Symphony Soirée: 1st

Correspondence with the conductor regarding his forthcoming season

Dates for forthcoming series of six concerts.

Includes program.

Includes program.

Includes program.

 Includes program

“That Steinway should be crowded last evening on the occasion of the return of the magnificent orchestra of Theodore Thomas was a tribute to musical merit to be expected from such an intelligent and liberal public as that of New York. Mr. Thomas has, after years of toil and perseverance, succeeded fully in organizing a body of musicians capable of interpreting any work of art that may be placed before them, no matter what its intricacies might be. They gave an evidence of this last evening. The overture to ‘Iphigenie and Aulis,’ by Gluck; Beethoven’s seventh symphony; ‘Wotan’s Abschied,’ by Wagner, and Liszt’s ‘Mephisto Waltz’ certainly present variety enough for a single programme. The opening overture was a welcome reminiscence of an old school, which, in its time, was considered in the light of an innovation, and by the contemporaries of the composer pretty much in the light of musical communism. He was, perhaps, the first that attempted to introduce dramatic effect in music. The symphonic drama that held the boards before his time yielded to his vigorous efforts to delineate scenes, characters and [passsion?] by means of musical sounds. Few orchestras can be found at the present day capable of interpreting his works intelligibly. The clear, broad phrases, simple as they may seem at sight, contain a mine of sentiment and expression that mere executive ability is not sufficient to develop. With the band of Mr. Thomas each phrase of this noble old music receives such an interpretation as did the scenes of the classical tragedies from Rachel or Ristori. At times there was some impetuosity in tempo, and expression inconsistent with the calm majesty of the introduction to the dark history of Orestes; but it was the same fault that may be found in Rubinstein’s interpretation of a Beethoven concerto. Power, when one has the consciousness of possessing it to an eminent degree, is not always kept under complete control, and calmness of style is not easily attainable in certain works by many a great artist, or body of great artists, as in the present instance.

The performance of the symphony was simply perfect. The balance of tone in this wonderful orchestra is so nicely poised that the hearer forgets the variety of tone in the general effect, as in the contemplation of an exquisite piece of art as a picture or statue. There is no preponderance of the brass instruments over the strings, and the reeds blend with their companion tones in producing a perfect ensemble. Wagner’s work was given for the first time. It is an excerpt from the ‘Trilogy,’ that extraordinary work, which the composer declares will effect a complete revolution in musical drama. It is to be produced next Summer at Bayreuth, in Bavaria, and the performance will occupy three evenings. The selection in question is the parting between the god Wotan and his daughter Brunhilde. As a specimen of really good counterpoint and deep thought, limning with master touches the various passions agitating the breasts of the dramatis personae, ‘Wotan’s Abschied’ may always be listened to with delight. The modulations and harmonies produce the same effect that melody themes do in grand opera. Of course, as an illustration of the grandeur of ‘The Ring of the Niebelungen,’ it is as if we would be called upon to judge of the Basilica of St. Peter’s from one of the mosaic specimens of its flooring.

The Mephisto Waltz is one of the wildest of Liszt’s mad creations. One thing may be said about it, and that is equivocal commendation for a work. It is unnaturally difficult. The composer, in his praiseworthy desire to infuse a satanic character into the work, plays the d--- (mischief) with all known laws of music. We are willing to become a convert to Wagner, on account of the really grand ideas that pervade his works, but Liszt, as an orchestral composer, is rather too much. His ideas seem to run riot when he sees ‘in his mind’s eye,’ a grand orchestra, but they assume the phase of musical insanity. Nothing can be more dramatic or effective than Mendelssohn’s description of the Witches’ revel in the ‘Walpurgisnacht,’ or the incantation scene of ‘Der Freyschutz.’ But even if Mephisto plays a fiddle we don’t want him to play all sorts of discords and unmusical sounds. Music, legitimately considered, is capable of painting the most terrible subjects as well as the most beautiful. What could be done with such a composition was done by the orchestra of Mr. Thomas.

The only solo feature in last night’s concert was the first appearance of Mr. George L. Osgood, a young Boston tenor, who has studied for many years in Germany. He proved no exception to the rule that those who treat the voice like any other musical instrument sacrifice purity and sweetness of tone to mere rugged declamatory power. Mr. Osgood’s voice owes to nature much of its strength and clearness, and to the school in which it has been trained still more of the hardness and stiffness that mars everything he sings. His selections were particularly unfortunate. In the first place he essayed an aria with recitative, from one of Mozart’s operas, ‘Belmonte and Costanze,’ in which the defects of his vocal training were eminently noticeable. Then he sang five of Lenau’s poems rendered into music by Schumann, which demanded of the singer the same wealth of talent as does ‘The Carnival’ of the same composer of a pianist. A florist can arrange a bouquet or nosegay of different flowers so as to present what might be termed a work of art. So did Rubinstein in placing in a musical bouquet the twenty-two little themes of Schumann, and so did not Mr. Osgood with the poems of Lenau. More than a month will pass away before the public of New York can listen again to the incomparable orchestra of Theodore Thomas, and it is to be regretted that during this time they will be wasting their sweetness on the desert air of the provinces.”

“After long wandering in the wilderness, Theodore Thomas and his tuneful band have entered the promised land. His reception at Steinway Hall on Saturday night was of the most cordial nature, and there is no reason to hope that he will not soon again stray from the metropolis. The fact is that the Thomas orchestra is far too good to spend half its time in wandering about the provinces. It should find ample patronage and be in constant demand in New York, where its interpretation of the highest class of music can best be appreciated. 

At the Saturday concert, a most attractive programme was offered. To the genuine lover of standard music Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony, one of the most thoroughly melodic of his great orchestral works, was the special feature of the evening. It received a careful and finished interpretation, and was most warmly received. The novelty of the evening was an extract from one of Wagner’s operas, ‘The Walkyre,’ a work to be performed at the Wagner demonstration at Bayreuth in 1874. The selection performed illustrates a highly emotional phase of the story. It is a work replete with striking orchestral effects, showing a treatment of violins and wind instruments, which, while suggesting the ‘Tannuäuser’ overture, can in no manner be termed a repetition of the peculiar phrases of that popular work. From the hands of many of the local musicians present, Wagner and his music received rough treatment. One musical editor ran away to escape the infliction. A noted conductor could only endure a few bars. Several male pianists expended their cheap wit on ‘the music of the future.’ But notwithstanding all this, the bulk of the audience was deeply impressed by the weird originality of this, the latest composition of Wagner with which we have been favored. Liszt’s strange ‘Mephisto’ waltz concluded the programme. 

A word should be said in favor of Mr. Osgood, the new tenor. He has a clear, powerful voice, and possesses merit. His selections on Saturday night were, however, very uninteresting. Schumann’s five songs will probably be admired by those who are devotees of that composer; but to the general listener, they are stale, flat and unprofitable.”

“Mr. Theodore Thomas gave, last Saturday evening, at Steinway Hall, the first of the six Symphony Soirées which he has promised for the present season. He had a magnificent audience, filling the large hall and a portion of the smaller one, and embracing the best classes of New-York Society. After all these years of patient waiting and honest labor, Mr. Thomas at last has his reward. He is recognized not only as the creator of the first real orchestra we have had, but as a popular teacher of all that is noblest and most beautiful in his art, leading us constantly upward to a comprehension of whatever music is most elevated in conception and most perfect in form. He has interpreted for us with equal skill the treasures of the classical school and the most interesting thoughts of the new generation of composers. And he has never debased his art by concessions to a vulgar taste. The orchestra which he has trained for the grand enterprise of his life has been greatly improved since it last played at Steinway Hall by the arrival of several excellent solo players from Europe. Mr. S. E. Jacobsohn of Bremen is an excellent addition to the force of violins, Mr. H. Weingardt of Bremen is an admirable violoncellist, and there is a good English harpist, Mr. Adolphus Lockwood. 

The programme on Saturday was as follows [see above].

The overture, given with Wagner’s [illegible], was one of the finest pieces of orchestral playing we ever heard. The true and perfect tone of the violins was an achievement upon which Mr. Thomas had good reason to pride himself, for there has been nothing like it in our concert-rooms before. The symphony, too, was splendidly performed, with rather more force and rapidity than Mr. Bergmann uses, and with a perfect blending of the instruments which the Philharmonic Society has not attained. The extract from ‘Die Walküre’ may serve as a specimen of Mr. Thomas’s enterprise in getting possession of works which have neither been published nor performed; for the division of the great Wagner Trilogy from which this curious number is taken has not yet seen the light in Germany.”

“This brings the record up to Saturday, Nov. 9, when the first of the six Symphony Concerts to be given by Theodore Thomas took place at Steinway Hall. A glance at the hall at five minutes before 8 o’clock was all that was needful to settle the question whether these series would pay. The hall was filled to the highest gallery, and the small hall at the back, only used on special occasions, was thrown open to accommodate those who were unable to find seats elsewhere. The programme opened with Gluck’s noble overture to Iphigenia in Aulis, played with all the fire and fervor of a company of artists. A better rendering could scarcely be possible.

Mr. Geo. L. Osgood then made his bow to us and sang the aria: ‘Costanze,’ from Mozart’s Seraglio. His uncertain rendering of the recitative and a slight huskiness in his voice showed that he was suffering from nervousness; which, however, wore off when in part second of the programme he gave us five songs by Schumann, written to Lenau’s Poems, namely:--

‘Lied eines Schmiedes,’ with its curious hammer and anvil-like accompaniment; ‘Meine Rose;’ ‘Kommen und Scheiden;’ ‘Die Sennin;’ and ‘Der Schwere Abend.’

These were beautifully rendered, and the audience, although they had little relish for such solid musical food as Schumann’s Songs, could not refuse an encore to the sweet voiced tenor, and in the selection with which he responded he appeared to the best advantage. The great seventh Symphony by Beethoven, in part first of the programme, was played as I have never heard it, save in the Conservatoire at Paris. From the first note of introduction to the end it received the most masterly treatment, and the beauty of the Allegretto never seemed to me so divine. This work was wisely placed just before the intermission, for we needed the repose after such sustained attention. The orchestral pieces in part the second were [see above]—pieces which I will not attempt to describe. Indeed I could only say of the latter [‘Mephisto Waltz’], ‘I know that it is ugly, but I feel that it is great.”