THE HARMONIC SOCIETY'S CONCERT.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 47, 22 September 1880, Page 2

THE HARMONIC SOCIETY'S CONCERT.

On Saturday evening - the Harmonic Society's quarterly concert took place. A large audience assembled to hear the new cantata, by Macfarren, " The Lady of the Lake," a piece of music which is quite new, and has not been publicly rendered in the colonies before. As the name indica'M>s, the cantata is an adaptation of Sir Walter Scott's great poem, and the name of the composer is a sufficient guarantee for its being of the highest class of iausic. It was composed specially for the Glasgow Choral Union, in 1878, and rendered by that society at the opening of the new Music Hall. It was clearly shown on Saturday evening that, although the society possesses severol good voices, and could do considerable justice to the solos, it was weak in chorus. The parts, however, were well balanced, the alto alone being slightly deficient ; but on the whole the performance was decidedly a success. The characters pourtrayed were : — Helen, the Lady of the Lake (soprano); Blanche of Devan (soprano), Malcolm Gitieme (contralto), Fitz James (tenor), Roderick Dhu (baritone), Douglas (bass), John, of Brent (bass). Pamphlets, containing the full libretto, were distributed, so that the audience could follow the throughout. Helen and EitzJames story < had the most of the work in solo-singing assigned them, and the part of the former was exceedingly well sustained. The latfcer's part would have been more effective with a more powerful tenor ; but as it was his scoj:e was rendered correctly. The young lady who had the difficult part of the mad girl, Blanche, got most successfully through it: her singing of the plaintive ravings of the poor witless creature being highly charming and expressive. Malcolm Graeme made the yery most of a light contralto voice, and rendered very pleasingly " The Lay of ihe Imprisoned Huntsman." The part &f the fierce Highland chieftain, Roderick Dhu, was in good hands, and although the personator sang once or twice slightly out of tune, on the whole his part was carried out very comraendably. Douglas, and John of Brent, had not much to do, but did what was put down for them tastefully and well. The last named adopted a gesticulative style which seemed |Jo be appreciated. The lady who presided

at the piano deserv.es great praise for the" efficiency of her accompaniment,- which* with the limited orchestra, tended, materially to the success of the concert. The conductor must also be complimented for his perserverance in the endeavor to do justice to the piece. '