Vocal and Instrumental Concert

Historical sketch.

From the Neues Fremdenblatt, Vienna, regarding the ensemble’s forthcoming tour to the United States. 

Historical sketch.

Lists first names of orchestra members; entire change of programme for every concert.

“The platform at Steinway Hall last evening showed a pleasant picture of light and bower-like decoration, under which was ranged in orchestral fashion a group of some twenty-four young, fresh, and in some cases pretty girls, decked in all the innocent attractions of white muslin, exuberant chignons, and flowers deftly set ‘congregation side out.’ The eye, however, had the better part of the bargain. The orchestra, dispensing with brass and reeds, is made up entirely of stringed instruments, flutes, a piano, melodeon, harp, and an unusually obstreperous snare-drum and cymbals. The effect is not musically edifying, nor even pleasant. The young ladies, considered as so many youthful students of their respective instruments, play fairly well, and at a boarding-school exhibition would earn and get their proper meed of praise. As an orchestra, however, and viewed from any fairly exacting artistic point of view, it is difficult to criticize them seriously. The body of tone is, almost of course, sadly weak, thin and scratchy, the accent and shading imperceptible, and the time various and individual. It would be a great gain, however, if the pretty girl who so persistently pounds the drum and cymbals in the background could be regularly portioned off with a beau or two, a bouquet, and a paper of chocolate drops, and gently wooed to forego her melodious percussion for the evening. The resulting calm, the ‘silence implying sound’ which the poet speaks of, would shed its beneficent influence over the rest of the performance.

Herr Jacob Muller has a fine baritone of unusual strength, clearness, and resonant quality, which he uses with deficient discretion and method. A marked fault of his delivery is the vice of contrasting, in almost the same bar, an artificial and overstrained delicacy of pianissimo with the explosive vehemence of his louder notes.

Miss Anna Elezer, on whom the eager curiosity of the audience seemed to centre, is a well-grown, comely and curiously self-possessed young girl, of apparently some fifteen or sixteen summers, endowed with a well-developed, and, in some parts of the register, strong and rich contralto voice, which she uses amazingly well for one of her age. She has apparently been brought forward with injudicious haste, and introduced to the intricate and difficult music of the operatic school when a due regard to her best development would have left her still busy with the weightier matters of the law—the simpler and more fundamental elements of early study. The result, however, is agreeable, and in some respects surprising. The firmness, accuracy and grace of her execution, while they would not be remarkable in a prima donna of several seasons, are noteworthy in a budding maiden hardly out of the school-room. The error which has crept into the programme as to Miss Elzer’s age (ostensibly twelve years), probably arises from the fact that the parish records, including Miss Elzer’s birth-certificate, were burglariously abstracted shortly before the period of her engagement with Mr. Rullman. Any attempt to regard her as actually of the age alleged would be justifiable only by the fact that in the tropical regions of South Germany (where, as is well known, the palm-trees wave, and the orange and pomegranate ripen all the year round), both body and soul early attain exceptional and startling maturity.

These artistic novelties and wonders were received by the audience, or a portion of them, with the wildest enthusiasm, and cheers, recalls and floral tributes were the order of the evening.

As a curiosity, even when the effervescent admiration of personal friends shall have exhausted itself, the Vienna orchestra will probably attract for some time the curious in novelty and oddity. As an element in the musical life of the winter it is susceptible of but one judgment, and that not favorable.” 

“Mr. Rullman’s orchestra, composed of young German ladies, gave its first concert at Steinway Hall last evening. We hardly know how to adjust the critical lens to so level a constellation of bright stars as this. It seems ungracious to judge so fair a body of pretty women by the exacting rules that would be applied to an orchestra of men. As they grouped themselves on the stage in their snowy white dresses, each with a white flower in her hair, they formed as graceful and sweet a picture as the eye could wish to rest upon. But they did not come to be judged by their picturesque effects, but by their artistic attainments; and concerning these the fairest way both to them and to the public is to state the literal facts. The orchestra turns out to be only half an orchestra. It lacks some of the most important elements. There are neither horns, trumpets, trombones, clarionets, oboes, nor bassoons, and yet all of these are indispensable instruments. It was hardly to be expected that women could master the brass instruments, but the reeds need not have presented insuperable difficulties.

Then the orchestra had no foundation. There was but one double bass, and both that and the violoncellos were of reduced size, and consequently lacked power. The deficiency was very inadequately supplied by a piano and cabinet organ, both of which instruments are out of place in an orchestra.

It was not the nature that a band so constituted should play satisfactorily, even if the instruments were skillfully handled, which in this instance was not the case. Among the twenty young ladies there certainly were few if any who could be thought competent to fill a place in any orchestra having a high standard. Their tone was thin, they stumbled at the hard passages, their time was not good, and in fact, they played like scholars and not at all like artists. Between the first and third parts of the programme the young ladies changed their costumes, a bit of harlequinade for which there was not the least occasion, especially as they renounced very pretty white dresses for their very ugly green and purple ones.

There is this to be said for the orchestral performers—they played quite as well as any one could reasonably have expected. The violin and violoncello are instruments of the highest difficulty, requiring longer years of constant discipline from those who would master them, and nothing short of a miracle could produce an orchestra of girls under twenty who could play their instruments well.

Besides the orchestral performers there were two soloists, Mr. Müller and Miss Anna Elzer. The latter was announced as a soprano of twelve years of age. Her voice was a contralto, and she seemed some years older. Certainly, if she is but twelve, she is the most wonderful child we have ever had in our concert rooms. Her style is as mature and her voice as rich and mellow as those of a woman. She sings with admirable precision and execution, and her phrasing was something wonderful. We are not at all partial to infant musical phenomena, but this young lady is entitled to the highest praise upon her own merits, judged not as a child, but as an artist. The effect of youth, however, hardly needs to be sustained by the affectation of running off the stage. That piece of by-play suggests training rather than artlessness. Mr. Müller has a noble baritone voice, larger and fuller than one often hears at Steinway’s, or indeed at any other hall. He does not use it however, to the best advantage by reason of conspicuous faults of method.” [Reprinted DJM 09/23/71, p. 104] 

“The phenomenal orchestra which Mr. Rullman has imported from Vienna made its first appearance last night at Steinway Hall. It is composed of 20 young ladies. They are all fair to see—some of them positively pretty; they are modest and prepossessing in manner; they dress with elaboration if not with the most exquisite taste; and they surround themselves with sundry elegant accessories, such as a bower of paper roses, and a pair of gilt and white drums, and a number of hand bouquets, of regulation pattern. Miss Weinlich, the leader, wields the baton with a vigor not altogether devoid of grace, and occupies the stand with something of the bearing of a princess. The instruments upon which her 19 companions perform are eight violins and violas, two violoncellos, one double bass, two flutes, one piccolo, a piano, a harp, a cabinet organ, a bass drum, cymbals, and triangle, and a side-drum. This of course is very far from being an orchestra. The piano and organ make but a poor pretense of supplying the lack of middle reeds and brass, and the drums are little better than a nuisance, especially as they are not in tune. The composition of the band, in fact, is extremely faulty; but in justice to the Female Orchestra it should be stated that Mr. Rullman has added to its numbers since it played in Vienna, and we presume that he has only increased its apparent force without adding to its effectiveness. It does not offer a theme for much critical remark. Curious and even pleasant to the eye, and interesting enough to people who have no experience of good orchestral music, it will perhaps create a profitable excitement in the provinces, but we doubt the wisdom of tempting with it the judgment of the metropolis. If all the ladies were artists, and Miss Weinlich were a real conductor, we could not expect much from a band of such defective construction; but, in truth, they seem to be only indifferent musicians, who are often out of tune, often slovenly and incorrect, who have none of the mutual sympathy and quickness of musical perception which distinguish a good orchestra from a bad one, and are equally deficient in delicacy and in force. Their playing is hardly equal to that of an average ball room band, and never approaches a genuine orchestral performance.

The second of the three parts of the programme last night was devoted to vocal music by Miss Anna Elzer, who is announced as the ‘child-soprano,’ and Mr. Jacob Müller, a baritone. Miss Elzer is said to be twelve years old, but her figure is not that of a child, and her voice is certainly riper than any voice we ever heard from a girl of that tender age. Nature has endowed her richly, and her culture has been carried so far that the high claims to consideration put forth in her behalf are almost justified. Of course she is not yet an artist. She has much to learn In vocalization and much also in the art of bringing out the voice—for she often sings out of tune; but considering her youth her performance is remarkable, and most of her tones are beautiful—clear and sweet in the upper register and singularly full in the lower. She sang Mozart’s ‘Voi che sapete’ and Palahilde’s ‘Mandolinata,’ after the latter of which she was twice encored. Mr. Müller has a beautiful voice of extensive range, which he uses rather in the Italian than the German manner. He is but an indifferent artist, though in comparatively easy pieces, like Mattei’s ‘Non è ver,’ he is sufficiently agreeable singer. The only thoroughly accomplished member of the troupe seems to be Prof. Mulder, whose accomplishments were so good as to deserve a word of special mention.”

“The first performance of the Vienna Lady Orchestra was given at Steinway Hall on Monday evening, to the expressed pleasure of a very large and fashionable audience. The spectacle was certainly a novel one. The platform was changed into a bower, and under the roses were sheltered, instead of the familiar profanum vulgus of music-makers, a score of blushing maidens attired in purest white, and armed, after the orthodox style, for their harmonious work. The sight of an instrumentalist of the gentler sex has little rarity about it, but the view of an organized force of female musicians was, until Monday, never offered in this country. On this fact was founded a very large share of the first success of the Vienna Lady Orchestra, and on it will rest their prospective triumphs. We would not, however, underrate the cleverness and culture the company displayed. Its members execute with precision and spirit the rather unpretentious selections whereof their programme is made up, and some of the solo talent is to be highly commended. The chief opportunity for fault-finding is suggested by the lack of heavy wood and string instruments, and by the absence of brass. The dry notes of the piano and the broken chords of the harp are quite insufficient to supply a substantial ground for the violins, the violoncello, the dwarfed double bass, and the flutes. The delivery is on that account devoid of color, and the sound rather thin. Another cause for complaint is furnished by the undue prominence of a big drum, and the untunefulness of a small one, both being in altogether too frequent use. We need not be so cautious in praising the recital of the Vienna Lady Orchestra, as in dealing with its composition, and as we stated above, we can join in the admiration generally shown for the vivacity and unity of its readings. A trio brought forth a first violinist whose tone for sweetness and truth is quite unexceptionable, and the share of the violoncellist in the entertainment proved the young lady in charge of that often till-treated instrument to have perfect surety of fingering, and an eloquence of bow seldom attained to. While the first and third parts of the concert were contributed by the orchestra, the second consisted of singing by Herr Jacob Mueller and Mlle. Anna Elzer. Herr Mueller is gifted with one of the finest baritone voices it has ever been our fortune to hear. It is extended, round and powerful, and true to a degree very few voices of equal volume reach; and in his management of the mezza-voce, its possessor is quite unequaled. We can only tax Herr Mueller with a little bad taste in introducing superfluous cadenzas, and the accompanyist, Prof. Mulder-Fabbri, is to be censured for a like attempt made in an intended improvement of his accompaniments. Herr Mueller delighted the audience Monday evening, and each of his songs was repeated. The impression of his debut, indeed, was as favorable as we could wish the most eminent artist to produce. For the critical, that of Mlle. Elzer, though satisfying, was not so decisive. Mlle. Elzer has a good mezzo-soprano voice, almost low enough for a contralto, tolerably homogeneous, more metallic than rich, and not very agile. It is not, however, a child’s voice, but rather that of a promising girl, whom it will enable, by its range and force, to sing the weightier rôles in opera. Mlle. Elzer’s numbers were both redemanded, and the second, the pretty ‘Mandolinata,’ with its quaint intervals, is now on the bills for the Winter.” 

“The ‘Vienna Lady Orchestra’ is the title applied to a company of musicians, some twenty in number, who commenced a series of performances at Steinway Hall, on Monday evening, Sept. 11^th. All the performers of this organization are young ladies, said to be still in their teens, who have a comely appearance, some of them even possessing beauty. They have evidently received a good musical education, and possess considerable skill in performing upon their various instruments; still their performances were not satisfactory, neither can the organization properly be termed an orchestra, lacking as it did the following instruments: Clarionet, cornet, trombone and French horns. The performance of standard overtures, with all the brass instruments omitted, had about as cheerful an effect upon the audience as would the performance of the tragedy of ‘Hamlet’ with the chief character left out. They were assisted by Miss Anna Elzer, said to be only twelve years of age, announced as a soprano, but whose voice is evidently a contralto. She is not without merit, but the selections on the first night were in bad taste, and since that she does not seem to have achieved the success that was anticipated, judging from the preliminary announcements; by Jacob Muller, a baritone, who has an excellent voice of much power, and who achieved quite a success—would he but correct some comparatively trifling defects of method, his success would be enhanced; and by Professor Mulder-Fabbri, who performed the accompaniments upon the piano during the vocal part of the entertainment. The audience on the opening night was large, filling the hall in every part, but the attendance diminished rapidly upon the succeeding performances.” 

“The musical season here was ‘inaugurated’ here on the 11^th of September by the Vienna Lady Orchestra. It was not a very great success. The class of music played was of the poorest and of the most popular order. It can hardly be called an orchestra, as there are no brass or wind instruments, excepting the flutes, a piano and melodeon being used in their place. The audiences were not large, except on the first night. Twelve concerts were given, and they are to leave this week for the West.”