Thomas Sunday Evening Concert: 10th

“There were two good concerts last night, one at Steinway’s and the other at Irving Hall. At the former Theodore Thomas’s orchestra played overtures by Gade and Weber, and extracts from Vieuxtemps and Liszt; Mr. Pattison performed on a Steinway Grand a brilliant concert polka of his own, (introducing some striking left-hand passages,) and a rondo by Chopin; and Mrs. Hattie Farnsworth (formerly Miss Hattie Andem) sang with good effect Schubert’s ‘Ave Maria’ and Bellini’s Qui la Voce.”

“At Steinway Hall there was the usual Sunday concert under Mr. THOMAS’ direction. Ten pieces were promised on the programme, but half as many more were given. A young prima donna, Mrs. FARNSWORTH, made her début, and was received with favor by the intelligent audience—for in musical intelligence this audience is always prompt and fair in its decisions. Mr. J. N. PATTISON was the piano soloist, and played with such spirit as to insure two encores. The orchestral numbers were admirably interpreted.”

“At the former Mr. Theodore Thomas gave the sixth concert of his excellent series, with the assistance of Mr. Farnsworth and Mr. J. N Pattison, both of whom were very cordially welcomed and recalled.  The labors of the evening, however, fell as usual upon the orchestra, which played an overture of Gade’s, a scherzo and capriccio of Mendelssohn’s, a fantasia on the ‘Africaine,’ the overture to ‘Oberon,’ etc., with the spirit and correctness for which Mr. Thomas’s band is deservedly admired.  Mr. Thomas makes a good programme, and always gives us music worth listening to.”

“Mrs. Farnsworth was a vocalist upon this occasion, and she sang Schubert’s Ave Maria and an aria from I Puritani in a somewhat hard and nasal style. In the Chopin Rondo Mr. Pattison did not do himself justice, for his playing was quite unequal and his left hand failed, occasionally, to do all that was expected of it. As regards the orchestral pieces, all were good and were quite well played; but it seems poor taste to arrange piano pieces for orchestra when they are manifestly unfitted for such an arrangement: I refer to the Mendelssohn Scherzo.  F. [reviewer]”