18th. The Sunday evening performances of entirely sacred music at the Apollonicon Rooms in St. Martin’s Lane, have been stopped, by order of the Bishop of London, on the plea of money being taken for admission. Does not the poor curate serve two or three churches on a Sunday for money?—do not many public singers exercise their callings in various churches on a Sunday for profit?—In fact, do not the whole of the clergy labour more or less on that day with a view to gain? And is it not better that people should listen to sacred music on a Sabbath evening, after every place of worship is closed, than be compelled to wander about the streets for amusement, or be driven into places where drinking is a necessary condition of their admittance? Surely our bishops, some of them at least, have not read the History of Puritanism, or else they have read unprofitably. Do they not know that should ‘over-righteousness’ once more gain the ascendancy in this country, episcopacy would be the earliest of its victims?
25th. It appears from the Spectator of this day, that The Deluge, an oratorio composed by F. Schneider, was rehearsed on the 19th at the Hanover-square Rooms, preparatory to its performance at the ensuing festival at Norwich. The writer of the notice, a good critic, says, it ‘more than realizes our anticipations of its excellence: it combines the choral grandeur of the school of Bach and Handel with the instrumental richness of Haydn. The Deluge is a subject which affords an ample field for musical expression, and admits of every variety of vocal and instrumental combination. The parts which particularly struck us were,—a double chorus in E flat; a song, in which the instruments describe the rushing and roaring of the waters; a chorus in C, terminating with a fugue on two subjects; a terzetto in A; and the concluding chorus.’
Compositions of this class, when really excellent, ought to be the grand, nay almost the only, object of all musical festivals, considering the great vocal and instrumental force now usually assembled on such occasions; and they would actually cost less to perform than a train of vapid Italian airs of the living school—of the school of Mercadante, Bellini, &c., which, if they must be heard, would succeed much better—that is, would produce less intolerable effect, accompanied by a piano-forte, violoncello, flute, and horn, than by the finest band that can be assembled. The power of the orchestra, like the physical strength of a mob, only increases the evil when badly employed.
FOREIGN MUSICAL REPORT.
VIENNA.
OUR winter season was abundantly rich in concerts. Bernhard Romberg, the king of violoncellists, introduced himself to the public in the Hof-Operntheater, with two concertinos, a fantasia on Norwegian mountain airs, and a humorous melodic tableau, under the title of the Masked Ball, consisting of the following subdivisions. A. Introduction. B. Inclination for a dance. Tuning. Beginning of the dance. C. Dispute among the dancers. Peace and good order are enjoined. Tender endeavours at reconciliation. D. Music in the supper-room. E. Short interruption. Promenade in the Seufzer-Allee, ‘Avenue of Sighs.’ F. Crowding to the ball-room. Galoppade. Merry conclusion. Even those who are not particularly fond of the picturesque in music, could not help being pleased with the characteristic conception of the individual component parts of this medley, their ingenious combination into a consistent whole, and lastly, with the high skill and unique talent displayed by the master; for Romberg, although advanced in years, still continues to be the same great artist as hitherto, his instrument sings as sweetly as before, he playfully dallies with the most deterring difficulties, and will probably remain unexcelled for a long time to come. Mr. M. Schmidt, trombone player to the Electoral Chapel of Hesse Cassel, has visited us for the second time, on his return from Italy, and excited not only renewed admiration by his own performance, but also by the talents of a son, who fully promises to equal his father. Mr. Joachim Hoffman has brought out a new symphony of his composition, with which the theorist will scarcely be able to find fault; but the spirit of the present day demands imagination and inventive power, and is not satisfied with a mere learned combination of cold, dry, scholastic phrases.
The concerts of Messrs. Lewy, Krähmer and his lady, and of Miss Salamon, were very well attended; the first-named gentleman displayed his whole skill in a divertimento with the piano, by Thalberg; in a concerted duet between bassoon and piano; and also in a vocal piece, sung by Madlle. Heinefetter, accompanied by the same instruments. This mode of accompaniment with the tinkling of a piano, and a little horn, violoncello, or bassoon ‘sauce,’ which is gaining daily more ground in all Musical Academies—these pretty sort of instrumental duos and trios, however pleasant in a room, begin to be vastly tiresome and sickening in concerts. Mr. Krähmer and his lady played a concertante for the oboe and clarinet, with great taste, also solo variations on the czakan. Madame K. also played a violin rondo of Kreutzer, with a masculine power of bow, and the most vigorous precision; and in Beethoven’s Adelaide, which she gave on the clarinet with the greatest tenderness and feeling, we missed nothing but the text of the poem. A Polish family of artists, of the name of Kontsky, consisting of five branches, has created a great sensation here. Eugenie is a pleasing, cultivated singer. Anton, a pupil of Field, is a fine pianist, and instructor of his younger brother Stanislaus, who is only ten years old; Carl, who wields the violin with the hand of a master, is again the teacher of his younger brother Apollinar, who, although but seven years old, already creates surprise by his performance.
The Tonkünstler Societät (Society of Musicians) has brought out a new oratorio entitled Jephtha’s Gelubde, (The Vow of Jephtha,) composed by the court organist Assmayr. The poem is somewhat homely, but the composer has done all that could reasonably be expected, and has shown himself particularly conversant with the fugue style. The individuals of the orchestra and chorus establishments of the Kärnthnerthortheater have opened series of four subscription concerts, under the title of the Künstler Verein (union of artists). Among a variety of classic works of Beethoven, Mozart, C. M. von Weber, Cherubini, &c., some compositions of Mr. Lachner, their director, consisting of a symphony, a duet from his Cantata, ‘The four ages of mankind,’ together with some other works of his, were received with high approbation.