„Schönberg and Stravinsky Enter »Christian-National« Budapest without Bloodshed”, Musical Courier, LXXXII/8 (1921. február 24.), 7., 51.
Gyűjteményes kiadás: DocB/5, 65–73.
Forrás: BBA
Schönberg and Stravinsky Enter „Christian-National” Budapest Without Bloodshed Dohnanyi „Irredentist Creed” Performed with Audience Standing-Telmanyi Creates Sensation as a Player of Bach Budapest, Hungary, January 2, 1921.-At last a Schönberg performance in Budapest! The event has
been long in coming and even now we must thank foreign artists for it. The noteworthy date is December
8, 1920, and the concert was a quartet evening of the famous Rosés from Vienna, who had the courage to present Schonberg’s first quartet to a Budapest audience. It may be remembered, incidentally,
that Rose and his partners were the first to perform Schonberg’s chamber music in Vienna, too, and they have not permitted themselves to be intimidated by the scandalous scenes made by the public there during the premiere of the second quartet with vocal part.
There were no such untoward happenings here, but of course Schonberg’s first quartet is much tamer than the second.
Our audiences are also much more indifferent towards the musical challenge of a „modern” than are those of Berlin or Vienna, for instance. They have had opportunities enough to endure attacks on their musical conservatism on the part of home composers, and unpleasant as it was, the public did not even raise a finger in protest.
Optimists might dub this exhibition of patience good behavior; pessimists set it down to indifference.
Be that as it may, the production of Schonberg’s quartet passed off in peace. The audience listened patiently to this grandly designed composition, only towards the end the situation became slightly critical, when a section of the audience preferred to leave the hall before the work was finished. A minority of sensitive musicians – mostly younger ones, however, were carried away by the grandeur of the composition, so excellently interpreted by the Roses. Although the point of departure of Schonberg’s art is still clearly revealed in this work (which must be regarded as representative of a transition period leading to the genuine Schonberg), one is deeply impressed by the man’s power of conception and the sincere struggle for a new form of expression.
The Rosé quartet gave two evenings, and aside from the Schonberg work presented us with the Beethoven C minor, Haydn E flat major, Brahms A minor quartets, and finally, together with the Waldbauer-Kerpely Quartet, with Mendelssohn’s rarely heard octet. The renditions in every
case were flawless, technically splendid but somewhat too aloof, too cool, if not almost pedantic.
STRAVINSKY’S FIREWORKS Go OFF BRILLIANTLY.
For the second great event of the month – the premiere of Stravinsky’s „Fireworks” – Budapest is indebted to its Philharmonic Orchestra. This was the first time that we were able to give a Stravinsky performance without outside help. The work, in itself insignificant, triumphed by virtue of an almost incredibly virtuose handling of the orchestra. Even this juvenile piece of writing plainly shows Stravinsky’s predestination to excel in orchestral treatment. The technical difficulties of the work were overcome most brilliantly by the orchestra under Dohnanyi’s baton.
ScHREKER’s CHAMBER SYMPHONY LEAVES MusiciANS CoLD.
The third outstanding recent occurrence, of a less pleasing character, however, was our introduction to Schreker’s art, as represented by his Chamber Symphony, played at a Philharmonic concert. The pseudo-modernity of the composition, which is obviously based on Wagner’s phraseology, its empty and chilly effusiveness and its lack of concreteness in construction, left the musicians in the audience
untouched. It is astonishing how poor the work is in really novel and striking tonal effects; Schonberg’s first quartet, with only four solo string instruments, for instance, offers far more and greater surprises in the way of sound effects. The majority of the audience was just as indifferent towards this work as it was towards that of Schonberg. It has not yet attained the faculty of differentiation.
Whether works are really new in essentials or only in externals, they are all indiscriminatingly labelled „hypermodern,” and that is all-sufficient.
We were able to admire Dohnanyi’s wonderful interpretative gifts that evening to the full: he played Mozart’s G major concerto for piano and at the same time conducted the accompanying orchestra (with reduced string instruments), and afforded so great a musical treat that the performance
will be repeated by general desire in a special Philharmonic concert during the course of the month.
DoHNANYI PLAYS.
Of Dohnanyi’s further recitals in the Beethoven cycle we must note especially his reading of the last sonatas, above all the Hammerklavier sonata, which he reproduced with monumental force and most delicate poetry. Besides this, he gave two special concerts with a mixed program, in which Schumann’s „Carneval” and symphonic etudes and Brahms’ F minor sonata were especially effective.
POLITICAL Music.
Apart from the chief events chronicled above, the season brought us another, whose importance was not so much of a musical as of a political nature. On December 27 a Christmas concert took place with the Philharmonic Orchestra and the Palestrina Choir again with Dohnanyi as conductor and soloist. First Bach’s cantata was performed and then Dohnanyi played his own variations on an Hungarian Christmas carol for piano. The feature of the evening, however, was the new Hungarian „Irredenta Credo” for chorus, solos and orchestra, specially composed by Dohnanyi for the occasion. This remarkable transformed version of the Christian creed may be translated as follows : „I believe in God; I believe in a Fatherland; I believe in an everlasting Divine justice; I believe in the resurrection of Hungary .. Amen.” This national creed, promulgated about a year ago, is the slogan of the National-Christian political trend today and is directed against „disbelievers” and the enemies of Hungary. The ecstasy and emotion of the audience on
hearing its musical version may well be imagined. A number of prominent ecclesiastics were present, among them the newly-arrived Papal Nuncio, who, together with the entire audience, heard the „_National Creed” standing.
THE COUNTRY’S MUSICAL HERO.
Dohnanyi continues to be the musical hero of the country. Among his recently performed works are the Variations on a German Nursery-Song, for piano and orchestra ( in the first Philharmonic Concert) played by Dohnanyi and conducted by Stephan Kerner, musical director of the Opera House; two songs with orchestra (third Philharmonic) interpreted by Richard Meyer of the Vienna Opera; his second piano quintet and second string quartet, played at the Waldbauer-Kerpely chamber music evenings. the
composer playing the piano-part himself in the first. Then , finally, his pantomime, „The Veil of Pierette,” based upon Schnitzler’s text, was, as has been the case. annually since 1918, included in the repertory of the opera house and already has been given twice this season.
„VEIL OF PIERETTE.”
The title role of Pierette was in each case taken by Elsa Dohnanyi-Galafres ( former member of the Vienna Hofburg Theater) as guest. As Dohnanyi – also as a guest – wields the baton himself, the opera house is able to produce fine effects on these occasions at least, not only musically but stage technically too, for the whole production was placed in the hands of the Dohnanyis, whose careful attention to all stage details was a guarantee of general excellence.
This pantomime does not stand ‘for mass effects or startling decorations pandering to cheap tastes, but demands gestures of unhackneyed refinement and noble expressiveness. Thanks to Mme. Dohnanyi-Galafres’ finished art, which she also revealed in the stage management and in the preparation of the other roles, the scenic performance was a perfect one. We were not shown an ordinary pantomime,
but a deep and gripping drama without words, in which Dohnanyi’s most characteristic music takes the place of the spoken word.
TELMÁNYI TRIUMPH IN His HoME CITY.
Of the great number of other concerts, prominence must be given to the recitals of the Hungarian violinist Emil Telmanyi. Telmanyi must now be reckoned among our leading violin virtuosos, and this is saying a good deal, for a country that can boast of a Vecsey and a number of other international stars. As a Bach interpreter Telmanyi caused a veritable sensation; he gave two solo concerts, four sonata evenings with Dohnanyi (sonatas by Beethoven, Franck, Mozart, the Hungarian composer Leo Weiner, Schubert’s Fantasy, etc.), played the Mendelssohn concerto in a Philharmonic concert, and the Beethoven concerto in
another orchestral concert. On this occasion we also made the acquaintance of the Finnish oratorio singer, Helge Lindberg, who sang arias from Handel’s oratorios and other early classic things.
KRESZ AND NORA DREWETT.
After a very long interval our best female violinist, Stefi Geyer, made a recent appearance in public, and we also were present at a solo recital ,given by the Hungarian violinist and late concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Géza Von Kresz, and his wife, Nora Drewett, the pianist.
VARIOUS CONCERTS.
The two last Philharmonic concerts were devoted to Beethoven’s manes; the first presented us with a fine reading of the second, fifth and eighth symphonies, under Dohnanyi’s conductorship, the second, with Stephan Kerner holding the baton, with a weak performance of the ninth and the violin concerto, performed by Ludwig Pecskay, the Hungarian violinist resident in London. The Opera House, too, arranged a Beethoven festival on two evenings: „Fidelio,” with those two fine artists – Franz Von Szekelyhidi and Olga Haselbeck as Florestan and Fidelio; the third symphony and the Prometheus ballet ( which was very weak and lacked vivacity, both musically and histrionically), with Kerner as conductor.
Apart from a series of concerts with a varied program, the Quartet Society Waldbauer-Kerpely is arranging the performance of all Beethoven’s string quartets; so besides sundry symphonies, overtures and the „Missa Solemnis” we shall hear all of Beethoven’s principal works this season.