Euston station presented an animated scene on the Sunday afternoon preceding the Festival, when a special train, which left London at 2 p.m., conveyed Mendelssohn, the solo singers, the band, the London contingent of the chorus, and the "Gentlemen of the Press" to Birmingham.
Monday morning was set apart for a full rehearsal of "Elijah" in the Town Hall, which is thus described in the Birmingham Journal:—
Mendelssohn was received by the performers with great enthusiasm, renewed again and again, as his lithe and petit figure bent in acknowledgment of these spontaneous and gratifying tributes to his genius, personal affability, and kindness.... His manner, both in the orchestra and in private, is exceedingly pleasing. His smile is winning, and occasionally, when addressing a friendly correction to the band or choir, full of comic expression. He talks German with great volubility and animation, and speaks English remarkably well. He possesses a remarkable power over the performers, moulding them to his will, and though rigidly strict in exacting the nicest precision, he does it in a manner irresistible—actually laughing them into perfection. Some of his remarks are exceedingly humorous. In the Overture to the "Midsummer Night's Dream" [played at the Festival], the gradations of sound were not well preserved; a rattle of his bâton on the music-stand brings the band to a dead halt. "Gentlemen," says Mendelssohn, "that won't do. All fortissimo, all pianissimo, no piano! A little piano between, if you please. Must have piano, gentlemen; when you come to fortissimo, do as you like." All this is expressed with animation and good humour, and a roar of laughter over, the band tries again, and a smile playing on the expressive features of the conductor, attests the power of his pleasantly administered corrective.... At its conclusion the whole band and chorus broke into a torrent of enthusiastic acclamation. After the oratorio had been rehearsed, Mendelssohn expressed himself highly pleased with the manner in which the performers had rendered his work, and complimented them on their extraordinary efficiency.
As Moscheles, the Conductor-in-chief of the Festival, was unwell, Mendelssohn conducted the evening rehearsal for him. At Mendelssohn's request the usual Tuesday evening concert was given up for an extra rehearsal of "Elijah." "After the rehearsal," says Mrs. Moscheles, "I helped Mr. Bartholomew in correcting the 'text,' and so we went on till one o'clock in the morning."
The band and chorus for the Festival consisted of 396 performers. The band, mostly of the Philharmonic and the Opera orchestras, numbered 125 players—93 strings and double wood-wind. The chorus, including a contingent of 62 from London, totalled 271, distributed thus: sopranos, 79; altos (all male voices, "bearded altos," as Mendelssohn called them), 60; tenors, 60; and basses, 72.
The principal vocalists in "Elijah" were Madame Caradori-Allan, Miss Maria B. Hawes, Mr. Charles Lockey, and Herr Staudigl; the subordinate parts were filled by the Misses Williams (who sang the duet "Lift thine eyes," now the trio), Miss Bassano, Mr. J.W. Hobbs, Mr. Henry Phillips, and Mr. Machin. Dr. Gauntlett was specially engaged to play the organ in the new oratorio. Mr. James Stimpson was the chorus-master and official organist of the Festival.
The first performance of "Elijah" took place in the Birmingham Town Hall, on Wednesday morning, August 26, 1846. Benedict thus describes the scene: "The noble Town Hall was crowded at an early hour of that forenoon with a brilliant and eagerly-expectant audience. It was an anxious and solemn moment. Every eye had long been directed towards the conductor's desk, when, at half-past eleven o'clock, a deafening shout from the band and chorus announced the approach of the great composer. The reception he met with from the assembled thousands on stepping into his place was absolutely overwhelming; whilst the sun, emerging at that moment, seemed to illumine the vast edifice in honour of the bright and pure being who stood there the idol of all beholders."
The new oratorio was received with extraordinary enthusiasm, and the composer's expectations of his work were more than realised. The Times said: "The last note of 'Elijah' was drowned in a long-continued unanimous volley of plaudits, vociferous and deafening. It was as though enthusiasm, long-checked, had suddenly burst its bonds and filled the air with shouts of exultation. Mendelssohn, evidently overpowered, bowed his acknowledgments, and quickly descended from his position in the conductor's rostrum; but he was compelled to appear again, amidst renewed cheers and huzzas. Never was there a more complete triumph—never a more thorough and speedy recognition of a great work of art."
Eight numbers were encored: "If with all your hearts," "Baal, we cry to thee," "Regard Thy servant's prayer" (now "Cast thy burden"), "Thanks be to God," "He, watching over Israel," "O rest in the Lord," "For the mountains shall depart," and "O! every one that thirsteth." Herr Staudigl gave a majestic and ideal rendering of the music of the Prophet. In the opinion of the late Mr. Stimpson, who spoke from forty years' experience of the Birmingham Festivals, Staudigl's interpretation of the bass part has never yet been equalled. The junior tenor of the Festival, Mr. Charles Lockey, fairly won his laurels. He sang his two songs "deliciously," says a critic; the first, "If with all your hearts," was encored, and "the smile upon Mendelssohn's face while it was being sung showed how much he was pleased with the chaste execution of this young tenor." The soprano and contralto soloists failed to satisfy Mendelssohn.