MANY ARTISTS

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 582, 7 February 1929, Page 16

MANY ARTISTS

Big Programme This Year

TOURS ARRANGED If managers keep tlieir promises, and musicians their contracts, the year 1929 will be musically a busy one in Australia and New Zealand. Already arrangements are being made for tours by a dozen celebrated artists, singers and pianists, including Scotney, Murdoch, Erica Morim, Florence Austral and Spivakowsky. The first singer will be Madame Evelyn Scotney, the Australian-born soprano, who has already arrived in Australia and will soon begin her tour of the Commonwealth and the Dominion, appearing in costume song recitals. Madame Scotney w'as the last singer to appear on the public platform with Caruso, and she still has an outstanding reputation in England and on the Continent. Also under the J. and N. Tait management Will come Harold Williams, the Australian baritone, and William Murdoch, the Australian pianist. It will be a great year for Australian musicians, for E. J. Carroll has arranged for 40 recitals by Florence Austral (soprano), who has lived abroad for many years, and a tour by Arthur Benjamin, the Australian pianist-composer, who was formerly a professor at the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music. Other concert engagements by E. J. Carroll are of Erica Morini, the most famous woman violinist in the world, whose tour last year was postponed, and Alexander Brailowsky, a brilliant Russian pianist who, though little known in New Zealand, has a fine reputation in Europe. E. J. Gravestock’s contribution to the list is Dusolina Giannini, again a soprano, who made her debut at Covent Garden last year after many successes in the United States of America. In 1930. and 1931, Mischa Levitzki and Wilhelm Backhaus will both make return tours under the Gravestock management. Jascha Spivakowsky. the Russian

pianist who toured Australia and New Zealand a few years ago, has been engaged to give 70 recitals this year. He will be remembered as a player of exceptional force, whose strong and well-defined personality was reflected ia his playing. Recently Spiv akowsky has made several appearances with laading European orchestras, notably the Vienna Philharmonic, under Richard Strauss, and the Berlin Philharmonic. He will tour New Zealand under Mr. D. O’Connor’s direction.

Finally, the sisters Constance and Margaret Izard, violinist and ’cellist, will come to New Zealand following a Canadian tour on which they are at present engaged. Included in their programmes are some most interesting duets for violin and ’cello unaccompanied.

N.Z. BAND CONTEST

WANGANUI’S PROGRAMME Press Association WANGANUI, To-day. On the suggestion of the music committee, the band contest executive last evening decided that the B grade test selections be taken on the Monday and Thursday nights of the contest week; the A grade selections on Tuesday and Friday nights; and the hymn test on the Wednesday night. It was thought that the hymn test being sandwiched in between the A and B tests would mean a popular break. It was decided to ask the Broadcasting Company what it would offer for the rights of broadcasting the demonstration concert on the final night of the gathering.