Show MUSIO AND POETRY been very forcibly im pressed with evidences of natural musical and poetical genius mormon children in the rural districts of utah exhibit the youth of this territory have not of courso enjoyed the same advantageous their more fortunate cousins in older countries they ao the spring of pioneers who could not afford to allow them even the much less the instruction necessary to develop artistic talent to any degree of perfection and then the educational advantages afforded by a new country are always very limited at first and it is to the future that utah has reason to look for the grandest accomplishments in all departments of literature music painting and poetry and young people who show an especial fondness for any of these arts de serve the utmost encouragement and every possible assistance paul has recently published in the musical herald an article in reference to the musical tendency of the times which con bains some suggestions that many of our youthful readers may proda by he says that the true critics of poetry and painting are rejoicing over what appears to them a return to the original purity and simplicity of form of these high arts there has been a tendency in this country at least amone poets and ari fists to imitate the french lian schools of art poetry has followed the models of the dilettante miniature wood cona fining itself too much to the mere euphony of expression decking out the most meagre ideas with a profusion of jingling verbiage which carried to extremes as it has been of late becomes not only tedious ted igus in the extreme but offensive to any but a perverted taste but how has it been with music has this art also been led away from its true idealism in the mad chase after me reform and prettiness to a certain extent it must be confessed music has departed from the simplicity and genuineness of its early ideals there has been more or less seeking after the meretricious embellishment which is from its nature nothing but an embellishment and which tends to obscure the idea by drawing the attention away from that which is to be expressed to the manner of its expression true musicians cannot but deplore the fact that too much attention is given in modern american compositions especially for instrumental rendering to mere orna and flourish alio prevailing style of pianoforte instance is for roal elaborate in the extreme there is not more than a thimbleful of idea in the brilliant composition of the modern piano acrobat to a of foam and nonsense while admitting however that to a certain extent music has departed from its ancient simplicity we must not fail to eiyo it credit for maintaining the ground winch i it has maintained the classic pro duc tiona of the great masters hold their preeminent pre eminent popularity in spite of the flashy compositions with which the market is flooded today to day there is still enough musical taste and appreciation left to rescue the grand old harmonics singing with thought and mystery like an harp from the rubbish of meaningless frippery which the are pouring forth in such ceaseless streams and in music as in poetry and painting there is an evident move ment toward renaissance ortho old forms forms in the expression does not overlie the idea and which are not tricked out with ducai a travesty tra of adornment wo this tendency not only in tho popi ular for classic music but also in certain productions of our young composers our homo ballads and popular songs for instance there ia a simplicity a genuineness of sentiment a singing sweetness and about some of these ballads which strongly distinguish them from the superficial products ions of certain instrumental composers of tho day there is more genuine power more art moro value and permanency in ono of these simple bongs than in all tha flourish and brilliancy of a board ing school most elaborate graduation piece |