WELLINGTON CHORAL SOCIETY.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 66, 11 December 1907, Page 7

WELLINGTON CHORAL SOCIETY.

THE "MESSIAH." !■ a Handel's great Christmas ■ oratorio, the F "Messiah," which, over Since its first produc- ; tioa .in the middle of the eighteenth century, ; has maintained its extraordinary hold upon S the public, was performed at the Town llall :; ,bv "tho Choral Society 'lost night. 'The Concert Hall was crowded, a fact which ■ may bo taken both as a testimony to the popu--1 lanty of tho oratorio and a compliment to Mr. 1 Harnett's Society. .The performance, which J was announced to begin at 8 p.m., did hot i ccmmcnte until about. 8.15- p.m., that unJ spe&kable nuisance, the late-comer, being very ' .mnclj .ip, evidence.. A word in season; may not ! bo'ou't 'or place here.' People who habitually 1 stragglo in during the first half-hour, either 1 of'a musicaj-'or a theatrical performance, are • not only, guilty of bad taste, but their action 1 is extremely annoying to those who have taken 1 their seats, and, moreover, is distinctly, unfair to tho performers. Taken- on the whole, tho 1 performance was distinctly good. The chorus, though small, was effective and well balanced, Thu orchestra seemed to be somewhat thin, numerically, for such demands ns Handel's characteristic instrumentation. It was well, disciplined, however, and the soloists were not' -over-shadowed, as has sometimes been the caso in thp more; florid parts of previous productions. For somo reason or other the orchestra lacked its usual complement in ora« torio music—a small organ—and the substitu« tio'i of the piano, deprived ii'considerable portion of the music, particularly tho recitatives, of much of their dramatic effect. The outstanding features of the "chorus work I woro the singing of " For Unto IJs a Child ; is Born," " All We like Sheep," tho majestic' " Hallclujnly Chorus," and the magnificent "Worthy is the Lamb," which, with tho last: two bars of the "Amen" chorus, concluded the performance. In the. orchestral work, the ' Overture " and the "Pastoral Symphony" were interpreted in a manner which"', gave every evidence of careful preparation, although; in the latter there seemed to. bo an indefinable i something lacking, due, no doubt, to tho want' of "body" in the orchestra. The soloists woro: His. ,B. Hudson, jnn. (sopiauq), Miss Mina Caldow (contralto), Mr. E. ,T llill (tenor), and Mr. John Prouse (bari-' tone). Mrs. Hudson was in splendid voico, and fully sustained the .-excellent impression i which Bho .created at tho production of tho: •" Redemption" by tho Society some timo ago. Oratoria music makes a considerable demand; on a singer's dramatic powers, and in tho! recitatives immediately following tho "Pastoral Symphony," those demandii were fully appreciated by Mrs. Hudson. "Rejoice. Greatly," " Como unto Him," and the beautiful solo in Tart 3, " I Know that my Redeemer Liveth," woro splondidly sung. Miss Mina Caldow. in tho solo, "OThou that tellf.st Good "Kdings," "arid' the' recitative', which preceded" it, gave a very successful interpretation of the music. ' Hbr best efforts woro tho singing of "-110- was Dospised,",and "Ho shall fped His Flock." A' little more animation in the recitatives would .havp supplied that element of the dramatic which isso essential to the succftssful' piuging of - that class of musio. The'same deficiency wag apparent in the' tenor recitatives sung by Mr. E. J. Hill, although tho fault: lay, not so much in tho lack of the appreciation of tho dramatic elomont as in tho tendency to dwell too long over certain notes, instead of imparting into thom that declamatory firo which was undoubtedly the composer's intention. Mr. Hill was vary successful in his singing of "But thou did'st not leavo." "Comfort Yo"' and tho difficult aria "Every Valloy" were also .well sung, although ono or two bars in the lattor wo,re a little unsteady. Mr. John Prouso was in vary good voico, and was hoard to fine offoct in tho niagnificcnt aria, "Why do tho Nations."' ■ Anothor fine effort was his singing of.; "But who may abido." ■ Tho rccitativo " For Behold, Darkness shall covcr tho earth," followed by tho aria, "'Tho Peoplo that walked in Darkness,", wnro also artistically. interpreted. : Tho Society, on the whole, is to bo complimontod for its painstaking work and tho result. What is actually wanted, however, lor productions in this olass' is moro volumo in tho, chorus and orchestra.