Philharmonic Society of New York Concert: 3rd

“The programme last night consisted of ‘The Consecration of Sounds,’ by Spohr; overture to ‘Sacuntela,’ by Goldmark, and the second Leonora overture, Beethoven. Miss Mehlig played the the E flat piano concerto of Beethoven and Miss Kellogg sang the cavatina ‘Di piacer,’ from ‘Gazza Ladra,’ and the aria ‘Deh vieni,’ from ‘Nozze di Figaro.’ The symphony is the musical embodiment of a poem of Carl Pfeiffer and consists of four movements. On the back of the programme these were described as follows:--‘Gloomy silence of nature before the creation of sound; busy life afterwards, sounds of nature, the elements, cradle song, dance, serenade; march to battle; feelings of those left behind; return of the victors; thanks to the God of battles; consolation amid tears and invocation of sounds.’ It will be seen from this list what a good theme the composer had to work upon. The treatment of the subject is grand in some instances and very weak in others. The finale of each movement is particularly ineffective and unsatisfactory. The march—which, by the way, has been cleverly transcribed for the piano by Richard Hoffman—is brilliant and inspiring; but an unfortunate coda, with abrupt finish, mars it considerably. The last movement, in which the ‘celli breathe forth a tender, plaintive theme in unison while the other strings accompany pizzicato, is inexpressibly beautiful.

“The overtures [sic], ‘Sacuntala,’ played for the first time in America, appeared to us to be founded on some heroic subject; perhaps one of those medieval legends or tales with which Germany is so fruitful. It opens with a chorale in full, rich harmony, of which a notable feature is the skillful and constant changes of instrumental combinations on the same theme. It breaks off then into a quaint barbaric march, in which there are singular groupings of instruments and singular counterpoint, but always pleasing and always rich and full. A beautiful little oboe solo floats on a heaving billow of harmony, beneath which the deep, gruff voices of the trombones speak in ejaculatory form, and then a waif of Mendelssohn in the rustle of fairy wings from the wind instruments, the march again, and a stormy battle passage, followed by a plaint of the strings, with the monotone of the basses as a sort of marche funebre, and then a triumphant march theme, with all the strength and fullness of the orchestra. A commonplace coda is here attached to the orchestra which it would be well to have omitted.

“Miss Mehlig’s performance of the concerto was deserving of the highest praise for the rare delicacy in conception and complete finish in execution. The light and shade which she threw on the charming passage of this true poem, and the feeling and expression visible in every measure as it dropped from her fingers gave evidence of not only the highly cultivated artist, but the wonderfully endowed child of nature. We remarked in Miss Mehlig’s rendering of Beethoven a complete repose of wrist and arm exactly suited to such music, but seldom or never thought of by our pianists. Ritter is particularly happy in this style of finished, delicate, and what we might call ‘quiet’ playing. There was no attempt at convincing the audience that she could sweep the keyboard with Liszt as well as Beethoven power; but she played the concerto in a style which we have never before heard equaled at any of the Philharmonic concerts. Miss Kellogg was in good voice, and the two selections from Rossini and Mozart suited her exactly. The cavatina is rather light for a classical concert; but the air from the Marriage of Figaro, with its beautiful accompaniment of oboe, fagotto and flute was delicious. In answer to encore she sang an exquisite little French chanson, accompanied by Carl Bergmann on the piano. The oboe and bassoon were rather out of humor last night, and in two or three instances they marred the ensemble. The house was crowded from parquet to dome, as usual, and the audience seemed to be an appreciative one also.”

“The third Philharmonic concert of the present season occurred at the Academy of Music last evening. The spacious building was as crowded as usual and the audience as appreciative and as well contented with the programme and its interpreters. Yesterday’s reference to Friday’s rehearsal will apply with sufficient accuracy to the concert itself to enable us to dispense with an extended article. The only notable feature of the bill was Spohr’s ‘Weihe der Töne,’ a characteristic symphony in four movements in which the perfection of the harmonist and the greatness of the violinist are amply asserted by the sensuous beauty of the whole work and by the prominence given the stringed instruments, to which is assigned the almost exclusive rendering of the first and most beautiful part. The symphony was admirably rendered, in respect of sentiment, delicacy of shading and temper. At its close, Miss Kellogg sang ‘Di piacer,’ from ‘La Gazza Ladra,’ with her habitual neatness of execution, and in response to an encore, contributed a graceful French song. The same lady afterwards gave ‘Deh Vieni’ from ‘I Nozze;’ more judicious selections might certainly have been made. Miss Anna Mehlig was the pianiste and was cheered to a faultless reading of Beethoven’s concerto in E flat major by a very cordial reception. The remainder of the programme included the overture to ‘Sacuntaela,’ a grand composition, but one that will hardly become popular in the fullest sense of the word, and Beethoven’s second overture to ‘Leonora.’”

“The third concert of the present Philharmonic season, which took place on Saturday evening at the Academy of Music, contained features of great popularity. Miss Kellogg was the vocalist. She is always received with favor by the New York public, with whom her very name is a tower of strength. On this occasion she sang the Di piacer from Rossini’s ‘Gazza Ladra,’ and the quaintly melodious aria Deh vieni non tardar, from the ‘Nozze di Figaro,’ receiving for each the warmest applause. Miss Mehlig, the admired pianist, played in superb style Beethoven’s E flat concerto for piano-forte and orchestra, again confirming her claim to be considered one of the very best players of classical music ever heard here. The orchestral selections included Spohr’s ‘Consecration of Tones,’ Goldmark’s overture ‘Sacuntala,’ and Beethoven’s ‘Leonora’ overture No. 2. Of course the house was crowded to excess, as is always the case at the Philharmonic concerts.”

“Our honored Philharmonic Society gave its third concert on Saturday evening. The programme consisted of Spohr’s ‘Consecration of Tones,’ symphony overtures by Beethoven and Goldmark, two arias sung by Miss Kellogg, and Beethoven’s E flat major concerto for piano and orchestra.

“In the concerto, Miss Mehlig played the piano part, and played it faultlessly as to the notes, and with the utmost delicacy and finish regards the expression. It was an artistic effort of the highest grade, and one of which few pianists of either sex are capable. We have heretofore expressed our highest esteem for Miss Mehlig’s ability, and her noble playing of this concerto only adds strength to the conviction of her merits. With a most praise-worthy self-denial, she refused the recall that followed the conclusion of the concerto. Audiences are so little aware of the tension and strain upon every nerve and muscle that is required to play such a long and difficult work, that they are often thoughtless enough to demand of a player who has already been thirty-five minutes at the keyboard a second piece; and though thoroughly exhausted, many performers are yielding enough to comply, generally to their own detriment. Miss Kellogg sang Mozart’s divine aria, Deh Vieni non tardar’ with fitting repose, simplicity, and tenderness. The symphony was excellently played, and the very lovely andante movement, the cradle song, received the rather unusual tribute of a decided desire on the part of the audience for its repetition, against which, however, Mr. Bergmann hardened his heart. Goldmark’s overture proved a very interesting work. In a word, the concert was thoroughly pleasant, and maintained the high reputation of the Society.”

“The third Philharmonic concert last Saturday evening was better in all respects than the second. The following was the programme, and any good musician will acknowledge that it was fresh and good: [see above]

“The Symphony of Spohr’s, generally called in English ‘The consecration of sounds,’ was written to illustrate a poem of Carl Pfeiffer’s on the position of music as an element of natural beauty. The gloom which brooded over the face of the universe before creation woke to life and motion, is contrasted with the brightness that shone forth when the everlasting music of the elements began to breathe through the woods and resound along the shore, and the voices of men were raised in song, and prayed, and the busy hum of life; and the poem closes with an invocation of music as the consoler of the sorrowing and the inspirer of holy and lofty thoughts. The conception of the symphony resembles somewhat the famous Pastorale of Beethoven. Its scope is wider—too wide, indeed, for a man like Spohr to grasp—but the composer has not attempted much beyond the description of the simpler forms of music, and has therefore constructed upon this noble theme his most successful and agreeable work. Holding a high place in the classical German school, yet not a place in the first rank, Spohr possessed the not too common but very important merit of gauging pretty fairly his own powers, so that his compositions rarely strike us as failures. The rich, voice-like quality which is said to have distinguished his violin-playing is paralleled by his fondness for sensuous melodic forms, carried to such an extreme that nearly all the symphony could be sung to a regular meter. He had not the power or perhaps not the patience to linger in the uncertain gloom of chaos which is supposed to be the prelude of his theme; almost instantly his creation breaks into song, and the whole four themes of the symphony are ruled by the strictest rhythmic forms. The first theme—or movement, as it should more properly be called, for each division embraces several themes—represents in a peaceful strain the music of nature; the second, copying the music of love, opens with a beautiful cradle song, breaks into a merry dance, and passes thence into a serenade admirably played by M. Bergner as a violoncello solo, with string accompaniment; the third is a military march and prayer after victory, well known here through piano-forte arrangements from the orchestral score; and the fourth is supposed to celebrate the spiritualizing and calming influence of music. The second movement was heartily relished, and the audience asked for a repetition, which Mr. Bergmann sensibly declined to give.

“The overture of Goldmark’s was played at this concert for the first time in America. The composer is almost unknown in the United States. We believe he is a Hungarian. His style—harsh at times, and almost always strong and bold—offers a great contrast to the cloying sweetness of Spohr. Formed upon the theories of Liszt and Berlioz, it is far less extravagant than the style of either of those great musical prophets. To an overruling perception of symmetry in which Liszt and Berlioz are conspicuously deficient, he adds a fertility of invention in the combination of instruments, and an ingenuity in massing broad effects which would do credit to his masters and models. The barbaric magnificence which the mind loves to associate with Hindoo legend, and something of the tenderness which really belongs to the drama of Sakuntala, the flower, as Sancrit [sic] scholars declare, of all the ancient poetry of India, are fairly reflected in this overture, which we are persuaded will be better liked the oftener it is heard. The second overture to ‘Leonora,’ which closed the programme, suffers only by comparison with Beethoven’s unrivaled third overture to the same opera.

“Miss Kellogg was good in both the pieces set down for her in the bills, but still better in a little French chanson, Si tu n’arais rien à me dire Pourquoi me pressez vous le main?

“The Di piacer from ‘La Gazza Ladra’ is an excellent show piece, and it was doubtless gratifying to perceive that Miss Kellogg was fully competent to execute its florid phrases; but it is not in florid music that we like her best. The aria of Mozart’s showed much better the sweetness in which lies her strength. Miss Mehlig’s performance of the Beethoven concerto was probably the best feature of the evening. It would be hard to praise too warmly the absolute perfection of execution, the refinement of touch, the profound intelligence, and the consciousness which she brought to the interpretation of this work. She has charmed us before in other styles of music, showing that she knew how to imbue herself with the fire and force of Liszt, the restless passion of Schumann, and the fitful fancies of Chopin; she has now sounded with equal success the depths of Beethoven’s great soul, and we must place her unhesitatingly in the very front rank of pianists now in this country,”

“FEB. 7. On Saturday evening we had our 3d Philharmonic Concert, with the appended programme [see above].

“The orchestral playing was in every respect excellent, and too much praise cannot be given to the perfect unity with which every movement of the elaborate Symphony was performed. To my mind this celebrated work of Spohr's is less attractive than it is to many musicians, and the merits of the composition seem very unequally distributed; as for instance, the 2nd movement—Cradle-Song, Serenade, &c., with its curious mixed rhythm, is certainly a “gem of purest ray serene,” while the “Marche” is totally out of keeping with anything else, and is indeed, to my mind, even trivial.

“The “Sacuntala” Overture, performed for the first time in this country, is essentially Frenchy in its effect, and therefore not immensely solid or forceful. There are some neat bits of instrumentation, and there are some harp passages which might possibly have been attractive if the sound of the harp had not been entirely drowned out by the other instruments; as a whole, very suggestive of Batiste's elaborate and frothy organ voluntaries.

“Mlle. Mehlig achieved an artistic success in her performance of Beethoven's superb Concerto, which was played at one of our concerts last winter by Mr. Mills. Her excellences are a wonderfully delicate touch, an admirably even technique, and a poetic spirit which always grasps the meaning and plan of the composer. Her one especial weakness is a lack of breadth in style and phrasing. This deficiency was more especially evident in the final movement, which unquestionably requires great strength and force to give the requisite dignity and grandeur.

“Mlle. M. was enthusiastically encored, in fact called out three times, but she declined to play again, and only acknowledged the compliment by bowing.

“Miss Kellogg sang her two selections creditably and well, and had she been less self-conscious and “airy” would have made a pleasing impression. O that she would only listen to reason, and try to tone down her exuberant self-gratulatory manner, for she really is not a great artist, and no amount of printed encomiums will make her one; neither will that end be gained by the purchase of any number of floral testimonials, by previous arrangement among enthusiastic admirers. She was encored, and sang, in response, a trifling and totally incongruous “Chanson,” Carl Bergmann--much to the surprise and satisfaction of the audience--playing the pianoforte accompaniment.”