"KING OLAF"

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 127, 26 November 1923, Page 2

"KING OLAF"

ROYAL CHORAL UNION'S THIRD

CONCERT

The Royal 'Wellington Choral Union, under the directorship of Mr. H Temple White and with the assistance ,of Miss Ethel Osborn, soprano (Brisbane), <?■ Hubert Carter tenor (Palmerston North), and Mr. 'William Watters, base (recently of Oamara but now of Palmerston North), had the very considerable satisfaction of presenting its third concert of the. 1923 B esaO n before a very large audience at the Town Hall on Saturday night. Indeed there is much satisfaction in so large an audience to performers and director alike, since proof is thereby given of the pleasure given the public by earlier performances. r

Elgars 'King Olaf," the words by Longfellow and H. A. Acworth, was the fine musical tale chosen I for the telling on Saturday night, and a wonderfully refreshing tale it was both in music-story and music-treatment. Olaf, a Norwegian king (A.D. 995-1050), after passing some years in England at the court of Ethelred the Unready, returned to Norway, after Canute had taken possession of England, and set about converting the Norraway heathen to Christianity. Olaf's methods of conversion, however, were : harsh and anything but Christianlike, for force was his mainly ln pointing out to the worshippers of Thor and Odin the error and stupidity of their allegiance to the gods of war and thunder. The heathen objected, and though Olaf met with some success and sowed good seed, the forces rose against him, and he was killed in battle, A.D. 1030. Elgar composed the music for the North Staffordshire Musical Festival, and directed the first performance at Hanley in October, 1906, and to "Kinpr Olaf" owes much of his great popularity to-day. His treatment of the grand old tales follows upon the lines of the ancient Norse gatherings of scalds or bards, whereat the chief bard called the tale and all took part in turn. The music is essentially vigorous and ragged, with, of course, those softer passages wherein the mood changes to meditation or contemplation upon the future of. King Olaf's praiseworthy, though sadly harsh and primitive, methods of achieving a noble aim. Words and music alike are very beautiful, but by the very nature of the music-story "King Olaf calls for vigorous—perhaps "rugged" better conveys the meaning—treatment, and unfortunately such was the lack of balance between the male and female Voices that the finest effects of such numbers as "The Challenge of Thor" and "The Death of Olaf " were not obtainable by Mr. Temple White. The difficulty of obtaining a balance between the treble and deeper voices in Wellington choirs and musical societies has been more than a few times remarked upon, and undoubtedly a task is set conductors to remedy that lack. Numerically . the sopranos overwhelmed the basses and part singing often lost much of its charm, though the unaccompanied chorus, "As Torrents-in Summer," wherein the voices were subdued., was delightful indeed. The above remarks are not to say that the chorus work'was always disappointing, but rather to suggest that the Choral Union's work would be yet more enjoyable were a nicer balance brought about in vigorous numbers as well as in the more restrained passages. The lack pf :balance..in the voices. was marked in Bach's grand motet for double choir (unaccompanied), "Sing Ye to the Lord," which preceded the singing- of. "Kin" .Olof," for mass articulation was not good nor were the passages: initiated by the sopranos and carried on in repetitive fashion by the male voices as distinctly rendered as might have been wished for.

The work of the soloists was most enjoyable and a great burst of applause fell to Miss Osborn and Mr. Carter after their telling of the. tale of the dialogue between Olaf and Thyri, the bride-to-be, wherein the king promises a war upon the despoilers of Thyri's land. Misb Osborn, the audience must surely have regretted, had but few numbers in the first section of the scena, but in the second section she gave of her best, and was warmly welcomed v each time she rose to, tell her share of the saga. Mr. Wattera, as chief bard and also as the teller of the tale of Ironbeard's definance of Olaf, lent dignity and power to the music-dialogue and the" atmosphere of the gathering of the bards.

Throughout the orchestration was very fine indeed, notably so in "The Challenge of Thor," "King Olaf's Return," "As Leap the Lights of Winter," and the final solo.arid chorus, wherein fine and very beautiful effect ..was obtained, which effectiveness was added to by organ music by Mr. C. Howe.

The Royal "Wellington Choral Union will present "The Messiah" at the Town Hall on Saturday, December, and for that performance an invitation has been extended to the Taranaki societies to visit Wellington as the guests of the union. The soloists for "The Messiah" will be Miss Ethel Osbbrn (soprano), Miss Mina Caldow (contralto), Mr. Sydney Butler (tenor), and Mr. Len Barnes (baritone). ,