PETERSFIELD.
HARMONIC SOCIETY.—This society gave its public entertainment on Friday evening, the 9th inst., in the National school rooms, to a very large and respectable audience, containing most of the elite of Petersfield and the neighbourhood, and we are happy to say that the performance was completely successful, and gave unqualified satisfaction, if we may judge from the hearty rounds of applause which greeted the performers upon the conclusion of every piece, as well as the reiterated encore. When the performance was concluded, our excellent rector, the Rev. J. M. Sumner, rose and said he thought it would be neither proper nor becoming if the audience would separate without returning their best thanks to the Petersfield Harmonic Society for the rich treat they had experienced from it. The successful debut of the Society must have been very gratifying to the president, Mr. H. Nichols, who has always shown such a warm interest in their progress.
Hampshire Chronicle - Saturday 17 April 1858
PETERSFIELD.—On Friday evening, the 9th inst., the Harmonic Society of this town gave a vocal and instrumental entertainment at the National Schools, which drew together the largest assemblage ever seen in these spacious rooms—a fact which augurs well for the charms which music possesses for the million, as well as for the connoisseur. The Society has not long been established, and we can but congratulate it on this its successful début, by which it has unquestionably won the favourable opinion and good feeling of the public, for in no instance have we heard other than words of commendation and praise. It has been established for the cultivation of, and consequently improvement in, music—that ‟divine art,” which never created a bad feeling in the breast of mortal, and is so calculated to exalt and refine man in his ideas and feelings, and intros Society it gives many an hour’s gratification to all engaged in it—which might, perhaps, be spent in a less elevating manner. But to the evening’s entertainment—it consisted of three parts, the first sacred, the two following secular, the whole under the direction of Mr. Finley, (organist of the parish church), who opened by playing a very choice piece from Rink, on the Harmonium, with much feeling and delicacy of expression; then followed anthems and choruses from Handel. The chorus from Judas Maccabeus, ‟We come in bright array,” did not go at all satisfactorily, which was mainly owing to the unsteady accompaniment of the band, which jeopardised the whole piece; they must endeavour to rub off this rust by practice, ere they can appear in ‟bright array.” The best piece in this division was Kent’s ‟Blessed be thou,” which was very nicely rendered indeed. The second part opened by the instrumentalists playing the ‟Cameroonian Quadrilles,” which they did in a highly satisfactory manner, then followed the pretty fairy glee by Stevens, from ‟Oberon,” next we had a song by Mr. Hemsley, who sang it so nicely that he was awarded an encore. We cannot take the programme seriatim, but we must notice the charming and mirthful terzetto by Martini, ‟Vadasi via de qua,” englished by ‟Come merry hearts be free,” which was so excellently given that the audience was convulsed with laughter, and the singers for their pains were put to the pleasure of singing it again. The band commenced the third part by playing the ‟Bonnie Dundee Quadrilles,” which we could plainly see not only entered the ears of the fairer portion of the audience, but also communicated an electric shock to their ‟light fantastic toes,” and, doubtless, had there been space they would have found partners here more readily than they do in the cold calculating world. Lord Mornington’s glee, ‟Here in cool grot,” was not so well given as we could have wished, and we would recommend the executants to use a little more precision in their enunciation. Mr. Hemsley sang another song, and met with a similar reception and a similar reward, for doing it so well he had to do it again. ‟Winds gently whisper” was charmingly sung, not so the ‟Red Cross Knight,” which was quite mediocre. ‟God save the Queen,” concluded one of the nicest meetings we have had in our town for some time. We do hope that the Society will prosper, and not be content with this display of its abilities, for we feel sure it can attain, as it needs, a much greater degree of proficiency. After the concert was concluded, the rector, the Rev. J. M. Sumner, addressed a few words to the company expressive of the pleasure which all must have felt in listening to the musical treat which the Harmonic Society had so kindly provided for them, and hoped that the Society might go on and prosper.