Almeida Concert

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30998, 2 March 1966, Page 16

Almeida Concert

Sir, —Your critic’s review of the Laurindo Almeida concert on February 22 astounds me. The classical guitar is no longer a novelty here, and two fine artists (Antonio Losada and Andres Segovia) have already shown us how it can be played in the hands of a master. Your critic has, 1 know, heard at least one of these artists; surely he remembers that without the aid of a sound system they managed to fill a theatre with rich, full-bodied sounds: very unlike the pathetic tinkling we heard during the first item of Tuesday’s concert during which the sound system did not appear to be operating. However, on one point I agree with your critic: the Bossa Nova offerings were certainly banal; although it might have been mentioned that they were at least competently played, without the painfully obvious mistakes, missed notes, and rough tone which plagued the rest of the concert. —Yours, etc., PETER HASTINGS. Dunedin, February 25. [“C.F.B.” replies: “Mr Hastings is entitled to his opinion. I found Mr Almeida’s classical playing thoroughly charming, and I could not agree that he used a rough tone. The levels of tone used by Mr Almeida were different from those of the other two players he mentions, but that is purely a matter of the artist’s personal preference. His interpretations sounded quite convincing.”]