ROYAL MALE CHOIR

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23326, 19 October 1937, Page 10

ROYAL MALE CHOIR

SECOND RECITAL OF SEASON EXCELLENT STANDARD MAINTAINED Marked evidence of intensive rehearsal, as reflected in a uniformly high standard of part-singing, was given by the Royal Dunedin Male Choir in the second concert of its UM < season, which was presented before a large audience in His Majesty s Theatre last night. The extent to which Mr Alfred Walmsley has won the confidence of the singers during the short period in which ne has held the conductorship of this organisation—in itself a tribute not only to his zeal and enthusiasm, but also to his sound musicianly qualifications —has made possible the results that have been features of the first two recitals of the choir’s present season, namely, close and intelligent attention to his directions, a fine buoyancy of attack, excellent balance, and a notable spirit of unity between the various sections of t,he ensemble. Last night the choir displayed these admirable characteristics to a noteworthy degree.

The opening part-song, “Marching Along," by Bantock, was taken at a swinging oace, attack, balance, and cohesion alike being very good. The various parts were handled cleanly, and the general atmosphere of the work was bright and effective. An Island Shieling Song—To Myrrha, from “ Songs of the Hebrides, was sung with restraint, tone control and balance being admirable, while the final solo part for tenor was sung in a manner which brought out all the romantic feeling of the composition. Russian Collegiate Song,” arranged by Boris Levenson, was a lively Tittle number, which was given with good spirit, but the choir was more effective in s . ir Arthur Somervell’s “ Soldier, Rest, in which it achieved delightfully delicate shading without losing anything of the impressive character of the composition. Its tonal gradations were always well controlled, and the vocal balance was excellent. Vaughan Williams s arrangement of “ The Turtle Dove, a folk ballad of slightly mournful character. was also well handled, Mr R. Martmdale singing the solo Pa« capably. The most interestingchoral offering of the evening was Hegars -the Phantom Host,” a composition of a distinctly unusual and arresting type which demanded—and receded—skilful treatment. The stirring climaxes, the sudden discords graphicafly depicting the onset ox gnm tragedy, the effective changes of key and tempo as the narrative of the doomed army, trapped in the mountains in rtiidwinter, proceeds, made this a work which could well be heard again, for, as the audience was warned in a programme annotation, its construction is so full of character and force that only familiarity with it would reveal all its qualities. The choir’s work was exceptionally Despite the exacting nature of the composition, it attacked it with confidence and spirit, and succeeded admirably in capturing the atmosphere of realism that pervades the composition.

The second half of the programme was introduced by a vigorous and lulitoned presentation of “O Blow, Ye Horns,” the Grand March from Verdi s “Aida,” which was followed by a delightfully melodious part song, The Lark Now Leaves,” by Hatton, in which the tenor solo was artistically sung by Mr Aubrey H. Clarke. In response to insistent demands, this number was repeated. Emil Pessard s “Farewell at Morn” was sung with appropriate restraint and feeling, the tone control being excellent. “ Echo Song,” by Prendergast, was an entertaining little work, in which a highly realistic echo was provided from off stage by a quartet consisting of Messrs R. A. Mitchell, H. W. Armitage, G. S. Thomson and J. Paterson. This number was also repeated. The choral portion of the entertainment concluded with a spirited and richly-shaded presentation of Schumann’s “The Wanderer’s Song of Joy,” the choir infusing a notable degree of virility into its interpretation.

The principal vocal soloist of the evening was Miss Margaret Beattie, a newcomer to Dunedin concert platforms. Miss Beattie, who has a mezzo voice of excellent timbre' and range, sang with an easy and natural ityle that immediately won the approval of the audience, and also displayed a maturity of artistic development that should make her a welcome addition to the ranks of concert soloists in this city. In her first appearance on the platform she sang three of KennedyFraser’s Hebridean songs, “ Skye Fisher’s Song,”' “ Churning Lilt,” and “ Hebridean Sea-reiver’s Song.” Later in the evening she sang “Far Away Lies a Land,” from “Mignon,” by Thomas, with equal success, and also presented two encores. Mr Rowland Dunbar sang Schubert’s “By the Sea ’ with expression and restraint, and, as an encote, “ Drink to Me Only,” and Mr Stuart Falconer, the other choir soloist, presented “ Tally Ho,” by Leoni, in lively style, his encore, “ The Green Eyed Dragon,” being an amusing little number which he handled with marked success. Mr Ritchie Hanna, a young violinist of unusual promise, gave a skilful and artistic nerformance of de Beriot’s “ Scene de Ballet,” a composition the presentation of which disclosed no weaknesses in his technical or interpretative equipment. As a recall number he played Rimsky-Korsakov’s “ Chanson Hindoue.” In his second appearance on the stage Mr Hanna played Fred do Erlanger’s "Poeme,” a reflective and imaginative work, with sensitive expression, and Kreisler’s arrangement of Bach’s “ Gavotte,” his recall number being “Czardas.” The pianoforte accompaniments were artistically played by Mr Colin Oliver.