BESSES O'TH' BARN BAND.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 13431, 23 March 1907, Page 2

BESSES O'TH' BARN BAND.

A MUSICAL TREAT. A . , The visit .of , the Besses o' th', Barn Band to New Plymouth on Friday aroused a. great deal of pleasurable excitement, and, despite the adverse climatic conditions, prevailing, a large number of .citizens congregated ,jn the>#jycinity« pf the Railway Station to welcome tfaani ,on"tlieir arrival from Hawera,,by.ifche oaail tra^in. ,The Garrison "tof> r .with, t commendable Prajseworthiness, were' jit' the Railway Sta^iSn *to receive tjiis world-famed hand, and marched them in procession to 4,be. 4'heatre ■ Royal to the tune of "Moun^EgAiont,*' which was rendered

by ihtrlot&l musicians- with more than ordinary warmth. The Besses o' th' Barn Band are holders of t<he National Gliallenj*e\^roj>;hy of Great Britain and coloYiiesV ahjd; by, a, general consensus of opinion — British, American, and Con-tinental-r-^re a,nd witihpnt doubt, are,, the, finest brass band ia the; world.: T , „. , C , . , At the Theatre Royal the band faced a targe and particularly- enthusiastic audience, who ' never. 1 before have had, perhaps, the - pleasure of . listening to such a programme of band music, every item of which was brilliantly rendered and heartily Applauded. There was a ' wonderful unanimity in the playing, and such a, depth- of tone ana perfection of balance, tl|e crescendo .and diminuendo 'movements being perfect. One has frequently henrd ; . of; the 'playing of the band crea£mg>the impression that the effect resembles a sweet-toned -organ rather, than a.bjfass'band, and this opinion' wa<? re-echoed after Friday night's experience. ,Even in ,the, loud, passages the element o£. "Kfassiness" one generally noticSßst/.wasijentirelyvabaent. The presence of j>Mr> Alexander Owen, the world-fanfo'd icdmposex, . and; conductor of the baiid, added considerably to the attractiveness of the concert. The proprrammn woo aflmfyahly, chqpftn. i .and WaS of a varied character, a plentiful number of solos being included, in which individual "players were heard to great advantage. Rimmer's "Cossack'" demonstrated '.the, extraordinary power of the band in all its parts, as well as its exquisite 4 ftnfsK |r and '.bea>ut£. v The audience ' jtisisted on 'an encdr'ej and the bartd responded with % J f Salutation." The overture "£ampa" (Her r dld) wasrgreeted with a perfect ovation^ the band replying with tfie beautiful hymn ."Lead, Kindly Light," which delighted the audience! A specially noticeable, feature of the concert was a beautif hi "c'drnet- solo,' played by Mr T. G. Moore, whoso, ability reached a climax in the wonderful triple-tongueing; and at the conclusion of the solo the cry" went up from several parts of the house — "Play^ttr'ffgain^ play it again." Mr Moore" obliged with a * pretty cornet polka, "Triplets." The selection, Welier*rf- concluded the first part of thn programme. F«r.t 11. opened w^th a .vaJtz, "EstudigJitina," a composition Wy^Waldt'eufel," which again served to display' *J}'e 'great range of the band',~a«d' > fes alf encftre- the intermezzo "Cavalleria Rusticana" (Mas-

cagni) was given. "The .Earl and the Girl" was a fascinating selection, and then followed perhaps the gem of the evening, the "Marseillaise."^ The audience listened to the rendering spell1 bound, and at its conclusion burst forth in.to wildest^ enthusiasm/" Mr Wj LawsTpii/ \i ; 'as greeted with prolonged applaus^f for his ;tfotahone solcf, Gounod's Me Your £53," and the band respbfcded with a further rendering of %f Jjpaud) . Kindly Light," this time to Sandbn's' setting,which again, delighted the hearers. The last item was a fantasia, "Memories of Britain," which supplied a good opportunity for appeal-) ing to pleasant memories, several wellknfcwn airs being introduced, and a capital imitation of the bagpipes. : Euf&bnium and tenor' hdrn solos were also given, such- as only members of this band- can render them. As we have al-' ready stated, the instruments all ap.pear. to in- tune, and the sop'rUno corners clear. Thh drums play an 'imp^tafi't part in tlie^ene'raf effect; but are'hever obtrusive;' as is often the case. At the close I cheers Avere given for the band. The New Plymouth season closes tonight, when we have ncrfc-fhe least doubt anticipations of another 'large house At the close of the concert' the members of the band were entertained to stfppr.r by the Garrison Band at the D/ill Hall, Colonel Ofeey, presided, and At ■ the ouWt Bandmaster McConnell welcomed the visitors, hoping that they would enjoy their stay in New Plymouth, -and mentioning., that, the (*ar-T-isoii B^d 51 fntendfcd having thifeir photoeruphs' taken arid this they would forward on to the; Besses. The party then partook of the-Bitppor,' and ai£er..^ards.Ofcnel QTt|\nja|e afevr rerawka regri*tting the shorjb stay Mr*he.band. The local bandsmen would havehacF great pleasure "fh taking their visitors on a trip to the mountain and other • local f spots of interest., fje referred m high eulogy to the playjng.of the Besses, assuring them it was a revelation to all who had heard them. - ,On behalf of the, visitors, Bandsman Tern Bowling, in a few well;chosen worifef -Teturnedr T *h»H«B'^ -«* V -^Oidier-speeches, were delivered, and a pleasant little . gathering concluded witkicheers. r. 1 „,-.;: ",, ' >;V -The band gave a concert this arter-iuwP.-on the Raoepoui?se t ,to^a kirge crowd. The Garrison Band escorted the visitors to the Racecourse, a procession being formed at Currie Street.