Anna Mehlig’s Farewell Matinee Concert

“Instead of an evening concert a matinée performance served as the farewell in this city of Miss Mehlig to the numerous admirers of her talent. The day was bright and pleasant, and Steinway Hall was yesterday afternoon crowded. The fair sex predominated in the audience, but besides these there were present a large number of our most critical and distinguished musicians.

“Miss Mehlig never played better than she did yesterday. Everything was combined in her performance that was required to make a first rate pianist. At one moment she surprised the listener by her masculine vigor, and at the next held him breathless by the exquisite delicacy of her touch. She gave Liszt’s ‘Rhapsodie Hongroise’ in her best manner; and the programme also included a concerto by Mendelssohn, a nocturne by Field, and Weber’s ‘Polonaise Brillante,’ with Liszt’s orchestral accompaniments. In the last Miss Mehlig was especially effective; and her magnificent rendering of the work proved a fitting finale to the series of masterly interpretations of the best masters, which have won for her so wide a fame among the music lovers of this country. Miss Mehlig leaves for Europe on Saturday. She came here entirely unknown, but leaves us with a reputation such as no other lady pianist has won in this country. It is to be hoped that her absence from us is not permanent, and that our musical public may have an opportunity of again enjoying and appreciating her rare musical powers.

“Theodore Thomas’s orchestra at the Mehlig matinée played superbly extracts from Wagner, Mendelssohn, Strauss, Schumann, Cherubini, Haydn and Max Bruch. Ole Bull was announced, but did not appear, and his place was taken by Mr. Bergner, the accomplished violoncellist.”

“Miss Anna Mehlig bade farewell to America yesterday, in a matinée concert at Steinway Hall. She had a very large and brilliant audience and a cordial reception, and she must have been gratified with the many little evidences afforded in the course of the afternoon of the regard in which she is held by New-York, and the general regret over her departure. Her playing was characterized yesterday by even more than the usual grace and feeling which we have admired at so many of her concerts during the two years of her visit to America. The beautiful Mendelssohn concert in G minor flowed from her delicate fingers like an exquisite poem. The ‘Polonaise Brillante’ of Weber’s, with Liszt’s rich orchestral accompaniment, was another surprisingly beautiful performance, and the ‘Rhapsodie Hongroise’ (No. 1) illustrated the fiery energy which Miss Mehlig holds in reserve for extraordinary occasions. She and Miss Topp were both pupils of Liszt, yet there is a remarkable difference in their respective interpretations of this piece. Miss Topp’s displays the more force and brilliancy and nervous power, Miss Mehlig’s the more sentiment. We shall not decide between them. The only other piano music at the concert was a little gem given for an encore.

“Mr. Ole Bull was to have played a violin solo, but an apology was made for him, and in his stead Mr. Bergner gave a composition of his own for the violoncello, accompanied on the piano by Mr. Matzka. But Miss Mehlig had also the assistance of Mr. Theodore Thomas and his whole orchestra, who assisted her indeed to such good purpose that they gave nearly the whole concert, playing eight or nine pieces with that inimitable finish which places them at the head of all orchestras in this country. They gave Cherubini’s fine ‘Anacreon’ overture, the adagio from Beethoven’s ‘Prometheus’ (Mr. Bergner taking the ‘cello obbligato), the introduction to Max Bruch’s ‘Lorely,’ first heard at the Garden concert last Monday, the ‘Tannhaüser’ overture, a Strauss waltz, and the popular ‘Traümerei,’ in which the pianissimo effect was still more extraordinary than we found it at the Thomas concert last Winter. As a recall piece they played another soft study for the strings, showing in these two a fineness of touch and perfect concord of sympathy absolutely wonderful.

“Miss Mehlig may visit the United States again after a while, but her plans, we believe, are not fixed. All connoisseurs will join us in wishing the charming artist a pleasant voyage and a quick return.”

“Miss Anna Mehlig took her farewell of New York at a matinée concert at Steinway Hall on Wednesday, in which she was assisted by Thomas’ unrivaled orchestra. Ole Bull failed to appear, and an apology was made for his absence. Miss Mehlig leaves for Europe on Saturday, and will return in the fall. The American public could not afford to lose for any lengthened period the services of an artiste who has no rival as a pianist and who has done so much in this country to develop a love and interest for the divine art."

“It is seldom that a female musician wins so many substantial honors among us as has Miss Mehlig; seldom, indeed, when she is but a pianist, for it is seldom that all the qualifications of a musician are recognized in the fair claimants. Miss Mehlig proved herself very early in her American tour to be one of the few artists of her sex who depended solely on her art, and not at all upon her sex, for public recognition. Some indication of the very high esteem in which she is held here by the musical community was shown on Wednesday at her farewell matinée given at Steinway Hall. The assemblage was brilliantly representative of the culture and taste of the metropolis, and entirely filled the large hall. Ole Bull, who was announced on the programme and in the advertisements, did not appear, and Mr. Darcy stated to the audience that the only explanation of his absence which the artist had deigned to give was that his performance at Miss Mehlig’s concert might impair the success of his own, which was to take place in a night or two. In his place Mr. Fred. Bergner appeared and performed a Reverie in his best style, accompanied by Mr. Matzka. Miss Mehlig’s selections on this occasion were, as usual, characterized by the severest taste. Mendelssohn’s Concerto in G minor, Liszt’s ‘Rhapsodie Hongroise,’ and Weber’s ‘Polonaise Brillante,’ orchestrated by Liszt, completed the number. Of the artist’s interpretation of these compositions (the dissimilarity of which need not be pointed out) much has already been written, and criticism has substantially agreed in awarding to Miss Mehlig much higher praise than any previous performer of her sex has received in this country. In the possession of vigor and delicacy exquisitely conjoined, in culture not only of a technical but a poetic character, and in all the graces of perfect skill in touch we can safely award to her a great pre-eminence in her art. She was nobly seconded at this concert by Mr. Theodore Thomas’s orchestra (its first appearance this season, we believe, at Steinway Hall), and the distinctive orchestral works, which included [see above], were performed in a manner that alone would have made the concert an artistic success. Miss Mehlig returns to Europe in a few days.” [Reprinted from the World, 06/20/71]