MUSIC.

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2770, 13 May 1916, Page 11

MUSIC.

~v— , — ■ , fßy Tkjsble CLEf.V i The Dufault Concerts. Paul Dufault, the deeply artistic tenor from Canada, has.'been.' charming the heart out of big audiences in the south, ■ and his advent in Wellington early next' month is pleasurably anticipated by. a big . section of the public hi Wellington.' Many will be gla4 to 'note that Mr. Dufault is to sing at the Grand Opera House and not. the Town Hall, as formerly. Whilst the new theatre is by- no means perfect acoustically, one is at least made fairly comfortable, as far as . the seats are concerned. The seats are quits' tiio: .'thing,'but a .big mistake was jmade in not giving more knee room,: in .which! regwd the new theatre, is mucli worse than. the oltl theatre. Stilly the setting is better. for Mr. Dufault, and the clever people that ara associated with him,

A "Vocalise" by Rachmaninoff. Everything connected with Rachmanlnoli' awakens keen interest, as. he'.is the ideal of .our musicians and artists. ..■ In these days of stress, he has presented us with-a song of a new-..form; in. classical style, with elegiac note. . . .There are no words to it. and must be 'suiig .on a vocale. It is.called a "Vocalisfi," and dedicated to lime. Neshdanowa, a beautiful singer of the Imperial' Opera. !She performed it at'Kussewitzki's sixth symphony .concert. The; novelty-was accorded a very hearty rooeption by tho audi- 1 t-noe. She sang the "Vocalise" with abeautiful olearness, pel-formed an. aria from BachmaninoffV 'Trancesca," and rnajiy 6o'ngs also by Kochmaninoff, with the composer himself at the piano. Kussewitzki transcribed the "Vocalise".'for his. contrabass, and performed it at his fourth' symphony concert, so that we heard - it before it had been sung by Mme. Noshdanowa. The' performances of both artists were admirable alilce - in their breadth and subtlety.- The beauty of Kussewitzki's phrasing was especially noteworthy in the slower movements, and the whole reading was one of rare merit. Ono would.scarcely believe that the biff instrument could realise such ■ soft and delicato sounds!— From a Moscow letter to the New York "Musical Courier." Notes. Mr". Vcrbrugjlier, director of the N.S.W., Government Conservatoire 0f... Music, delivered a dissertation on Shakespeare in his relation to music, at .the tercentenary performance given at the Adelplii Theatre, Sydney. In addition to .scenes nlayed by the Marlow Company, with Mr. Allan Wilkie as lead, the famous woodland scene from "As You Likj It" was presented; with Mr. Harry; Roberts as Orlando, Mr. Lawranco Campbell, aa Jacques, Mr. Wni. Holman. as Old Adanv. and Mr. N. Mayma'n as the Banished Duke. The Wilkie Company did tho play scene fiom "Hamlet," and thoNbaloony scene froni "Romeo and Juliet."

Oscnr HamTnerstein, tho. American lmpressario, filed his bankruptcy schedules on March 25. His liabilities amounted to J856.050, and ho claims assets of 112876. Five hundred 'thousand dollars of this latter 6iim is what ho estimates his patent devices for mannfacturing "tobacco and other things to be worth. Other assets listed were a~\£62Oo judgment against -the tenor Constantino, and ft ,£SOOO damage suit against another artist; Unsecured creditors are mostly singers. .'

Word from Italy says that two of the three operas-on which Puccini has. been working for a long time, aro now ready— "Rondine" and "II Tftba.ro." The third work deals with the time of the Italian Renaissance of. tho fourteenth century. "II Tabora" will probably be produced in Italy next fell,. "Rondine" was -contracted for by the Vienna Royal- Opera House before tho war, and Puccini still feels himself bound by that contract.