BRITISII CONCERTS.
THE third of these concerts was given on Monday evening. A very excellent hand was assembled, although the principal desks were not occupied by the perlirmers Who usually fill them ; MORI being the leader, and J. H. GRIEHACH the conductor for the night. The principal instrumental pieces were, a Sinibilia by LucAs. and Overtures by BENNErr and the Conductor. These had all about an equal degree of merit; mid may fairly be denomi- nated respectable efits at instrumental composition,—the praise of' good arrangement rather than original thought being properly their due. A very pleasing Pianoforte Concerto, by JOHN FIELD, was well played by Miss C. CALK! N and one for the trumpet, of great difficulty,. mastered by HARPER. Of the vocal music, little can be said in commendation. It consisted chiefly of songs; the first of which—written by H. WESTROP, and rather an instru-
mental than a vocal composition— was immediately followed by another, on the same subject, of no striking feature, though agree-
ably sung by Miss TURPIN. The Duet from a MS. Oratorio by J. H. GRIENHACH, was but insipid, and ill sung. The song of the least pretence, and by far the most pleasing vocal composition of the evening, was a ballad by PARRY, very sweetly sung by his
son ; whom we were happy to see in improsed health and voice, after Isis Italian tour. The Obligate Violoncello Accompaniment
was beautifully played by LUCAS, in which he happily ridiculed
the absurdity of thrusting in long and impertii.ent cadenzas, by the exhibition of six different and some elaborate ones into an air of simple melody : the last was a well-conceived, ironical hit; and,
we hope, was understood as it was undoubtedly intended. The only concerted piec..s were BARNETT'S very beautiful Trio from the Mountain Sylph, and WALMISLEY'S Glee, " I wish to tune my
quivering lyre." Much as we admire the former of these, it must be regarded as rather out of -place in a caneert-room, the dra- matic effect being wholly lost; nor was it politic to exhibit there a performance of it so very inferior to that which we had lately heard at the Lyceum. The glee was not sustained by singers at all accustomed to that class of vocal writing, and suffered accordingly.
Our opinion of the exclusive principle by which these concerts are governed, is confirmed by the performance of this evening ; and if any Continental professor were thence to deduce his opinion of the power and merits of the English school, we should blush for our country. All the compositions of its greatest masters were
excluded from the scheme, which contained only a single piece
recognizable as of that class; for even WALMISLEY'S (effective as it is) can scarcely be termed a genuine glee. The warmest advo-
cate of the exclusive principle must allow that the performance of Monday night was only a succession of ineffectual attempts to follow the track of the Continental writers, and exhibited, therefore, a discreditable imitation of the conduct of those who make it a test of patriotism here to drink the stuff ealled British bnindy, and in France to demand protection for French iron. The proper prin- ciple is to take from every country those comtnodities in the pro- duction of which nature or art have enabled it to excel. In music, some of these are of home growth, and some of Continental : gather then from both, liberally, freely, judiciously.
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