LYDIA LIPKOVSKA

Evening Star, Issue 18513, 21 December 1923, Page 4

LYDIA LIPKOVSKA

Counting in the encores, Madame Lipkovska sang seventeen songs at her final concert of the Dunedin season, given in THs Majesty’s Theatre last night, and if the audience had had its way the number would have been increased indefinitely, for this distinguished singer never wearies the listener.*, and during her appearances in this city she has never shown tho least sign of wearying herself and singing formally. A point about her performances is that she is consistently mui invariably eager and thoroughly interested in what she is doing. That is her duty to art and her compliment to the audience. The subjects chosen last night covered a wide range, from tho simple ballad 1 Long Ago,’ which our forefathers delighted in, to the jewel song from Gounod’s ‘Faust,’ and embracing such exacting songs us Leoncavallo's ‘ Serenade a Pierrot,’ Chopin’s intensive meditation cm hied ' Sadness,’ and the brilliant valso from ' Coppelia,’ which may he regarded ns tho triumph of the concert in the way < i brilliant execution. ‘ Solveig’s Song ' wan another groat feature of the programme. As for the jewel song, .Madame Lipko'-’ska adopted a highly commendable plan of interpretation—opening with a girlish burst of,delight and wonder, then dropping into reverie, and winding up with a display of voice power. This is infinitely preferable to tfxe scheme that many sopranos havo of treating (he whole song as a means of showing off the voice et strength. M. Alexander Svcrjeneky also fully sustained his reputation. His accompanying work waa admirable, fitting in exactly with the singer, and his solos on Do vinno were highly instructive. Judging ey the volume of applause, the ‘ Rigolotto ’ paraphrase was his greatest performance of the evening, and, indeed, it was clever, particularly so in that be rave the scraps of Verdi a chance to bo hoard amidst the embellishments of Liszt; but this skilful performance did not cause the audience to forget M. Sverjenskv’s very artistic interpretation of the elegy by Rachmaninoff, which in the opinion of fime of tho hearers was his outstanding success.