New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1877-05-16
How the Choir Go, MIXED.

you see, the tenor had got kind OF alb
stracted, or restless, or something, during
the long prayer, and was thinking about
the European war, or the wheat corner
last week, or something, and SO, when the
minister gave out hymn 231, on page
sixty-seven, and the choIister whispered
them to sing the music on page III, it
came all in on the tenor like a volley, and,
as he had only the playing of the SYM
phony in which to make the necessary
combination Of time, hymn and page, he
came to the front just little BIT disor-
ganized, and his fingers sticking between
every leaf of the book. And the choir
hadn'nt faced the footlights half minute
before the congregation more than half
suspected something was wrong. For you
see the soprano, in attempting to answer
the freDzied whisper of the tenor in re-
gard to the page, lost the first two or
three words of the opening herself, and
that left the alto to start off alone, for tho
basso was SO profoundly engaged in watch
ing the tenor, and wondering what allied
him, that he forgot to sing. The music
vast written for an alto solo, and conse-
quently there wasn't very much variety to
That part, and, after singing nearly
through the first line alone, and re-
SCANAhB ASAhhoA dHRlhNSo uOE OUuIu6bSs
for one of the finest contralto efforts
Burlington or any other audience
ever listened to, the alto stopped and
looked reproachfully at the soprano, who
had just plunged the tenor's soul into a
gulf o! dark despair by leaving him to
ind his way out of the labyrinth of tunes
and pages and hymns into which his own
heedlessness had led him, by giving him
frantic shake of her head, which unset
tied the new spring bonnet Dust the
sweetest duck of Normandy to that
extent that every woman in the congrega-
ton noticed it. All this time the organ
list was doing nobly, and the alto, recov-
ering her spirits, sang another bar, which
for sweetness and tenacious adherence to
the same note all the way through could
not be beat in America. By this time the
bass had risen to the emergency, and sang
two deep cultural notes with profound
expression; but as those of the congrega-
ton sitting nearest the choir could dis
tinctly hear him sing, "Ho! hot to the
proper music, it was painfully evident
that the basso had correct tune, but was
running wild on the words. Atthis point
the soprano got her time and started off
with couple of confident notes, high
and clear as bird song, and the copgre-
cation, inspired with an over-ready CON
tidence, broke out on the last word of the
verse with disccrdant roar that ratified
the globes Of the big chandelier; and, as
the verse closed with this triumphant out
break, an expression of calm, restful sat
isfaction was observed to steal over the
top OF the pastors head, which was all
that could be seen of him as he bowed
himself behind the pulpit
The organist played an intricate and
beautiful interlude without tremor or q
false note; not an uncertain touch to in
dictate that there was particle of excite
ment in the choir, or that anything had
gone wrong. tt.,5f.. =. -
The choir didn't exactly appear to catch
the organist's reassuring steadiness for
the basso led of the second verse by him
self, and his deep-toned "Ido, no p was
SO perceptible throughout the saotuary
that several people started and looked
down under the seats for man, and one
irreverent sinner near the door thrust a
felt hat into his mouth and slid out. The
soprano got orders and started, but only
three or four words behind time, but she
hadn't reached the first siding before she
coHided with woman in the audience
running wild and trying to carry a new
tune to the old words And then, TO
mako il worse, the soprano handed her
book TO the tenor, and pointed him 10 the
tune on page III, and the words on page
g.; and if that unhappy man didn't get
bis orders mixed, aud struck out on
schedule time with the tune on page 81
and the words on page liz, and In less
than ten words ditched himself SO badly
that be was laid out for the rsst of the
verse, and then he lost his place, handed
the book 10 the soprano, took tie one she
had, and held 1t upside down, and no
living man could tell from his face what
be was thinking Of or trying to say
Meanwhile the soprano, when the books
we're so abruptly changed on her, did Just
what might have been expected, and
telescoped two tunes and sets Of words
into each other with disastrous eject
The alto was running smoothly along,
good passenger time, for the several
wrecks gave her the track, SO far
Is IL was clear, all to herself The
basso, who had slipped an eccentric and
was only working on one side, Was rum
bling cautiously along, clear of his own
time, tagging himself every mile Of the
Fay and asking for orders every time he
got chance. The pastors head WAS OBJ
served 10 tFemhle with emotion, and the
people sitting nearest the pulpit say they
could lndistinctly hear sounds from be-
hind It inst resembled the sylahles fsTe,
her faee appendix, marked ''exhibit B. y
As the ozeanist pulled and crowded end
enennzaged them along toward the closing
line. i looked as though public condolences