(
LU TION
OF CLASSICAL MUSIC
U
By BOYD CONRAD
Success Depends on the Public
IN THE 18TH Century, Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart died penniless
and near to starvation:-not twenty
years ago, Bela Bartok died a des-
titute and broken man, sustained
only by the generosity of his close
friends. Shortly after the death of
the great. Ludwig van Beethoven,
Hector Berlioz was fighting a
losing battle to have the Ger-
man master's works performed in
Paris. People were saying that
Haydn and Mozart had perfected
the symphony; Beethoven had
"carried things too far." In 1913,
Igor Stravinsky's new ballet Le
Sacre du Printempts was de-
nounced as a blasphemous at-
tempt to destroy music as an art.
The parallels are numerous; these
are only two examples of a dis-
tressingly common phenomenon.
It could be said, of course, that the
sickness of society is responsible
for Modern Man's failure to ap-
preciate the great works of art
being created in his own time, but
this failure seems to be as old
as European civilization itself. In
centuries past, the important part
played by wealthy and enlightened
patrons of the arts in sustaining
the artists of their time offset in
most instances any slowness of
comprehension in the general
public. Art today, however, is no
longer restricted to the enjoyment
or the support of the very rich.
and failure to establish success
with the general public can have
very serious consequences for an
artist. The obvious inference is
that the education of the public
must keep pace as nearly as pos-
sible with current developments
if art is to continue to flourish
in the 20th century.
classics by way of 17th, 18th, and
19th century composers, usually
on the assumption that the music
of these earlier writers is easier
to understand. All of the things
being equal, which unfortunately
they are not, this is to say that a
fugue is simplier than a 12-tone
note row, or that Beethoven was
a less profound composer than
Stravinsky. This, of course, is not
the case. Listeners have had 150
years to understand these older
works, whereas they have not had
half that time to understand the
"moderns." In the deepest sense
of the word, however, 20th cen-
tury music is just as "traditional"
as any other.
People have written lengthy
books tracing the traditional back-
grounds of modern musical com-
positions. No more than a brief
outline can be given here, but the
interested listener will find that
with little difficulty he can fill in
much of the material for himself.
Even this short discussion should
show that much of the highly
tooted "difficulty"'inherent in
take a re-orchestration of the
three early ballets before em-
barking on his next journey, this
time into the realm of 12-tone
music. Outstanding among his
compositions in this medium are
the Cantata, In Memorium Dylan
Thomas. Canticum Sacrum, Agon
and Threni (from the Lamenta-
tions of the Prophet Jeremiah).
E 12-TONE SYSTEM was in-
troduced in the same decade
that witnessed the performance
of The Rite of Spring. At this
time, in an atmosphere of com-
parative quiet, Arnold Schoenberg
introduced Pierrot Lunaire. Those
Interested in the early develop-
ment of the 12-tone system should
listen to the works of Schoen-
berg's disciples Alan Berg (Woz-
zeck, Concerto for Violin and
Orchestra) and Anton Webern. It
was to be 40 years before the
mainstream of modern music
headed by Igor Stravinsky was
to reconcile itself with the small,
but persistent band of atonalists
founded by Arnold Schoenberg,
but it was to be a powerful union,
as anyone who has heard Stra-
vinsky's latest works will be able
to witness. It was also to complete
the cycle which Stravinsky
referred to in The Poetics of Mu-
sic when he remarked that the
composers of Medieval and Ren-
aissance times did not abide by
the tonality of the diatonic scale,
and that the composers of the
20th century were no longer abid-
ing by it.
Any interested person who lis-
tens to the compositions of Stra-
vinsky in a more or less chrono-
logical order beginning with The
Firebird, and following through
as limitations of time and money
permit, will be able to get a fairly
clear picture of the major trends
in 20th century composition. The
early works should present few
difficulties: and once these are
mastered, the works that follow
can be seen as logical develop-
ments of their predecessors. We
are living in the 20th century
(whether we like it or not) and
an understanding of the art of
our time can help us toward a
better understanding of the time
itself. It is probably well for us
to remember that, just as we can-
not live in the past, neither can
we understand the present without
understanding the past that made
it what it is.
EMOTIQNAL RESPONSE to
piece of music seems to
closely related to the concept
the conditioned reflex. Most W
tern ears are accustomed tot
classic harmonic structure-
sociated with the diatonic sc
and a rhythmic structure based
an easily recognizable meter.I
though fundamental departu
from this element of the class
romantic tradition have beent
rule rather than the exception
the past 50 years, they still t
to be disturbing to most listene
This aversion perpetuates itself
younger generations as yot
people are introduced tot
be
of
es-
the
as-
ale
on
Al-
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Ir
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Boyd Conrad is majoring in
English in the literary college.
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end modern works is a myth.
ers.
in THE FOUNDATIONS for 20th
ing century music as we know it
the today were being laid in Europe
- in the last half of the 19th cen-
tury by such men as Brahms,
Wagner and Debussy. Although
fundamentally a conservative,
Brahms, with his harmonic in-
novations, helped lay the ground-
work for the series of develop-
ments that was to lead to the
atonal school of Arnold Schoen-
berg. Another German whose con-
tributions in this direction are
more easily recognizable was
Richard Wagner. Wagner's music
achieved its highly dramatic ef-
fects by setting itself up in a
sphere which violated the laws of
rhythm and harmony. Although
his music is not atonal, it is at
times so continually chromatic as
to have no stable tonal center.
This characteristic, when coupled
with his almost anti-rhythmical
style of development, led Neitzche
to remark that listening to Wag,
ner's music was not like walking
and dancing, but rather like float-
ing and swimming. It was largely
in reaction to the Wagnerian
heaviness that Claude Debussy
developed a style of composition
the hallmarks of which were deli-
cacy of line and a greater trans-
parency of texture. This "impres-
sionistic" approach was later to
have a profound effect on Igor
Stravinsky, the young Russian
from St. Petersburg, whose Rite ofI
Spring was to make his name a
household word in the field of
modern music.
40"
, - ,
and Creeley from this criticsml;
the latter, he explained, doesn't
abstract form, but is working for
tight new frms.
OBJECT to Ferlnghettl," he
said. "because I feel his poetry
is too easy to write: poetry should
be more difficult than this. I
don't see why they couldn't pub-
lish a book of poems every day if
they wanted to."
Citing Gary Snyder, a west coast
poet, for his Zen notion of spon-
taneity, Kennedy said he "wouldn't
be surprised that they might see
relationships between the universe
of science and the universe of bud-
dhism, since neither is concerned
with values."
The beats believe you can sit
down and type out a completely
spontaneous poem and let it go at
that, since Zen affirms the spon-
taneous experience of communica-
tion. "In a buddhist monastery,
someone might ask. 'Master, how
do I achieve enlightenment?' and
get a plate thrown at him."
Kennedy insisted that the so-
called beat reaction against Eliot
is just that, and is confined, actu-
ally, to Karl Shapiro, who thinks
Eliot "killed" America poetry. "Of
course, Eliot doesn't write love
poetry and all this stuff."
ACTUALLY, he related, there is
an "astonishing similarity" be-
tween some of Ginsberg and Fer-
linghetti's work, and "Profrock"
and "The Wasteland." In fact, in
Donald Allen's anthology of beat
poetry. these writers' debt to Eliot
was frequently and explicitly
stated.
The division between the two
camps is "critical" he said. The
groups are completely divorced
from each other, the one seeking
form and the other, generally,
abandoning it.
When you look at them, i.e., at
Donald Hall's anthology which in-
cludes many academics and, say,
at the Grove Press paperback
which is devoted to the beats, "you
are struck by the fact that you
can't find one name appearing in
both volumes."
IT WOULD be false to think that
there used to be any unity,
though: the arguments and divi-
sions were just about different
things. The reasonfor the univer-
sity influx, Kennedy commented,
was largely the passing of the
GI Bill, which made their attend-
ance possible.
Kennedy explained that a third
school-that of the familiar, or
individual orientation-is growing
up in the reaction to Eliot's ex-
posure of contemporary life. "The
poet feels that in a world of tele-
vision dinners, he's surrounded by
meaninglessness." So, from the
conflicts of ideology, from the lack
of traditional religion, perhaps
also from the lack of myth, poets
are "turning to the only sure
things, which are those around
them." Once again they're writing
of themselves, their families and
especially of their "personal sor-
rows."
Kennedy cited W. D. Snodgrass
as an example of this approach;
"The Heart's Needle" is addressed
to his daughter.
SNODGRASS shows the possi-
bility of an immense new poetry
by using personal attitudes, "but
might inspire some awfully lousy
imitations," he decided. Again he
stresses the necessity of letting a
poem choose its own subject as
especially relevant to the personal
technique. It's as if these imitators
say to you, my heart is "an open-
face sandwich."
Kennedy spent the summer as a
Breadleaf fellow at Middlebury
College's Breadleaf Writers Con-
ference. "Breadleaf was exciting,
it serves as a place for writers to
get together." He related an -anec-
dote concerning Robert Frost: one
day, "a lady asked him if he
thought America was 'going to the
dogs.'
"'Lady, don't ask me. I'm too
much of an insider to tell'," Frost
retorted.
Ann Arbor, he said, is a pretty
good place to write. "There are
enough good writers here for ad-
vice, counsel and friendship, but
they're not shoulder to shoulder
like they are in New York." There,
he complained, all the writers
Continued on Page Seven
SATURDAY morning in Canada.
A bitter-cold wind sweeps across
the flat plains of Sasketchwan.
The sun has been up for only an
hour and a half but already the
sporadic cracking of wood against
wood carries through the dry early
morning air.
Two thousand miles northeast
in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, swirl-
ing snow muffles the crackling of
sharp blades digging into ice.
And far to the south in Hamilton,
near the American border, a group
of youngsters watch intently as an
older man skates down the center
of the rink, moves in on a young
goal - tender, and leaves him
sprawling on the ice as he flips
the puck into the net. Then they
line up to try it themselves.
These scenes are repeated with
varying numbers of participants
in every town across the Domin-
ion. In Toronto, 10 indoor artifi-
cial rinks are filled all day, along
with over 100 natural ice outdoor
rinks.
In Unity, Sasketchewan, skaters
race through scrimmages and
games on the town's only ice sur-
face. At one time or another near-
ly every boy in the tiny town will
have had his turn.
For every youngster who shows
his stuff on the ice, the chances
are that there's a parent on the
other side of the boards, shouting
encouragement and giving occa-
sional advice. The whole day is
undertaken with an enthusiasm
bordering on mania.
AT NIGHT, the attention of the
nation is telescoped from the
youths of the daytime to the
polished battlers of the "Junior"
and professional circuits.
And at the very pinnacle of-
achievement, two big arenas in
Toronto and Montreal respectively
are packed with upwards of 10,000
screaming fans-the Maple Leafs
and Canadiens are at home for
"hockey night in Canada." Mil-
lions more watch the spectacle on
coast-to-coast television - an at-
traction which draws spectators
during intermission at local rinks
to the hotel across the street to
Dave Cook, majoring in
English in the literary college,
is a member of the hockey
team.
see how the big teams are doing
on TV.
The ladder to the top has many
rungs. Most players begin their
career in the Peewee division (8-12
years old), progress through the
Bantam, Midget, and Juvenile
leagues, culminating on the ama-
teur level in the Junior circuit,
from which almost all college and
professional players are graduated.
Starting so young gives most
players a high degree of confi-
dence and surprising poise by the
time they reach their late teens
and early twenties. Even on the
amateur level of collegiate compe-
tition, the players approach their
task with a dedicated sobriety
which contrasts with the exuber-
ance and hypertension of most
American athletes at a comparable
stage.
Almost to a man, the players
are students of the game. The
instructions in fundamentals
which, they receive from their
coaches are augmented by careful
study of thA individual tricks and
abilities of the professional game's
big stars.
EACH PLAYER, as a result, is
very keenly aware of his own
status and abilities, and moreover,
has an almost incredible backlog
of facts and information about
the members of his trade.
Locker-room talk refiedts the
nature of this information as it
is picked up from the daily papers,
magazines and the Hockey News.
The dressing room is alive with
chatter--
"Geoffrion got two last night,
eh?"~-
"How about Hicke?"
And before the answer comes.. .
"Didja see where Ronson was
sent back?"
"Well, that's a helluva jump
from the International League-I
was surprised to see him up there
anyway."
And again...
"Walker's got 14 for Denver
already ..
"Yeh, well look who he's playin'
with. My Aunt Lottie could score
on that line."
And so on. A mental file is kept
almost by second nature on nearly
every teammate and opponent
that a player has been associated
with throughout his career. When
a career covers several different
leagues, and even more teams, this
means anywhere up to two or
three hundred players.
ana
Dedicated Northern Players
Bring Pride to University
PAtTLY as a result of its strictly
national origins, the game is an
object of considerable pride among
those who play it.
When the Canadian Olympic
team was upset by the United
States squad last winter, the reac-
tion in Canada was tantamount
to a national tragedy. Hockey
being "their game," Canadians are
satisfied with nothing less than
consistent superiority on the ice.,
The "pride of the people," so
to speak; becomes a great unify-
ing factor for a team when it is
transplanted from the homeland,
as is the case with hockey at the
University.
Out of twenty members of the
team, eighteen are Canadians.
They have come to Ann Arbor
from as far west as Saskatchewan,
as far north as Kapaskasing, Ont.,
and as close to the United States
as Windsor.
The common bond which unites
these formerly far-flung young
athletes is the game itself. It is a
bond which enables the players
to make a basic adjustment-that
Hockey - The Co
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By ,DAVE COOK
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THE PUBLIC'S reaction to The
Rite of Spring is an often told
classic in the annals of musical
history thatneed not be repeated
here. To those who had been
closely associated withathemwork,
this violent reception came as
something of a surprise, for its
development had been the result
of a gradual process of stylistic
evolution. The first of Stravinsky's
major works, The Firebird, had
presented few difficulties to its
audiences, being closely related to
the music of Rimsky-Korsakov
and Debussy with which they were
familiar. In Petrouchka Stravin-
sky introduced important develop-
ments under the deceptive guise
of a light-hearted puppet show.
The score contains some of Stra-
vinsky's finest humor, but it is
even more noteworthy for the con-
trapuntal and rhythymic techni-
ques which make it a forerunner
of his masterpiece, The Rite of
Spring. With The Rite of Spring,
impressionism was carried to its
ultimate conclusion, and so Stra-
vinsky turned to a more austere,
"neo-classical" style typlified by
such works as the Octet for Wind
Instruments, Oedipus Rex and the
monumental Symphony of Psalms.
During the Forties, Stravinsky
was able to return to the rythymic
violence of his earlier compositions
with works like the Symphony in
Three Movements and even under-
Cana dian Hockey
With Canadians - a way of life.
Reiner Interpretation
Of Verdi 'Rewarding'
Continued from Page Three
faire about the game itself, they
make up in enthusiasm for the
team. Indeed,"most players are
surprised by the high spirits and
lusty cheering of local crowds at
the University's Coliseum.
As might be expected, even in a
sport with such strong "members
of the trade" accents, one finds
individuals with widely varying
temperaments and abilities mak-
ing different contributions to the
team effort.
Chief among the Michigan icers
is a 20-year-old redhead by the
name of Gordon Berenson. A na-
tive - of Regina, Saskatchewan,
"Red" is the personification of the
fierce pride and uncompromising:
competitive spirit characteristic of
the game.
His play, constantly bordering
on the spectacular, has a "go-for-
broke" flair which can bring even
the first-time spectator to his feet
cheering. It is the result of extra-
ordinary physical abilities coupled
with a super-charged but con-
trolled temperament.
And yet, even though most
coaches would be glad to accept
a team of "Berensons," he does
not represent all there is or all
that is best in hockey.
Just as life is not replete with
generals and leading men, so this
game depends to a great extent
on its lesser characters. The quiet
steadiness of a Joe Lunghamer,
the leadership qualities of a Dale
MacDonald, the flamboyancy of a
Pat Cushing, the pugnaciousness
of a "Butch" Nielson, are all im-
portant elements of the game.
Individual attributes come into
very strong play-when they as-
sert themselves in the split-second
combat of the fastest body-contact
sport in the world, the result is a
flashiness of appeal and intensity
of emotion which hockey's fans
defend as unequalled in the world
of sport. .
Verdi Requiem-Leontyne Price1
(s), Rosalind Elias (ms), Jussi3
Bioerling (t), Giorgio Tozzi (b),
Chorus of the Society of the
Friends of Music in Vienna, Vi-
enna Philharmonic Orchestra,-
Fritz Reiner conducting. 2 Vic-
tor LD-6091, $11.98; Stereo LDS-
6091, $13.98.
Those who believe the Tosca-
nini performance of this work on
Victor LM-6018 to be the last word
in interpretations will be disap-
pointed in this recording, but those
who are willing to consider a dif-.
ferent approach will find it a very
rewarding experience well worth
the high cost of the album. Rei-
ner's concept of Verdi's monumen-
tal drama is broader than most,
keeping in mind its function as a
monument as well as its dramatic
significance. Reiner has always
been famous for his powerful
readings of the "blood and thun-
der" classics, and he does not let
his public down here. He gives the
Dies Irae, Sanctus and Libera Me
by far the most imposing dimen-
sions that they have ever received
on records. By way of contrast the
quiet movements are treated with
a reverent lyricism which high-
lights the beauty of Verdi's deli-
cacy without making it tense or
brittle. The soloists, given more
freedom than Toscanini allowed
his singers, give a good account of
themselves in a performance which
seems to come more from person-
al enthusiasm than an external.
drive. They give the work a per-
sonality which envelops the lis-
tener instead of overpowering
him. All things considered, this is
a performance which surpasses the
majority of its competitors, can
hold its own with any, and is
given preferred rating by excel-
lent sonics from the Victor engi-
neers.
S
I
TaTell
STATE 'S
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