Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1926-05-15
H. Whitefield Latte of
Chicago Sings Group
of Exceptional Selec-
tons at Friday Eve
ming Meeting To
Appear Publicly in
This City at Early
Date

With more than a half-hundred
program sessions each year the Au-
gusta Rotary Club enjoys an extra
ordinary variety Of splendid enter
tainment features, including many
musical evenings, but it was the gen.
eral concensus following the session
last evening that the program pre-
sented at the tenth anniversary OBJ
servance was one of the most unusual
from an artistic standpoint in all the
long history of the organization.
II. WhitefieId Latte Of Chicago, a
baritone singer of considerable note
in this country and abroad was the
entertaining artist and his largesse
in responding to the insistent demand
from his audience for number after
number was only exceeded by his
mastery handling of the widely diff
ferent types of compositions which he
sang for their pleasure.
The artist demonstrated his versa
tiliy in the range of his selections. His
voice is a rich, true baritone, and his
renditions last evening were drama tic,
whimsical or serious as the nature Of
the composition and subject demand
ed. The Rotarian audience which
heard Mr.. Laite's singing last evening
was so impressed by his endeavor that
it is understood that the club will
sponsor a public concert appearance
in this city in the near future. that a
larger group of Capital City citizens
may enjoy his art.
With the Chicago concert singer
last evening and acting as his intro
Queer was an older brother, Rev.
Robert E. Latte of Portland, who also
spoke most interestingly for a few
minutes on Making Men," The
speakers remarks were forceful and
of particular value and application to
Rotary. He spoke of three men of
history who stand out head and
shoulders above their contemporaries,
and gave their axioms for making
men and character.
The first of these was Socrates, the
Greek philosopher who said. know
thyself"; The second was the Ro-
man. Marcus Aurelius, whose philos-
ophy was Control thyself"; And
then the speaker mentioned the Man
of Galilee who said. "Deny thyself."
Musical Features
For that part Of the program which
included the solo selections by H.
Whitefeld Latte, the piano accom-
paniments were played by Willard B.
Purinton, a member of the club, and
Mr.. Purinton's sympathetic handling
of his part added in no small measure
to the success of the concert.
Mr.. Latte told his hearers that his
first selection would be a dramatic
piece, "Invictus," the words of which
were written by Henley and the mu-
sic by HUM. In this very first num-
Der the singer demonstrated his range
and power and at the conclusion of
the selection, the applause accorded
him was real tribute to his art.
OF widely divergent character was
the second song, an old English coun-
try folk number entitled 'Floral
Dance" and then the singer essayed
one of the heaviest of the opera ar
las, the Prologue" from Il Pagliac-
ci," by Leoncavallo, which he sung
in Italian. In introducing this selec-
ton Mr.. Latte gave a synopsis of
what the song described. During the
orchestral introduction Tonic in clown
costume appears and explains that
the subject of the play is taken from
real life; reminds the audience that
actors are but men, with passions like
their own, and that the author has
endeavored to express the real feel
ings and sentiments of the characters
he will introduce. He then orders UP
the curtain.
Mr.. Laite's rendition of this aria
drew tumultuous applause. and then
he swung easily into sacred ballad.
Thanks Be to God" followed by
what he termed, "a real mans piece"
Kipling's Danny Deever," arranged
by Walter Damrosch.
Following the brief remarks by the
elder Latte, the baritone singer again
brought pleasure to the Rotarians
when he consented to sing another
selection. Another Kipling poem,
ION the Road to Mandalay" was the
happy choice. The audience could