Evening star., 1938-05-10

Rialto is ideally suited to her powerfl
date those who hitherto have not
always been fortunate in gaining ad-
missions to her recitals. Filling the
hall to capacity, the audience assisted
with complete absorption at her per-
feet Interpretation Of choice program.
Miss Anderson has warm, pliable
and expressive voice, one of great
range. But it is her art which stirs
one. Simple and self-effacing, she
makes herself medium for the re-
creation Of the loveliness Of q song
both by her personal sensitivity and
by her technical command. The
union Of these two forces is SO finely
welded in her art that one forgets
that there is mechanical side to
singing and SO Is able to extract a
full measure of enjoyment from what
she offers. Not many singers can so
arouse their listeners to a complete
realization Of the combined beauty Of
text and music as can Miss Anderson.
The last time she appeared here
either the program or the hall was
not propitious to her peculiar style.
The songs drew on her higher range
to the secrifice of the warm, sonorous
quality of her lower register. Last
evening her. numbers displayed her
voice to the best advantage and she
herself was in excellent form. She
sang with an exquisite softness of
tone at one moment and with q ring
ing volume the next, all produced with
the greatest care and without once
disturbing the lovely line OF her vocal
range.
4 4
Several Of her songs were q real
gift to her audience which will not
soon forget them. Four stood out
especially, Carissimi's "A Bruno Ves-
titi," sung in a marvellous mezzo-vo
Schubert's delicate and charming Die
Vogel," VOLTS "Gesang Weyla's"
where the richness and power of her
voice was heard in all its superb free
dom and, crowning them all, the Ave
Maria" by Schubert There was prob
ably hardly person present yesSerday
who has not heard this lovely song
choppily, unrhythmically and care
lessls' sung. But in the calm, sustained
phrases, the tender tonal quality and
the reverend Interpretation of Miss
Anderson, the glory Of this masterpiece
stood out.
There were other lovely numbers
such as Handel'S Der Floete WEIGH
Gefuehl," Schumann's Der Nuss-
baum" Rossotto's Some Time" and
Vehanens Finnish Sailors Song"
besides a group of spirituals, among
which Were You There" arranged by
Burleigh, nearly equalled the Ave
Maria" The "Casta Diva" aria from
Bellinis Norma" was the special Of
fering of the program, yet it was not
the most successful. Difficult for q
soprano because of its deep range and
seldom sung by a contralto because it
IS high. it is an aria, as is the entire
role. which only few singers have
ever been able to present. It lies
easily within the boundaries of Miss
Anderson's voice and she sang it with
supreme artistry but the velvety soft
ness Of tone could not always be
retained nor the proper brilliance
acquired The same excessive demands
were in the Idle Wishes" of Sibelius,
a song in which the remarkable ac-
compartment overshadowed the music
for the voice.
Kosti Vehanen played the Sibelius
song exquisitely as he did all of Miss
Anderson's accompaniments. Several
encores heightened the program which
was a short one but it was not in
this that Miss Anderson's appeal to
last evenings public could be meas
ured but rather by that unmistakable