Beethoven's Overture "Coriolanus." which opened the eighth Symphony Concert last night in Saunders Theatre, has been identified by Wagner with the scene "between Coriolanus, his mother and his wife on the battlefield before the gates of his native city, when the chieftain yielded to femine entreaties, refused to assault the place and thereupon suffered death at the hands of the Volcian, Attius, his associate in the enterprise." The overture is very impressive, beginning with the huge C given by the strings with all their might, followed by a short, sharp chord from the entire orchestra, and developing with great skill to the touching close - three staccato notes in the strings only, as soft as possible, "preceeded by fragments of the original themes, coming like inevitable death on the broken purposes of the hero." The overture was finely played though perhaps a little too dramatically.

The two movements from Moszowsk's Suite No. 1, - an Andante with eight variations, including a charming moto contino for the first violins, and a Perpetuum Mobile with a complicated fugue, - are what might be called "elastic" music, - the triangle, piccolo and glockenspiel are often introduced. Though Moszowstki is of Russian descent he was born in Germany and his music savors more of the German School than the Russian. Both movements were played with fire and careful standing; Mr. Mole's difficult flute solo in the Andante being very skillfully executed.

Mr. Alvin Schroeder was the soloist and played Davidoff's Concerts for violincello. It is in one movement with changing time, full of harmonious changes and difficult runs. There are several themes worked out by the 'cello and the orchestra, and all are very beautiful. Mr. Schroeder played with rare taste and expression; it is seldom that we hear such a good artist on the 'cello. The various themes were played with much feeling and the runs were executed with delicacy and fineness of touch. Mr. Schroeder also played two solos - a Nocturne by Chopin and a Capriccio by Klengel. He was warmly applauded and obliged to play an encore.

Tschaikowsky's magnificent fifth Symphony brought to a close the finest concert, perhaps, of the season. His compositions bear more or less of the Slavonic temperament - "fiery exaltation on a basis of languid melancholy." He is fond of fantastic and melodic tunes, bold modulations and striking effects; and his fifth symphony is perhaps his most characteristic. The orchestration is very rich, the various instruments playing alternately one time to give fantastic effects and again combining in grand harmonies. There is much restlessness throughout, even in the lovely Andante cantabile and the orchestra is kept at a high tension. The Symphony was finely interpreted.