Advance news of Knina’s concert appeared in a report published by Dalibor 23/12/1858, and in the Tageskalender of Bohemia 26/12/1858.

Bohemia 27/12/1858 announced that due to lack of space a report on this concert would be published in the following day’s issue. However, the text noted that the event ‘was well attended.’ The review, by the newspaper’s regular correspondent ‘V.’, did appear the next day and was scathing in its criticism of Knina. The critic held that as was often found with such young and inexperienced virtuosi Knina was excessively ambitious and over-confident, both in his choice of programme and in his ability to execute satisfactorily the works he performed. His playing was thought to have been brutal in force, faulty in application of the pedal, modest in nuance, perplexing in tempi and lacking in clarity and accuracy. The performance of none of the pieces given by Knina was specifically described, the critic asserting that such comment would be gratuitous in presenting evidence of the faults of the pianist already outlined.

The Dalibor 30/12/1858 review, signed ‘R.’, was more charitable, remarking that although Knina possessed an able technique, strong touch and great boldness, ‘we found [his] performance wanting in spirit, feeling and deep understanding, and even precision in some passages.’ Of the other soloists in this concert, the performances by František Bauš and Josef Schrott were ‘very praiseworthy’, while ‘Miss J. Nejedá [Nejedlá] with her weak voice sang songs by Gumbert and Tsischen with success.’ Interestingly, the critic of the Bohemia 28/12/1858 review specified that the composers of the songs were ‘Herbert and Thiesen’. These seem unlikely to be accurate given that no composer named Herbert can be identified from this period. Gumbert, however, was a prolific and extremely popular composer of Lieder.