THE WORLD OF MUSIC.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 209, 3 September 1932, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE WORLD OF MUSIC.

DIAPASONS AND ECHOES. FROM FAR AND NEAR. (By ORPHEUS.) COMING CONCERTS. September' B—Theo Halpin-Robert Simmers Recital. September 12—Auckland Chamber Music Society, Third Concert. September 22, 24, 26—Galli-Curci Concerts. September 28 —Grand Opera Company. The ead news that Mr. A. R. Don has paeeed on during tho past week-end cast quite a gloom over musical circles throughout the country. "Archie," as he was affectionately known, had a Dominion-wide reputation not only as a fine musician but also as a fine gentleman, and there will be many who will join his relatives in mourning the lose of a particularly lovable man. Amongst the works to be performed at the Bohemian Orchestra's concert on September 29 will be the overture to Thomas' "Mignon," the "Bacchanale" from the third act of Saint-Saene' opera "Samson et Dalila," Chabrier's "Spanish Rhapsody," and Mozart's serenade, "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik." Several Wagnerian numbers will also be played. The vocal 6ide of the programme will be provided by the Commercial Travellers' Choir. With the laudable idea of giving promising young players an opportunity of playing in public, the Auckland Society of Musicians holds each year, competitions. Entries are now invited for these, one of which is a string competition, to be held on Tuesday, September 20, and the other a piano competition, the date of which is November 15. The entries close on September 10 and November 5 respectively. These musical competitions will consist of a recital of 20 to 30 minutes' duration. Any prospective candidates should lose no time in' sending in their applications to the secretary, Mrs. Maye M. Boult.

Now that Mr. E. Varley Hudson has retired from his late post as headmaster of the Normal School, he will be free to devote himself to a movement that will in time undoubtedly help to raise our standards of musical appreciation. Thie ie the formation of a junior choral association. As things are at present hundreds of young people who have been taking an active interest in choral singing—thanks to the annual schools' music festival—are leaving school, and there is not as yet any mufiical organisation that can absorb them. The proposed junior choral association would take in these adolescent singers and maintain their interest in choral work until they were ready to join a senior choral society. To put it briefly, it would form a "bridge" between the school choirs and the choral societies. This is a splendid idea, and Mr. Hudson, with his long experience of training both school and adult choirs, should be the ideal man for the good work.

Tho next municipal organ recital .will be given on Saturday evening, September 10. The organist for this recital will be Mr. Trevor Sparling. Mr. Sparling is arranging a vecy attractive programme and will play amongst other numbers Guilmant's great Symphony in D Minor, Grieg's first "Peer Gynt" Suite, including "Morning," "The Death of Ase," "Anitra's Dance," and "In the Hall of the Mountain King"; and Cesar Franck's "Chorale No. 3 in A Minor." It is pleasing to note that the attendances at these • recitals are steadily improving. A programme including such works as mentioned above should help to create still* more interest in these municipal recitals of music.

An attractive programme has been arranged for the recital to be given next Thursday evening by Miss Theo Halpin and Mr. Robert Simmers. Miss Halpin will include m her pianoforte numbers Brahms' (Edward) Ballade in D minor, Debussy's "Poissons d'or," and Chopin's Scherzo in C sharp minor. Amongst Mr. Simmer's vocal selections will be two songs by Coleridge-Taylor, Tschaikowsky's "To the Forest," and "Star Vicino," by Salvator Rosa. The assisting artist, Mr. Haydn Murray, violinist, will play, with Miss Halpin, the beautiful Brahms sonata in A major, for violin and piano. In addition, Mr. Murray will play "Les Adieux," by Sarasate.

Judging from the. eulogies bestowed upon Szigeti's playing by the critics in Australia, we are to have a rare musical treat when the great Hungarian violinist visits these shores in October. Unlike some other visiting celebrities, Szigeti comes to us at the zenith of his artistic powers. So great is the enthusiasm over his playing that one Sydney critic feels constrained to offer a warning. He says: "At present, carried away by enthusiasm for the visitor, music-lovers are inclined to compare Szigeti with Kreisler, sometimes to Kreisler's disadvantage. But the two violinists cannot be compared. They are twin peaks, which stand out above all the rest, each having its peculiar majesty."

The following programme will be presented at the Auckland Chamber Music Society's third concert on September 12: Andante and Menuetto from Quartet Op. 29 (Schubert); Sonata, violin and piano, D Major, Op. 108 (Brahms); Quartet Op. 15 (Dohnanyi); Larghetto (Handel); and Caiizonetta, from Mendelssohn's E Plat Major Quartet. The. players in the Brahms violin sonata will be Mr. Vincent Aspey, violin, and Miss Jean Clarkson, piano. The members of the quartet will be Mr. Vincent Aspey, first violin; Miss Helen Gray, second violin; Mr. Henry Engel, viola; and Miss Jean Clarkson, 'cello. This concert will mark the first performance of this quartet of Dohnahyi's in Auckland. The composer was born at Preseburg, Hungary, in 1877, and is famous as a pianist and a composer. His father was a good 'cellist, and Ernst von Dohnanyi, after various studies, decided to adopt a musical career. The voting student was at first a devotee of but has since become an ardent worshipper of Brahms.

Mr. Harry Stringer, New Zealand manager for J. C. Williamson, Ltd., advises that the new Grand Opera Company will open its New Zealand tour in Auckland on Wednesday, September 28. Fifteen grand operas will be presented, comprising "II Trovatore," "La Traviata," "Rigoletto," "Un Ballo de Maschera," "La Bohcme," "Madame Butterfly," "La Tosca," "Cavalleria Kusticana," "I Pagliacci," "Carmen," "Faust," "Lucia di Lammermoor," "The Barber of Seville," "Andrea Chenier" and "Tales of Hoffman." The tour will probably be confined to. the four centres.

The piano used by M. Paul Vinogradoff at his recent recitals in the concert chamber was hardly worthy of an artist of his standing in the world of music, several of the higher notes in the treble being noticeably off-pitch. Now that visiting pianists appear to have given up the usual practice of bringing their own instruments, and rely instead upon what can be supplied locally, it is high time that Auckland possessed a really high-class concert grand, fit to be played upon by a good artist.