Prague Concert Life, 1850-1881

Event title:

Annual concert of the Prague Humanitarian Musical Society

Venue: Žofín Island (Žofín Hall)

Event type: Art music culture

Date: 20/05/1860

Programme of 10 items, including:

General participants:
  • Music Institute of Celestin Müller [Humanitarian Music Society]: pupil(s) of institute
  • unspecified orchestra of Karel Komzák: participating orchestra
WEBER, Carl Maria von : Overture Jubel-Ouvertüre, E major, op.59, J245
GRIEBEL, ? : Variations for oboe [and orchestra], ob, [orch]
     • Müller, Celestin : ob
MÜLLER, Celestin : unspecified work for oboe, ob, [orch/ pf?]
     • Müller, Celestin : ob
UNSPECIFIED, ? : unspecified works for piano, or multiple pianos, pf
     • Turnerová, Antonina : pf Vlčková, Klementina : pf
UNSPECIFIED, ? : unspecified vocal works, v
     • Wahleová, Berta : v Wahleová, Olga : v

Commentary:

The Dalibor 1/6/1860 review, signed ‘-k.’, of this event reported that ‘On 20th May there took place in the Žofín Hall the annual concert of the Humanitarian Music Society under the directorship of Mr Cölestin Müller. The programme contained ten numbers, of which most were by German composers. Mr Komsak’s [Komzák] orchestra performed Weber’s “Jásací ouvertura” with commendable success and he showed himself in this concert to be a sturdy [statný] conductor. Among the piano pupils we heard Miss A. Turnerová and C. Vlčková, who satisfied, as students, the expectations of the audience. Of satisfactory accomplishment... were the sister singers Berta and Olga Wahle [Wahleová]. As usual, the director of the Society himself participated, performing awkward variations for oboe and orchestra by Gabriel as well as a composition of his own. The individual numbers received vociferous applause from the numerously assembled audience and the success of the concert was greatly obvious [hlučný - lit. noisy, loud, raucous].’


Exactly who was conducting this the orchestra and concertante items in this concert cannot be clearly ascertained from the above source. Although the Dalibor source states this was the ‘annual concert of the Humanitarian Music Society under the directorship of Mr Cölestin Müller [odbýval... výroční koncert humanistického spolku hudebního pod ředitelstvím p. Cölestina Müllera]’, this is ambiguous given that Müller was himself the director [ředitel] of that Society and does not necessarily mean that he was director of the actual occasion. The text then goes on to note that ‘Mr Komsak’s [Komzák] orchestra performed Weber’s “Jásací ouvertura” with commendable success and he showed himself in this concert to be a sturdy [statný] conductor [Páně Komsakův orchestr provedl... a osvědčil se v koncertech co statný ředitel.’ The latter may possibly refer to Komzák’s personal participation - he often conducted his ensemble in such events - or equally to Müller.


Summary of sources:

Dalibor, hudební časopis s měsíční notovou přílohou (01/06/1860)