THE CONCERT.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 22, 26 June 1880, Page 2

THE CONCERT.

A well-fill d hall greeted our local ludy and gentlemen amateurs- ,on the occasion of their first concert this, season, which was given at the Town Ififil on "Wednesday evening. Most of the "audience were rather agreeably surprised at the general excellence of the entertainment. Those who went there with the expectation of finding everything on a par with such places as London and Liverpool, Melbourne and Sydney, New York and San Francisco, Dunedin and Wellington, were of course disappointed; but when such persons come to small inter-colonial up-country towns, expecting gr at things, they had better not venture to such entertainments as that provided on Wednesnight, because their sensitive nerves will have a greater strain put upon them than they can possibly bear. We can, however, say this, for our own part, that we have been present at entertainments of much lesser merit in far larger towns than Hawera is at present, or is' likely to be for some time to come. So much by way of introduction (which musicians affirm should always precede everything - done in honor of the " sphere-descended maid.") The concert opened with an introduction by the band, the number of instruments being too small as yet to admit of anything like criticism, but still the music was creditably rendered, and the applause was well deserved. The opening chorus, of " Hail, smiling morn," which over twent3 r ladies and gentlemen took part, did not come up to expectation, but tlien it must be remembered that it was their first public appearance, and they had been only together at a few private rehearsals ; in fact, they only met, for the first time, about a fortnight ago. The gentleman who essayed to sing " The mariner " was not happy in his choice of a song, which did not at all suit his voice, or else he requires to practice it considerably more. "To all you ladies now on land" was set down on the programme as a trio, but the conductor wisely changed . it to a quintette, and it went off pretty well. The duet of " Peace to thy spirit," by two ladies (sisters, we believe) ', which followed, was very sweetly rendered, and would have been a treat were it not for the apparent nervousness of the lady with the soprano voice; from the rich contralto we expect much better things, if the lady will attend the rehearsals and come before the public a little oftener. " True till death," in the first part of the entertainment, and the "Blue Alsatian mountains," in the second, were rendered in a voice clear as a bell, and with such a clear intonation as to make it a pleasure to be one of the audience. If the possessor of that rich voice will throw a little more spirit into his singing, it wilt soon be a treat to listen to him. A The young lady who played the accompaniments to botli songs acquitted herself well. The ballad of •' The blind girl to her harp" was rendered by a lady with a wellcultivated voice, but she, tdo, was so nervous at the 'commencement as to almost completely "spoil the song. Towards the close, however, she was not so much afraid of the audience, and improved cousiderably in consequence. Then came the gem of the evening, in the shape of a duet on the piano by two ladies, who must have been either 'highly trained, or else have had considerable practice together. Such a performance was quite unexpected by the audience, who vociferously demanded an encore, and it was responded to. The stamping of feet, which some persons thought it necessary to do, marred the effects to a certain extent, and it is to be hoped that such a bad practice will neither be cultivated nor tolerated at future performances. We trust to see those two ladies at the piano " many a time and oft," and in this wish we -feel certain the majority of the audience who had the pleasure of listening to them| will concur. " Lordly gallants," by three gentlemen, was not a success ; and the duet of " Larboard watch" (substituted for the solo, " Good-bye, sweetheart, good-bye") would have been much better rendered if one of the gentlemen had been entrusted with the whole of that fine old song.- It was by far too much beyond the compass of the other gentleman. The first part of the entertainment concluded with the chorus and trio, " Glorious Apollo," which was very well sung, and was a decided improvement on the opening chorus. In the second part the pathetic song " When other lips and other hearts," from the " Bohemian Girl," followed the overture of the band; but the gentleman who essayed to sing it was not in good voice, or the song was too much for him ; at all events, the sweet ballad did not please as much as it invariably does. The chorus of " See our oars with feathered spray" was capitally rendered, and proved that if our amateiu's will only practice together something good may be expected, in the shape of concerted pieces, before" long. The "tall gent/from the Mount," as' : he is sometimes designated Tiy a namesake of the ex-Colonial Secretary, was quite at home in the recitation allotted to him. His audience laughed the whole time, and at the conclusion vociferously demanded an encore ; but the second piece was not so successful, because very few understood what it was all about. The recitation, which was given afterwards by another gentleman, was too long, and being a comic version of the oft-told stoiy about our youthful friends and bosom companions, " The babes in the wood," (lid- not go down with the audience as ■well as comic pieces generaLiy do. There are some things people object to see parodied, and the " Babes in the wood" is one of them. " Here's a health to all good lasses," by three male voices, w s certainly not a musical success, but, strange to say, the audience so boisterously encored that a repetition had to be given. The ways of musical audiences, like that of Bret Harte's "heathen Chinee," are sometimes mysterious, and we can only account for " Here's a health to all good lasses" being encored by the "supposition that they were pleased and delighted at the generous and hearty manner in which they were invited to "fill a bumper." The solos, " Home they brought her warrior dead," " Scenes that are brightest," and " Eeconciliation," ,were nicely sung, albeit the nervousness of the singers efcill interfered to some ex-

teat.' Tbe chorus of " Desolafe in Tfier dwelling of Morna" was nmch enjoy d. It is a pretty piece . of "music, and its niceties were not hacked, about, as is too often the case. " God save tbe Queen" brought the entertainment to ' a close. Towards the finish, Mr. Partridge, pn--behalf of the committee of the Institute) of which he is president, came forward* .-. and thanked the audience for their attendance, and the ladies and gentlemen who had so kindly come forward to give their ' "services. Great credit is due to Mr. Dixon, who "coached" the performers,— and ably conducted during the evening. " He is a very great acquisition to Hawera. Mr. Charles, another new arrival in the district, presided at 'the piano the greater portion of the evening, and, except in two or three instances, he followed the singers, instead of leading them, as is not infre- v - quently the fault of some accompanists,, who stick so close' to the music that thejr " bewilder the singers, who do not &s&rule happen to be so highly cultivated in the musical art. The Town Hall is well, suited to such entertainments, but it badly wants lining, and the ceiling over the stage wants attending to. At present it is enough to drown a weak voice,' and persons who might be heard to advantage in a parlor or drawing-room wjll.-.find it an entirely different matter tossing .on the . stage of the Town Hall. Asmall_expeiifditure will only 1 be'reqtnfed; arid^we m-fist' the directors will immediately " put their house in order." They should take every opportunity of encouraging entertain ments similar to that of Wednesday evening.