Dreaming, Still Dreaming! Seeds of Kindness! Lithograph Title. A Reverie for Piano. Key

of F. 31 degree of difficulty. By Wilson.

A graceful title page, on which is depicted the rustic chapel, of simple architecture, but well designed, and in no point offending the eyes.

Words by Mr. Smith. Music by S. J. Vail. Being such, it is a good type of the composition

"It is the encore pieces that please," a fact The beauty lies in the sentiment, which with occasionally verified by Thalberg, when he occasionally condescended to play his (to him) easy a simple and attractive melody, and the power-transcription. Since those days the piece has ful endorsement of Mr. Phillip Phillip's singing,

What Mollie Said! is quite enough to cause the song to be in tude of learners.

TWILIGHT IN THE PARK. played anywhere. It is about as difficult, and

Easy Instructive Pieces.

The following little list will be gratefully welcomed by perplexed teachers in search of the "first pieces for scholars."

Maple Beach Waltz.
Adalyn Waltz.

Banner Schottisch.
Iola Waltz.

Will soon be Echo Villa Mazourka.

277 WASHINGTON STREET, BOSTON.

post-paid, for retail price.

*** It should be understood that DITSON & Co. advertise but a comparatively small portion of thefr publications. A large number of Standard Works are so well known, and in such constant demand, as to need no new announcement. If you are ever in need of any kind of music, or any kind of musical information, you can supply every want in our large and varied stock. Catalogues containing descriptions of 1000 books, sent free on application. ***

For Music Classes.

THE SONG MONARCH.

Price 75 cents.
Per Dozen, $7.50.
THIS useful work was compiled by H. R. PALMER of Chicago, with
the very valuable assistance of L. O. EMERSON.

Many teachers of singing schools have become dissatisfied with large collections of church music, partly because of their containing much that was valuable for choirs, and not for classes; and partly because they were reluctant to use the sacred words of hymns so commonly as they were obliged to do in drilling classes.

The Song Monarch contains a first rate Singing School course, with a fair number of exercises. Also a very fine collection of easy Secular Music for practice. Thus the SONG MONARCH is in one sense an excellent EASY GLEE BOOK.

Church Music Books.

THE LEADER.
Price $1.38.
Per Doz.. $12.00.
Some years since, it occurred to Mr. L. O. EMERSON and Mr. H. R.
PALMER, the most successful compilers of Church Music Books, East
and West, to combine their forces, and produce a book of double merit.
The result was "The Standard," known as a most popular church
music book. They now combine again to produce "THE LEADER,"
not so large as its predecessor, but of excellent quality. There is the
usual Singing School course, and a goodly number of Metrical tunes,
Anthems and Chants.

The publishers call special attention to this new work, as one of the very best collections of popular sacred music. There are 200 first-class tunes of fine quality. It will be noticed that the NATIONAL HYMN AND TUNE BOOK" has a special claim as a book of sacred music for schools. Its 340 hymns are quite free from anything of a sectarian character. It is also a book that will last for years, since the music is all of a kind that does not wear out. Common songs may and must be changed; but this should remain as a standard book.

For Common Schools.

AMERICAN SCHOOL MUSIC READERS.

Book I, 35 cts.

Book II, 50 cts. Book III, 50 cts. These books are adapted to the Graded System.of teaching, now extensively adopted in our schools, and provide for about seven years instruction; that is, three years in Primary schools, and three or four years in Grammar schools. Plain directions are given, and a multitude of interesting songs enliven the different courses of study. Prepared by L. O. EMERSON and W. S. TILDEN.

MUSICAL LIBRARY.

DITSON & Co. have on their shelves, at a fair estimate, considerably over a million pieces of sheet music. all salable, and each piece liable to be ordered by one or another of their customers. But, although nothing can be reckoned as dead stock," some pieces sell ten, or even twenty times as well as others. The firm are accustomed every few months to select the best of these "best" pieces, and bind them together for sale. Books so compiled must, of necessity, be the best of their kind; and such are the following:

Collections of Instrumental Music.

MUSICAL TREASURE. (Also vocal).

PIANO AT HOME. 4 hand pieces. New! Useful!
GEMS OF STRAUSS. Most brilliant collection extant,
PIANIST'S ALBUM. Popular and easy music.

PIANOFORTE GEMS. Popular, brilliant, easy pieces.
HOME CIRCLE, VOL. I. Easy music.

HOME CIRCLE, VOL. II. Popular 2 and 4-hand pieces.
ORGAN AT HOME. 200 good pieces for Reed Organs.

Collections of Vocal Music.

MOORE'S IRISH MELODIES.

OPERATIC PEARLS. The chief songs of 50 operas.
GEMS OF GERMAN SONG. Songs that will never die.
GEMS OF SCOTTISH SONG. Sweetest of all ballads.
SHOWER OF PEARLS. Nearly all the good vocal duets.
GEMS OF SACRED SONG. Pure, devout and beautiful.
SILVER CHORD. Large collection of the best popular songs.
WREATH OF GEMS. Large collection of the best popular songs.

Price of each book in Boards, $2.50; Cloth, $3.00; Gilt, $4.00.

A Paper of Art and Literature.

BOSTON, SATURDAY, JUNE 12, 1875.

Old Folks at Home. Quartet. 2. D to d.
arr. by Fairbank. 25

American School Music Readers. The Flower Girl. (La Fioraja]. 6. Eb to b.

TERMS.-If mailed or called for, $2.00 per annum; Cheerful Voices.

delivered by carriers, $2.50. Payment in advance. Advertisements will be inserted at the following rates: One insertion per line 30 cents.

Each subsequent insertion, per line. 20 cents.

Cards, 6 lines Nonpareil, (one-half inch of space), per annum, $10.00 in advance. Other spaces in propor ion.

River of Life. New Ed. $30 per 100. Otto Lob's Sacred Trios.

Clarke's Complete List of Pipe Organ Stops. QUARTET CHOIRS. Frogtown Spellers. Kommick Song and

American Method," Pianoforte and Harmony, VOCALIST AND TEACHER OF SINGING.

718-tf]

267 Columbus Avenue, Boston.

Address, care of Oliver Ditson & Co. [798

TO ORGANISTS AND CHOIR LEADERS.

A GREAT WANT SUPPLIED.

DANKS'

JUST PUBLISHED:

ANTHEM SERVICES.

A COLLECTION FOR QUARTETTE AND CHORUS CHOIRS.

Containing a great variety of ANTHEM settings to all the CANTICLES
OF THE CHURCH, for the Regular and Special MORNING
AND EVENING SERVICES, from the most eminent
Composers. Edited by

H. P. DANKS.

The book is of the greatest value to Organists and Choirs of the EPISCOPAL CHURCH, as here are found anthems fitted to all occasions of the regular and special service, thus forming a complete STANDARD BOOK OF SERVICES. With the exception of the Gloria Patri's, these fine anthems, with music by the best American and Foreign Composers, and noble words from the sacred scriptures, are also perfectly adapted for use in the services of

[795

In C, (with Solos,).
In D..

..Phelps.

Wholesale and Retail Dealers in Sheet Music,
Music Books, and Musical Merchandise

Of Every Description.

Our stock of Sheet Music, Music Books, Musical Instruments, etc., is the largest and most complete in the North West. Our connection with Messrs. O. Ditson & Co., enables us to furnish their publications to Western Dealers, at net Boston Prices.

In addition to the publications of Messrs. O. Ditson & Co., we keep on hand and furnish l Music and Music Books published in America, together with a choice stock of Foreign Music. [794-3m

..Kortheuer. CANTATE.

..Danks.

66

Caswell.

66

.Bialla.

Best.

...Danks.

..Novello.

.Kent.

Ward.

In D, (with Solo and Duet,).......Danks.
In D. (with Solo,)....

. Ward.
...Ilsley. DEUS MISERATUR.

.....

Ward.
Lambillote.

In Eb, (with Duo,)..
In Eb,
BENEDICTUS.

In D, (with Duo,)..
In G, (with Solos,).

KYRIE ELEISON.

Danks.
..Beames.

Mendelssohn.

Von Weber.

There were Shepherds
Rejoice, O ye people.....
Hark, the Herald Angels..
Behold I bring you....

EASTER MUSIC.

...Phelps.

Ward.

Phelps.

Phelps.

.......Barnby.

Morgan. Mendelssohn.

66

Croce.

Christ our Passover, (with Solo,)..Danks.
Christ being Raised.

Now is Christ Risen..

Poznanski. FUNERAL ANTHEM.

66

......Elvey. .Allen.

I heard a voice, (with Solo,).......Danks.

PUBLISHED BY

IMPORTERS OF FOREIGN MUSIC, OLIVER DITSON & CO., BOSTON.

1104 Chestnut St., Philadelphia.

A large assortment of American Music con

stantly on hand.

CHAS. H. DITSON & CO. New York. LYON & HEALY, Chicago.

WHOLE NO. 891.

BOSTON, SATURDAY, JUNE 12, 1875.

Executants and Editors. (From "Concordia," London.) "Clear your mind of cant, Sir."-Johnson to Boswell. Since the advent of Kant's critical philosophy, men have become cautious in dealing with abstract notions. The wish to see things as they really are, the desire for precise and detailed knowledge, has increased greatly. Scientific thinkers are agreed that to understand any phenomenon truly, it is necessary to dissect it, examine its component parts minutely, and then build up the conception of it anew. And

ences, from scanty indications in the original
copies, I lay myself open to being twitted with
that irrepressible story of the German professor
who evolved the idea of a camel from his
"inner consciousness." But it is encouraging
to find the facts, on the negative side of my
position at all events, so completely favorable.
Take Sebastian Bach's works. He habitual-
ly neglected to give hints concerning tempo,
phrasing, light and shade, &c.; even the actu-
al pitch in which certain of his earlier works
are to be played, is open to doubt, and can on-
ly be got at by a complicated process of com-
between the

VOL. XXXV. No. 5.

have hitherto suffered in proportion to their negligence. Would it not have been infinitely better if Haydn and Mozart, especially the lat ter, had taken the trouble to indicate their intentions more minutely?

But if Bach's works, or even Beethoven's, are

in some sense riddles difficult of solution, our perplexity is increased tenfold, when we come to deal with works wherein the composer has vouchsafed no direction whatever as to execution, and where suggestive contemporary comments are not forthcoming.

Take any work by Palestrina. There is no

Icriticism has borne good fruit in the field of in the notation of some of the wind-instruments, pitch is left to the discrimination of the singers;

music.

From this point of view then, I hope the following fragments may appear tolerably consistent, and may tend to throw some little light upon a few questions much debated of late, as to whether or not certain novel readings, arrangements, editions, are to be recognized as authoritative.

the pitch of which is known, and the pitch of
the organs he wrote for, most of which are still
extant; and which, by the way, were in some
cases tuned a full third above the usual "cham-
ber pitch.

It is easy to conceive the mental position Se-
bastian Bach must have taken up if he troubled
himself at all about the notation of nuances of
who could not help being familiar with his
expression. He had a circle of articled pupils

mode of execution. The amateur element in

chromatic inflections are not indicated (though doubtless no contemporary craftsman hesitated as to their proper introduction). Is it not a matter of serious regret, that a clear method of dynamical notation was not then thought of?

Experiments have for some time been made at Berlin, Regensburg, Munich, and elsewhere, of rendering Palestrina; but I know not whethwith a view to reconstruct the proper method

er any definite result has atttended them. I am

aware that a claim to the pure tradition of the true style for singing Palestrina is put forward by the members of the Papal choir at Rome; and though such a thing is prima facie not improbable, I still venture to doubt its authentic

It is a matter of daily experience that the observations of average minds not specially trained to observe prove worthless; they act like convex mirrors, transforming, or rather his time was very small; only people with malforming, whatever passes through them. And in the presence of this fact it seems evi- sic for a recreation. means and leisure could afford to take up muThere was little or no sodent that no candid musician can refrain from cial influence to be gained with true musical doubting the calibre of the greater part of attainment, certainly no momentary success. whatever is dished up to him as "oral tradi- And so no one dreamt of encountering the diffi- ity-as much as that of the authenticity of the tion." Such tradition, as a rule, has no prac-culties of the art, unless propelled by genuine tical value whatever; and anyone who has met love for it; which, as a rule, implies some with half-a-dozen soi-disant pupils of Chopin, degree of talent. Thus amateur and profesand heard them play bits of his compositions, sional were virtually in unison; and Bach may will, I am sure, subscribe to my advice." heard myself or my disciples play some of my have said to himself: "He who, after having music, is still puzzled with its peculiar spirit, had better leave it alone altogether."

Take the works of Beethoven, many of his later and most original productions were not performed at all under his supervision, others again he presented to the public with one rehearsal! And these works were at the time absolutely new in thought and expression, and of almost insuperable technical difficulty. Directly after his decease, the pianoforte players who had come into immediate contact with the master, quarrelled about the tempi and the proper expression of his sonatas; and one of the most eminent among them. Moscheles, goes to the length of differing with himself; for in his second edition of the Sonatas, published in Stuttgart, his indications are, in many respects, diametrically opposed to his first-many years earlier-London edition.

much

It has, therefore, become the duty of all musicians, who are not content with blindly following the blind, to construct for themselves a correct and consistent style for the rendering of Beethoven, Weber, Schubert, Chopin, &c., as Mendelssohn reconceived Bach's "Passion Music," and Liszt. Von Bülow, and Joachim, Bach's instrumental solos. It has moreover become their duty to construct such a style not only for some immediate practical purpose, but also to record it with all detailed accuracy for future use. For music ought to appeal, and in truth does appeal, quite as much to our immediate sensuous perception as to our imagination; and in accordance with this, the best living executants and editors, chiefly pianists-Liszt, Henselt, Von Bülow, Klindworth-are striving with all their might to leave nothing unsaid or undone, which may help to transplant the works they are interpreting from a more or less vague region of abstraction and incomplete suggestion, to the clear light of the bearers' sensuous perception.

I am aware that by doubting tradition and commending attempts at constructing a model style, solely upon the basis of theoretical infer

Then again it must be borne in mind that before Beethoven musical productions, no matter of what dimension or how elaborate, were usually written for some particular occasion, when the master was personally present, and by voice and look could animate everything. The monumental character, duly and truly ascribed to many older works by nineteenth century criticism, would probably have astonished their originators.

And we must also not lose sight of the fact that the range of craftsmanship in Bach's time was clearly defined, and always kept within manageable limits. For instance he could afford to trust to his executants being fully master of the art of accompanying from a figured bass. But in Haydn and Mozart's time, when music advanced with such large strides in the direction of personal sentiment, when the influence of the stage was felt on all sides, when the technique for the expression of sentiment was enlarged day by day, the craftsman's art of thorough bass was gradually superseded. Musical shorthand proved less reliable, tradition lost whatever of precision it may have had, and composers were compelled to take a little more care to note the evanescent details of expression, and to write out their scores more completely. If in many cases Haydn and Mozart were content to abide by the customary absence of dynamical inflections-if they continued to trust with more than naïve confidence in the sagacity of executants if they neglected to take account of the humiliating fact that an individual of a later generation, no matter how gifted, is necessarily reared in a different emotional atmosphere, and therefore cannot be expected to comprehend at once and intuitively that which is probably uncongenial both to his individuality and to his training, these works

embellimenti introduced by the Papal singers into Allegri's "Miserere" which Mendelssohn quotes, in a letter to Zelter, is doubted by him. By the way does Mozart's copy of these embellishments tally with Mendelssohn's?

It is true that tradition formerly stood a better chance of remaining untarnished than it does now. Up to about the middle of the eighteenth century, when Mozart began his European pilgrimage, tradition was confined within narrow limits. The physical boundaries, wherein any particular style of execution was cultivated, were not national; they were rather limited to particular counties, and even towns. And certainly as long as a craftsman worked under the pressure of the laws and beliefs of a particular guild only, and was nowise touched by those of other guilds, tradition flourished; but even here it must be admitted that from generation to generation one continually meets with the old complaints about the degeneration of craft, and the decay of art.

But with us, when the idea of artistic guilds, of associated craftsmanship, is almost entirely lost sight of; when free trade in the arts has given us a professional proletariat, only slightly above the level of helpless and floundering dilettantism; when young musicians, instead of being reared in a master's atelier, are made to practise the cornet-à-pistons in the back kitchen, the plea of "classical tradition" has If the expression not a leg left to stand upon. have any meaning at all, it must signify that the present Philistine thinks it likely that his grandfather was a Philistine also, and in that generation behaved after his kind.

no

Meo voto, the point for us poor latter-day acting copies," singers is this: Seeing that no " 'stage directions are given us, we must attempt what actors are said to do-"create a part. Correct reading of the text, as far as The executhe notes go, is ever insufficient. tant must employ the scientific method; he must dissect the text, construct his notions of the entire piece from a minute examination of the parts, and then, from the Platonic idea of the whole, find the proper expression for all details. Thus a great player, like a great ac