Gottschalk Instrumental and Vocal Concert, 2nd Series, 2nd

“Gottschalk is now more obliging than ever in responding to encores, and his present series of concerts offer a genuine musical treat to amateurs.”

“Mr. Gottschalk and Mr. Sanderson will repeat their celebrated Duett for two Pianos, the Overture to William Tell. . . . William Castle, Pupil of Signor Abella.”

“The second of these musical concerts at Irving Hall. M. Wm. Castle, whose debut on Tuesday was a veritable success, and he should be heard again. A new singer, Mme Goessel, will appear for the first time. Theodore Thomas and Sanderson lend their assistance to the eminent pianist.”

Two ads. “The highly successful debut of Mr. Wm. Castle, the new Tenor and pupil of Signor Abella, has induced the management to engage the services of Mr. Castle for the remaining concerts in New York.” Includes excerpts from reviews of Castle in NYH and NYT.

          "Mr. Gottschalk's concert last night was well attended, as usual, and the performance of the programme received frequent marks of approbation. Mr. Castle, who has been successful hitherto in another sphere of musical experience, again gave great satisfaction. Madame Goessel, the new soprano, was unfortunate in her selections for her debut."

          “Irving Hall.--The second of Mr. Harrison's admirable series of Gottschalk concerts was given last evening to a  crowded and fashionable audience.  Such entertainments must improve on acquaintance, combining, as they do, the highest order of talent with the most economical range of charges.  The programme last evening was of the usual miscellaneous kind, and was most ably and satisfactorily interpreted Mr. Gottschalk, Mr. Theodore Thomas, Mr. Wm Castle, Mr. Eben (flute,) and Mr. Henry C. Timm. Mme. Goessel, a prima donna new to our public, made her début in an interminable cavatina by Kreutzer, but failed to excite anything more than a bare recognition of the excellent quality of her voice.  Mr. Castle, the new American tenor, on the other hand, succeeded in renewing the enthusiasm of Tuesday evening.  With the usual amount of application, he will quickly become one of the best tenors in the country, available not only in the concert room, but on the operatic stage.”

          “The second concert of the present series of these delightful entertainments took place last evening, At Irving Hall. The room was crowded to its utmost capacity of accommodation. A new vocal candidate for public favor, Madame Goessel, made her first appearance on this occasion; but she did not create a very favorable impression. Her voice is not a bad one, but there is nothing sympathetic about it, and it lacks cultivation. It may be that the lady’s selections were unfortunate, and that she will do better next time. The treasures of the evening were the sonata in A for the piano and violin, by Messrs. Gottschalk and Theodore Thomas; the overture from ‘William Tell,’ magnificently performed by Messrs. Gottschalk and Sanderson; the ‘Danse Ossianique,’ played alone by the great pianist; a delicious fantasia on the violin by Theodore Thomas; and the Romanza from the 'Lombardi,' and a ballad, 'Things that Never Die,' sung by the new tenor, Mr. William Castle, who is nightly gaining popularity. Almost everything was encored–-a bad habit, which increases the labor of the artists and prolongs the concert to an unreasonable hour, but which, nevertheless, attests the general excellence of the performances. The concert, altogether, was one of the most satisfactory that we have assisted at for some time.”

“The most notable feature at the Gottschalk concerts the past week has been the debut of a new tenor, Mr. William Castle, who has a voice of very fine quality, ranging from C to B flat, and remarkably sweet in tone. He is a pupil of Signor Abella, and considering the short time (three months) that he has been under has been under his tuition, has accomplished wonders in the formation of his style. So favorable was the impression created by his singing that he was at once engaged by Mr. Grau for his new troupe.  He will make his first appearance in ‘Ernani.’”

“Mr. Gottschalk has given another series of concerts at Irving Hall. Their mixed character, reduced prices, and curiosity regarding the débuts of some of the ‘assistance,’ have drawn large audiences. Mr. Wm. Castle, a tenor, has been much applauded. He has a remarkably fine voice, and after two more years of steady study, might become a singer of superior order; but his style is at present unequal and unformed, sometimes excellent, but too often betraying the coarseness of the negro minstrel style (?) of singing; for under the name of Reeves, Mr. Castle has sung during the past two years or three years, with Christy’s Ethiopian troupe. It is to be regretted that more time has not been devoted to the cultivation of so good a voice… Mad. Goessel [is] a lady with a good voice, but of whose school the less said the better. . . . [Many performers] have taken part in the programmes, the selections of which have been as usual, with an occasional good thing sandwiched between bad and indifferent.”