The Waterbury Democrat., 1939-11-15
CONTRALTO IN
 FINE CONCERT
Miss Anna Kaskas Greeted By Capacity Audience;
 Songs Please

Miss Anna Kaskas, contralto at the Metropolitan Opera in New York city was heard last night by a capacity audience at the Waterbury
 Women's club. This was the second concert in the Fine Arts series spon- sored by the Mattatuck Musical Art society. Miss Kaskas has risen to
 musical heights in a very few years by virtue of splendid voice of wide range, a keen musical feeling, and intensive work in the art of concert song and opera roles. She has a voice of tremendous power, lovely quality ant' perfectly controlled. It is pleasure to hear her sing Han- del, Gluck, Strauss, and those songs in the Lithuanian language which were included on last nights pro- gram. Miss Kaskas was capably as- sisted last night by Howard Kubik who was at the piano, and who played two solo numbers.
 Miss Kaskas sang first three num- bers in the old classical style. They were the two Italian compositions by Marcello and Handel respective ly, "Quella fiamma," and Amor commando" and the aria in French "Divinites du Styx" from Gluck's "Alceste." All were done with tech- nical accuracy, expert phrasing and fexibility of tone; her Gluck aria giving her ample opportunity to demonstrate the power of 8 most exceptional voice.
 Nothing was finer on her program than the two songs, with flattering accompaniment Dy Richard Strauss, namely "Allerseelen" and Stand chen." Her voice was particularly ap- pealing in these and was likewise splendid in the more forceful Hat dich die Liebe beruhrt" by Marx. Miss Kaskas deviated somewhat from the patterned program of con- traltos in that she gave numbers not too often heard but which were hap oily adapted to her tonal quality. She sang from Samson ct Dalila" by Saint-Saens the aria, Amour. viens alder" not so frequently heard as the Mon Occur at ta voix."
 Four Lithuanian songs in that language were particularly appeal ing and were warmly received. Translated as to title they were con- cerned with Rair, My Rose, Lulla- by and Dreams, and as notated on the program in the Lithuanian -lan- guage were in the following order: "Lietus" by Dirvianskaite; "Mano Roze" by Kacanausko; "Lopsine," by Simkus, and "Sapnai" by the first named composer in the group. Fol- lowing the singing of her native songs Miss Kaskas sang as an en- core what she termed modern American lullaby.
 In her concluding group of songs Miss Kaskas sang four descriptive songs in English by Russian com posers. Tn this the singer showed herself efficient as clever vocal raconteur, first in picturing the sea- son in Arensky's Autumn" next in the spirited journey, rapid and happy Glinka's "The Journey" a true romantic feeling expressed in Rachmaninoff's Tn the Silence of the Night" and lastly the spirit and animation interpreted in Moussorg- sky's "Hopka." For encore num- bers Miss Kaskas also sang Brahms Lullaby and "The Little China Figure" and "The Lords Prayer"
 Howard Kubik gave further dem- onstration of his pianistic talents in two Chopin numbers which were greatly enjoyed. They were .Noc- turne in D Flat" and Fantasie-1m- promptu in c Sharp Major. He played as an encore modern Am- erican composition, an American | Ritual Dance. Miss Kaskas was pre- sented '7ith a bouquet of flowers | from frien6s and later was enter tained at the Elton by large Lith- uanian group.