31 MAY 1851, Page 11

The sixth Philharmonic concert, on Monday, was the best and

the most crowded of the season ; the great influx of visitors in addition to the sub- scribers having, no-doubt, been in some measure due to the excellence of the programme. This excellence did not consist in novelty : the two sym- phonies, Mozart's tenth and Beethoven's fourth, are familiar to every ama- teur ; but, as played here, their freshness never fades. The.overtures, in like manner, were two well-known works of Spahr and Mendelssohn. Nor did the vocal music contain-anything-new, yet it pleased everybody. Pisehek sang the great aria from - Feast, "Liebe ist the zarte Bliithe," better than we ever heard him sing before. One of the gems of Mozart, the "Come seoglio " from Cosi fan tutte, lost none of its lustre in the bands of Madame Castellon; and these two singers gave the duet from Mehul's Joseph with great simplicity and feeling. The only novelties were the two instrumental solos. Haumann's vio- lin performance was unanimously pronounced a failure ; and yet the vio- linistie of good repute—twelve years ago he appeared at the Philliarmo- nim and all the principal concerts, with general approbation. Bottesini's concertino on the double bass was, an astounding display of diabolical exe- cution, united to the higher qualities of tone, style, and expression : Bottesini is undoubtedly, beyond comparison, the greatest instrumentalist of the day. Among the other musical performances of the time, the chief place is due to. the Musical Union and the Beethoven Quartet Society ; the one, as our musical readers knew, conducted by Mr. Ella, the other by M. Rousselot. They arc almost identical in their Qbject—the best possible execution of the most classical instrumental music; for the Beethoven Society does not confine itself exclusively to Beethoven. At the Musical Union several new performers have appeared ; amongst them, Mentor, a violoncellist, from Munich, and Panes, a pianist, from Vienna,—both great masters of their instruments. At the Beethoven Society, the at- traction has been the exquisite quartet-playing of Sivori. Itiadame Puzzi had-a crowded morning concert in the Opera Concert- room on- Monday, at which all the stars of Her Majesty's Theatre assisted. On Wednesday morning, Mr. W. Holmes, the well-known and ex-

eellent pianist, had a new opera of his composition performed concert,- fashion—the only way nowadays in which an English oomposer can bring a dramatic piece before the public. But the performance was so exceed- ingly lame, that it. was quite impossible to form any opinion of the work So executed, it necessarily was as flat as possible ; and Mr. Holmes must have put himself to a good deal of expense to no purpose.