ORGAN RECITAL

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 29, 29 October 1917, Page 8

ORGAN RECITAL

THEIR PJACT3 IN THE ENTERTAINMENT SCHEME. (By "Sylvius.") Tho Saturday organ recitals by the city organist"" (Mr. Bernard P. Page] wore resumed on Saturday evening Before a spar™ but appreciative audience. After November the evening of the week for these recitals is to be changed, owing to tho City Council having requisitioned the big hall for the enter tainment of the soldier? in some form or other yet to be decided. Saturday evening is very easily the best night lot entertainments in Wellington from a business-point of view (a fact that has always been recognised by the City Council, which charges £H more rent for that ovening than for any other evening in the week). The ohange. therefore, is hardly likely to increase the attendances at organ recitals. An infusion of. vocal or instrumental talent, other than the organ, might have the desired effect, but even that innovation is not likely to pa.v, should such entertainmenU be clinarged up in the. ordinary way with rent, fees, advertising, etc., as concerts of the patriotic order-some of them very excellent—are of frequent occurrence Mr. Barnett has introduced vocalism into his recitals at Auckland for a long time past, but the monetary results have not been as satisfactory ae was anticipated. To make organ recitals a success you must catch the public in a humour for them, and the plain simple truth is that the public is nol in the humour for them. The very lightest forms of entertainment have been found .to he the class that has appealed to the ,people-tho British peo-ple-since the war broke out, and students of psychology-as all theatrical managers are-will say .without the _ slightest hesitation that thepeople are in need of 'such montal reactions as an alien* tion to the tragedy in everyone« innermost heart, and which stares at everyone from every newspaper in the country. Organ recitals may be very beautiful in their way, but thmr atmosphere tends to depress ralher than to enliver. or cheer. Tftey we artistically interesting as is a. museum; a precious posses, "ion the loss of which a 1 ™u'd but that very few are sincerely interest cd in. 'Tis sad, hut true! A few weeks ago the Mayor a ■ nonnced that a committee was to con?,?lwtth Mr Page with a view to popula'sinf organ recitak. Personally I cannot* clearly see how * * £ be done without sarificing ..the purely art* th°e taW the public of fo-fay runs t, raetimo and "Broken Dolls, anrt succ ifinconVtible with the inviolaU traditions of organ recitals. lo maw ny point clear "f Mr. Page were to pl<o ome madly rhythmical rag, sway to ,b lilt and make comvs grimaces into ai inlawed mirror above his head all Wellington would rush to see the owelty, andthe council wou d com ™"<*- ( On Saturday ovening the programmi presented by Mr. Page included MenSeffil "Concert Overture in K which has the more poetical title i The Le"end of the Lovely Melusine, i that throbs with passiona ™?Kw and orchestrally one of the Cst rf Mendelssohn's concert overtures i Mr Page introduced also the beautiful i ill. i ■w 1 - , ««m, A Tj reiim "\ froir ' M Hiil?, ra ™Str J Qnirfte" in G Min'o?" a creation of rare merit by.th. : KewZeahind composer, written snice ! L has been resident in Sydney. . .Mr > Town Hall on Saturday week.