MALE VOICE CHOIR

Press, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 26441, 7 June 1951, Page 3

MALE VOICE CHOIR

PLEASANT SINGING The reputation which the Christchurch Male Voice Choir enjoys stands so high that even a very raw night did not prevent a large audience from gathering to enjoy the choir’s concert last evening in the Radiant Theatre. The programme promised much pleasant music both by the choir and by soloists. Mr Len Barnes conducted the choir with an absence of fuss and histrionics, and the choir showed by its unhurried steadiness how well Mr Barnes could depend on the long training that lay behind last night's performance. The first half of the concert was broadcast, and must have given enjoyment to many listeners beyond the hall. In the part songs, the choir did particularly well. The entries were crisp, the intonation true, and the blend of the voices was all that could be desired.

The choir is well served by its tenors, a section generally weak in many choirs, but of sufficient robustness in this one to allow for a good balance.

A composition bv Thomas Weelkes, arranged by Dr. Fellowes, gave particular pleasure both jn its music and in its performance. Franz Abt’s “Evening” was especially well sung, and had a fine solo part which Mr Leslie Denia took very effectively. Dunhill’s arrangement of “The Lincolnshire Poacher’’ suffered on occasion from the uncertainty of the second basses, for whom this was, however, merely a temporary lapse. The rough doings of "Sir Eglamore,” an arrangement by Gardiner from an old ballad, were echoed by the choir in its rather rough tone and in some ragged entries. Again, this was a solitary lapse which was compensated for bv Elgar’s “Inside the Bar”—not what one might have expected, but a sailor’s song. The choir was augmented for two songs by women members of the Philharmonic Club whose voices blended very well with the tenors and basses —so well, indeed, that Calcott’s “Queen of the Valley” was probably the most appealing song of the evening. Good control of tonal shading was achieved throughout the programme, noticeably in such songs as Edmonds’s “Triolet,’" a witty trifle, and Williams’s “Lullaby.” Mr Ernest Rogers, a member of the choir, sang as solos Elgar’s “Song of Autumn" and “Poet’s Life” with a thorough appreciation of the requirements of the music.

The guest artist was Miss Heather Smith, a soprano who was accompanied on the piano by Mrs W. E. Olds. Her- singing of works by Hamilton Harty, Maurice Besley, and Roger Quilter showed much sensibility. The choir and its conductor can be proud to have presented such a satisfying programme of well-sung music. Much of the credit must also go to Miss May Jackson, the accompanist, whose playing sustained the vocal parts with good effect. —H.S.K.K.