Scan 42
Musical Courier 1901-12-11: Vol 43 Iss 1133, 1901
105 lines. Read by computer on 22 September 2026, twice; the two readings disagreed in places. Printed page 43. See the scan on archive.org.
1London Music.
2HOTEL CECIL, LONDON.
3November 23, 1901.
5WO interesting concerts have been arranged by Walter Ford in Bechstein Hall, of which the first took place on Monday afternoon. The concerts are designed to show, as far as is possible, the growth of German vocal music during the last six centuries, and though it is, of course, impossible to do full justice to so enormous a subject in two recitals, Mr. Ford is to be congratulated on the manner in which he has arranged his programs. On this occasion he gave three groups, consisting respectively of the Volkslied, the Volkstümliches Lied and the Kunstlied, and he included among them some of Brahms' arrangements of Volkslieder and songs by Hassler, Heinrich Albert, Melchior Franck, Bach, Schubert and others. Mr. Ford's vocal powers are, perhaps, not very great, but he is an earnest and interesting singer and his performances are always well worth hearing.
7On the same afternoon a violoncello recital was given at St. James' Hall by Henry Bramsen.
9In the evening Bechstein Hall was the scene of yet another vocal recital, given by Leonhard Sickert, a young and promising singer with a good voice and unimpeachable taste. When first he appeared in London a couple of years or so ago his singing was unfinished, but since then he has made great progress and his interpretation of songs by Mendelssohn, Löwe, Schumann and Franz and of a number of old English songs had many good points. He was assisted by Miss Edie Reynolds, who played violin solos.
11Much metaphorical blowing of trumpets heralded the first appearance of Miss Amy Castles, a young Australian soprano, at St. James' Hall on Tuesday evening. Miss Castles certainly has a voice of remarkable power and beauty, and there is every probability that she will turn into a great singer. Her present intention is to continue taking lessons in England, and the best advice that one can offer her is to persist in that intention and not to allow her head to be turned by the very enthusiastic reception which was given her on Tuesday. She has a very remarkable voice, but she does not make the most of it at present, and her singing of the "Air d'Ophélie," from Ambroise Thomas' "Hamlet," and of "O Dieu Brama," from Bizet's "Les Pêcheurs de Perles," was lacking in variety. When she added style to her accomplishments she should make a great hit. At this concert William Lavin made a successful first appearance in London, while among the other performers were Miss Ada Crossley, Reginald Davidson and Dr. Theo. Lierhammer.
13On the same evening concerts were given by Miss Clara Blumenthal, a pianist, and Miss Lilian Foulis, a violinist, at Bechstein Hall, and by Miss Josephine Wood at the Salle Erard.
15The second of the Queen's Hall organ recitals, at which E. H. Lemare, the organist of St. Margaret's, Westminster, is now acting as soloist, took place on Wednesday afternoon. These recitals are so much appreciated and attract such excellent audiences that one would like to see the standard of the programs raised. A single work by Bach, even if it is the great Toccata in F, is surely rather short measure, while organ arrangements of extracts from "Lohengrin" and Brahms' "Academical Festival" overture, clever though they be, are quite unnecessary when orchestral concerts are of such frequent occurrence. Mr. Lemare is a brilliant organist, and it is to be hoped that he will see his way to giving us rather more interesting programs.
17In the evening Marie Brema gave a concert in Bechstein Hall, under the auspices of the Curtius Concert Club. Miss Brema's programs are always interesting, and she has a dramatic power that enables her to do full justice to them. On Wednesday she was suffering from a cold, and an apology was made for her. The apology, however, was hardly necessary, as the influence of the cold was almost imperceptible. She opened the concert with four old German songs, "Leichte Wahl," written in 1544; "Linde im Thal," of a year later; "Im Wald bei der Amvel," and Melchior Franck's "Kommt, ihr Gespielen," while later in the evening she sang a particularly fine song by Brückler, called "Gebet." These, together with songs by Schubert and Jensen, formed an interesting and uncommon selection, to which she did full justice. Francis Braun, a baritone, with a very pleasant voice, also sang, his best effort being Löwe's "Tour der Reimer," while he joined Miss Brema in a number of duets. Madame von Stosch was the violinist, and she played some selections from Bach's Second Sonata particularly well.
19On the same evening the Royal Amateur Orchestral Society opened its season at Queen's Hall. Under the conductorship of Ernest Ford the orchestra gave excellent performances of Tschaikowsky's "Casse Noisette" Suite, the "Tannhäuser" Overture and Beethoven's C minor Symphony, the vocalists being Miss Margaret Macintyre and Richard Green.
21On the same evening Miss Keevil gave a mandolin recital at Steinway Hall, while in the afternoon a ballad concert took place at St. James' Hall.
23On Thursday afternoon the indefatigable pianist and composer, Donald Francis Tovey, gave the third of a series of chamber concerts. In both his capacities Mr. Tovey is a very serious man indeed, both in his aims and in his style. He is obviously a devoted admirer of Brahms, and his works reproduce that composer almost too faithfully, in that they have but little originality. His Piano Quartet in E minor, which he played on this occasion, is an excellent example of his work. It is undeniably clever, but as music it is uninteresting. A little more originality, and, be it said, a slight sense of humor, would make Mr. Tovey into an excellent composer. Madame Soldat joined him in a fine performance of Beethoven's Sonata, for violin and piano, in C minor, and Miss Cecilia Gates, Percy Such, W. Malsch and Miss Fillunger also appeared.
25On the same afternoon the second of the Ysaye-Becker-Busoni concerts took place. The ensemble of the trio had much improved since last week, and the performances they gave of Beethoven's Trio in B flat and Saint-Saëns' in F were excellent. As solos Signor Busoni played Weber's Sonata in D minor, M. Ysaye gave Bach's Prelude and Fugue in G minor and Herr Becker gave a Sonata of Valenti.
27The most important of the many concerts that took place in the evening was that given by Madame Patti in Albert Hall. Patti is still a name to conjure with and the huge hall was packed. Her voice is, of course, not what it was; that is hardly to be expected. But there is no denying that it is marvelously well preserved and her singing still retains the wonderful charm that made it so famous. In the program she was only announced to sing three songs, but that meant seven, with an encore to each of the first two and a double encore to the third. She confined herself principally to old favorites, such as "Batti Batti"; the Jewel Song, Tosti's "Seranata"; "Home, Sweet Home" and "Comin' Through the Rye," without which no Patti concert would be complete. She also, however, sang Wagner's "Traüme" and she sang it with really remarkable charm. At this concert Mme. Clara Butt and Kennerly Rumford also scored big successes and a number of other performers appeared.
29At Bechstein Hall Mlle. Maria Pevy, an excellent pianist, gave a very successful recital from an artistic point of view. Her technic is good, her phrasing is original and very interesting, and she furthermore has a very real understanding of the poetry of music. Tausig's arrangement of Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor and Beethoven's Variations, op. 34, were her best performances.
31On Friday afternoon the band of the Royal Artillery, conducted by Cav. Zavertal, gave a first-rate program at Queen's Hall. This orchestra is a remarkably good one, and its performance of Mendelssohn's "Reformation" Symphony left nothing to be desired.
33At Bechstein Hall Miss Hope Morgan gave her second song recital.
35MADAME OHRSTROM-RENARD'S MUSICALE.—The following program was given at Madame Ohrstrom-Renard's studio last Friday evening:
36Aria from Hamlet……………………………………………..Thomas
37Miss Rebecca MacKenzie.
38Adagio from Second Concerto……………………………….Godard
39Miss Josefa.
40Song, My Heart at Thy Sweet Voice………………………..Saint-Saëns
41Mrs. Robert Seligman.
42Duo from Der Freischüts………………………………………Von Weber one of two readings
43Duo from Der Freischütz………………………………………Von Weber one of two readings
44Misses Maud Silberberg and Helen Fox.
45Songs—
46Se tu m'ami…………………………………………………….Pergolesi
47Lady Ann Bothwell's Lament…(Old Scotch from 17th century) Massenet
48Ouvre tes yeux bleus………………………………………….Massenet
49Miss Rebecca MacKenzie.
50Mazurka………………………………………………………..Wieniawski
51Miss Josefa.
52Songs—
53He Loves Me…………………………………………………Chadwick
54Thy Beaming Eyes…………………………………………MacDowell
55Mrs. Robert Seligman.
56Ave Maria………………………………………………………Mascheroni
57Miss Helen Fox.
58Violin obligato by Miss Josefa.
60The rooms were crowded with friends of the pupils—all of whom showed excellent vocal training. Miss MacKenzie is the well-known professional pupil of Madame Renard. The other pupils will soon be heard of in public. Miss Josefa, the young violinist, has just returned from César Thomson's class.
62FIVE AFTERNOON CONCERTS BY THE Mendelssohn Trio Club.
63Alexander Saslavsky, Violin. Victor Sörlin, Violoncello.
64Charles Gilbert Spross, Piano.
65Tuesday Afternoons, Dec. 17, Jan. 7, 28, Feb. 11, March 4.
66Subscriptions can be made at Ditson's, 867 Broadway.
67Series, Four Dollars. Single Tickets One Dollar.
69Mendelssohn Hall, Thursday, December 19, 3 P. M.
70First presentation of the Song Cycle
71"The Trend of Time." Music by "VICTOR KEMP"
72Mrs. Seabury Ford, Miss Marguerite Hall, MacKenzie Gordon, Harry Girard, Victor Harris, Conductor.
73Reserved Seats $1.00 and $1.50, at E. Schuberth Co.
75NEW XMAS SONGS
76MARY'S SLUMBER SONG
77John Spencer Camp
78High Voice in C Low Voice in G
79.50
80One of the most attractive numbers from Mr. Camp's very successful Christmas Cantata, "The Prince of Peace," issued in sheet-music form. It is a charming song, and yet the word "charming" is not of itself enough to describe the worth of the song. It is charming and more; it is musically without pedantry, and its vocal quality will appeal to singers.
82BABE DIVINE
83(Violin Obbligato)
84Louis R. Dressler
85High Voice in G Low Voice in E
86.60
87A song of vocal quality, easy to sing, and of pleasing melody. The violin obbligato adds to its interest.
89BABE IN MANGER LOWLY
90Op. 50, No. 3
91E. R. Kroeger
92High Voice in D Low Voice in B
93.50
94An unpretentious song, which, nevertheless, presents possibilities to the singer.
96DUET
97WHAT CAN I GIVE MY SAVIOUR?
98Rose M. Eversole
99(Duet for Soprano and Tenor.)
100.50
101This duet will be welcomed by choirmasters for its union of devotional and musical qualities. It is not difficult and is effective.
103OLIVER DITSON COMPANY, Boston
104C. H. Ditson & Co., New York. J. E. Ditson & Co., Philadelphia.
The computer misreads some letters and numbers. Where a name matters to you, read the scan.