Part 15

His comic opera, “The Barber of Bagdad,” gives Cornelius a unique position among the composers of the new German school. This seems to be the only work of genius which has been produced in Germany as a result of the Wagnerian cult; and it remains the single but the sufficient ground for a denial of the charge made by disbelievers, that the theories of Wagner can lead to nothing beautiful and good in opera. The opera-poem is by Cornelius himself, and is a marvel of bubbling humor and literary ingenuity; and the music is of exceeding complexity and intensely difficult to render. The methods of treatment are distinctly Wagnerian, but there is not a suggestion of Wagner in the character of the melodies or in the instrumentation. All is delightful and individual, in short, the work of a genius. On the other hand, in the “Cid,” a tragic opera founded on Herder’s poem, Cornelius was not so successful. It is certain that “The Barber” will ultimately be appreciated; for its sparkling wit and delightful music are irresistible, matched only among German composers by the “Figaro” of Mozart.

Cornelius was far from being a Wagner, but he has done one thing which Wagner probably could not have done: he has written an opera libretto which is considered superlatively witty and entertaining by other people than Germans, and set it to music which is noble, charming and characteristic.

Anton Bruckner has also been prominently identified with the new German school. In his heavy and massive instrumentation and style of writing he is pronouncedly Wagnerian, but he has not endeared himself to the lovers of sweet sounds.

Another prominent disciple of Liszt and Wagner is Felix Draeseke, born 1835, who became enthusiastic for the new school, and contributed to the literature devoted to the propagation of the ideas of Berlioz, Liszt and Wagner. He was one of the few who were openly praised by Wagner. His numerous compositions consist of symphonies, chamber music, songs and piano pieces. Draeseke has written two operas, “Herrat” and “Gundrun,” the latter of which has been performed with success. Among his latest orchestral productions are two symphonic preludes to dramas by Calderon and Kleist.

Jean Louis Nicodé (born 1853) is another staunch believer in the new tendencies in modern music. His compositions for orchestra include “Symphonic Variations,” the symphonic poem, “Maria Stuart,” Suite in B minor, Introduction and Scherzo. He has written piano and chamber music, and several large choral works. His “Symphonic Variations” are especially admired. Nicodé manifests the most astounding technique in composition, and delights in producing startling orchestral effects.

Edward Lassen (born 1830), though a Dane by birth, has been identified with music in Germany for the greater part of his life. He was first made known as a composer through the kind offices of Liszt, who produced on the Weimar stage Lassen’s “Le Roi Edgard,” “Frauenlob,” and “Der Gefangene.” These operas met with a decided success. Lassen succeeded Liszt as chief director of the Weimar opera, and still holds that position. His published works include the music to Hebbel’s “Nibelungen,” Sophocles’ “Œdipus,” Calderon’s “Circe,” and Goethe’s “Faust” and “Pandora,” “Fest Cantate,” “Te Deum,” and several symphonies. During the last few years he has occupied himself principally with the composition of songs, which are much admired. His latest work of importance is his violin concerto.

Another worthy representative of the new German music is Alexander Ritter, the composer of numerous vocal works, including operas. There is no doubt concerning the seriousness of his artistic endeavors, nor of his great abilities; but, as with Nicodé, he has large utterance, and but little of real importance to say.

[Illustration:

FRANZ von SUPPE.

From a photograph from life by Luckhardt, of Vienna.

(See page 596.) ]

By far the most interesting and the most promising of this class of modern composers is Richard Strauss. He is not related to the Vienna Strauss family. Young Strauss is now Lassen’s assistant director at the Weimar theatre, and has shown remarkable ability both as an opera and concert conductor. Although not yet thirty years old, he has produced a considerable number of large works and numerous smaller ones. His earlier efforts show the influence of Brahms, but for the last few years he has adopted the Wagner-Liszt manner. Three symphonic poems, “Death and Redemption,” “Macbeth” and “Don Juan,” as well as a symphonic fantasia, “In Italy,” have been greatly admired. Evidently this young composer has a more promising future than any of his young contemporaries.

Felix Weingartner, the talented conductor of the Royal Opera of Berlin, is a young composer of promise. Besides numerous songs and a serenade for string orchestra, he has written two operas. The second of these, “Genesius,” was produced in Berlin in November, 1892, but, as might have been expected, it was not warmly received by the public. Weingartner, like Strauss, is extremely modern in his musical tendencies, and his works, although interesting to connoisseurs and lauded by certain critics, will not at once find public recognition.

It would far exceed the limits of this article to give a complete account of pianoforte playing and composition in Germany since Beethoven’s time. The influence of the piano on modern music has been greater than that of any other single instrument. It is not only the favorite of the amateur, but is _par excellence_ the composer’s instrument. As almost every modern German composer has written for the piano, its literature is far more voluminous than that of any other instrument, and piano players are as countless as the sands of the sea.

Modern representatives of piano style may be classed as follows:

1. Composers with whom technical execution is held subordinate to musical thought and feeling, perfect form, and poetic beauty. Beethoven, Schubert, Von Weber, Mendelssohn, Schumann, represent this class. 2. Piano specialists who have brought manual execution into the foreground and have carried it to an extreme, chiefly for its own sake; as for example, Kalkbrenner, Herz, Henselt, Döhler, Thalberg, Dreyschock, Litolff and Liszt in the earlier period of his career. 3. Remarkable teachers of technique and style, like Czerny, Moscheles, Kullak and Wieck. 4. Virtuosos who unite great technique with remarkable powers of interpretation, like Tausig, Von Bülow and others. 5. Composers who are likewise great virtuosos and interpreters, like Liszt and Rubinstein.

[Illustration:

FRANZ ABT.

(See page 597.) ]

Between 1830 and 1840 piano virtuosity as regards mere technical execution was at its height. Kalkbrenner, Herz, and other “finger knights” created furore everywhere by their pyrotechnic feats. This was the era of the “opera fantasia.” Let us be thankful that audiences nowadays demand a different kind of musical pabulum. Thalberg (1812–71) marks the highest attainment of this style. He was pre-eminent for his finished execution and rich singing quality of tone. His scales, octaves, arpeggios, trills, and every detail of technique were of marvellous perfection. His style influenced a number of pianists, as for example, Leopold de Meyer, Goria, Döhler, Willmers and Prudent.

Under Thalberg, Liszt, Tausig, Rubinstein, Paderewski, etc., piano virtuosity has reached its apex. Mr. Ernst Pauer, the noted pianist and editor of “Alte Clavier Musik,” justly observes: “With regard to rapidity, force, ingenuity of combinations, and dazzling effect, it is not too much to assert that the highest point has been gained, and that with respect to _quantity_ of notes and effects our present players are unrivalled; whether the _quality_ is as good as it formerly was may be questioned.”

The world-wide influence of Chopin and Liszt on piano style is discussed in special articles of this work.

In the time of Bach and Handel the organ was the foremost instrument as the exponent of musical ideas even more than the pianoforte is during the present century. To-day it has its own high place in the temple of art, and counts among its devotees artists of great repute and dignity. During the present century German organists have followed the school of Sebastian Bach, of whom the most prominent are Rink, Johann Schneider, Hesse, Fischer, Thiele, Haupt, Ritter, Becker, Merkel, Herzog, Faisst and Rheinberger. August Haupt and Johann Schneider were remarkable interpreters of Bach’s organ works. The former was also a rare teacher, beloved and venerated by his American and German pupils. The most important organ compositions of modern German masters are the difficult and massive concert pieces of Thiele, and the noble sonatas, etc., of Mendelssohn, Schumann, Ritter, Merkel and Rheinberger.

In solo violin playing Germany at first followed the lead of Italy. Mention has been made of the most noted German violinists of the last century. About the beginning of the present century Paris was the centre of violin playing under Viotti, Rode, Kreutzer and Baillot. These masters laid down the principles of violin playing as practised to-day. They were followed by Alard, the modern French teacher, and the so-called Belgian school of De Beriot, Vieuxtemps, Wieniawski and others. As regards finish, brilliancy of style, and purity of tone these Franco-Belgian masters have had a strong influence on Germany. In violin playing Spohr is considered as the direct heir of Rode and Viotti. The contemporaries of Spohr in Germany were Schuppanzigh, Mayseder, Maurer, Molique, Lipinski and others, all of whom contributed to violin literature. Spohr’s most distinguished pupil was Ferdinand David (1810–73). He was eclectic and many-sided in his taste and knowledge. As regards technique and style he set high value on the French masters of the violin. He was the first to play Bach’s difficult violin solos in public. Among his numerous pupils was the famous virtuoso, Wilhelmj, who is unsurpassed for his wonderful tone and execution. Joachim also benefited by David’s advice.

The violin school, of Vienna, founded by Joseph Boehm (1798–1876), has had a wide influence in training virtuosos. Ernst, G. Helmesberger, Ludwig Strauss, Joachim, J. Helmesberger, Auer and Neruda were trained in this school. Pupils of Pixis at Prague were the renowned violinists Kalliwoda and Ferdinand Laub (1832–74). The latter was a wonderful quartet player, and stood in the front rank as a virtuoso.

Joseph Joachim (born 1831) is the most eminent of living violinists. He has had the widest influence of any violin master as an interpreter of the great masters. Perfect technique, a rich and full tone, purity and elevation of style, and fidelity of interpretation are the leading characteristics of Joachim as a violinist. It may be said of Joachim, as of Liszt, that he not only interprets but _recreates_ the music of the great masters. He is equally great as a quartet player and as a soloist. Joachim’s compositions are chiefly for the violin. His style is grave and earnest, and suggestive of Schumann. His most important work is the “Hungarian Concerto,” which has noble characteristics.

The most noted masters of the violoncello are Bernhard Romberg (1767–1841), Kummer (1797–1879), and his successor in the Dresden orchestra, Grützmacher (born 1832), and the virtuoso composers, Popper, Davidoff and De Swert.

[Illustration:

PETER CORNELIUS.

From a photograph by Albert, of Munich.

(See page 600.) ]

Among the many fine solo players on wind instruments were the renowned clarinetists, Joseph Baermann (1784–1847) and his son Carl (1811–1885). Von Weber was intimately associated with the elder Baermann, and wrote for him the fine clarinet concertos and concert pieces which have become classical. The high artistic character and ability of this family of musicians is exemplified in the person of the thorough musician and gifted pianist, Carl Baermann, Junior. He was formerly professor at the Munich Royal Conservatory, and is now a resident of Boston, where he exerts a noble influence as concert pianist and teacher. Germany has not produced so many singers of world-wide fame as composers or virtuosos, yet during the last half-century, and especially in connection with the Wagnerian drama, the number of celebrated singers has increased. As dramatic artists these German singers are surpassed by none, though in pure vocalism they may not rank as high as those of the Italian and French school. Among the most renowned are Sontag, Milder, Tichatschek, Pauline Lucca, Gerster, Unger, Wachtel, Formes, Stockhausen, Staudigl, Henschel, Wranitzky, Loewe and Schröder-Devrient (1804–60). This last-named singer was one of the most highly gifted artists who ever appeared on the operatic stage. She created the part of Leonore in Beethoven’s “Fidelio.” In later years she appeared in Wagner’s earlier operas, and was of great assistance to him in realizing his ideal of dramatic singing. In his writings Wagner eulogizes her. The musical dramas of Wagner have not only been the high school for orchestral virtuosos and conductors, but above all for dramatic singers. The most famous German singers of the present day have been associated with Bayreuth and the established opera houses of Germany where Wagner’s works are performed. The most noteworthy of these Wagner singers are Frau Materna, Marianne Brandt, Malten, Lehmann-Kalisch, Mallinger, Dietz, Kindermann, Ludwig, Schnorr von Carolsfeld, to whom Wagner pays such a tribute of praise in the eighth volume of his collected writings; Winkelmann, Vogl, Gura, Niemann, Scheidemantel, Van Dyck, Alvary, Betz, Scaria and Emil Fischer.

[Illustration:

RICHARD STRAUSS.

From a photograph from life by Hanfstaengl, of Munich.

(See page 601.) ]

One of the results of Germany’s high development in music, and consequent “division of labor” in the executive part of the art, has been to give great importance to the conductors of orchestras and of large musical societies. Until recently there have been but few cases of really great conductors who were not at the same time prominent composers. Weber, Wagner, Spohr, Mendelssohn, Marschner, Lindpaintner, Rietz and Hiller were all Kapellmeister-composers. The remarkable advance in orchestral technique and the increased work demanded of conductors have given rise to the necessity of training men exclusively for this exacting profession. There are at present in Germany a half-dozen specialists in this branch who are particularly distinguished. Foremost among them is the gifted Hans von Bülow (born 1830). Great as are this master’s merits as a piano virtuoso, it is chiefly as a conductor that he has had important influence upon the musical activity of his time. His long connection with the Meiningen orchestra, at a period when it made frequent concert tours through Germany, was of great service in raising the standard of orchestral interpretation throughout the country.

Hans Richter (born 1843) also enjoys an international reputation as a conductor. He is chief conductor of the Imperial opera and Philharmonic concerts of Vienna. He has also frequently conducted the concerts of the London Philharmonic Society. Richter was intimately associated with Wagner, and directed the first Bayreuth performance in 1876.

A conductor of perhaps even greater ability, but of less extended reputation, is Hermann Levi (born 1839), the chief conductor of the Munich theatre. He also was intimately associated with Wagner, and conducted the first performance of “Parsifal” at Bayreuth in 1882. He is at present the conductor-in-chief at Bayreuth. His principal claim to superiority lies in the fact that he conducts equally well the daintiest Haydn symphony and the most complex Wagner music-drama. He is as a conductor what Liszt was as a pianist, universally sympathetic in his interpretations.

Felix Mottl (born 1856) of Carlsruhe, and Ernst Schuch (born 1848) of Dresden, are worthy to be grouped with Germany’s great conductors. The former is one of the Bayreuth conductors. The young composers, Strauss and Weingartner, are also able Kapellmeister.

Any consideration of the history of music in Germany would be incomplete without some mention of her great achievements in musical criticism, history, theory, philosophy and æsthetics. In these departments of literary and scientific work, Germany has accomplished infinitely more than any other nation. We have already had occasion, in speaking of certain composers, to mention their literary works. But the majority of writers on music have left no record as artists.

During the eighteenth century the most noted German writers on musical history and criticism were Forkel, Gerbert, Mattheson, Scheibe, Reichardt and J. A. Hiller; on musical theory and instruction, Fux, Albrechtsberger, Marpurg, Kirnberger, Sorge, Knecht, Quantz, Em. Bach and Leopold Mozart. During the present century the principal writers on the general subject of musical history have been Brendel, von Dommer, Reissmann, Naumann, Langhans and August Wilhelm Ambros (1816–76). For original research, profound learning, and remarkable critical insight the “Geschichte der Musik” by Ambros ranks first among all works on the subject.

R. G. Kiesewetter (1773–1850), the uncle of Ambros, shows equal thoroughness in treating the special subjects of musical history. His monographs on the Netherland masters, on secular song, on Arabian music, etc., are sources of important information. Carl von Winterfeld is the great authority on German church music. His “Der Evangelische Kirchengesang” is a work of great learning.

In the field of musical biography the list is a long one, and includes Marx, Schindler, Nohl, Nottebohm, Lenz, Bitter, Chrysander, Jahn and Spitta.

[Illustration:

HANS von BÜLOW.

From a photograph from life by Bieber, of Hamburg. ]

Otto Jahn’s “Life of Mozart,” and Philipp Spitta’s “Life of Bach,” are masterly biographies, which are an honor to the authors and the nation that produced them. They are monuments of exhaustive research and profound critical analysis. Mention should be made of the biography of Beethoven by Alexander W. Thayer, which was published in Germany as the fruits of many years of patient and thorough investigation. The author is an American by birth and education, but has long been identified with German musical literature, and is considered as the authority in all that pertains to the life of the great composer.

Musical criticism has been well represented by Friedrich Rochlitz (1770–1808), the founder of the “Allgemeine Musikalische Zeitung” of Leipsic; Adolf Bernhard Marx (1799–1866), one of the most broadly educated musical writers of his time; Gottfried Weber (1779–1839), editor of the musical periodical, “Cæcilia”; Thibaut, whose “Purity in Musical Art” is a highly esteemed essay; Schumann, the composer, who gave a new and higher direction to musical criticism in his “Neue Zeitschrift für Musik.” Schumann’s gifted poetical nature is revealed in his critical reviews as well as in his music, and he set an example followed by others, though at a distance, among whom Eduard Hanslick, of Vienna, is perhaps the most worthy of mention; Wilhelm Tappert, the editor of the “Allgemeine Deutsche Zeitung,” is a zealous partisan of Wagner. His “Wagner Lexicon” is a curious compilation of all the slang and abuse that have been hurled at the composer and his friends.

Among the imaginative writers on musical subjects, the most remarkable was Ernst T. R. Hoffmann, whose romantic tales have given him a prominent place in German literature. He was composer, poet, singer, teacher, conductor and theatrical manager; he was especially gifted as an improvisator. Everything this eccentric genius did, he did well. Among his works are eleven operas and two symphonies. Schumann was much influenced by the fantastic tales of Hoffmann. His “Kreisleriana” was suggested by Hoffmann’s fragments of the imaginary “Kreisler the Kapellmeister.” Beethoven wrote a humorous canon addressed to Hoffmann, and Weber loved him.

[Illustration:

VIENNA OPERA HOUSE

From a photograph. ]

Germany, during the present century, has produced almost endless works on musical theory and speculation. The most prominent representatives are G. Weber; Hauptmann, whose “Harmony and Metre” is a profound work; Marx and Lobe, whose general systems treat of all branches of musical composition, including instrumentation, and are valuable as books of reference; E. F. Richter and Jadassohn, whose treatises on harmony, counterpoint and fugue are excellent text-books. Other well-known theoretical writers are Weitzmann, Paul, Sechter, Riemann, Friedrich and Heinrich Bellermann and Westphal.

[Illustration:

THE CONCERT HALL IN THE GEWANDHAUS IN LEIPSIC.

From an engraving published about 1860. ]

The æsthetics of music have been extensively treated by the foremost German philosophers. Hegel and his followers Vischer and Kahlert, laid the foundation of a comprehensive consideration of the subject. The philosophers outside the Hegelian school, Krüger, Schelling, Krause, Carriere, Karl Köstlin, Fechner, Wundt and Lötze, have included in larger works more or less extensive treatments of musical æsthetics, and the interest which Wagner felt for the theories of Schopenhauer is well known. In addition to these, several writers—Schubart, Hand, Schilling, Heinrich Köstlin, Reissmann, Riemann, Kullak, Stumpf, Engel—have written large treatises devoted exclusively to the subject. The object has been to establish, if possible, the psychological relations of music, and to deduce the _raison d’être_ of the various musical forms; but no one has yet established conclusions which have been generally accepted. Opposed to these writers are a small number of advocates of a purely formalistic theory of music,—Herbart, Zimmermann and Hanslick. The last-named is the author of a book entitled “Concerning the Musically Beautiful,” which has been perhaps more generally read and commented upon than any other single work on musical æsthetics. It is safe to assert that this work of Hanslick does not solve the mystery of the power of music on the soul. Certainly it seems to be a superficial idea of Hanslick that music has no inward meaning (or Inhalt), and is only a mere play of form (Formspiel). But this interesting little book is so brilliantly written and so carefully considered that it still holds its own, and is known throughout the musical world.

In this connection mention should be made of “The Sensations of Tone,” published in 1863 by Hermann Helmholtz, the great Berlin physicist. This work is not only one of the greatest achievements of German science, but is also unique among all works published on the subject of music. It embodies the results of exhaustive research into all phenomena connected with the production of tone and its perception by the human consciousness. In a word, it establishes a firm physical foundation for all future philosophical speculations concerning music.

It is commonly and truly said that the time is not yet ripe for an exhaustive history of music. An enormous amount of material, it is true, has been collected, but in most divisions of the subject the sources of information have not yet been thoroughly explored. At present Germany is distancing all other nations in the contributions made to the sum of historical knowledge concerning music. Not to mention the numberless treatises and monographs which are continually appearing, the regularly published musical periodicals are numerous and excellent, and frequently make important contributions to musical scholarship.

Although the present article is far from professing to present a complete account of all that Germany has accomplished in music, it may serve to show the many-sided character of musical culture in that land. Not one of the many branches of musical activity has failed to feel the influence of Germany, and in only a few branches does she hold any other than the leading position. In our own day her musical zeal remains unabated. The number of musical compositions and books published year by year in Germany is enormous, and the proportion of her young men who enter on the career of teacher or performer seems to be increasing rather than diminishing. While it is true that there are very few great composers now living in Germany, and that they are rivalled by the living composers of other nationalities, and even though in the latest music of over-cultivated Germany there is a want of freshness, naturalness and _naïveté_ that belong only to musical youth, yet there is no reason for supposing that any other nation will, in the near future, usurp Germany’s well-merited title of “laureate amongst all musical nations.”

[Illustration: John K. Paine]

[Illustration: Leo R. Lewis]

[Illustration:

JEAN BAPTISTE LULLY

_Reproduction from the rare folio print engraved by Roullet, after Mignard._ ]

[Illustration: [Fleuron]]

JEAN BAPTISTE LULLY