• LASNER, Ignaz: soloist, vc

Tagesbote aus Böhmen 8/4/1857 published news of this event, reporting that: ‘The violoncellist Mr Ignaz Lasner arranges on Easter Tuesday at 4.30pm in the Hall of the [Hotel] Archduke Stephan a concert. Mrs Rohrbeck will perform a humorous declamation in the Austrian dialect especially arranged for this concert: „Lassen Sie’s gehn“.’ An account, signed ‘-h.’, of this event was published by Tagesbote aus Böhmen 15/4/1857. The correspondent was critical about Lasner’s performance, sarcastically referring to the ‘sublime character of his playing’ in which the disparity of tuning between himself and  the accompanying orchestra sometimes amounted to a semitone. The works that he performed where not identified, undoubtedly a further snub to the ’cellist by the critic. The audience was described as ‘not too big for the very small... Hall. The intermediate numbers of the concert, the what might be appropriately termed „Recovery Numbers [Erholungsnummern]“ comprised vocal and piano pieces. Mr Freny performed with nuanced and tasteful singing a Lied by Marschner, Mr Fékter the first aria of Ottavio, for which the character of his voice with its minimal capability for a slight piano is wanting, and then with better luck the pretty song „Vor der Thüre sitzt der Pflanzer“ by Mrs Wawra [Vávra], after which he added an Hungarian folksong with his own accompaniment. The piano player, Miss Holub, combines the strength and solidity of technique that characterizes the school of Proksch with her own individual merits of vigour and clarity. She played an Idylle, „Auf der Alm“, and participated in a Variations for piano, ’cello and violin, in which Mr Wischera from the Estates Theatre orchestra very accurately in sound and skill performed the latter part. The programmed declamations [to have been give] by the ladies Allram and Rohrbeck, including „Lassen Sie’s gehen“ so pertinent to the concert-giver and his ‘artistic’- journey [„Kunst“-Reisen]’. Evidently in this last remark the critic was referring ironically to what was perceived to be Lasner’s limited artistic ability.