, that the average listener might claim
that it does not exist. Without wishing to venture upon any
odious grounds of comparison, I want to state frankly that it
is, to me, emphatically the best American concerto."

Huss is essentially a dramatic and lyric composer, though he seems to
be determined to show himself also a thematic composer of the old
school. In his trio, which I heard played by the Kaltenborn Quartette,
both phases of his activity were seen. There was much odor of the lamp
about the greater part of the trio, which seemed generally lacking
that necessary capillarity of energy which sometimes saturates with
life-sap the most formal and elaborate counterpoint of the
pre-romantic strata. The andante of the trio, however, displayed Huss'
singularly appealing gift of song. It abounded in emotion, and was--to
use the impossible word Keats coined--"yearnful." Huss should write
more of this sort of music. We need its rare spontaneity and truth, as
we do not need the all too frequent mathematics of those who compose,
as Tybalt fought, "by the book."

For the piano there are "Three Bagatelles:" an "Etude Melodique,"
which is rather harmonic than melodic; an "Albumblatt," a graceful
movement woven like a Schumann arabesque; and a "Pastoral," in which
the gracefulness of the music given to the right hand is annulled by
the inexplicable harshness of that given to the left.

For the voice, there is, of course, a setting of "Du bist wie eine
Blume," which, save for the fact that it looks as if the accompaniment
were written first, is a very pure piece of writing. The "Song of the
Syrens" is a strong composition with a big climax, the "Jessamine Bud"
is extremely delicate, and "They that Sow in Tears" has much dignity.
There are two songs from Tennyson, "There is Sweet Music Here" and
"Home They Brought Her Warrior Dead," with orchestral accompaniment.

By all odds the most important, and a genuinely improved composition
is the aria for soprano and orchestra, "The Death of Cleopatra." The
words are taken from Shakespeare's play and make use of the great
lines given to the dying Egypt, "Give me my robe, put on my crown, I
have immortal longings in me," and the rest. The music not only pays
all due reverence to the sacred text, but is inspired by it, and
reaches great heights of fervor and tragedy. From Shakespeare, Huss
drew the afflation for another aria of great interest, a setting for
barytone voice of