An American Music House in Europe

The establishment of an American publishing house in Germany is something quite out of the ordinary routine, and the influence on that advancement of our art which such a house must surely exert, is of the highest. Hitherto the great publishing houses of Europe have established their branches in New York or Boston, but now Mr. Arthur P. Schmidt has carried the war into Africa by establishing a branch of his publishing business in Leipsic.

The consequences of the success of this new departure, (and it has already proved itself successful) are fraught with great significance to American composers. Even such broad and educated musicians as Reinecke or Rheinberger are ignorant of what is being composed in the higher forms in America, and it has been but seldom that a work even of the best quality achieved even the scantiest recognition in England, France, or Germany. 

All this is now likely to be changed, for the house of Arthur P. Schmidt has control of some of the very best of the larger works published in our country, and these will now be accessible to the German orchestras and choruses at least [sic]. Among these are such compositions as Prof. Paine’s “Oedipus Tyrannus,” and his spring symphony (both in score and in four-hand arrangement), Chadwick’s Second Symphony in full score, Parker’s “St. John,” MacDowell’s Suite, in orchestral score, Foote’s numerous large works in Chamber Music, Chadwick’s “Melpomene” Overture, in score, and many other equally important works.

Nor is the influence of the Leipsic branch to be confined to this excellent mission, but it will effect reforms in another direction as well. The works of the great musicians of Europe may now sometimes have their first hearing in our own country. Already arrangements have been perfected with such composers as Godard and Massanet, and their latest compositions are very soon to be published simultaneously on both sides of the Atlantic. 

Best of all is the news that the enterprising publisher has bought from the widow of the great composer, [Joachim] Raff, the scores of four posthumous overtures. These are on Shakesperian [sic] subjects and may be heard in America before even Germany shall have had an opportunity of placing them on its concert programs.