MUSIC.

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2624, 20 November 1915, Page 9

MUSIC.

riii Tbmib Cwur.l

And Again "The Messiah."

Whilst I glory in the exalted splendour of Handel s "Messiah," and never tire of hearing some of the great choruses that so shiningly reflect the composers inspired genius, there are times when. I liavo expressed the opinion that the Wellington public would i ■ la ' oratorio were given a. well-deserved rest for a year or two. And this year we aro to have two "Messiahs within a week of ono another I lnore is no questioning the popularity or the great work and the appropriateness of its thome to this season,' but to those who attend these concerts regularly, I am sure there are many who will agree with me when I say that thero are many fine choral works, whidh wo would like to know better, many that -wo do not know at all, I believe. It is, or should be. the mission of all choral societies to break, new ground more often than is done in order to educate the people to a knowledge of works other than the conventional round. 1 suggest t'hat next year "The Messiah" should be dropped in favour of some other work. There is ono great work that Wellington would richly, benefit by hearing, and which, as far' as my recollection serves me, has never been done as a wholo. I refer to the "Requiem" of Brahms, for solo, chorus and orohestra, the work that established that composer's name, in Europe, and from the date of its publication every new composition of Brahms became an event in the musical world. This magnificent work, which is quite within the scope of local societies, is frequently performed by similar bodies at Home and on the Continent, and would be a really fine tribute (at the present juncture) to our noble dead.

The first "Messiah" is to be sunt; by the-Wellington Musical Union on TWday, December 7, -in the Town Hall, when Mr. Robert Parker will make a reappearance as conductor, and Mr. Her-' bert Claughton -will preside i at the or* gan. Owing to the difficulty of getting wood winds to tune correctly .with the origan. only strings will be used in the orchestra on this occasion. Mr. Charles Clarkson will be the baritone, Mr. . Laslett Ex ton tlio tenor. The members of the, Liedert-afel and ma.ny of the older string players who have been associated with Mr. Parker in the past, will take part in the performance as a compliment to one who has done a. very great deal for music in Wellington. ' The Royal Choral Society's performance has been fixed to take place on Tuesday, December 14, when Wellington will have the opportunity of hearing_ Mr. Sigurd Lestrup, the Danish baritone, who is a singer of extraordinary capacity and rare musicianship.

s No Russian Muslo in Germany. Though the Tsar has, lifted the ban from the Wagner music in Russia (which also is resuming the Viennese • operettas), yet Germany will have, no Russian music. But the Teuton graci- • ously admits' Puccini, Rossini, and Verdi, treating: them' as composers of pleasing works merely, and not as Italians. Neither has; Germany harred French works, except of Saint-Saens, i who has proved too outspoken ; in his hatred for everything German. Bizet's j "Carmen" is performed frequently. There is to bo no performance of Wagner operas at the Bayreuth Theatre "this summer; and the entrance of Italy into tho war, occasioning an increased call to ' arms, has prevented the projected sum- '■ mer season of popular opera'at the new Berlin Theatre. Berlin, however, under j Nikisch, is the central point of a round g of musical activities.'.'And.the same apj, pears to be the case with Munich, where Weingartner is directing. Band Still Playing. " r It may be instructive to notice that neither in Germany nor in Austria has music been entirely set aside during the ; fearful strife now. raging. All is not J war in Austria at- least; the Government J lias recently awarde da State prize of 1 2000 kronen for a symphony. For the same prize there were submitted no fewer than 21 operas, 13 oratorios, and 25 ( symphonic works. Ic seems an extraordinary thing that people could set their minds to such a composition when their Empire, is supposed to .be in such dire straits. The celebrated Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra . continues to give concerts; Wiengartner is to conduct a special series. In Dresden a series of Richard;Strauss's operas were recently given . under , the direction of the composer; the. works presented were "Adriadne," "Rosentavalier," "Electra," audi "Salome.". Gorman opera houses, generally, are showing symptoms of elaborating' in moderate measure upon their conservative repertoires of the first year of the war. First of the autumn German operatic novelties was "Mona Lisa," at tfo Stuttgart Court Opera, being -upon an Italian subject it will be interesting to note its reception. ■ . -' Justifiable Cloom, Arthur Selwyn Garbell, in the "Phila- , delp'hia North American," is said to have made the following statement: t "The Tschaikovsky ■ 'Pathetique,' however, concludes with unreserved pessimism. It makes me think of the young ! lady who described a motor accident in which the automobile and its occupants 1 went over the edge of a cliff and >wero ' found hundreds of feet below. 'Were [ the people in. it dead when they were . discovered?' asked a sympathetic lisi tener/ 'Oh, dreadfully!' was. the, answer." And again "a curious fact worth ] noticing is that Russian folksongs deal-, [' ing with matrimony are ; apt to be [ gloomy." Why not? • '•' • Notes. 1 1 Leoncavallo's new opera, "D'Alba," ■ will shortly be, presented in the principal Italian cities. The chief figure in ' the act is the patriot, Manelli. , . | Madame Melba sang in the music festival in Portland. Maine, U.S.A., .last month. It is noticcd that Frank St. Leger, her accompanist, has added a final "e" to his name since\lie has been in America. Says the "Musical Courier": "Moving picture theatres have supplied quite an unexpected source of income to tho organ builders. Many of the larger theatres in the principal cities have put in splendid instruments." Enrico Caruso has returned to America for the opera season. That is one big gun the iess in'ltaly. Fritz Kreislcr, the famous violinist, is selling 'his autographed photo for a dollar each, in aid of distressed musicians of all nationalities in Vienna; in other words, German and Austran musicians., 1 The latest thing in programme music is a couple of puns. The name'of the piece containing them is "Tho Herring." It is, of course, pitched in the key of C. There are loud thumpings in the lower tones and a number of brilliant runs above. Asked for an explanation of these, the composer, whose name is withhold for obvious reasons, replied: "The thumpings express the booming of the sea, and the runs are, of course, the scales on the herring."—Lincoln (Neb.) Journal. '==