A NEW ZEALAND CONTRALTO.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19333, 20 November 1924, Page 8

A NEW ZEALAND CONTRALTO.

MISS JOAN MUIEELLA. FIRST LONDON APPEARANCE. (From Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON, October 9. Miss E. Muriel Allen, of Auckland, arrived in London in the middle of 1921, and studied singing in Paris for a few months. Then she returned to London and came under the tuition of Madams Benda. For four years Miss Allen (who has adopted the professional name of Joan Muirella) has been studying assiduously with this teacher, and has never been heard in public. A certain reputation had leaked out, however, and it was with considerable interest that many of her New Zealand friends < waited for her first notes when she appeared in her first recital at Wigmore Hall last night. To appear at Wigmore Hall, of course, means subjecting oneself to the London critics, who are proverbially harsh men. This is only natural, for a word of praise means so much in London. The standard is high, and the young musician must prove herself well up to that standard if she is not to be firmly pushed back to the obscurity from which she emerged. Although only one report of the recital has yet appeared in the London papers, it is probably safe to sav that Miss Muirella will pass the test, though not without some severe admonition from the unbending critics. For an initial performance the audience was a large one, and, in addition, it was an intelligent one. Appreciation was shown of the artistic taste which had been displayed in the selection of the programme, and the audience indicated by applause exactly where Miss Muirella excelled. It must be admitted the programme was an unusual one. There had been a restraining hand somewhere. It was selected to show the singer's versatility, but no attempt had been made to pander to any uncultivated tendencies of the audience. A well-known and difficult selection might have been chosen to strain the singer’s abilities. No such risk was taken, however. All the songs were well within th© vocalist’s powers, though i-ome were obviously difficult, even for a more experienced concert artist. Miss Muirella’s stage presence is decidedly good, and she is perfectly free from all mannerisms which distract the attention from her singing. She is dramatic, and her facial expressions bear out artistically trie meaning of her songs. Her enunciation is admirable and not a word is lost, though some of the intentional pronunciation of her words may meet with critic’sm from those holding a .different opinion. The final consonant sounds are never slurred or ignored. Her French leaves something jet to bo desired, but her German, according to those who were capable of judging last night, was excellent. Madame Benda, her instructor, is familiar with this language, and obviously Miss Muirella has had the full benefit of her instruction. Indeed, it was agreed by (many who discussed the concert at the back of the stage afterwards that the singer was at her very best in her German selections.

Although it is the approval op otherwise of the London critics that will .count, one may' be allowed to express a jjfersonal appreciation of Miss Muirella’s very fine voice. One must admit that if it is a contralto it is only just a contralto. Restraint was in all her wjork, and one was impressed with the remarkable reserve she possessed. On the rare occasions when she gave hep audience the full benefit of .her power they were obviously pleased wth the richness and strength her voice possessed. On two occasions the final high notes were a trifle displeasing, but she has a very remarkable range nevertheless. It was a lengthy programme but the voice seemed to have just as good a quality in the final songs as in the initial ones. Miss Muirella began by singing “Lasciatemi Morire” (Monteverde), a brief Invocation to Death, and provided to demonstrate her versatility with the lighter, more joyous, piece, “Pur Dicesti’’ (Lotti). In "Sleepe,” an old English ballad, she gave the audience the first indication of the beauty of her deep, unrestrained notes. Again, in the straightforward German song, “Die Psyche Ladet die Wald-Vogelein zum Lobe Gottes ein” (Kopp), it was obvious that the audience considered that she waa at her best. “Rose chovie” (Gretry) gave her an opportunity of showing her remarkable range, and in “ Ornhee 1 riviens ’* (Haydn), Miss Muirella demonstrated her dramatic powers. The second part of the programme consisted of a group of modern English songs, every one showing up a different quality of her voice. These included: “E’en as a Lovey Flower’ (Frank Bridrre), “Take, O Take Those Lips Away” (Peter Warlock). “Windy Nights” (G. Viliiers Stanford), “Silent Moon” (R. Taughan Williams), and “Maruts” (G. Holst). “Windy Nights” greatly appealed to the audience, and in response to an encore it was sung a seconcf time. Then followed a selection of sisniodern French songs, and, finally, five Gorman songs. As already indicated, it was in the latter as a group that the singer made her best effort. At the conclusion insistent' encores brought her back to sing in German what in English is “My Green Hat.” At every interval Miss Muirella received many very beautiful bouquets, and afterwards her many friends went to the back of.the stage to congratulate her on what was undoubtedly a very successful debut. NEEDFUL TO BE OUTSPOKEN. The first of the notices appearing in London is iii The Daily Telegraph. “In writing of singers,” says the critic, “it is always needful to bo outspoken. So many voices have gone the way of all weak flesh for want of timely warning. Miss Joan Muirella. who sang at Wigmore Hall last night, held out such good promise that she invites frankness, especially on one point. It seemed that she waa laliouring under the yoke of the word ‘contralto.’ If only she could forget that designation and _ the responsibility it carries she would sing more freely and naturally. For, unforunately, the contraltotype carries with it a tradition—a bad tradition. It is inseparably associated with gloom and melancholy without end and without cause, and. worse, with exaggerated and perverted vowel-sounds. Miss Muirella broke with neither of these customs, and in the case >of the second she constantly was open to criticism. Her habit was to transform all the ‘oh’ sounds to ‘aw,’ the short ‘a’s’ to short ‘o’s’ (‘offlicting’ instead of ‘afflicting’), and to deprive the diphthong sounds of their ending (so that ‘thine’ became ‘tha-hn’). All this was the greater pity in that Miss Muirella has a full and resonant tone and a strong uplift in her voice, which, incidentally ,is nearer mezzosoprano than contralto. Mr Reginald Paul’s accompaniments were the finepointed things we always expect from him.’’