FINAL RECITAL BY MR PAUL SCHRAMM

Southland Times, Issue 23794, 17 April 1939, Page 5

FINAL RECITAL BY MR PAUL SCHRAMM

PROGRAMME OF GREAT MUSICAL INTEREST

Concluding his series of outstanding piano recitals in the Victoria Hall, Mr Paul Schramm gave a programme of great musical interest on Saturday night. Although' still small, the size of the audience was a considerable improvement on the poor attendance at the first recital. The programme was well chosen and was typical of the effort of the pianist to present as much unfamiliar music as possible without disapppointing entirely those who prefer to hear numbers with which they are familiar. Major works by Bach, Beethoven and Chopin were featured, with a good measure of modern music. Mr Schramm succeeded again in delighting the audience with his satisfying interpretations and he appeared equally at ease in the great Organ Toccata in C Major with its impressive introduction and mighty fugue as with works of the impressionist school. There might have been some cavilling at the inclusion of the rather hackneyed “Moonlight” sonata by Beethoven, but the work has seldom been heard in Invercargill with such grace as was given to it by Mr Schramm. In a varied programme he again revealed that he is not an artist with limitations in taste or performing skill to any particular school of music and the pleasure given by his recitals encourages the hope that he will make further visits to Invercargill. The programme was as follows: Organ Toccata in C Major (Bach-Busoni); “Moonlight” Sonata (Beethoven); Fantasia in F Minor (Chopin); “Spanish Dance” (Granados); “Dance of Terror” and "Sacred Dance of the Fire” (de Falla); Fantasia on Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” (Liszt); “Pavane pour une Infanta Defunte” (Ravel); Bolera (Chopin); “Sleepy Piano” (Maeyerl).