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Show PROF. STEPHENS ON THE MUSIC OF THE MASS. Professor Evan Stephens, well known in this locality as the leader of the famous Mormon choir, gives his views on the music of the Catholic Mass in an Interesting letter published in the Des-eret Des-eret Evening News of April 14, 1900. The following is an extract: "London, March 25. I was much interested in-terested in New York's system of "people's "peo-ple's singing classes" (the very thing we need in Salt Lake). These classes have thousands enrolled in the great city, and they already have become the back bona of choral organizations and the musical development of the city. The church singing in New York, as in all eastern states, is not much from a choral standpoint. The miserable miser-able but fashionable solo and quartette quar-tette or double quartette Is in vogue, and a poor mess of individual glorification glorifi-cation they make of their devotional efforts there is not body, substance and sincerity enough in.it to fill the amallost heart, to say nothing of flooding flood-ing the soul of the listeners; may we never sink to that level, though there is no telling. We are very liable to bow-low bow-low before "Fashion." Thanks to the form of musical worship adopted by the Catholic church, demanding the highest form of musical composition, the "Mass" in a cathedral we hear singing of good though not large choirs, boys generally singing the soprano and their voices are incomparably sweet. Here the most intricate and glorious choruses are sung with an ease we do not dream of; because of the constant practice and forced close attention at-tention of the choir 'Avho are kept at it daily, it is nothing short of a "school" with constant daily practice fcr the singer:;,- hc-nee a perfection we cannot ever hope to approach. But it is all in Latin and were it not for the exquisite radical expression, making of itself an emotional language, it would be entirely en-tirely meaningless to us. As it Is. it s'ilrs tmd movi.s me intensely. Indeed no opera with its drama.tie'intensity of oppression, with its action and greatest great-est and best voices in the world, has ever moved me more than the singing of the "Mass" as I heard it today, March "5, in London's leading cathedral; cathe-dral; every phase of human emotion eeemed to surge and throb from those beautiful human throats above me. All ::li: from the sobs of anguish, the fearful cries of despair up through the sunlight of hope, to the sublime expression ex-pression of glorious triumph over death and sin! How those mites of boys had caught every shade of feel-ijLg,.-an.(J Jasxned to ja it. suct-hso lute perfect expression was amazing to me. They certainly possess an emotional emo-tional intensity, a tremendous earneft ness, and a vivid imagination that our own little boys at home with their surrounding's sur-rounding's of sunshine and careless freedom, are entirely devoid of. As naturally nat-urally as a timid child at home might express its terrors at a fearful mask, do these boys express every shade of emotional feelin? in sinping their "Mass." The frrown up members of the choir do not compare with them either in expression or beauty of tone. I have already heard in London ALL I have sought to fret from you "my choir" and pefhaps more, hence I know that what I ask for and labor for is not an absolute ab-solute impossibility; but it may be for us, that remains to be seen. But the highest results in art demand seriousness, ser-iousness, a devotion and attention that we have not yet practiced in our efforts. ef-forts. Could you with me hear the results, re-sults, I believe you would also with me exert your whole energy to attain at least something near it." As Professor Stephens has a national reputation as a choir leader (for it was the Mormon choir of 500 voices, led by the professes, that took the second prize at the World's Fair, and it has been often said by musical experts who witnessed the contests that they should have had first prize) his suggestions and recommendations carry a great deal of weight. The Intermountain Catholic takes the liberty'of saying to the professor and the public generally, that it is Bishop Scanlan's highest ambition am-bition to have such a choir as above referred to when the new cathedral Is completed, and the present choir at St. Mary's Cathedral is an excellent foundation found-ation for it; as on feast and festival days, when they are at their best, St. Mary's Cathedral is not large enough to accommodate the crowds that go to hear them. No later than last Sunday, being Kaster, the people that were turned away unable to gain admission, numbered up into the hundreds. "Wo will say to Professor Stephens, on bRhaJLC ct tfc? CaihoU 3iuxc& "W9 wish to thank you, and we hope that the day is not far cf when musicians with such reputation as you have, while stopping at Salt Lake City, will have the same to say of St. Mary's Cathedral here as you have said of the ona in London. |