The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-05-19
WORK OF THE CHORUS UNEVEN
LACK OF SUFFICIENT REHEARSAL
SHOWN In ITS SINGING.
Audience Shows It's Appreciation Oi
Afternoon and Evening.


| Mr.. Stems festival Is a praiseworthy un-
dertaking. 1t is small encouragement that
| has so far rewarded his efforts however to
| revive the festivals of the past, for Eng
| lish's Opera House did not contain the
| large audience last night that the opening
concert warranted. The theater was scarce
| ly half filed. and this. too despite the fact
that the prices asked were easily within
| the reach of everybody.
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra was de-
cidedly the greatest feature of the concert.
This excellent company of musicians, under
the able direction of Adolph Rosenbecker.
| bore it's share of the programme-and it
was the lions share-with great credit. Mr..
Rosenbecker demonstrated at the very be-
| ginning that he exercised perfect control
! over his forces, and his orchestra, in re-
Spouse to the commands of his baton, pro-
| duced the best instrumental music that
has been heard in indianapolis in
| many months. There was no diff
| ference in the somnolence in the playing
| of his men. The strings were rich and
vibrant in quality. their chords full and
| their passage work smooth, and the reeds
and brasses were well balanced. Mr.. Rosen-
becker's conducting was authoritative and
He is evidently on terms of the closest in
| timacy with all of the music rendered by
his orchestra. as he often directed without
referring to the scores of the works that
were being interpreted.
The orchestra was seated on the stage.
| with the women of the chorus banked up
in three tiers behind and the male singers
grouped the sides. The stage was set
| to represent a woodland and as the women
were all dressed in the light delicate colors
suggestive of spring, the ensemble picture
was very pretty one.
WORK OF THE CHORUS.
The chorus, 1t must be confessed, showed
| lack of rehearsal at times-once in man.
ner that came very near having serious
results-but in the main it's work was
pleasing and. during the final number of
the oratorio. quite impressive. The Aus
trian Hymn of Haydn, which was to have
been the first choral number of the even
ing was not rendered at all, owing to the
fact that at yesterday afternoons re-
hearsal Conductor Rosenbecker was not
entirely satisfied with it's rendition. 1t will
begiven a thorough rehearsal to-day, and
Will be sung as a special number of this
evenings programme.
The concert opened with the overture,
"Di Ballo." by Sullivan, and was played
by the orchestra in splendid style. The
other regular orchestral numbers performed
at intervals during the first part of the
programme were a lively movement from
Edward Germans Gypsy Suite and a
symphony in two movements-scherzo and
fnaie-by Stanford. The former was given
with vim and bravura that was irresisti-
bic, and won such enthusiastic applause
that Mr.. Rosenbecker and his men re-
most people In the audience were curious
to know what the piece could be, as it was
dreamv waltz Called "Pansw in E SalhsS,
and the work Of the German composer,
Erich. The Stanford composition. with its
quaint rhythmic accents, was given fine
Interpretation.
The vocal soloists of the evening were
Arthur Beresford, Genevieve Clark Wilson
and George Hamlin. Mr.. Beresford was the
first to be heard. He was on the pro-
gramme to sing Verdi's "Infelice," but for
some reason which was not explained he
rendered instead the baritone aria, why
Do the Nations?" from Handels oratorio,
1.-The Messiah" His voice, while of good
quality, was not always true, and his sing
ing did not win the strong approval in this
number that IL received later on, when Mr..
Beresford sang the baritone portions of
1.-The Creation" Mrs. Wilson's soprano
proved sweet and clear, and did not sound
of Bruch with much feeling, and was
warmly applauded, but did not respond
with an encore number on account of the
length of her selection.
Mr.. Hamlin, the Chicago tenor, rendered
the recitative numbers, Deeper and
Deeper Still and Watt Her, Angels"
from Handels 'Jephtha'' His voice is of
good range, musical and very sympathetic,
and although his high tones were not his
best, because of a cold from which he is
just recovering, his vocal work was en-
joyable, and was much appreciated.
The double quartet of Indianapolis sing
ers. made up of Miss Ida Belle Sweenie,
Mrs. Leo B. Riggs, Mrs. Gertrude Fugate,
Miss Jessie Mae Payne. Miss Catherine
Gibson, Miss Litta Grimm, Frank n. Tay-
lor and Homer Van VIE. gave the beautiful
Holy, Holy, Holy of Mendelssohn. ana
the Interpretation was very effective and
deserving of the applause which 1t earned.
INTEREST OF THE EVENING.
The greatest interest of the evening CEN
tered in the rendition by the chorus, solo
lists and orchestra, of the first part of
Haydns wonderful oratorio, The Crea-
tion." to which the entire second half of
the concert was devoted. The beauties,
structural and emotional, of this grand
work might Well claim, for full descrip-
ton, much more space than may convent
emily be given it in daily newspaper The
entire oratorio is permeated with those
personal characteristics which made
Haydn the man. beloved by his circle of
friends and his contemporaries. Although
written when the composer was wrnkled
with age, il is full of the fire OF youth and
is equal, in the minds of many critics, to
the finest productions Of Handel There
is in IL the expert and conscientious mu-
steamship which the composer fought so
hard to obtain during the early days of his
poverty and there is in il, too. the innate
happy-heartedness of a gentle and SYM
pathetic being whom even forty years of
unhappy domestic life could not sour or
turn to stone. But above all, there is in
this glorious masterpiece that devout trust
in the goodness of God which neither di-
versity nor worldly prosperity could shake
in it's earnestness and devotion. 1.-The Gre
alton is. indeed. the highest form of re-
ligious music.
In the Instrumentation and accompany
ment of this old work all the richer mod
ern coloring in orchestration are found.
and this makes Haydns master oratorio
stand out as a most unique production,
even when compared to Handers Mes
siah." The introduction-the Representa-
ton of Chaos''-is a marvellous piece of tone
painting; everything in the curious instru-
mentatiop goes toward filling the minds
of the listeners with the vague sense OF
matter in it's primeval, formless state
Then succeeds a piece of fine descriptive
recitative for the bass soloist, followed by
q pianissimo reiteration on the strings, as
the chorus almost whispers the tender pass
age. THE Spirit that Moved upon The Face
of the Waters Soon comes the inspiring