Lest it be suspected from the foregoing that Bohemia's great composers are all dead, mention must be made at once of Emil Nikolaus, Freiherr von Reznicek. As his name implies, he comes of high family, his father having been lieutenant-field- marshal, and his mother the Princess Clarissa Ghika. His parents desired Emil to follow the legal profession, and for a time he obeyed their wishes. But soon the love of music grew too strong, and he became a pupil of the Leipzig conservatory. He went through the usual training of holding small positions in theatres, leading successively (and successfully) at Graz, Zurich, Mainz, Stettin, Weimar, and finally Mannheim. Among his compositions are many songs and piano pieces, a string quartette, two symphonic suites, a " Lustspiel " overture ; also, in manuscript, a six- voiced requiem, a new overture to " Till Eulen- spiegel," a Mass, a Tragic Symphony, and the four songs for tenor and orchestra, entitled " Ruhm und Ewigkeit," which were brought out at the 1904 Frankfort festival. In the case of Reznicek, too, his operas have won decidedly more fame than his purely orchestral works. Produced at Prague, their delicious liveliness BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS III and real musical worth have made them known in many other lands. " Die Jungfrau von Orleans " came first, with text adapted from Schiller's play. " Satanella " was based on an epic of like name, by Vrchlitzky. " Emerich Fortunat " won a suc- cess in lighter vein, but Reznicek's real masterpiece was the delightful setting of Moreto's sparkling comedy, " Donna Diana." In 1904 the com- poser came again before the operatic public with his recently written " Till Eulenspiegel." In this work, the mercurial Till, besides being as great a rogue as ever, becomes something of a hero by leading the peasants against the robber barons. Reznicek has begun work on a sixth opera, with text adapted from Scribe by himself and E. von Wolzogen. He writes that he is making Charlottenburg his home, and devoting himself wholly to composition, but he modestly refrains from alluding to the many successes won by his works. Josef Suk, born in 1874, became the pupil and son-in-law of Dvorak, but has won renown in his own right. Among his works are numbered a Dramatic Overture, the " Winter's Tale " overture, a symphony in E, a string serenade, the orchestral suite " A Fairy Tale," a string quartette, a piano quartette, and many songs. Suk is second violinist 112 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE in the famous Bohemian String Quartette, an organ- ization known throughout Europe. Of other composers in Bohemia, Roskosny, the eldest, has won renown through his seven operas and many choral works. Oscar Nedbal, viola player in the Bohemian Quartette, is responsible for an or- chestral scherzo. Heinrich Kaan von Albest has produced the symphonic poem " Sakuntala," and several ballets, besides being a writer of note. Josef Nesvera won a triumph with his opera " Perdita/' given at Prague in 1897, while his masses and other sacred orchestral works are well received also. Hungary has no world-famous composer at present, but the name of Liszt will bring her lasting glory. Goldmark was born in Hungary, but has German ideas, German ideals, and German citizen- ship. The first opera in Hungarian was Ruzsicska's " Fuite de Bela," but Ferencz (or Franz) Erkel, who died in 1893, is considered the real founder of the national school. His " Hunyadi Laszlo " and " Bank Ban " were immensely popular, although " Georg Brancovics," a later work, was not so well received. His son, Alexander, produced " Tempe- foi," at Pesth, in 1883. Mihalovitch is another Hungarian who has won national fame in opera, as well as by producing symphonies and or- chestral ballads. The Doppler brothers also de- BOHEMIANS AND OTHERS 113 serve mention. Count Geza Zichy has gained much success with his operas, " Meister Roland " and " Emma " being his important productions. Jeno Hubay, of Buda-Pesth, is credited with a symphony and several operas, besides a large amount of piano and vocal music. Ernst von Dohnanyi, born at Pressburg, Hun- gary, July 27, 1877, is also famous as pianist and composer. His father, besides being professor of mathematics and physics at the local Gymnasium, was a good 'cello player, and the child soon found endless amusement in giving make-believe concerts, with a row of chairs for audience. The mere writ- ing of notes on music paper pleased him immensely, but he soon began to compose short pieces also. What was more wonderful, these pieces indicated a natural knowledge of good harmony. After various studies, he decided, in 1894, to adopt a musical career, and he began lessons with Koessler at the Hungarian Academy. The young student was at first a devotee of Schumann, but has since then become an ardent worshipper of Brahms. An early overture, " Zrinyi," won a royal prize, and in later years his piano concerto and D minor sym- phony have proven to be worthy works, if we accept the school of microscopic seriousness that has come down to us as a legacy from Brahms and Bruckner. I 14 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Poland is worthily represented by the famous Paderewski, whose well-known supremacy as a pianist has not prevented him from earning laurels as a composer. His very popular minuet was the first of many original and brilliant piano pieces, including the " Humoresques " (Op. 14). A Polish fantasia, with orchestra, marked his entrance into the concerto field, while his gipsy opera, " Manru," if not holding the boards too well, contains much excellent music. The value of the Gypsy music is hardly realized except by the student, though the echoes of it found in the works of Schubert and Liszt bear witness to the worth of this popular school. Miecislaw Soltys, of Lemberg, who studied with Chopin's pupil, Mikuli, has gained some notice in the symphonic field, while Stalkowsky has won operatic laurels with his " Philsenis." CHAPTER V. THE ELDER FRENCHMEN UNDOUBTEDLY the greatest name in the last few decades of French music is that of Charles-Camille Saint-Saens. Born in Paris on October 9, 1835, he belongs to that older generation that witnessed the rise and fall of Meyerbeer, and the triumph of Gounod. His reputation was established before the advent of the Wagner creed in France, and just as Dvorak and Grieg exemplify the music of Bohemia and Norway, so he too possesses a great- ness all his own in his native land. Yet his style is hard to characterize. From his facility in adopting the most widely diverse man- ners of musical writing, he has been called the Proteus of modern music. Yet through all the disguises he may assume, there is still a well-marked individuality to be found. His facility of expres- sion, his breadth of understanding and versatility of taste have sometimes made it seem as if he lacked a definite personality ; but his marvellous mastery of "5 Il6 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE technique, combined with a clearness of style that almost makes one overlook his erudition, impart to his works an ease and a fluency that is unmistakably his own. His is the art of concealing art, or at least of making it minister to legitimate musical effects without becoming too obtrusive. His is a true musical development, founded on rational lines. A warm admirer of Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, and other classicists, he can still under- stand and appreciate Liszt and other modern tone- poets. But he has not, like some of them, thrown over the older melodic simplicity to struggle fran- tically in the sea of tone that gushed forth at Bay- reuth and inundated the world. When compared with the meaningless ravings of some of the latter- day French harmony- jugglers, his works show the most exquisite shapeliness, like that of a finely carved monument enriched by delicate artistic tracery. Yet they are not bound by the formal fetters of the past, and their freedom of expression is complete. Saint-Saens was brought up by his mother, as his father died soon after the child's birth. The little Camille received piano lessons from his great- aunt at the mature age of two years and a half. At seven he was confided to the excellent teacher Stamaty, and his later work with Maleden, Halevy, CHARLES -CAMILLE SAINT - SAE'NS. and Benoist gave him a start in harmony, compo- sition, and organ-playing. Two trials for the Prix de Rome resulted in two failures a fact that reminds one of the four attempts necessary for Berlioz. Great musicians are not always recog- nized in their youth, as witness the refusal of Easily to admit the young Verdi to the Milan conserva- tory. His musical activity began in 1851, when he pro- duced his first symphony at the age of sixteen. Two years later he became organist at the church of St. Mery, where he served five years before taking a similar post at the Madeleine. In the latter posi- tion he won great renown by his remarkable im- provisations. He resigned in 1877, in favour of Dubois. He was for some time teacher of piano at Niedermeyer's ficole Religieuse, and he has de- voted his spare moments to writing and criticism, but the world knows him best as the most gifted composer of his native land. Like Meyerbeer, Goldmark, and Mendelssohn, he is of Jewish descent, and like them he has proven that Wagner's fierce attack on Judaism in music was wholly need- less and unfounded. Of the many forms of composition, opera cer- tainly seems to make the strongest appeal to French- men, and we find them all striving for fame in this Il8 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE field. But Saint-Saens found difficulty in obtaining a hearing, for his concert successes and his great musical learning brought him under the horrid sus- picion of harbouring Wagnerian tendencies. His debut as a stage composer did not take place until 1872, with the appearance of the one-act " Prin- cesse Jaune." " Le Timbre d'Argent," an earlier work with a brilliant overture, was not given until some years later. But France did not take kindly to either, so he sent " Samson and Dalila," his next great opera, to Weimar, where it was pro- duced, with the approval of Liszt, in 1877. In the opinion of many, this biblical work, with its vivid richness of colour, remains the composer's dramatic masterpiece. His many subsequent com- positions for the stage show great musical beauty, but seem to lack the dramatic spirit that is essential for operatic vitality. The ease with which Saint- Saens assimilates all styles has made his operas too composite in effect, and not sufficiently unified. " Le Deluge " was an operatic cantata on another sacred subject. " fitienne Marcel " won some measure of appreciation in Paris, while " Henry VIII.," with its skilful blending of old-time suavity and modern guiding motives, has received praise in Germany as well, " Proserpine " and " Ascanio " followed, the latter a setting of Benvenuto Cellini's drama. THE ELDER FRENCHMEN IIQ " Phryne " was a return to the older opera-comique, showing much grace and daintiness, while " Pary- satis," as its title suggests, portrays an ancient Oriental subject. A novelty in effect was the music to Gallet's " Dejanire," given at Beziers in 1898. The per- formance took place in the open air, the cast in- cluding an orchestra of two hundred and fifty, a chorus of two hundred, and a ballet of sixty. A recent opera for the Orange amphitheatre is " Les Barbares," another bit of scenic display. This work deals with the attack of the barbarian Ger- mans on the Roman forces at Orange in the first century before Christ. A prologue, describing the progress of the invaders, has been adapted for use as a concert overture. In the opera, the Germans have defeated the garrison, and their leader, Mar- comir, has slain the consul Euryalus. But his widow, Livia, still lives, and swears to avenge her husband. Marcomir falls in love with Floria, the beautiful priestess of Vesta, and she consents to follow him if he will spare all who remain alive in the town. As they prepare to depart, Livia, suspecting that Marcomir is the slayer of Euryalus, cries, " I will slay the coward who stabbed my husband in the back." Marcomir, trapped by the ruse, replies, " It was in the heart." " In the heart, I2O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE then," responds Livia, and stabs Marcomir, who falls dead. Saint-Saens's most recent dramatic work is the one-act " Helene," produced in 1904 at Monte Carlo. The plot is not of the greatest, but contains a series of effective scenes. Helen of Troy bewails the evils caused by her too potent charms, when Venus appears and urges the suit of Paris. Finally the Trojan shepherd himself arrives, and in a fiery love-scene Helen gradually yields to his pleading. Pallas then appears, to warn them of coming woe, and in a vision they see the city of Troy in flames. But love proves more potent than fears for the future, and the pair depart, heedless of the warn- ing. The music to this plot, like much of Saint- Saens's operatic work, shows a surety and skill in handling the orchestra, a keenness in seizing every dramatic opportunity afforded by the libretto, and a mastery of varied emotional expression; but in the end the effect is studied rather than natural, as if it were the work of a prodigious talent rather than a great genius. On the concert stage, however, the symphonic style is thoroughly in place, and it is there that the composer has won his greatest triumphs. The symphony of his youth has been followed by four others, some of which introduce piano and organ THE ELDER FRENCHMEN 121 as an integral part of the orchestra. Of the five piano concertos, that in G minor, with its clean- cut andante, exquisitely delicate allegretto, and brilliant presto, has become a favourite with concert pianists. There are two orchestral suites by him, a Christmas oratorio, two masses, the ode " La Lyre et la Harpe " (written for Birmingham), and a vast number of lesser works for voice, piano, and organ. Of the four symphonic poems, " La Jeunesse d'Hercule," shows its hero resisting the seductions of nymphs and bacchantes, and choosing the path of struggle and combat that leads to the reward of immortal glory. " Le Rouet d'Omphale," that deli- cious orchestral spinning-song, gives a picture of feminine seductiveness, the triumphant struggle of weakness against strength. " Phaeton " portrays that ambitious youth's vain attempt to drive the chariot of the sun through the heavens, and his consequent death. The " Danse Macabre," no longer on a Grecian subject, depicts Death rising from the ground and fiddling for the nocturnal dance of the skeletons. The diminished fifth on his instrument, the use of the xylophone to represent the rattling bones of the dancers, and the crowing of the cock on the oboe, are orchestral devices as effective as they are familiar. 122 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Saint-Saens is a man of remarkably interesting personality. His wit is no less remarkable than his learning, and his keen musical judgment makes him a critic whose words command the utmost respect. His " Harmonic et Melodic " and " Portraits et Souvenirs " are two books that interest all their readers. " Problemes et Mysteres " deals with metaphysics, while " Rimes Familieres " is a collec- tion of his poems. His power of improvisation, already mentioned, makes him much sought after, and there is a story of his becoming so enwrapped in his musical thoughts, at an evening party, that he kept on playing until long after guests had de- parted and host retired, realizing only at the end that the room was empty. He is a great traveller, and will disappear suddenly for weeks at a time. Of late he has become interested in astronomy, and built an observatory in the Canary Islands. Jules fimile Frederic Massenet is another re- nowned Frenchman who has not been carried away by the harmonic vagaries of the present. In place of the varying styles and forms employed by Saint- Saens, Massenet displays a more clearly defined manner. He is the chief exponent of the school that aims to charm. With him, sentiment is every- thing not a feeling of calm contemplation, like that of Gounod, but a passionate warmth that moves JULES EMILE FREDERIC MASSENET. THE ELDER FRENCHMEN all hearers. He shows at times a trace of the Wag- nerian influence, but remains essentially French, in the most thorough sense of the word. He is the logical successor of Gounod, and like that master he devotes much of his time to the portrayal of the " eternal feminine." Massenet was born at Montreaux, on May 12, 1842. His first piano lessons were given him by his mother, when he reached the age of six. In due time he entered the Conservatoire, where he took first prize for piano and fugue, and won the Prix de Rome with his cantata, " David Rizzio." The two years spent by him at the Villa Medici were instrumental in awakening profound artistic im- pulses in the young student, and he always reverts to them with pleasure. The poverty of his con- servatory days, when he earned his bread by playing the kettle-drum in small cafe orchestras, was now somewhat alleviated, for he married a woman of some fortune. His genius for composition had not been recog- nized at first, for in his twelfth year he had been rejected by Bazin as destitute of talent. On his return to P'aris he began the series of successes that have made him probably the most popular composer in France. His first great triumph came with " Marie Madeleine " and " Eve," which were not 124 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE oratorios, but sacred dramas, in which the formal style was replaced by music of the most luscious sweetness and alluring charm. These works do not follow the biblical story exactly, but aim to colour the original version with modern spirit and passion. " La Vierge " and " La Terre Promise," of later date, are written in the same style. In the purely orchestral field, Massenet is hardly the equal of Saint-Saens, but he has still won his meed of fame. The overture " Phedre," dating from 1870, is one of his greatest works, and his orchestral suites form a series of attractive tone- pictures. The best known are perhaps the " Scenes Pittoresques," some delightful sketches of rural life in France; while Neapolitan, Alsatian, and Hun- garian subjects are also depicted in other works. A large number of lesser pieces for voice and piano display in excellent fashion the sentimental power that marks their composer's musical individuality. In the operatic field, " La Grand' Tante " and " Don Cesar de Bazan " were early works, of little moment. Massenet's first great success was " Le Roi de Lahore," produced in 1877. It deals with the love of Alim for the East Indian priestess Sita, and the desire of the powerful Scindia to gain her for himself in marriage. The discarded Scindia strikes down Alim in battle; the latter does not THE ELDER FRENCHMEN 12$ disappear, however, but in the Oriental paradise begs Indra that he may return. He is allowed to go back, but must die when Sita's life ends. Scindia's pursuit grows so oppressive that Sita stabs herself, and Alim then dies permanently. The peculiar style of the composer is well suited to this subject, and the scene of the Indian paradise is especially rich in effect. " Herodiade," produced at Brussels in 1881, re- verts to a sacred subject. How accurately it follows the scriptural story may be judged from the words of a critic : " It adheres to the biblical version quite closely, the chief number being a love-duet between Herodiade and John the Baptist in prison ! " The music possesses all Massenet's customary beauty of style, and in this work, as in the oratorio-drama, he has gone far toward founding a special school. A few years later came " Manon," based on the Abbe Prevost's novel. The story of that frail beauty and her weak-willed lover, who allow them- selves to be dominated by events in the most patient fashion, is set to music of the most delicate charm, which illustrates the varying phases of the libretto with consummate skill. By many this is consid- ered Massenet's operatic masterpiece. " Le Cid," brought out in 1885, proved a rather weak affair, the composer's style being unsuited to 126 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE a heroic subject. Yet the work had its measure of success, at least in Paris. " Esclarmonde," appear- ing four years later, was a much stronger opera. Its plot is of the romantic school, and introduces a heroine whose charms of person are reenforced by charms of magic, learned from her father, the Em- peror of Byzantium. She falls in love with the knight Roland, who is to marry the daughter of the French king. She draws him to her enchanted isle, where he yields to her beauty. She gives him the sword of St. George, which will win him vic- tory as long as he keeps their love a secret. He saves Blois for the French king, but declines his daughter's hand. Unfortunately he reveals the reason to the bishop, whereupon Esclarmonde and her spirits must vanish. But the attractive and by no means wholly wicked sorceress is not destined to remain long unhappy; for at a tournament, of which she is to be the prize, Roland appears, and instead of finding the death which he seeks in his despair, he wins the victory and is restored to his lost enchantress. The music to " Esclarmonde," while still decidedly individual, shows some noticeable traces of Wag- nerian influence. The subject and arrangement of the libretto give only a faint reminder of the music- dramas, but the use of guiding motives, one bearing THE ELDER FRENCHMEN close resemblance to a phrase from " Die Meister- singer," indicates that the composer had been cast- ing furtive glances in the direction of Bayreuth. " Werther," based on Goethe's novel, is another of Massenet's successes. The plot is not rich in dramatic interest, but its romantic episodes afford excellent material for the composer, who can always impart a mystic tenderness to scenes of love and sentiment. The music is expressive and full of feel- ing, and is written with due regard to dramatic unity. " Le Mage," another Oriental subject, was a com- parative failure. " Thais," depicting the conver- sion of a courtesan of ancient Egypt and the sub- sequent infatuation of the hermit who performed this holy task, met with a better reception, and won a permanent place at the Opera-Comique. " La Navarraise," with its love amid cannons, the kill- ing of the hostile leader by the heroine, and the repudiation of her by her lover, who thinks she has sold herself, is an echo of Mascagni's " Caval- leria." " Le Portrait de Manon " is a delightful one-act love-idyl, in which opposition to a marriage is overcome by the pleading of the bride-to-be. " Cendrillon," with its fairy subject, may possibly have been inspired by " Hansel and Gretel." " Griselidis " possesses a libretto that is less sen- 128 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE suous, and therefore more attractive to many audiences than the stories of the earlier operas. The heroine is a faithful country maiden, who is married to the Count de Saluces, and has her fidel- ity tested in every imaginable way. In the Massenet version, the count, on leaving for the crusades, makes a wager with the devil that his wife will prove faithful. That wily person tries to tempt her by introducing the shepherd Alain, a former admirer; and when the thought of her child saves her, he steals the child. Griselidis prays to the statue of St. Agnes, but the statue disappears. The count returns, to be met by the devil with false news of his success. On finding out this trick, the count grasps his arms; but they, too, disappear. At last he takes refuge in prayer ; the cross changes to a flaming sword, and when he seizes and waves it, all the spells are overcome. The child and the statue reappear, bells ring, and a scene of general rejoicing finishes the play. The music marks this as one of the master's great works, and its in- spired melodic beauty makes a strong appeal to the hearer. Another delightful work is " Le Jongleur de Notre-Dame." In this a poor starving jongleur, on the public square at Cluny, sings ribald songs for the populace; but he is reverent at heart, and apolo- THE ELDER FRENCHMEN 1 29 gizes to a statue of the Virgin for what he must do. The tumult becomes so great that the prior opens the door of the monastery and disperses the crowd. The hapless jongleur is threatened with excommunication unless he will become a monk, and the sight of a donkey laden with food for the sacred brothers decides him to yield. Inside, he is the butt of all except Frere Boniface, the cook, who tries to help him. All do some task in honour of the Virgin painting, illuminating missals, or composing canticles; he alone can do nothing. Suddenly an idea strikes him; he will amuse her. So he takes his jongleur's outfit, and performs his solitary entertainment before her statue. At last the other monks arrive, and are horrified at his act ; but before they can punish him, the statue comes to life, thanks him with her blessing, and calls him to her side in heaven. Massenet at sixty-two possesses much of the quick, nervous activity that has always character- ized him. He is essentially French in his music, in his personal temperament, in his operatic sub- jects. His long career of composition has been supplemented by many years of activity as pro- fessor of composition in the Conservatoire the same institution from which Bazin tried to exclude him in his youth, as being destitute of musical I3O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE talent. The names of his pupils form a large part of the list of France's great living composers - such as Bruneau, Leroux, Charpentier, Pierne, Vidal, and Marty, to say nothing of lesser men. An opera composer who seems almost to have outlived his generation is Louis fitienne Ernest Reyer, or Rey. He was born at Marseilles in 1823. He studied music during his childhood, and com- posed songs and masses while in the government financial bureau at Algiers. Owing to the revolu- tion of 1848, he lost his position, and from that time on became wholly devoted to music. His aunt was the famous Madame Farrenc, whose composi- tions secured her an honourable place among musi- cal women; and under her tuition he progressed rapidly. He has gained some fame as critic of the Jour- nal des Debats, and has published a volume of essays ; but the world knows and honours him chiefly as a composer. His first great work was " Le Selam," a symphonic ode not unlike David's " Le Desert." The one-act " Maitre Wolfram" and the ballet- pantomime " Sacountala " made no great effect, and it was only with "La Statue," in 1861, that he won some degree of renown and a membership in the Academic. " Erostrate," which followed, again met with neglect, and it was not until he produced THE ELDER FRENCHMEN l$\ his " Sigurd," in 1884, and the much later " Sa- lammbo," that his genius was fully appreciated. " Sigurd " is none other than Siegfried, and the subject is identical with that of Wagner's " Gotter- dammerung." Yet in spite of this formidable rival, Reyer's work has held its own well. The opera was sketched before Wagner's drama had appeared, and is in no sense a plagiarism. As far as the Wagnerian style is concerned, Reyer is in some degree a follower of the German master. He em- ploys guiding motives to some extent, and makes his work a unified whole; but his model is evidently " Lohengrin " or " Tannhauser," rather than the later music-dramas. There are suggestions of older masters, and it would be equally correct to call Reyer a follower of Meyerbeer and Berlioz, if, indeed, it is necessary to account for the existence of every genius by referring him to his artistic antecedents. " Salammbo," a stage version of Flaubert's well-known story of old Carthaginian times, contains much beautiful music, and shows true dramatic feeling. Such men as Lalo, Godard, or Delibes have died so recently that they seem to belong to the present. Their work lives, and some of it still possesses the charm of novelty for nations other than France. But in spite of much that is great and original 132 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE in their compositions, they do not mark any new musical tendency, any radical departure from the paths followed by Saint-Saens, for example. The case is different with Cesar Auguste Franck, whose name is now held in honour by the younger French school, of which he may be justly called the founder. Born at Liege on December 10, 1822, he studied at the conservatory there, afterward be- coming a citizen of France and continuing his studies at the Paris Conservatoire. Modest and retiring by nature, " le bon pere Franck," as he was called, divided his time between teaching, composing, and playing the organ of the Ste. Clotilde church. His simple faith and earnest work made him seem like some of the old mediaeval artists, who de- voted their life and their music to the glory of the Lord. Franck is well described by the words of his pupil, Guy de Ropartz : " He stands out from his contemporaries as one of another age; they are scoffers, he was a believer; they vaunt themselves, he worked in silence; they seek glory, he let it seek him. . . . They shrink from nothing to at- tain their object concession, compromise, mean- ness even; he performed his mission faithfully and without yielding or counting the cost, leaving us the noblest example of artistic uprightness." CESAR AUGUSTE FRANCK. THE ELDER FRENCHMEN 133 After winning prizes at the Conservatoire for counterpoint, fugue, and organ, Franck began his career as piano teacher. Soon afterward he became organ professor at the Conservatoire, and this post, with his private teaching in composition, enabled him to become the leader and the ideal of such men as D'Indy, De Castillon, Duparc, Chausson, and many others. His first great work was the biblical eclogue, " Ruth," which won the young composer some fame by its success. An early opera, " Le Valet de Ferme," failed, after which he returned to the field of sacred and organ music. In 1870 he began the " Beatitudes," a grandly planned musical para- phrase of the Sermon on the Mount. The poor, the weak, and the sufferers cry out in their anguish ; then the voice of Christ utters words of peace and comfort. Satan tries to stir up hatred and rebellion, but again the sacred voice replies, and the evil spirit is silenced. This work, in eight parts, con- tains some of the noblest of modern French music. Its divine tenderness, its dramatic force, its inspir- ing triumph mark it as a masterpiece. Yet its first effect is strange, for with immense polyphonic learning Franck combines a most modern tendency of bold modulations. It is the extremely chromatic character of his works that has undoubtedly pre- '134 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE vented them from becoming popular, and the dis- cussion of this point is what has caused such con- troversy about the modern French school as a whole. Two other oratorios by Franck, both worthy works, are " Rebecca " and " The Redemption." In the orchestra field, a set of symphonic variations was followed by the great D-minor symphony, a truly artistic composition. Of his many symphonic poems, " Psyche " introduces solos, duets, and even a chorus, to paint the love of Eros and the suffer- ing and apotheosis of his bride. " Les Eolides " was inspired by a beautiful ballad of Leconte de Lisle, giving homage to the breezes, the children of ^olus. " Les Djinns " depicts the spirits of the Orient, wandering about on errands of mischief, while " Le Chasseur Maudit " portrays the tragic fate of the fabled Count of the Rhine, who started his hunt on Sunday, and was compelled in punish- ment to hunt eternally, driven by the flames of hell and pursued by a pack of demons. Franck's one great opera, " Hulda," deals with a viking subject. It may not be an imitation, but the legendary libretto and the modulatory music cannot help reminding the hearer of " Tristan." Hulda is a pleasing viking maiden of the eleventh century, who is loved by her captor Gudleik, but prefers Eyolf. She foments a duel, in which Gud- THE ELDER FRENCHMEN 135 leik falls, after which she is satisfied for a time with the status quo. But Eyolf returns to his former love, Swanhilda, whereupon Hulda arouses Gud- leik's brothers to avenge him. She leads Eyolf into an ambuscade, where he is killed. While the victors are debating whether such a gentle maid as Hulda were not too good to be allowed to remain in this world, Eyolf's men come up, and she casts herself into the sea to escape their vengeance. Still another opera, " Ghisella," was left unfin- ished, and too fragmentary for performance. Franck has also written much chamber music, most of it strikingly effective. The influence of Franck, so far as his own life was concerned, has raised the standard of musical thought, and led his contem- poraries into paths of true art. But his modulatory style, which if at times vague is never uninteresting in his own works, has led some of the younger enthusiasts into a tangle of meaningless harmonic jumbles. It would seem as if the world were getting tired of the commonplace, and seeking for new effects in modulation; but although this style is much in evidence at present, some day there will come a man who will utter his musical thoughts in straightforward fashion, and the vain efforts of those who went before will be forgotten. The fresh enthusiasm of " Cyrano de Bergerac " carried it 136 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE around the literary world; and some musical Ros- tand will undoubtedly arise for France, beside whose simple force the unclear utterances of the present school will, lose their factitious importance. CHAPTER VI. THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY VINCENT D'!NDY, the leader of the new French school, was born at Paris, on March 27, 1852. His inborn taste outweighed the scruples of his parents, and he devoted himself to a musical career, receiv- ing instruction from his grandmother. After serv- ing as volunteer in the war of 1870, he returned with redoubled zeal to his studies, and became a pupil of Franck, " under whose worthy and benef- icent direction," he writes to the author, he com- pleted a course in technical studies, organ, and composition. A trip to Germany, in 1872, enabled the young composer to meet and admire Liszt at Weimar. D'Indv has been an active figure in the musical life of his nation. With Franck, Saint-Saens, De Castillon, and Duparc, he founded the French National Society of Music. He was a fervent par- tisan of Wagner, at a time when nearly all of France was hostile to that master. At the first 138 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Bayreuth festival, he assisted in preparing the per- formance of the " Ring," and later of " Parsifal." His early work as kettle-drummer and chorus-master in Colonne's Chatelet concerts prepared him for a later career as conductor. In this capacity he has been an untiring champion of new and little-known works, some by ancient writers, but the larger part belonging to the most modern French repertoire, In Barcelona he has given two sets of five concerts illustrating the development of the symphony. His first important work to reach the public was the " Piccolomini " overture, which forms a part of his orchestral trilogy based on Schiller's " Wallenstein." At a later period he wrote " La Chevauchee du Cid," for baritone, chorus, and or- chestra. In 1884 came the " Chant de la Cloche," a dramatic legend consisting of a prologue and seven parts, for soloists, chorus, and orchestra. This composition, for which he wrote the poem as well as the music, took first prize in a competition arranged by the city authorities of Paris, and brought the composer a reward in both money and glory. The overture to " Antony and Cleopatra " is an early work, as is also the symphony, in three move- ments, entitled " Jean Hunyadi." In 1878 came the first of the symphonic poems, " La Foret En- VINCENT D'INDY. THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 139 chantee," after the ballad of Uhland, entitled " Harald." It is an orchestral picture of Harald, the hero of old, who rides through the magic wood with his knights. The rustling murmurs of the forest mask the troop of elves, who charm away his warriors, but he moves bravely onward, until he finds a pure spring and drinks from it. Its en- chanted waters throw him into a deep slumber, where he remains during the centuries, surrounded by the dancing elves. " Saugefleurie " is an orchestral legend based on a story of De Bonnieres. D'Indy's latest symphonic poem is " Istar," based on parts of the old Assyrian epic, " Idzubar." Istar's husband, governor of Erech, is dead, and the city a prey to the invading Elamites. Idzubar, the hero, delivers it, but re- fuses Istar's hand, whereupon she tries to call down vengeance upon him. He is smitten with disease, and healed only by celestial aid. In D'Indy's ver- sion, however, Istar seeks her lover in the dread abode of death, the pays immuable, and, after sacri- ficing her garments to the warders, she rescues him with the water of life. D'Indy has produced two symphonies, not in- cluding the one already mentioned. The first, com- posed in 1886, is based on a mountain air, which is sung to-day by the peasants of the Cevennes. 140 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE The melody, sweet and pure, in fact almost sad in effect, forms the groundwork of all three move- ments, recurring much as the themes do in the tone-pictures of Berlioz. The second symphony, composed in 1903, has not yet had time to become familiar. Other instrumental works of DTndy are the orchestral suite " Karadec," based on incidental music for a drama, and the music to Catulle Mendes's tragedy of " Medee." Though not so wildly devoted to opera as many French composers, DTndy has won some successes in that form. A youthful attempt to set " Les Bur- graves," after Victor Hugo, was never finished, but the one-act comic opera, " Attendez - Moi Sous I'Orme," has had numerous performances. As an admirer of Wagner it was inevitable that D'Indy should produce something in the style of the music- dramas, and his " Fervaal," brought out at Brussels in 1897, showed plainly the influence of " Parsifal " and " Tristan." The very title, action musicale, in- dicates a departure from the older French forms. The music, as expected from Franck's best pupil, is extremely modulatory in character, and shows the grasp of a master of harmony and dramatic effect. The score gives a vivid picture of the in- cessant struggle, and rises to great heights of power. Fervaal lives in old France, in the time when THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 14! Celtic druidism still existed. He is wounded and captured by Saracens, but nursed and saved by Guilhen, the emir's daughter. The first act (the preceding being a prologue) shows Fervaal in the leader's garden, dreaming of Guilhen. The priest Arfagard tries to inspire him with the design of restoring the supremacy of the druids, and Guilhen's charms, which hold him for a time, cannot prevent his flight. In the next act Fervaal consults the oracle on the heights by the old sacred city of Cravann, and then plunges into battle with the pur- suing Saracens, in hope of finding death. In the last act, Guilhen finds Fervaal, but dies exhausted in his arms. Made wise by grief, Fervaal foresees the fall of the old gods and the triumph of love, Taking Guilhen's body, he disappears up the moun- tain. " L'fitranger," produced in 1902, has a more symbolic plot. It deals with a silent, patient stranger who comes to dwell in a village on the coast, and spends his time in unselfish deeds. The children hoot him, and the only one who speaks to him is Vita, a maiden who is loved by Andre, the customs officer. The stranger, old in suffering, will not at first respond, but when he sees Vita's sorrow he confesses his interest in her. Andre comes, with a commonplace song. He has captured a poor 142 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE smuggler, and, while the pair of lovers pity the unfortunate man and his children, he thinks only of the reward, and offers to buy Vita a necklace for their banns. But on the morrow the banns are not called, for Vita refuses to allow it. The people are surprised, and her mother scolds, but she is firm. Alone by the sea, the stranger comes to say adieu, as he must travel through all lands to relieve suffering and seek human brotherhood. He gives her a sacred emerald, but she throws it into the sea, and an impending storm breaks. A ship is in danger, but no one acts, until the stranger mans a boat. Even then none will go with him, when suddenly Vita comes. They reach the ship, but a great wave engulfs everything, and the De Profundis ends the work. It has been suggested that the title of this work should be altered from " The Stranger " to " The Strangest." But it has many remarkable beauties, and its evident striving after an ideal makes it an opera well worth studying. This is D'Indy's most recent triumph, but his many lesser works chamber music, songs, dainty piano pieces, and one or two cantatas and sacred selections are now becoming well known. The composer is at present (1904) finishing a violin sonata. D'Indy the man is quiet and unassuming, always THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 143 modest and obliging, wherein he resembles his master, Franck. He is fond of the country; the air, the birds, the sweet smells of earth and fields appeal to him strongly. So, too, do the beauty of the forests and the sublimity of the mountains. His first symphony and his " Foret Enchantee " reflect this love of nature in a tangible form. D'Indy has received many honours, and is now Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, Chevalier of the Order of Leopold of Belgium, and Commander of the Order of Charles III., of Spain. Since the Paris Exposition of 1889 he has been a member of the official music commission. He also belongs to the Academic Royale of Belgium, and, if that is not enough, he is a member of the " Maatschappij tot Bevarderung der Toonkunst," in Holland. In 1895 he founded, with Charles Bardes and Alex- andre Guilmant, the Schola Cantorum, a music- school now numbering three hundred pupils, of whom he has more than sixty in his composition classes. Alexis Emmanuel Chabrier created great works during his life, and would undoubtedly have done still greater things had he been spared longer. He was born at Ambert, on January 18, 1841, studied law in Paris, and entered the office of the Ministere de 1'Interieure. He had taken a few lessons in 144 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE music, but was almost wholly self-taught. His early successes in light opera, with " L'fitoile " and " L'fiducation Manquee," decided him to follow a musical career, and, in order to train himself in orchestration, he copied the entire score of " Tris- tan." In 1881 came the suite for piano entitled " Dix Pieces Pittoresques," while two years later he pub- lished the brilliant orchestral rhapsody " Espana," based on well-known Spanish airs. Other important works by Chabrier are " La Sulamite," for mezzo- soprano, female chorus, and orchestra; music to Mendes's tragic " Femme de Tabarin"; "Suite Pastorale"; the lively " Marche Joyeuse"; "A la Musique," for soprano, female chorus, and or- chestra; a number of piano pieces, and several fantastically humourous songs. It was in the operatic field that Chabrier won his greatest success, in spite of the ill-luck which seemed to pursue him. His " Gwendoline " appeared at Brussels in 1886, but after a few performances the theatre suspended payment. A second great work, " Le Roi Malgre Lui," was given at the Paris Opera Comique, whereupon the theatre took fire and burned down. " Gwendoline " received a German hearing, under Mottl, and proved itself a worthy work. The libretto, by Mendes, shows THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 145 Gwendoline as the daughter of Armel, an ancient British king. All is peace and plenty in the land, when she announces a dream that a Dane had car- ried her over the sea. The people laugh, but men rush in with dismay, for the Danes, under Harald, have really come. Gwendoline saves her father, and captivates Harald, who asks her hand. Armel consents, but arranges to massacre the Danes at the wedding-feast. Gwendoline, who really loves Harald, warns him, but in vain ; his men are killed, he is beaten down, Gwendoline snatches his knife and stabs herself, while the pair die singing exultant strains of the Valkyrie and Walhalla. The music of " Gwendoline " is virile, forceful, and truly dramatic in quality. Despite lack of train- ing, Chabrier attained his effects with sure and skil- ful hand. Of all the Frenchmen, he was the one best fitted to attempt the bold style required by the sub- ject. Nor was he unsuccessful in a more graceful vein, for " Le Roi Malgre Lui " is an excellent example of the modernized opera comique. In per- son, Chabrier was large, stout, and of the utmost jollity. He would play piano with infinite enthu- siasm and drollery, convulsing his audience and breaking the strings. Just when this good-natured man had success within his grasp, he was struck 146 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE down by brain paralysis, and wasted away to a premature death on September 15, 1894. Alfred Bruneau, even though not acknowledged by all as a safe guide, stands as the operatic leader of the realistic school of modern France. Born at Paris, March 3, 1857, he studied at the Conserva- toire and won the Prix de Rome with his cantata " Sainte Genevieve." His earliest opera, " Kerim," received little notice, but with Zola's " Le Reve," in 1891, he began to receive more attention. Its heroine is the dreamy Angelique, who falls in love with the bishop's son, an artist who is designing the cathedral windows. The bishop objects, but yields when Angelique pines away. The wedding takes place, but she has been so weakened that on emerging from the cathedral she dies from excess of happiness. " L'Attaque du Moulin," another Zola libretto, deals with the love of Dominique, a soldier in the Franco-Prussian War, for Franchise, the miller's daughter in a small village. The plot involves the capture and escape of Dominique, and the voluntary sacrifice of the miller in his place. In this opera the lofty continuity of " Le Reve " gives place to a more rhythmical and formally melodic style, and the work achieved a tremendous success with the public at large. ALFRED BRUNEAU. THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 147 In " Messidor," Bruneau returned to the sus- tained style of which he is such an ardent champion. The story, based again on a text from Zola, is at- tractive enough. On the banks of the gold-bearing Ariege, whose waters, according to tradition, bring the yellow grains from a mysterious golden cathe- dral where the Christ-child scatters them in play, the people have left off tilling the fields in a fever for sudden wealth. Helene, the daughter of the rich Gasparcl, is loved by Guillaume, whose mother, Veronique, thinks Gaspard responsible for the acci- dent that caused her husband's death. Guillaume, prevented by poverty and other circumstances from winning his love, heads a band of idlers in an attempt to coerce Gaspard and destroy his gold- washing machines. Meanwhile Veronique has acci- dentally beheld the sacred cathedral, which vanishes after being seen by mortal eyes. A tempest destroys Gaspard's plant, Veronique's suspicions are proved wrong, Guillaume and Helene are free to love each other, the people return to honest labour, and the fields are once more covered with ripening grain and luxuriant verdure. " L'Ouragan," produced in 1901, deals with the fierce blasts of human passion as well as with the hurricane of nature. It is located in the imaginary island of Goe'l, where the jealous and vindictive 148 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Marianne wishes to rule by ruining the rival fish- eries of the two brothers Richard and Landry. Richard, who has loved her sister Jeannine, has been driven away by her wiles, and Jeannine has become the bride of Landry. He proves a cruel husband, a drunkard and a wife-beater, and ready to fall a prey to Marianne's advances. In the first act, Richard, now a sea-captain, returns and finds the troubled Jeannine in need of consolation. Marianne surprises them, and allows them to ar- range an elopement with her house as meeting- place; but she has told Landry, whom she brings to the scene. Landry is wild with rage, but Richard declines to fight; and, when Landry tries to stab him, Marianne, who really loves Richard, snatches the knife and kills the would-be murderer. Jeannine is overcome by this terrible act, and Richard departs alone in the hurricane that is raging. Bruneau is now at work preparing for the per- formance of " L'Enfant Roi," to take place in 1905, and he is also completing incidental music to " La Faute de 1'Abbe Mouret," both on texts of Zola. Among his other works are a great Requiem, a Heroic Overture, the symphonic poem " Pen- thesilee," for voice and orchestra, and many beau- tiful songs. His three books, " Musiques d'Hier et de Demain," " La Musique Franchise," and " Mu- THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 149 siques de Russie et Musiciens de France," all con- tain much valuable criticism. He has done similar work for the daily papers, such as Gil Bias, Le Figaro, and at present Le Matin. His music has aroused decided controversy. Such men as Pougin, who cling wholly to the older melodic ideas of opera, see nothing but noise and confusion in his scores ; while many of the greatest composers, including such a leader as Charpentier, are enthusiastic in their praise. Bruneau is cer- tainly sincere, and has just as certainly developed a vein of music-drama that is realistic, modern, and based on French lines. His music, especially in the romantic " Messidor " and the powerful " Ouragan," is that of a master, and abounds in beautiful pas- sages. If he indulges in the continuous melodic recitative too much to please some critics, he does so because he deems it proper for dramatic ex- pression. He surely deserves praise from all fac- tions for his earnestness and fidelity to his own ideals. All his operatic work has been done in connection with Zola, who has stood for realism in literature. If Gustave Charpentier has not many operas to his credit, he has made up for this lack by the remarkable excellence of his one chief work, " Louise." Born at Dieuze, in Lorraine, on I 50 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE June 25, 1860, he, too, became a Conservatoire pupil, and took the Prix de Rome. His life in the Eternal City resulted in the delightful orchestral suite, " Impressions d'ltalie," consisting of five tone- pictures entitled " Serenade," " At the Fountain," " On Muleback," " On the Summits," and "Naples." On his return to Paris he lived for some time in Montmartre, where for awhile he did daily labour, and where he became thoroughly acquainted with the working life of the capital. The scenes of this life appear constantly in his music, and furnish him with strong subjects. They have even involved him in controversies, for his suggestion that working girls be allowed certain free seats at the opera aroused a storm of humourous discussion. His first great work on the life of the people was the symphony-drama " La Vie du Poete." At first the poet dreams of his childhood, and all its tender memories. He is gradually mastered by a growing enthusiasm that inspires him to the utmost, and he seems actually to hear the music of the spheres. Then doubt follows; at first he is con- soled by the calm, serene beauty of the night, but in the end his fears gain the upper hand. Then follows a picture of impotence, and vain anger against fate, after which the poet tries to drug his sorrows in the cheap gaiety of the city. At this GUSTAVE CHARPENTIER. THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 151 point are introduced all the cries and noises of a Montmartre ball, where the poet drowns all remorse in a drunken orgy. " La Couronnement de la Muse " is another epi- sode of city life, or, rather, a suggestion. Per- formed at a Montmartre festival in 1897, ^ reached the operatic stage at Lille in 1898. Charpentier's idea was that in each town, once a year, a Muse should be chosen from among the working girls and crowned solemnly. The work is a pantomime, in which Beauty crowns the Muse, and poets bring their adoration. Suffering bewails the lot of humanity, but the Muse of Happiness comes, and he sinks at her feet in adoration. Then followed an allegorical procession of workmen, schoolmasters, students, and others, reviewed by History and Poetry. But it was " Louise " that brought fame and for- tune to the struggling composer. The heroine is a working girl in Paris, who is loved and wooed by the poet Julien, but her mother, discovering this, objects, and even Julien's letter to her father, re- questing her hand, is of no avail. Julien's life has been wild, and her parents try to persuade her to forget him, but in vain; she can no longer read the newspaper to her father as usual, but breaks into sobs. 152 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE The second act shows a Muntmartre square in the early morning. Nocturnal revellers are still about, and the noises of night and morning blend in an orchestral picture. Julien then appears, and leads a fantastic march of his Bohemian friends. Louise is brought by her mother to the dressmaking shop where she works, and after her mother's de- parture Julien approaches the door to tempt her away; but she will not go, consoling him with the statement that she will be his wife later on. Then follows a picture of the workroom, with its chattering girls ; its trivial merriment and the com- monplace noises from the street grate on Louise, who must leave in a fevered condition. In the third act Louise has given herself to Julien, with whom she lives in a state of free love. Their little house and garden seem the abode of happiness, and in the evening their friends arrange a charming festival, at which Louise is crowned as Muse. Sud- denly her mother appears, and persuades her to return by telling her of her father's illness. In the fourth act her father wishes her to remain at home and give up Julien. She reproaches him for his harshness, and, after a tender scene of filial and paternal affection, she invokes the aid of the city in dramatic fashion. He becomes furious, and orders her out, and, after she has timidly obeyed, THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 153 her parents break into sobs, and the father shakes his fist at the terrible city that sweeps the unwary into its vortex. The music to " Louise," as, in fact, all of Char- pentier's music, is natural, forceful, attractive both inspired and inspiring. For those who study musical influences, it has been stated that he shows traces of Massenet and Berlioz, with a little Chabrier mingled in. His dramatic skill is noteworthy, and his variety of emotional expression remarkable. The man who can depict with equal truth the mur- murs of the forest, the divine calm of night, the liveliness of Neapolitan folk-life, or the frenzied gaiety of Montmartre, is certainly endowed with remarkable natural gifts. Achille Claude Debussy is by all odds the most typical of the musical impressionists. Born at Paris in 1862, he is decidedly one of the new school. A musician of great gifts, he chooses to imbue all his music with a studied vagueness of effect, and wander through a maze of ever-changing keys and harmonies. Apparently He tries to do with chords what the Wagnerian Melos did with unison melody. The result is at first perfectly incomprehensible to many, but on repeated hearing and study his works show a weird, elusive charm that is worshipped by the modern decadents as the acme of beauty. 154 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE In 1884 Debussy took the Prix de Rome with the cantata " L'Enfant Prodigue," and soon after that began to give forth the novel works that have made him so adored and so execrated. " La Demoiselle Elue " and " Chimene," two lyric scenes, first drew attention to the young artist. Then came the or- chestral prelude to Mallarme's " L'Apres-midi d'un Faune," a curious tissue of chords and modulations that his critics call meaningless, but his admirers insist is the very essence of musical significance. The " Nocturnes," entitled " Nuages " and " Fetes," are described by De Breville, for example, as pos- sessing the ethereal charm of a perfume that per- vades all the air, but defies analysis. A string quartette is more formal in style, or, rather, less entirely lacking in form, but the " Proses Lyriques," on subjects of Beaudelaire, also the " Chansons de Bilitis " and " Les Estampes," again show the free style. The opposition critics have agreed that this freedom from all known rules and doctrines, this refined intellectual mania for novelty, is wholly absurd. They have even invented a term for a composer who indulges in this liberty; he is called " un cerebral," a man who has no underlying feeling, no emotion that gives unity to his work, but whose music comes in isolated bits from the brain, and not at all from the heart. THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 155 Debussy's greatest work is the opera, " Pelleas and Melisande." His vague style is more in place in opera than in other forms, and it certainly suits the words of Maeterlinck, whose literary work offers the same shadowy suggestions that the com- poser gives in music. The plot is familiar enough to modern readers; the old King Golaud, hunting in a wood, finds the beautiful Melisande, who is lost, and makes her his bride. But he is aged and ugly, and his handsome younger brother, Pelleas, soon wins and returns the affections of the bride. There are love-scenes, and jealousy, and surprises, whereupon Golaud kills Pelleas, and the gentle Melisande wastes away to her death. In the seem- ingly monotonous jumble of harmonies there are many passages that grow clear, and express the situation wonderfully well; but, taking all of De- bussy's music, as a whole, it seems that he has often gone too far afield, and lost himself in the devious paths of musical impressionism. Ernest Chausson, had he lived, would undoubtedly have become one of France's greatest composers. Born in 1855, he was trained by his parents for the profession of law; but, like many other musi- cians since the days of Schumann, he found such a career too uninviting, and at twenty-five turned to music. He studied with Massenet at the conserv- 156 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE atory, then for two years with Franck. His com- fortable financial circumstances did not prevent him from showing remarkable diligence, and he soon mastered his art. The great works that he produced were barely beginning to become known when, in 1899, while riding a bicycle down a hill at his Limay estate, he lost control of the machine, and was killed by being dashed against a stone wall. The list of works that he has left is fairly ample. It includes a noble symphony, the beautiful sym- phonic poem " Viviane," the orchestral pictures " Solitude dans les Bois " and " Soir de Fete," a " Poe'me " for violin and orchestra, several pieces of chamber music, a number of choruses, and some remarkably pleasing songs. In opera, his great work was " Le Roi Arthus." He brought to his music a rare skill in the handling of harmonic masses, and a most captivating power of expres- sion. His works are full of tenderness and charm, yet not lacking in the more passionate vigour that carries conviction to the hearer. He felt the full force of the modern harmonic richness, the wealth of or- chestral colour. Had he lived he might have hoped for everything, and even now his works place him far above the seekers after strange gods who are mis- leading France to-day. Theodore Dubois, head of the conservatory in THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 157 Paris, is no less prominent in composition than in teaching. He was born at Rosnay in 1837, studied in the conservatory, and gained the coveted sojourn in Rome, where he wrote a Messe Solennelle, an Italian opera, and two overtures. Returning to Paris, he became leader at Ste. Clotilde, then at the Madeleine, and finally organist at the latter church, succeeding Saint-Saens. At the conserva- tory he became harmony professor in 1871, to which he added composition twenty years later, and finally, in 1896, the directorship. Of his several oratorios, " Paradise Lost " is best known in America. He has produced four operas, and the ballet " La Farandole." In the orchestral field he has written several suites and concertos, the symphonic poem " Adonis," and a number of overtures, including " Frithjof." His successor at the Madeleine was Gabriel Faure, one of the few pupils of Saint-Saens. Faure, unlike most Frenchmen, has written no opera, but he has produced a symphony, two string quartettes, and a number of exquisite songs. At times he displays the modern French tendency of wandering through a labyrinth of harmonies, but his music shows many rare beauties. Another organist-composer is Charles Marie Widor, who is responsible for the opera " Maitre Ambros," a delightful ballet, " La Korri- 158 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE gane," and much organ and instrumental music. Still another famous organist is Alexandre Guil- mant, who teaches at the conservatory. His works are more confined to his instrument, but his great organ symphony wins repeated hearings. Louis Albert Bourgault-Ducoudray, the teacher of musical history, has made a name for himself by his erudite researches in Breton folk-songs and musical antiquities. He has written a choral sym- phony, a fantasie, the " Carnaval d'Athenes," the " Burial of Ophelia," several cantatas, including " Au Souvenir de Roland," the operas " Bretagne " and " Thamara," and numerous lesser works. Henri Duparc's symphonic poem " Lenore " has been given an American hearing. Guy de Ropartz and Pierre de Breville rank among the best of Franck's pupils, and bring to their work a thorough earnestness. Gabriel Pierne has written many operas and some incidental music, his " Vendee " and " Fille de Tabarin " being among his many successes. Arthur Coquard's operas, " L'fipee du Roi," " Le Mari d'un Jour," " L'Oiseau Bleu," and " La Jacquerie," have met with favourable recep- tion. Rene de Boisdeffre and Charles Lefebvre are also worthy of high rank, the latter's lyric drama " Judith " and other works being in frequent de- mand. Paul Dukas has won renown as a sym- THE FRENCHMEN OF TO-DAY 159 phonist, while Camilla Erlanger and Georges Hue are two noteworthy composers in the operatic field. Gabriel Dupont, with " La Cabrera," won a Son- zogno prize, in competition with such Italian works as " II Domino Azzuro," by Franco da Venezia, and Lorenzo Filiasi's " Manuel Mendes." The melodic freshness and piquancy of Chaminade's songs and other works have made her known in both hemispheres. The list might be extended al- most indefinitely, for the prestige of France in opera and the new national movement have in- fluenced a host of ambitious young writers to enter the struggle for musical fame. CHAPTER VII. ITALY THREE hundred years or more ago opera had its origin in Italy, and other nations were proud to copy the novelty. Soon after this the beginning of musical form came in the shape of early sonatas, while Tartini and Corelli gave lustre to a school of violin playing that led the world, and the two Scarlattis brought further glory to their land by their compositions. But at the end of the eighteenth century, when foreigners came to Italy to study, her own people remained satisfied with their work, and paid no heed to the advances made in other lands. Mozart, Beethoven, and the classicists sprang up in Germany, and Weber created a national style, as Wagner did at a later date; while in France Rossini conformed to the advanced stand- ards and produced " William Tell," after which he became a mere spectator of the triumphs of Meyerbeer, Gounod, Saint-Saens, and others. Mean- while the Italians went on in their blind career, 160 ITALY l6l producing that copious stream of trivial melodies which had supplied their petty theatres for so many years. In 1850 there were almost no concert-halls in Italy, and even the churches were content with operatic airs set to sacred words. It was not to be expected that such musical decadence could be remedied in a day, but the last half-century shows a series of continued efforts to bring about a musical regeneration. First came the reorganization of the conservatories at Florence, Turin, Milan, Rome, and elsewhere. The organs, which Saint-Saens found so wretched when he played at Milan in 1879, are now kept in excellent condition, and played by cul- tivated musicians and composers. The sacred music, practically non-existent, was brought into being by the offer of prizes for four-part masses and other works. The labours of Bishop Caligari, in Padua, and of Bossi, in Venice, vastly improved the sit- uation in recent years. At present the sacred music of Italy is practically summed up in one name that of Perosi. Don Lorenzo Perosi was born at Tortona, on December 23, 1872. His youth was much troubled by sickness, but he pursued his musical studies faith- fully while undergoing his priestly training. His first serious lessons were taken at the Milan con- 1 62 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE servatory, while in 1894 he became a pupil of the learned Fr. Haberl, at the Cathedral Singing School of Ratisbon. The next year found him conducting at Imola, where he led his forces in the most lively and enthusiastic fashion. Two years later he ful- filled the same functions at the San Marco, in Venice. In that year he produced the first of the great works that have made his name so familiar and caused so much discussion. His sacred trilogy, " The Passion of Christ," including the Last Sup- per, the Sermon on the Mount, and the death of the Redeemer, made a sensation that reverberated through all Italy, and caused his appointment in the following year as honorary master of the Papal Choir. Both before and since that date Perosi has been indefatigable as a composer, having written no less than fifteen masses and nearly a dozen ora- torios. The latter include " The Transfiguration," " The Annunciation," " The Raising of Lazarus," "The Birth of the Redeemer," and the two-part " Moses." Perosi carries his enthusiasm into the work of composition. He sees the actual picture before him as he writes, and is wholly absorbed by the subject in hand. His music reflects his temperament, for, while it aims to follow the old and strict styles, it DON LORENZO PEROSI. ITALY 163 blends with them a most modern feeling for dramatic effect. Perosi is not of the school of Palestrina, but stands midway between that and the popular vein. He is eminently fitted for the present, however, and has done an excellent service in paving the way for a return to the classical dignity that once existed in Italian church music. The recent edicts of the Pope are probably aimed to bring this about, through Perosi's music. The growth of Italian opera has been longer in evidence, and is a more familiar story to musical readers. The singing-concerts that bore the name of opera in Italy are not now held up as models of art, and only a few of them remain popular, to serve as a medium of display for some vocally agile prima donna. Yet it is hardly more than thirty years since the period of utter ignorance of German music, and the ludicrous attacks on Wagner and other leaders of that nation. The growth of a saner and more intelligent journalism in Italy is due largely to the patient campaign of education con- ducted by Luigi Torchi and his associates. In 1868 a young composer named Arrigo Boito, who had studied in Germany, had the temerity to produce an opera which contained something more than mere coloratur arias. The appearance of " Mefistofele " was the signal for a series of furious 1 64 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE attacks, which form strange reading today, in view of the subsequent success of the work. Boito then turned his own efforts to the field of journalism, and composed nothing more for many years. Now he is ready to give out a second work, " Nero," with a gory plot in which the emperor, after burying his murdered mother, falls in love with the beautiful Asteria. The crafty Simon Mago tries to use this passion for his own purposes, but is finally con- demned to die. At the Circus, where the Christian martyrs are burned, Simon is to jump from a tower, but he tries to save himself by starting a fire. Rome burns, and the emperor, after visions of terror, meets death by a lightning-stroke. The plot shows the influence of the new Italian realism, but Boito's long career as an excellent librettist for Verdi and other composers is a warrant that it will be effective on the stage. The work of Verdi, while not in direct imitation of Wagner, has shown the influence of German musical standards. He did not remain silent after his advance in " Aida," as Rossini did after " Will- iam Tell," but produced the powerful " Otello " and the sparkling " Falstaff." But a really character- istic style of opera did not appear until 1890, when the prize offered by the publisher Sonzogno was won ITALY 165 by the unknown composer Mascagni, with his " Cavalleria Rusticana." Pietro Mascagni was born at Leghorn on Decem- ber 7, 1863. Son of a baker who wished him to become a lawyer, he studied piano secretly, and other musical subjects as time went on. At the age of fourteen he was discovered and locked up by his father, but rescued by an uncle, and afterward be- friended by Count Florestan, who had him study at Milan. He became conductor of many small opera troupes, finally leading the musical society at Cerignola, when his successful prize opera brought him at one bound into a position of international prominence. " Rustic Chivalry," with its betrayed Santuzza revealing to the carter Alfio the intrigue that his wife Lola is carrying on with her former lover Turiddu, and the latter's death at Alfio's hands, marked the beginning of the realistic, or " Verismo," school. It was fiercely assailed by many critics, but it has a note of truth and a savage power that can- not fail to impress its many hearers. The music, composite in style, is full of many beautiful and modern effects, and is entirely free from the earlier Italian banality. The " Siciliana " of Turiddu (sung as part of the overture, before the curtain rises), the broad and noble " Regina Cceli," Lola's 1 66 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE serene aria, " My King of Roses," and the jolly " Brindisi," would assure the success of any opera, to say nothing of the saccharine " Intermezzo." Though Mascagni can hardly claim rank as a composer of the first class, the power and vividness of " Cavalleria " deserve all praise. His later works, however, have not come up to the same stand- ard. " L'Amico Fritz," based on the Erckmann- Chatrian novel, was decidedly unsuited to the sen- sational style, and demanded a gentler hand. " I Rantzau " met with some favour in Italy, and " Guglielmo Ratcliff " and " Silvano " also won partial successes. The one-act sketch " Zanetto " was pleasing enough, and " Iris " gained some recognition. But none of these works has found favour in other nations, as the failure of Mascagni's American tour will bear witness. In 1901 he pro- duced " Le Maschere," which was performed simul- taneously in six different cities, and made six fail- ures instead of one. He has just completed a new one-act opera, in three scenes, entitled " Arnica," treating of a Savoyard love-story with a tragic ending. This work is already in the Monte Carlo list. The success of " Rustic Chivalry " aroused Rug- giero Leoncavallo to try his hand in the same school. His first opera, " Chatterton," had failed, though in PIETRO MASCAGNI. ITALY 167 later years it has met with some success. A disciple of Wagner, he, too, produced an ambitious trilogy, consisting of " I Medici," " Savonarola," and " Cesare Borgia " ; but the large work found small appreciation. Leoncavallo had made piano tours in Greece and Egypt, had lived in Paris some years, and had seen a private performance of his " Songe d'une Nuit d'te " ; but fame seemed out of his reach until the production of his " Pagliacci." The story of these strolling players (Pag- liacci) was written by the composer himself. Tonio, the clown, overhears Nedda planning elope- ment with the villager Silvio, and in jealous rage denounces her to her husband Canio, but Silvio escapes unrecognized. In the play that the little company gives for the villagers the situation hap- pens to be much like the reality, and Canio, actuated by real instead of mimic passion, stabs Nedda. Silvio leaps from the audience to save her, only to meet a similar death. The music of this play, if less popular than that of " Rustic Chivalry," is remarkably well-knit and powerful, and the work has become a universal success. Leoncavallo has produced a symphonic poem, " Serafitus-Serafita," and several later operas, among them being " La Tosca," " Trilby " and " Zaza." He has recently been occupied in setting " Roland of Berlin," a 1 68 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE libretto furnished to him by the versatile Emperor of Germany. Umberto Giordano is another famous Italian realist. His " Mala Vita " depicts the upward struggle of a fallen girl of the streets, and her undeserved failure through the desertion of the man who should save her, but who sacrifices her to carry on an intrigue. Giordano's " Andrea Chenier " has won some success, while " Regina Diaz " is an earlier work. " Fedora " and the much-talked-of " Si- beria " are his latest productions. It seems as if the " Verismo " school insisted on a realism that pictured only the most brutal side of life. Spinelli's " A Basso Porto " and Tasca's " A Santa Lucia " exhibit this characteristic in their music as well as their librettos, the latter's " Per- golese " being a subsequent failure. Coronaro's " Festa a Marina " was second to " Rustic Chiv- alry " in the prize contest, and had its day of popu- larity. He has written a symphony, and several later operas, including " Enoch Arden " and " Un Curioso Accidente." Cilea's " Arlesiana " and " Adriana Lecouvreur " are works in the old style, while " Tilda," an earlier opera, is still less im- portant. A recent echo of realism is Cesare Rossi's " Nadeya," the story of a vivandiere who becomes the wife of Peter the Great, but is brought to dis- ITALY 169 credit and death by a jealous officer. Rossi has also written " Biorn," on a Norwegian subject, and a confused setting of " Macbeth." Orefice has created the medley " Chopin," made up of that master's themes, and the recent " Cecilia," which failed partly because of difficulties in the vocal parts. His sacred opera, " Moses," is soon to appear. A posthumous opera of Ponchielli, " I Mori di Valenza," is not likely to prove a startling novelty. There are many Italian composers who have stood somewhat aloof from the " Verismo " movement, and who, if not actually followers of Wagner, have yet upheld higher musical ideas than those of the dime-novel style of opera composers. In fact, the success of " Hansel and Gretel " resulted in a return to less crude subjects and less brutal music. Among the supporters of this movement Mancinelli is well known in America, though more through his con- ducting than through his opera, " Ero e Leandre." Catalani, who wrote several operas in the romantic vein, met with an early death in 1893. A com- poser who is spoken of in the highest terms by many Italian musicians is Alberto Franchetti. Franchetti, born at Turin in 1850, studied at the Munich conservatory. His dramatic legend, " As- raele," produced at Brescia, aroused much interest. He followed this with several operas, all of which I/O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE have met with decided success. " Cristoforo Co- lombo " appeared at Genoa in 1892, and two years later " Fior d'Alpe " was given at Milan. " Ger- mania " was also a very successful work. A more recent opera, " II Signer di Pourceaugnac," based on Moliere's " Malade Imaginaire," brought the composer more than a dozen recalls when performed in Rome before an audience of the highest rank. His " Figlia di Jorio " is to appear soon. Fran- chetti's great gifts are evident in the symphony that he has written, and, if we may trust the enthusiasm of his critics, he is one of the very best of the living Italian composers. When Verdi was about to retire from musical activity, he named as his probable successor a man who was scarcely known outside of his own country Giacomo Puccini. Puccini was born at Lucca, in 1858. Descended from a long line of musical ancestors, he was enabled to follow his career with- out parental opposition, and his studies began in his native town. Continuing under Ponchielli at Milan, he graduated from the conservatory with a " Ca- priccio Sinfonico " that gave ample evidence of his talent. In later life he returned to the institution as professor of composition. His first opera, " Le Villi," produced in 1884, was really the origin of the one-act plays that have GIACOMO PUCCINI, ITALY 171 been so favoured by Mascagni and the realists. It is based on the northern legend of the Villi, or Wilis, spirits of affianced maidens whose lovers have proved unfaithful. The scene is laid in a Black Forest village, where Robert, betrothed to the damsel Anna, learns of a fortune awaiting him at Mainz. He proceeds to that town, and there forgets Anna to plunge into an intrigue. She dies broken-hearted, and on his return he is drawn into the circling dance of the Wilis and whirled about until he drops life- less. " Edgar," appearing five years later, was less suc- cessful because of a weaker libretto. The hero falls in love with a beautiful gipsy, and is beguiled to her mountain retreat. Tiring of her, he departs to the wars. On his return he finds happiness in the arms of a village maiden, who has loved him from the first; but the vengeful gipsy contrives to stab her rival, who dies in his arms while the mur- deress is dragged to the scaffold. The score of this Italian " Carmen " contains some attractive melodies and rich orchestration, but is often laboured and ineffective. " Manon Lescaut," founded on Prevost's novel, seems rather a succession of detached scenes than a coherent whole. In the first act the heroine chooses to flee with Des Grieux rather than enter a MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE convent. In the next, she leaves him, but is per- suaded to return, when her irate protector consigns her to St. Lazare. The third act shows the em- barkation for America, while the fourth is a long love-duet, ending in Manon's death. Less sac- charine than Massenet's work, this opera shows that Puccini had gained a mastery of dramatic effect. The finale of the third act, where Des Grieux and Manon bid farewell amid the confusion of the popu- lace and the monotonous roll-call of the sergeant, certainly foreshadows the dramatic power of " Tosca." In "La Boheme," the inseparable quartette of Murger's novel are found in their little attic of the Latin Quarter, where they bid a rollicking defiance to landlord's bills and the pangs of hunger. The dashing Musetta coquets with the faithful Marcel, but returns to him at last, while the gentle Mimi, loved by the poet Rudolph, is brought back after a quarrel, only to die in his arms. The music is by turns lively and tender, and gives a dashing picture of the scenes. The note of haunting sweetness that pervades the score marks the composer as a man of rare musical gifts. With " La Boheme," " Tosca " has become fa- miliar to operatic audiences in many countries. The love of that heroine for the political refugee Mario, ITALY 173 the effort of the unscrupulous Scarpia to force her to his will by torturing Mario, her pretended sub- mission, her stabbing of the persecutor when all else fails, and the death of Mario after Scarpia had promised that his execution should be merely pre- tended, form a plot that is almost too strong for the operatic stage. But the music is worthy of the libretto, and its many touches of graphic realism show the skilled hand of the master. After four years of success, " Tosca " remains by far the strongest work that has come from Italy since Verdi's death. There seems to be a desire for imitation among all stage composers. Does Humperdinck win suc- cess with a fairy opera, Goldmark must at once follow with another in the same style. Mascagni showed the way for Leoncavallo, and " Edgar " has already been spoken of as a possible echo of " Car- men." But Puccini, after his two great successes, was decidedly an object of attention, and it seems a pity that his latest venture has not equalled the preceding triumphs. " Madame Butterfly," recently produced in Italy, has met with little encourage- ment, and the failure of Mascagni's " Iris " should have shown the difficulty of setting a Japanese sub- ject. Puccini's music is still lacking in some of the more delicate touches needed for such a libretto. 174 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE But, in spite of this setback, he is to-day the fore- most man in Italy, and his mature and seasoned skill will undoubtedly be shown in future works. It is now several decades since the day when Italy possessed no symphonists. Yet it is true that in the sixties Italy had no concert-composers of her own, and cared nothing for those of other countries. At an orchestral concert organized by Pinelli, in that early time, sixty musicians were engaged, and the box-office receipts left only fourteen francs with which to pay them. Sgambati produced a Beethoven symphony in Rome, but had to pay for it out of his own pocket. In 1870 the queen gave her sup- port, and this patronage brought other adherents. The Orchestral Society founded at Rome by Pinelli met with opposition from two distinct parties those who cared nothing for instrumental music, and those who were bound to fight German in- fluence at any cost. But gradually the cause of pure music triumphed, and many other cities joined in the movement. Giovanni Sgambati, the leader of the Italian sym- phonists, was born in Rome on May 28, 1843. Destined for the lawyer's career that seems the usual fate of young musicians, he was afterward allowed to follow his inclinations, and at Trevi he became something of a child-prodigy. At the ITALY 175 age of twenty-seven he settled in Rome, where he soon grew famous as a pianist. His programmes were classical in character, and included the works of Beethoven, Schumann, and Chopin. In fact, his concerts did much to introduce these masters to the Italian public. Sgambati planned to go to Germany for further study, but circumstances made this unnecessary. Franz Liszt, disgusted with the non-success of the works of Cornelius and others, which he had brought out at Weimar, left that classic city in disgust, and settled in Rome. Under his sympathetic guidance, Sgambati became the foremost of the Italian pianists. The two men remained firm friends, and in 1869 the master took his great pupil to Ger- many, where they heard Wagnerian operas in Munich. At this time, his compositions began to win him a name among the elect. He had made a friend of the Prussian ambassador, and at the concerts given by the embassy he produced many of his works. In 1877, Wagner heard some of them, and his warm recommendation resulted in the publication of two Sgambati quintettes by the German firm of Schott. The early works included also a string quartette, and the overture to Cassa's drama, " Cola di Rienzi." Now the composer was moved to further efforts, 176 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE producing a festival orchestra, a piano concerto, another quartette, and his first symphony. He has since then brought out two other works in sym- phonic form, and to-day he stands at the head of Italy's instrumental music. His compositions are somewhat lacking in spontaneity, but they show great learning, and undeniable skill. He follows Liszt and Berlioz rather than Wagner, and at times tries to fuse this modern tendency with the stricter vein of the early Italian contrapuntal writers. He is at present a teacher and orchestral leader in Rome. Giuseppe Martucci, though little known outside of his own country, is rated very highly by those who know his work. Born at Capua in 1856, he studied at first with his father, going later to Naples. In that city he fought for the same standards that Sgambati upheld in Rome, and like his Roman rival he was both pianist and conductor. His or- chestral path was made easy by the Prince d'Ar- dori, and both the symphonic and the chamber concerts were well supported. Martucci has made many successful tours as a pianist, and has won fame in composition by his symphony, his piano concerto, and many other works. He was for six- teen years director of the conservatory at Bologna, and at present he occupies a similar position in ITALY 177 Naples. Among many others who have striven to create a symphonic school in Italy, the name of Edgardo Del Valle de Paz dese^es mention, both for his compositions and for his educational work in Florence. He, too, has been a successful pianist. Ferrucio Busoni, so well known in America, has produced a symphonic poem and other works. Among those who are distinctively German in style, Eugenic di Pirani has long been famous. Born in 1852, at Ferrara, he was educated in Germany, studying piano with Kullak and com- position with Kiel. He lived in Heidelberg until 1895, removing then to Berlin. He has written many bright essays, but his fame rests almost wholly on his works, such as the symphonic poem " Heidel- berg," and the one-act opera " Das Hexenlied." The latter deals with the mediaeval persecution of witches. The heroine is the beautiful Renata, who sings while gathering herbs, and charms all hearers. The bigoted monk Martinus denounces her as a witch, and not even Brother Medaurus, who loves her, can save her. He determines to die at the stake with her, but she takes poison, so that he may live. The most prominent figure of the younger German devotees is Marco Enrico Bossi. Born at Salo in 1 86 1, he studied organ at first, becoming conductor 178 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE and organist at the Como cathedral in 1881. After ten years in this post, he passed four more as profes- sor of organ and harmony at the Naples conserva- tory, since when he has beeen director of the Liceo Benedetto Marcello, at Venice. The works of Bossi take foremost rank for orig- inality and variety. His earlier compositions in- clude an overture, given during a piano tour, at the Crystal Palace; the one-act opera " Paquita," which took a prize at the Milan conservatory; and many works for the organ, upon which he is the most proficient performer that Italy possesses. His later operas include " L'Angelo della Notte " and " II Veggento," and he has also produced a sym- phonic poem, " II Cieco," with tenor solo and chorus. In the sacred field he has written many masses, and the oratorio-drama " Christus." His organ concerto was given at the Chicago fair, and won a decided success. His most recent triumph is the oratorio " Paradise Lost," a setting of Mil- ton's words which was suggested to him by Madame Rubinstein. This work, like many of his others, blends the older Italian polyphony with the rich instrumentation of modern Germany. Bossi is now busy with a new grand opera, which he is writing for the Milan exposition. It is not improbable that the romantic school re- ITALY 179 suiting from " Hansel and Gretel " will cause the Italians themselves to cease worshipping the coarse crudities of the " Verismo " style. Certainly many young composers are now following the lead of Pirani and Bossi, and producing works in a far more healthy and cleanly vein than those of the later realists. Two men are especially prominent in this new movement Buongiorno and Wolf- Ferrari. The first of these, Buongiorno, was born at Bonito, near Naples, in 1864. He studied at the Naples conservatory, and produced the two-act tragedy " Etelka." After graduating, he became member of an operetta company, for which he wrote about a dozen works. Some of these, such as " La Festa del Carro," have become very popular. At a later date he made Dresden his home, and devoted himself to more ambitious works. His first success, "Das Madchenherz " (II Cuor delle Fanciulli), tells the life-story of Alba and Marino, who lived in a little village during the eighteenth century. Marino grows to love Alba, but she is coy, and in the prospect of becoming court singer she allows ambition to make her for- getful of love. In a play given at the court, Marino aids her to win the position, in spite of the efforts of the older singer to hold it. But the ducal ISO MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE favour afterward grows cold, and Alba, outshone by a younger rival, passes into obscurity and sick- ness, where she is consoled in her last extremity by Marino, now a priest. The libretto, by Illica, displays a tender vein of sentiment that is hard to portray in a brief mention of the work, and the composer has set it to music of decided emotional beauty. The delightful arrangement of the play within the play, called " Des Paris Urtheil," allows the composer to revert to the older styles, and he imitates Gluck, Handel, Bach, and others with ex- quisite humour. Buongiorno has also essayed the one-act form, but with infinitely more delicacy than the realists. In " Michelangelo and Rolla " we see the studio of the young sculptor Rolla, who has unconsciously put the face of his beloved, Eleonora, on a statue made for a prize competition. He will not exhibit it, lest she be thought to have sat as a model, where- upon Michelangelo, having already awarded it the prize, causes the duke to send for it. But Rolla, seeing in the messenger merely a rival for Eleonora's hand, smashes the statue as a last resort. Then Michelangelo leads in Eleonora herself, and the people come to acclaim the victor, but Rolla's spirit is broken by the loss of his masterpiece, and, as all ITALY 1 8l kneel at the sound of the angelus, he sinks in death. Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari is the son of a German father and an Italian mother, and his Teutonic tastes are doubtless a matter of inheritance. His " Cenerentola," produced early in 1902 at Bremen, belongs to the romantic school of modern Germany, though its fairy subject has been a favourite at all times. After a long and rather discordant first act, this work shows all the appealing beauty and sym- pathetic feeling that go to make the new roman- ticism so dear to the popular heart. " Le Donne Curiose," given at Munich in 1903, is a bright comedy, describing a retreat founded by the men of a certain village, where they may enjoy a quiet hour without female interference. The women naturally grow curious, and at length penetrate the mysterious casino, but, after they find that it is wholly harmless, they are discovered and roundly scolded for their temerity. A work in another vein is the composer's "Vita Nuova," a fresh and inspired setting of some sonnets and other selections from Dante's great work. The music of the other nations of Southern Europe is of little importance at present. Some years ago Spiro Samara, a Greek, witnessed the success of his opera, " Flora Mirabilis " ; but at 1 82 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE present he devotes himself to choral conducting in Athens, leaving operatic fame to Theophilus Sakel- larines. Spain has her peculiarly national form of entertainment, the so-called Zarzuela, and it serves to attract many audiences. Among her composers are numbered Larrocha, who has written the three- act opera "Marcel Durand"; Antonio Noguerra, whose " Sesta " and symphonic poem " Ivernenca " show much inspiration and richness of colouring; Amandeo Vives, whose " Artus " has won much favour, and J. Albeniz, whose " Pepita Ximenes " is a delightful comedy of love and intrigue. De Lara produced his " Messaline " in England, with good results. But the most prominent Spanish composer seems to be Felipe Pedrell, of Madrid, who is well known also through his correspondence with various foreign journals. His recent trilogy, dealing with the national motto, " Patria, Fides, Amor," is certainly an ambitious work, and bids fair to be remarkably successful. Italy, however, is far more advanced in music than either of her sister peninsulas. Her history for the last forty years shows a constant advance, both in native productions and in the appreciation of foreign works. It is hard for one nation to speak in the musical language of another, and no one expects or hopes that Italy will become merely ITALY 183 a follower of Germany. But she has been compelled to put herself abreast of the times, and with such men as Puccini and Franchetti in opera, Perosi in a fairly worthy style of sacred music, and Bossi, Buongiorno, and Wolf-Ferrari heading the younger enthusiasts, much may be hoped from her in the next few years. CHAPTER VIII. THE NETHERLANDS THE present seems to be a period of nationalism in music. The new French school, the Italian opera composers, the Bohemian masters are but a type of this form of patriotism, and find their counter- part in the young Scandinavians and the modern Russians. The Slav motto, " Para Domoi " (Let Us Go Home), has been applied to music in all countries, and we even see learned writers and ac- complished composers trying to prove the exist- ence of a distinctively American school. The glories of the old Flemish days are past, but enthusiastic efforts have been made to found a new Belgian school, and there is now a long list of native composers. At the head of them, for many years, stood Pierre Leonard Leopold Benoit, or Peter Benoit, as he preferred to be called. He was born at Harlebeke, in the western part of Flanders, on August 17, 1834. His great love of music caused his father to give him lessons, and resulted in some 184 THE NETHERLANDS 185 juvenile efforts at composition. When he reached the age of seventeen he received more solid in- struction, for he was sent to the Brussels con- servatory, where he soon became a favourite of the great teacher Fetis. He studied piano, harmony, and composition, gaining several prizes for counter- point and fugue. On graduating, he competed for the composition prize offered by the government, but received only honourable mention. A year later he wrote the music for many melodramas at the Pare Theatre, and we find him conducting there also. There he brought out his attractive opera " Het Dorp in t' Gebergte " (The Village in the Mountains), a work showing a delightful local colour. In 1857 he tried again in competition, with the cantata " Le Meurtre d'Abel," this time gaining the first prize. As a pensioner of the government, he travelled in Ger- many, studying in Leipzig, Dresden, and other artistic centres. At Berlin he wrote an " Ave Maria " for eight soloists and double chorus, which was performed in the cathedral. During this period he also published six songs, twelve " Pensees Na'ives " for voice, twelve motets, and a number of piano pieces. He sent home a " Petite Cantate de Noel," and on his return produced his " Messe Solennelle." In 1861 he went to Paris, in hope 1 86 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE of seeing a performance of his new opera, " Le Roi des Aulnes." It was accepted at the Theatre Lyrique, but never given, and Benoit filled in his period of waiting by conducting at the Bouffes- Parisiens. On his return to Brussels he became firmly de- voted to the cause of Belgian music, and worked industriously at composition. In a few years he was appointed director of the Flemish School of Music at Antwerp, a position that gave him many opportunities to influence rising composers and de- velop their musical patriotism. One of his many pupils has become famous through an American career; for Frank Van der Stucken, so well known in Cincinnati and elsewhere as orchestral leader and composer, studied for some time with Benoit. Among the important works of Benoit are a sacred " Quadrilogie," a piano concerto, the choral symphony " De Maaiers " (The Reapers), and many lesser works for voice and piano. A more ambitious work is his second opera, " Isa," and the incidental music to the dramas " Charlotte Corday," "Willem de Zwijger," and " Het Melief." But the especial field in which Benoit excelled was the oratorio-cantata. His compositions in this line form a list of ample proportions, and show the composer at his best. One of the greatest of these is THE NETHERLANDS 1 8? "Oorlog" (War), while other striking works are " Lucifer," " De Schelde," " De Rhyn," the Rubens cantata, and " Promethee." A Van Dyck cantata was also planned, but not finished before the com- poser's death in 1901. All of Benoit's larger works indicate a great power of conception, real inspiration, ripe technical knowledge, and much skill in the handling of great masses of tone. His oratorios are not modelled on the religious forms of Bach or Handel, but are thoroughly modern and dramatic in effect. They are great decorative pictures in tone, suggesting vistas of grand palaces, armies in battle array, rich fields of grain, mystic visions of the spirit world, or gorgeous triumphal marches. Benoit himself was a familiar figure in Antwerp. His square shoulders, massive head, and flowing locks gave an impressive effect to his presence, and his intelligence and enthusiasm made him always the leader among friends and associates. He lived to see his work bear fruit in the compositions of others, as well as in his own creations. Paul Gilson was born at Brussels on June 15, 1865. He studied by himself for some time, but passed three years at the Brussels conservatory, graduating in 1889. In that year he obtained the Prix de Rome, with his cantata " Sinai." Since that 1 88 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE event he has been active in nearly all the large forms. He has produced about fifty songs, some with orchestral accompaniment, and a score of pieces for violin and for 'cello. For orchestra he has produced a Dramatic Overture, a Festival Over- ture, a Fantasie on the melodies of Canada, another on those of Ireland, half a dozen suites, the sym- phonic sketches entitled " La Mer," the " Bucolics," after Virgil, three scherzi, a festival march, a fan- fare march, and many shorter pieces. His choral works include an Inaugural Cantata, a cantata for the fiftieth anniversary of the Belgian telegraph, the oratorio " Moses," the dramatic oratorio " Francesca da Rimini," and several sets of a capella works. He has also made some interesting excursions into the field of declamation with or- chestra, such as " Le Feu du Ciel " (Hugo), "Christine" (Leconte de Lisle), and the Japanese fable " Satsuki." His operas include " Les Pauvres Gens," " Prinses Zonnenschijn," " Les Aventu- riers," and " Le Demon," as well as incidental music to the dramas " Alvar " and " Liefdeblaem." Of these many works the one best known in America is " La Mer," which has been given sev- eral times in symphony concerts. It was suggested by a poem of Ed. Levis, which is frequently read before the performance. The first movement gives PAUL GILSON. THE NETHERLANDS 189 an excellent picture of sunrise at sea, with all the many-coloured splendours of the dawn. Then fol- lows some rollicking sailors' music, in which their lively songs and dances are suggested with due animation. The third movement portrays a love- scene between the sailor and his sweetheart, idyllic at first, but ending in sadness as he must embark and she gives way to fear of the treacherous ocean. The finale depicts the tempest, and the sailors' choruses are introduced in mocking irony as the ship goes down. Through it all runs a vein of poetic fancy, exquisitely suggesting the beauty and mystery of the sea. " Francesca da Rimini " is another powerful work. It opens in the realm of shades, where the guilty lovers find themselves after death. They are brought before the judge Minos, and Paolo tells their story. The demons cry for vengeance on the couple, and Paolo tries to save Francesca, but they are condemned. The next scene shows them, as pictured by Dante, floating about on the whirlwinds in the second circle of the infernal regions. At last, stung by anguish, Francesca calls on the Lord for aid. The demons again mock her, but her sup- plication becomes more and more touching, until finally the angel Gabriel appears to announce that her trials have inspired pity, and heaven will open IQO MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE to her. She insists that Paolo shall accompany her, and on finding this impossible she chooses to re- main with him. The work displays great strength, a strength that is almost excessive at first, and at times too much in evidence. But the skill in or- chestration, the variety of combinations, and the marvellous invention shown in the harmonic pro- gressions all stamp the work as a masterpiece. Guillaume Lekeu was a composer whose early death cut short a career of great promise. He was born at Heusy, in Verviers, January 20, 1870, and his first musical studies were pursued in the local music-school. At the age of twelve he went with his parents to Poitiers, continuing his education at the Lyceum. Four years later he went to Paris, where he came under the elevating influence of Cesar Franck. His earnest work with that master, in harmony, form, and composition, soon began to bear fruit, and in 1891 his cantata " Andromede " took second prize in the Belgian national compe- tition. This mild success was received with great en- thusiasm in his native town, where he was called upon to lead a performance of the work. For the three remaining years of his life he was steadily busy at composition. His fantasie on popular Angevin airs was also accorded a representation GUILLAUME LEKEU. THE NETHERLANDS 19 1 in his birthplace. Among his other works are two fitudes Symphoniques, one entitled " Chant Triomphale," and the other divided into the two parts, " Faust " and " Hamlet." There is also an attractive " Poeme " for violin and orchestra, and an exquisite adagio for violin, 'cello, and strings. Lekeu wrote incidental music to parts of De Musset's " Barberine " and Hugo's " Les Bur- graves," but no actual opera. His greatest vocal work is the " Chant Lyrique," for chorus and or- chestra, but some of his songs are remarkable for their elevated melodic style. In the lesser instru- mental forms there is an " Epithalame " for quin- tette of strings, three trombones, and organ ; several smaller chamber works; a wonderfully effective violin sonata; a number of piano pieces; and an unfinished piano quartette, of which the second movement was completed by D'Indy. Lekeu's prose writings, like his music, reveal a deep gloom, a pervading spirit of melancholy. The lofty sadness of his work seems at times a perfect picture of lamentation, suffering, and sorrow. It would almost appear that he had a premonition of approaching death, and the typhoid fever that car- ried him off on January 21, 1894, brought a tragic close to a life of work that was scarcely begun. Lekeu was a follower of the new French school, 192 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE and his free form, his efforts at harmonic tone- painting, and refined delicacy in colouring- are such as we expect from all of Franck's pupils. He died before he had reached artistic maturity, and, if his music shows some of the unsteady qualities of youth, it still gives evidence of profound thought and deep feeling. His melodic inspiration and his endless fertility of invention make his loss all the more to be regretted, for his expressive power would certainly have found shape in many great works. Edgar Tinel is one of the few important musical figures in Belgium to-day. He was born March 27, 1854, at Sinay, in East Flanders, where his father was schoolmaster and organist. In early childhood he showed intellectual tendencies, and his father arranged his education with the utmost care. His first training was received in connection with his father's duties at the organ. Then followed a period at the music-school of a neighbouring city, after which he was sent to Brussels, where Fetis received him with kindly enthusiasm. His work was greatly hampered by poverty, and some of the hours for practice were devoted perforce to mend- ing and making his own clothes. At thirteen he was allowed to give up outside studies, and devote himself wholly to music, whereupon he began to EDGAR TINEL. THE NETHERLANDS 193 earn a part of his expenses by piano teaching and choir -singing. In 1872 and 1873 he took prizes for his piano playing, but a trip to Germany, where he made the acquaintance of Raff, decided him to devote himself wholly to composition. The death of his father brought further cares upon him, and the Belgian Prix de Rome, won in 1877 by his cantata " Klokke Roland," was wel- come for the cash it brought as well as for the honour. This work is the song of the great bell of Ghent, which gave warning of war and fire, but also celebrated the triumphs of Flanders. The re- sulting study in Germany, France, and Italy caused him to become an enthusiast for the reform of sacred music, and he even advocated a return to the " Plain Chant." His book on the Gregorian modes contains many sound ideas, including the Wagnerian doctrine of proper union of words and music. It aroused much attention, and brought him the position of director of the Sacred Music School at Malines. Overwork resulted in disease, and two operations became necessary. A third was suggested, but Tinel insisted on finishing his " Franciscus " first, and the enthusiasm of composition caused a cure. This work brought him fame as well as health. The city of Malines produced it no less than four- 194 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE teen times, Brussels also insisted on hearing it, and it made the rounds of Germany. " Franciscus " is the story of St. Francis of Assisi, the founder of the Franciscan friars. It is in three parts. At first we are shown the worldly life of the young Italian, and the gaiety of the court of Assisi. After the feast is over, he wanders through pastoral lanes in the quiet of a moonlit night, and hears a voice from heaven which causes him to renounce the world and its possessions. The second part shows him as a monk, joined by some of his former comrades. There are choruses of spirits, and he sings the hymn to poverty that is almost a literal translation of the poem attributed to him. The third part presents his death and apotheosis. The music is varied in style, at times contrapuntal, at times gor- geous in orchestration. The school of sacred drama is practically oratorio on words other than the biblical text. In its earliest form oratorio dealt with legendary subjects, but it soon received the stricter limitation that found its culmination in the works of Handel. In modern days, the " St. Elizabeth," of Liszt, and Rubinstein's " Moses " and " Christus " have created the freer style followed by Tinel. His " Sainte Godelive " is another work in this school. It contains many beauties, but is not so great as " Franciscus." Its THE NETHERLANDS 195 text, which is rather weak, tells of the martyr Godelive, who was maltreated by her husband, and finally killed, because she preferred the love of Christ to his devotion. Among Tinel's other works are three orchestral pieces for Corneille's " Polyeucte," " De Drie Rid- ders," and " Kollebloemen," for solo, chorus, and orchestra, many songs and piano pieces, and a great deal of sacred music, including the mass for the Holy Virgin of Lourdes. Tinel is a married man, and has five children. His first meeting with his wife came about through his reading of her poems, which he set to music. He has been for many years inspector of the state music schools, and is now professor of counterpoint and fugue in the Brussels conservatory. Jan Blockx has won his chief renown in opera, though not inactive in other forms. Born at Ant- werp January 25, 1851, his father, an upholsterer, died six years later, and Jan was set to learn the trade. Receiving an accidental fall one day, he went to the piano and played, in order to prove that he was not seriously hurt. His employers saw that he showed talent, and caused him to begin a musical career. His studies were pursued at Ant- werp and Brussels, and later in Leipzig. In 1877 he began to come before the public. His 196 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE one-act opera, " lels Vergeten," was produced, and he won a prize over twenty-one others with his " Ons Vaterland," a cantata for the Rubens fes- tival. Three years later came the orchestral piece " Kermisdag," which won some success. His in- strumental compositions include an " Inauguration March," and the " Triptique Orchestrate," consist- ing of the " Jour des Morts," " Noel," and "Paques." "Op den Spoom " and the " Vrede- sang " are works for soloists and double chorus, with orchestra, while " De Klokke Roland," with mixed chorus and children's voices, is full of dra- matic effects. The ballet " Milenka," an animated work, was followed by the four-act opera-comique " Maitre Martin." But a much greater success was scored by the " Herbergsprinses," produced at Antwerp in 1896. This treats of life at Brussels under the Austrian rule. Merlyn, a young poet-composer, is loved by Reinilde, who has been adopted by his mother Katelyne. His false friend Marcus also loves Reinilde, and on being refused plans to ruin Merlyn. This he does by means of the fascinating Rita, an innkeeper's daughter, who charms Merlyn in spite of his efforts to forget her. But her dis- carded love, the blacksmith Rabo, threatens his new rival, and kills him in a quarrel, just as Katelyne THE NETHERLANDS 1 97 and Reinilde come to announce his success in win- ning a musical prize. The frenzied Reinilde is moved to kill Rita, but decides that a life of re- morse will be a greater punishment for her. The music, in spite of its polyphonic character, is de- lightfully fresh, and aroused immense enthusiasm for twenty-eight successive performances when first brought out. " Thyl Uylenspiegel," in the opera of Blockx (Brussels, 1900), is not the rogue of Richard Strauss nor the rascal of Reznicek, but a popular leader who arouses the peasants against Spanish misrule. In the first act he departs gaily with his mandolin, but returns later to find that his father has been burned alive on the public square. He is eager for revenge, and is aided by his fiancee Nelle. In the second act, Thyl and Nelle, with their friend Lamme, travel about and incite the people to revolt. In the forest they capture the enemy's messenger. The third act introduces a mock wedding-procession, by which the conspir- ators gain an entrance to Maestricht. This is being besieged by the Spaniards, but is now suc- cessfully relieved by Thyl. The work ends with a series of triumphal choruses. Of Blockx's later works, " Die Capel " did not fulfil expectations, but " La Fiancee de la Mer " 198 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE (1903) is proving a popular novelty. Blockx has been active in teaching, and for many years was in charge of the harmony classes at the Flemish music-school. In 1901 he succeeded Benoit at the Antwerp conservatory. Among other well-known followers of Benoit in the national movement, Lenaerts, leader of the Flemish theatre at Antwerp in his nineteenth year, has produced an excellent cantata, " The Triumph of Light." Keurvels, orchestral director at the same theatre, has produced the operas " Paris," " Rolla," " Hamlet," and others in lighter vein, as well as a Mass and some melodious ballads. Wambach, the violinist, is responsible for the drama " Nathans Parabel," the symphonic poem " Aan de Boorden van de Schelde," two oratorios, and many lesser works. Mortelmans is credited with the cantata " Sinai," the symphony " Germania," and the more recent " Homeric " symphony, the symphonic poems " Aspiration " and " Helios," and the cantata " Lady Macbeth." Vleeshouwer, a pupil of Blockx, has composed the operas " ficole des Peres " and " Zrinyi," also the fantasie " Der Wilde Jager." Van Den Eeden, at Mons, has produced the prize cantata " Faust's Last Night," the opera " Nu- mance," and several oratorios. Van Duyse, son of the poet of that name, has written the prize THE NETHERLANDS 199 cantata " Tassos Dood," and seven operas, fimile Mathieu, head of the Ghent conservatory, has com- posed much incidental music. Waelput is respon- sible for four symphonies, numerous cantatas, and the lyric drama " Stella." Huberti has devoted himself to secular oratorios, while Mestdagh, ex- cept for two overtures, has also confined himself to the choral field. Raway's sacred drama " Neon " and the two-night lyric drama " Freya " are am- bitious works, while his symphonic poems are also well spoken of. Sylvain Dupuis, professor of coun- terpoint at the Liege conservatory, has produced the symphonic poem " Macbeth," and the operas " Cour d'Ognon " and " Moina." Juliette Folville, famous among women as pianist and violinist, has composed the opera " Atala," a march, parts of a symphony, a violin sonata, and many songs. Ysaye and Marsick, both renowned as violinists, have produced several concertos for their instru- ment. Richard Hoi was for many years the Nestor of the Dutch composers. His fame was assured by the patriotic hymn, " Comme je t'aime, O mon pays," and his long life of usefulness was of excel- lent service to the cause of music in Holland. Born at Amsterdam on July 23, 1825, he studied first at the Royal School, and later in Germany. He 2OO MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE became piano teacher on his return, but did more important work in musical reform as leader of choral and symphony concerts. Among his hundred and fifty published works are the sacred opera " David," the cantatas " Floris " and " Le Hol- landais Volant," four symphonies, and several masses, to say nothing of lesser compositions for voice, piano, or chamber performance. Hoi was for many years critic of the Cecilia, and afterward editor of the Messager Musical. His long and active career reached its close with his death on May 14, 1904. Julius Rontgen was born of Dutch parents at Leipzig, May 9, 1855. His studies brought him under Reinecke and Lachner, and made him a pianist as well as composer. In 1877 he came to Amsterdam, where he made his home. Here his activity took the form of teaching in the Amster- dam music-school, and he afterward aided in found- ing the conservatory. His compositions include a piano concerto, an operetta, " Toscani Rispetti," " Das Gebet," for chorus and orchestra, and other lesser works. Amsterdam has become the musical centre of Holland, and its festivals afford a chance for the production of the best native works. Among the Dutch composers thus heard is Van t' Kruys, who has to his credit no less than eight overtures and THE NETHERLANDS , 2OI five symphonies, to say nothing of the opera " De Bloem van Island." Smulders, of the Liege con- servatory, has written the symphonic poem " Adieu, Absence et Retour," and other lesser works. Cor- nelius Brandt-Buys and his three sons have pro- duced much organ and choral work. Hendriks is another prominent organist, while Averkamp, as director of a singing society, is also prominent in the vocal field. Gottfried Mann has seen the per- formance of his charming opera " Melaenis," while Van Milligen has written " Brinio " and " Dar- thula." Among the latest Dutch operas are " The Eagle's Nest," by Julius Schey, leader of the Am- sterdam opera, " The Doge of Venice," by John Wagenaar ; and " Kerstboom," by Grellinger. Dirk Schaefer's piano concerto has created a good impression, and two movements of a symphony by De Haans have been well received. The best of the younger men, however, are Bernard Zweers arid Alphonse Diepenbrock. Holland has also its quota of women composers. The children's songs of Catherine van Rennes and Hendrika van Tussen- broek are of unusual excellence, while the works of Cornelia van Oosterzee, if somewhat overswollen in effect, show a mastery of larger forms. Cora Dopper has entered the field of opera, and her " Rat- 2O2 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE cleft " is soon to be produced. All these names show that the national movement in Holland, if not' yet of the same dimensions as that in Belgium, is still beginning to bear fruit. CHAPTER IX. ENGLAND THE two countries that have seemed most lack- ing in a distinctively national school of music are England and the United States. There have been many efforts in both lands to remedy this condition, but the result has been almost wholly an imita- tion of classical models, without any special local colour or peculiar style. Great cities, ship canals, and manufacturing districts do not usually cause a new school of folk-music to arise, and without this there can be no really national school. It is now many centuries since the gleemen flourished in England, and the musical glories of the Eliza- bethan period and of Purcell's time have scarcely been equalled by later composers. At present, however, England can certainly boast of one modern genius, in the person of Edward William Elgar. He was born at Broadheath, near Worcester, on June 2, 1857. His father was or- ganist of the Catholic church in Worcester, and 2O4 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE the boy used to delight in sitting in the organ-loft during the services. After a time he became bold enough to touch the keys himself, though at first he could produce nothing but noise. Gradually he began to master the instrument, and at a later period he replaced his father. When very small he had a few lessons on the piano, and afterward he was taken into the orchestra of the Worcester theatre, where an English opera company gave works like "Norma," " Trovatore," and "Don Giovanni." His general education was received at Littleton House School, where he earned a mock title among the boys; for, on being asked his name by the principal, he responded " Edward Elgar," and when the punctilious master said, " Add the ' sir,' " he replied, " Sir Edward Elgar ! " He hoped to study music in Leipzig, and devoted himself to German with that end in view; but poverty compelled him to abandon the idea. Then he entered the office of a legal friend, where he re- mained a year before deciding that music was his vocation. He began to give lessons on the violin, and studied the instrument with Pollitzer in Lon- don. It was at this time that he determined to educate himself in composition. He read, heard, and played everything that he could. His church service EDWARD WILLIAM ELGAR. ENGLAND 205 finishing early, he would run over to the cathedral to hear the voluntaries there. He studied books on harmony and orchestration, but he speaks of them as unattractive. " I read them, and I still exist," is his way of putting it. They included the works of Catel, Cherubini, and others, but the only one of which he approves is Mozart's "Thorough-Bass School." He also speaks highly of Parry's articles in Grove's dic- tionary. Asked by a recent interviewer how these authorities agreed, he replied that they did not, and that a man who studies by himself must be wise enough to pick out the good points of each. In alluding to his studies of musical form, he repeated the important truth that even those composers who disregard it should first be masters of it. He grew enthusiastic about Mozart. As an example of his conscientious study, he told of. ruling a score for the same instruments and the same number of bars as in Mozart's G-Minor Symphony, and writing a symphony of similar shape in this outline. After thirty years he refers to this as the most valuable of all his studies. When he managed to get hold of an orchestral score, he would stuff his pockets with bread and cheese, and go out into the fields to study it. Even after beginning to teach he continued this custom, 2O6 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE and on such days his pupils waited for him in vain. He gained much experience by writing for a wind quintette to which he belonged, and he learned much as a member of Stockley's orchestra in Birming- ham. It was the latter organization that brought out some of his earlier works. London, however, treated him with less warmth at first. The direct- ors of the Co vent Garden promenade concerts called him to the city to direct a rehearsal of his music, but Sir Arthur Sullivan arrived unexpectedly, and the time was given to an excerpt from that master's new opera. Sullivan met Elgar long after- ward, and expressed the heartiest sorrow on learn- ing of the incident ; for Sullivan was always warm- hearted, and would surely have insisted on hearing Elgar's new work. His cantata, " The Black Knight," when pro- duced at a Worcester festival, drew attention to his gifts. His music was in request for other festivals, and he completed " The Light of Life " and " King Olaf " to satisfy this demand. Both are works of real beauty, and " King Olaf " especially displays a strength of treatment that marks the maturing genius. The theme is handled dramatically and directly, without any attempt at the refined musical mysticism that sometimes appears in later works. There is already an astonishing mastery of orches- ENGLAND 2QJ tral technique, and the score is full of warm, sym- pathetic colouring. An original vein of melody is in evidence, and gives the work a frank beauty that would be less noticeable in a more involved style. In 1899 London was formally introduced to Elgar's works, for the Variations were given at one of the Richter concerts. These Variations, says the composer, should be regarded purely as a piece of music, but each one bears the initials or descrip- tion of one of the composer's friends, so for those in the secret the work becomes endowed with de- licious significance. The variations are attractive in themselves, and excellently arranged for effects of contrast. In 1900 the composer attained sudden fame by his " Dream of Gerontius." This sacred work is a setting of Cardinal Newman's poem, which Elgar had known and pondered over for many years. Elgar has divided it into two parts, the first de- scribing the approaching death of Gerontius and the prayers of his friends, while the second treats of the salvation of his soul and its reception in the celestial regions. Less unified than the won- derful " Tod und Verklarung " of Strauss, it still has many passages of compelling beauty and sub- limity. First given at Birmingham, it attracted the attention of Julius Buths, who translated it and 2O8 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE had it produced twice at the Lower Rhine Festival, in Dusseldorf. This was an unusual honour for an English work, but the criticisms it received were even more flattering. One writer called it the greatest composition of the last hundred years, ex- cept the Requiem of Brahms. Elgar's most ambitious work is the new oratorio " The Apostles." The composer's purpose was to express in tone the later phases in the life of Jesus and his comrades, which have not yet been given a musical setting. The work is planned on a grand scale, for it is to be one part of a trilogy, the second taking up the establishment of the Church among the Gentiles, while the third will depict the end of the world and the day of judgment. It is a question if this will be carried out, however, for the first part, according to some critics, has proven a severe strain on the loyalty of Elgar's friends. He has tried to build a great work, but excess of emphasis on the psychological side, combined with an arbitrary use of guiding motives and other de- vices, has given it an artificial character, in spite of its many excellences. Elgar stands to-day as a great and original genius, in a land where there have been many talented musicians, but almost none who showed real in- spiration. Certainly the three days' festival in ENGLAND 2OQ London, devoted wholly to his music, was an honour thoroughly deserved. " Gerontius " and " The Apostles " occupied two evenings, while the third included the attractive " Froissart " overture, the Variations, selections from the early cantata " Ca- ractacus," the new overture " In the South," the popular " Cockaigne " overture (inspired by the many phases of London itself), the broad " Pomp and Circumstance " marches, and the noble vocal " Sea Pictures," set to the words of Elizabeth Bar- rett Browning. Elgar' s other compositions include the exquisite incidental music to " Diarmid and Grania," the early cantata " Scenes from the Bavarian Highlands," the later " Banner of St. George," " Lux Christi," and a T'e Deum in the sacred field, the Imperial March, Coronation March, and three smaller orches- tral pieces, a Spanish Serenade for chorus and or- chestra, and many lesser works for voice, piano, violin, or organ. Besides the sequel to " The Apos- tles," Elgar has planned four new marches for the " Pomp and Circumstance " series, which will make six in all. One of the new works will be a soldiers' funeral march. He has also sketched a violin con- certo. In person, Elgar is strong, active, virile, and enthusiastic. He is a lover of books, and early 2IO MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE access to a large collection made him a deep student of history. His greatest delight, however, is still found out-of-doors, and the boy who studied scores in the fields is now replaced by the man who loves kite-flying, golf, and bicycling. Another original figure in English music is Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. He was born in London, on August 15, 1875. He is a mulatto, his mother being English while his father was a full-blooded African. The latter, however, was evidently a man of education, and practised as a physician in Sierra Leone. At the age of six the child began to study violin with Joseph Beckwith, at the Croydon Con- servatory, and the instrument has remained a fa- vourite with him. At ten he became a chorister, and five years later began to receive instruction at the Royal College of Music. In 1893 ne won a scholarship, and for four years studied composition with Stanford and piano with Algernon Ashton. He began his career in composition with a num- ber of anthems, a nonet for piano, strings, and wind, and a symphony in A minor, which was per- formed at London and Liverpool. For chamber music he produced a clarinet quintette, five fantasias for strings, and a string quartette. For his be- loved violin he has produced the passionate " South- ern Love-Songs " and the " African Romances," as SAMUEL COLERIDGE - TAYLOR. ENGLAND 211 well as the Hiawatha Sketches that foreshadowed his later triumphs. These are three characteristic pieces, entitled " lagoo," " Chibiabos," and " Pau- pukkeewis," and giving excellent illustrations of their subject. In 1898 he brought out the cantata " Hiawatha's Wedding-Feast," and from that time has become renowned in the musical world. Under the formal structure of the various numbers lies a barbaric strength, a profusion of passion, that sways all hearers. The rich, delicate instrumentation adds its glowing colour to the warm, lifelike effect of the whole, and forms a most appropriate frame for the naive freshness of Longfellow's picture. The crowning glory of the work is the love-song " On- away, awake, beloved," which forms a superbly beautiful musical gem. The success of this cantata induced the composer to proceed along the same line. A year later he produced the " Hiawatha " overture, and a second part of the cantata, " The Death of Minnehaha," while in 1900 came the last section of the work, " Hiawatha's Departure." According to Ernest Newman, these additions are less successful than the original cantata, and mark a retrogression in the composer's style. The same authority regards " The Atonement " as still weaker, and the " Blind 212 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Girl of Castel-Cuille," written for a Leeds festival, as a final collapse. The composer's other works, an orchestral Ballade with violin, an Idyll, a Solemn Prelude, the music to " Herod," and four Waltzes, show much breadth of treatment, as well as the effective simplicity of means employed to obtain really beautiful results. Coleridge-Taylor is now violin professor at the Croydon Conservatory, where he teaches with the enthusiasm that has marked all of his work. His deep earnestness is evident to all who are fortunate enough to meet him, and he possesses the secret of arousing the interest of others. He is married, and has two children, the daughter being white, like her mother, while the son is of a little darker hue. Stanford, who taught Coleridge-Taylor, is one of the set of English composers who worked to es- tablish the modern musical life of that nation. With four others, Parry, Mackenzie, Cowen, and Thomas, he led the musical renaissance that made possible the advent of an Elgar or a Coleridge-Taylor. The quintette did not form a close union, such as we find under Balakireff in Russia, but all were men of better and broader training than other musicians of their time in England, and their work has tended to a common end. Charles Villiers Stanford was born in Dublin on ENGLAND 213 September 30, 1852. Completing his musical studies under Reinecke and Kiel, he became or- ganist and conductor at the University of Cam- bridge, where he passed a life of activity in com- position as well as execution. Among his orches- tral works are numbered five symphonies, two over- tures, a piano concerto, and a recent " Irish Rhap- sody." His many choral works include two ora- torios, " The Resurrection," and " The Three Holy Children," and several cantatas. His operas con- sist of " The Veiled Prophet," " Savonarola," " The Canterbury Pilgrims," " Shamus O'Brien," and " Much Ado About Nothing." Because of its popular subject, " Shamus O'Brien " has won the greatest success, but the others, especially the last, show much distinction and elegance. " The Canter- bury Pilgrims " aims to do for England something similar to what the " Meistersinger " did in Ger- many; it gives a rollicking picture of popular life in the olden time, and introduces the quaint cus- toms and merry pranks of former days. Charles Hubert Hastings Parry was born at Bournemouth, on February 27, 1848. His musical activity first became evident at Eton, and after- ward he filled a position in Oxford life somewhat similar to that of Stanford at Cambridge. He has composed four symphonies, a set of symphonic 214 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE variations, and two overtures, " To an Unwritten Tragedy " and " Guillem de Cabestanh." But it is in oratorio that his special strength has been made manifest. A composer of deep learning, he has assimilated the excellence of Bach and Handel, and has aimed to unite their great qualities with a more modern style. His sacred works include " Judith," "De Profundis," "Job," and "King Saul," also a great Magnificat and Te Deum. In all these, as in his other choral compositions, he shows a power that appeals to the noblest emotions of the intelli- gent hearer, and his exalted style, according to one critic, " brings all heaven before our eyes." Among his secular works the incidental music to the " Frogs " and the " Birds " of Aristophanes de- serves the highest praise. Alexander Campbell Mackenzie was born in Edinburgh on August 22, 1847. His studies took him to the Sondershausen Conservatory and the Royal Academy of Music, after which he became teacher and conductor in his native city. A short period at Cambridge was followed by a return to Edinburgh, where he has been for many years asso- ciated with the university. In 1881 his cantata " The Bride " proved him a leader in the new musical movement, but his opera " Colombe," appearing two years later, insured him a more lasting popu- ENGLAND 21$ larity, and received a hearing in Germany as well as England. " The Troubadour " proved less in- spired, but the comic opera " His Majesty " abounds in musical drollery. " The Cricket on the Hearth " is still in manuscript. Among Mackenzie's other works are two oratorios, " The Rose of Sharon " and " Bethlehem " ; several cantatas, including " The Story of Say id " and " The Cotter's Saturday Night " ; two Scottish Rhapsodies, the ballade " La Belle Dame Sans Merci," and four worthy over- tures. His three entr'actes for " Manfred " and his splendid " Coriolanus " music mark the climax of his work in the nineteenth century. Frederic Hymen Cowen was born at Kingston, Jamaica, on January 29, 1852. His early studies in London were followed by a period at Leipzig, under Reinecke and Moscheles, after which he com- pleted his tuition with Kiel at Berlin. His sojourn at Edinburgh, as director of the musical academy, was followed by a period of conductorship, which took him at first to London, then to Melbourne, and finally to Liverpool and Manchester. He has writ- ten two oratorios, " Ruth " and " The Deluge," and four operas, " Pauline," " Thorgrim," " Signa," and " Harold." Of his seven cantatas, " The Sleep- ing Beauty," " St. John's Eve," and " The Water Lily " are delightfully poetic, while " The Passions " 2l6 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE shows high qualities of real emotion. But he is perhaps best known by his six symphonies, of which the "Scandinavian," the "Idyllic," and the " Welsh " rank in the order named. The first of these is one of the standard works of modern times. Arthur Goring Thomas, born November 21, 1850, studied under Sullivan and Prout, and passed his life in London. His natural inclination, possibly due to a strain of French blood, turned him to the lighter style of romantic music, and in this he excelled. His " Esmeralda " has shown effective dramatic qualities on the stage, though " Nadeshda," a later work, met with less success. A comic opera, " The Golden Web," was completed and produced by friends of the composer after his death in 1892. His choral ode, " The Sun Worshippers," won some renown for him, but " The Swan and the Skylark," another posthumous cantata, met with the greatest success of any of his compositions. The work of these men has given them a place of honour in England's musical annals. They have been untiring in their efforts to raise the standard of her music, and their success has led the way for a host of other composers. If their music at times displays the academic quality that results from ex- cess of learning over inspiration, it has none the less been of the utmost value to their country. ENGLAND 2 1 / Among the men who have worked on lines parallel to those of the five leaders, Sir J. Frederic Bridge is one of the most noted. He took a musical degree at Oxford in 1868, and brought out the Oratorio " Mount Moriah." In the next year he became organist at Manchester, and in 1882 he accepted a similar post in Westminster Abbey, because of which he has become known among his friends as " The Westminster Bridge." His works include the other oratorios, such as " The Repentance of Nineveh " and " The Rock of Ages," and many hymns, canticles, and organ pieces. He has also written the cantatas " Boadicea," " Calirrhoe," and "The Inchcape Rock," an overture, " Morte d' Arthur," and an inspiring setting of Kipling's " Flag of England." Like many of his country- men, he is fond of outdoor sports. Fishing has become his hobby, and he competes with his wife for high lines. He is fond of joking, and his friends considered it only a fair revenge, when his line was once pulled up, to put some lead on it and enjoy his resulting discomfiture. As Gresham professor of music in the Royal Academy, he relieves the dryness of his subjects by constant flashes of humour. His brother, Dr. Joseph Cox Bridge, is also a composer of some ability and originality. Sir George Alexander Macfarren passed away in 2l8 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE 1887, after having composed many symphonies, overtures, cantatas, and oratorios. His brother, Walter Cecil, has long been active at the Royal Academy, besides producing several overtures and the cantata " The Song of the Sunbeam." Among others of the older generation are John Francis Barnett, Sir Walter Parratt, Charles Harford Lloyd, Frederick Corder, Charles Lee Williams, and others equally worthy. The excellent school of light music which flour- ished under Sullivan received a setback with his death; but a new star has arisen in the person of Edward German. He has not continued entirely in the operatic line, but on Sullivan's death he was already so well known that he was chosen to finish the latter's " Emerald Isle." Frederic Clay, Alfred Cellier, and Edward Solomon essayed during their lives to carry on the school of light opera, while German has devoted himself more to orchestral and incidental music. Yet " The Rival Poets " and " Merrie England " show that this is not from ne- cessity. Edward German, whose real name is German Edward Jones, was born at Whitchurch on Febru- ary 17, 1862. He studied violin at the Royal Acad- emy, and after some theatrical work became con- ductor at the Globe Theatre in 1889. He took the EDWARD GERMAN. ENGLAND 2ig post at scant notice, for he was asked by the author- ities, " Can you conduct ? " and he decided that he could. His incidental music to " Romeo and Juliet " made a name for him, and an orchestral suite in D minor also scored a success. , His music to " As You Like It," " Richard III.," " Much Ado About Nothing," "The Tempest," and "Nell Gwyn " shows inimitable grace and appropriateness. An "English Fantasia" and the symphonic poem "Ham- let " were produced at Birmingham in 1897, and a symphonic suite, " The Seasons," at Norwich in 1899. He has written two symphonies, and a num- ber of exquisite songs. The set of " Henry VIII. Dances," taken from his incidental music, have become world-famous for their graceful delicacy and charm, yet so elusive is fame that they are often spoken of as " the German dances by Henry VIII." The task of completing the " Emerald Isle " was by no means a light one, for when he took it only two of its numbers were finished, most of the rest merely indicated by melody, and the last thirteen wholly untouched. The bright and original flavour of German's music is all the more remarkable in consideration of the simple diatonic means by which he attains his results. Another composer endowed with rare melodic 220 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE gifts is Arthur Somervell, whose Mass and " For- saken Merman " are more extensive, but no less beautiful, than his many songs. A charming " Elegy " and " Ode to the Sea " have won fame for Robert Bridges, who has written the suite " In Arcady," and many lesser works, but is also best known by his songs. The music of Herbert Bun- ning has a warm Southern style, a result of his studies in Italy, while Samuel Liddle's " Arabian Love-Song " is but one of his many successes. The piano music of Algernon Ashton is of excellent standard. In more learned vein, Stewart Mac- pherson, leader of the Westminster Orchestral Society, has produced a good Mass, while Charles Wood's music to " Ion " and " Iphigenia in Tauris " revealed many high qualities. Alan Grey, Fred- erick Cliffe, and Arthur Hervey, belonging to a slightly older generation, have shown truly poetic gifts which entitle them to high rank. Hamish MacCunn, a Scotch graduate of the Royal College of Music, took his hearers by storm with his over- tures, " The Land of the Mountain and Flood " and " The Dowie Dens o' Yarrow." His two operas, several cantatas, and numerous songs show that he is possessed of versatility as well as talent. A set of young men, undeY the lead of Granville Bantock, have recently brought themselves into ENGLAND 221 prominence by means of the Queen's Hall Prom- enade Concerts, where their works, and those of other new composers, have been brought before the public. These men and others have in some degree headed a revolt against the formality of the Acad- emy and the College, and the result has been to en- courage originality in thought and expression. Granville Bantock, who studied for a time at the Academy, came before the public with a cantata, :< The Fire- Worshippers." His one-act operas, " Csedmar " and " The Pearl of Iran," show much richness of colour, and his musical ideas are always worthy of the great literary conceptions in which he delights. He has composed the overtures " Eu- gene Aram " and " Saul," the suite " Russian Scenes," and a number of songs; but his vastest work is the orchestral setting of Southey's " Curse of Kehama," in a series of no less than twenty-four symphonic poems. He is now head of the depart- ment of music in the Midland Institute at Birming- ham, where his energy and mental breadth are pro- ducing excellent effect. William Wallace, the oldest of the six, shows much power of imagination in his orchestral works, such as the music to Ibsen's " Lady from the Sea," and the new overture " Pelleas and Melisande." Erskine Allen's ballad, " Annie of Lochroyan," with 222 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE orchestra, a cantata, " The Oak of Geismar," and an overture, " The Maid of Colonsay," have made his early death much regretted. Reginald Steg- gall's scenas " Alcestis " and " Elaine " and his " Ave Maria " show expressive ideas and good treatment of the voice. Stanley Hawley has de- voted himself to melodrama, or music to accompany recitation, while Arthur Hinton's songs, piano pieces, and " The Triumph of Caesar," for orchestra, show great beauty. Among younger men, Clarence Lucas is rapidly gaining a prominent place through his orchestral and piano works. Colin McAlpin has produced two operas, " Crescent and Cross " and " King Arthur," as well as the cantata " The Prince of Peace." C. E. Pritchard has written the opera " Kunacepa," on an Indian subject. Cyril Scott is rapidly winning fame, having composed five over- tures, two suites, a 'cello concerto, and many cham- ber works and songs. Among other novelties heard at Queen's Hall in the twentieth century are York Bowen's symphonic poem " The Lament of Tasso," a Pastoral Suite by Garnet Wolseley Cox, the in- troduction to Ernest Blake's opera " Die Bret- walde," a rhapsody, " Into the Everlasting," by Rutland Boughton, W. H. Reed's " Suite Vene- tienne," Edgar Bainton's symphonic poem " Pom- ENGLAND 223 pilia," and a concerto by Nicholas Gatty. Among the women composers, Liza Lehmann is renowned for her beautiful vocal cycle, " In a Persian Garden," while Frances Allitsen has produced songs of re- markable grace. England's composers to-day are far more original than for many years, and it seems certain that some among these younger men will continue the work so nobly begun by Elgar, and add new lustre to English music. CHAPTER X. THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES NORWAY is preeminently a land of song-. Its gloomy forests, relieved by smiling meadows, and the impressive loneliness of its sombre fiords have at all times found musical expression. Its very folk-lore, half-Christian, half-pagan, lends itself naturally to tonal expression, and the melancholy sweetness of the Norwegian folk-songs renders them inexpressibly attractive. The Hailing, the Spring- dans, and the Polska lend interest to the national dances, and give the Norwegian music a distinct flavour of its own. It seems as if native composers could not help realizing the force of their own folk-music; yet the Danish Gade, after studying in Germany, became in large measure a mere reflex of Mendelssohn. In the music of Grieg, however, these many beauties have found a truer expression than ever before in the history of any nation. Edward Hagerup Grieg was born in Bergen on June 15, 1843. As with many musicians of genius, 224 EDWARD HAGERUP GRIEG. THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 22$ his artistic instincts were aroused in the home ; for his mother, wife of the English consul at Bergen, was a woman of rare gifts, and trained him in piano and many childish studies. He developed rapidly, and soon began to show little attempts at compo- sition. In a few years Ole Bull, also a native of Bergen, returned on a short visit, and was so struck with the excellence of these bits that he persuaded Grieg's parents to send him to Leipzig. Too eager work there resulted in a dangerous inflammation of the diaphragm, and laid the foundation of many later illnesses, but the young student completed his course in 1862. He then travelled to Copen- hagen, to gain the acquaintance and guidance of Gade, under whose direction his early works were composed. At the same place he met Rikard Noor- draak, who aroused his enthusiasm for the songs and stories of his native land. After spending several years in Copenhagen, Grieg settled in Christiania, where he founded a musical society that is still flourishing. He travelled much in nearly all the European countries, but was always eager to return to his beloved Norway. Since 1880 he has settled near Bergen, where he dwells in a charming villa just outside the city. Here he lives with his wife, a woman of rare in- telligence and charm, who has accompanied him 226 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE on his tours and sung his songs with inimitable grace. His life is of a retired sort, well in con- sonance with the excessive modesty of his character. When he makes his rare public appearances, to take part in a festival or produce a new work, he is the recipient of the utmost homage and consideration, and for once, in spite of the proverb, the prophet is not without honour in his own country. In later years he has drawn the government pension with which Norway endows those of her composers who have shown real genius. In person he is slight, somewhat thin, and always active. His nervous temperament allows him little rest, and, when giving a concert, his excitement in the greenroom becomes marked. As an orchestral leader, however, he becomes calm, noble, and dig- nified, directing his men with gestures of firm and impressive simplicity. His genius is essentially lyric and melodic, but this in no way detracts from the greatness of his purely orchestral works. The first of these, the beautiful " Autumn " overture, shows ample vigour and power, and its clearness of expression never becomes weakness. The Norwegian Dances mark the beginning of that characteristic style that is carried out in the melodrama " Bergliot," the two "Peer Gynt" suites, and "Sigurd Jorsalfar." THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES The piano concerto is one O'f Grieg's greatest works. Although showing some influence of Schumann, it is wholly original in effect, and the utmost perfec- tion of melodic and harmonic architecture seems evident in each phrase, even to the superb cadenza in the first movement. The Elegiac Melodies, the Norwegian themes, and the Holberg Suite, all for strings, are but further examples of the rich fulness of romantic expression that appears in all Grieg's compositions. The songs and choral works with orchestra show the same sympathetic treatment, while the chamber works, piano pieces, and songs with piano include some of the most exquisite gems in the entire mu- sical repertoire. Grieg has shown an almost endless flow of wonderful melodic invention. To him is given that great gift of characterization, by which a composer may express a world of meaning in a few simple notes. In his works the dominant feeling is one of melting tenderness, of warm sen- timent that seems never to lose its charm. It is the spirit of his native land that speaks, not merely as in the cruder forms of popular Norwegian music, but refined and etherealized by his own inspired genius. His wealth of melody and bold richness in new harmonic effects have caused many to name him as the greatest living composer. 228 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Johann Severin Svendsen, though occupying a prominent position in Denmark, is really a Nor- wegian, having been born at Christiania on Septem- ber 30, 1840. Son of a military bandmaster, he soon showed a taste for composition, and at the age of eleven wrote a violin piece. Four years later he entered the army, and he soon rose to the position occupied by his father. But he desired a more ambitious career, and entered the orches- tra at Christiania. After a wandering tour as violin virtuoso in Sweden and North Germany, he obtained a royal pension, which enabled him to study at Leipzig. On graduating, he gave concerts in Denmark, Norway, and England, and stayed two years in Paris as a member of the Odeon orchestra. In the French capital he met and ad- mired an American woman whom he afterward married in her own country. He knew Wagner at Bayreuth, and gained much benefit from a result- ing friendship with the Countess Nesselrode. After a further sojourn in Paris, he returned to Chris- tiania as orchestral leader, and in 1883 was called to Copenhagen, where he now resides, to fill the post of court conductor. Among his musical pos- sessions is the baton formerly owned by Carl Maria von Weber, and inscribed with that composer's name. THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 229 In his student days Svendsen produced an octette that was played with great success by his comrades. Reinecke, on being shown the young pupil's work, declined to suggest any changes, but remarked, half in sarcasm, " I suppose your next work will be a symphony." In less than a week later Svend- sen laid his Symphony in D before the astonished teacher. His later works include another symphony, the overture to Bjornson's " Sigurd Slembe," an- other to " Romeo and Juliet," four Norwegian Rhapsodies, the orchestral legend " Zorahayde," the " Carnival at Paris," the Funeral and Coronation Marches, a Wedding Cantata, violin and 'cello con- certos, and the usual lesser compositions. He shows excellent mastery of orchestral effects, but does not possess the distinctive style of a Grieg or a Dvorak. Christian Sinding was born at Kongsberg, Nor- way, on January n, 1856, and is therefore one of the newer musical generation. He, too, studied at Leipzig, and afterward won a royal scholarship that took him to Munich and Berlin. He then re- turned to his native country, and settled in Chris- tiania, where he became organist and teacher. He numbers among his compositions an excellent sym- phony, brought out under Weingartner and later in America; a piano concerto, pleasing because 23O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE of its melodic character ; two violin sonatas, and other chamber music, and some remarkably attract- ive songs and piano pieces. Another prominent composer among the younger Norwegians is Ole Olsen, a native of Hammerfest, whose symphonic poem " Asgardsreien " is but one of his many suc- cesses. Gerhard Schjelderup is one of the moderns, and handles his orchestra with all the complexity and dissonance of a second Richard Strauss. Among the women, Agathe Backer-Grohndahl stands at the head, both as pianist and composer. The national opera of Sweden was brought into being by Ivar Hallstrom, soon after the middle of the nineteenth century. Haeffner, Dupuy, and Randel aided him in his efforts to build up a worthy school, and the result was decidedly successful. But now a still newer school of Swedish composers has arisen, and an intense national enthusiasm is in evidence. The movement shows the influence of Liszt and Wagner, with some of the programme music ideas of Berlioz and a trace of the earlier romanticism of Schumann, but back of it all is the plaintive sweetness of the native folk-music. The first of the new romanticists to become fa- mous was Anders Hallen. He was born at Gothen- burg December 22, 1846. His studies took him to Leipzig, where he came under the tuition of Rein- THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 23! ecke, Rietz, and Rheinberger. On his return he became director of the Gothenberg Musikverein until 1878, and at a later date leader of the Stock- holm Philharmonic Orchestra. From 1892 he has been conductor at the Royal Opera House in that city. His compositions include four operas, of which the first, " Harold the Viking," appeared in 1 88 1. It was not altogether a success, but a bet- ter fate awaited his three later operas, " Hexfal- lan," " Valdemarskatten," and " Walborgsmassa." Among his instrumental works are the symphonic poems " Aus dem Waldemarssage," " Aus der Gustav-Vasa-Sage," and " Die Toten-Insel," as well as a couple of Swedish Rhapsodies. He has pro- duced also several important choral works, such as " Styrbjorn Starke," " Vom Pagen und der Konigstochter," " Der Traumkonig und sein Lieb," " Das Schloss im Meer," and others. His Swedish and German songs are of rare beauty. Hallen has inclined to use Wagnerian effects. His music is massive and powerful, showing some of the sombre impressiveness of his native province of Bohuslan. The strength of passion in his works almost makes us overlook his occasional lack of individuality, and his melodic gifts win instant rec- ognition. He strikes a happy note in his marches and dances, and shows much originality in employ- 232 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE ing the native style. He is not possessed of great skill in polyphony, but his rich instrumentation re- sults in an excellent blending of the Wagnerian manner with the Swedish folk-song. Emil Sjogren, born at Stockholm in 1853, was a pupil of the conservatory in that city, studying later under the great Kiel at Berlin. Since 1891 he has been organist at the Johankirke, in Stock- holm. His work shows great harmonic richness, and a boldness in modulation that is sometimes car- ried too far, bringing about bizarre effects and a feeling of nervous unrest. His aim to emulate Grieg is thoroughly worthy, but in some of his progressions he throws moderation to the winds. His works, as nearly all others in his school, show the influence of the popular Swedish style, but in his organ music there is a trace of the rhythm and emotion of Schubert, while some of his compositions show a vivid power not unlike that of Mascagni, at the other end of Europe. He is too prone to repeat his thoughts, but he can build up great cli- maxes, especially in his chamber music. He ex- cels in the smaller forms, and his piano cycles, such as " Auf der Wanderschaft," " Erotikon," the " Noveletten," and " Stimmungen," are among his best works. The three violin sonatas are excellent examples of their class, while his organ works, such THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 233 as the " Bacchanal " and the " Johannis-Kantate," are thoroughly effective. But his greatest popularity comes from his songs, and such lyrics as " Der Vogt von Tenneberg," the seven Spanish Songs, and the " Tannhauser Lieder," are among the very best of Swedish vocal music. Wilhelm Stenhammar was born in Stockholm in 1871. Much younger than Hallen or Sjogren, he became their pupil before growing into a position as their rival in fame. He holds the post of second opera conductor, and he has had some experience in leading the Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra. He is a son of P. U. Stenhammar, who also did much for Swedish music. His operas, strongly Wagnerian in effect, do not possess lasting qualities, and such works as "Tirfing" and the "Hochzeit auf Solhaug " are laid aside after a few performances. But his smaller works, such as the piano sonata or the three " Phantasie-Stiicke," show most decided excellence. He has written some large works for voices and orchestra, such as " Prinsessan och Sven- nen," " Snofrid," and the Dedication Cantata, also the orchestral ballad " Florez och Banzeflor," three string quartettes, and some song albums. His works show a delightfully youthful enthusiasm, and a warm richness of harmonic beauty. In this, as 234 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE in his polyphonic skill, he surpasses Hallen, though less able to create pregnant melodic thoughts. Wilhelm Peterson-Berger is the most successful of the Swedish dramatic composers. Like Wagner, he writes his own librettos. He shows the influence of the Bayreuth master, but adapts it to the simpler vein of the Swedish song. Mozart is another guide for him, though the union of these two styles seems hardly possible. His operatic lyrics, as well as his songs, show a hearty warmth of feeling. They are sometimes of a rather pensive character, but gen- erally full of a sunny, cheerful sweetness, and always eminently singable. His E-minor violin sonata and his male choruses are worthy works, but his chief reputation comes from his operas, which include " Sveagaldrar," " Das Gliick," and the more recent music-drama " Ran." Hugo Alfven is the only prominent symphonist in Sweden. Born at Stockholm in 1872, he studied at the local conservatory and became a violinist in the Hofkapelle. His two symphonies, in F minor (1897) and D major (1899) have aroused great hopes for his future career. His violin sonata, Centennial Cantata, Triumphal March, and songs with orchestra, show a mastery of contrapuntal part-writing. He is to some extent a follower of Brahms, but his fine workmanship lacks the creative THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES inspiration of Hallen. His second symphony shows this weakness clearly, in spite of a great first move- ment, and he will not win real success until he becomes less intricate and abstruse. Tor Aulin, the great violinist, was born in 1866. He studied the instrument with Sauret, and became Concertmeister in the Hofkapelle. He has been an active worker in the musical life of Stockholm, for the Aulin quartette and the Swedish Musical Union both owe their origin to him. He has writ- ten three violin concertos, while his Four Idylls also display remarkable beauty. He shows a slight in- fluence of Schumann, but is distinctively national in style, and is gifted with real power of musical ex- pression. Erik Akerberg, director of the Harmonic Society, has produced the choral works " Der Fliegende Hollander " and " Tornrosas Saga," as well as or- chestral and chamber works. His efforts are too ultra-Wagnerian, but in his songs he shows much beauty. Gustav Hagg, organist at the Klarakirche, is active in many forms besides those for his in- strument. Bror Beekman has composed some worthy violin pieces and songs, while Gosta Geijer has written excellent solos with orchestra. P. Noderman, of Malmo, has produced the opera " Konig Magnus," and many children's songs. In 236 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE the field of piano music, prominence has been achieved by Ruben Liliefors, Patrik Vletbad, J. Erikssohn, L. Lundberg, and many others. An- dersen is working in the symphonic field, while Wideen devotes himself to male choruses. Among the women, Elfrida Andree stands first, while Helen Munktell, Valborg Aulin, and Alice Tegner have done sterling work. In Denmark the chief composer for many years was Gade, and all others seemed obscured by his lustre. Even J. P. E. Hartmann, a man of great gifts, was forced into the background, and his son Emil, who died recently, was also little known out- side of his native land. Svendsen has identified him- self with Danish music, but the climax of his career seems past, and there is now more room for the younger men to make a name for themselves. In opera, Denmark could show few great native productions before 1890. " Die Kleine Christine " and " Konig und Marschall " appeared in 1846 and 1878 respectively, and it seemed as if these would be the only important dramatic works of the cen- tury, when in 1892 August Enna won a popular triumph with " Die Hexe." August Enna was born at Nakskov on May 13, 1860. Son of a shoemaker, he received little beyond the most ordinary education, both in his THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 237 native village and in Copenhagen, where the family settled in his tenth year. The boy was given chances in trade and in manual work, but did not enjoy either vocation. He had begun to practise piano by himself, and at the age of eighteen he received a few lessons in violin and theory, but all his deep knowledge of instrumentation was entirely due to his own efforts. Not being proficient enough as violinist to enter the Copenhagen orchestra, he organized a small band and made a tour to Finland with it. On his return, after six months, he began composing for the stage, and his operetta, " Eine Dorfgeschichte," made his name known in the provinces. In 1883 he was Kapellmeister in a small theatre, for which he composed entr'actes and overtures when he was too poor to buy scores. In the next year his opera " Areta " was accepted at the royal theatre, but never brought out. A similar fate awaited a second opera, " Aglaia," but this is no longer in existence, for in the days of poverty its composer was forced to sacrifice the manuscript as fuel. An orchestral suite, produced at the Tivoli concerts, showed the influence of Delibes and Saint-Saens,, then Enna's favourite composers, while a symphony in C minor gained favourable notice from Gade and won its composer a prize. 238 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE With the money thus obtained, Enna travelled about and studied, but he did not cease composing. The first three acts of " Die Hexe " were written in foreign lands, while the fourth was finished at home. Poverty still pressed hard, for teaching and piano playing in a restaurant brought little revenue. The opera was accepted by the royal theatre in 1889, but laid aside and forgotten for over two years. It was then accidentally inspected, and its beauty charmed Svendsen, who aided in having it pro- duced. Only after its great and sudden success did it become known that the composer had been almost driven to end his career, for lack of the sheer necessities of life. " Die Hexe," after Arthur Fit- ger's drama of the same name, aroused wide-spread admiration for the boldness and skill with which its young composer, hitherto unknown, handled his orchestral masses and created his dramatic effects. His vocal fluency and melodic excellence, perhaps inherited from an Italian grandfather, won the favour of the public at an instant's notice. After this first success came " Cleopatra," writ- ten with all the enthusiasm aroused by the warm reception of the earlier work. " Cleopatra," how- ever, met with some coldness when first brought out, and it is only in the most recent years that it has received full recognition. This is due in part THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 2$$ to some alterations made by the composer, but better artists in the cast and a more adequate stage setting have probably revealed beauties that were unnoticed before. " Aucassin and Nicolette " and " Lamia " came next in order of composition, but a new renown awaited the composer in the field of the fairy opera. If Humperdinck has done well in employing Grimm's tales, certainly Enna acted wisely in set- ting the works of his well-loved countryman Hans Christian Andersen. " Das Streichholzmadel " (The Little Match-Girl) won most decided appre- ciation, not only in Denmark, but also when pro- duced in other lands, such as Germany, Austria, Holland, and Russia. Enna has been eminently successful in imparting the charm of simple pathos to the music, and its direct, appealing beauty wins all audiences. Enna has done further work in this direction, his later efforts being " Die Erbsenprin- zessin," " Die Schaferin und der Schornsteinfeger," and " Ib und die kleine Christine." He is at pres- ent busied with two more of these fable-operas, "Die Geschichte einer Mutter" and "Die Nach- tigall," while his work in other directions includes " Heisse Liebe " and a proposed sequel to " Cleo- patra." Enna is at present the only operatic com- 240 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE poser of Denmark who is known outside of his native land. The death of Lassen removed a prominent figure from Danish musical life, for his familiar songs gained even more fame for him than his operas and orchestral works. Among the other men, the name of Otto Mailing is mentioned with much praise because of his piano pieces and other works. Victor Bendix, formerly a pupil and protege of Gade, lives in Copenhagen as piano teacher and conductor, and has composed three symphonies, in- cluding the " Felsensteigung " and the " Sommer- klange aus Siidrussland." Joachim Andersen, court conductor since 1895, is a flutist, and has written much for his instrument. Attrup, another pupil of Gade, succeeded his master as organ teacher in the Copenhagen conservatory, and has composed songs as well as organ works. Emil Hornemann is responsible for the overtures " Alad- din " and " Heldenleben," while August Winding, director of the conservatory, numbers sonatas and a violin concerto among his works. Ludwig Schytte, who makes his home in Berlin, was orig- inally a pharmacist, but afterward a pupil of Neu- pert and Gade, and a friend of Liszt. His piano pieces, as well as a concerto and many studies, have made his name known, while his stage works con- THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 241 sist of " Hero," widely given, the burlesque op- eretta " Circus-Damen," the very successful pan- tomime " Atelderspuck," the recent comic opera " Der Mameluck," and " Die Schwalbe," in prepara- tion for an early date. Finland, too, has added new names to the roll of musicians. This land of sorrow and sublimity, this Suomi with its heaths and forests and thousand lakes, is the home of beautiful poetry. The Kale- vala, the national epic, may not equal the Homeric poems in power, but it tells the legends of the Finns much in the same way that the Iliad narrates those of the Greeks. It is even said that Longfellow borrowed the incidents of his " Hiawatha " from the Kalevala, though this was merely a chance re- semblance. Then there are the Kanteletar, or short lyrics, sung to the steel-stringed lute that goes by the name of Kantele. The imaginative beauty in these two groups has ever been the de- light of the Finnish people. They were first for- mulated and arranged by Elias Lonnrot, in the early part of the nineteenth century. The earliest composer of Finland was Bernhard Crusell, who lived from 1775 to 1838, and spent the greater part of that time in Sweden and Ger- many. He set melodies to Tegner's " Frithjof," and composed an opera, " Die Kleine Sklavin." 242 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE But the real father of Finnish music was Fredrik Pacius, who was born in Hamburg in 1809, but passed his life in Finland. To him is due the national hymn, " Wartland," in which the glowing patriotism of Runeberg finds an echo in the deep inspiration of the music. " Suomi's Song " also brought him immortal fame. He was a violinist, a follower of Spohr, and a prolific composer, as well as a teacher in the university at Helsingfors. His first opera, " Kung Carls Jakt," was the earliest dramatic work in Finland, and his " Lorelei," in Wagnerian vein, and the Singspiel " Die Princessin von Cypern," brought him new laurels. When he died, in 1891, the entire nation mourned for him. His son-in-law, Karl Collan, composed two very popular choral marches, " Wasa " and " Savolaisen Laulu." Filip von Schantz, who died in 1865 at the age of thirty, was a richly gifted musician, who wrote songs, choruses, and lyric cantatas. Carl Gustaf Wasenius lived at Abo, the former capital, where he conducted and directed the organ school. Conrad Greve, of the same place, wrote music to Berndtson's historical drama, " Aus dem Kampfe des Lebens." A. G. Ingelius composed songs that were full of wild spirit, while F. A. Ehrstrom wrote simpler and more popular melodies, and K. J. Mohring devoted THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 243 himself to male choruses. Gabriel Linsen was another early writer of popular songs. The lyrics of the people still show traces of the old runic style, and the odd 5-4 rhythm adds a touch of weird- ness that enhances their charm. Richard Faltin, the successor of Pacius, was born in 1835. He founded the Gesangverein, and gave classical German music. He still lives, in Helsing- fors, where his work as teacher of piano and organ is no less renowned than his many songs, choruses, and cantatas. The director of the Musical Institute is Martin Wegelius, and his labours in placing it on a firm foundation have been of the utmost value. His songs and choral numbers show many beau- ties, his overture to the tragedy " Daniel Hjort " is a worthy work, and his historical writings are of unusual excellence. Robert Kajanus is the founder and leader of the Helsingfors Philharmonic Or- chestra and the Symphonic Chorus. His works in- clude the symphonic poems " Aino " and " Kuller- vos Trauermarsch," on subjects from the Kalevala, a Finnish Rhapsody, and " Summer Reminiscences," based on national themes. Armas Jarnefelt, born in 1869, is one of the young nationalists. His orchestral suites and the symphonic poem " Korsholm " show rich instru- mentation, lyric beauty, and an epic power of utter- 244 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE ance. Ernest Mielck, who died at Lucarno in his twenty-third year, composed a symphony and other orchestral works of such expressive charm that he has been called the Finnish Schubert. Oskar Merikanti, born in 1868, produced an opera, " The Maid of Pobja." Erik Melartin, another song- writer, studied in Vienna and in Italy. Ilmari Krohn has composed motets and instrumental works, while he is also known as a teacher at the Helsingfors Hochschule and an interesting mag- azine writer. Emil Genetz aroused enthusiasm with his "Heraa Suomi " ("Awake, Finland!") and other male choruses, while Selim Palmgren has produced songs and piano pieces of much bril- liancy. But the greatest of the Finnish composers, the only one who draws the government pension for musical excellence, is Jean Sibelius. He was born in 1865, an d brought up for the legal profession. But he knew how to play the violin, and decided on a musical career, studying first under Wegelius, then with Albert Becker at Berlin and Goldmark in Vienna. He then returned to Helsingfors, where he now heads the younger school of Finnish music. His two symphonies, though well-planned works, are marked with some reserve of expression. He is more inspired in his symphonic poems, such as JEAN SIBELIUS. THE NORTHERN COUNTRIES 245 " Kullervo," with soloists and chorus, and the com- panion legends " The Swan of Tuonela " and " Lemminkainen," from the Kalevala. " Isloss- ningen," " Sandels," and " Snofrid " also demand a chorus. His other compositions include cantatas, vocal ballads, the suite " Carelia," string quartettes and quintettes, piano pieces, songs, and male cho- ruses. His suite " King Christian IV." is a re- markable work, and the Elegy from it is thoroughly typical of the deep earnestness of the Finnish nature. Sibelius has added new lustre to the musical fame of his country, and has proven himself a com- poser of real greatness. CHAPTER XI. THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS To understand properly the music of Russia, the hearer should be familiar with the country and its history; not its geographical limits merely, but its vast stretches of steppes, its lonely summers, its dreary winters, and the patient poverty of its long- suffering peasants; not the dry record of its past, but its legendary lore, the dramatic deeds of its heroes, the poetry of Pushkin and Gogol, and the realism of Tolstoi and Turgenieff. Striking as the Russian music is, it becomes doubly significant when its meaning is understood, and the conditions under which it came into being are appreciated. The folk-music, the melodies of the people, trace their origin back to pagan times, and include epic chants of martial glories, songs of weddings and of funerals, weirdly beautiful cradle-songs, and even traces of invocations to the old gods. In more modern times came the lyrics of the peasantry, for the Slav is eminently musical, and sings while 246 THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 247 he Works. All these melodies display the most piquant variety of pleasing but unexpected pro- gressions; the harmonies, with their plagal and Phrygian cadences, possess a crystalline purity, and their very strangeness opens new vistas to the imagination; and the rhythm, delicate, capricious, shifting in an instant, is always in perfect accord with the words. Every accent, every emotion, is found in this folk-music; at times an almost savage strength and spirit, at times a majestic tranquillity, sympathetic grace, and brisk gaiety, but more often a profound melancholy. The church music, too, flourishes in unusual purity. The older czars had their royal cho- ruses in Moscow, which in later days have be- come the glory of the imperial chapel. The voices are chosen from among the most beautiful that can be obtained, chiefly from the Ukraine district, where the best are always to be found. The Greek Church allows no instruments, and the rich, full voices, trained to perfection, produce a remarkable effect when singing in the unusual modes that are gen- erally employed. It was for this ecclesiastical service that Bortniansky, in the latter part of the eighteenth century, wrote his music to forty-five different songs. It was even earlier than this that Italian opera 248 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE was first imported into Russia. The Neapolitan composer Araja, called to court by the Empress Anne Ivanovna, produced several operas at St. Petersburg, and in 1755, at the request of the Em- press Elizabeth Petrovna, set a Russian text for the first time. Under Catherine II. opera flourished as never before, although still in Italian, and the composers Galuppi, Traetta, and Paisiello were called in succession by the authorities. Sarti and Martini came afterward, and even Cimarosa spent three profitable years at the capital. In 1803, Italian opera gave way to the French article, and among others Boieldieu passed many years in Rus- sian service. Meanwhile there were quite a number of works in Russian, but these were always due to foreign com- posers. The Venetian Cavos, however, became so identified with music in Russia that he might almost have been counted as a native. One of his subjects, " Ivan Sussanina," was destined to be employed later as the origin of Russian opera. In the early part of the nineteenth century Vertowsky produced a number of successful works, of which " Askold's Tomb " remained longest in favour ; but he lacked the musical training needed to give his works per- manent historical value. It remained for Michael Ivanovitch Glinka to become the real founder of a THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 249 native school of opera, and his " Life for the Czar " was received with profound enthusiasm by the entire nation. Other composers followed, the best of whom were Dargomishky and Seroff. The career of the former extended until recent years, and his later works show that the Wagnerian style had no less influence in Russia than elsewhere. Meanwhile instrumental music grew also. The rich melodic beauty of Rubin- stein was for many years taken by Europe as the true type of Russian music, and only the more pas- sionate power of Tschaikowsky placed it in the background. But even Tschaikowsky is not con- sidered truly Russian, and is accused by his coun- trymen of being too German. Of the five men who joined in an effort to make Russian music distinctively national, Mily Alex- ejevitch Balakireff, if not the greatest composer, may at least be justly called the founder of the movement. He was born at Nijni-Novgorod on January 2, 1837. After his education at the Uni- versity of Kazan, he returned to his native city, where he came under the influence of Alexander Oubilicheff. This man, a retired diplomat who lived on his estate, was a decided conservative in music, and had written important works upon Mozart and Beethoven. Balakireff, however, was 250 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE already an independent in spirit, and profited rather in a technical way than in theoretical guidance. He was scarcely twenty when he settled in St. Petersburg, where he made his debut as a pianist and studied music with deep earnestness. At that time he became acquainted with Glinka, who dis- played much sympathy for the young enthusiast. Soon afterward he met Cesar Cui, with whom he quickly became intimate. The constant exchange of ideas between the two, and their discussion of artistic subjects, soon led them to the principles of nationalism upon which the new Russian school was to be based. Balakireff was also active in other directions. His piano playing won him some measure of fame, and in 1862 he founded the Free Music School and organized the concerts which were destined to make known the works of the five associates. He made a thorough study of the popular music of his nation, for according to his ideas this should form the basis of all Russian music, fashioned into classical form much as Dvorak wrote the New World Symphony. In 1866 he made an excellent collection of popular songs and melodies. Soon after this he was en- trusted with the leadership of the concerts given by the Imperial Musical Society, and still later he became director of the chorus in the imperial chapel. MILY ALEXEJEVITCH BALAKIREFF. THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 2$ I His own compositions are not many, but are dis- tinguished by their beauty. They include a sym- phony, three overtures (on Russian, Czech, and Spanish themes respectively), the symphonic poem " Russia," an overture, march, and four entr'actes for " King Lear," and the symphonic poem " Ta- mara." The last is a richly coloured work, based on a legend of the Caucasus. Tamara was a cap- tivating but cruel princess, who lived in her tower in the gorge of Darial, through which ran the river Tarek. When a cavalier came in the evening, there would be a night of feasting and revelry, but in the morning the river would bear away his corpse. Another Oriental subject is the difficult piano fan- tasie " Islamey." His other works include ma- zurkas, some four-hand pieces, and a score of songs. After a life of activity, Balakireff has become the prey of religious mania, and is now estranged from his former friends. Here is what Cui has to say about his friend : " A musician of the first rank, an inexorable critic of his own works, thoroughly familiar with all music, ancient as well as modern, Balakireff is above all a symphonist. In vocal music he has written only twenty romances, but they are dis- tinguished by broad and limpid melody, elegance of accompaniment, often also by passion and 252 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE abandon. Lyric beauty is everywhere in evidence. They are impulses of the heart, expressed by de- licious music. In form they stand midway between the works of Glinka and Dargomishky and those of the composers who followed him." Cesar Antonovitch Cui, the friend, comrade, and coworker of Balakireff, was born at Vilna on Jan- uary 6, 1835. He was the son of a French soldier, Antoine Cui, who settled in Russia after Napoleon's defeat and proved himself a man of intellect and an excellent French teacher. Cesar Cui, like his father, followed a military career, and graduated from the Engineers' School in St. Petersburg. He is at present a major-general, and professor of fortifi- cation in the military schools of the capital. With such a responsible position, his love of music must certainly have been sincere, or he would never have taken the time for his many efforts in composition and criticism. After some lessons with Hermann and Dio, he became a pupil of the celebrated Polish composer Moniuszko, but it was really Balakireff who aroused his enthusiasm for the art, and caused him to study further by himself. His first opera, " The Pris- oner of the Caucasus," based on an early poem of Pushkin, was not given until 1883, long after his " William Ratcliff " and " Angelo " had appeared. ANTONOVITCH GUI. THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 253 " Ratcliff " is based on Heine's tragedy, while " An- gelo," the composer's favourite, is modelled after Victor Hugo's drama. " Le Filibustier " was writ- ten for France, to a libretto based on Jean Riche- pin's work, while " The Saracen " is founded on " Charles VII. chez ses Grands Vassaux," by Dumas. It seems somewhat strange to find Cui, the literary champion of the Russian school, choos- ing so many subjects from foreign countries. None of his operas has met with real success, and even his own fellow countrymen accuse him of lacking melodic originality. There is no plagiarism in his works, but the themes are merely echoes of previous composers, and not radically new or interesting. His other works include songs, piano pieces, cho- ruses, orchestral scherzos, symphonies, and the comic opera " The Mandarin's Son." The theories of the new Russians bear a singular resemblance to those of Wagner. Like him, these composers revolted against the inanities of the old Italian opera, which was merely a singing-concert, almost wholly devoid of real artistic worth. They insisted that operatic music must be of intrinsic merit; that after Schumann and Beethoven the symphony could say nothing new, but reform was needed in opera. They held it necessary that the music should illustrate the drama, and that the 254 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE drama should be worthy. Excellence in vocal ex- ecution, beauty in scenery, the gorgeous effect of stage pageantry, the charm of the ballet should not be allowed to tempt a composer to introduce trivial music into his score. All this sounds as if adopted directly from the Wagnerian publications, yet the Russians have in large measure proceeded along their own lines. Doubtless the charm of the Russian folk-music, no less than the symphonic beauties of the German school, bred a discontent with the meaningless Italian roulades. In fact, Cui has very little to say in praise of Wagner, and alludes to his music- dramas as an enormous mystification, which de- ceived even their composer. " It is probable," writes Cui, " that he took his sounds, so void of ideas, for real music, his prolixity for divine melodic utterance, and that he believed each of his notes worth its weight in gold. I would like to preserve my compatriots from the dangerous contagion of Wagner's decadence; whoever loves his music ceases to appreciate real music; whoever admires his operas holds Glinka as a writer of vaudevilles. The desire to find something deep where nothing exists can have only dangerous consequences." After alluding to the evil effect of Wagnerian enthusiasm on Joseph Rubinstein, Cui continues : " There is THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 255 no doubt that the music of Wagner was a partial cause of the death of his royal friend, . . . and I certainly hope that he will not trouble me with his anti-musical operas." Yet in spite of this attitude, Cui could appreciate real musical worth, and with the exception of his operas his own compositions show great excellence. Modest Petrovitch Moussorgsky was by all odds the strangest figure in the musical coterie. Born at Karevo on March 28, 1839, he obtained his school- ing in the capital, and like Cui received a military training and became an officer. He was not with- out musical training, and after early lessons from his mother he would improvise themes to represent the heroes of childish lore. In St. Petersburg he came under the tuition of the pianist Herke, but in spite of that master's unusual kindness, the pupil was little amenable to rules and discipline. In less than a year of military service this trait caused him to resign his army post altogether. The life of Moussorgsky, with its fondness for drink and its many excesses, was that of a Bohe- mian whose dominating passions and almost savage independence of spirit could brook no restraint. After wasting time and money for several years, during which he lived partly with his mother, and partly at his brother's home, he devoted himself MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE to the insipid work of translation. This was fol- lowed by a post in the department of civil engineers, but his restiveness again caused a resignation. After another period of misery came more employ- ment, this time in the forestry department. Always hard to satisfy, he soon changed to the department of control, after which he left the government service altogether. He made a successful musical tour with Mile. Leonova, a famous singer, but his health was too far gone for him to continue in this field, and he died in 1881, on his forty- second birthday. In 1862 a meeting with Borodin, leading to a close friendship, caused an acquaintance with Balakireff, and the pair became members of the little circle which was completed by the renowned Rimsky-Korsakoff. If Moussorgsky lacked musical training, and was ignorant of some of the simplest rules of composition, the weird and formless char- acter of his music did not entirely obscure the charm of his wonderful faculty for melody of the most original and striking character. Moussoro-sky has been spoken of as a poet by nature, expressing his great thoughts in the form of an art that he had not mastered. The deep misery and the strong passions of humanity find an echo in his wild utterances, and their force MODEST PETROVITCH MOUSSORGSKY. THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS is unmistakable. Those that were revised after his death show a smoother form, but lack the savage power that seemed his especial gift. His songs, his choruses, his piano pieces, all show the same rugged strength. He wrote larger works, and even en- tered the operatic field with " Boris Godunoff " and " Chovanstchina," but in these his lack of training showed itself, and they never met with favour until smoothed and polished by his more learned friends. Such was the case with his symphonic work, " Une Nuit sur le Mont-Chauve," and the " Intermezzo," both of which were remodelled by Rimsky-Kor- sakoff. His " Defeat of Sennacherib " is but one of many Hebraic Choruses. The " Tableaux d'une Exposition " are among the best of his piano works, while his songs include settings of Goethe and Heine as well as Russian poets. Before his death Moussorgsky sketched one act of " Mlada," and planned to set Gogol's " La Marieuse." Alexander Porphyrjevitch Borodin was born at St. Petersburg on November 12, 1834. Through his father he was descended from the princes of Imeretia, the loveliest of the old kingdoms of the Caucasus, breathing the fragrance of the Orient. Its ancient kings, it is said, boasted descent from David, and bore a harp and a sling as coat-of-arms. Borodin became a scientist of the first rank, for, 2$8 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE after his studies at the Academy of Medicine and Surgery under Zinine he succeeded his master as professor of chemistry. Among other scientific re- searches he published several chemical works that made him known in Germany as well as Russia. He became one of the most earnest partisans of the higher education for women, and aided in founding a medical school for them, where he taught chem- istry and worked actively until his death. He regarded science as his life-work, and often re- frained from publishing his compositions, as he con- sidered music merely an avocation. Yet he commenced to compose at an early age, almost by instinct. At thirteen he wrote a con- certo for flute and piano, and soon afterward a scherzo for piano and string sextette. It was only after 1862, however, when he became a member of the group of nationalists, that he devoted himself seriously to composition. Five years later his first symphony was completed, and produced soon after by Balakireff. Encouraged by the success of this work, he began an opera on Mei's drama, " The Czar's Betrothed," but did not complete it. He produced then a number of songs, such as " La Mer," " La Princesse Endormie," " Vieille Chan- son," and others. These are usually painted in sombre colours, and Borodin has shown hiinself ALEXANDER PORPHYRJEVITCH BORODIN. THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 259 a master of dissonance who is at times too much devoted to effects of cacophony. But there is real greatness, also, in the works. At this time he wrote one act of " Mlada," the composite work produced to order by himself, Cui, Moussorgsky, and Rimsky-Korsakoff. This device of working together has been followed by some of the younger composers, who gave homage to their publisher Belaieff by writing different move- ments of a quartette on the notes B, La, F. Boro- din continued his operatic labours by writing " Prince Igor," which was not produced until after his death. In the instrumental field a second symphony was as successful as the first, and a third, incomplete, has been finished by Glazounoff. An orchestral scherzo and two delightfully original quartettes are also worthy of mention, and his choral and piano music displays the same qualities as his greater compositions. His style is somewhat complicated, at times contrapuntal, and full of bold harmonies. He lacks something of unity and simplicity, but atones for it by the power of his expression and the national, almost personal, flavour of his music. His " Steppenskizze " was the first of his com- positions to become known in America. It is a symphonic sketch depicting the great Eastern 26O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE steppes, with all their vast extent and deep loneli- ness. Then comes the refrain of a Russian song, followed by a melancholy chant of the Orient. Steps of approaching horses and camels are heard. A caravan, escorted by Russian soldiers, traverses the immense desert, and proceeds confidently upon its long journey, advancing always. Songs of Russians and of Asiatics mingle in the same har- mony, and the whole dies away in the distance, leaving the desert to its loneliness once more. All this is skilfully portrayed, with admirable Oriental colour. " Prince Igor " is based on an old epic, wrought into modern form by Pushkin. The narrative deals with Igor's expedition against the warlike Polovtsi of the southeast, just as the Chanson de Roland deals with the war of France against the Moors. A prologue shows the prince and his army in preparation, and a start is made in spite of the evil omen of an eclipse. The first act shows Igor's native city, where his wife Yaroslavna rules. Her brother Galitzky, with the aid of two deserters, tries to undermine her influence, but news of Igor's defeat arouses renewed loyalty. The second act takes place in the camp of Khan Kontschak, the hostile leader, and introduces a banquet and festival. In the third act Igor, now a prisoner, plies his captors THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 261 with drink, and escapes ; but his son Vladimir, who loves the khan's daughter, remains behind. In the last act Yaroslavna is lamenting by the ruins of the palace, when Igor rides in with his com- panions, and the joyful reunion brings the opera to a happy close. Written in spare moments taken from medical commissions, boards of examination, lectures, and laboratory work, the music shows a delightful fresh- ness. Borodin used to say that he could only take the time to compose when he was ill, so that his musical friends would often wish him sickness in- stead of health. The music of " Prince Igor " does not aim to illustrate theories at the expense of beauty, but is written in clear, melodic style, with much cantilena. After the composer's sudden death, at a lively evening party in his house, the opera was finished by Rimsky-Korsakoff, while Glazou- noff performed the feat of writing the overture from memory, having once heard Borodin sketch it out on the piano. The greatest of the five national composers is by all odds Nicolai Andre jevitch Rimsky-Korsakoff. He was born at Tikhvin, in Novgorod, on May 21, 1844. Like some of his fellow composers, he en- tered a government school, devoting himself to the naval branch. At a later period he became 262 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE music-inspector of the Russian fleet, and he now possesses the rank of admiral. Unlike Borodin, he made music his most important life-work, and he is the most prolific as well as the most famous member of the group. His operatic activity began in 1873, with " Psko- vitjanka," based on Mei's drama a pleasing work, with many Russian themes ingeniously woven into the score. Seven years later came his famous " May Night," founded on a popular tale of Gogol. After a period of two years the remarkably beauti- ful " Snegurotschka " (Snow Maiden) appeared, in which the fairy legend of Ostrowsky was set to captivating music. " Mlada," the fourth opera, on the same subject that had already been treated piecemeal by four different composers, showed rare gifts of modulation. " Christmas Night " was in- spired by another tale of Gogol, the same that gave rise to Tschaikowsky's " Vakula the Smith." " Sadko," produced in 1896, is based on an old Novgorod story of a merchant-bard who catches miraculous fish and wins wagers by the aid of the sea-king. On a voyage, however, his ship stands still, and he must give himself as ransom. He marries the sea-king's daughter, but the strains of his gussli at the wedding-feast cause dances that arouse storms and wreck ships. To prevent further THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 263 damage St. Nicholas breaks the strings, and Sadko returns home. But his faithful bride follows him, and becomes the river Wolchow, which flows by the city. " Vera Scheloga " was a prologue to the first opera, "The Maiden of Pskoff." "Mozart and Salieri " is a one-act version of Pushkin's poem, based on the suspicion that Mozart was really poisoned by his Italian rival. " The Czar Sultan " treats another of Pushkin's many subjects. " Ser- vilia," dealing with Christianity in old Rome, was somewhat too harmonic and uninspired, and met with comparative failure, but in " The Immortal Katschschey," given in 1903 at Moscow, another legendary subject was treated with fair success. The most important opera of Rimsky-Korsakoff is probably " The Czar's Bride." Produced first in 1901, it met with pronounced success, and its com- parative resemblance to the operatic style of Western Europe will undoubtedly cause it to be chosen by foreign nations in preference to his other works. Its plot deals with the imperial custom of choosing a bride. Ivan IV., the Terrible, selects Marfa, a merchant's daughter, who is madly loved by the officer Griaznoi. The latter seeks a potion to make her forget Lykoff, her former betrothed, and love him alone. But his discarded sweetheart Ljubascha 264 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE substitutes a poison, by which the famous beauty of Marfa is destroyed at the time of the Czar's choice. Griaznoi, learning the truth, stabs Ljubascha and gives himself up to the authorities. The music to this tragic plot is of rare melodic beauty, truly national in style, and showing in every measure the inspired hand of a master. The overture has already become familiar to symphonic audiences in the United States. Rimsky-Korsakoff has been active in other fields than composition. He became the head of the Free School of Music in 1874, where he planned a mag- nificent course of instrumentation, and led the con- certs for many years. At a later date he became assistant conductor of the Imperial Orchestra, and for a long time he was leader of the Russian Sym- phony Concerts, now conducted by Liadoff and Glazounoff. He has travelled much in foreign countries, and led many orchestras on these trips. His work in completing unfinished compositions has already been indicated. His instrumental compositions have won him even more fame than his operas. Of the three sym- phonies, the second, " Antar," is a wonderful ex- ample of programme music. It is based on the old Arabic legend of the warrior Antar, who re- tires to the ruins of Palmyra, full of hatred for the THE NATIONAL RUSSIANS 26$ race of men who return him evil for good. He rescues a gazelle from a monster, and in a vision sees the fairy Ghul-Nazal, Queen of Palmyra, who had been in the form of the gazelle, and is granted three wishes. All this is portrayed in the first movement. The second shows the delights of re- venge, while the third portrays the joy of power. In the fourth movement the last wish, love, is granted, and Antar returns to the fairy. But his life depends upon this love, and when, after long happiness, he begins to gaze longingly at the hori- zon, she gives him a last burning kiss, and he expires in her arms. " Scheherezade," a symphonic poem, is rich in Oriental colouring, and its four movements depict stories from the Arabian Nights. " Sadko " is another symphonic poem, on the same subject as the opera. There is also a symphonietta, on Russian themes. Two great overtures are frequently given, one on popular tunes, the other, " The Russian Easter," on church melodies. For orchestra the composer has written also the Serb Fantasie, a Spanish Caprice, and a Fairy Legend. His piano music includes a suite, on the notes B, A, C, H, a set of four Morceaux and another of three, and six fugues. His concerto, dedicated to the memory of Liszt, is a noble and dignified work. For voice 266 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE he has written a number of songs, the cantata " Switezianka," and several a capella and other choruses. The position of Rimsky-Korsakoff has been well stated by the French critic Jean Marnold, who writes : " Of all the Slav composers, he is the most notable, the most charming in his music. He has not been equalled by any of his countrymen in his skill in handling orchestral colour, an art for which the Russians have long been noted. . . . His in- spiration is something exquisite, and the inex- haustible transformation of his themes is most skilful and interesting. Like other Russians, he sins through lack of cohesion and unity, and espe- cially through a want of true polyphony. . . . But the descriptive, dramatic intention is realized with unusual surety, and the ease of construction, the breadth and well-ordered progression of combina- tions, show a mastery and originality that are rarely found among Northern composers, and that no other of the great Five ever possessed." CHAPTER XII. THE NEW RUSSIANS THE art of music in Russia has been almost wholly a growth of the last hundred years. The imperial theatres were founded in the eighteenth century, but for a long period they produced only foreign works. There are two of these theatres, one in Moscow and one in St. Petersburg, and they play an important part in the musical life of those cities. The orchestras of both do not confine them- selves to opera, but give each year a series of sym- phony concerts, at which new works may be brought out. The directors of the St. Petersburg organ- ization are Napravnik, Kruschevsky, and Blumen- feld, while Altani and Ivranek are the leaders in Moscow. The Imperial Russian Musical Society has been another powerful influence in uplifting the standard of music. It was founded by Rubinstein in 1857, and has grown steadily ever since that date, until now it consists of twenty-one sections in different 267 268 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE localities. The St. Petersburg branch was instru- mental in founding the conservatory, while the Moscow section, organized in 1860 by Nicholas Rubinstein, transformed the music-school of that city into another great conservatory. No less than twelve other music-schools have been founded by the organization in various cities, and every section makes efforts to organize regular series of concerts. Sometimes there is no permanent orchestra, and players are borrowed from the local theatres. In nearly all the cities the larger concerts are supple- mented by a string quartette series. There are some private enterprises which have been able to win a measure of success. The best of these is the Moscow Philharmonic Society, whose conservatory is now firmly established. The St. Petersburg Philharmonic is less important, but does good service. In the capital there is also a chamber music club, organized by Mitrofan Belaieff, which gives four concerts during the season. There are as many as four good singing clubs, those of St. Anne, St. Katharine, St. Peter, and the Liedertafel. The Russian Symphony Concerts, founded by Be- laieff and conducted in part by Rimsky-Korsakoff, have become important events. Moscow possesses a Choral Union, led by Ippolitoff-Ivanoff, a Lieder- tafel, and other lesser societies. THE NEW RUSSIANS 269 In Moscow, too, is a most excellent private opera- house, the term private merely implying non-sup- port by the government or the Imperial Society. Kieff possesses a Literary and Artistic Union that shows much activity. There are many excellent operatic companies in various parts of the empire, that at Perm and the South Russian troupe of Prince Zeretelli being especially worthy of mention. All these different organizations, with the Court Chapel at St. Petersburg and the Synodal School for Church Music at Moscow, afford new composers many chances for a hearing. Of the younger men who have grown up under these conditions, Alexander Constantinovitch Gla- zounoff is undoubtedly the greatest. Born at St. Petersburg on August 10, 1865, ne commenced to study music at the age of nine. His first lessons were in piano, but the teacher considerately added some theory. Glazounoff went to the Polytechnic Institute, from which he graduated at eighteen. Son of a rich bookseller, he was enabled to devote him- self wholly to musical study, and had no need to adopt any more definite vocation. At the age of fourteen he had been placed under Rimsky-Korsa- koff, and four years later he made his first public appearance as composer with a symphony. It was 27O MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE the success of this work that decided him to adopt a musical career. It was this symphony, with its instrumentation remodelled, that was given once in Weimar, and caused Liszt to congratulate the young composer and predict a great future for him. A little later he conducted his second symphony at the Paris exposition of 1889, and produced his first sym- phonic poem, " Stenka Rasine." The latter is based on an old Volga legend of a pirate who captured a lovely Persian princess. The music is built on three main themes, a brusque, savage motive for the pirate, an entrancing melody for the princess, and the constantly recurring refrain of the Volga sailors. The early works of Glazounoff show a tendency to fantastic and imaginative subjects. The haunt- ing beauty of the forest, the inspiring charm of spring, the compelling magic of the sea, the gor- geousness of the Orient, the majesty of the historic Kremlin, all find an echo in his great orchestral poems and rhapsodies. His symphonies now amount to seven, rich in harmony and full of the rarest melodic beauty. He wrote a Triumphal March for the Chicago exposition, and a Corona- tion Cantata for the Czar. His early overtures are based on Greek themes, but the " Carnival " and the ALEXANDER CONSTANTINOVITCH GLAZOUNOFF. THE NEW RUSSIANS 2? I " Ouverture Solennelle " are again in the glowing style of vivid colouring to which he has accustomed his hearers. In 1899 ne became professor of in- strumentation at the St. Petersburg conservatory, and he is associate conductor of the Russian Sym- phony Concerts, but his activity in composition re- mains undiminished. Of his eighty or more published works, a large proportion is for orchestra. Besides those already mentioned, there are ballades, marches, suites, rhap- sodies, mazurkas, an elegy, and other numbers, to say nothing of songs, cantatas, and instrumental melodies with orchestral accompaniment. For a time Glazounoff renounced his early style, and wrote serious works in German vein, but now he has become devoted to the ballet. As all musicians know, this is not merely a stage dance for agile females, but a real pantomime, with a definite plot, that lacks words, and must therefore be all the more clearly illustrated by the music. Such an or- chestral story is told in " Raymonda," where the knight Jean de Brienne bids farewell to his be- trothed, Raymonda, and leaves for the Crusades. After his departure the Saracen Abderrahman pays court to her, and begs her to become his wife. Meeting with a refusal, he tries to run away with her, but Jean returns at the crucial moment, kills 2?2 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE his rival in single combat, and weds Raymonda in triumph. Glazounoff has followed this with other ballets, such as the one-act " Ruses d' Amour " and " The Seasons." Glazounoff numbers among his compositions many chamber works, of which five quartettes and as many novelettes for strings are the most im- portant. He has written numerous piano pieces, including two sonatas in the later opus numbers. Among his songs are several with piano accom- paniment, instead of his favourite orchestra. He is certainly the greatest of all the Russians, with the possible exception of Rimsky-Korsakoff. He handles his orchestral masses with skill and surety, and understands the best uses of modern instru- mental colouring. He is not carried away by har- monic complexity, but allows his rich progressions to support melodies of captivating beauty. En- dowed with great imaginative power and real in- spiration, he still has many years of activity before him, in which he will doubtless win further laurels. Anton Stepanovitch Arensky was born at Nijni- Novgorod, on July 30, 1861, and is, therefore, one of the younger school. At the age of nine, without any tuition, he attempted to write a string quartette. His education was received in St. Peters- burg, where he entered the conservatory, and studied ANTON STEPANOVITCH ARENSKY. THE NEW RUSSIANS 273 under Rimsky-Korsakoff. In 1882 he graduated, and soon afterward became known, at Moscow as well as St. Petersburg, through a symphony and a piano concerto. He was then called to the Moscow conservatory as professor of counterpoint. There he made his reputation as a composer by producing a grand opera, " A Dream on the Volga," which appeared in 1892. " Raphael," a one-act work, was composed for a reunion of the Artistic Congress. A ballet came later, " A Night in Egypt," but Aren- sky's best-known opera is " Nal and Damajanti." The subject is taken from one of the East Indian epics. Nal, or Nala, was a king possessed of all virtues, but beset with a passion for gambling. In love with the daughter of a neighbouring king, the beautiful Damajanti, he was chosen by her as hus- band. The wicked god Kali, however, wished her for his own. But Nala held her in happiness, until one day, after twelve years of bliss, he neglected some rite, and Kali gained power over him. He then was induced to play at dice with his brother Pushkara, and lost his kingdom and all his posses- sions. The pair went into exile, but Nala, still influenced by Kali, deserted his wife. In the forest he rescued a serpent from a burning bush, and this serpent, a god in disguise, delivered him from Kali. He became charioteer for another king, a famous 2/4 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE dicer, and when they drove to Damajanti's second choosing of a husband, he exchanged his power of horsemanship for the monarch's luck at gambling. Again he was chosen by Damajanti, and his new skill enabled him to win back his dominions from his brother. This story, it will be remembered, forms the subject of one of Bruch's latest works. After some years at Moscow, Arensky succeeded Balakireff as head of the imperial chapel at St. Petersburg, a post which he in turn resigned after a time. His compositions are not confined to the operatic stage, but include a second symphony; a " Fantasie on Russian Epic Chants," for piano and orchestra; the music to Pushkin's poem, "The Fountain of Bachtschissarai ; " a Memorial March ; three piano suites, of which one has been orches- trated; a violin concerto, and several lesser pieces for violin. He has grown to be a composer of real strength and feeling, and he shows the influence of Schumann and Tschaikowsky, especially in his piano music. Sergei Taneieff was not a pupil of the national- ists, but came under the influence of Tschaikowsky and Nicholas Rubinstein. Born on November 13, 1856, his first appearance before the public was as a pianist, and in this capacity he received the eulogy of all critics. He remained a while in Paris, but THE NEW RUSSIANS 2/5 returned to Moscow, where he joined the faculty of the conservatory. For some time he was director, but now he devotes himself solely to the teaching of theory. His works include a symphony, several string quartettes, and a number of choruses. In 1899 he produced a short opera, " The Vengeance of Cupid," but he is most familiarly known as the composer of the " Oresteia." This is a musical trilogy, in eight tableaux, based on the tragedies of ^schylus. It is a work of much power and sin- cerity, and written in a lofty and dignified style ; but it is too heavy in effect at times, and lacks the note of definite individuality. Joseph Wihtol, born at Wolmar on July 14, 1863, is another follower of the national movement. Like Arensky, he was a pupil of Rimsky-Korsakoff in composition, and Johansen in piano. He graduated from the St. Petersburg conservatory in 1886, a winner of the gold medal. Since then he has de- voted himself to teaching, and in 1899 he became harmony professor at the conservatory. His first works are marked by some youthful excess of effect, but this is less in evidence in his more mature pro- ductions. He has devoted himself to the Lett melo- dies with which his early life made him familiar, and they appear in many of his compositions. One of these is " La Fete Lhigo," a symphonic picture 2/6 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE based on popular Lett themes, while others are in his collection of folk-melodies. One of his later works is an orchestral suite, based on the same mate- rial. A " Dramatic Overture " shows many excel- lent qualities, and an E-Minor Symphony, in manu- script, and the " Bard of Beverin,"" for chorus and orchestra, are other important works. Wihtol has composed many piano pieces and male choruses. Anatole Liadoff, born at St. Petersburg- in 1855, is another conservatory graduate, returning to the institution as harmony professor in 1878. He has also been connected with the imperial chapel, and since 1894 he has been the associate of Rimsky- Korsakoff and Glazounoff in conducting the con- certs of the Musical Society. His orchestral works are not numerous, the chief among them being a scherzo, a mazurka, and a choral finale for Schiller's " Braut von Messina." His piano compositions, however, are more plentiful, and their brilliancy and originality have made him widely known. Among them are an attractive series entitled " Birioulki," and a set of " Arabesques." Nicolai Stcherbatcheff is another composer who has devoted his attention almost wholly to the piano. Son of a wealthy nobleman, he received an excellent education, and travelled in many lands with his parents. At Weimar he became a pupil of THE NEW RUSSIANS 2-TJ Liszt, and turned from execution to composition. His orchestral works include a Serenade and two Idylls, but nearly all his other compositions are songs or piano pieces. He has written some ex- cellent settings of Tolstoi and Heine, but his pecul- iar qualities show best in the piano works. He is full of striking ideas, which he can express with passionate power, but his free fancy leads him at times into excessive and unnecessary audacity. His " Fairy Scenes and Pantomimes " are delight- fully charming, while his " Fantasies fitudes," more classical in style, show the influence of Schumann. Sergei Rachmaninoff is one of a younger genera- tion, but has already won an enviable position. Born in 1873, in Novgorod, his earliest lessons were given to him by his mother. At nine, he entered the St. Petersburg conservatory, but was afterward transferred to Moscow, where he studied piano with Siloti, and composition with Arensky. For so young a man, he has been remarkably pro- ductive. Among his larger works, de longue haleine, as he puts it in a letter to the author, are two piano concertos, two* four-hand suites, a piano trio, a 'cello sonata, a symphony, a symphonic poem, a Bohemian Caprice for orchestra, and the cantata " Spring," with chorus and baritone. His lesser works include about thirty piano pieces MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE and nearly forty songs. He has entered the ope- ratic field with " The Bohemians " and " The Ava- ricious Knight," both on poems by Pushkin, and a third dramatic work, " Francesca da Rimini," should be ready for production by 1905. Edward Napravnik, born at Bejst in 1839, is not a Russian, but a Bohemian. In 1861, however, he was brought to St. Petersburg by Price Yussupoff, and his long career in that city has made him prac- tically a citizen of the empire. He has been organ- ist, conductor of the Russian opera, and leader of the Musical Society concerts. His own operas, which have met with decided success, are " The People of Nijni-Novgorod," " Harold," " Dubroff- sky," and " Francesca da Rimini." He has also written the overture " Vlasta," three symphonies, including " The Demon," a concerto and a Russian Fantasie for piano and orchestra, and many lesser instrumental works. Another composer prominent in the operatic field is Nicolai Solovieff. Born in 1846, he graduated from the St. Petersburg conservatory, where he has been a professor of theory since 1874. As a stu- dent, he took the composition prize with his cantata " The Death of Samson," and he made himself known later by an overture and the symphonic poem " Russians and Mongols." His operas include THE NEW RUSSIANS 2?$ "Vakula the Smith," "The Little House," and " Cordelia." These, however, were not remarkably successful, as Solovieff is somewhat too restrained in expression for best stage effects. He has written a number of lesser works, and he finished " The Demon's Power " after the death of its composer, Seroff. Ippblitoff-Ivanoff, so active in the musical life of Moscow, has won some success as a composer, also. His " Caucasian Suite " and " Characteristic Suite " are pleasing works, while in opera he has produced " Ruth " and " The Asra." His " Asia," a set of lyric scenes recently given, was remark- ably well received. Like Taneieff, he follows Tschai- kowsky in writing music that is not essentially national in flavour. Michael Ivanoff, another com- poser of the same name, but not related, has been decidedly prolific, having produced the ballet " The Vestal," two operas, " Sabawa " and " The Feast of Potemkin," a symphony, the symphonic pro- logue " Savonarola," a triumphal overture, two suites, a requiem, incidental music for " Medea," and the usual variety of lesser works. Boris Scheel, whose real name is said to be Vietinghoff, is another fecund composer of operas, while George Kasa- tschenko has produced orchestral fantasies and cantatas as well as the opera " Prince Serebreny." 280 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE Among other followers of the national movement, Nicolai Sokoloff has written the music for Tol- stoi's " Don Juan," an orchestral elegy, string sere- nades, and other chamber works. Achille Alpheraki has composed a dozen piano pieces, but is better known by his songs. Alexander Kopyloff has pro- duced a symphony, an orchestral scherzo, and sev- eral choruses. Constantine Antipoff is responsible for an allegro and three melodies for orchestra, but is more renowned for the thorough and original excellence of his piano music. Felix Blumenfeld is famous for the same reason, and his brother Sigis- mund has also worked in this field. Borislav Grod- sky has written for voice, violin, and 'cello, as well as piano. Gretschaninoff is known by his expres- sive chamber and piano music, and some excellent a capella choruses. Alexander Scriabine is one of the best of the younger symphonists. A pupil of Safonoff and Taneieff at the Moscow conservatory, he has made many piano tours in Europe, and written much for his instrument. For orchestra he has composed two symphonies, a concerto, and a Reverie. Henri Pachulski is another of the young piano composers who is becoming known, and his recent orchestral suite marks a more ambitious style. Sergei Lia- pounoff has composed a concerto, a Ballade, a sym- THE NEW RUSSIANS 28 1 phony, and an Ouverture Solennelle for orchestra, besides numerous piano works. Victor Ewald has devoted himself chiefly to chamber music. Kalin- nikoff produced two worthy symphonies, a suite, and two symphonic pictures, " The Nymphs " and " The Cedar and the Palm," before his untimely death in 1901. Rebikoff is another young man who is rapidly winning fame, and his new mimodrame, " Genius and Death," has charmed its audiences, though sometimes bizarre and chromatic in char- acter. Conus, Zolotareff, Lissenko, Artsiboutcheff, Akimenko, and many others, are entering the lists, and the new Russian composers are growing in numbers as well as in excellence. There are many reasons for the worthy quali- ties of the Russian school of music. The growth of concerts and conservatories is one factor of im- portance, but this giving of the opportunity to develop does not of itself produce real glory in art, or else England and America would have more distinctive schools of their own. There must be an inherent love of music in the race, and this the Slav certainly possesses. The life of the peasant is made less harsh by the sweetness of his folk- songs, and a nation that can boast of these will always be able to develop the more cultivated style of music when the chance arises. 282 MODERN COMPOSERS OF EUROPE In Russia, there is still another reason for the wide-spread devotion to music. Under the strict censorship of its corrupt government bureaucracy, free speech is repressed, and free thought even dis- couraged. The Russians, however, are a race gifted with imagination and feeling, and this must find its expression in some way. If literary freedom is checked, the people may turn to music with re- doubled intensity. There seems little doubt that Russia is to-day the leader of the world in music. While Wagner to some extent checked development in Germany, because his great achievements were difficult to equal, the national school in Russia, working along simi- lar lines, has made an advance that is shared in by all her composers, and that is leading to continually new progress. The wealth of her folk-lore and poetic legends is an added incentive, and the material has all the charm of novelty for the nations of West- ern Europe. Germany still has much to say, but it is not so entirely new; France has gone astray for the moment in a maze of weird harmonic effects; Italy, but just awakened from a long sleep, has hardly mastered the new musical language; Eng- land and the Netherlands are almost too civilized for the best results; Bohemia has lost some of her greatest leaders, while in Norway Grieg belongs THE NEW RUSSIANS 283 almost to a past generation. Russia, however, is at the height of her activity, and in the next few years the Western world, already familiar with some of her triumphs, will probably be forced to grant her the homage due to the most musical nation in the world. THE END. INDEX Achillti, 76. Adalbert, 91. Akerberg, Erik, 235. Akimenko, 281. Albeniz, 182. Albest, Heinrich Kaan von, 112. Alfv^n, Hugo, 234. Allitsen, Frances, 223. Allon, Erskine, 221. Alpheraky, Achille, 280. Also Sprach Zarathustra, IO, 1 6. Andree, Elfrida, 236. Andersen, Joachim, 240. Antar, 264. Antipoff, Constantino, 280. Antony and Cleopatra, 138. Apostles, The, 208. Arensky, Anton, 272-274. Arnest, 91. Artsiboutcheff, 281. Ascanio, 1 18. Ash ton, Algernon, 220. Attendet-Moi Sous I'Orme, 140. Attrup, 240. Aulin, Tor, 235. Aulin, Valborg, 236. Aus der Neuen Welt, 105. Aus Italien, 8, n. Averkamp, 201. Backer-Grohndahl, Agathe, 230. Bainton, Edgar, 222. Balakireff, Mily, 249-252. Baldur's Tod, 74. Bantock, Granville, 221. Barbarossa, 2931. Barblan, Otto, 44. Barnett, J. F., 218. Bartered Bride, The, 96. Baussnern, Waldemar von, 89. Beatitudes, The, 133. Becker, Reinhold, 90. Beekman, Bror, 235. Bendix, Victor, 240. Benoit, Peter, 184-187. Berger, Wilhelm, 47. Berlioz, Hector, 3. Blake, Ernest, 222. Blanik, 99. Blech, Leo, 89. Blockx, Jan, 195-198. Blumenfeld, Felix, 280. Blumenfeld, Sigismund, 280. Bohemia's Groves and Meadows, 99. Boito, Arrigo, 163, 164. Borodin, Alexander, 257-261. Bossi, Marco Enrico, 161, 177, 178. Boughton, Rutland, 222. Bourgault-Ducoudray, 1 58. Bowen, York, 222. Bozan, 91. Brandenburgers in Bohemia, The, 95- Brandt-Buys, 201. 286 INDEX Bridge, Sir J. Frederic, 217. Bridge, Joseph Cox, 217. Bridges, Robert, 220. Brixi, 91. Bronsart, Hans von, 58. Bruch, Max, 56, 57. Bruder Lustig, 83. Briill, Ignaz, 85, 86. Bruneau, Alfred, 146-149. Billow, Hans von, 7. Bungert, August, 76-79. Bunning, Herbert, 220. Buongiorno, 179-181. Caligari, Bishop, 161. Catalani, 169. Cavalier ia Rusticana, 1 66. Cendrillon, 127. Cenerentola, 181. Cernohorsky, 91. Chabrier, Alexis Emmanuel, 143- 146. Chaminade, Cecile, 159. Charpentier, Gustave, 149-153. Chausson, Ernest, 155, 156. Cilea, 1 68. Cliffe, Frederick, 220. Coerne, L. A., 54. Coleridge-Taylor, Samuel, 210- 212. Collan, Karl, 242. Combe, Edward, 45. Conus, 281. Coquard, Arthur, 158. Corder, Frederick, 218. Coronaro, 168. Cowen, Frederic Hymen, 215. Cox, Garnet Wolseley, 222. Crusell, Bernard, 241. Cui Cesar, 252-255. Cybulovsky, 91. Czar's Bride, The, 263. D' Albert, Eugen, 83-85. Dalibor, 97. Danse Macabre, 121. Dargomishky, 249. Das Mddchenherz, 179. Da Venezia, Franco, 159. 3e Boisdeffre Rene, 158. De Breville, Pierre, 1 58. De Haans, 201. De Lara, 182. De Ropartz, Guy, 158. Debussy, Achille Claude, 153- 1.55- Dejamre, 119. Del Valle de Paz, Edgar do, 177. Denereaz, A., 45. Der Bdrenhduter, 80. Der Corregidor, 87. Der Evangelimann, 69. Der Improvisator, 85. Der Kobold, 82. Der Pfeifertag, 72. Devil's Wall, The, 98. Di Pirani, Eugenio, 177. Die Abreise, 84. Die Kriegsgefangene, 65. Die Versunkene Glocke, 89. Diepenbrock, Alphonse, 201. Dimitri, 102. D'Indy, Vincent, 137-143. Dionysiac Fantasie, 29. Dohnanyi, Ernst von, 113. Don Cesar de Bazan, 124. Don Juan, 8, 13. Don Quixote, Strauss, 10, 17. Don Quixote, Kienzl, 70. Dopper, Cora, 201. Doppler, 112. Doret, Gustave, 44. Dorn, Otto, 58. Dream of Gerontius, The, 207. Dubois, Theodore, 157. Dukas, Paul, 158. Duparc, Henri, 158. Dupont, Gabriel, 159. Dupuis, 199. Dussek, 92. Dvorak, Antonin, 100-107. Edgar, 171. Ehrstrom, F. A., 242. Ein Heldenleben, 10, 18. Ein Sommermorgentraum, 35. 287 Rine Steppenskizze, 259. Elgar, Edward William, 203-210. Elysian Fields, The, 41. Enna, August, 236-240. Erikssohn, J., 236. Erkel, Alexander, 112. Erkel, Franz, 112. Erlanger, Camilla, 159. Esclarmonde, 126. Eulenspiegel, 74. Eve, 123. Ewald, Victor, 281. Faltin, Richard, 243. Faure, Gabriel, 157. Fervaal, 140. Feuersnoth, 10, 21. Fibich, Zdenko, 107-110. Filiasi, Lorenzo, 159. Folville, Juliette, 199. Frances ca da Rimini, 189. Franchetti, Alberto, 169, 170. Franciscus, 193. Franck, Cesar Auguste, 132-136. Franck, Richard, 44. Ganz, Rudolph, 44. Gatty, Nicholas, 223. Geijer, Gb'sta, 235. Geisler, Paul, 58. Genesius, 39, 40. Genetz, Emil, 244. German, Edward, 218, 219. Gernot, 84. Gernsheim, Fredrich, 51. Ghisella, 135. Ghismonda, 84. Gilson, Paul, 187-190. Giordano, Umberto, 168. Glazounoff, Alexander, 269-272. Gleits, Karl, 58. Glinka, Michael, 248. Goldmark, Carl, 60-66. Greek Composers, 181. Grellinger, 201. Gretschaninoff, 280. Greve, Conrad, 242. Grey, Alan, 220. rieg, Edward Hagerup, 224- 227. Griselidis, 127. Grodsky, Borislav, 280. Gugeline, 88. Guilmant, Alexandre, 158. Guntram, 8, 20. Gwendoline, 144. Hagg, Gustav, 235. Hansel and Gretel, 66. Haeser, Georg, 44. Hallen, Anders, 230232. Hausegger, Siegmund von, 27-33. Hawley, Stanley, 222. Heilmar der Narr, 68. Heimchen am Herd, 64. Helene, 120. Helfried, 28. Hendriks, 201. Henry VIII., 118. Henschel, Georg, 48. Herbergsprinses, 196. Herodiade, 125. Hervey, Arthur, 220. Herzog Wildfang,%>\. Hiawatha, 211. Hinton, Arthur, 222. Hnilicka, 92. Hoi, Richard, 199. Hornemann, Emil, 240. Huber, Hans, 42-44. Huberti, 199. Hue, Georges, 159. ffulda, 134. Humperdinck, Engelbert, 66-68. / Pagliacci, 167. // Cuor delle Fanciulle, 179. Impressions d'ltalie, 150. Ingelius, A. G., 242. Ingwelde, 71. Ippolitoff-Ivanoff, 279. Istar, 139. Ivanoff, Michael, 279. Jarnefelt, Armas, 243. Jaques-Dalcroze, E., 44. 288 INDEX Jean Hunyadi, 138. Jelinek, 92. Joachim, Josef, 58. Jones, German Edward, 218, 219. Jyrovec, 92. Kahn, Robert, 52. Kain, 85. Kajanus, Robert, 243. Kalinnikoff, 281. Kalliwoda, 92. Karadec, 140. Kasatschenko, George, 279. Kaun, Hugo, 46. Kempter, Lothar, 45. Keurvels, 198. Kienzl, Wilhelm, 68-71. King Lear, 41. King Olaf, 206. Kirke, 77. Kiss, The, 96. Kistler, Cyrill, 73-76. Klokke, Roland, 193. Klose, E., 89. Klughardt, August, 55. Klytemnestra, 76. Kocvara, 92. Kbnig und Kbhler, 101. Koessler, Hans, 45. Kopriva, 92. Kopyloff, Alexander, 280. Kozeluch, 91. Kretschmer, Edmund, 89. Krohn, Ilmari, 244. Kulenkampf, Gustav, 89. Kunihild, 73. L'Attaque du Moulin, 146. L 1 Stranger, 141. L'Ourag-an, 147. La Bohtme, 172. La Cabrera, 159. La Chevauchee du Cid, 138. La Couronnement de la Muse, 151. La For it Enchant fe, 139. La Grand 1 Tante, 124. La Jtunesse d'Hercule, 121. La Mer, 188. La Navarraise, 127. La Princes se Jaune, 1 1 8. La Statue, 130. La Terre Promise, 124. La Vie du Poete, 1 50. La Vierge, 124. Larrocha, 182. Lauber, Joseph, 44. Le Chant de la Cloche, 138. Le Chasseur Maudit, 134. Le Cid, 125. Le Deluge, 118. Le Donne Curiose, 181. Le Jongleur de Notre Dame, 127. Le Mage, 127. Le Portrait de Manon, 127. Le Reve, 146. Le Roi Arthus, 156. Le Roi de Lahore, \ 24. Le Roi Malgri Lui, 144. Le Rouet d'Omphale, 1 2 1. Le Timbre d 1 Argent, 1 18. Le Valet de Ferme, 1 33. Le Villi, 170. Lefebvre, Charles, 158. Lehmann, Liza, 223. Lekeu, Guillaume, 190-192. Lenaerts, 198. Leoncavallo, Ruggiero, 166-168. Les Bar bares, 119. Les Burgraves, 140. Les Djinns, 134. Les E elides, 134. Liadoff, Anatole, 276. Liapounoff, Sergei, 280 Libusa, 98. Liddle, Samuel, 220. Liliefors, Ruben, 236. Linsen, Gabriel, 243. Lissenko, 281. Liszt, Franz, 4. Lloyd, Charles H., 218. Lonnrot, Elias, 241. Louise, 151. Lucas, Clarence, 222. Lundberg, L., 236. INDEX 289 Ma Vlast, 98. Macbeth, 8, 12. MacCunn, Hamish, 220. Macfarren, Walter Cecil, 218. Mackenzie, Alex. Campbell, 214- Macpherson, Stewart, 220. Madame Butterfly, 173. Mahler, Gustav, 33-38. Mailing, Otto, 240. Mancinelli, 169. Mann, Gottfried, 201. Manon, 125. Manon Lescaut, 171. Marie Madeleine, 123. Marsick, 199. Martucci, Giuseppe, 176. Mascagni, Pietro, 165, 166. Massenet, Jules, 122-130. Mathieu, Emile, 199. McAlpin, Colin, 222. Mtdie, 140. Mefistofele, 163. Melartin, Erik, 244. Merikanti, Oskar, 244. Merlin, 63. Messidor, 147. Michelangelo and Rolla, \ 80. Mielck, Ernest, 244. Mihalovitch, 112. M6hring, K. J., 242. Mortelmans, 198. Moszkowski, Moritz, 55, 56. Moussorgsky, Modest, 255-257. Munktell, Helen, 236. Myslivecek, 92. Nal and Damajanti, 273. Napravnik, Edward, 278. Naturleben, 36. Nausikaa, 78. Nedbal, Oscar, 112. Nero, 164. Nesvera, Josef, 112. New World Symphony, 105. Nicode', Jean Louis, 49. Niggli, Fritz, 44. Nodermann, P., 235. Sfoguerra, 182. Slovak, 91. Odysseus Heimkehr, 78. Odysseus Tod, 79. Olsen, Ole, 230. Oosterzee, Cornelia van, 201. Orefice, 169. Oresteia, The, 275. Orestes, 39. Pachulski, Henri, 280. Pacius, Fredrik, 242. Paderewski, 114. Palmgren, Selim, 244. Paradise Lost, Bossi, 178. Paradise Lost, Dubois, 157. Parratt, Walter, 218. Parry, Charles H. H., 213. Parysatis, 119. Patria, Fides, Amor, 182. Pedrell, Felipe, 182. Pelleas and Melisande, 155. Perosi, Don Lorenzo, 161-163. Peterson-Berger, Wilhelm, 234. Pfitzner, Hans, 89. Phaeton, 121. Phtdre, 124. Phryne, 119. Pichl, 92. Pierne, Gabriel, 158. Pinelli, 174. Pokorny, 92. Ponchielli, 169. Pritchard, C. E., 222. Prince Igor, 260. Proserpine, 118. Psyche, 134. Puccini, Giacomo, 170-174. Puchat, Max, 58. Queen of Sheba, The, 62. Rachmaninoff, Sergei, 277. Raway, 199. Raymonda, 271. Rebecca, 134. 290 INDEX Rebikoff, 281. Redemption, The, 134. Reed, W. H., 222. Reinecke, Karl, 48. Rennes, Catharina van, 201. Reuss, August, 58. Reyer, Ernest, 130, 131. Reznicek, Emil N. von, no, in. Rheinberger, Josef, 54. Rimsky-Korsakoff, Nicolai, 261- 266. Ritter, Alexander, 7. Rontgen, Julius, 200. Roslein im Hag, 75. Roskosny, 112. Rossi, Cesare, 168. Ruby, The, 84. Rubinstein, 249. Russian Church Music, 247. Russian Folk-Music, 246. Russian Music, 281-283. Russian Musical Life, 267-269. Russian Opera, Early, 248. Ruth, 133. Ruzsicska, 112. Ryba, 92. Sadko, 262. Saint Ludmila, 104. Saint-Saens, Charles - C a m i 1 1 e, 115-122. Sainte Godelive, 194. Sakellarines, Theophilus, 182. Sakuntala, 61. Salammbt), 131. Samara, Spiro, 181. Samson and Dalila, 1 1 8. Sarka, 99. Satter, Gustav, 59. Saugefleurie, 139. Scandinavian Symphony, 216. Scenes Pittoresques, 124. Schaefer, 201. Schantz, Filip von, 242. Scharwenka, Franz Xaver, 57. Scharwenka, Ludwig Philipp, 57. Scheel, Boris, 279. Schey, Julius, 201. Schillings, Max, 71, 72. Schjelderup, Gerhard, 230. Schumann, Georg Alfred, 50. Schytte, Ludwig, 240. Scott, Cyril, 222. Scriabine, Alexander, 238. Secret, The, 96. Seroff, 249. Sgambati, Giovanni, 174-176. Sibelius, Jean, 244, 245. Sigurd, 131. Sinding, Christian, 230. Sinfonia Domestica, 10, 20. Sjogren, Emil, 232. Skojowsky, 91. Skraup, Frantisek, 92, 93. Smetana, Bedrich, 93-100. Smulders, 201. Sokoloff, Nicolai, 280. Solovieff, Nicolai, 278. Soltys, 114. Somervell, Arthur, 220. Sonzogno Prize, 159, 164. Spanish Composers, 182. Spectre's Bride, The, 103. Spinelli, 168. Stalkowsky, 114. Stanford, Charles Villiers, 212. Stcherbatcheff, Nicolai, 276. Steggall, Reginald, 222. Stenhammar, Wilhelm, 233. Strauss, Richard, 1-26. Precocity of, 5. Education of, 6. At Meiningen, 7. At Munich, 8, 9. At Weimar, 8. At Berlin, 9. Personal Description, 9, 10. F- Minor Symphony, n. Other Works, see Titles. Criticism of, 22-24. Songs, etc., 25. Strauss, Mme. Pauline, 8, 9. Suk, Josef, in. Suter, Hermann, 44. Svendsen, Johann Severin, 228, 229. INDEX 291 Swiss Composers, 42-45. Symphonic Poems, 3, 24, 42. Tabor, 99. Tamara, 251. Taneieff, Sergei, 274. Tasca, 168. Tegner, Alice, 236. Thais, 127. Thieriot, Ferdinand, 53. Thomas, Arthur Goring, 216. Thuille, Ludwig, 58, 88. Thy I Ulyenspiegel, 197. Tiefland, 85. Till Eulenspiegel, Reznicek, in. Till Eulenspiegel, Strauss, 10, 15. Tinel, Edgar, 192-195. Tod und Verklarung, 8, 14. Tomasek, 92. Torchi, Luigi, 163. Tosca, 172. Tschaikowsky, 249. Tussenbrock, Hendrika van, 201. Two Widows, The, 96. Urvasi, 68. Van Den Eeden, 198. Van Duyse, 198. Van Milligen, 201. Van t' Kruys, 200. Variations, Elgar, 207. Verdi, Giuseppe, 164. Vita Nuova, 181. Vives, 182. Vleeshouwer, 198. Vletbad, Patrik, 236 Vltava, 98. Vorisek, 92. Vysehrad, 98. Waelput, 199. Wagenaar, 201. Wagner, Richard, i, 3, 4, 66. Wagner, Siegfried, 80-83. Wallace, William, 221. Wallenstein, 138. Wambach, 198. Wasenius, Karl Gustaf, 242. Wegelius, Martin, 243. Weingartner, Felix, 3842. Werther, 127. Widor, Charles Marie, 157. Wieland der Schmied, 32. Wihtol, Joseph, 275. Williams, Charles Lee, 218. Winderstein, Hans, 59. Winding, August, 240. Woikowsky-Biedau, Hector von, 90. Wolf, Hugo, 86-88. Wolf -Ferrari, 181. Wood, Charles, 220. Ysaye, 199. Zarzuela, 182. Zichy, Geza, 113. Zinnober, 28. Zollner, Heinrich, 89. Zolotareff, 281. Zweers, Bernard, 201. THE LIBRARY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Santa Barbara THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW. HRC. AFTER UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY A 000 634 448 5 V V <