In his unpublished autobiography Quadrille with a Raven, Searle recalled that “the concert, which took place on [17 April 1939], also included Liszt's Malediction, a movement from a van Dieren quartet [Adagio cantando, Quartet No.5] to which I had added a double bass part (with the permission of the composer's widow) and the first public performance in England of Webern's Five Movements, op.5 in his own [Webern’s] arrangement for string orchestra. I wrote a short piece [Scherzo Malinconico] for the concert which was a curious mixture of Webern and Liszt, and I have since withdrawn it.”
The programme also included two well-known works: Bach's F-minor clavier concerto [BWV 1056] and the Elegy and Waltz from Tchaikovsky's Serenade, which was not performed as frequently then as it is today. Robert Irving was the soloist in both the Bach and the Liszt. Artistically, the concert was a success, but the reviews were a bit mixed.
I will quote these
critiques in full, as they cast also cast a light on the important Webern
premiere and on Searle’s withdrawn Scherzo Malinconico.
R.H. (possibly Robert Hull) writing for the Daily Mail (18 April 1939, p.11) headed his critique MUSIC ELUDES THE EAR. He continues:
"At the Aeolian Hall last night Mr. Humphrey Searle conducted the London String Orchestra in a programme of old and new music. Of the former, two fugues and a voluntary by the 18th-century English composer Thomas Roseingrave proved very beautiful and worthy of frequent performance. Of the latter, the first concert performance in England of Anton von Webern's Five movements for string orchestra showed a concentration of style that left everything to the imagination and very little to the ear.”
The Daily Telegraph (18 April 1939, p12) gave an extensive review of the concert. Ferruccio Bonavia began by recalling that:
“Humphrey Searle conducted the London String Orchestra at Aeolian Hall last night in a programme that consisted largely of novelties and unfamiliar compositions. Thomas Roseingrave, represented by two fugues and a Voluntary arranged by Mr. Searle, is not one of the best-known musicians of the 18th century. Then a Scherzo malinconico by Mr. Searle, Five movements for string orchestra by Anton von Webern, and an orchestral setting of Bernard van Dieren's "Adagio cantando" were performed for the first time. Such a programme would be a severe test of the skill of an experienced conductor, and Mr. Searle is not yet that. His beat, lacking clearness and decision, imperilled the ensemble of some very straightforward music.
In the Webern pieces - which possess more tension and meaning in one bar, so the programme said, than many full-sized works of other composers - the conductor's ingenuity could not be definitely proved or disproved; but there were moments in the first movement when the playing sounded extremely haphazard. There was better playing in the acceptable rearrangement of the movement van Dieren’s quartet. But much the best performance of the evening was that of Bach’s piano concerto in F minor with Robert Irving as a sensitive interpreter.
The Scherzo malinconico did not give a clear idea of its composer’s trend. Mr. Searle has studied at the Royal College of Music, and also at Vienna with Anton von Webern. His scherzo is a pale reflection of two styles not usually identified with either the London or the Vienna school. The opening had a flavour of uncompromising intellectuality; but when the mood changed the style became bluff and fussy. It looked as if the composer meant to call forth spirits from the vasty deep and. when they failed to answer, rejoiced at his escape.”
The most extensive analysis of the Aeolian Hall concert was given in The Queen (3 May 1939, p.41):
“A young English conductor, Mr. Humphrey Searle, gave a concert with the London String Orchestra at [the] Aeolian Hall on April 17th. On paper his scheme looked intriguing: some rarely performed works by Roseingrave (1690-1766) and Liszt, and some novelties by Webern, van Dieren, and Mr. Searle himself.
In practice, however, the results were disappointing. The Roseingrave items (two fugues and a voluntary) sounded rather like inferior Bach, and although van Dieren’s “Adagio Cantando” was far more readily comprehensible than most of his other works, one looked in vain for the “serenity and beauty almost without rival in our time” which was claimed for him by the overoptimistic programme annotator. We were also informed that Webern is “one of the few living composers who have achieved real greatness,” that “the omission of a single note would destroy the effect of the whole,” and that “there is more tension and meaning (apart from the sheer beauty of the sound) in one bar of his music than in many full-sized works of other composers.” These claims seemed, to one listener at least, to be rather farfetched.
To most concert-goers, Webern is probably little more than a name, and if a connoisseur of music were told that a bar of Webern’s music had more meaning than, say, a symphony by Sibelius he would either wonder whether he had heard aright or else collapse in convulsions.
Apart from the saving grace of extreme brevity, Webern's Five movements for String Orchestra, op. 5 contained little to interest anyone outside of the composer’s limited circle of friends and pupils, or perhaps some historian of the future. It was received with a noticeable lack of enthusiasm by the audience. Most of the “twelve tone’ composers seem to suffer from acute anaemia and their appeal is mainly confined to those in a similar condition.
A new pianist, Robert Irving, gave a brilliant account of Liszt’s Malediction without, however, convincing us that the work is of any especial merit save to the out-and-out Lisztian.
By far the best music of this concert was Bach’s Piano Concerto in F minor, which Mr. Irving played with commendable clarity and control. Mr. Searle’s own Scherzo malinconico was a brief and ingenious essay much in the manner of his master, Webern; it did not reveal any genuine individuality, nor did it arouse the slightest desire to hear it again.
As a conductor, Mr. Searle has, at the moment, an extremely inflexible and inexpressive beat, and most of his readings were under-vitalised. But he is a sincere and conscientious musician and he will surely improve.”
Notes
Robert Irving (1913-91) was a British pianist and conductor known mainly for his work in ballet. He spent much of his career shaping performances for companies like the Royal Ballet and New York City Ballet.
To be concluded...
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