The sun., 1918-12-02
BUSY PHILHARMONIC
GIVES VARIED MUSIC
Tschaikowsky's Fifth SYM
phony Played With Full
Sentimental Value.
BELLINI ARIA Is REVIVED
Nine. Lashanska Sings From
a Forgotten "R9meo and
Juliet" Opera.

The Philharmonic Society, which tS
an industrious contributor TO the must
cal activities of the town, gave the
second Of its Sunday afternoon series
OF concerts at Carnegie Hall yoster-
day afternoon. The organization has
also series OF Saturday night con-
certs, another OF Thursday night con-
certs which are repeated on certain
Friday afternoons and another Of Fri
day afternoon entertainments without
repetition.
The Sunday series appears 10 be the
most popular, albeit appearances in
concert halls are not always trust
worthy. The list OF yesterday con-
tanned an inviting variety of music.
The orchestral numbers were Tschai-
kowsky's nth symphony Sibolius's
tone poems Tho Swan OF Tuonela"
and "Nltava" and Sir Charles Villiers-
Stanford's "verdun." The soloist was
Hulda Lashanska, soprano. who sang
an air from Bellini's II Capuleti cd /
MontecChi" and "Tleure2 mos yeuN"
from Massenet's lie Cid"
At Home with Tschaikowsky.
Mr.. Stransky was quite at home in
the Tschaikowsky symphony. He made
all his points clearly. aud he obscured
nothing of the significant solo pas
sages or coutrapuntal inner voices OF
10
age of his convictions in his trea tlnent
OF the cantabile melody Of the first
movement. Some conductors shy NJ
its sentimentality and hasten the
( tempo in order TO be done with it.;
hut Mr.. Stransky made most decided
ritardandn and then let the song sig I
! itself out in mellifluOus laNguishings
as the composer intended. The orches-
ira was in good form and deserved
every bit OF the applause II received.
What number u things might be
said about Nine. I.ashanSka's revival
OF music from Reilini's forgotten
| trco tment OF the Romeo and Juliet
story. For instance, away back in
1884 n young man named Richard
Wagner heard Wilhelmine Schroeder
! Dcvrient sing Romeo, and as late as
! 1872 he vowed that he never could
conceive a character without thinking
/ OF her.
Now II one did not wonder how
nearly Nine. Lashanslta could make
Be,lini's Juliet sound like Beethoven's
Leonorn. in which part Schroeder
Devrient rose 10 her greatest heights,
one could nj least discern in the de-
livery OF the soloist no inconsiderable
mastery Of that command OF style
needed to disclose the measure OF dig
nifty and dramatic value IN Bell!ni's
song 4 very beautiful voice this
| young singer has. oud such short
! comings as she betrayed yesterday
may perhaps bc attributed To pal
pable nervousness,
Merle Alcock SOloist.
The Symphony Society at !ts regu-
I lar Sunday afternoon concert in
| Aeolian Hall repeated the programme
given the night before at the organiza e.
tons first Saturday evening concert
! in Carnegie Hall. Here again there
are series and series which need not
be enumerated. Merle AlcoCk, con-
tralto. was the soloist in place Of Lucy
| Gates, who was i'll.
The orchestral numbers in the lis;
we're Dvorak's From the New World
symphony, the entr'actc and passepied
from Andre Messengers opera, LA
| Basoche': Saint Saenss barCarolle.
"A Night IN Lisbon" and a fantasy
on two folksongs from AnSou By
! C uillaume Lekeu given here for the
} first time.
| The hearing OF Dvoraks ever popu-
lar New World" symphony gave fp-
| parently much pleasure. 1t was
played by the orchestra with admirable
feeling and true color. and especially
noteworthy was the largo for a display
in nuance and finish The Messenger
music afforded note OF agreeable
contrast and spirit in the programme.
and with the Saint Saens's barcarolle
was warmly anphuded. Iekeu's
/ fantasy contains fine mood contrasts.
and while somewhat too extended in
! treatment, Il contains beauty OF melody
and orchestration.
| Miss Alcocll's selections were the
airs "Ombra Mai F'u" OF Handel and
Verdi's 20 Don Fatale." She was al
her best In the first air, though in
both numbers her fine voice and taste
! were en- ioyable