poetry. It is difficult to play, requiring great crispness of
finger action combined with perfect control of tone volume.
_Idyl_ (_Allegretto_) is No. I of Book II, and has a certain
charm and lyrical beauty, although not one of the composer's best
efforts. It is a study for the cultivation of delicacy, singing
tone and grace.
_Shadow Dance_ (_Allegrissimo_) has just that touch of fanciful
romanticism that MacDowell knew how to infuse into a piece, thus
heightening its interest. The piece is one of the most popular of
MacDowell's shorter pieces and makes a fine solo. From a
technical point of view, it is a valuable study for development
of finger agility combined with lightness of touch.
_Intermezzo_ (_Allegretto_) is tuneful and pleasing, but does not
reach a very high level of poetic writing. It is, however, a
useful exercise for development of independent action of the two
middle fingers of the hand.
_Melodie_ (_Andantino_) is a melodious exercise for cultivating
independence of fingers.
_Scherzino_ (_Allegro_) is a tuneful study for double note
playing with the right hand.
_Hungarian_ (_Presto con fuoco_) has the characteristic fire and
syncopated rhythm of a Brahms' Hungarian Dance, and is a study
for the development of dash, speed and virtuoso playing.
OPUS 40. SIX LOVE SONGS, FOR VOICE AND PIANOFORTE.
_Composed_, 1890. _First Published_, 1890 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _Sweet Blue-Eyed Maid_.
2. _Sweetheart, Tell Me_.
3. _Thy Beaming Eyes_.
4. _For Sweet Love's Sake_.
5. _O Lovely Rose_.
6. _I Ask But This_.
These songs, although not absolutely of the composer's best, have
a charm, tenderness of feeling and beauty of expression that is
often irresistible. They are essentially the love songs of a
romantic, but refined and gifted poet. As a whole they are
singularly free from sexual sensuousness, which is so often a
trait in songs of their type. There is an idealism, wonderfully
fresh and pure, about them, that is antagonistic to the
composer's own assertion that verse often becomes doggerel when
harnessed to music in song form.
_Sweet Blue-Eyed Maid._ (_Daintily, not too sentimentally._) The
spirit of this song is happy and it is beautifully, although
simply, expressed.
_Sweetheart, Tell Me._ (_Softly, tenderly_.) The ability of
MacDowell to suggest a definite mood in music is clearly
demonstrated in this song, which has a simple melody of wonderful
appeal and tenderness.
_Thy Beaming Eyes._ (_With sentiment, passionately._) This is the
most widely known of all MacDowell's songs. The composer himself
thought it too sentimental and was not pleased with the
popularity it gained. There is no mistaking its passionate
feeling, however, and it strikes the human note frankly and
spontaneously, without becoming commonplace. The song is at least
sincere, and its popularity can do no harm to its composer's
deeper music, which is less easily understood.
Gramophone records of _Thy Beaming Eyes_ have been made for
"Columbia" by Charles W. Clarke, baritone, and for "His Master's
Voice" by Sophie Breslau, contralto.
_For Sweet Love's Sake_. (_Simply, with feeling_.) This song is
not a very successful alliance of words and music. The former are
of tender content, while the latter is after the style of a
pleasant lullaby. The music does not in the least reflect the
spirit of the words.
_O Lovely Rose_. (_Slowly, with great simplicity_.) This is the
pure lyric gem of the _Six Love Songs_ by MacDowell. It is very
short, but has a rare charm and fragrance.
_I Ask But This_. (_Moderately fast, almost banteringly_.) There
is an attractive piquancy and lightness about this song that
makes it distinct from its companions. It suggests light-hearted
love, and its demure ending, as the lovers part, was a happy
thought on the part of the composer.
OPUS 41. TWO PART-SONGS, FOR MALE CHORUS.
_Composed_, 1890. _First Published_, 1890 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _Cradle Song_.
2. _Dance of the Gnomes_.
These two part-songs are effectively written and sharply
contrasted. Their contrast furnishes good reason why both should
be sung in the order given, and not robbed of their natural
companionship.
OPUS 42. FIRST SUITE, IN A MINOR, FOR FULL ORCHESTRA.
_Composed, about_ 1890-91. _First Performed, September,_ 1891,
_at the Worcester, U.S.A., Musical Festival. First, Second,
Fourth and Fifth Movements First Published_, 1891. _Third
Movement First Published_, 1893 (Complete--Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _In a Haunted Forest_.
2. _Summer Idyl_.
3. _In October_.
4. _The Song of the Shepherdess_.
5. _Forest Spirits_.
This suite, although reminiscent of the nineteenth century German
romanticism amongst which MacDowell was educated, has an
atmosphere of its own that at once distinguishes it as an example
of the highly sensitive and suggestive tone poetry peculiar to
its composer. The work is very skilfully written and is
remarkable for its freshness and buoyancy of spirit. The scoring
is exquisite and always illustrative of the poetical subjects of
the suite. Each of the pieces has in its title a suggestion of a
scene of Nature, the first and last having also the fanciful and
imaginative atmosphere of folk-lore; this provided MacDowell with
a task in tone painting such as he loved. In _In a Haunted
Forest_ and _Forest Spirits_ we have examples of the romantic and
fanciful sort of tone poetry characteristic of the composer. In
the _Summer Idyl_, in the fine, mellow beauty of _In October_ and
in the lovely _Song of the Shepherdess_ we have MacDowell
composing in his beloved Nature style, although not in a manner
quite comparable with the pianoforte pieces, _Woodland Sketches,
Op. 51_, and _New England Idyls, Op. 62_. As a whole, the _First
Suite for Orchestra_ is not the finest of MacDowell's orchestral
works up to this stage, but it stands alone in the style of its
poetic subject matter. It has not the same bearing as _Hamlet and
Ophelia, Op. 22_, Lancelot and Elaine, Op. 25_, _Lamia, Op. 29_,
or _The Saracens and the Lovely Alda, Op. 30_, which all have an
historical or romantic outlook, but it possesses instead the
wonderful spirit of mysterious Nature. Even the noble _Second
(Indian) Suite for Orchestra_, the grandest of MacDowell's
orchestral works, cannot alter the position of this first suite,
which has an interest entirely its own. In performance the work
is notable for its fresh and finely-coloured material, and makes
a fine item in a concert because of its brilliancy and the
charmingly interesting suggestions of its poetic sub-titles.
OPUS 43. TWO NORTHERN PART-SONGS, FOR MIXED CHORUS.
_Composed_, 1891. _First Published_, 1891 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _The Brook_.
2. _Slumber Song_.
These are well written and effective part-songs, making lovely
unaccompanied choral numbers. They have been undeservedly
overshadowed by the composer's instrumental and solo songs. Both
should be sung together for the sake of the intentional contrast.
OPUS 44. BARCAROLLE, FOR MIXED CHORUS AND ACCOMPANIMENT FOR
PIANOFORTE DUET.
_First Appeared_, 1892 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
This is a meritorious choral piece, skilfully written. The
somewhat elaborate accompaniment for pianoforte requires two
players.
OPUS 45. FIRST SONATA, TRAGICA, IN G MINOR, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_Composed_, 1892-3. _Third Movement First Publicly Played, March
18th_, 1892, _at Checkering Hall, Boston, U.S.A., by the
Composer. First Public Complete Performance, March_, 1893, _at a
Kneisal Quartet Concert at Chickering Hall, Boston. Played by the
Composer. First Published_, 1893 (Breitkopf & Härtel).
1. _Largo maestoso--Allegro risoluto_.
2. _Molto allegro, vivace_.
3. _Largo con maesta_.
4. _Allegro eroico_.
Huneker, the celebrated American writer on music, described this
sonata, soon after its appearance, as "the most marked contribution
to solo sonata literature since Brahms' F minor piano sonata." The
work is chiefly notable for its general boldness and strength,
punctuated by passages of intimate tenderness and deepness of
expression, and its slow movement is one of MacDowell's most
inspired efforts. The great demerit of the sonata, however, is its
lack of cohesive thought. As a whole it suggests the spectacle of
a highly gifted poet, full of emotional ardour and desire for self
expression, but lacking the requisite skill to bind long continued
effort into a cohesive whole; and who makes the mistake of trying
to cramp his undoubtedly beautiful ideas by compressing them into
a set form. The _Sonata Tragica_ is more of a traditional sonata
than its successors, the _Eroica, Op. 50_, the _Norse, Op. 57_, and
the _Keltic, Op. 59_, but as a work of art is less successful. Its
subjects are quite fine, showing, individually, great strength of
character and tender feeling, but they often appear to have no
definite connection with each other. In the first movement
especially we find this defect, for the second subject, with its
lovely tenderness, contrasts awkwardly with the boldness and
strength of the first. The cause of this would seem to be that a
quieter second subject is demanded by the form of the sonata, but
its effect on the movement as a whole is patchy and illogical.
MacDowell evidently made some efforts to effect cohesion,
transferring ideas from one movement to another in the process,
but the attempts generally are not successful. He tries to write
in the traditional form, and only succeeds in drawing the
student's attention to the futility of it. Later, in the _Norse_
and the _Keltic_ sonatas, he threw form overboard when it suited
him; and wrote far greater works in doing so. There is no
doubting the quality of the music in the _Sonata Tragica_,
however, for it contains passages of dramatic fire, breadth and
sweep of line, beauty of expression and a strength of character
that can only be the work of a great tone poet. The work was
undoubtedly written at a white heat of inspiration, for at the
time MacDowell was not only grieved over the death of his old
master and friend, Joachim Raff, but was also harrassed by the
drudgery and struggle of his own existence. He poured out his
passionate feelings into the sonata, which is largely a
reflection of the hopeless outlook of his own care-laden life.
1. The introductory _Largo maestoso_ opens with a figure of
striking aspect, like a clenched, upraised fist. Immediately
following this comes a quieter, more serious strain, but only to
be succeeded by loud chords again, now punctuated by rushing
ascents in scale and arpeggio figures, the whole culminating in a
tremendous descent of double octaves bringing almost the whole
range of the pianoforte keyboard into action. After a pause, the
_Allegro risoluto_ enters _ppp_. Its bearing is strong and proud
and has much that is akin to the nervous, resolute martial energy
of Elgar. The second subject, _Dolce con tenerezza_, is
exquisitely tender and contemplative, but it follows the first
awkwardly, and the two as MacDowell left them are like detached
scraps having no relation to one another. As we proceed the music
becomes mysterious and restless until a more solid chord passage
appears. The whole is soon interrupted by the arresting figure of
the introduction, now appearing softly, with foreboding
seriousness. With the resumption of the _Allegro risoluto_ the
striving commences again and is even more restless than before.
From now onwards the music becomes increasingly significant,
graduating in tone power from a shadowy _ppp_ to solid and virile
loud chords. The first and second subjects formally reappear and
the end comes with a short coda, the feature of which is its
powerful upward expansion, culminating in chords of great
strength, the striking opening figure being again heard.
2. The scherzo-like second movement is inferior in quality to the
rest of the sonata, and apart from some ejaculations suggesting
the dramatic opening of the first movement, does not appear to
have any connection with the work as a whole. Its themes are not
distinguished, although there are touches of strength in many
places, and the movement savours generally of Teutonic romantic
influence and probably only exists at all as a concession to
form.
3. The _Largo con maesta_ is the outstanding movement of the
sonata, remaining to this day one of MacDowell's most impressive
creations. It is full of deep feeling and gravity, contrasted
with passages of tender contemplation and the impassioned poetry
of despair. The whole aspect of the movement is lofty in thought,
vast in tonality and altogether indicative of power and of
genius. MacDowell was harassed by drudgery and care when he wrote
it and the tragic note is sounded from its first bars. After
exhausting itself in intense expression, the opening theme makes
way for a mood of quiet, although still despairing, contemplation.
This wanders on, until the music becomes impassioned and more
intricate. Rushing ascending scale passages add to the restless
movement of the whole, culminating in a tumultuous and despairing
utterance of the contemplative theme. This gradually dies down
and soon the impressive strains of the first theme are heard, now
softly breathed and portraying a deep and broken sadness in place
of the clenched fist attitude of their first appearance. The
music becomes more and more subdued, finally becoming extinct in
_pppp_ chords. The whole of this last page is one of the most
impressive and soul-stirring things in contemporary pianoforte
music.
4. The final movement, _Allegro eroico_, opens with a bold,
heroic theme in spread chords, followed by a quieter subject. The
music goes triumphantly on with increasing brilliance, complexity
and heroic ardour. At length a great final version of the heroic
theme is heard, _Maestoso_, and soon we come to the dramatic
moment of the whole sonata. At the very height of exaltation we
are overwhelmed by a shattering descent of double octaves,
_precipitate_. The heroism and self-confident ardour so carefully
built up are swept away and the significant strains of the
introduction to the work are heard, now augmented in time value.
The music bursts into fury and the sonata ends with immensely
powerful and ringing chords, but it is the shout of tragedy and
not of victory. Thus closes a work that may well stand to-day as
a musical representation of the composer's own life story. The
sonata was first played in London on February 25th, 1902, by
Lucie Mawson.
OPUS 46. TWELVE VIRTUOSO STUDIES, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_Composed_, 1893-94. _First Published_, 1894 (Breitkopf &
Härtel).
1. _Novelette_.
2. _Moto Perpetuo_.
3. _Wild Chase_.
4. _Improvisation_.
5. _Elfin Dance_.
6. _Valse Triste_.
7. _Burlesque_.
8. _Bluette_.
9. _Traumerei_.
10. _March Wind_.
11. _Impromptu_.
12. _Polonaise_.
These studies, while indicated by the composer as requiring
advanced technique for performance, are full of poetical thought
and tonal beauty that make them worthy of study. Many of them
possess that Nature tone painting, that mystic, subtle romanticism
of whispering tree-tops and elfin glades, that freshness and open
air spirit which distinguish MacDowell's later short pieces.
_Novelette_ is an attractive study and full of the composer's own
individual spirit. It is considered to be one of the best of the
set.
_Moto Perpetuo_ is cleverly written and musical.
_Wild Chase_ is one of those exhilarating, imaginative pieces so
characteristic of MacDowell. It is full of outdoor poetry and
suggestive of a wild and glorious ride over the great American
prairies, or of a dream gallop full of breathless fancy.
_Improvisation_ exhibits the composer's finer poetry and mastery
of his art.
_Elfin Dance_ is suggestive and imaginative.
_Valse Triste_ is expressive and interesting, although not one of
the most distinguished of the set.
_Burlesque_ is a musical number, bright in spirit and free from
commonplace.
_Bluette_ is a beautiful piece of tone painting.
_Traumerei_ has a certain beauty of its own, indicating the
composer's capacity for deep expression.
_March Wind_ is full of the wild open-air breeziness associated
in our thoughts with the subject of its inspiration, and captures
the imagination. For a minute or so we can escape the heavy
atmosphere confined within four walls and rush with the sweeping
wind, high above cities and out over the broad, rolling country
beyond. The study has a background of spaciousness that suggests
American scenery.
_Impromptu_ is interesting and musical.
_Polonaise_ has brilliance and is well and effectively conceived
for big pianoforte tone production.
OPUS 47. EIGHT SONGS, FOR VOICE AND PIANOFORTE.
_Composed_, 1893. _First Published_, 1893 (Breitkopf & Härtel).
1. _The Robin Sings in the Apple Tree._
2. _Midsummer Lullaby._
3. _Folk Song._
4. _Confidence._
5. _The West Wind Croons in the Cedar Trees._
6. _In the Woods._
7. _The Sea._
8. _Through the Meadow._
With the composition of these songs, MacDowell fairly entered
into his finest and most mature period. They are beautiful,
characteristic, and full of that engaging romance, piquancy and
poetic charm that distinguishes his best lyrical work.
_The Robin Sings in the Apple Tree_ is written to the composer's
own words, which may be found in the published book of his
verses. The song is infinitely tender and tinged with that
wistfulness that he so often infused into his music. Particularly
beautiful is the spirit of the last verse:--
_O robin, and thou blackbird brave,
My songs of love have died;
How can you sing as in byegone days,
When she was at my side._
_Midsummer Lullaby_ has much charm and grace in its refined and
sensitive verse inspiration.
_Folk Song_ is characteristic and melodious.
_Confidence_ shows a lyric power of unusual quality and although
the music is not always in sympathy with the verse, the true
spirit of poetry is there.
_The West Wind Croons in the Cedar Trees_ is written to the lines
of MacDowell's little poem entitled, _To Maud_. This song is
beautiful and full of feeling, and tells in its three verses of
Love's expectation, doubt and disappointment. The music is allied
with perfect sympathy to the words.
_In the Woods_ was written to the composer's lines after Goethe.
This song is a pure lyric, touched with just enough romance to
deepen its significance.
_The Sea_ is well written, showing some of the power and
healthiness of the true MacDowell open-air spirit.
_Through the Meadow_ makes an exquisite vocal piece, thoroughly
attractive in its freshness. It is a song of the true nature-poet,
breathing the atmosphere of its title in the most delightful and
sensitive manner.
OPUS 48. SECOND SUITE (INDIAN), FOR FULL ORCHESTRA.
_First Performed, January_, 1896, _by the Boston Symphony
Orchestra, in New York. First Performance in England, October
23rd,_ 1901, _at a London Queen's Hall Promenade Concert.
Conductor, Sir (then Mr.) Henry J. Wood. First Published,_ 1897
(Breitkopf and Härtel).
_Dedicated to Emil Paur and the Boston Symphony Orchestra._
_Optional Titles to Movements, Furnished by the Composer._
1. _Legend._
2. _Love-Song._
3. _In War Time._
4. _Dirge._
5. _Village Festival._
In the _Indian Suite_ we have one of the most graphic examples of
MacDowell's power of creating atmospheres and impressions of big
subjects. It is the finest and most mature of his orchestral
works, thoroughly individual and without a trace of the
nineteenth century German romanticism that is found in his
earlier productions. Its musical declamation is commanding and
infinitely noble. The atmosphere of the great rolling plains,
mighty forests, and vast and lonely retreats is unerringly
created. The notes of wildness and an indescribably touching
spirit of far away romance are sounded, telling of a forgotten
and dying elemental race. In the _Suite_ the lodges of the Red
men rise again before our eyes; their old legends, savage war
dances, love romances, their sorrows, joys and festivities live
once more. MacDowell has caught the spirit of the days when the
rude, but curiously interesting aborigines of America lived; of
days that are now but treasured legends that still stir the
hearts of the young in many lands. He conveyed a feeling of this
atmosphere in his music with an unerring touch, the effect of
which is heightened by the use of material derived from the
native tunes of the North American Indians. The _Indian Suite_ is
undoubtedly one of the most noble and impressive works that
MacDowell ever composed, containing in the _Dirge_ movement one
of his most striking utterances. In his last days he expressed a
preference for this above anything else he had composed. The
_Suite_ is full of stirring strength, vast tonalities, depth of
feeling and elemental greatness, and is scored with a mastery of
orchestral tone colour used solely and unerringly to enhance the
poetic suggestiveness of the whole. It was fully sketched between
three and four years before its first appearance, as the composer
spent much time in becoming more closely acquainted with Red
Indian tunes.
1. _Legend_ (_Not fast. With much dignity and character_). This
opens with a romantic horn-call of the plains that is significant
of the whole _Suite_:--
[Music.]
It is heard again at the end of the last movement. Indescribable
is the effect of the paused note, the silence, and then the far
away answer. The call is elaborated with rich effect, but the
atmosphere of vastness and loneliness is preserved. The
suggestiveness of this introduction is wonderfully vivid, for in
a moment we are transported from the civilisation of to-day to
the wildness and romance of the old days on the plains of the
great West. The introduction finished, the movement proper begins
(_Twice as fast. With decision._) with a long tremolo on the note
B. At the fifth bar a harvest song of the Iroquois Indians
appears:--
[Music.]
Vivid in effect is the following striving figure:--
[Music.]
The Indian theme is now elaborated at some length with much richness,
and is wild in effect. After this a tender MacDowell-like second
subject appears:--
[Music.]
This contemplative atmosphere is soon broken as the influence of
the native theme is felt, and the striving figure is also heard.
The music grows more and more wild and intricate, working up to a
tearing intensity and then dying away until only a few deep
murmurs remain. The striving figure is heard twice, and then
follows a small bridge to a repetition of the tender second
subject, now heard pianissimo under a swaying, chord accompaniment.
After a time it grows in intensity and imperceptibly merges into
the romantic call of the introduction, the influence of which,
however, is at once felt. The music now mounts to a tremendous
pose of strength, double _fortissimo_, the final bars striking the
same attitude in a deeper and more stolid form. There is little in
music of such iron-like force as the conclusion of this _Legend_.
The thundering tremolos and chords are not intricate or beautiful,
their very splendour lying in their stark, magnificent elemental
power.
2. _Love-Song_ (_Not fast. Tenderly_). This opens with the tune
of a love song of the Iowa Indians:--
[Music.]
This little after thought brings a touch of romance:--
[Music.]
A new and equally tender theme follows:--
[Music.]
Although not of great importance, this little episode is notable
for its poetic suggestion of the Red Indian atmosphere:--
[Music.]
The music now goes on its way, rich in harmonic and instrumental
colour, but always clear, now soft and lulling, now approaching
the passionate. The first theme is heard again, and the
_Love-Song_ is then concluded by the little after thought.
3. _In War Time_ (_With rough vigour, almost savagely_). A rude
war song of the Iroquois Indians opens this movement:--
[Music.]
The rhythm of its continuation is afterwards made much of,
particularly the active semiquaver figure:--
[Music.]
The opening theme is now repeated with the implied harmonies, the
whole progressing with increasing intensity, the figure of the
second illustration being prominent. The music surges wildly,
undulating in a manner that suggests a Redskin scalp dance, the
hideous, painted figures now bending low, now holding their
weapons high above their heads. At length the fury of the war
dance reaches an elan that exhausts it, the barbaric figure
referred to in our second illustration becoming more and more
prominent, then sinking lower and lower until it is nothing more
than a series of thudding accents, broken by periods of silence
of increasing length. The effect is one of horses galloping
further and further away into the distance. After this the whole
atmosphere changes, and a mournful, lonely cry is heard:--
[Music.]
We may find the significance of this in the fact that it is a
prominent figure of the _Dirge_, No. 4 of the suite. The active
figure is now heard again, deep and almost inaudible, softly
ushering in the barbaric opening theme, now heard in the bass.
The warriors appear to be returning as the music once more grows
in volume. Wilder and wilder it grows--a moment's silence--only
to begin again faster and faster. Still faster does it become
until it is almost a scream, the conclusion coming in a
magnificent series of reiterated chords thundered out with the
full strength of the orchestra employed. There is no doubt that
this piece is one of the most vividly imaginative and brilliant
in the whole range of orchestral music, although it is rarely
performed with the skill and insight it requires.
4. _Dirge_ (_Dirge-like, mournfully_). "Of all my music," said
MacDowell after his last music had been published, "the _Dirge_
in the _Indian Suite_ pleases me most. It affects me deeply and
did when I was writing it. In it an Indian woman laments the
death of her son; but to me, as I wrote it, it seemed to express
a world-sorrow rather than a particularised grief." The piece is
undoubtedly one of its composer's most melancholy utterances.
Under a long series of reiterated key notes of the tonic minor,
the wailing phrase heard in _In War Time_ (No. 3 of the suite)
appears:--
[Music.]
It goes on at some length with increasing sadness and richer
harmonic and instrumental colouring (indescribable is the effect
of a muted horn heard off the platform). Soon comes a deep and
solemn bass uttering, heart-shaking in its grief. We give it with
the passage leading up to it:--
[Music.]
After a while the music rises with the same lonely mournfulness
to an outburst of despair:--
[Music.]
The sad opening phase follows and after this the solemn bass
figure. The close is mysterious but piercing in its sobbing,
inconsolable grief.
[Music.]
This _Dirge_ is indisputably the cry of a great soul, and there
is little in music which expresses grief so effectively. The
sense it gives of loneliness and sombreness has never been quite
equalled by any other composer. The piece is not a funeral
oration weighed down with pomp, but the spontaneous grief of
elemental humanity. The scene is of a mother mourning for her
son; its significance is of a world sorrow. The music would
honour any composer, living or dead.
5. _Village Festival_ (_Swift and light_). This number is the
longest of the Suite. It opens with the tune of a squaws' dance
of the Iroquois Indians:--
[Music.]
This is soon followed by another of festivity:--
[Music.]
The music proceeds, rich in harmonic and instrumental colouring,
and vividly suggesting the wild orgies of the village festivities
of the Red Indians. The whole works up to frenzied power until
exhaustion comes and it dies down again. Indicated as _slightly
broader_, the opening tune is now heard softly over mysterious
tremolos. Particularly subdued is the wild and sombre after
thought:--
[Music.]
After a time, the striving figure first heard early in the first
number of this suite, _Legend_, appears. The thumping accents of
the festal dance are now heard again, softly, and soon we hear
the opening tune. The wild excitement begins to return, growing
to a frenzy in which a reminiscence of the first theme of the
_Legend_ may be noticed. Soon the music sinks down again, but
never losing its strongly-marked accents, and now hastening its
course. The second festive theme is heard softly, high in the
scale. Faster and faster, but still subdued, grows the music, the
striving figure of the _Legend_ being prominent. A broadening out
then comes and with it a magnificent, raw strength, in which is
heard the romantic call that opens the whole work in the
introduction to the first movement. The bare tonic is now struck
with a gesture of great force. A roll of sound follows. Again the
bare note is sounded, and again the roll of sound succeeds. The
last dozen bars thunder solely on the tonic note, with a rude,
but stern and manly elemental absence of harmonic colouring,
typifying with undeniable dignity the savage, but often
impressive and noble figure of the Red Man, forgotten now that
his great race has been succeeded by the greatest and most
striking nation of the white races--the Republic of the West.
The _Indian Suite_ is obtainable in pianoforte score.
OPUS 49. AIR AND RIGAUDON, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1894 (Breitkopf & Härtel).
This work has been curiously neglected. It comes just at the
beginning of MacDowell's more mature period, but nobody seems to
know much about it. It is true that it lacks the definitely
indicated poetic basis that is a feature of the composer's finest
work, but it is a well written and melodious composition. It is
at least more deserving of attention than the popular _Hexentanz,
Op. 17_, and the _Etude de Concert in F sharp, Op. 36_, but these
two owe their popularity to the virtuoso pianist. Grove's
_Dictionary of Music and Musicians_ refers to _Op. 49_ as "some
dances published in a Boston collection."
OPUS 50. SECOND SONATA, EROICA, IN G MINOR, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1895 (Breitkopf & Härtel).
_Dedicated to William Mason._
"_Flos regum Arthurus._"
1. _Slow, with nobility_--_Fast, passionately, etc._
2. _Elf-like, as light and swift as possible._
3. _Tenderly, longingly, yet with passion._
4. _Fiercely, very fast._
The _Sonata Eroica_ is perhaps the most beautiful and noble,
although not the grandest or most stirring, of MacDowell's four
pianoforte sonatas. It has not the weight and power of the
_Sonata Tragica, Op. 45_, but in its beauty and noble dignity it
is infinitely more impressive. The whole work was inspired by the
Arthurian legends that MacDowell, with his love of ancient
chivalry and romance, loved to idealise. In the sonata he has
illuminated his subject with compelling nobleness of thought and
beauty of effect, freely adapting the traditional musical form to
the needs of his poetic purpose. The work requires a considerable
amount of study for its finished performance, as well as a
knowledge and understanding of its source of inspiration. Heard
at its best it is a magnificent solo piece, only surpassed by the
composer's own two later sonatas, the _Norse, Op. 57_, and the
_Keltic, Op. 59_.
1. The first movement is notable for its variety of _tempo_ and
expression, every page containing new indications as to these in
the illuminating and characteristic English of the composer. He
has told us that the movement as a whole typifies the coming of
Arthur, and as such we may leave it. The traditional sonata form
is freely adapted to the poetic requirements of the movement, but
the result is rather ragged. The music itself, however, is deeply
inspired and full of fire. The simple, yet pathetic second
subject is recalled again in the slow movement.
2. The fanciful and "elf-like" _scherzo_ movement was suggested
to the composer by Doré's picture of a knight in a wood,
surrounded by mythological forest folk. The music is imaginative
and cleverly written, but MacDowell afterwards considered the
movement as a whole to be "an aside" from the general content of
the sonata. The present writer thinks that this _scherzo_ may be
omitted by a performer who satisfies himself that it is not an
essential part of the Arthurian concept of the whole. If the
sonata is played simply as programme music, however, it benefits
by the inclusion of this movement.
3. This movement is headed, _Tenderly, longingly, yet with
passion_, and is considered by many of the composer's admirers to
be one of his most beautiful inspirations. It is, according to
MacDowell himself, a musical representation of Guinevere,
Arthur's lovely queen. Quite independent of the rest of the
sonata, the movement is a tone poem of rare beauty, expressiveness
and passion, although the melody entering at its eleventh bar
connects it with the preceding movement.
4. The last movement represents the passing of Arthur. It is
strikingly suggestive of the closing days of the Arthurian drama,
the tragic note being often impressively struck, although not so
definitely as in the _Sonata Tragica_. The import of the movement
is satisfying to those who believe that the days of romance and
chivalry closed with the fall of Arthur and his knights, despite
the attempts in the Middle Ages to revive the past. The movement
as a whole is physically exhausting, except to the very strong.
The great climax arrives some way before the end of the work, the
music seeming gradually to ebb away after it as though it were
but recounting the last scenes of Arthur's death. The two final
pages sadly recall the opening theme of the first movement,
typifying the coming of Arthur. The coda is of moving tenderness,
indicating the tragedy of Guinevere. A final and elevated
outburst is heard and then the sonata ends with a prolonged
chord. Altogether there is something very noble and beautiful
about this sonata, from which the magnificence and surpassing
power and beauty of the two later ones do not detract.
OPUS 51. WOODLAND SKETCHES, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1896 (P.L. Jung. Assigned, 1899 to Arthur P.
Schmidt).
1. _To a Wild Rose._
2. _Will o' the Wisp._
3. _At an Old Trysting-place._
4. _In Autumn._
5. _From an Indian Lodge._
6. _To a Water-lily._
7. _From Uncle Remus._
8. _A Deserted Farm._
9. _By a Meadow Brook._
10. _Told at Sunset._
These widely known pieces were composed during the last part of
MacDowell's residence at Boston, just before he left for New York
to take up his duties as professor of music at Columbia
University. In these _Woodland Sketches_ we come for the first
time to the point at which his pianoforte poems are absolutely
responsive to elemental moods, unaffected in style and yet
distinguished, free from commonplace, speaking with a personal
note that is inimitable. They are, as a whole, mature Nature
poems of an exquisite and charming order, beautiful not only for
their outward manifestations, but for the deeper significance
they give to their sources of inspiration.
1. _To a Wild Rose_ (_with simple tenderness_). This is one of
the most charming and well known of MacDowell's small pieces. It
is founded on a simple melody of the Brotherton Indians, and has
a poise of the most refined and beautiful order. The composer was
always afraid of the less intelligent music lovers "tearing it up
by the roots." A vocal arrangement has been made by Herman
Hagedorn, but the words are sickly and commonplace in sentiment,
and so unnaturally cramped, that the song is artistically
worthless.
2. _Will o' the Wisp_ (_Swift and light; fancifully_). This is a
very imaginative piece, full of mysterious and shadowy lightness,
and swift of movement. It seems to just float over the keys and
in its general effect is fascinating and spirit-like, with
dancing little lights flickering in the shadows.
3. _At an Old Trysting-place_ (_Somewhat quaintly; not too
sentimentally_). This is the shortest piece of the set, and is
only thirty bars long. It is cramped into one page in the current
edition of the sketches. The melody is tender, undulating and
expressive and is supported by full but always clear chords, with
typical modulations. The broadness of the chord writing, together
with the general tone of the piece as a whole, seems to call for
orchestral colouring and foreshadows MacDowell's most advanced
period. As a whole, it is contemplative, expressing the
wistfulness of one who stands at a quiet place, musing on bygone
meetings there.
4. _In Autumn_ (_Buoyantly, almost exuberantly_). MacDowell threw
an irresistible joyous excitement into this piece (as he did
later in the superb _The Joy of Autumn_, from _New England Idyls,
Op. 62_). _In Autumn_ opens with a brisk staccato theme, followed
by little chromatic runs which seem to suggest the whistling of
the wind through the tree-tops. A middle section brings a
complete change of mood, as if questioning the elements. A
mysterious and fanciful little passage leads to a resumption of
the opening joy of existence. In short, this piece is most
exhilarating, and pulsates with life and with an exuberance that
is most infectious.
5. _From an Indian Lodge_ (_Sternly, with great emphasis_). This
is as strong and impressive a piece as MacDowell ever composed
for the pianoforte. From the first bar the note of the stern
stolidity of the Red man is struck. The rude, elemental power of
the bare octaves of the introductory bars is unmistakable. The
ensuing stolid oration, punctuated by emotionless grunts, is an
ingenious musical sketch of a pow-wow scene in an Indian wigwam.
The piece closes with a reminiscence of the last part of the
introduction, first softly and then very loudly, the final chords
being of orchestral-like sonority. The whole composition is one
of the best in the set for showing MacDowell's ability to create
atmosphere. The scene of the Indian lodge is unmistakable.
6. _To a Water-lily_ (_In dreamy, swaying rhythm_). This is a
remarkable little piece of lyrical tone painting. It is in the
key of F sharp major, and is mostly played on the black keys. Its
chords are rich and, except in the short middle section, scored
on three staves, yet always with an effect of the utmost
lightness of poise. The piece is vividly suggestive of a
water-lily floating delicately on quiet water, but in the
questioning little middle section something seems to disturb the
water, and for a moment the flower rocks uneasily. The opening
theme returns and the piece ends with the utmost delicacy of
effect. _To a Water-lily_ is generally admitted to be one of the
most exquisite and perfect lyrics MacDowell ever composed for the
pianoforte.
7. _From Uncle Remus_ (_With much humour; joyously_). American
youngsters delight in the negro tales of "Uncle Remus," and this
piece opens with an unbridled joviality that continues to the
end. There is a wealth of jolly humour that is delightfully frank
and infectious without being commonplace. It is rich and real,
with a breadth that was a captivating feature of MacDowell's
personal sense of humour.
8. _A Deserted Farm_ (_With deep feeling_). A deeper note is
struck in this piece, the opening theme being very grave. Later a
wistful tenderness comes over the whole, but the grave melody
returns and in this mood the piece ends. The whole atmosphere of
it is one of loneliness, and, except for a sonorous bar or two,
its expression is subdued. It gives an impression of the quiet
that hangs around an old country home long since deserted, where
human life once existed with all its joys and sorrows.
9. _By a Meadow Brook_ (_Gracefully, merrily_). This goes
bubbling and sparkling along, now swirling round a little rock,
now running over a little waterfall, but always going merrily on
until softer and softer grows the tonality, finally vanishing
from musical sight. The piece is purely a play of tone, but never
shallow, for it suggests not only a particular type of Nature
scene, but the significance of the beauty and goodness it
symbolises.
10. _Told at Sunset_ (_With pathos_). This piece is of some
importance from the fact that it contains thematic allusions to
two of the preceding numbers. It opens with a sad, reflective
theme that is reminiscent of _A Deserted Farm_. It proceeds for
nineteen bars, dying softly away high in the scale. After a
moment's silence, a softly breathed, but firmly emphasised
marching tune appears, marked _Faster sturdily_. It grows
gradually louder until it is thundered out in its full strength,
with something of the nervous accentuation peculiar to Elgar's
music. It dies gradually away again, until nothing is left but a
few last faint references to its sturdy quality. The grave theme
of _A Deserted Farm_ (_No._ 8) is now introduced (transposed a
semitone lower than the original to F minor), freely altered, and
infused with more intense expressiveness. The conclusion is
dramatic, for after twenty-four bars of deep and tender
contemplation comes an impressive silence--and then the stern and
solemn chords of the latter part of the introduction to _From an
Indian Lodge_ are heard, first softly and then with virile
orchestral _fortissimo_, and with this the piece closes.
OPUS 52. THREE CHORUSES, FOR MALE VOICES.
_First Published_, 1897 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _Hush, hush!_
2. _A Voice from the Sea._
3. _The Crusaders._
These part-songs are finely written and full of suggestiveness.
_Hush, hush!_ creates the atmosphere suggested by its title. _A
Voice from the Sea_ and _The Crusaders_ are settings of some of
the composer's own verses. The sea song tells of the north wind's
wrath, the roaring sea on the rugged shore and of a woman with a
torch, looking out into the darkness, moaning: "Thy will be
done." The whole song graphically suggests the dangers of the
sea. The third chorus is heroic and strong, not treating of the
forces of nature, as does the preceding number, but with the
bold, adventurous daring, fired with religious zeal, of the old
Crusaders. The music of _The Crusaders_ is worthy of its theme.
OPUS 53. TWO CHORUSES, FOR MALE VOICES.
_First Published_, 1898 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _Bonnie Ann._
2. _The Collier Lassie._
These are charming part-songs, and bear the composer's individual
stamp. The groups of male voice choruses of Ops. 52, 53 and 54,
present a fine aspect of MacDowell's work, although they are not
of his most important output. Presumably a good reason why they
are so seldom performed in Europe is that they are little known
here; it is certainly not because their inspiration or effect is
poor. The composer was conductor of the Mendelssohn Glee Club, an
old-established American Male Voice Choir, about the date when
these part-songs were written.
OPUS 54. TWO CHORUSES, FOR MALE VOICES.
_First Published_, 1898 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _A Ballad of Charles the Bold._
2. _Midsummer Clouds._
These two choruses are some of the finest of MacDowell's little
known part-songs for male voices, and are both written to his own
lines. The first is a stirring ballad of olden times:--
_Duke Charles rode forth at early dawn
Through drifting morning mists,
His armour frosted by the dew
Gleamed sullenly defiance....
... All day long the battle raged.
And spirits mingled with the mist
That wreathed the warring knights...._
Charles, although his charger is led by Death against the foe,
himself falls a victim to the tireless Reaper.
The second chorus, _Midsummer Clouds_, is in pleasant contrast to
the blood and war spirit of the first. In it we have the
imaginative charm and beauty of lines like the following:--
_Through the clear meadow blue
Wander fleecy white lambs...._
There is a certain depth about the song, however, as if the
scenic suggestion is only a symbol of something greater and more
human, and this feeling is increased by the last verse:--
_And the light dies away
As the silent dim shapes
Sail on through the gloaming,
Towards dreamland's gates._
OPUS 55. SEA PIECES, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1898 (P.L. Jung. Assigned 1899 to Arthur P.
Schmidt).
1. _To the Sea._
2. _From a Wandering Iceberg._
3. _A.D. 1620._
4. _Starlight._
5. _Song._
6. _From the Depths._
7. _Nautilus._
8. _In Mid-Ocean._
The _Sea Pieces_ contain some of the finest of MacDowell's
suggestive tone poetry. They are chiefly remarkable for their
exhibiting the composer's ability to suggest a big scene, or a
dramatic or emotional content of far-reaching significance, in an
incredibly small space. The power and breadth of some of the
pieces is great, while their beauty of tone, displaying the
powers of the pianoforte from _pppp_ to _fff_, is rich and full
in its harmonic construction. Although the chords seem to call
for orchestral colouring, the effect is always clear and ringing
on the pianoforte, whilst the melodies are some of the most noble
and dignified of MacDowell's short pieces. As a contrast to the
strength of some of the numbers in the set, others are of an
exquisite and quiet beauty. Altogether the _Sea Pieces_ make up
one of the most superb pianoforte albums in existence, for they
are tone poems of unsurpassed beauty, strength of character,
nobleness of thought and unerring atmospheric suggestion,
touching the high water mark of the composer's inspirations. Each
piece is headed by a verse of the composer's own writing, except
the first, sixth and seventh, which have single lines only. The
poems are included in the published book of his verse.
1. _To the Sea_ (_With dignity and breadth_). This is headed:--
_Ocean, thou mighty monster_,
and is a tone poem of remarkable power. It is but thirty-one bars
in length and yet it contains more solid material, breadth and
perfectly concentrated splendour than many an orchestral tone
poem of symphonic proportions. The graduations of tone found in
the piece are very fine and could only have been written by one
who knew intimately the tonal resources of the modern pianoforte.
The chord writing spreads over a wide area of the keyboard, but
is remarkable for its clarity. It is indeed extremely difficult
to call to mind any other composer who could have painted a tone
picture so big in outlook and so complete in itself, in such a
small space as MacDowell has done here.
2. _From a Wandering Iceberg_ (_Serenely_). This piece suggests a
towering iceberg gradually approaching, passing by in all its
splendour, and going on toward _realms of burning light_. The
tone variety ranges from _as soft and smooth as possible_ to a
virile, orchestral _fff_. The melody of the piece is very
beautiful and the whole thing has a curious icy clearness about
it that is remarkably realistic. The last seven bars contain
music as tender and serene as anything MacDowell ever composed.
3. _A.D. 1620_ (_In unbroken rolling rhythm_). This represents
the voyage of the pilgrim fathers and is a four-page piece, about
double the length of the preceding two. Its character is
generally stern, and the rolling of the lumbering ship is vividly
suggested. The middle portion consists of a magnificent song
marked _Sturdily and sternly, but without change of rhythm_. The
tune is not beautiful, but it is strong and inspiring, and in
these respects it is unique. Its power is remarkable even for
MacDowell. As the preceding part gradually led up to the song, so
in its repetition it gradually dies away, as if the ship had
approached and passed by, bearing its load of the men, women and
children who were to found the great Republic of the West.
4. _Starlight_ (_Tenderly_). This is a tender and beautiful
little inspiration. It has a melodic and harmonic outlook of the
exquisite poise that marks MacDowell's finest work. The light and
shade of the piece call for perfect control of tone production on
the part of the performer. It is lighter and more finely
conceived than the preceding pieces in this set, and is a very
perfect tone suggestion of the loveliness of a quiet, starlit
sea.
5. _Song_ (_In changing moods_). This opens softly with a cheery
song which has a rough and hearty chorus. A deeper emotion is
sounded where the music is marked _passionately_, and after this
comes a passage of wistful tenderness. The song is resumed,
together with its chorus, but near the end the tender portion is
recalled, and the piece ends with a subdued and thoughtful
reminiscence of the air.
6. _From the Depths_ (_In languid swaying rhythm_).This is one of
MacDowell's greater inspirations and is headed:--
_And who shall sound the mystery of the seas._
This is a magnificent tone poem. We first have a picture of the
sea, calm, but sinister, and then we see it working up to its
full power and fury in a storm. The gradations of tone range from
a sombre, mysterious _ppp_ to an _fff_ of furious power. The
writing is very full and rich, and there are passages of a
stupendous strength and magnificence of effect seldom found
outside MacDowell's own music.
7. _Nautilus_ (_Delicately, gracefully_). This is headed:--
_A fairy sail and a fairy boat_
and is the gem of the set. The writing is of exquisite
gracefulness and charm. The scenery, as the little voyage
proceeds, is of fresh loveliness and constantly changing, while
the curious, indecisive rhythm is unmistakably suggestive of an
uncanny boat trip in quiet water. The whole piece is one of
perpetual charm and delight to the ear.
8. _In Mid-Ocean_ (_With deep feeling_). Here we find the deeper
note struck again:--
_Inexorable! Thou straight line of eternal fate...._
The music of this piece is transporting in its majestic nobility
and magnificent, sweeping strength. It is one of the most superb
of MacDowell's short pieces. From the deep and sonorous opening
bars, through passionately mounting fury, to the sombre and
mysterious close--in all of it we are confronted with the work of
an unmistakably inspired master. With this fitting, unsurpassed
picture, not of the outward might of the sea alone, but of the
mysterious, relentless and terrible beauty of its significance as
Fate, MacDowell concluded his _Sea Pieces_--Tone poems of
artistic supremacy, of inimitable strength and loveliness of
expression, that will live as long as there are men and women who
are stirred by the deep power of music to give expression to
God's Creation.
OPUS 56. FOUR SONGS, FOR VOICE AND PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1898 (P.L. Jung. Later assigned to Arthur P.
Schmidt).
1. _Long Ago, Sweetheart Mine._
2. _The Swan Bent Low to the Lily._
3. _A Maid Sings Light._
4. _As the Gloaming Shadows Creep._
This is a very beautiful group of songs, made from the best of
the composer's artistic material. They are of pure and uncommonly
high quality, expressing happiness, tenderness and irresistible
charm. The verses of each are the composer's own, those of the
last number being after Frauenlob.
1. _Long Ago_ (_Simply, with pathos_). This song has a sadness
and tenderness which, together with its words, give it an
irresistible appeal. The scene it suggests is that of an elderly
couple, for whom life is drawing to a close, recalling the
far-off days when their undying love for each other commenced.
The expression of the music is very human and free from any
commonplace sentiment.
2. _The Swan Bent Low to the Lily_ (_With much feeling_). This
song is an exquisite and charming little lyric.
3. _A Maid Sings Light_ (_Brightly, archly_). This song has a
captivating delightfulness and warns off a lad, lest he lose his
heart to the fair maid who not only sings light, but loves light.
4. _As the Gloaming Shadows Creep_ (_Tenderly_). This is one of
MacDowell's finest songs. The words are "after Frauenlob," and
were used previously by the composer in _As the Gloaming Shadows
Creep_ in _Songs from the Thirteenth Century_ (without opus
number) _for Male Chorus_. The music is very tender and beautiful
in expression, and these qualities atone for the fact that the
song does not always show a perfect alliance between words and
music; its chief merit is in the outstanding quality of the
latter.
_Long Ago_ and _A Maid Sings Light_ form one of the gramophone
records made for "His Master's Voice" series by Alma Gluck. This
lyric soprano has sung the two MacDowell songs with sympathy and
perfect phrasing. The accompaniments were played by a Mr.
Bourdon, who unfortunately disregarded the composer's tone and
legato indications.
OPUS 57. THIRD SONATA, NORSE, IN D MINOR, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1900 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _Impressively; at times with impetuous vigour._
2. _Mournfully, yet with great tenderness._
3. _With much character and fire._
The two last sonatas, the _Norse, Op. 57_, and, the _Keltic, Op.
59_, are MacDowell's most superb achievements, banishing for ever
the mistaken and ignorant assertion that he was only a miniaturist
in composition. The _Norse_ sonata is separated by a wide gulf of
progress from its predecessor, the _Sonata Eroica_, being greater
in outlook, freer in form and altogether more strongly determined
and personal in character. It has a more mature strength, nobleness
and dignity, together with an inspiring and magnificent beauty and
splendour of tone power. The subject of the work was one that
MacDowell loved to dwell upon--the stirring tales of love and
mighty heroism told in the ancient Norse sagas. The barbaric, but
undoubtedly splendid spirit of those dim days seized upon his
imagination as it did upon that of the English composer, Elgar,
when he wrote his _Scenes from the Sagas of King Olaf_. The writing
in the _Norse_ sonata is of tremendous breadth and sweep of line,
only surpassed by that of the _Keltic_ sonata, (_Op. 59_), often
calling forth the utmost power of which the modern pianoforte is
capable and altogether ignoring the stretch of one pair of hands,
which have to leap the huge chordal stretches very smartly.
Notwithstanding this fullness of writing, however, the effect is
always ringing and clear. The third and fourth of MacDowell's
sonatas were dedicated by him to Grieg, but the printed copies of
the former do not bear the inscription, though those of the _Keltic_
do so.
1. The first movement opens darkly and sombrely, suggesting the
lines of the verse that heads the sonata as a whole, telling of
the great rafters in the hall at night, flashing crimson in the
flickering light of a dying log fire. The strong voice of a bard
rings out, and through this medium the tales of battles, love and
heroic valour is told. The movement has passages of tremendous
vigour, passion and depth, all painted with the unerring skill of
the composer. The final bars are of fierce and elemental power.
2. The second movement opens with a theme of tender beauty. It
develops into passionate strength, involving much intricacy of
writing and wide spread chordal work.
3. The third and last movement (it will be noted that MacDowell
abandons the scherzo movement in this sonata, as it had proved an
_aside_ in the two earlier ones) is impetuous and, as it
proceeds, becomes increasingly difficult to play. The theme of
the second movement is recalled in a passage of extreme pathos.
The final coda is most impressive, beginning _Dirge-like_--_very
heavy and somber_; five bars from the end there is a moment's
silence, and then the opening theme of the first movement rings
out and the sonata ends with the utmost breadth and strength.
OPUS 58. THREE SONGS, FOR VOICE AND PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1899 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _Constancy_ (_New England, A.D. 1899_).
2. _Sunrise._
3. _Merry Maiden Spring._
The verses of these songs are MacDowell's own, and both words and
music here go to make up song writing of an order that is rare in
its beauty of expression, tender thought and pure lyricism.
In _Constancy_ (_New England, A.D. 1899_), indicated _Simply, but
with deep feeling_, we have one of MacDowell's best songs. It has
a tenderness and wistfulness about it that is irresistible, and
sung in the spirit of its words, which tell of an empty house and
neglected garden, it is a very beautiful thing.
_Sunrise_, marked _With power and authority_, is short and tells
of the sorrowful spectacle of a wrecked and broken ship. The
actual scene, however, seems secondary to its own significance as
a symbol of human life. The music is heavy after the style of
certain of the composer's pianoforte _Sea Pieces_ (_Op_. 55).
The third and last song, _Merry Maiden Spring_, is charming, with
a singularly bright and captivating freshness. It is indicated to
be sung _Lightly, gracefully_.
OPUS 59. FOURTH SONATA, KELTIC, IN E MINOR, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1901 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
_Dedicated to Edvard Grieg_.
1. _With great power and dignity_.
2. _With naive tenderness_.
3. _Very swift and fierce_.
The _Keltic Sonata_ is generally considered MacDowell's supreme
achievement, the great culmination of his evolution toward
musical expression of immense and rare power. The sonata is a
work of great breadth and vitality, and has a sweep of line and
noble beauty of expression that is only equalled in the supreme
efforts of genius, such as Beethoven's _Appassionata_ sonata for
instance. It is a most superb poetical romance, full of the
passion and heroic fervour of the Celtic strain in MacDowell's
own nature. It searched out his finest and deepest inspiration
when he wrote it and it grew to be part of his very being
afterwards. The whole thing is a reflection of the heroic and
stirring romances in Celtic legend. It is full of a wild beauty
and sorrow, and carries us back to those far-off days when men
lived the lives that now to us seem mythical. The graduations of
tone in the sonata range from _pppp_ to _ffff_, and although its
technical difficulties are considerable, they are worth
conquering, which is more than can be said of many things over
which the modern pianist takes infinite pains. The virtuoso
aspect of the _Keltic_ sonata, however, is always lost in the
magnificent spirit of the music. All MacDowell's finest works
require not mechanical technique only, but deep intellectual and
poetical thought to bring out their finest qualities.
1. From the first bars the majesty of the work becomes apparent.
The first movement as a whole is full of the fire of Celtic
inspiration, tinged with a wild and piercing sorrow. The final
page of it contains music of stupendous power, and the limit of
extremity of tone contrast is reached in the two last bars, one
of which is to be played _pppp_ and the other _ffff_.
2. The second movement opens with a tender and exquisite beauty,
but the music soon becomes impassioned, the dominant mood being
that wild sorrow we have already referred to.
3. The final movement is generally dark and fierce, moving
swiftly and of great technical difficulty. Near the end we notice
the direction, _Gradually increasing in violence and intensity_,
and later an unforgettable passage occurs _With tragic pathos_.
The sonata ends with a fierce rush, of enormous and elemental
power. The key to the meaning of the _Keltic_ sonata is given in
some lines of his own which MacDowell placed at its head, but
they are only part of all that he expressed in it. They should be
read together with the lines entitled _Cuchullin_ in the book of
his verses. _Cuchullin_ was considered unconquerable and even his
form, when at last frozen in death, awed all who saw it; and it
is of the might and tragedy of this old figure in Celtic legend
that the sonata seems to tell. The final pages of the last
movement may be considered as a vivid expression of the scene
which Standish O'Grady, whose work MacDowell loved, has so
superbly described:--"Cuculain sprang forth, but as he sprang,
Lewy MacConroi pierced him through the bowels. Then fell the
great hero of Gael. Thereat the sun darkened, and the earth
trembled ... when, with a crash, fell that pillar of heroism, and
that flame of the warlike valour of Erin was extinguished." The
stricken warrior made his way painfully to a tall pillar, the
grave of some bygone fighter, and tied himself to it, dying with
his sword in his hand and his terrifying helmet flashing in the
sun. In O'Grady's words:--"So stood Cuculain, even in death-pangs,
a terror to his enemies, for a deep spring of stern valour was
opened in his soul, and the might of his unfathomable spirit
sustained him. Thus perished Cuculain." ... Superb as these lines
are, they are equalled in expression by the music of MacDowell's
_Keltic_ sonata.
OPUS 60. THREE SONGS, FOR VOICE AND PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1902 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _Tyrant Love._
2. _Fair Springtide._
3. _To the Golden-rod._
This is the last song group that MacDowell published. It contains
music of great charm and poetic beauty, with a grave tenderness
that was ever his own. The verses are all from his pen and show
his unusual literary gifts.
_Tyrant Love_ (_Lightly, yet with tenderness_). This is the least
fine of the three, and yet in itself it is a song of rare quality
and far above the commonplace. The music is beautiful, although
not free from distortion of the words.
_Fair Springtide_ (_Very slow, with pathos_). This is one of the
best and most mature of MacDowell's songs. It makes a lovely
solo, full of sweet and tender sadness, seldom failing to move
its hearers. Both as regards words and music, it comes straight
from the soul of its composer.
_To the Golden-rod_ (_With tender grace_). This is a pure and
delectable piece of lyrical work, in MacDowell's most delightful
style. The verse tells of a lissom maid whose wayward grace
neither sturdy Autumn nor the frown of Winter can ever efface.
The words are obviously fanciful, but the song has a graceful
charm and fragrance.
OPUS 61. FIRESIDE TALES, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1902 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
_Dedicated to Mrs. Seth Low_.
1. _An Old Love Story._
2. _Of Br'er Rabbit._
3. _Of Salamanders._
4. _A Haunted House._
5. _By Smouldering Embers._
These pieces show a significant change in the voice of MacDowell.
A certain strange, farawayness of thought is apparent, and a
grave tenderness that is not quite like anything he had
previously written. The fine beauty of the previous short pieces
here gives way to a new kind of serious and even sombre aspect,
and indeed the composer seems to have entered on a new period.
Unfortunately the next work after these _Fireside Tales_ is the
last music he published, and so the certainty of the commencement
of a new period cannot definitely be established. The writing is
much more masterly than in any of the earlier short pieces,
including the _Sea Pieces_, even though these have greater
spirit.
1. _An Old Love Story (Simply and tenderly)._ This opens with the
familiar flowing type of MacDowell melody, but with the
succeeding section in D flat major, marked _ppp_, comes in a new
and earnest expressiveness. After this the opening theme returns
and the piece ends tenderly and subdued. _An Old Love Story_ is,
on the whole, quite characteristic, and certainly very beautiful.
It seems to bring with it an atmosphere of fading, but still
cherished, bygone happiness, and its thought is tender and
wistful.
2. _Of Br'er Rabbit (With much spirit and humour--lightly)._ This
opens with a roguish and catching tune which is brilliantly
worked out with much variety, droll humour, and masterly skill.
The piece has, of course, an affinity with _From Uncle Remus
(Woodland Sketches, Op. 51_), since Br'er Rabbit is Uncle Remus'
chief hero; but the maturity and masterly handling of the
material in _Of Br'er Rabbit_ is unquestionably finer than
anything in the earlier piece. MacDowell had much affection for
his _Br'er Rabbit_ creation, and it is certainly one of the most
delightful of all his brighter compositions; the humour is so
droll and so characteristic of himself.
3. _Of Salamanders (As delicately as possible)._ This is a
fanciful, intricate piece, but very delicate in effect. It is
technically difficult to play, requiring an absolute control of
finger work. It was rather a favourite with the composer. 4. _A
Haunted House (Mysteriously)._ This is one of the most imaginative
and realistic of MacDowell's smaller pianoforte pieces. It opens
_very dark and sombre_, developing into a wild and eerie
_fortissimo_. The middle section requires swiftness of finger work
to suggest the nervous expectancy aroused by the preceding
mysteriousness. The ghost-like effect returns, then gradually
recedes again into impenetrable gloom.
6. _By Smouldering Embers (Musingly)._ This opens with a quiet,
tender theme after the style of _An Old Love Story_. The piece is
quite short, but displays a mastery both of harmony and
counterpoint. The music is grave and deep, but very tender. The
little middle section stands out in its almost passionate, but
sonorous and controlled emotion. Toward the end, the music
becomes very moving and subdued, dying away with careful and
sensitive tone reduction. The impression left by this piece, and
by the _Fireside Tales_ as a whole, is that the composer was
conscious of a heavy responsibility in his work; that he felt, as
Elgar has explained, that "the creative artist suffers in
creating, or in contemplating the unending influence of his
creation ... for even the highest ecstacy of 'Making' is mixed
with the consciousness of the sombre dignity of the eternity of
the artist's responsibility."
OPUS 62. NEW ENGLAND IDYLS, FOR PIANOFORTE.
_First Published_, 1902 (Arthur P. Schmidt).
1. _An Old Garden_.
2. _Mid-Summer_.
3. _Mid-Winter_.
4. _With Sweet Lavender_.
5. _In Deep Woods_.
6. _Indian Idyl_.
7. _To an Old White Pine_.
8. _From Puritan Days_.
9. _From a Log Cabin_.
10. _The Joy of Autumn_.
This album is the last work MacDowell published. It contains, not
only some of his most beautiful and advanced lyrical tone poems,
but, in _Mid-Winter_ and _From a Log Cabin_, two of the most
significant and inspired of all his shorter pieces. In the _New
England Idyls_ as a whole, we have the eloquence and poetry of
MacDowell in its fullest maturity. The American atmosphere is
strong in these pieces, the scene suggested by each one belonging
unmistakably to New England. In addition to the expressive and
suggestive power of these idyls, they possess a fragrance and
freshness that are rare in music. Each piece is headed by a verse
of the composer's, and it should also be noted that he has
dropped his English directions as to expression, etc., and gone
back to Italian. There is no great gain in this, for the terms he
uses, although in the language traditionally employed for the
purpose, are by no means always the actual terms of traditional
standing; he simply took the unnecessary trouble to translate his
English-thought directions into a foreign language. His Italian
is not always that generally used in music.
1. _An Old Garden_ (_Semplice, teneramente_). This opens with an
expressive and tender little theme. In the middle part a
beautifully formed lyricism appears. The opening theme eventually
reappears and the piece ends with quiet, but rich and sonorous
chords.
2. _Mid-Summer_ (_Come in sogno_). This is a tone impression of a
drowsy summer's day:--
... _Above, the lazy cloudlets drift,
Below, the swaying wheat_....
It is exquisitely done, with the composer's usual unerring
instinct for creating atmosphere. The technical mastery is finer
than that shown in the _Woodland Sketches_, and the tonality
ranges in the thirty-six bars of its length from _fortissimo_ to
softly breathed _ppp_, and at the end even _pppp_.
3. _Mid-Winter_ (_Lento_). Here we find a piece of dramatic
significance and great power. Its deeper meaning is expressed in
the verses that head it:--
_In shrouded awe the world is wrapped,
The sullen wind doth groan,
'Neath winding-sheet the earth is stone,
The wraiths of snow have flown_.
_And lo! a thread of fate is snapped,
A breaking heart makes moan;
A virgin cold doth rule alone
From old Mid-winter's throne_.
The piece opens with an impressive theme uttered _ppp_. The whole
atmosphere soon becomes one of vast and solemn content, rising to
an intense short outburst. Soon a new and rather bleak theme is
heard with mournful, clashing harmonies; the whole effect is
vividly recalled in _From a Log Cabin_, No. 9 of these idyls, the
only piece in the set to equal this one in force. After some
commentary, a series of three rushing, ascending scale passages
are introduced, beginning _pppp_, then gradually becoming louder
until they culminate on high and powerful chords. The opening
theme reappears at the height of the climax and is expressed with
passionate intensity. Gradually the music dies solemnly away
again. The whole of this piece appears very different to anything
of MacDowell's earlier work; its deep and almost fateful
significance, together with its problematical character, is a bid
for something even greater than the _Sea Pieces_ (_Op_. 55).
4. _With Sweet Lavender_ (_Molto tenero e delicato_). This piece
opens with a tender and expressive theme, which is one of the
most beautiful of the composer's inspirations. The passage marked
_la melodia con molto_ introduces that new and deeper note which
is a feature in MacDowell's last two pianoforte albums. It breaks
out presently into passionate longing, but the return of the
sweet opening theme, _ppp motto delicato_, brings the feeling of
quiet wistful contemplation back again. The verses at the head of
the piece attribute its mood to the reading of a packet of old
love letters.
5. _In Deep Woods_ (_Largo impressivo_). This opens with loud
and resounding chords, expressive of the majesty and beauty of
American forests. At the eleventh bar a lovely theme enters, and
the music from now onwards is written on four staves, but is
always clear and fresh. As the full grandeur of the woods is
felt, the theme takes on a splendid exultation, gradually sinking
away as:--
... _The mystery of immortal things
Broods o'er the woods at eve_.
The piece was one of the composer's favourites; he inscribed its
opening bar on a portrait of himself which he gave to Mr. W.W.A.
Elkin, his London publisher and friend.
6. _Indian Idyl_ (_Leggiero, ingenuo_). This is a lovely tone
poem, opening with a characteristic little figure reminiscent of
the opening of the _Love-Song_ in the _Indian Suite for
Orchestra_ (_Op_. 48). The theme is punctuated by little
flute-like embellishments. The middle section, _poco piu lento_,
is idyllic, with a perfectly balanced, swaying rhythm. In playing
this portion, the left hand should describe an equal series of
semicircles as it alights first on the low chord, and then on the
single note two octaves higher. The opening theme returns with
the flute-like embellishments prominent, but all heard softly, as
from
... _afar through the summer night
Sigh the wooing flutes' soft strains_.
7. _To an Old White Pine_ (_Gravemente con dignità_). The
characteristic feature of this piece is its sense of alternate
mounting and declining strength. At about the middle of the
movement a deeper solemnity is noticed, in a passage suggesting
the _swaying, gentle forest trees_ that whisper at the feet of
the huge old pines of an American forest. Some expressive and
ingenious little woodland touches are included in the quiet
concluding bars.
8. _From Puritan Days_. "_In Nomine Domini_" (_Con enfasi
smisurata_). A stern theme opens this piece, while a passage
marked _implorando_ seems to suggest the pious attitude of the
immortal founders of the New England States. Soon the music
becomes hurried and more impassioned, the pious, despairing
motive being prominent. The opening theme is now thundered out
_fortissimo_ and the piece ends with a sense of stern and
rock-like strength of character.
9. _From a Log Cabin_ (_Con profondo espressione_). This piece,
which should be played with great expression, stands on a level
with _Mid-Winter_, No. 3 in this album. It strikes the new and
sombre note already referred to and carries with it a sense of
deep and vast import. The composer's unerring feeling for
atmosphere is given full play. The piece as a whole is deep and
problematic. The lines at its head:
_A house of dreams untold_,
_It looks out over the whispering tree-tops
And faces the setting sun_.
refer to MacDowell's log-cabin in which he used to compose, and
they are the same that are inscribed over his grave. _From a Log
Cabin_ opens quietly, with a grave theme and a clashing
accompaniment that produces a different effect to that of any of
the composer's earlier work, but recalls vividly the bleak second
theme of _Mid-Winter_. Some powerful though small climaxes may be
noticed, and then a new theme is heard softly, _con tenerezza,
pensieroso_, over a florid accompaniment. After this has run its
course, it is followed by intensely passionate outbursts of
sorrow, the whole culminating in a thunderous repetition of the
first theme. This reappears with great solemnity, which is
emphasized by tolling, drum-like strokes, in the bass. The close
is mysterious and impressive; the widespread chords, the wailing,
clashing discords in the final bar but one, and the far away last
chord, _pppp_, all tend to increase the depth and mystery of the
piece. _From a Log Cabin_ is an inspired tone poem suggesting the
atmosphere of a quiet evening in the woods, with the slow setting
of the sun in the Golden West; a scene by which Nature often
creates the sense of the mysterious more impressively and truly
than any man-made attempts can equal. This view of declining day,
the gradual shutting off of light and life, was strangely
prophetic when MacDowell wrote it, for his own end came by a
similar process in the form of an ever deepening gloom fatalling
obscuring his mental light.
10. _The Joy of Autumn_ (_Allegro vivace_). This is a splendidly
exhilarating piece and the longest by far of the set. The music
leaps along with the sheer joy of living, the themes being
singularly fresh and bright. The whole number is written in a
brilliant and masterly manner, requiring a polished pianoforte
technique to secure its full effect, especially in the exultant
whirl and rush in the final page. A comparison of this piece with
the _In Autumn_ of the _Woodland Sketches_ (_Op_. 51) makes the
great advancement of MacDowell in the technique of composition
obvious even to the tyro. _The Joy of Autumn_ is one of the most
brilliant and spontaneous things in modern music; it is never
commonplace, it is always MacDowel-like in spirit and artistic
worth, and shows its author at the height of his maturity. With
this joyous and beautiful piece, MacDowell bade farewell to his
God-given creative art. Happily he did not know at the time that
_From a Log Cabin_ was to prove a truer-expression of his future;
a prophetic description of the tragic end of his life.
WORKS WITHOUT OPUS NUMBERS
SIX LITTLE PIECES ON SKETCHES FOR PIANOFORTE, BY J.S. BACH,
Published by Arthur P. Schmidt.
1. _Courante_.
2. _Menuet_.
3. _Gigue_.
4. _Menuet_.
5. _Menuet_.
6. _Marche_.
These are illuminating little MacDowell-like adaptations of some
sketches by "one of the world's mightiest tone poets," as
MacDowell described J.S. Bach. They are charmingly and cleverly
written, although not always satisfying, it is to be feared, to
the strict purist.
FROM THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY (TRANSCRIPTIONS FOR PIANOFORTE OF
HARPSICHORD AND CLAVICHORD PIECES).
Published by Arthur P. Schmidt.