“Withered and dead they fall to the ground,
And silently cover a new-made mound,
And the years glide by.”
These last lines were rendered so softly, yet distinctly, that they seemed like tremulous sounds in the air. The singer’s face hardly appeared to move; every listener was like a statue. The silence was almost painful and impressive. One could but feel this was indeed art, and not a pretentious affectation of it.
AN OLD GERMAN TOWN.
The reign of the organ as the monarch of musical instruments began with Charlemagne, and nearly all of the towns on the Rhine have historic organs. Many of the organ pieces are local compositions [!-- illustration --] [!-- blank page --] and imitative. On the great organs at Basle and Frieburg the imitation of storms is sometimes produced.
None of these storm-pieces, however, equal that which is daily played in summer on the organ of Lucerne. This organ tempest more greatly excited the Class than any music that they heard during their journeys; and Master Beal made a record of it in verse, which we give at the close of the chapter.
The children of Germany learn to read music at the same age that they learn to read books. Music is a part of their primary school—Kindergarten—education. The poorest children are taught to sing.
