ORGAN RECITAL

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 262, 24 July 1918, Page 6

ORGAN RECITAL

It needed a valiant) heart and plenty of warm clothing to induce people to turn out to any class of entertainment last evening, most, of all lo an organ recital in tne icy vastness o£ an almost empty-Towa Hall. Sir. Bernard F. Page, evidently in a merry mood, 6elected for his opening number the overture to Mendelssohn's music ; to "A MidsummerNighfs Dream," the beauties of which can scarcely be even distantly reflected on the organ, ae to a great extent it oonsists of very intricate- inter-weav-ing of melodies for the strings. This effect Mr. Page tried to get by closing tho organ up until only an echo effect was gained,, almost top faint in tone to follow; then when the full organ was used the contrast made one "heady." Woletenholme'e "Andantino," an extremely cool and delightfully melodious pastorale, in which some charming effects were obtained on the wood-winds, was well played, and the queer musical form used Sy Coleridge Taylor in the third movement to his "Forest Scenes" suite, was finely registered. Cesar Fronde's "Choral" (No.. Bin A)'is an extremely fine work, which displays not only that strength and virility common to Franck'e music, but discloses an andante movement of rare beauty and aglow with colour. The programme also included the stately suite Gothique of Leon Boellmann aud MousBorgsky'e "The Gate of the Warriors at Kiev, one of a series of ten tono sketches, composed after seeing an exhibition of paintings by his friend Victor Hartmann. Each sketch represents a picture (in music) as nearly akin to the painting of the name as the composer could imagine. As the picture was not before us it was impossible to judge how well the composer succeeded in Msaim. ,