TH E ETUD E 173 Jf C QUESTION S J§& sfojpss and sa^k WANSWERSff [Our subscribers are invited to send in questions for this department. Please write them on one side of the paper only, and not with other things on the same sheet IN EVERY CASE THE WRITER'S FULL ADDRESS MUST BE GIVEN, or the questions will receive no attention. In no case will the writer18 name be printed to the questions in THE ETUDE. Questions that have no general interest will not receive atten-tion.] B. H. W.—1. You will find an interesting letter from Miss Clara Murray, of Chicago, in this issue of THE ETUDE, department of " Woman's Work in Music." This letter will answer your question as to the difficulty of learning to play the harp as compared with the piano. 2. A good harp is usually said to cost as much as a good piano. American harps are the best in the world. Lyon & Healy, of Chicago, are the leading harp manufacturers. You can get a good second-hand harp from them for a moderate price. 3. Instruction in harp-playing can be had in the large cities from private teachers and in conservatories for $2.00 a lesson. J. L S.—According to the rule given by Dr. Clarke in his " Har-mony " for the three progressions of dominant sevenths, first, to the tonic; second, to the submediant; third, to the dominant of the relative minor, the succession of chords F-sharp, C, E-flat, A—F, B, D, G,—E, B, D, G-sharp—F, A, C, A, would be analyzed as follows: First, the chord of the minor ninth or the supertonic of C—the key of the exercise you mention being C—with the root omitted. The second is the chord of the dominant with the seventh, a regular progression of the supertonic; the third, the dominant of A, the relative minor of C (the third progression of the dominant); the fourth chord cited is the submediant chord of A-minor, the second progression of the dominant. M. W.—It Is not possible to play seven notes in one hand against five in the other, or nine against five, with absolute mechanical ac-curacy. The mind is able to play three against two, but irregular groups, not multiples of three and two, must be learned each hand independent of the other—that is, practice your seven notes in one beat until you can play them as a matter of routine, similarly your five- and nine-note groups, and then bring both hands together. S. S.—1. You seem to have confused the function of a natural. The latter raises a flatted note chromatically; thus, a note on the degree A, the key of E-flat, would be played as A-flat. If that is to be chromatically raised, precede it by a natural, which makes it A. If the latter degree is to be raised, it must be preceded by a sharp. A sharp can not precede a note flatted by the signature ; thus, E-flat preceded by a sharp is not correct. Taking this principle, you can write any minor scale correctly. Consult the article on "Minor Scales ° in THE ETUDE for September, 1898, by Mr. Carl Faelten. 2. Consult a good dictionary as to the exact meaning of the words " genius " and " virtuoso." The qualities that makeup a " genius " are a matter of natural endowment, while those that distinguish the virtuoso may be gained by hard work. 3. Pianofortes were made before Beethoven's death, and he him-self had a six-octave instrument. One of his sonatas is called the " Hammerklavier Sonata." M. E. C.—It is of the utmost importance that pupils should write out their scales, arpeggios, and intervals as a part of their regular lessons. There are a number of writing-books in very general use at the present time. Why not use one for your pupils ? J. M. C.—Rachmaninoff, the Russian composer, was born in 1873, and studied under Arensky and Siloti. His C-minor "Prelude" is popular. F. B. S.—The term " negro composer " has been applied to Mr. S. Taylor-Coleridge, of England, who is a mulatto. He was born in London, 187o. He has written several songs to text by the Ameri-can negro poet, Paul Lawrence Dunbar. He is considered one of the most promising of English composers. F. D. W.—1. The scale of C to be played in sixths must start with the notes E and C. If E is above, the result is thirds; so that, to put it in sixths, the right hand takes C while the left hand starts on E below. 2. "Accents by 3, 4, 6, and 8 " refers to accenting the first of groups of 3, 4, 6, or 8 notes. For example: Scale of C, accent by 3, will p»t stress on C, F, B, etc.; by 4, C, G, D, etc.; by 6, C, B, A, etc.; by 8, C, D, E, etc. M. L.—The term usually applied to the sixth of the scale is " sub-mediant," and refers to the fact that it is the middle note of the*w&-dominant triad. Superdominant—meaning " above the dominant" —is used by some writers, but is not considered so good as the former name. L. G.—1. A hold over a bar signifies that a pause is to be made be-fore playing the notes in the following measure. 2. Canon is pronounced like the English word cannon. E. S.—1. The clef used for the tenor parts in music written for male voices is the C clef, and shows that C is on the third tpace. The sound of this C is really the same as middle C, and not the C, third space, treble clef, as some think. The C clef always shows the position of middle C. Hence, you should play the tenor parts an octave lower than if read in the treble clef. 2. The tenor trombone part in scores of symphonies, overtures, and similar works is written both in the bass clef and in the tenor clef, which places C on the fourth line. 8ome writers use the latter only; others use the bass clef, and introduce the C clef only in high passages to avoid the use of leg r lines. 3. In music scored for brass band, trombone parts may be secured either in bass or treble clefs, and so als) in popular orchestra music. It is, perhaps, best to accustom yourself to play from the bais clef. L. M.—A number of well-known theorists have been successful in teaching harmony and counterpoint by mail, and we recommend that one who has no meais of reaching a well-qualified teacher di-rectly should take up the study by correspondence. We can not recommend one teacher to the exclusion of others. Consult the ad-vertising columns of THE ETUDE. C. M. A.—Mme. Patti had an elder sister, Carlotta, born in 1810, who made her dSbut in the United States as a concert singer in 1861. Later she abandoned the stage on account of lameness. H. D.—1. Kamennoi Ostrow is pronounced Kti-mSn'-no'i, accent on the second syllable; Os'-trov, the vowel short, accent on the first syllable. The latter word means island, and the first is the name of the island. It is situated near St. Petersburg, and is a favorite promenade for high society. The island belongs to the church, and is filled with chapels and devotional shrines. Rubinstein conceived the idea of illustrating musically a number of characteristic features of the island and various phases of life to be seen there. The whole set consists of twenty-five pieces, the one generally known by the name " Kamennoi Ostrow " being No. 22. Mr. Constantin von Stern* erg says that the title of this number is " The Angel's Dream." You will note in the second part of the piece an imitation of a carillon. 2. "Sorrentina" means of Sorrento, an Italian city, and indicates a popular melody having its origin in that place, just as we speak of a Neapolitan air. D. B.—Seidl is pronounced as if spelled Sidle, the i long. Tschai-kowsky is pronounced CM-koff-&ky. The characters of the Russian alphabet are somewhat similar in shape to the Greek. All Russian names must be changed into Roman characters—transliteration it is called—in order to be represented to us. This usually reaches us through two sources, German or French. The w in Tschaikowsky is the German sound and is represented in the French or English by ff; hence the termination owski is the German equivalent for the Russian letters -which the French represent by offsky. Dvorak is a Bohemian name and is pronounced Dvorshak. The circumflex ac-cent over the vowel indicates a sound in the Bohemian language for which we have no single letter equivalent in English. Vogrich is pronounced Vohg-rikh. The final sound, the German ch, is described in THE ETUDE for March, 1899. Berlioz is a French name and is pronounced Bare-li-ohz. There is no definite accent in French. Bruch is pronounced Brookh, the oo as in hoot, the ch as directed above. Clarke's " Pronouncing Dictionary of Musical Terms " gives the correct pronunciation of a great many names. For biographic details Riemann's " Dictionary " is very good; for a large work get Grove's " Dictionary of Music and Musicians." S. A. M.—1. Organ practice does not in any way injure the piano touch; on the contrary, legato playing in general is greatly im-proved by judicious organ-practice. Mendelssohn, Saint-Saens, and our J. B. Lang are ranked as pianists and organists. It is said that Guilmant plays the piano exquisitely. 2. There is no work printed which will give you assistance for reed-organ stops, as the makers of reed-organs have different names for stops. 3. It is not advisable to have a pupil memorize everything that is given him as a lesson, and it is just as inadvisable to make a sight-reading of the lesson. Each should receive due share of attention, and both can be begun toward the close of the first year's in-struction. L. R. R.—1. The major scales should precede those of the minor. With the average pupil, taking them together is apt to cause con-fusion. 2. Mason's " Touch and Technic," volume II, gives a great variety of scale practice in accent and rhythm. Another good work on scale practice is " Measure and Rhythm," by Krause. 3. Use Landon's "Reed-organ Studies" in connection with his " Reed-organ Method." Book I can be taken up after the method has been pursued some four or five months. With Mathews' Grade I it is best not to use any additional studies until it is completed. If the pupil is not prepared to take up Grade II, some other simple set of studies, like Loeschhorn, Op. 65, might be introduced between Grades I and II. 4. A change of instruction books is a very good plan, both for the teacher and the community in which he teaches. If you have been using Landon's "Reed-organ Method" entirely, try some of the following: Karl Merz, Archer, White, and Getze. For volumes of miscellaneous studies we would mention the following: Kohler's "Etude Album" ; Arthur Foote's "Etude Album"; Kuhner's " Etude School"; Church's " Graded Course Materials," by Mathews ; and " The National Music Course." E. A. W.—In a double quartet for piano,—that is, sixteen hands,— the music is usually an eight-hand piece, doubled. There are very few pieces published for four pianos. We know of only two. B. H.—If your pupil is studying piano playing, I do not see why some of the Virgil exercises could not be used on the reed-organ with good results, provided you know the object of each exercise used, and understand thoroughly the important principles upon which the Virgil method is founded. If you are ignorant of these, do not use the exercises upon either the organ or piano, as you will certainly fail to get results. If your pupil is learning to play the reed-organ, not the piano, get a copy of Landon's excellent method for the organ. A. M. B.—1. The word "opus " usually refers to a composer's works in the order in which they were written. 2. There is no magazine devoted to kindergarten methods of music-teaching that we are aware of. H. T.—1. Mme. Adelina Patti had a sister, Carlotta, who made her dSbut as a concert singer in New York city in 1851. She after-ward sang in opera. She went to England later, but made concert tours in the United States later. We can not give the dates. 2. None of the records to whic'i we have access mention her having a violent temper. She abandoned a public career on account of lame-ness. L. A. L.—It is not an easy matter to transpose at sight with facility and accuracy. So many elements enter into it that a great deal of experience and practice are neessary. Warriner's book on " Transposition " is a very good manual of the subject, and furnishes a great amount of material for exercise. A working knowledge of harmony is required to transpose at sight music in four parts or a melody with accompaniment. H. M.—1. There is no fixed speed at which a concert waltz should be played by an orchestra The tempo is faster than when the music is used for dancing. Then, too, there is a variation in pieces, cer-. tain ones admitting of a faster time than others. Perhaps a dotted half-note set to eighty will be an average. 2. In ensemble playing (string trio or quartet) the performers are usually seated. A so'oist, should stand. MUSICAL BIGOTRY. Yo u should cooperate with your teacher in the develop-ment not merely of your technical powers and digital facility, but in that for which both strength and nimble-ness of fingers and arm exist—viz., for the uttering and enjoying of the best music; but you must not be a narrow bigot. A physician of musical taste, a very good violinist, used to play, with a friend, the lovely sonatas of Beethoven for piano and violin. After he returned from his studies in Vienna he said to his mu-sical friend, with an air of lofty and world-weary supe-riority, that he did not care any more for any music except that of Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms. It is probable that he did not really mean this, nor did he quite realize what he was saying. It was, perhaps, simply an attempt to say a smart thing. Yon Biilow, who was a master in shaping the biting crystals of the bitter salt of cynicism, called the three Bs, Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms, the holy trinity of music, and it is likely that the doctor was trying to adopt and to improve upon this dictum. Beware of epigrams ; be-ware of an ipse dixit; beware of hard, cast-iron rules ; the purpose of higher education in music is not to nar-row, but to widen our sympathies ; not to dull, but to sensitize our hearts ; not to do for us what Mrs. Brown-ing deplores among poets, to " tether to the lily or the rose" ; but to teach us, with eyes that have had fairy euphrasy rubbed upon them, to detect the mystic meanings of the world where others see it not. THE PIANIST'S BACK. IF you wish to be convinced of the ultimate connec-tion between "gri p " of the keyboard and development of the muscles which move and fix the shoulder-blade, hear Paderewski play and notice his back, remembering that a fiat and straight back can not exist without ex-cellent development not only of the shoulder-muscles, but also of the corresponding nerve-centers, from which an abundance of nervous energy must be constantly emanating. Or if it be objected that rules are not proved by reference to one example, compare the " pose " of such pianists as Paderewski, Rosenthal, and D'Albert with that of the army of round-shouldered, weak-armed recitalists vainly struggling by dint of many hours' daily practice to transform themselves into pianists of the first rank. Command or " grip " (there is no better term) of the keyboard has its chief seat not in the fingers, however strong they may be, but in a properly developed arm and shoulder such as the greatest pianists have always possessed naturally.—Macdonald Smith. From a father's letter to his daughter, written in the sixteenth century: 1 'Yo u wish to learn to play the clavichord. I assure you that you will derive little enjoyment or reputation from that if you play badly. And to play well you must give ten or twelve years to the study of playing and de-vote your whole time and attention to it." How much more easily one learns to play the pianoforte in the nineteenth century !
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