MUSIC-ANCIENT AND MODERN.

Otago Witness, Issue 1977, 14 January 1892, Page 33

MUSIC-ANCIENT AND MODERN.

By C. Baeyertz.

No. VIII.— ORATORIO: BI'ADEL, HAYDN, AND MENDELSSOHN.

It is well known that the opera owes its existtance to the oratorio, and that the earlier operas were of a sacred character. In fact, they differed from the oratorio simply in that they were more dramatic and less epic, and, unlike their oratorio forefathers, depended fo* their representation on ecenio effects and costumec. In other words, the true oratorio is subjective the opera objective. When Madame Patey declaims "He was despised " in ordicary evening dress, she speaks aa directly to our hearts and pourtrafs the prophetic image of our Savour's sorrow as truly as she could possibly do were she dressed in the robes of the Israeli tish prophet. When we have listened to the first three bars of the « Q&*d march in Saul " we have conjured up in pur imagination a funeral procession such as no scenic painter could reveal to us. When wo listen to the "Pastoral" symphony, if the eyes of our understanding are opened, we shall see the shepherds arrayed in Eastern garb, keeping watch over their flock by night. In other words, in the drama scenery and stage effects are produced for us by painters and stage carpenters, in the Epic Oratorio wo provido our own sctnery. We have noticed the debt that the opera owes to the oratorio, wo shall now observe the indebtedness of the oratorio to the opera, as illustrated in Handei's oratorio compositions. As examples let us take Handel's two greatest works, "The Messiah "and "Israe-1 in Egypt." Both are purely epic, and yet the dramatic form and technical construction aro undoubtedly borrowed from the lyric drama of the period. Indeed, amongst the hundreds of Handel'u arias there is not one which cannot be referred to one or other of the well-defined classes into which the Italian opera aiis of the 18th century were divided. Thus we see the aria di portamento strikingly exemplified in "I know tbat my Redeemer liveth"; the* aria cautabile iv "Angels everbrifihtand fair"; the aria parlante in "He was despised"; the aria di mm f zz> carattf-rc in "Waft her, angels, through tho >kies " ; and tbe «ria di bravura in "Rf jo : cc " and " Lot the bright seraphim," and even the minor divisions are represented with perfect clearness. Although Haudel followed the model of Italian opera air 3 for his solos, and found ample scope therein for his inventive genius, in his choruses he was absolutely free. Sometimes— as is often the case in Greek tragedy— he is didactic. Ho has thus used the chorus to moralise on some part of the ethic narrative, or as a means of drawing a lesson from the dramatic story : In / Joseph," "Thus one withevery virtue crowned »; in "Saul," - O, envy, eldest bom of bell"; and in «■ Bolomon," •'The name of tbe wicked," and lo innumerable other oases, BawJel ifl flewripiive in «H« tm tyem

hailstone?," "Eagles were not as swift as they," and many other instances. Ho is, however, wonderfully dramatic in such choruses as "We come in bright array," in " Judas Maccabsejs "; and in " Help, help the king," in " Belahazzar." —As Mr Rockstro observes, no matter what may be the subject he undertakes to illustrate, he is always equal to it.— ln " Oheer her, O, Baal " and " May no rash intruder" he soothes us with his delicious accompaniments. In "He scut a thick darkness " we shudder at the awful gloom. In "Sco the conquering hero comes" he conjures up a scene which presents itself before us in all its successive details with the fidelity of a Dutch picture.

When he would raise our thoughts to Heaven, he uses means which seem simple enough when we subject them to technical analysis, but which, nevertheless, possess a power which no audienoe can resist — tbe power of compelling the hearer to regard the subject from the composer's point of view. Now, that point of view was always a sincerely devout one ; and so it comes to pass that no one can scoff at the " Messiah." We may go to hear it in any spirit wo please, bnt we shall come away impressed, in Bpite of ourselves, and confess that Handel's will in this matter i^stroDger than ours.

He bids us "Behold the Lamb of God," and we feel tbat he has helped us to do so. He tells ns "With His stripes we are healed," and we are Bensiblo not of the healing only, but of the cruel price at wMch it was purchased. And we yield him eqyal obedience when he calls upon us to join him in his hymns of praise.

Who, hearing the noble subject of "I will sing unto the Lord," led off by the toe or a and altos, does not loog to reinforce their voices with his own? Who does not feel a choking in his throat before the first bar of the " Hallelujah chcrus " is completed, though he may ba listening to it for the hut • dredth time ? Hard indeed must bo the heart which refuses to hear when Handel preaches through tho voices of his chorus. But it is not alone with voices that Me speaks. The orchestra was his slave, and by its aid he teaches us much that 19 worthy of our attention.

To quote further from Mr Rockstro's admirable paper: — Taking the thorough bass with its accompanying chords as the lowest attainable point in the scale of effect, and the full band with the trumpets and drums as the highest, there lies between these two extremes an infinity of diverse shades as countless as the b/.lf tones in Turner's " Summer Skies," all of which we find turned to good account, and so arranged as to play into each other, and contrast together with the happiest possible influence on the general dosign. But, unhappily, the delicate gradations they once represented are now rendered altogether indistinguishable by the introduction of clarinets, trombones, ophecleides, bombardons, euphoniums, and the loud unmitigated orash of> a full military baud— an innovation quite fatal to the composer's original intention, inasmuch as it quite destroys the unity of purpose he so carefully endeavoured to express. It is not too much to say that c 'For unto as a child is born" ia utterly ruined by the liberties which are taken "with it in performance. In other choruses we hear a fugusl point taken up, over and over again, by bass trombones, or euphoniums with such roußing vigour that tbe voice part is rendered completely inaudible ; and ia cases like this the result is not a richness but a thinness of effect quite unworthy of the composer's meaning. As Mr Prout remarks:— "To hear, as is sometimes to be heard, Hilodel'a music scored after the fashion of Verdi's grand operas shows an equal want of artistic feeling and of common sense on the part of the arranger. Thofe additional accompaniments will always best fulfil their object in which reverence is shown for the. author's original intention.

- Lasb week I spent a very pleasant afternoon with one of* the leading musicians in Dunedin, who played the accompaniment to " I know that my Redeemer liveth"for a lady vocalist. The score uaed Was Best's arrangement of " Tbe Messiah," wh : ch follows more or less closely Me zirt's extra instrumentation. The accompaniment was played in a mu.-icianly manner— with taste and feeling. At th.3 same time I confessed my preference for V. Novello'a arrangement, which keops more nearly to Handel's original score. Of course, tbe gentleman in question differed from me, and the subject was dropped. It scemp, however, to me that there can be no doubt that Baudcl intentionally commenced tho third part of " The Messiah" with this aria di p >rtamento of surpassing beauty, and that he purposely wrote the accompaniment simply for thorough b»39 with violins in unison. Following tho sublime "Hallelujah Chorup," as it doe*, the very simplicity of accompaniment to "I know tbat my Redeemer livetb," is one of its greatest charm?. The voice \i sot drowned by heavy octares, and full 6copo is thus allowed it to express with becoming reverence the believer's confidence in a living and risen Redeemer. Aa additional argument I derive from the position of the aria between tbe " Hallelujah " and the only other chorus iv the world that will brar mentioning in tbe sane breath with it— "Worthy ia tho Lamb," with its fi;ting conc'usion, the " Amen." lf(j{#ijng could b3 mere effective than iths simple accompaniment to the soprano voice between these two massive choruses.

Handel wrote 17 gr»nd cratorios, and most of them, sad to fay, are far too little known. Haydn will be known to posterity, not by his " Ritorno di Tobla "—which, although it is a treasury of beautiful melodies and bold and tuneful cborusep, is now quit j forgotten — bnt by " The Seasons " ; and above all he will be remembered as the composer of " Tho Creation." The words of " The Creation " were compiled from Milton'd "Paradise Lost," and not from the Bible itself, so that tbe theology is sometimes strikingly MHtouian and uobiblical. This oratorio is essentially epic, and quite devoid of declamatory music, as well aa of theso powerful means of expression — passion and pathos. At the sime time we must see that passion and pathos would have baen unsuitable to the wordr, and would havo imparted to Ihem a snupgoD of extravagance «nd ex*ggera!ion In " The Creation " we have p.iiaiing nnrt description without either of the above-mentioned methods of expression.

Tbe description cf Cbaos with wbMi *he oratorio open. o , the creation of light — elaborating tb>i idea originated by Handel in "O, first created beam"— the lovely meloi'.y which first introduces " Tbe new created world," the glorioDS bass solo, " Rolling in foaming billows," the air for soprano, " With verdure clad," tbe chorus, "Tha heavens are telling," tbe air for tenor voice, " In native worth," and the delightful duet "Graceful consort" (Adam and Eve), for bass and soprano, are all well known to us. The very elaborateness of Haydn's accompaniments militates against their perfect 6uccefiP, and that they do equal those of Handel can be easily understood. The quaver passages which add so much to the brilliancy of " The Heavens are Telling," take just aa much away from the dignity of the vocal themes, and indeed this phenomenon is noticeable to a greater or less extent in nearly all Ws pheroiei. At the name

time we owe Haydn an immense debt of gratitude for his improvements in instrumentation. It io not wißo to deprecato the merits of either composer. As an Boglish writer has said— "Handel was the High Priest of the fiublime, Haydn tbe Father of modern beauty." Each excelled in his own way, and each way was itself perfect. Handel could no more have written " The Creation," than Haydn could havo written " Israel in Egypt "; nor could any but Haydn have written " The Seasons "—a work full of delicious imagery.

Although Mendelssohn commenced the com* position of " St. Paul " at the age of 23 be was already a finished scholar and profound thinker, and an accomplished musician.

The idea of choosing the life and mission of St. Paul as a subject was suggested to him by Frankfort's " Ciisilien-Verein," and asked. Marx to write the book for him, Marx objected to the chorales which Mendelsohn wished to introduce as an anachronism and refused, bo Mendelssohn arranged the words himself from Luther's trauslstiou of the Bible.

The chorale is understood in Protestant Germany to signify the whole voice of the church, and the opening of the magnificent overture with an exhortation to watchfulness, no German could misunderstand. "The heathen furiously rage" in the massive opening chorus, explains the noed of watchfulness in the church, and then the church, as it were, unites once more in the chorale, " To God on high be thanks and praise." Then follows tba martyrdom of St. Stephen witb the choruses, " Now this man ceaseth not " and " S'oue him to death," from the angry Jews, and interposed bofcween tho two bursts of popular fury are tho oboralc, in which the church once more sings submissively "To Thee, 0 Lord, I yield my spirit," and tho charming and melodius chorus, "Happy and blest," which succeeds it.

Then Saul himself appears upon thescene in the fiery and vindicive bass solo, " Consume them all," but in spite of all persecution tho church confidingly eings— through the contralto voice— 11 But the Lord is mindful of bis own." •• Rise up ! arise ! rise and shine ! " followed by the grand old chorale ''Sleepers awako ! "— each phrase of which is followed by a simultaneous ora*h of all the brass instruments — speak to the heart of Paul, but the light has bliuded him, and it is not till Ananias restores his sight that; ho expresses his thrilling joy in tho cry, " I praise, Thee, O Lord my God"; tbo church onco more com fort • him in the grand and contemplative chorus "0 groat is the depth." Then follows the socond part, in which St. Paul and St. Barnabus turn to the Gentiles. How many of us have been thrilled by the half injunction, half promise of "Be thou faithful uuto death," with its beautiful 'cello obbligato, and tho concluding choruses, " See what Love, the Father, bath bestowed upon us " and "Not only unto him but unfco all them that love truly." We all know "Elijih," with its tenor air, "If with nil your heart*," the double quartet, "He shall his angels charge concerning thee, tho choruses, "Yet doth the Lord," "Blessed are the men," " Thanks be to God" "Ba not afraid," "And then shall your light break forth " ; the beautiful alto songs, " Woe unto them;" and " O, rest in tbo Lord," and the soprano solo, " I ana He that comforteth," and Elijah's sublime prayer, "Lord, God of Abrftham "

If it be true, as C. H. Bitter (" Beitriige zir Qdecbichte dcs Oratoriums"), one of the greatest German critic, has said, that the ultimate purpose of the oratorio is " neither to minister to our senses cor to afford us what we ordinarily understand by the words pleasure and entertainment, but to elevate our souls, to purify our lives, and, so far as art can conduce to such an end, to strengthen our faith and our devotion towards God," surely, if this be true, no writer ancient or modern has ever striven more earnestly to attain it than did Mendelssohn, and the efforts of few have been crowned with such BUCC3M).

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