-ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION, $2.00-THE ETUDE MARCH, 1920 Single Copies 25 Cents VOL. XXXVIII , No. 3 The Test of Time T o have written one masterpiece in a lifetime is an accom-plishment given to so few men that those favored few are well entitled to all the honors that mankind can bestow upon them. The poet Grey has been belittled because his one claim to fame was his "Elegy in a Country Churchyard." On the other hand, when we consider the awe-inspiring, never-ending procession of souls down through the centuries, we have had but one Grey. In music there are numberless masters whose fame rests upon one full outpouring of the soul into immortal chalices. Indeed when we scan the catalog of musical art we find only a very few who have left more than a mere handful of works destined to stand the test of time. W e know Adam because of Noel; Auber for Fra Diavolo; Balfe for the Bohemian Girl; Borodin for Prince Igor; Cramer for a few etudes; David for be Desert; Ernst for the Elegie; Field for a few nocturnes; Flotow for Martha; Gottschalk for The Last Hope; Halevy for La Juive; Kullak for the Octave Studies; Leoncavallo for I' Pagliacci; Litolff for Robespierre Overture; Mascagni for Cavalleria Rusticana; Nicolai for The Merry Wives of Windsor; Offenbach for The Tales of Hoffman; Ponchielli for La Gio-conda; Scharwenka for the Polish Dance; Thomas for Mignon. Yet the works of these composers, taken as a whole, would make catalogs running up into the thousands. Probably the composer whose complete works have best stood the test of time is Chopin. That is, Chopin could claim a larger proportion of his compositions that have remained in demand than any other composer. Of his eighty-six works (twelve without opus numbers) there are very, very few that artists would consent to have thrown into the discard as they readily would push aside some of the less inspired compositions of some of the other great masters. Consider, for instance, his incomparable Opus 10—the Twelve Etudes. All of these works are played by. present-day pianists—some more frequently than others, of course, but not one of this set could be sacrificed. Some of these deserve more frequent performance—the beautiful Number Three, really an exquisite nocturne; the fairy-like Num-ber Seven; the dramatic Number Nine; the intricate Number Eleven. The same might be said of the second set of Etudes, Opus £5. Indeed, one might go through the entire Chopin catalog and only here and there could one find a work which might be dispensed with. Chopin certainly mastered the art of avoiding that mediocrity which leads to oblivion. A Loss to American Musical Art JANUARY, 1920, marked two of the greatest of losses to American musical art in the passing of Horatio W . Parker and Reginald De Koven. Both Parker and De Koven were splendidly educated for their work. Parker, a pupil in America of Emery, Orth and Chadwick, studied in Europe with Rheinberger and Abel. Most of his early life was spent as a teacher and organist. In 1894 he was called to the Chair of Music at Yale University, where for over a quarter of a century he labored for the uplift of musical art in our country through exceptionally important channels. His own works were lofty in conception and perfect in technical finish. Possibly his most distinguished work is his oratorio, Hora Novissima, recognized here and in England as one of the most notable works of its form produced during the last fifty years. Oxford conferred the degree of Mus. Doc. upon him in 1902. Dr. Parker was also fortunate in winning two famous prizes, valued at $10,000 each, with his operas, Mona and Fairyland. Reginald De Koven, born in 1861, was two years the senior of Parker. His father was an Episcopal clergyman who took a great interest in his son's musical work. The boy was edu-cated in America and at St. John's College, Oxford, England, where he took his degree. In Europe he studied music under Speidel, Lebert, Pruckner, Dr. Hauff, Vannucini, Genee and Delibes. His romantic comic opera, Robin Hood, produced in 1890, became, without question, the most popular of all light operas ever written by an American. It was given over a thou-sand times and is still popular in many ways. His opera, The Canterbury Pilgrims, produced at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York in 1917, marked the result of a new am-bition, as did the Masque of the Drama, produced in Philadel-phia shortly thereafter. His death at this time, however, is peculiarly pathetic, as it was not until this year that his genius rose to its highest powers, as manifested in his folk opera, Rip Van Winkle, recently given in Chicago by the Chicago Grand Opera Company. This was at once recognized as a spon-taneously beautiful and characteristic work. Many of the dis-tinctive De Koven harmonies and melodic touches are evident, but on the whole he has struck a new and natural method of treatment far in advance of anything he had previously pro-duced. This is particularly noticeable, not so much in the thrilling arrival of the apparition of Hendrick Hudson, or the delicate Katy-did-Katy-didn't chorus, which opens the second scene of Act II, as in the sustained musical interest which the composer gave to the masterly text by Percy Mackaye. The opera bears the opus number "414. " Among these were many works which became enormously popular, but there is none which stands so greatly to the credit of the composer as Rip Van Winkle. Fortunately he was able to witness the success of the work, presented for the first time just a few days before his death. Mr. De Koven was a great admirer of THE ETUDE, and told its editor many times personally, that he felt that of all the influences in American musical education, THE ETUDE stood in the very front rank. Making Money Work FROM time to time we venture a little thrift suggestion to our teacher-readers. Money is the most worthless thing in the world until it is swung into proper action. Merely hoarding money for the sake of having money is one of the lowest of human traits. Yet, as a matter of providence, every professional musician should learn the art of saving all that he consistently can. It takes a great big lump of money to provide a fund big enough to make old age secure—a lump far bigger than many people imagine. When you spend a dollar you may think of it as a small amount, but a dollar is the Savings Bank interest for one day on $10,000.00. That is, if you had $10,000 put by in a Saving Bank all your income would total $365.00 a year—surely a small sum for all means in these days. Ideal thrift prompts the worker to strive for a fund that would pay him his annual income if he were obliged to stop work. Very few musicians ever achieve this. The next best thing is to strive for a principal that would pay the minimum amount upon which you and your family can exist. Many can get at least this, if they really work for it, and the comfort of hav-ing it pays for all the effort of getting it. 149
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