• ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION, $2.00 THE ETUDE NOVEMBER, 1920 Single Copies 25 Cents VOL. XXXVIII , No. 11 The Living Word ROSENKRANZ , possibly the greatest of the Hegelian Phi-losophers, once wrote: "The living word is the most powerful agent of instruc-tionFrom this, however, we should not infer that the printed word and other agencies employed in teaching may not be of the greatest value. A great deal depends upon who utters the living word. We have known many pianists, many great virtuosi, who have been men of consummate genius at the key-board but who have had minds utterly incompatible with those peculiar requirements which make up a good teacher. How-ever, there are men who are great performers and who also have the gifts which make them wonderful teachers. Such a person represents the highest form of teacher. A few words, a few directions, a few illustrations from such a teacher in the flesh, are worth more than volumes of printed lessons. The difficulty is that such people are so extremely rare that only a very few people, in a great country like this, can have the advantage of studying with them. Very close behind them, however, is a veritable army of splendidly trained teach-ers who by "the living word" can convey musical education to thousands of pupils in a most excellent manner. Let us sup-pose that it is impossible to get a really well-trained teacher— what is the student with limited means to do? Everyone knows that some of the finest musicians of all time have virtually been self-trained. They have had only occasional words of advice from masters met by chance and the instruction that they have received from concerts or from good musical books. Thousands have written us that they owe the best part of their musical inspiration and success to THE ETUDE , and among such friends are many who have been through the best American and European schools of music. This is most gratifying to us, as we are working constantly to present to our readers as much instructive material for students at all stages as possible. We have never pretended, however, that TH E ETUD E could compete with the "living word" from the lips of an able teacher, a word electrified by his personality and force. It is indisputable, however, that the student with per-sistence, understanding and imagination can gain wonderfully from printed instructions. Take, for instance, the lesson in this issue on Grieg's Norwegian Bridal Procession, prepared by Mr. Percy Grainger, himself a master of high attainments. Mr. Grainger has made an entirely new edition of the little masterpiece by his friend and teacher, Edvard Grieg. As a virtuoso-pianist, Mr. Grainger has seen possibilities in expand-ing the work along consistent and artistic lines. More than this, Mr. Grainger gives an analysis of the work which his brilliant mentality, his poetic vision and his original habit cf thought make so vital that one feels the "living word," al-though Mr. Grainger is personally absent. He has prepared this printed lesson for over two hundred thousand readers of TH E ETUDE , who will benefit from it. Follow his directions carefully and you will have an understanding of this piece which few teachers could give. TH E ETUD E is grateful to Mr. Grainger for this fine contribution to the musical educational literature of the day. This brings us to the subject of Correspondence Instruc-tion. TH E ETUD E has never taken issue with the Correspond-ence Schools on any point where it has been proven to us that their advantages might serve the public as a whole. Under certain conditions certain subjects may be taught by mail with success. The opinion of the profession is that it is not feasible to teach such subjects as the violin, voice, etc., where the tone illustrations of the master are absolutely essential for the pupil to hear in person,. We also want our readers to know that it is very rarely their fortune to have their papers seen by any of the famous men whose services have been retained to prepare the original courses. While the papers may be ex-amined and answered by teachers trained to do that work in great volume, the master, whose name appears in the advertis-ing, is often far removed from the offices of the correspondence school. Nevertheless we do know of many cases of teachers and students who have received what they deem ample satis-faction from correspondence courses in theory, piano, piano-teaching. Properly conducted upon an honest basis, without extravagant claims or exorbitant prices, such schools may do a fine work for good in our country. They are not "the living word," but are a good substitute. They are far better in many ways than courses that peddle the names of great virtuoso-teachers, by persistent mercenary methods, for prices ranging from $100 upwards, leaving the purchaser to discover a few years hence that he might have done far better by purchasing a few well-selected self-help books in music and subscribing for TH E ETUD E at a mere frac-tion of the cost. The Merry Music Makers FRAN Z VO N SUPP E died one hundred years ago. Very few people are fully acquainted with the great volume of delightful comic opera music that he wrote. The Poet and Peasant Overture is, of course, played "everywhere" by great numbers of piano duetists; but this was only one of von Suppe's very tuneful works. Of course, a great deal that he did now seems trite in comparison with the works of many of the more serious masters, but it is given to few men to turn out as many refreshingly original melodies as did von Suppe, Lecocq, Genee, Offenbach, Audran, Delibes, Sullivan, Lehar, Herbert, de Koven and others. The conception of the merry tunes that character-ize these works is quite as much a matter of genius as the making of a great symphony. In fact there are many symphonies with less melodic inspiration than can be found in one act of von Suppe's The Beautiful Galatea. Left-Hand Solos CURIOUSL Y enough the war is said to have slightly raised the interest in left-hand piano solos, because of the fact that so many, many men lost an arm in battle. This is particularly the case in England, and articles have been appearing in English journals upon this interesting phase of pianoforte practice. One of the unfortunates who is making the best of it, a musician named George Coulter, writing in the Musical Herald, calls attention to the fact that when one has lost an arm or a leg, the remaining limb becomes more vigorous and more facile. Indeed, as in the case of the famous Hungarian Count Zichy, who had only one arm, it is possible for many of these players to perform certain amazingly difficult works in such a way that if heard from a distance their playing sounds exactly like two-hand playing. The same writer makes the following observations: "The ways and means of acquiring this ability spontane-ously to create harmonies I do not undertake to show, but it is surprising how rapidly the power will grow, prompted by the 725
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