TOWN HALL.

NZ Truth, Issue 174, 17 October 1908, Page 6

TOWN HALL.

Mark Hambourg Recitals.

The visit of Mark Hambourg, the celebrated pianist, who is to inaugurate his brief season of three recitals at the Town Hall next Tuesday night, is exciting great interest m musical circles. He made his first appearance at the Bth subscription concert of the Vienna Philharmonic Society on March 3, 1895, and the reception he met with was most enthusiastic. After this he was engaged with a company of well-known vocalists to tour Australia, and soon became the centre pi attraction, being further engaged, at the conclusion of the season, for a two months' special recital tour. This became the foundation of his exceptional career m Austru.ia, which has not yet Yfeen outrivalled by any other pianist. Wherever Mark Hambourg has played the leading critics have been unanimous m acknowledging three prominent qualities — his tremendous temperament, his wonderful poetical feeling, and his electrical technique, united to a strong and original personality which can hold a large audience spellbound for hours. As an English subject, and as an artist, he considers it his duty to further the interests of native „. composers, and two years ago he instituted a competition for pianoforte music; playing the successful works both at home and a*

broad. 'It is eleven years since Mark Hambourg embarked on the difficult career of a pianoforte virtuoso ; diur ing this time he has played all the best that is m pianoforte literature, has travelled round the world twice, has heard the . enthusiastic applause- of hundreds of thousands of people, has met the greatest represensatives of many nations, and has not yet lost any of the modesty which invariafei ly characterises real genius.