SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 1956 TilE MICHIGAN DAILY PAGE THREE Vienna Orchestra Unique, Chooses Own Conductors Messiah Soloists (4- Among the great orchestras of the world, the Vienna Philhar- monic is unique. For over a cen- tury it has been chief voice of symphonic music in the city of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert. It grew under the personal leadership of Brahms, Bruckner, Mahler, Wagner and Richard Strauss, and gave the first per- formances of many of their works. The orchestra, which will appear in Ann Arbor November 20 under the baton of Andre Cluytens, is now celebrating its 114th anniver- * sary. The group is appearing in the U.S. for the first time. The philharmonic is unique in that since 1860 the orchestra has been independent, managing its own affairs and choosing its own conductor. Among these have been Hans Ricter, Karl Muck, Arthru Nikisch, Bruno Walter, Felix Wein- gartner, Erich Gleiber, Whilhelm Frutwangler, Arturo Toscanini and nearly every other master conduc- tor of the past century, appearing either as permanent director or in guest capacity. During the two wars, the Vienna Philharmonic held together as a group, giving concerts without pay between rehearsals, donning over- alls to help repair their damaged concert hall. Another unique aspect of this orchestra is the Sunday morning concerts which they perform, rather than the conventional eve- ning concerts. Cluytens, Belgian French con- ductor, is Musical Director of the Paris 'Opera-Comique and first conductor of the Paris Conserva- toire Orchestra. The son and grandson of musicians, Cluytens was born in Antwerp in 1905. In addition to his symphonic activities, Cluytens conducts many Herva Nelli To Sing Here Herva Nelli, soprano star who will sing in Hill Auditorium Octo- ber 4 comes from a family of nat- ural operatic talent. While only Miss Nelli has turned professional, she recalls how her whole family often used to spent evenings giving their own im- promptu performances of a Puc- cini or Verdi score. Returning to Europe several summers ago after an absence of many years, the soprano reports that one of the personal highlights of her trip was a renewal of this childhood custom. With her fath- er now in his sixties, she tackled the famous first act duet from "La Boheme." "And we both got the high C at the end!" operas in Paris and elsewhere, in- cluding those of Debussy, Ravel, Bizet, Gounod, Offenbach, Poulenc, Weber, Massenet and Stravinsky. He first appeared with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in May, 1955 and is now appearing with the orchestra on its first tour of the United States. Many conductors have referred to the Vienna Philharmonic as "the incomparable." It has served as a model for other orchestras, especially for their unity of spirit, rich tradition and thorough under- standing and feeling for the music. The Vienna Philharmonic has toured nearly every country of Europe, the Near East and South America and have become world famous also through recordings and broadcasts. MESSIAH SOLOISTS - Kenneth Smith, Adele Addison and Howard Jarratt (1. to r.) will appear as soloists in the annual performance of Handel's Messiah December 1 and 2 at Hill Auditorium. Also appearing at the traditional performance will be Eunice Alberts, the University Choral Union conducted by Lester McCoy aqd the Musical Society Orchestra. Choral Union, To Feature Symphony One of the country's major sym- phony orchestras, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Thor Johnson will be heard in Ann Arbor Tuesday, Feb- ruary 26 under the auspices of the University Musical Society. Acclaimed as one of the finesta symphonic ensembles in the coun- try, the Cincinnati Symphony was established in 1895. Approximately a hundred con- certs each season are given by this 87-member organization of virtuosi players. These concerts; are planned especially for all types of concert-goers, the regu- lar subscription series of twenty pairs of concerts, the young people's and junior high school series, popular concerts, tour con- certs, ballet and many special performances. Since the orchestra's inception such distinguished men as Leopold Stokowski, Fritz Reiner and Eugene Goosens have held the post of music director. In the 1947-48 season, Thor Johnson was appointed the music director and under his brilliant direction, the fame of the Orches- tra has become nationwide. One of the high points of the 1951-52 touring season was the brilliant concert given in New York's famous Carnegie Hall in mid-November. The orchestra and its conductor were unanimously praised by the New York critics. NEW MUSIC: Distinctive Arrangements, Lilting Strings Spread Mantovani's Fame Throughout Europe SOLOMON: English Artist To Appear At'U'In Concert Series A pianist who is described by his critics as a man who plays with1 the ecstasy of a man who hugely loves what he is doing is Solomon. The English artist who will ap- pear in Ann Arbor February 21 is that rarity, a boy prodigy who grew up to be a master artist. 1 Solomon made his first attempt at the piano at the age of four and four years later made his for- mal debut playing the Mozart B Flat Concert and the second move- ment of the Tchaikovsky Concerto. The young boy received a stand- ing ovation for the performance, but far more impressive to him was a tricycle with which he was presented at the end of the con- cert. 'Violin Stands' "I 'Jumped right on and rode, off the stage," he remembers. "I think I knocked over a few violin stands in my progress, however." Following his youthful triumph the young boy was invited to per- form for the royal family at Buck- ingham Palace. He also soloed for several distinguished conductors such as Arthur Kikisch, Sir Henry Wood, and Sir George Henschel. At the youthful age of 14, Solo- mon retired from professional life to study his art and later returned to the concert stage refreshed and strengthened by his voluntary ab- sence from professional life. He was an immediate success and since has been in great demand for recitals in England and Europe as well as the entire world. 'Traveler' Since that time, he has, as he humorously puts it, become noth- ing more than a "commercial traveler" visiting almost all the countries and all the continents on the globe. Solomon made his first appear- ance in the United States in 1929 in New York's Town Hall. Since then he has played several con- certs in the United States begin- ning in 1949 and has returned al- most every season. In his forty-odd concerts dur- ing each season in the U.S. Solo- mon receives compliments from daily newspaper critics seldom equalled in the musical profession. One reviewer said that Solomon has "a really beautiful touch, with- out a bang in it. His phrasing was exquisite and gracious . . . his technique wonderful in its free- dom, facility and clarity." Classic and Romantic The British pianist has searched deeply through the classic and romantic piano literature and is a master of the individual styles of composers in its complex fabric. He plays Brahms, Chopin, Haydn, Mozart, Debussy, Schumann and Liszt with fervor and devotion to the musical and emotional identity of each. His heart and brain, he says, have been directed to the output of the great ones whose worth is proven. "Contemporary composition has not impinged much on my con- sciousness, save as being interest- ing to hear and often to like," he confessed. "Some .day, perhaps, I will concentrate on performing some of it. But to date, I feel that my job is with the 'old masters'." i 04 The enthusiasm for the lilting arrangements of Mantno v ani spread first to England, then throughout the United Kingdom and on to the Continent. Mantovani's "New Music", which has established itself as a house- hold word all over the United Kingdom, free Europe, the U.S.A. and Canada came into being with the band-leader's first success, his arrangement of "Charmaine" which swept to the top of the U.S. Hit Parade in 1951. There have been few subsequent weeks in the past five years when a Mantovani arrangement was missing from this roster of favorites. Venetian-Born The Venetian-born musician came by his interest in music nat- urally, since his father was pro- fessor and a Gold Medalist at two Conservatories in his native Italy, and leader for Toscanini at Mi- lan's celebrated La Scala. Despite this and other distinc- itons, he was not anxious to see his son become a professional mu- sician, and wanted him instead to study engineering. However, Mantovani's interest in music had awakened; within four years of the time he first tackled a violin, Mantovani, whose father soon recognized his tre- mendous facility with the instru- ment, was in business for himself. Two years later he commenced his career as director of the salon orchestra at one of London's well- known hotels. Mantovani first began broad- casting in the late 'twenties; his nationwide fame throughout the British Isles began when he formed the Tipica Orchestra to play in London's most exclusive restaurant. After this celebrated establish- ment closed its doors, he turned to the variety and concert stage; meantime his recordings zoomed upward in popularity. The distinc- tive arrangements which put the emphasis on the strings, and the original scoring . he makes him- self, since he was thoroughly trained in music theory, counter- point and harmony, caught the public fancy both in the United States, in England and on the Continent. The sales of such Mantovani fa- vorites as "Charmaine," his sig- nature, "Wyoming," "Lovely Lady" and "Moulin Rouge" hit astron- omical heights. Composer As composer, he has written a number of compositions, most of them when he couldn't find something which already existed which suited the needs of his 40- piece orchestra. These have in- cluded a "Poem to the Moon" in the style of. Debussy, "Dance of the Eighth Veil," a "September Nocturne" for piano and orches- tra under his own name, his latest composition "Longing," and a long list of popular music under as- sorted pseudonyms. The most fa- miliar of these was "Cara Mia" which hit the top of Hit Parades on both sides of the Atlantic. Mantovani is politely interested in the success of his popular and semi-popular airs, but his real concern is for his own arrange- ments of his new music, all of which he has made himself in the past three years. "It's a good thing I can arrange, isn't it?" he asks, modestly proud of the fact that anybody can on first hearing spot one of his dis- tinctive recordings, with its sharp emphasis on the melody as per- formed by the string section. "The Italian-Britisher could be called the Andre Kostelanetz of England, for he specializes in lush sound and the sweet-and-swoon- ing treatment applied to familiar melodies. His orchestra of 45 is a well-drilled unit filled with tech- nically expert musicians." Thus summarized one music critic when speaking about Mantovani and his New Music. w oreturn stone Orchestras to tii RBERT CSASS, Piaist Ann Arbor TWO CONCERTS Monday, October 15 I I Choral Union Series ....: Wednesday, October 17 Extra Concert Series THE BOSTON SYPMHONY CHARLES MUNCH, Conductor Sunday, March 3 2:30 P.M. Fvtrn C nrinrrt SPripc ::