CLARA BUTT-RUMFORD CONCERT.
Madame C^ara Butt and Mr Kenneiiev Rumford made themselves so popular with. Duneclm audiences at then fhfct two concerts here that it w.as oulj r to be expected that the extra concert which they gave on the 12th in the Garrison Hall would be attended by an audience whose size was only equalled by its enthusiasm. Whatever one's opinion of Madame Butt as a musician may be, one cannot but be lost in wonder at the power and bieadth of her tiu'y phenomenal voice. which was heard to far gieater advantage laat night m the Garrison H* 1 than was the cage at the previous concerts jn the theatre. Madame Butt's fiist number was Handel's popular laigo " Ombra niai l\\," at the conclusion of which the applause was so enthusiastic and pioionged that «<he leturned end ga\e as an encore "Abide With ma" (Liddle). 'In the c econd half of the piogiamme Mrdame Butt sang a Scotch song. "My am folk." by Lama G Lemon, and for the inevitable encore (the audience was quite deteimmed to get its ful' value in the shape of encores) Elgai's rathei catdipenry " Land of hope and glory." Even then however, the audience was not satisfied, and she had to leturn and sing again. Madame Butt is admittedly a " popular " singer, so that there is a certain amount of excuse for her singfng the cheaper class of mu=ic, but Mr Kennei ey Rumford sings with such taste and refinement, and seem= to possess also the saving giace of hurnoui, more neces=ary, perhaps, to a singer than to anyone e!se, that it seems the gieatest pity he should not ha\e included at least one more serious song in the programme. His songs last night were " The sands o' Dee (Clay), in the first part, ana m the second part ' When the swallows homeward fly ' (by Maude Ta'.erie White), sung with the greatest feeline;, and Mr Alfied Hill's now well-known " Poi song " This last evoked a perfect storm of applause, which on'y stepped when Mr Rumford returned and repeated the number. The concluding number on the programme was a duet suns; by Madame Butt and Mr RumfoTd. Li7a Lehmann's " Snowdrops," but as the audience showed] no sign of dispersing thp two popular singers sang another encore, " The keys of Heaven." Mr Frank Memck. pianist, gave two soli, Handel's favourite air and variations, commonly known as the " Harmonious blacksmith," and " Jaidins sous la phue," by Claude Debussy, a French wiiter of the ultra-modern school. Mr lilerrick also joined Mr Gail Barre, the violinist of the company, in a movement from Mozaif's F major sonata, for piano and violin Mr Carl Barre's contributions to the programme weie the spaikhng fina'e fiom the Mendes=ohn E minor concerto, a woik that c eerns to lemain always fresh, and for which he received a hearty lecall , and in the second half of the programme a bracketed number, " Berteu=e" (Cesar Cvi) and "Lorateado" (SarasateV The only excuse for attempting the last-named is the po c session- of a colo==al technique Mr Bane is not the. po<-ses=or of a colos°al technique. However, his peifornwuice last night apparently gave gieat pleasuie There is probably no position more difficult to fill than that of accompanist , theie is certainly no moie ungrateful one A good accompanist rnu«t have abundant sympathy, fine technique and a soft touch, to mention only three of many lequirements; while, if he does his work well, he seldom or never gets any praise ; if anything goes wrong, no matter whose fault, he comes in for all the bLarne. It is no exaggeration to say that Mr Aithur Godfrey ig everything that an accompanist should be — indeed, one can hardly imagine anyone finer, andi he undoubtedly contributed Aargely last night to the success of tl^e eY»n-
ing. The organ obligatos to the HancM " Laigo " and to the Land of hope and gioiy ' weie played by Mr Paget Ga'c.
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Otago Witness, Issue 2814, 19 February 1908, Page 69
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657CLARA BUTT-RUMFORD CONCERT. Otago Witness, Issue 2814, 19 February 1908, Page 69
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