Harrison’s Grand Concert: 4th

The 3rd and last performance of Leopold de Meyer

“Last night’s concert introduced a new contralto, Madame Lumley, who made a hit in arias from La Favorita, Ernani and Semiramide. Her début was a successful one, and her voice possesses power, sweetness and training. Rosa played an extraordinary piece, called ‘Trille du Diable,’ by Tartini, and was enthusiastically applauded for his admirable playing. He has won his way up to the first rank of violinists and displays the true artist in all his selections. But the great feature of the night was Leopold de Meyer’s fantasia on Lucia di Lammermoor. It revived in the completest [sic] manner the furore which attended his previous visit to America. When the stormy finale was over the audience recalled the pianist with a thunder of applause.”

“Steinway Hall was well filled last night by a critical and brilliant audience, on the occasion of Mr. L. F. Harrison’s sixth concert. The programme was one of the best we have had this season at these concerts, some new pieces and one new artist being introduced to the public. Of the overture to ‘Mignon,’ by Ambroise Thomas, we cannot say a great deal. It is, at best, a pleasing polacca, in the quaint style of the end of the eighteenth century, but may find favor with the public. Mr. Rosa played the ‘Trille du Diable’ for the first time in America [sic], and showed consummate technical skill, as well as unusual power in this bizarre work of Tartini. Leopold de Meyer ‘fired the public’s heart’ by his incomparable playing, and made the beautiful Steinway piano speak in its sweetest, as well as its most powerful tones. The enthusiasm which he created, indeed, bordered on frenzy. The chief interest, however, was centered on the new singer, Madame Eliza Lumley, a niece of the famous impresario, who sung the grand aria from the ‘Favorita’ and the aria of Arsace from ‘Semiramide.’ She met with the most decided and deserved success, being three times recalled after the first aria. Mad. Lumley possesses a large, powerful voice, of exceedingly fine quality and considerable averageness, and is one of the best schooled contralti we have heard in America. Her intonation is decided and pure, and she sings solos and ‘fioritures’ with astonishing facility. Although evidently destined for the opera, she will not less delight the public in the concert room.”

“There is seldom a concert at Steinway Hall in which the programme does not contain some specially interesting feature. The concert of Thursday last found no exception to this rule, but was rather an example of it. It may be unnecessary to give any detailed account of Mr. LEOPOLD DE MEYER’S remarkable performances, which made the piano monarch among the instruments of the night; nor is it perhaps needful to do more than mention TARTINI’S fantastic ‘Trille du diable,’ and connect CARL ROSA’S name with it as interpreter, to sufficiently describe one of the most consummate performances which that superb master of violin technics has yet given. The début of Mme. ELIZA LUMLEY which occurred at the concert, however, demands a larger recognition. Coming from a musical family whose representative has long directed the operatic tastes of London, Mme. LUMLEY comes before us with a talent assured and a reputation already made. She sang the great cavatina of ‘La Favorite’ and Ardace’s [sic] wonderful aria from ‘Sereramide’ [sic], displaying the full powers of a contralto voice, at once very sweet, of much more than average strength, and a clear facility for embellishment. Mme. LUMLEY’S tact is most excellent also, and her expression eminently fits her for operatic singing; with the audience her success was instantaneous, and after each number the debutante was honored with more than the ordinary number of recalls. The performance of the overture to ‘Mignon,’ by THEODORE THOMAS’ orchestra, was much better than the thing performed. The presiding spirit of the composition is a very dull spirit to the general auditor, although to the enthusiast it may be musically pure and all that.”