Russian Orpheus

Great is the esteem expressed when musicians present one another with wreaths. By this token a big, bearish Russian might have felt doubly honored last week in Manhattan. He received not only a floral wreath, but a lyre made of red and white carnations and inscribed "in the name of American musicians to this Orpheus of Russia." The famed, hulking Orpheus was Alexandre Constantinovitch Glazounov, now making his first visit to the U. S. and appearing last week as conductor of his own works.

Alexandre Constantinovitch Glazounov is the last survivor of the late great Russian school of composition. Born in St. Petersburg 64 years ago, the son of a bookseller, he was taught music by Mily Balakirev and Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov, both members of the famed Russian "Five."* He himself won early notice with his startling memory. When Alexander Borodin died, the overture to Prince Igor was nowhere to be found, but Glazounov had once heard Borodin play it on the piano and was able to reconstruct it entirely from memory. Aged 16, Glazounov had finished his own first symphony. Liszt liked it, played it at Weimar. Glazounov's career and reputation kept pace from then on. He wrote much music swiftly, first inspired by Russian folklore, later by classical forms. In 1905 he was chosen to succeed Rimsky-Korsakov as director of the Imperial Conservatory of Music at St. Petersburg. In 1917, when most artists fled Russia, Glazounov stayed on, fought bravely to maintain the pre-Revolution standards of the newly named Leningrad State Conservatory which he heads today.

Last week's concert, at Manhattan's Metropolitan Opera House, called for little critical comment. It was a ceremonial affair. Glazounov, like most great composers, is an indifferent conductor. He had only a scratch orchestra at his command. Yet a great audience gathered to pay tribute, arose when he appeared, applauded continually. Similarly was he honored fortnight ago in Detroit. He will appear also in Philadelphia, Chicago and Boston.

*Balakirev, Rimsky-Korsakov, Borodin, Moussorgsky and Cesar Cui--five famed followers of Michail Glinka, who first turned his back on Western music, took inspiration from Russian legends, folk tunes.

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