VIENNA SINGING BOYS

Evening Post, Volume CXX, Issue 127, 25 November 1935, Page 5

VIENNA SINGING BOYS

HIGH VOCAL ACHIEVEMENT

With but little ado the Viennese Boys' Choir, at the Opera House on Saturday, sang its way into the nearts of the iarge audience at the first of its series of concerts. The house was crowded and was manifestly in a receptive and friendly mood. When the curtain rose it disclosed a choir of eighteen quite small boys .and their conductor and musical director, Herr Victor Gomboz. The boys were wearing the usual vestments of choir boys, cottas over black cassocks. Some stood on the stage, and others behind them j on a dais, ten on one side and eight on the other, the conductor at a pianoforte dividing them. The first number sung was entirely religious, and consisted or iour items, "Aye verum," by da Viadana (1569-1627), "Tenebrae iactae Sun.t" :.-.de Victoria (1540----1613), Psalm xxiii, by Franz Schubert, and "Qmnes de Saba Vienent," by Asula (1545-1611). These were all perfectly sung, and especially so was the affecting "Tenebrae." The boys sang in perfect tune, their gaze never for a moment leaving the conductor, who appeared to use them as some complete and beautiful instrument. Notwithstanding their familiarity with everything in their extensive repertoire, the boys sang with a freshness and spontaneity that at once gripped the interest and won the sympathy of their audience. The applause at the close of these religious items was almost aeaxening. iNOtwunsumding popuiar sentiment, children's voices in cnoruses are not invariably agreeable, but in this instance there was a purity of tone and clearness of diction tnat snowed the Vienna singing boys not only as possessing voices of ioveiy quality, but all perfectly trained. Each boy, too, seemed to be gifted with a clear insight into the significance of every piece sun,g and sang it with expression and understanding. By the time the curtain rose on the tabloid opera, "Versoehnung" (in English, "Reconciliation!'), the enthusiasm of the audience was aglow; after this little comedy in music—all from Mozart—it became incandescent. The boys had already shown that they could sing; they now proved that they, could act. The little opera was sung hi German, with which few in the large audience would be acquainted, but it was a matter for surprise how closely the performance was followed. The period of the opera was the latter half of the eighteenth century and the miniature artists wore costumes appropriate to the time, crinolines, powder, and patches, laced silk coats and breeches, stockings, and buckled shoes. The make-ups were artistic, the movements, groupings, and gestures were in keeping, and it was curious to watch the boys acting as ladies and making never a slip or movement to indicate that they were anything else. If the odour of sanctity attaching to English choir boys is sometimes associated with that of peppermint, there was nothing said or done by these Viennese children in their religious numbers that was unseraphic, and yet they entered con amore into the tun of the little opera, often displaying an acute sense of humour, and never at any tune saying or doing anything at variance the suggestions of elegance and grace characterising Mozart's operatic music. The dance of the minuet to "Don Juan" -was one of the loveliest items in the well-diversi-fied programme of the evening. Two wiegenlieder, or cradle songs, were sung, one by Mozart and the other by Brahms. Strauss's immortal "Blue Danube" waltz and his lesser known waltz, "Roses from the South " were received by the audience with great gusto. Other songs, all sung with telling effect on the audience, were a German dance song and "Hark, Hark, the Lark!" both by Schubert, a rapidly delivered Austrian folksong, "Madele, ruck, ruck, ruck" (arranged by Herr Gomboz); also in clear English, "The Last Rose of Summer." There was but a single solo. "Das Veilchen" (The Violet), by Mozart, sung with a naive charm and freshness that would be surprising and delightful had the singer been an experienced woman coloratura soprano. The British National Anthem was also sung by the boys in English. For the matter of extras Herr Gomboz and his choir were exceedingly generous. Incidentally, the high artistic quality of the concert was of great interest in showing what can be done with the childrrVs voices, given competent and sympathetic teachers. The stay of these talented boy singers in Wellington is necessarily short; the entertainment they offer is unioue of its kind therefore the opportunity of hearinth<*m shoiild on no account b*» "lisspd not only by adults but «"=o<»cMlv bchildren. A new and well-varied pro

gramme will be presented this and every evening. - This evening the performance will commence at 8 o'clock. Each programme will includeone of the delightful operas of Haydn, Mozart, and Schubert—all of whom were; in their youth, singers of the Viennese Boys' Choir. A complete, change of pror gramme will be given each evening. In response to the overwhelming number of requests, the Viennese waltzes will be a special feature, including the popular Blue Danube and Tales from the Vienna Woods. Only four more evenin r performances can be given with final matinees on Wednesday and Friday.