Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-11-15
M U SIC
GERALDINE FARRAR RECITAL.

w YHEN Geraldine Farrar, late
n yesterday afternoon, stepped
NN on the stage Of Constitution
Hall, the large audience
assembled for the occasion
applauded with the zest that comes
only in welcoming a friend. For Miss
Farrar has not been in Washington for
several seasons, and her return yester-
day. in the role of Lieder singer meant
that part of her army of admirers, who
stretch from one coast to another, could
welcome her again as in days of yore.
Although Miss Farrar is no longer
yocally, prima donna, there were few
that would have suspected it yesterday.
For her appearance-more youthful
than ever-from the minute she came
out from the wings was still reminiscent
of her most glowing days with the
Metropolitan, and her personality and
sense of the dramatic were as buoyant
and attractive as ever. Furthermore,
she was vastly dignihed In her manner
of singing, and with rare good sense
denied herself the grandiose operate
arias with which she won her imperish-
able laurels.
Beginning with the Mozart "Das
Traumbild," Miss Farrar fell at once
into what must be her favorite Ian
guage. In the first place, because OF
the perfection of her diction, even those
whose German has come only through
few months of primary schooling
must have understood what the lady
was singing about, since she annotated
her songs with appropriate and in every
case graceful gestures, also tripping the
words on her tongue with remarkable
agility The audience, too, demon
strated its fondness for these German
songs-the applause reaching some
thing of demonstration in the Brahms
'Wiegenlied," which, although much
overSung this season, was treated yes
terday with a reverence and tenderness
that will probably not be duplicated.
Besides Schubert and Schumann
Miss Farrar sang songs by Strauss and
Wolff in German, then turned to
French, and rounded of her recital in
her native tongue. In these last groups
it seemed as though the Bizet Pas
torale" and 1.-The Tear" by Bubinstein,
were probably nearest the best.
Mr.. Pavlovsl1y, who accompanied Miss
Farrar throughout, also played two
groups of his own selection. His tone
perhaps harsh at the outset-took on
real warmth in the second group, and
with laundering applause following. he
finished on the Chopin "Valse Bril-
lante" in superb fashion.
<AbAAOASAAp Oil Ii ALI tA1C COk1CCIb may
have been a minute or so too long, 1t
was pleasure to have Miss Farrar back
again. and even though her voice
seemed to lack its former majesty, it
was a kindly one with an even more
kindly personality. e. De S. NJ.
FRIDAY MORNING MUSIC CLUB.
WHAT proved to be skillful artists
and a neatly fashioned program
greeted the large assemblage that came
to the initial musicale of the Friday
Morning Club at Barker Hall yesterday.
A more satisfactory program of music,
rendered by sympathetic artists, al
though leisurely and not overexciting,
met with approval at every phase Of its
delivery.
The National Trio, composed Of Henri
Sokolov, violin; Alden Finckel, violon-
cello, and Alice Finckel, piano, played
the Schubert Tschaikowsky program
with grace and precision, there being
only very few times when all three
failed to coordinate either at the start
or the finish. The predominauce of the
cello in the early stages Of The Schu-
bert Trio, No. /, Opus &c." and the
melodious but unsentimental manner of
its Interpretation, was one of the high
lights Of this first number. In the sec
ond-the Tschaikowsky Trio, Opus
50"-the delicate piano excursions,
rather unusual for trio work of this
kind, were handled so effectively by
Alice Finckel that the audience burst
involuntarily into applause before it
was over.
All of which was very much Of q treat
for the ear at that moment Of the day.
the music flowing with lyric finesse.
especially through the Tema con Va
riaziono movement of the Tschaikow-
sky and merging imperceptibly into the
finale almost without the audience no.
ticing 1t. Each of the artists. too. sub
merged his very considerable talent into
the molding of the whole, thus insur-
ing chamber music Of high type.
e. de s. M.