HIGH TRIBUTES

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 59, Issue 276, 4 September 1939, Page 3

HIGH TRIBUTES

MADAM MAE BRODIE ABROAD. EMINENT PERSONALITIES MET. EXPERIENCES IN ITALY. Receptions remarkable for their warmth and for the glowing .praise of her voice are, among the chief impressions of Madame Mae Brodie, who has just returned from a concert tour on the Continent, where she' gave concerts at Rome, Milan and Budapest, and who has decided to make a concert tour of New Zealand before returning to Europe for the concert season. It was at Rome that Madame Brodie was introduced to the Italian public, where, under the guidance of Dr. Ezio Kost, she presented her first concert. It was attended by Lord Perth (British Ambassador), Lady Perth, Sir William McClure (chief of the United Press in Italy) and many distinguished people of the Latin musical world. The second concert was given at the Conservatorium of Music in Milan, on November 30, and this was attended by some of the leading lights of Italian musical circles. In conversation with a “Guardian'’ reporter, Madame Brodie stated that she had been complimented on her work by! eminent personalities, among whom was Maestro Bernardino Molinari, conductor of the famous Augusteo Symphonic Orchestra, at Romo. Dedications Written. After her concert other distinguished personalities congratulated her, and further, wrote dedications to her in her autograph book, which includes the names of His Excellency Francesco Cilea, the great Italian composer, Commandatore Carlo Clausetti, general manager and director of the publishing house of Ricordi, Maestro Guilio Cesare Paribeni (teacher of composition at the Royal Conservatorium of Music at Milan), Maestro Enzo Calace (teacher of pianoforte at the Milan Conservatorium) and Maestro E. Corio- (director of the Milan School of Music). The quality of Madame Brodie’s voice at once attracted wide ,attention, and there was further cause for congratulation in the fact that the singer employed several languages in her presentations. Musical cfrcles were lavish in their praise, and some interesting clippings are among Madame Brodie’s souvenirs of her tour. For instance, “La Tribuna,” of Rome, said she had marked musical temperament aud showed it in the repertoire she offered, especially in the aria of “Lo- Principessa” from Adriana Lecouvreur. “II Messaggero,” Rome, said the singer was endowed with a beautiful, powerful and well-trained mezzo-sopra-no voice, which was greeted with infinite applause and requests of encores. The “Corriere della Sera,” of Milan, said that the singer had “infinite intelligence and charm, with musical feeling very well educated.”

Critics Lavish in Praise. Other newspapers paid high tribute to the quality of voice and the interpretations given no less than to the perfect pronunciation of the songs sung in Italian, French, and German, and referred to the security of the singer. After the third concert given in the great hall of the Academy of Music at Budapest, last March, the critics again were lavish in their praise, and one writer in “Uj Ma'gyarsag’’ characterised Madame Brodie’s voice as being full of sonority, and a remarkable vocal organ. While she was on the tour, Madame Brodic included in her concerts a, number of Maori songs, which, she said, were, an instant success. Among them was “Te Whemia Kura,” which Avas composed by her mother, who, as Alice Forrester, was the first lady student to become a Bachelor of Music in Australasia. Madame Brodic, whose home is at Rangitata, spent the greater part of her life in Ashburton County, where her father, the late Mr Donald McLean, ivas well-known. Speaking.of her experiences while she was on tour, Madame Brodie said she had met with remarkable kindnesses from the British. Consulates and on the occasions of her concerts she was the recipient of masses of beautiful fknvers from the British communities. At Milan she was the guest of honour at a dinner given by the ivife of the British Consul-General to Italy. A Magnificent Performance. One of the most magnificent performances she saiv ivas the presentation of Wagner’s “Triestan and Isolde,” conducted by the great Italian conductor of La Scala, de Sabata, and sung in German. De iSabbata conducted the whole of that tremendous score, lasting four and a half hours, entirely by. memory. Madame Brodie’s repertoire is very wide, ranging from folk songs to chamber music, classic and modern, and slie employs the original language in each case. Madame Brodie was fortunate in the help given her abroad by Dr. Kost, her teacher and accompanist. He is Avellknoivn and highly regarded in the musical world in Europe being a renowned conductor of grand opera and \ symphonic concerts. He was accompanist during the tour and lie AA’ill act in this capacity during the tour which is to be undertaken in this country, starting at Wellington. Tt. was while she ivas in Italy that Madame Brodie was honoured by having her name inscribed on the roll of Centro Lirico, an institution conducted by the Government and providing only for tried artists throughout Europe. As a compliment to her home toivn. Madame Brodie is to give a concert, the first in the Dominion, in Ashburton on September 21. The event is already creating ivide interest among muscinl people here, and many Ashburton societies ha\ T e given their patronage.