Ballad Concert: 1st

“The fine audience which welcomed the first appearance of the Dolby troupe last evening at Steinway’s, and the hearty and general applause accorded to all the principal members, bore sufficient testimony to the popularity of ballad and madrigal music, as well as to the interest felt for the singers themselves. It is pleasant to record that no reasonable expectation was disappointed, and those world-worn cynics who have come, by long and bitter experience, to regard preliminary announcements of musical celebrities as but the herald of mediocrity, were as much surprised as delighted to find that the artists were better than their reputation. In the first half of the programme, with which for the nonce we were forced to be contented, the fact was clearly established that of the four principal singers, two at least, Mr. Cummings and Mme. Patey, have really superb voices in splendid training and preservation, while the others are not far behind them in either regard. Mr. Santley, in the grand old fugued air from Handel, ‘O, Ruddier than the Cherry,’ gave a hint only, but a most indicative one, of the power and clearness of his noble baritone, as well as the skill and taste with which he can govern its strength and husband its resources when the nature of the music demands it. The one or two high notes at the close made amends, however, by the absolute electric energy of their delivery.

Miss Edith Wynne has a high, flexible, fine soprano, which she uses with honest, simple directness and with admirable skill and grace in passages requiring delicate execution. Her aria, ‘Bid me Discourse,’ was delightfully rendered, and the few passages of ornament in the song were sung with a neatness and precision which made us anxious to hear her in more florid music.

Mr. Cummings did not seem to be in his best voice, but we look forward with pleasure to another hearing of his fine tenor, which last evening seemed occasionally veiled for a moment and a little untrue in intonation, from nervousness or indisposition.

The sensation of the evening, for many at least, was the revelation of unexpected and magnificent wealth of tone in the contralto of Mme. Patey. Though perhaps not absolutely pure in a few of the upper notes, it is in its middle and lower register of a depth, clearness and sonorous richness and color which we do not remember to have heard equaled since we heard Alboni. Hullah’s ballad ‘The Storm,’ gives an unusual occasion for the display of some of its finest qualities. The exquisite pathos of the burden, Miserere Domine, varied with all the shades of sorrow and anxious tenderness, and swelling to the outburst of triumph and thanksgiving in the final stanza, Gloria Tibi, simply electrified the audience and the recall was stormy and unanimous. No less marked was the pleasure manifested at her share in Bishop’s beautiful glee ‘Blow, Gentle Gales,’ which was sung by the whole company as such glees should be sung, and that is saying a great deal.

Comment on the piano-playing of Mr. Lindsay Sloper or the vocalism of Mr. Patey must be postponed til we can return, and with greater minuteness, to so pleasant a theme.”

13)

Review: New-York Daily Tribune, 11 October 1871, 2.

“The company of English artists brought over by Mr. George Dolby was introduced, Monday night, under pleasant and encouraging circumstances. We may say in brief that they fully satisfied the expectations of the public and were welcomed with enthusiasm, much the greatest share of which was called forth by Mr. Santley. This rare artist has a voice of extraordinary compass, verging upon the tenor quality in its upper range, and sharing the fullness and depth of the basso profondo in its lower. Yet it is a homogeneous voice, whose registers are perfectly joined, and whose quality is distinct and even. It is not what is commonly called rich in tone; we should rather define it as clear, powerful, and bright, holding in this respect among baritones the same position which Wachtel’s holds among tenors. He reminds us of Wachtel in another particular; his singing has that glorious dramatic fire which stirs the pulse and rouses the imagination, and something of that comfortable abandon which results not from carelessness, but from a complete control of extensive natural powers. Like Wachtel also he is a manly singer, whose voice and style are equally noble and dignified. The comparison, however, cannot be carried beyond this. In the mechanical part of vocalism, Mr. Stanley is the more highly cultivated artist of the two; and he has the last crowning gift of song, a sympathetic delivery, in which Wachtel is entirely deficient. One realizes indeed, in listening to this magnificent singer, that the baritone is the king of all the voices.

Miss Edith Wynne, the soprano of the company is not a great artist like Santley. But she is a pleasant singer, more to be admired for the grace of her expression and her simple and true method than for any extraordinary qualities of voice. Madame Patey has a powerful, rich, and even contralto, with a broad but quiet and refined style and a smooth and expressive delivery. Mr. Cummings made an excellent impression last Spring at the Handel and Haydn Festival in Boston, and we recorded then our judgment of his sweet tenor voice and his careful training.

Of the performance of this troupe in the English part songs and glees which occupy such a conspicuous place on the programme we must speak at a more convenient opportunity.”

14)

Review: New York Herald, 15 October 1871, 10.

“The first appearance of Miss Wynne, Mme. Patey, Mr. Santley and the three other members of the English ballad company, at Steinway Hall on Monday evening, was a means of drawing a very large audience, the Harmonic Society and chorus of the Church Music Association being extensively represented. The programme was as follows [lists program].

A very admirable collection of English glees and songs, and not calculated to satisfy those fond of the sensational in music. The part singing was simply perfection in the ensemble, and the clockwork precision with which the most difficult numbers were sung; but we missed that genial warmth of expression and spirit that goes right to the heart. There was too much coldness to produce that effect upon an audience such as is caused by our own Glee and Madrigal Society and the Vocal Society. Mr. Santley fulfilled all the high expectations formed of him, and proved himself in voice and school one of the most accomplished baritones that ever appeared on the American concert stage. Mme. Patey is, beyond doubt, the most attractive feature in the troupe. It would be difficult to name another contralto in America equal to her, and her rendering of ‘The Storm’ was admirable. Neither the soprano nor the tenor produced any lasting impression. They are good, reliable singers, such as we might find in many of our church choirs. But Santley and Mme. Patey are stars of the first magnitude. It is a pity that their talents should be lost this season to the operatic stage. Lindsay Sloper, the pianist, cannot be compared with any of our public performers in that line.”

15)

Article: New-York Times, 22 October 1871, 4.

“We are glad to hear that the Dolby Troupe, who have won during their stay among us golden opinions from all sorts of people, will shortly be heard in a new and varied series of concerts, embodying highly-popular [sic] elements, and exhibiting their admirable talents in the most effective manner. Mr. Santley, whose superb abilities can hardly be too much praised, will be heard, we learn, in operatic selections, his performance of which has gained him great celebrity abroad, and in general the character of the new entertainments will be modified from the purely ballad character, such as have already been given, into a more dramatic and picturesque phase. We consider the ballad concerts to have been altogether charming in their way, and superior to anything of the kind we have ever had the privilege to listen to in New-York. Still, variety of course has its charms, and the public will be delighted to hear Mr. Dolby's capital artists in fresh and attractive fields.”