by Laurel | January 10th, 2014
10 Jan 1925
Claire Dux
Theater Magazine, 1922
Famous Soprano Gives Recital With Many Pleasing Numbers
Holyoke, January 9 — Claire Dux, soprano, one of the more recent of European celebrities to win fame in this country, gave a beautiful recital here tonight when she gave the second concert in the series under the direction of the Holyoke Music Club, The Chamber of Commerce and Mount Holyoke College. Claire Dux has been making an unusually extended concert tour that has taker her from court to court and through both South and North , and everywhere her success has been great and inundate.
This is not to be wondered at, for she has used the qualities that go to make a successful artist; a lovely voice, full, warm and widely expressive, a rich musical intelligence and a charming personality.
Tonight’s program began with a beautiful group in Italian: “Voi che Sapete,” by Mozart, “Preghiere,” by Gordigiani and another Mozart aria “Deh Vieni.” her singing of all these was lovely, far removed indeed from the severe classical tradition, yet classically simple in its fresh, smooth beauty. “Voi che Sapete,” in particular was a piece of work long to be remembered.
Equally beautiful was the fine Schubert group which followed, beginning with “Du Bist Die Ruh,” followed by so lovely and sparkling a performance of “Wohln,” that it had to be repeated, with “The Youth and the Brook,” and “Ave Maria” Making up the group. This last song in particular displayed her remarkable beautiful use of pianissimo.
The important aria of the concert was the beautiful and seldom heard “Cavatine de Leila” from Bizet’s “Pearl Fishers,” which though admirably done, yet hardly made so deep an impression as the final French group which followed. “Dearest Night,” by Bachelet, “Serenata Francese,” by Leoncavallo, and a Breton folk song, “The Ways of the World,” arranged by Deems Taylor, were widely varied and all delightful. She concluded her program with an equally pleasing group of songs in English, “Charming Chloe,” by Gorman, a really charming thing; The brilliant “I Would We Were a Song,” by Geoffrey O’Hara immediately repeated in response to the enthusiasm, the lovely Mexican folk song, “Little Star” and Densmore’s “Spring Fancy.”
In addition to the printed program there were many delightful encores which included the old English pastorale by Carey “Airy Fairy Pipers,” by Brush, exquisitely sung, a German lullaby, “Si mi Chiamano Mimi” from “Bohème,” Rimsky Korsakoff’s “Song of India,” one of the gems of the evening, and Hagemann’s “At the Well” for a finale.
To listen to the voice of Claire Dux, the following YouTube video (which is audio only) will help:
From The Springfield Republican.
Public domain image from Wiki Commons.
