CHAUTAUQUA COMPANY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19239, 1 August 1924, Page 9

CHAUTAUQUA COMPANY.

A one night's entertainment was given last evening in the Burns Hall by the Chautauqua Company, which in this instance consisted of five instrumentalists, who apparently hail originally from Croatia. The quintet form something in the nature of a jazz band on a somewhat higher plane than is usually met with, and confine their attention to stringed instrument*, all of which are played with the hand. Even the player of the double bass does not use a bow. It was evident tnat the five performers are good musicians, particularly the player of the leading mandoline and the player of the double bass. That is no reflection on the intermediate men, but it means a good deal to have a sound, fundamental bass, and a capable player to take the air. The quintet covers a wide range of music, and lust evening played items extending from grand opera down to “Barney Google” and “Yes, We Have No Bananas,” and played them exceptionally well. There were a few items where the five stringed instruments were scarcely resonant enough to meet requirements. and the “Toreador’s Song,” from "Cannon,” was an instance of this. Otherwise (ho concert was a wonderfully good one, and was thoroughly enjoyable. That the party of players were successful in pleasing the fairly largo audience present was never" in doubt, and several repeat numbers wore insisted upon. It was announced that the next appearance of a Chautauqua Company would be on September 4th, and thereafter on October 2nd and 30th. The quintet opened with selections from Bizet’s “Carmen, several of the principal airs of which opera were very well rendered. This was followed by a merry little composition bordering closely on ragdime. The third item was an admixture of playing and singing, and of the two the playing was decidedly the preferable. The vocalisation was not of a particularly high standard. An operatic overture was exceedingly well played, and a song by one of the members of the combination was loudly applauded. “Humoresque” was one of the hast played pieces hoard, and in excerpts from Verdi’s “11 Tfovatorc” the party reached an even higher scale of excellence. The selection started with the “Anvil Chorus,” which was very well played, though there was a slight want of bodv which could not be countered. The Miserere (prison scene), in which the well-known duet is sung by Leonora and Ma..rico. was finely norformed. Leaving the higher platform of music (he quintet gave a moclloy, amongst the airs played being ‘The Red, White, and Blue,” and the old plantation song, “1 Wish I Was In The Land Of Cotton.” This selection was ‘tapered away to almost, nothing, anti closed with a few bars of “Yankee Doodle.” It is worthy of note that the quintet is particularly artistic in its treatment when introducing a docroscendo passage. Hie second part of tile programme was chiefly composed of light music. A very pleasing martial air was played with good effect, the double bass being prominent in the success A descriptive piece, “The Dawn oi Nature,” was rendered most attractively. The air itself was pretty, and was well played, and the general effect much enhanced by the imitation of birds, the sound of the sportsman’s gun, and the barking of the watchdog, etc. It was a very picturesque musical performance, and proved a prodigious favourite with the audience. An Oriental phantasy was well treated, and two of the quintet engaged in a vocal duet with a yodel to the manifest enjoyment of those present. A second medley, which included such familiar tunes as “Barney Google,” “Ma, He’s Making Eyes At Me,” and “Yes. We Have No Bananas,” found favour with the audience, a statement that certainly applies to every item given during tho whole of a pleasant evening.