erally have achieved better results; and the noblest music is not specifically concerned with paradise. The Symphony in C minor, of which it is unnecessary to name the composer, Schubert's Symphony in C major, which has only been associated with heaven through Schumann's adjectival comment, Or sai chi l'onore, and the final scene of Die Walküre were all no doubt inspired by God in the deepest religious sense, but the composers were making no attempt to picture to us the streets of pearl, the mighty chryselephantine throne, or the winged supernaturals who are said to play harps in the air. A real heaven in opera or tone-poem is quite likely to remind a musician of the key of C major, the tonic and the dominant, and the diatonic scale, whereas hell and the devil seem to insist on five or six sharps or flats, esoteric scales, and a daedal disregard for exoteric rhythms. The conclusion of the second act of Hänsel und Gretel furnishes an excellent typical example of what usually happens in music when the composer is concerned with heaven. Humperdinck here is satisfied, with the aid of transparencies, coloured lights, and statelily tripping angels[1] bearing gilded palm leaves,
- ↑ Mr. Pepys's experience with angel music in the theatre is unique and should be recorded: "Went to see the Virgin and Martyr, it is mighty pleasant; not that the play is worth much, but it is finely acted by Beck Marshall. But that which did please me beyond anything in the whole world, was the wind
