Advance news of this event first appeared in identical reports published by Prager Zeitung and Bohemia 17/11/1850. This related that on Thursday 21st November in the Žofín Hall the Cecilia Society would perform for the first time [in Prague] the complete music to Mendelssohn’s Antigone. The concert performance would include interval readings by Christian Küssner. Declamations in the work itself were to be given by Mr Fischer (by permission of the Theatre director Hoffmann), and Mr Lukow. The solo vocal parts would be sung by the members of the Cecilia Society: Peták; Nowak [Novák]; Klaus and Nedwěd [Nedvěd]. Although not specified by this source, the event would have been conducted by the Society’s director, Antonín Apt.

The Tagesanzeiger texts of Bohemia 19/11/1850 and 21/11/1850 listed the date, time, venue and work to be performed by the Cecilia Society.

A substantial article and review, signed ‘V.’, of this performance of Antigone was published over two issues of the newspaper Bohemia, on 24/11/1850 and 26/11/1850. The earlier text began with an outline of the Cecilia Society itself, in the wake of a report published by the body on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of its foundation. This report was noted to give ‘various and interesting dates’ in the activities of this society of music friends, which although modest in resources had gradually achieved ‘by no means trivial results.’ Its productions were ‘most of the time’ critically considered to be of a good standard; it had an autonomous, independent orchestra; the reviewer drew attention to the interest of its programmes with their performance of both older works (citing for example ‘many Beethoven numbers, Spohr oratorios and Gluck opera fragments), and of novelties such as by F. David, Marschner, Eichner, Riess, and most recently Mendelssohn’s Athalia. Concerning the choice of Antigone, the correspondent reported that this was related to the desire of the local theatre directorate to give the whole of Sophocles’s tragedy, but had in the past been unable to do so. Mendelssohn’s ‘highly interesting’ incidental music was being given for the first time in Prague, and the Society being equipped with a ‘plentiful’ choir was deemed to be more satisfactory than could have been accomplished in the local theatre.

The second part of the Bohemia review, published on 26/11/1850, focussed specifically upon the fundamental character of the play and of Mendelssohn’s music. Considerable attention was given firstly to the contrasting philosophy and inherent style of such a play of ‘Classical antiquity’ when set alongside modern Christian and Romantic art. Music was deemed to be the only means by which the two could be merged or might be reconciled. Thus, for example, rhythms could derive from the metre of the original text. This was noted to have been done by C. Loewe in his lyrical but not very substantial Hebrew Songs. Mendelssohn’s composition also utilized this technique, and was adjudged to constitute a setting of genius of Sophocles’s play. Various numbers of the incidental music were enthusiastically praised and described in detail. The critic recounted that the full auditorium received the composition with appropriate ‘reverence and attention’, and the performance ‘turned out so well’, marking a ‘so successful beginning’ to the second decade of the Society’s activity. The choruses were ‘splendidly rehearsed’ and accurate, despite the challenging nature of the composer’s masterful writing in the difficult declamatory sections, and the voices of the solo quartet were described as beautiful. Of the orchestra’s playing only the strings were thought to have suffered ‘here and there’ a certain unevenness. To the success of the performance ‘contributed not a little’ Miss Frey, Mr Fischer and Mr Lukow. The Bacchus Chorus was encored.