• Prague Conservatory: participating orchestra, orch

 News of this event, including a detailed programme, was published on 15/3/1860 in identically worded paragraphs by all four of Prague’s German-language daily newspapers. The text noted that this concert was not taking place on Saturday 17th ‘as had previously been announced’ [presumably by the Conservatoire], but on Sunday 18th. Dalibor 10/3/1860 also reported that the event was to be on 17th March at 12 noon, and included a programme differing in detail from that subsequently advertised on 15/3/1860, and from the actual performance as noted by the various reviews. Although this earlier Dalibor report announced that Ferdinand David was to appear in the concert as a guest, the work he was to perform was described only as a ‘Composition for violin’. Participating too in the concert was to be the ’cellist David Popper, who would perform his own Souvenir de Petersburg. Ultimately, Popper did not appear in the programme, and we might suppose that his absence had some connection with the change in date of the production.

The Dalibor 20/3/1860 review considered the concert to have been ‘magnificent.’ Little specific comment was made concerning the actual music; Rubinstein’s substantial [although undoubtedly being given in its earlier four movement version] Ocean Symphony was thought ‘spirited’, and the sixteen year old Šebor’s Overture was ‘skilfully worked but not wholly original’. Interestingly, the review did not record that this work was conducted by its young composer. Only David’s violin playing inspired a detailed critique, ‘Mr David has a moderately great tone, remarkably beautiful piano and pianissimo, a fully expressive performance of cantilena, and considerable agility, in short: Mr David is a virtuoso of the old school. However, in his playing we espied the bad habit of some modern virtuosi - his intolerable grimacing. We do not love virtuosi who when playing stand immovably like a marble statue; but to see a live „Perpetuum mobile“, whose grimaces have to point out to us the difficulties of works, is for each aesthete enormous, horrible [theatrical] play-acting. [He] played Viotti’s Concerto in A minor and Variations on the Russian song “Sarafan” with deep feeling and expression.’ Concerning the other soloists in the concert, the ‘Pupils on the horn Vitovský and Nemanský performed a Divertissement by Kalivoda accurately and skilfully, and provided proof of the excellent [teaching] method of Professor Janatka. Miss Ottilie Bubnova (alto) sang the aria of Leonore from the opera Templáři na Cypru [La Favorita] fittingly and expressively; her voice in its lower range is however indistinct [‘jaksi zahalen’ lit. misty, veiled]. The pupils of the institute and Director Kittl were [curtain-]called.’

The Bohemia 19/3/1860 review, signed ‘V.’, similarly considered the concert to have been ‘a brilliant success. The performance of an overture from the pen of an instrumentalist-pupil under his own direction brought for its composer a triple ovation. Rubinstein’s Symphony, which was played by the youthful orchestra with total precision and verve, gained exceptional applause and resulted in an ovation for the director, Mr Kittl. The particular highlight of the concert though was the participation of Mr Ferd. David, Concertmaster and Professor from Leipzig.’ After noting that the soloist justifiably enjoyed a reputation of ranking among the most celebrated individuals in the contemporary world of art, the critic proceeded to enthuse about his performance. ‘The beauty of his tone, the spotlessness of the execution and the ardent lyricism actively reminds of Molique, in artistry and amazing viruosity the sole representative of the great German ... line of schooling [deriving from ] Clement.’ During David’s performance of the concerto by Viotti he was noted to have inspired stormy applause. Following the Variations the soloist received ‘12 or 14’ ovations and then gave as an encore ‘an exorbitant piece without accompaniment’, which the critic noted was by Ign. Moscheles. The text concluded with the note that this concert belonged to the most interesting events of the year’s concert season.

The Der Tagesbote 19/3/1860 and Prager Zeitung 21/3/1860 reviews similarly praised David’s performance. However, these two texts commented in more detail about the other works given in the concert and in particular about the two instrumental items. Neither was uncritical about Rubinstein’s Symphony, being given in Prague for the first time.  

The composition by Šebor was his Overture to Schiller’s play Wallensteins Tod. Two instrumental parts, signed and respectively dated ‘18. März 186[0?]’ and ‘18 ¹⁸/₃ 60’ by Conservatory pupils who would have played in the orchestra giving this concert exist in the archive of the Department of Music of the Moravian Museum in Brno, catalogue number A.21.526. The description of the work published by the Prager Morgenpost review noting that the Overture contained a faster Allegro in G minor confirms too the identity of the composition.