Modern music and musicians : [Encyclopedic] . spoils his most beautiful flights,his most inspired climaxes! Two instances among many occur to me,—Ich grolle nicht and Stille Thranen,—for which one will scarcelyever find an interpreter who can do equal justice to the beginning and theend. But if, on the other hand, a singer has a voice at his command capa-ble of such a feat, he will produce the greater effect. Thus, I rememberas a child, in 1858, having heard Frau Schroder-Devrient, then fifty-fiveyears old, sing Ich grolle nicht, and never shall I forget the shiver thatran down my spine at the
Modern music and musicians : [Encyclopedic] . spoils his most beautiful flights,his most inspired climaxes! Two instances among many occur to me,—Ich grolle nicht and Stille Thranen,—for which one will scarcelyever find an interpreter who can do equal justice to the beginning and theend. But if, on the other hand, a singer has a voice at his command capa-ble of such a feat, he will produce the greater effect. Thus, I rememberas a child, in 1858, having heard Frau Schroder-Devrient, then fifty-fiveyears old, sing Ich grolle nicht, and never shall I forget the shiver thatran down my spine at the last climax. The beautiful timbre of the voicewas of course lacking; but the overwhelming power of the expressionwas so irresistible that every one was earned away. To be able to sing Schumann is a special faculty which many excel-lent singers do not have. I have heard the same singer render Schubertto perfection, and Schumann absolutely badly. For with Schubert themost of what is to be done is explicitly expressed; while with Schumann. INTERIOR OF I HE MARIENK1RCHE, ZWICKAU one must understand the art of reading between the lines — of interpret-ing a half-told tale. A symphony, too, of Schubert plays itself, as itwere; but a symphony of Schumann has to be studied with a subtile per-ception in order to uncover and bring out what is veiled in the mastersintentions. Otherwise it would lose much of its effect. In speakingabove of the excessive demands upon the compass of the voice in Schu-manns songs, I refer chiefly to those more broadly composed. The smallerand more delicate ones do not usually strain a voice of ordinary register. A quite peculiar stamp of genius is impressed upon Schumanns epicromances and ballads. In this genre he has created unequaled master-pieces. I will cite as instances Chamissos Die Lowenbraut, and (fromOpus 45) Eichendorifs Der Schatzgraber, and Heines Abend amStrande. In the last named Schumann attains a realistic effect of greatintensity How pi
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookidmode, booksubjectmusicians
