Life, 1922-11-23 · page 25 of 36
Life — November 23, 1922 — page 25: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes musical criticism and scholarly pretension. It's a mock-serious article by "Henderson Finck Krehibiel" (a fabricated critic name) debating whether Irving Berlin's "Outline of History" should be performed *con trionfo* (triumphantly) versus *con brio* (briskly). The joke: The author claims to have "discovered" Berlin's original manuscript in the "Berlin Society" archives, which vindicated his thirty-five-year crusade to correct how orchestras play the piece. He invokes a fake H.G. Wells letter (with absurd citation "Vol. CCCV, p. 2317") claiming Wells regretted writing *The Outline of History* instead of singing Berlin's song. **The satire targets:** - Pretentious music criticism obsessing over trivial interpretive details - Academic pomposity and fake scholarship (fabricated archives, invented letters) - The absurdity of a layman music critic demanding deference from professionals - Over-intellectualization of popular entertainment The accompanying sheet music excerpts show the actual Berlin composition. The humor relies on readers recognizing this as pure invented authority and ridiculous self-importance.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
LIFE 2 The Outline of History A Critical Note Words and Musie b As Irving Berlin would have written it Words sed Music by ‘Tempo di Scandalwalk E reprint the original score of Berlin’s uncom- Grady = °s rE 5 posed masterwork in order to demonstrate the de- Sikes fh o i . plorable tendency of our leading cabaret orchestra con- = Spt saa ductors toward indefensible apocryphal interpretations o— 5 of the last section of the refrain. For some time we have contended that this part should be played con trionfo and not con brio, as it te ee _ usually is. A lover’s sensation at the successful culmi- tried to conquer the world, nation of his courtship is that of lofty exaltation, not mere pep. But we have insisted in vain. It is always played con brio, and in the absence of the original score we have had only our opinion to guide us. Lately, however, careful research by ourself among the Berliniana in the archives of the Berlin Society has resulted in the discovery of the original manuscript, in » eT ae cree the above reprint of which it will be noted that The 5 Master has explicitly directed that this section be played con trionfo, thus confirming our contention. This discovery, furthermore, explains Wells’ much disputed letter to P. G. Cobblestein (Life and Letters, Vol. CCCV, p. 2317), where he says, “Ah, Phil, I should have sung the Outline, not written it!” Con trionfo clearly shows Berlin’s instant appreciation of Wells’ psychology. Truly, truly is he called The Master! Possibly, now, professionals will admit that sometimes a mere layman may be right, even if his only qualifica- tion is thirty-five years as a music critic. HENpERSON Finck KrEHBIEL, fos i seith considerableexpression) = x = Thurs diya and Iknew just what to says Sun = day. ESS " —;— = ‘To-day at three, dear, Tee Ovttinn of Mistery # comicbooks.com