Identifier: orchestraitsinst00sing (find matches)
Title: The orchestra and its instruments
Year: 1917 (1910s)
Authors: Singleton, Esther, d. 1930
Subjects: Orchestra Musical instruments
Publisher: New York : The Symphony society of New York
Contributing Library: Harold B. Lee Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Brigham Young University

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
undoubtedly a very great Conductor; andthere does not seem to have been any one after himwho stood for such perfect performances as his untilWagner pointed out the path for Conductors to follow. Wagners criticisms in his Art of Conducting showthat the Orchestras of Europe — even the famousones — gave interpretations of the Classic composerthat we, Americans, would not tolerate; for it is noexaggeration to say that the Orchestras of our countryhave for many years been the most brilliant, the mostfinished, and the most poetic in the world. This con-dition we owe to the guiding minds and high artisticaims of the versatile and intellectual Conductors whohave developed our Symphony Orchestras, and tothe fact that no national prejudice prevents themfrom taking the best players from any country; thewoodwind from France and Belgium; the strings fromAustria; the brass from Germany; together with anever-increasing number of young Americans who showadaptability in all the orchestral groups.
Text Appearing After Image:
jLL CHAPTER X THE HARP Berlioz on the harp; construction oj the harp; the harp an ancient instru-ment; the Egyptian harp; Greek and Roman harps; the Irish harp; quotationfrom Giraldus; the Welsh harp; the Scotch harp; quotation jrom Galilei; theMediaeval harp; improvements in the harp; Sebastian Erard; use of the harpin the Orchestra. ;; ^HE harp, writes Berlioz, is essentiallyanti-chromatic, that is to say successionby half-tones are almost out of the questionfor it. Its compass was formerly but five octavesand a sixth. All harps were tuned in the scale ofE-flat. The skilful manufacturer, Erard, seeking toremedy the inconvenience of this system, inventedthe mechanism which obviated these difficulties andproposed tuning the harp in C-flat, which has beenadapted by all harp-players of the present day. To instruments so constructed was given thename of double-action harps. This is of what it con-sists and wherefore it allows the harp — if not to playchromatic successions — at least

Note About Images