ENJOYABLE CONCERT

Dominion, Volume 20, Issue 55, 29 November 1926, Page 16

ENJOYABLE CONCERT

BY WELLINGTON COLLEGE PUPILS The large Town Hall was well filled last Saturday night, when the boys oi Wellington College gave a most enjoyable concert in aid of the college pavilion fund. The piogranime was a well selected one. and nearly all the items were of a nigh standard. lhe most enjoyable feature of the evening was the work of the choir, which, under the baton of Mr. J. T. McCaw, quite delighted the audience with its folk songs and ballads. In Mr. McCaw, too, the various soloists found in excellent accompanist. • The evening was opened by an oyerture rendered by the college orchestra, which, under the baton of Mr. J. Lomas, played Keler Bela’s “Rakoczy. this item was very well played, but was a trifle long for overture purposes. Considerable interest centred in the next item, the ballad "In Old Madrid,” which was very pleasantly sung by G. B. _C. Bliss, whose sweet unbroken treble voice seemed very much appreciated. A feature of his work was the clear enunciation of the words of the song, while the amount of feeling which was put into it was surprising, coming as it did from such a young performer. Drdlas "Serenade,” which was very well played on the violin by S. Pomeroy, waj the next item, and the young violinist received much applause for his effort, which was certainly most commendable. The appealing melody of the air was well expressed, and it was played with very considerable appreciation and feeling. An exhibition of physical drill and pyramids was necessarily limited by the extent of the stage, the smallness of which must have proved a great handicap to the boys and to their instructor, Mr. P. G. Thomson. The display was all the more creditable on this account, however, and the pyramids especially were deserving of the highest praise. Some cf the physical exercises were rather spoiled from the point of view of the audience by one or two mistakes on the part of some of the boys, but on the whole a very good exhibition was given. It was certainly apparent that no effort had been spared to make it as perfect as possible, and it reflected • ery great credit on all concerned. All the boys were very fine specimens of perfectly developed youth, and each one was a testimonial to the value of physical training from the point of view of health. A recitation by R. G. Whitehead followed. The piece chosen was Bracken’s "Not Understood,” and the choice seemed rather an unfortunate one. This is by no means the best of the New Zealand poet’s compositions, Tacking that melody and rhythm which are so necessary for recitation. However, the sentiment of the piece was very well expressed, the reciter catching the snirit which prompted the poem very well indeed. Two short instrumental trios which followed were very well played by O. Keys (violin), A. E. Budd (flute), and A. G. Rodda (piano). Of the two pieces, the first, Pestalozza’s "Ciribiribin.” was the better played, although Dvorak’s "Hnmoreske” was also well done. W. J. Frethey and A. S. Cathcart are to be commended for their rendering of the duet "Anchored.” by Watson. This is a very pleasing ballad for tenor and baritone, and both performers sang their parts very well indeed. A very delightful twenty minutes was given by the choir, which, under Mr. McCaw. fang the three folk sones, "John Barlevcorn,” "Mowing the Barley," and "Twenty Eighteen.” The three of these songs were beautifully rendered, and it was pleasing to be able to catch the words of each without any strain whatever, which is rather rare when one is listening to amateur choir work. The spirit of each of these gay little numbers was very well caught, and Mr. McCaw had no difficulty in maintaining the rhvthym and careless merrim.-nt of each

The second half of the programme was not quite as enjoyable as was the first, although some very good items were given. The orchestra’s rendering of Raff’s "Cavntina” was very enjoyable, and G. C. Power put great feeling and exnressioa into his renderinc of Newbolt's stirring "Ballad- of John Nicholson.” This bow shows great promise as a reciter, and has th.e power of profoundly movintr his audience. M. Boyd, a young nianist of considerable talent, gave a stirring rendering of Schubert’s "Marche Militaire.” The next item was given by the choir, which again delighted the audience with two ballads, one the rollicking "Orderlies’ Song,” which was followed by the popular "Drink to Me Only.” Both these songs were very well rendered, and Mr. McGary cannot be too highly complimented on his work with the baton. The “Ber cense” from "Jocelyn” (Goddard) was quite delightfully played by F. Martinelli, who appears to be a violinist of rare talent. His item was greatly enjoyed by the audience, and in tins, as in other items, it was regrettable that the length of the programme did not permit, of encores being given. L. H. Searle did very well in his rendering of Newbolt’s "He Fell Among Thieves” al }d J na , the most of the opportunities ttus very movi ng story gave him. The concert was brought to a conelusion by the Acting of the **Py ramus and Thisbft” scene from the "Midsummer Night’s Dream." This little scone was produced under the direction of Mr. M Turner, and it was very well done. The acting was not always of the best, which could be hardly expected from the performers, but what it lacked in polish was made up for bv the obvious keenness of the actors and the hard work which must have fallen to the lot of the producer. The little farce was very much enjoyed hv the audience, and its humour was made the most of by all concerned. Altogether the concert must be described as a great success, end it certainly shows that Wellington College possesses some very talented pupils and some very enthusiastic masters.