Road to Samarkand

New Zealand Listener, Volume 15, Issue 387, 22 November 1946, Page 10

Road to Samarkand

HE closing scene of Hassan — the music of Delius to Flecker’s semipoetic drama-was recently broadcast by 3YA. It was an affair of choir, tenor, Philharmonic, and Beecham, -and pleasing enough to the ear, though © both Flecker and Delius tempt us to regard them as the last embers of the romantic inspiration; but it raises, of course, all the old headaches about co-operation between the arts. Flecker wrote the last scene of Hassan to evoke a certain mood -"Sweet to ride forth at evening from the wells Where shadows pass gigantic on the sand And softly through the silence beat the bells Along the golden road to Samarkand." It is permissible to wonder how clearly Flecker decided whether he was writing these words to be read or to be spoken from the stage, but the latter has been done and done. successfully. At any rate, Flecker achieved his aim of evocation by writing these words; they, alone and unsupported, convey the poet’s meaning. Now the problem is: by bringing in another artist working in another medium, and by presenting Flecker’s words together with Delius’ music (and sung, to boot) are we not confusing the arts, setting two to do what either might perform ‘more adequately alone? "And softly through the silence beat the bells" conveys a definite mental picture; can we legitimately play music with exactly the same intention, while these words are being spoken?