Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-04-27
THE MUSIC WORLD.
Allegheny Taking Kindly to the Prac.
tice of COncert-Going.
VLADIMIR DE PACHMlN'S VISIT.
Won BueIow's Recital as If Sounded to Mr..
BeVeridge Webster.
GOSSIP OF SINGERS AND PLAYERS

The Allegheny Musical Association gave
its second concert at Carnegie Music Hall
last Thursday evening in the presence of
large and representative audience. Such
turnout evinces strong disposition on the
part OF the Allegheny public to encourage
the first permanent choral organization
found within its jurisdiction. With the
handsome new hall and its superb organ we
may expect to see the sister city more and
more abandoned to the practice of concert
going. 1t might do much worse.
First on the programme came Jensen's
cantata, The Feast of Adonis," which
romantic and rather weak work, was given
two years ago by the Mozart Club, and need
not now be reviewed in detail. Its per-
formance-at least the second halt, which is
all the writer heard-was in most respects
all that could fairly be expected from a chorus
still comparatively new to concert work
certain lack of vim and vigor, no doubt, lay as
much in the music itself as in the performing
force. The chorus comprises some 90 or 80
voices. mostly good material. OF very falr quail
ity as regards tone and well balanced in the
several parts. In Bishops part-song, with
soprano solo. the chorus is TO be accredited
with particularly smooth and soft staccato
accompaniment.
But the CHORAL triumph was scored in Pin
SUITS familiar and singable part-song, The
Sea Hath Its Pearls /" which received an alto
gether delightful Interpretation. The attacks
were sure, the intonations clean, the phrasing
clear, the shading (bouh by all parts together
and by one part against the others) remarkably
fine and the whole song imbued with the high
est eNpressiveness. Director w. A LaHerty
may justly feel proud of that bit of choral
work: if the same Qualities can be preserved
in worthy works of larger caliber, the Allie
gheny Musical Association will prove decided
acquisition to the community's list of musical
organizations
In the cantata small and ineffective orches-
F1x~ 81, ra1 81
accompanying really devolved upon Mr.. John
A Bells sklllful work at the organ. MI. Bell
may here be credited also with the excep-
tionally discreet and satisfactory pl-
ano Accomplishments he furnirhed for
the remaining vocal numbers of the
evening. Miss Grace Miller, Miss Emma
White and Miss Elsie O'Neil sang pleasantly
the trio in the cantata. Miss Miller also sang
the solo parts in the "Adonis' and Bishops
part-song with much taste, though neither
work Afforded favorable opportunity for the
manifestation of feeling whether lyric or
dramatic. Miss Miller's soprano is one Of rare
sweetness and sympathetic quality.
Among the solo numbers, interest centered, |
of course, upon Mr, Eddys playing of the new |
Roosevelt organ-its first public trial by an |
acknowledged master of all the modern re-
sources of the king of Instruments" Barring |
the accidental slipping of one of the |
motor chains which left the big bellows |
breathless tor a time, and the fact that some |
stood the test splen1idly--thoroughly JUS |
tifyng the warm commentator of its |
qualify pronounced by Mr.: Eddy after
and as regards the display of the organs re- |
sources, Mr.. Eddy's playing was well-nigh un- |
impeschabie- The lack of distinctness in the |
variations and in other rapid and |
complex passages - including the lovely |
little flute cadenzas in the "Oberon'' |
overture-about exhausts adverse comment |
Among many good points, special mention |
may be made Of the superb pedal work in Bach's |
= Major Toccata and Best's Fantasia on |
fha ala hOr ovad of,,I
tratlon of Guilmants splendid "Scherzo Sym
phoniQue" and the players own pot-pourri from |
Faust" the extremely dainty treatment of |
the Martini and 'Mignon" gavorte and the ad- |
mirably smooth playing of the ticklish Thiele 1
variations for flute and pedal alternating. Iu |
the matter of musical feeling and artistic
sensibIllty, however, Mr.. Eddy's Interpretation
Of the more romantic compositions was gener-
ally unsatisfactory.
Mrs Helen T. Boice Hunsicker. of Phlladel-
phia, chose for her first appearance two we'll |
known ballads, and sang them with rare SIM
plicity and directness of expression and yet |
rarer clearness OF enunciation. Her voice is |
pure, sympathetic soprano, of good carrying 1
power, though not powerful. She produced |
and controlled its tones with delight
est register. Victor Herbert's lovely lyric,
THE Silent Rose" and w. W. Gilchrist's |
big. splendid song, Hearts Delight" were in
vested with fervor that amply justified the
audience in hearty recall, which brought out |
Lassen's seldom-heard song THE Gipsy Boy in
the North"
Miss Hattie C. McLain. of Boston. selected
the favorite "Nobil Signor'' for her entree
upon our concert stage. While her vocaliza-
non was not absolutely perfect the aria was
smoothly and effectively given. Her voice is a
contralto of peculiarly rich, luscious quality
and considerable range, though its upper
tones lack resonance On encore, she sang
A soft, low lullaby by Norris, whfch-like
Bohm's STILL vie die Nacht"-lay in her best
register and was admirably delivered. Meyer
Helmund's THE Morning" completed Miss
McLain's conquest of the audience.
Both ladies, by the way. spoke to the writer |
of the acoustic quality of the new hail. declar-
ing that they found it unusually easy to sing in
the voice seeming to carry without effort.
x=x
In chance conversation yesterday with that
excellent pianist and connoisseur, Mr. Bev-
eridge Webster, the topic of Won Buelow's re-
cital the evening before naturally arose. and in
the course of the talk Mr.. Webster inadvert-
emily admitted that on going home from the re-
cital he had hastily ana informally written
down his impressions for his own satisfaction,
After some persuasion he consented to let
those impressions be printed in this mornings
column-which the present writer is the more
glad to do from consciousness that his own
physical condition on Friday evening prevented
the review in yesterdays paper from going
into all the phases of that important recital
Mr.; Websters impressions were as follows:
1T was certainly surprisingly dull concert
poth IN the view OF the critic and of the public,
winch is not critical. There was certain
amount of applause of the sort determined by
the consciousness of the rank of the performer
been well coached by the advertising and who
has paid high price of admission knows what
he Is at the concert for. and is emphatcally de-
term1ned to have his moneys worth. He is
usually of a practical business turn and, con-
ceiving that there must be a direct ratio be-
tween pleasure and applause, he avoids the
danger of throwing a reflex doubt at once on |
the valle OF his investment and his musical |
appreciation by appauding most vigorously |
The formality is always apparent. The reason
for the lack of enthusiasm at the Buelow con- |
cert seems to me to be not so much in the |
player as in the programme. The Western |
audience requires more saccharine diet An
unmusical audience must have mar ked rhythms |
flowing tunes, clear construction ana brilliant
passages. |
This is the true state Of our audience here. |
and 1t would be far better to recognize the fact
than to present to il q list of music which. for
the most part could appeal only to a distinct
lively musical taste and training To cultivate
and help the musical understanding it is frst
necessary in some degree to command the in
terest OF the audience The player himself ,
aims 10 programme the best possible music
but his taste is an infinite series of removes !
above and beyond his audience He must
make some allowance for this great gulf With | ;
phenomenal consistency pianists play only
rank who plays the eauyaIenT Of sarasate's ss S
''Barnyard" trick piece Of PATHS and
Nllsson's perennial Last Rose of Summer"
or of the innumerable samples of rubbish
But even pianiss may consider the status
of the audience, and local managers ought to |
know and indicate it to them. The Won Bue-
low programme was consistently and har-
moniouslY arranged. but did not serve the pur- |
puse of interesting the audience it might. |
The Mozart fantasie. with its slow DEVELOPMENT
and exhaustive treatment of small motives, |
does not appeal TO general taste, in spite of
its great harmonic purity and beauty. The
1ngue is splendid, but again, fugue is never
spirit but seldom. The Bach SArabande was l
beautifully played, and consecutively followed Ia
py the allegro OF the concerto; then the an
Ia nj a Anun