NEWCASTLE'S MUSICAL HERITAGE AN INTRODUCTION By ...

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CHAPTER EIGHT THE PEOPLE’S CONCERTS William Rea was anything but a musical snob. If we take his Weekly Popular Concerts, which were held amongst other reasons for the moral and social elevation of the masses we can see that his aim was to bring music to everyone and he was given an opportunity to do this through the People’s Concerts that were started in Newcastle in 1881. The idea of having concerts for the ordinary people, was not Rea’s alone, concerts for the people was a concept that had been around since the 1840s in England and Europe, but it needed someone to stir the Newcastle Town Council into action and I suspect that that someone was William Rea. However, the whole question of People’s Concerts remained a controversial issue so far as the Council was concerned; whilst some members were in favour others were not and this was best summed up in 1908 by one member of the Council, who said that when he joined the Council, three years earlier, he had been astounded at the ludicrous spirit in which the Council had viewed the subject. It was a farce and seemed that the concerts were being carried out as the fad of one individual or individuals. The Council, however, were quick to take the credit at the early stages when the idea proved to be a success. But for the full inside story we need to delve into the Minutes of the Council Committee Meetings for the period 1880 – 1920. On the 18 th June 1880 a Musical Committee was convened by the Council to consider information submitted from various boroughs where organ recitals and other performances were held. After careful consideration it was unanimously agreed that the present arrangements with Mr Rea were unsatisfactory and that they should go for more popular musical performances in the Town Hall. Mr Rea was invited to put forward his views in writing as to the manner in which the public of Newcastle could be provided with more attractive music and how it should be arranged. It was subsequently agreed that he should have free use of the Town Hall Concert Rooms and Organ for a certain number of evenings for popular concerts, which the Council would control. Mr Rea would organise things but he would still remain the Council Organist. <strong>By</strong> 1882 the concerts were up and running. They proved successful and showed a profit. At this stage the Council thought it appropriate to thank the Musical Committee chairman for the great zeal he had displayed in inaugurating and carrying on so successfully the Saturday Evening Corporation Concerts (as they were known at that time) which had proved a source of so much enjoyment to all classes of the community. All on the committee agreed. The concert series were subject to approval each year by the committee but otherwise Mr Rea did everything and it all ran smoothly under his 48
direction. That is until 1888 when he was told in so many words by the committee not to anticipate their approval but to curtail his enthusiasm and await the committee’s instructions. That same month Mr Rea tendered his resignation from the Council’ employment, which was accepted by the Council. The committee concluded that in the circumstances he ‘could not be had’ for the Peoples Concerts and they appointed Mr Hirschmann, who ran a piano shop in town. Up to 1890 the concerts were still in credit, but by 1892 it was noticed that artists fees were exceeding expenses and one Council member complained that exorbitant prices were being paid for professional artists. (More than one Amateur Society had bankrupted itself over professional artists fees) and the committee became divided as to the continuance of the concert series. One source of contention was that the Music in the Park’s Committee had creamed off the profits made at the People’s Concerts to pay for Sunday band concerts in public parks. <strong>By</strong> 1896 full blown committee rows were taking place with the anticoncert lobby pointing out that several large rate payers made their living out of giving concerts and the Corporation had no right to take away their source of livelihood by giving cheap concerts subsidised from local taxes. The pro-concert lobby pointed out that the Council had a duty to make brighter and better lives for the people they represented and that there were hundreds of causes in Newcastle where they were spending money for which in one sense they got no return. It was further pointed out that private enterprise in Newcastle had so far done nothing for the musical education of the Newcastle people (resounding Hear! Hear!) and it was the People’s Concerts that had stirred public enterprise to do its duty. Parallels were drawn with Leeds and Birmingham and it was pointed out that prior to the introduction of the People’s Concerts in Newcastle there had been the same second-rate class of concert from year’s end to year’s end. This was not entirely true but it was make or break time. Fortunately the decision was in favour of the concerts continuing for another season at least. The debt continued to rise, however, and in 1903 an unnamed public benefactor sent a cheque for a substantial sum to help reduce the deficit but it only made matters worse. The committee chairman accepted it but the Mayor was livid and considered it humiliating. He said the Council could not possibly accept and instructed the City Treasurer to give it back .to the Gentleman concerned. Further heated discussions over finance ensued but in the end reason prevailed with one member pointing out that the Council should provide ‘good’ music for the public to elevate and educate the people and if they didn’t they would simply find themselves in competition with the music halls, A dissenting voice countered with, ‘the poorer people for whom these concerts were originally intended are no longer attending and those that are, are better off and could afford to pay more’ And so the arguments went on and the concert seasons continued but there was that feeling in the air that perhaps they had outlived their purpose. However, like all public institutions once established it proves more difficult to do away with them. Committee meetings became ever stormier with one councillor even invoking the British Empire in his oration when 49
Page 1 and 2: NEWCASTLE’S MUSICAL HERITAGE AN I
Page 3 and 4: A History of Music in Newcastle upo
Page 5 and 6: my project with a professional man,
Page 7 and 8: then even in the villages for music
Page 9 and 10: CHAPTER TWO CHARLES AVISON Charles
Page 11 and 12: given in Newcastle. They were held
Page 13 and 14: easoned defences and the citation o
Page 15 and 16: that he is saddened at the transito
Page 17 and 18: men sought Royal Patronage, popular
Page 19 and 20: Avison and began playing the violin
Page 21 and 22: musical dramatist, his arias are st
Page 23 and 24: features, Hawdon’s compositions i
Page 25 and 26: two music academies listed in the D
Page 27 and 28: An ootlandish chap seun appeared on
Page 29 and 30: CHAPTER FIVE THE GRAND MUSIC FESTIV
Page 31 and 32: to Handel Oratorios and I suspect t
Page 33 and 34: CHAPTER SIX THE HARMONIC SOCIETY In
Page 35 and 36: would also have been audience parti
Page 37 and 38: 1826. According to Mackenzie’s 18
Page 39 and 40: successful, such as (once again!) H
Page 41 and 42: CHAPTER SEVEN DR WILLIAM REA I had
Page 43 and 44: exclusive civilised affairs, with t
Page 45 and 46: although I can find no evidence tha
Page 47: In a cemetery now largely overgrown
Page 51 and 52: acceptable standards and he got out
Page 53 and 54: century at least the divide between
Page 55 and 56: the Swedish Nightingale, Jenny Lind
Page 57 and 58: Musical Comedy as we came to know i
Page 59 and 60: In 1887 Augustus Harris took over t
Page 61 and 62: eat, drink or smoke whilst the ente
Page 63 and 64: disposal a substantial orchestra un
Page 65 and 66: only the finest artists. The printe
Page 67 and 68: Cesar Franck. One novel feature int
Page 69 and 70: especially for these bands and they
Page 71 and 72: playing, coupled with the means of
Page 73 and 74: that continued until 1914. One of t
Page 75 and 76: thought of performing with a bunch
Page 77 and 78: She danced a full programme of well
Page 79 and 80: The appearance in Newcastle of Enri
Page 81 and 82: Renaissance. His teaching staff wer
Page 83 and 84: Music at 125 Northumberland Street,
Page 85 and 86: There is surely no need to insist -
Page 87 and 88: alone limited attendance at these c
Page 89 and 90: 1936: 17 th June. There had been a
Page 91 and 92: CHAPTER FOURTEEN END OF A GOLDEN AG
Page 93 and 94: the fact that the town did not have
Page 95 and 96: iography, Hess’ biographer, who c
Page 97 and 98: CHAPTER FIFTEEN CULTURE AT A PRICE
Page 99 and 100:
London Symphony and the Halle Orche
Page 101 and 102:
high at this period and the audienc
Page 103 and 104:
audience (who had already paid for
Page 105 and 106:
deterioration into a musical backwa
Page 107 and 108:
work cut out convincing the local c
Page 109 and 110:
country. Amers died in 1936 and God
Page 111 and 112:
Author’s Note Since completing th
Page 113 and 114:
Select Bibliography Anderton, H.O.,
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