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Musical Courier 1913-11-12: Vol 67 Iss 20, 1913
40 lines. Read by computer on 25 September 2026. Printed page 6. See the scan on archive.org.
1and as interpreter, too, she was thoroughly satisfactory. Casadesus was also heard in a fantasy for viole d'amour with clavecin accompaniment. He is unquestionably the greatest living performer on this instrument and his playing afforded his listeners keen enjoyment.
3The celebrated male choir of the Moscow Synode gave a concert that proved to be of great interest. The organization consists of forty-two singers, twenty-five boys and seventeen men. They were heard in a program of works chiefly by Russian composers. Their manner of singing is quite different from anything we are accustomed to here. They sang for the most part mezzo voce and piano and they produced a weird effect with their peculiar decrescendos. The soft mellifluous quality of the voices themselves heightened this effect. They do not cultivate strong dynamic effects in the way of forceful crescendos and fortissimos, such as we are accustomed to in the singing of the German choirs. The singing of this organization is, however, in its own way masterly. The conductor, N. Golowanow, led his singers with great skill.
5Eva Bruhn introduced herself to Berlin as a lieder singer in a recital at the Singakademie, securing an emphatic success, notwithstanding the fact that she was not at her best, because of a slight indisposition. Mme. Bruhn attracted attention with her beautiful singing at the Jena Music Festival last spring. In her Berlin recital she revealed, as I am informed, all of the attributes that go to make up a first class lieder singer. Her lovely soprano voice has had the best of schooling and is under perfect control, her tone production is pure and of the greatest evenness throughout all the registers. Indeed, both in point of the voice itself and in point of vocal technic Mme. Bruhn has a rare equipment. She sang lieder by Brahms and Wolf. The artist is a pupil of Georg Fergusson, having pursued her vocal studies entirely with that master. The Berlin critics praised with unusual warmth her tone production and admirable schooling.
7Wilhelm Bachaus scored a brilliant success with a Chopin recital at the Singakademie. His program included: Impromptu, F sharp major, two mazurkas, op. 63; nocturne, op. 55. No. 2; barcarole, twelve etudes, op. 25, etc.
9Bachaus is a Chopin interpreter par excellence. The perfection of his technic, the elegant refinement of his style and the charm of his tone production made a strong appeal to his audience, which was a most distinguished one. Bachaus had moments of great poetic insight, particularly in the F major ballade, which was beautifully rendered, and in the twelve etudes, which were played with wonderful finish of execution as well as with remarkable tonal gradations. On the other hand the A flat polonaise was dashed off by Bachaus with great bravura and élan. Technically this was an important performance. All in all the distinguished pianist was in splendid form. He has never been heard here to better advantage and the applause that was showered on him both during the program and at its close was wholly justified. This was Bachaus' third appearance here since the opening of the season.
11The first elite concert drew out an immense audience that taxed the Philharmonie to its utmost seating capacity. These concerts, which were inaugurated by the concert direction of Jules Sachs some years ago, have come to be a strong factor with that portion of the musical public that loves to hear several celebrities on the same program. Emil Sauer, Hermann Jadlowker, Edith von Voigtländer and Claire Dux participated, all of them with pronounced success, although Sauer carried off the honors of the evening with his masterly playing of works by Brahms, Chopin, Debussy, Liszt and himself; Jadlowker sang the prayer from "Rienzi" and was later heard with Mme. Dux in three rarely heard duets by Schumann. Mme. Dux also sang Agathe's aria from the "Freischütz" with excellent effect. Frauelein von Voigtländer contributed Vieuxtemps' ballade and polonaise and numbers by Schubert-Wilhelmj and Hubay. She is an admirable violinist, possessing a complete technical command of her instrument and a beautiful singing tone. Her interpretation furthermore revealed taste and intelligence.
13A Wagner program was presented at the Philharmonie by Walter Kirchhoff, with the assistance of the Philharmonic Orchestra. Kirchhoff, who is the son-in-law of Etelka Gerster, is one of the leading tenors of the Berlin Royal Opera. He has also developed into a concert singer of importance. He has a powerful and beautiful tenor voice of which he makes skillful use. He is a forceful, temperamental singer. Walter's "Preislied" has seldom been so well heard, while excerpts from "Lohengrin" and "Siegfried" were also admirably rendered. The orchestra was conducted by Hugo Ruedel.
15Marguerite Berson, a new violinist from St. Petersburg, introduced herself at Beethoven Hall with the Philharmonic Orchestra, playing the Brahms concerto, Lalo's "Symphonie Espagnole," and some smaller pieces by Chopin, Auer, Tor Aulin and Hubay. Mlle. Berson is a temperamental performer and a girl of unusual talent. Although she is only seventeen years old, she already possesses virtuosity of a superior order, while her tone is warm, rich and penetrating. She is not absolutely finished and needs further study, and above all, experience on the concert platform, but she is a violinist of such pronounced gifts and strong individuality that one can watch her career with great expectations. Her debut was followed by a recital at which she played Vitali's chaconne, Glazounow's concerto, and small works by Pugnani-Kreisler, Saint-Saëns and Tchaikowsky, enhancing the excellent impression she made at her debut. The young lady is a pupil of Leopold Auer.
17A great and legitimate success was achieved by Eddy Brown in the Bluethner Hall. This youthful American violinist is a rare combination of the virtuoso and the musician. His interpretations are individual and full of interest, and they reveal above all a remarkable maturity of conception. He gave a masterly reading of Bruch's "Scottish" fantasy, and Vitali's chaconne, which seems to be all the rage of this season (it would be difficult to say why), was also performed with great perfection and warmth. A group of smaller pieces displayed young Brown's violinistic qualities in a brilliant light. The public overwhelmed him with applause.
19The second concert of the Gutman Bureau in the Marble Hall of the Hotel Esplanade attracted a larger audience than the first, although the hall was by no means filled. Three famous artists took part—Raoul Pugno, Aino Ackté and Anton von Rooy. Pugno was the most satisfactory. A new violinist named Charles Sommer, who was also heard, made his Berlin debut on this occasion. He gave an unsatisfactory account of Thomson "Passacaglia," in which I heard him. He is said to have played some smaller numbers much better later on.
21The second concert of the Flesch-Schnabel-Gerardy Trio was given again without the assistance of the cellist, so that the program consisted of works for violin and piano by Schumann, Schubert and Erich Korngold, the boy composer. In this sonata, opus 6, he is very much under the influence of Richard Strauss. But even here the lad's technical powers are sheer uncanny. Flesch and Schnabel played the novelty with sovereign mastery. They were applauded to the echo by a large audience.
23Among the other concerts of the week that were of interest were piano recitals by E. von Lengyel, John Powell (an American who played Beethoven, Brahms and other works with success), Frieda Kwast-Hodapp; chamber music concerts by the Rosé and Klingler quartets; lieder recitals by Elene Gerhardt, who secured a great success with the assistance of Arthur Nikisch at the piano; a Schubert cycle sung by Ludwig Wüllner, whose powers are unabated except in drawing capacity. This seems to be a bit on the wane with him, although Schubert's "Winterreise," which he sang, does not appeal to the general public as much as a miscellaneous program would have done. Mira Pollheim made her debut in a Liszt program with the Bluethner Orchestra, which was conducted by Richard Burmeister, her teacher. She made an excellent impression in the E flat and "Pathetique" concertos. John Powell's violin concerto was introduced by Zimbalist without much success, although admirably played.
25The publishing house of Schlesinger, of which the head at present is Robert Lienau, has put on exhibition a number of interesting compositions written after the Battle of Leipsic. The house possesses the manuscripts and first published editions of these works, the firm having been founded just one hundred years ago, or at about the time of the battle. Among these interesting compositions are the first published editions of Weber's "Leier und Schwert"; Beethoven's cantata "Der glorreiche Augenblick," which was first performed at Vienna in 1814, and the immense score of the military tone poem, "The Battle of the Nations at Leipsic," composed by Wiegrecht. This was written for three large military bands. It was first performed fifty years after the battle.
27Felix Weingartner is to deliver a lecture here on Richard Wagner, November 9.
29Heinrich Kiefer, the cellist, who hitherto has been a teacher at the Music Royal Akademie of Munich, has been engaged by Professor Hollaender for the Stern Conservatory.
31Arnold Rosé, the violinist and leader of the famous Rosé Quartet, celebrated his fiftieth birthday yesterday.
33Felix Senius, the favorite oratorio and lieder tenor, died last week after a severe illness of six months. He had been suffering for some time with a complaint of the liver and several operations failed to give him any relief. Senius was a successful artist and a sympathetic personality.
35Frank Gittelson will be heard here with the assistance of the Bluethner Orchestra, November 1, when he will play the Bach E major and the Brahms concertos, and Hugo Kaun's "Phantasiestueck." Gittelson recently made triumphant appearances in Dresden, Teplitz and Prague. After his performance of the Bach chaconne at Prague he was recalled six times.
37Augusta Cottlow will introduce a MacDowell piano concerto to Vienna on November 9, when she will be the soloist of the Tonkuenstler Orchestra.
39Maude Clark, the wife of Frank King Clark, has been engaged by Manager M. H. Hanson for an extended concert tour of the United States during the season of 1914-15. Mrs. Clark, whom I have repeatedly heard during the last two years, possesses a beautiful voice, which
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