From a portrait loaned for reproduction by C. Weikert, of New York.
(See page 595.)
]
No living German composer represents the tragic and intellectual side of
modern subjective music so impressively as Brahms. The strong outlines
of his character are impressed on all his music. He is entirely opposed
to the so-called “new German school” of Liszt and Wagner, and adheres
strictly to the classical forms. No comparison, however, ought to be
made between him and Wagner, as Brahms has never turned his attention to
dramatic music. Brahms defends his own art-principles on the ground of
absolute music. His love for the strict, logical process of thematic
development proves his affinity with Bach. The leading theme is the germ
of the whole movement; and notwithstanding the episodes and secondary
themes, he is not usually drawn away from the main idea. Brahms has no
living peer in the art of developing themes; here he shows wonderful
ingenuity and infinite skill. In general, however, his themes do not
captivate us like the heaven-born melodies of Schubert and Schumann.
Strength, purity, nobility and profundity of thought, rather than
sensuous beauty, grace, lightness, naturalness and spontaneousness, are
his leading characteristics as a composer. A certain heaviness of spirit
and gloom, nay, asceticism, prevail in his music. He appears at his best
in his “German Requiem,” which many musicians consider to be his
greatest work. His symphonies and other instrumental compositions occupy
the foreground at present. Although musicians are still divided in
opinion as to the ultimate position of Brahms among the great masters,
no one can deny that his music is gaining public appreciation year by
year. He is universally recognized as the foremost living composer of
Germany.
The so-called “musical reform,” inaugurated in Germany more than a
generation ago, was not incited by Germans, but by the adopted
composers, Berlioz and Liszt. Their aim was simply to make poetical
ideas the motive and governing principle of the form and material of
their tone-works. The idea of “program” music, however, was not original
with them; in fact, it is centuries old. Beethoven was the first great
master to write elaborate program music; but his “Pastoral Symphony”
was, in his own words, “more expression of emotions than tone-painting.”
In this short statement of his faith he has clearly defined the true
scope of descriptive music. He gave poetic titles to certain other
works, as, for instance, the “Heroic Symphony,” the “Passionate” and
“Farewell” sonatas, which serve to indicate in a general way the
poetical motive that swayed his imagination. Spohr, Mendelssohn,
Schumann, Raff, Rubinstein and other later composers have followed
Beethoven’s example. Most of the program music of these masters does not
modify the traditional form of musical construction. Berlioz went much
further, and conceived the idea of using elaborate word descriptions to
give a detailed and minute exposition of his pseudo-symphonies. Berlioz
shot beyond his mark. Berlioz made his program serve as a kind of
running commentary on the music. Liszt did not attempt this; his aim was
a simpler and a better one. Symphonic Poem is the happy name for an
original form which he created in orchestral music. Some character or
event was chosen as a poetical motive easily realizable in music; as,
for instance, the Lament and Triumph of Tasso, in which the passion and
struggle of the great poet are vividly portrayed, or the wild ride of
Mazeppa, which, as in Victor Hugo’s poem, has a symbolical meaning.
Mazeppa represents the gifted man, or genius, tied down by fate, but
destined to free himself and ultimately to triumph over evil. The
galloping horse is suggested by wild triplets, and the final triumph is
expressed in the march with which the work culminates.
The symphonic poems of Liszt, and those who follow strictly his example,
are not divided into a number of distinct, separate movements like the
symphony, but the changes of tempo or movement follow each other without
break. Liszt made a prominent use of the Leitmotiv (leading-motive)
principle, which he adopted from Wagner. It will be observed that the
result, however, is wholly different, for Wagner in the course of one of
his music-dramas uses a variety of dissimilar and strongly contrasted
leading motives. His music, therefore, is based on the _polythematic_
principle, whereas the symphonic poems of Liszt are generally
_monothematic_. The leading-motive is one thing in connection with the
drama, another as employed in the concert-room. In the latter case it
serves the same purpose that it has in the fugues of Bach (mostly
founded on one theme) or in certain movements of symphonies. It is
simply the working up on the imitative principle of a leading idea,
which is modified, enlarged, curtailed and varied according to the
conditions of counterpoint, harmony, rhythm, etc. So far as thematic
imitation is concerned, the symphonic poem is an offshoot of the
symphony or overture. What the symphonic poem has gained in conciseness
of form it has lost in grandeur and impressiveness. The symphonic poem
relates to the symphony as a noble and beautiful church does to a grand,
awe-inspiring cathedral. In treating his grandest subjects—“The Divine
Comedy” of Dante, and “Faust” of Goethe—Liszt returned to the general
outlines of the symphony.
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