MUSIC & DRAMA

Taranaki Daily News, 8 November 1919, Page 11

MUSIC & DRAMA

(By Pasticcio.) TO MUSIC. Mysterious keeper of the key That opens the gate of memory; Oft in thy wildest, simplest strain. We live o'er years of bliss again. To gloom or sadness thou canst suit The chords of thy delicious lute; For every heart thou hast a tone, Rendering its sadness all thine own. —A. A. Watts. The prospect of a tour of the Dominion being made by trie New South Wales State orchestra will be hailed with delight by all lovers of music. Such a tour would not only afford a large number of people an unusual pleasure, but it would be of great inspirational and educational value, and would no doutbt quicken ambition, raise the general ideal amongst musicians, and encourage enterprise in many places visited. The orchestra is a splendid combination, many of the members having been associated together for some time. There should be little difficulty in securing the modest guarantee asked for the undertaking of such a tour. Action has already been taken in some place", where the amount required is said, to have been promised. New Plymouth has been mentioned as one of the places that should be included in the itinerary of the orchestra, and no pains should be spared that will ensure a visit from such an organisation. The guarantee for the visit should be as readily forthcoming as for the Chautauqua visit, and it is to be hoped those interested in the progress of music will bestir themselves immediately and make all the necessary preparations for the orchestra's appearance here. The proposed tour calls to mind the tour made through the Dominion by what was known as the Christchurch International Exhibition orchestra, under the able eonductorship of Mr. Alfred Hill, with such well-known instrumentalists as Cvril Monk (violin) and Gladstone Bell ('cello).

The Wellington Choral Union, under the direction of Mr. H. Temple White (an ex-STew Plymouth resident), gave at their last concert, which -was the first since the signing of peace, Mendelssohn's "Hymn of Praise" and Elgar's war production "For the Fallen." Both works had a distinct appropriatness ahout them, and the newspaper criticisms gave unstinted praise to both chorus and conductor. It was gratifying to note that | the chorus was; said to have been more evenly balanced than for some considerable time past, the inference being that many of the men who have been away on the sterner business of defending the Empire are returning to eriter once again into the enjoyment of their former recreations in this respect.

The concerts given by the New Plymouth Male Choir Society last week were a distinct improvement upon anything the choir has done for some time, and showed that the choir is capable of taking to heart and profiting by some of its recent experiences. In some sense it is to be regretted that many who were at one time associated with the choir nave lost their interest, and dropped out of the Society. On the other hand the absence of some from amongst the singers ib a matter over which no tears need be spilt. Any musical society is well rid of members who think more of the. glamor of the concert pfatform than of the enjoyment of the work of the practice room and the Society will be well advised to guard jealously the door by which one-time members may seek to re-enter or new members desire to come in. The ability of every member to come up to a reasonable standard set by the conductor is much more important than having a numerically strong : chorus. The thirty singers who took the platform last week were a much better balanced company than when the choir has'appeared in much stronger numbers. And as balance is one of the very important considerations in concerted singing it followed naturally that the effect was in that way improved. The tenor side of the choir,' however, is still a little weak, and especially the second tenors. The basses were not always mindful of their superior weight, and in some of the numbers they Bomewhat overshadowed the other side of the choir. In the quieter selections given there was a distinct improvement in the quality of tone produced, though unfortunately this was not maintained uniformly in the more robust passages, where some of the voices, which show a tendency to predominate at times, were inclined to force their notes. In the matter of pronunciation and enunciation there was a noticeable improvement, the members evidently appreciating the necessity tor more careful attention to these details. There was, however, still a tendency in some places to run words together, wliieb. should be corrected at future rehearsels. There is one weakness in the choir singing, which, if remedied, will go a long way towards producing - more finished effect to their work. It is the weakness common to many singers of giving undue weight to certain notes which come within the easy compass ot the voice, and which results, very often, in quite unimportant words being over emphasised. On the whole, however, the choir may well feel encouraged in its work as evidenced by last week's concerts.

There was one matter for which the choir deserves the very best thanks of the community, if for nothing else, arid that was the bringing- of Mr. Fred. Bourke (Auckland .baritone) to New Plymouth. It is not an exaggeration to say that Mr. Bourke is one of the finest baritones that New Zealand possesses at the present time, and his singing here last week wass a* revelation of the possibilities of vocal art. Ho is wonderfully well favored in his vocal equipment, and that first gift has been enriched by judicious training and faithful study, and it was not surprising that, having heard Mr. Bourke's first song, the audience* on each night refused to permit him to retire until he had responded to many recalls. Mr. Bourke uses his voice with great skill and judgment, and his execution is accomplished with the utmost ease. The atmosphere which he creates by the singing of songs of most touching sentiments was intense indeed, especially in such numbers as' Sullivan's "Thou art passing hence" and M. Valerie White's "Absent though Present," and there were many who were deeply moved by his interpretation of these works. His visit must have 'been an inspiration to all who availed themselves of ihe opportunity of hearing him. It is a responsibility for the choir to have brought such an artist to the town, and If the principle is fololwed up with require that their work will have to aim at a correspondingly high standard of merit. One cannot help feeling that it is a great pity for members of the choir to have to sit behind such ft simrsr on

these occasions, as it is quite impossible for them to fully appreciate his work tinder such circumstances. The movement in the direction of reciprocity between the Male Choir Societies of Wanganui, Hawera and New Plymouth is one that should be fostered in every way. An interchange of visits between members of these choirs at each other's concerts must result in good, if only in the direction of affording some of the members an opportunity of hearing others do things differently, and maybe better, than they can be done by their own society. And the question of combining in engaging high-class singers to sing at each of the centres in succession is certainly worth prosecuting.

Tiio success of the Auckland Amateur Operatic Society's production of "The Gondoliers" leads to the hope (says; an exchange) that the new organisation may continue its work. But for the expense attached to such undertakings there would seem to be no good reason why such a society should not give at least four operas a year. An excellent plan to make this feasible would be an amalgamation of all the amateur societies in the Dominion, or at least; those in the four chief centres. A scheme should I>e easily enough evolved under which the scenery and costumes used in an Auckland production should be subsequently used in Wellington, Christchurch, and Duncdin. Tho cost of them could be proportioned among the four societies, thus reducing the expenses to a minimum. Likewise, by the engagement of the same professional producer to proceed from one centre to another, and stage the same opera in each in turn, the best results would be obtained. For the fourth production in each year competitive works should be invited. Why should not the Dominion operatic societies encourage Dominion composers and authors? They would receive some mediocre works no doubt, but who knows what talent now lying dormant they might not unearth ? The sugges- ! tion is, at any rate, worthy of considera- | tion.

The "ponce choir" of 1(1,000 voices, organised by Br. Charles Harriss, celebrated the Allied victory in Hyde Park, London, on the night of July 10—a fitting conclusion to the great festivities of the day. The programme began with a band selection, followed by "God Save the King" "'God Bless the Prince of Wales" and the of the Men of Harlech" were well sung, but it was not until "All People that on Earth do Dwell" that the crowd really joined in to any great extent. The most popular items were the "Hallelujah Chorus," "The Minstrel Boy," "March of the Men of Harlech" (followed by cheers for Lloyd George), and the soldiers chorus from "Faust." The immense crowd was 'wonderfully orderly, and waited in the rain until the very end without any perceptible melting away.