Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1857-02-20

Extracted from Mr. H1le's Lecture before The
LycsuHa, on Pubic Anauseme',ts.

| " VI such efforts, think the most IeinaIhaule
Of which the last few years have given us account
/ is that which resulted in the Liverpool Cheap
/ Concerts. nuisance had grown up IN Liver
pool, which is creeping into our large towns
| what l may call drinking concerts, or musical
/ liouor shOps Connected with some tavern is a
| hail where musicians perform, and those who at
! tend to hear the music at liberty to call for
| the nominal worth of their tickets in liauof
! wsich, for the purpose of the place, is misnamed
'refreshment. If you have been too fortunate
TO such places, you will remember descriptions
OF such places in Bleak House or Sybi'
In Liverpool, they had no Maine Law to close
such houses If they had, it might not have
succeeded, better than ours does.
body OF wise men and wemen therefore,
who saw the dangers of such union Of taste and
temptation, undertook to drive out evil With good
They organized, and were tsponsible for monster
concerts. where The music was great deal cheap
err than the liquor sellers, and great deal better
at the same time. They went the principle
that people would rather hear the good music
than the poor. And they proved 10 be ia the
right. Evening after evening, they brought three
| or four thousand people together, paid
threepenee each for theiI admission. Three
pence each gave about forty pounds an evening
say two hundred dollars.
In such cause, this was enough to secute the
services Of the best musicians in England, and
when Braham aud Bishop, Grisi and Sontag, sang
at the cheap concerts it was no wonder IT, for the
evening the attractions of the liquor saloons
ing, wealth and genius.
This thirteen years ago. A friend in Liv-
erpool has just now sent me this account of the
present working of these CONCERTS
In several places in England Che writes.
large halls have been built, preparing,
where such concerts can be thrown open for
trifing entrance fee. In such balls, there is
sometimes orchestra, sometimes organ
oftener only piano, or simply vocal musc
Liverpool has pre-eminently distinguished her
N Inns iyfr ~ all er hfrh
tistic pleasure. In her truly magnificent st.
Georges Hall, during the last season, assemblies
of three thou sand people have, week after week,
| on Saturday evening, listened to selections of
| pieces from the first masters, performed by an
admirable otganist, on an organ built especially
for this hall, which is unsurpassed for richness,
power, and variety. The entrance fee is usually
threepence.
The result of this is, of course, that all other
entertainments of the same sort obliged to
arrange their pieces to match. During the
week, concerts have been again and again given,
where vocal and instrumental artists of great
merit have presented most varied entertain
ment, for the small sum of sixpence or shilling.
Our especially popular concerts are given every
Saturday evening, in Concert Hall, where for
thrteen yeaIe past crowds of the working class.
ss--always, SO far as l have observed, decent in
dress and decorOus in manuers-have assembled
to listen, for some two hours, to singing IF vari-
Gus kinds, NECESSARILY of popular character yet
very good. For instsnce, observe in an adyer-
tsement Tor this week the following bill Of fare:
Youthful Illustrations -or the Evening Hour
an English Irish, Scotch, American. and
French Vocal Entertainment by the English and
Hibernian Wonders, John and Marie,-whose eff
forts have been so rapiurously received by the
Metropolitan PubHc Birmingham and the Prov
inces. do not know how this may prove
but can testify to having heard most excellent
music most enthusiastically appauded at these
concerts.
mai no onestinn as IN tha opalitv NJ the mn,
sic, for there is committee OF character to en-
gage it, and three thousand three penees or one
hundred and eighty dollars, to pay expenses. My
friend continu - The terms OF admission are
three pence for the body of the hall six pence for
the side galleries, shilling for reserved seats;
ane children half price to the galleries and re.
served seats. An admirable part OF this insttu-
ton is the singing class, on Wednesday evening,
when pupils are instructed in vocal rndiments.'
A simple method of reading music at sight
Glees Madrigals,' for three pence There are also
French classics, and a French Conversational
class, for which the admission fee is three pence,
and finally news room is open every day, ex-
cept Sunday, for one penny.
Gentlemen and ladies', is not this exactly the
thing for which you have been building your
magnificent Mechanics Hall ?--the finest build
ing in New England for its purpOse-in Ameri-
ca. Ask the directors, when it is done, if they
will not inaugurate it by series five cent con-
certS, to be given every evening for a month, Of
the best populat vocal music at command.
Does not such an instance as that show why
God gave the love of music 10 rich and poor, wise
and supple, saint and sinner together Does it
not show the power we have in our hands, if we
accept the duty,of en'erta ming people-that duty
pure and simple, without disguise, without equiv.
ocation
As it is. when we do provide public entertain
ment with care and system, it is Tor just those
who could do very well without il. Take your
own success, last year. when Mr.. Thackeray call
ed together thousand people here. All who
came could have provided their own amusement
for Wednesday evening, But you did not see
there the people who have no comforts at home
whom book does not entertain, and whose hard
physical days labor needs, more than any mans
beside. relaxation, light and tender OF course,
they did not so Brilliant as the entertainment
was. it would have been no entertainment for
those who had not some preparation for it, Yet
can conceive that unaffected ballad SINCE
or skilful performer of tricks Of legerdemain, or
good band performing f4vorte airs, or a magic
lantern with popular slides, or a good reader ad
vertsing that he would read Charles O'Malley
aloud, or Handy Andy, could have called in a
couple of thousand of such persons-so that there
should have been five hundred merry families that
evening. and the next morning thousand cheer.
full workmen-and not one complaint in the Po-
lice Court of noisy frolc the night before"