Organ Concert: 25th

Includes program. 

“The organ concert at the Holy Trinity Church yesterday afternoon was well attended, and the performances were more than usually attractive. Schumann’s grand Fugue on the name of Bach and Van Vyken’s Sonata in A minor proved particularly interesting among the pieces written expressly for the organ, and the lovely Allegretto from Mendelssohn’s symphony in B flat, and the Andantino from Spohr’s ‘Consecration of Sound’ were remarkably effective as arrangements of orchestral works. The latter piece is extremely difficult to render with clearness on the organ, on account of the various changes of time and the complexity of the rhythms. Mr. S. P. Warren succeeded admirably in rendering these periodic [phases? Not phrases] and their coincidences with clearness and facility. Mr. Petri’s well-written Fantasia in G minor was included among the organ works and Liszt’s transcription of Nicolai’s overture, which, though very popular in Germany and London (where it has been performed more than once with an enormous chorus, orchestra military band and organ), is unaccountably so; unless the ever-welcome Choral ‘Ein’ feste Burg’ which it contains atones for its ill-considered themes, patchy structure and ambitious style. One of our most rapidly rising concert-singers, Miss Ida W. Hubbell, sang two songs with such success that the high opinion which was formed by her performance here of Handel’s great song ‘Let the Bright Seraphim,’ on Ash Wednesday, was fully confirmed. Not being content to display her rich, full voice and receive passing tributes of praise, she continues to study most assiduously the works of the best masters, and will probably be ere long one of our greatest oratorio singers, fully competent to undertake Handelian airs, written in the most dignified and highly elevated style of this great master.” 

“The organ concert Wednesday afternoon was one of the best of the series so far. The programme was carefully selected and purely classical in character. Mr. Samuel P. Warren played, among other pieces, a Prelude by Krebs, Schumann’s fugue on the name of Bach, an Organ Sonata by Van Eyken, one of the finest pieces of organ music that have been given at these concerts, and an admirable arrangement by Liszt of Nicolai’s ‘Eine Feste Burg’ overture. Mr. Warren is so favorably and widely known that it is scarcely necessary to say how well his work was done. Miss Ida W. Hubbell (soprano) sang Handel’s ‘Pious Orgies’ (from ‘Judeas Maccabaeus’) smoothly and correctly, though the effect was somewhat marred by a tremolo which was possibly the result of nervousness. In Bach’s beautiful aria ‘My Soul ever Faithful’ she created a much more favorable impression.”