142 J/r. George Henschel [June 2, 



on his table, and he pointed out to me how badly the accompani- 

 ments were often arranged for the piano. In the endeavour to bring 

 out as nearly as possible every individual part of the orchestration 

 in its right relation to the whole, the arrangement had well-nigh 

 become unplayable for any but a virtuoso. "The chief aim," he 

 said, " of a pianoforte arrangement of orchestral accompaniments 

 must be to be easily playable. It does not matter at all if the 

 different parts move correctly and in strict accordance with the rules 

 of counterpoint." 



Then we went together through the full score of Mozart's 

 ^' Requiem," which he had undertaken to prepare for a new edition 

 of Mozart's works. I admired the great trouble he had taken in the 

 revision of the score. Every note of Siissmayer's was most carefuUy 

 distinguished from Mozart's own. 



Of the value of the metronome we also spoke, a conversation 

 which was vividly recalled to me years later, when I had come to 

 live in London, and Mr. Otto Goldschmidt (Jenny Lind's husband, 

 and then conductor of the Bach Choir) had requested me to write to 

 Brahms, asking him if the metronome marks at the head of the 

 different movements of his " German Requiem," which Mr. Gold- 

 schmidt was about to perform, should be strictly adhered to. 



This was Brahms' answer : — 



" My dear Henschel," he WTites, " I hardly know what answer to 

 give. I think here, as well as with all other music, the metronome 

 is of very little value. As far as my experience goes, most com- 

 posers have, sooner or later, withdrawn their metronome markings. 

 Those which can be found in my works — good friends have per- 

 suaded me to put them there, for I myself have never believed that 

 my blood and a mechanical instrument go very well together. 



" The so-called temjjo elastico is, moreover, not a new invention. 

 Con discrezione should be added to that, as to many other things in 

 this w^orld. 



" Is this an answer ? I know no better one. But what I do 

 know is that, I indicate my tempi — without metronome — modestly, to 

 be sure, but with the greatest possible care and clearness. 



" Remember me kindly to Mr. Goldschmidt, and say, please, 

 there is only one thing in the coming performance of my Requiem 

 I dislike thinking of, and that is that the soprano solo, ' Ye now are 

 sorrowful,' will not be sung by the conductor's wife. I do wish I 

 could have heard that once from her ! " 



July 11. — I bought a strong hammock yesterday, and Brahms 

 and I went into the lovely beech-wood and hung it up between two 

 trees, on a spot from which, through the foliage, we could see the 

 sea far below us. We both climbed into the hammock simultaneously, 

 an amusing, though by no means an easy task to accomplish. After 

 having comfortably established ourselves in it, we enjoyed a very 

 cosy, agreeable hour or two of cMcefar niente. Brahms was in an 



