Books › Musical Courier 1926-03-11: Vol 92 Iss 10, 1926 › scan 22
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Musical Courier 1926-03-11: Vol 92 Iss 10, 1926
64 lines. Read by computer on 29 September 2026. Printed page 23. See the scan on archive.org.
1was at the piano for the singer. Beckhard and MacFarlane direct these well patronized recitals.
3Frieda Williams
4Frieda Williams, soprano, made her first New York appearance on March 2 in a song recital at Town Hall. She was assisted at the piano by Richard Hageman, who as usual rendered faultless accompaniments. Miss Williams gave an altogether enjoyable program. She has great beauty of tone, and the quality is fresh and sweet, with an easy legato and intelligent phrasing. It was noticeable, however, that she lacks dramatic instinct, but her bearing was entirely free from any mannerisms, and in the first group of old numbers she showed a remarkable poise, particularly in Torelli's Tu Lo sai. Her second group contained four Schubert songs, and the Nacht und Traume was perhaps the finest bit of vocal interpretation of the entire program. The second group was French, and the last contained Evening (Hageman), It Was a Lover and His Lass (Quilter), Some Day (Eyre), and The Rivals (Deems Taylor). Her encores were Dawn (Pearl Curran) and del Riego's Homing. These English songs were particularly well sung and thoroughly enjoyed.
6Walter Gieseking
7Walter Gieseking, German pianist, who though scarcely two months in this country has already commanded notable attention from the public and critics alike, gave his third New York recital at Carnegie Hall on March 2. He first played Beethoven's Sonata in C minor (opus 111), and followed it with Schumann's C major Fantasie (opus 17). Such mile stones in piano literature are mere every-day incidents to Mr. Gieseking, who takes them in his stride, and does them magnificently, without seeming to regard them as anything but a bit of the day's work. For modern numbers he had the first performance here of Klavermusik (opus 37), by Hindemith, some more of the chatty stuff typical of what this young man, who promised so much three or four years ago, has developed into as a composer. Then he played a Sonatina of Casella, which, if not great music, is decidedly entertaining, as the young Italian does not carry his modernity to the extent of shirking an occasional tune. The Wiener Rhapsodie by Castelnuovo-Tedesco, which closed the program, was not anything to be taken too seriously either. The placid Notturno was the most agreeable part of it. The Fox-Trot Tragico ("memento mori") was more tragic and memento than Fox-Trot. Afterwards, as the large audience remained to applaud and insisted upon encores, Mr. Gieseking played some Bach and some Debussy, both of which he does extraordinarily well.
9Flonzaley Quartet
10The season's third subscription concert of the Flonzaley Quartet took place in Aeolian Hall on March 2. The assisting artist was Wanda Landowska, harpsichordist. The program began with the Beethoven quartet in G major. The playing of the Flonzaley Quartet has always been of the utmost smoothness. This season it seems to have more warmth than was characteristic of it formerly. This is distinctly apparent, not only in the performance of the Beethoven, but also in the exquisite playing of the Ravel quartet, which closed the program.
12The Concerto in G minor of Ch. Ph. E. Bach for harpsichord and string quartet had its first performance at these concerts. It is a work lost to the world for many, many years, and restored only when Mme. Landowska acquired the parts at the auction sale of a collector of Bonn (there was no score). It was an interesting work and there are parts that distinguish it from the typical music of that day. For instance in the first movement there are cadenza like passages for the harpsichord alone; the slow movement is anticipatory of the Romantics and of Schumann in particular, almost a century in advance of the time it was written, 1740. It was beautifully played throughout, and received hearty applause and repeated recalls. The artists thereupon made the mistake of repeating the long, slow movement, thus adding still more length to a program that was already rather long in itself. The house was sold out to the last seat.
14MARCH 3
16Alexander Brailowsky
17Brailowsky gave his final program of this season at Carnegie Hall on March 3 before a very large audience. He played an all-Chopin program, and the many encores were likewise all-Chopin. The works listed were as follows: Polonaise in F sharp minor, waltzes in E flat major and A minor, Scherzo in C sharp minor, Sonata in B flat minor, Nocturne in G major, Ballade in A flat major, Three Ecossaises, Andante Spianato and Polonaise. Brailowsky has had such uniform success during his American tours as well as abroad and in South America, and so many things have been written in praise of his art, that it is difficult not to fall into mere repetition. His sincerity, his massive technic, his personality, his ability to arouse enthusiasm in his audiences, his poetic feeling and force, are all of them now recognized elements of his playing. But there is one feature of it rarely mentioned by the critics which particularly charmed this reviewer, and which is particularly noticeable and needful in Chopin music. That is the clarity of Brailowsky's interpretative design, the clear separation of the music into its component parts. It is a thing not easy to describe, but a thing that makes all the difference between lucid exposition of the music and confusion. Chopin's form was curiously conceived. His melodies rarely flow and merge into each other after the classic manner. His music is made up of separate elements, each beautiful and complete in itself, joined together often in the most imperious and arbitrary manner. It demands rare poise and rare understanding to join them properly. Brailowsky does it—remarkably. His pauses are quite as eloquent and important as his delicate nuances and thundering climaxes. Apparently he has the most perfect control of his nerves. He cannot be hurried. He never loses himself. After a burst of speed and emotion that one would think would leave him ragged, he approaches new material with perfect unemotional placidity. This is true greatness
19(Continued on page 40)
21S. Wesley Sears Plays at Memorial Services
22Some unusual programs have been given recently at St. James Church, Philadelphia, of which S. Wesley Sears is organist and choirmaster. An official memorial service was held for Alexandra, The Queen Mother of England. Mr. Sears played Beethoven's Funeral March, and in mentioning this part of the service the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin stated: "Consuls, vice-consuls, admirals, generals, privates and plain citizens—all moved in slow precision. A man (Mr. Sears) took his place at the organ and in a moment the measured beat of Beethoven's Funeral march filled the arched interior. Slowly it rose—now moving in rumbling undertones, then rising to a pitch that sent chills down the spine at the grandeur of it. Gradually the music grew in volume, moaning, changing ever—Beethoven's masterpiece of sorrow. All was still in the great auditorium. The march ended in a low, drifting note." At the conclusion of the service Mr. Sears played Chopin's Funeral March in an equally impressive manner.
24The annual service for the First Troop, Philadelphia City Cavalry, also was held recently, as well as the thirty-seventh annual service for the Pennsylvania Society of Sons of the Revolution. At these two services the music included, in addition to the organ, two trumpets, two trombones and timpani from the Philadelphia Orchestra.
26On Wednesday evening, March 31, Dvorak's Stabat Mater will be sung in St. James Church by the combined choirs of St. Thomas Church, New York, and St. James Church, Philadelphia.
28PRIZES AND SCHOLARSHIPS
29[The Musical Courier will endeavor to keep this department up to date and to that end requests that all notices and prospectuses of musical prize contests be sent to the Musical Courier so as to be included in this department. It will be found that in each contest the name and address are given, to which intending candidates may apply directly for further information. Manuscripts are submitted at the risk of the composer.—Editor's Note.]
31The Society for the Publication of American (Chamber) Music—Manuscripts should be sent under nom de plume to William B. Tuthill, 185 Madison Ave., New York.
33Dayton Westminster Choir—Three awards, amounting to $500 for the best a cappella compositions for chorus of mixed voices by an American composer. Contest closes May 1, 1926. Send manuscripts to Mrs. H. E. Talbott, Callahan Bank Bldg., Dayton, Ohio.
35Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge Prize—$1,000 for sonata or suite for violin and piano. Composition should be sent, before April 1, to Hugo Kortschak, 1054 Lexington Avenue, New York City.
37People's Choral Union of Boston—$100 for part song, mixed voices, with piano accompaniment, ten minutes in performance. Open to American citizens. Address inquiries to Mrs. William Arms Fisher, 405 Marlboro Street, Boston, Mass.
39Rubinstein Club of Washington—$100 for women's choral (three or four parts) open to American citizens. Manuscripts must be received by December 1, 1926. For further information address Mrs. H. L. Rabbitt, 312 Cathedral Mansions Center, Washington, D. C.
41National Federation of Music Clubs—$1,000 for symphony or symphonic poem; $1,000 for instrumental work written for personnel of N. Y. Chamber Music Society, not to exceed twenty minutes performance; $500 for three part chorus for women's voices; $200 for trio (violin, cello, piano); $100 for cello solo; $100 for song; $100 for harp solo. Open to American composers. Competition closes October 1, 1926. Address inquiries to Mrs. Charles Cooper, Ass't Chairman of American Composers, Peabody Institute, Baltimore, Md.
43National Association of Harpists—$1,000 for harp solo, chamber music including harp, or symphonic poem for solo harp and orchestra; to be sent bearing motto on outside of sealed envelope, before December 15, 1926, to the Association headquarters, 315 West 79th Street, New York City.
45FAYE FERGUSON
46A Young American Pianist Who Is Making Good
48Recent Notices:
49"One of the favored few."
50"Her message is one of sincerity and beauty."
52MISS FERGUSON
53Calls the Baldwin
54"A Constant Inspiration"
56"In order to reach the greatest heights of artistic interpretation it is quite necessary to play on a Baldwin.
58"There is something about the tone of the Baldwin Piano that is a constant inspiration."
60The Baldwin Piano Co.
61CINCINNATI CHICAGO ST. LOUIS NEW YORK
62LOUISVILLE INDIANAPOLIS DENVER
63DALLAS SAN FRANCISCO
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