MR GALWAY’S RECITAL

Evening Star, Issue 17925, 22 March 1922, Page 7

MR GALWAY’S RECITAL

Another of tho organ recitals at First Church, by means of which Mr Victor E. Galway contributes periodically to the refining and uplifting influences that operate in Dunedin, was given last night, and largely attended, the congregation, as is usual on these occasions, including quite a big number of young men and- women — a fact worth noting, since it answers the reproach that ouv junior citizens take no interest in pleasures apart from broad comedy. There is a peculiar charm about Mr Galway’s organ playing—not easy .to define in a phrase, but residing in his youngmannish ness, his eagerness, his power of enchaining attention, th»-. suggestion in his work that ho is expressing passing thoughts that come to him as lie explores Ills .subjects. However the position be stated, there, is the fact that he draws tho people, and that they stay to the finish. At this recital the hearers were much impressed with the delivery of the first movement from Guilmant’s ‘ Sonatain D minor.’ It is a varied and distinctively tuneful composition, triumphant and majestic and appealing by turn ; a work that an uninspired organist might easily distort to vulgarity and show, but which, as interpreted by Mr Galway, is perfectly delectable. Many present hope for the chance of hearing it again. The air varie by Hiles was another good thing, particularly as to the utterances of the flutes in the earlier passages. The accompaniment was very cleverly put in. Then came tho barcarole from the ‘ Pianoforte Concerto ’ by Sterndajc-Bennett. It served to prove what can be done by a master in plain and simple music. Learners could scarcely fail to profit by this illustration of how it pays to take pains with what may "at first glance seem to be , easy. Bach's ‘ Prelude and Fugue in A minor ’ was treated in a manner to help a general audience to get something like an idea about this monumental study. Mr Galway’s evident aim with all tho Bach pieces that he has presented is ’to get away from tho belittling notion that they are mainly convolutions in musical mathematics; he makes them interesting, and it is but fair to remark that lie was particularly successful in that respect last night with the prelude, its surging stressfuincss being finely expressed. .Somebody would be sure to protest if we referred to the ‘Rove Angelique ’ by Rubinstein as meretricious; but we may take a chance and call it sugary 7, for tho. sake of getting in tho justifiable remark that Mr Galway did not work that side of it. The ‘ Prelude and Angel’s Farewell ’ from Elgar’s ‘ Dream of Gerontius ’ was appreciated for ...its purity and its soliloquising and its dreami-ness-qualities that we get in passages of ‘Lohengrin.’ Next came ‘ln Springtime.’ by Hollins, suggestive of spring in its first awakening rather than in its later exuberance —an idea cleverly expressed in tho interpretation. As a wind-up, the ever-wekome introduction to the third act of ‘Lohengrin.’ Mr W. Gemraoll. tho vocal soloist of tlio occasion, sang ‘lt is Enough’ and ‘Lord Cod of Abraham,’ and- in these extracts from ‘ Elijah ’ let tho listeners get the fine weight and quality of his voice plus ideas that presumably comp from original study. Most of his singing was decidedly good. He hardly found tho possibilities -of that really great, though short, recitative to ‘ Lord God of Abraham ’; but we arc thinking of Santley, and the comparison is unfair.