1813-1862 in Belfast;
the 1862 Belfast Musical Festival;
and the Ulster Hall Organ
the 1862 Belfast Musical Festival;
Introduction
There was no immediate follow-up to the 1813 Belfast Musical Festival in terms of music-making in the town.
The Anacreontic Society was formed in 1814, but its status was more akin to that of a private gentlemen’s club than a public concert-giving promoter.
For the first 15 years or so of its existence, the
Anacreontic Society made little real impact on the musical life of the
town.
There continued to be Benefit Nights in the Theatre and concerts by occasional visiting artists.
The Anacreontic Society's orchestra, led by Vincenzo Guerini, played for the French pianist Kalkbrenner's visit to the Exchange Rooms in 1824.
Other artists preferred the new Commercial Buildings, which opened opposite the Exchange Rooms in 1820.
Things began to change in the 1830s once the Anacreontic Society had sealed a deal with the Belfast Savings' Bank to create a large music room on the first floor of the Bank's new premises in King Street.
The building was completed in 1829, providing a space for the Society's rehearsals and occasional concerts.
There continued to be Benefit Nights in the Theatre and concerts by occasional visiting artists.
The Anacreontic Society's orchestra, led by Vincenzo Guerini, played for the French pianist Kalkbrenner's visit to the Exchange Rooms in 1824.
Other artists preferred the new Commercial Buildings, which opened opposite the Exchange Rooms in 1820.
Things began to change in the 1830s once the Anacreontic Society had sealed a deal with the Belfast Savings' Bank to create a large music room on the first floor of the Bank's new premises in King Street.
The building was completed in 1829, providing a space for the Society's rehearsals and occasional concerts.
Photo of the Belfast Savings' Bank (now demolished), courtesy of the Glenravel Local History Project.
Paganini in Belfast, 1831
Signor Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840) visited Belfast in October 1831, having arrived in Dublin at the end of August and toured south-east Ireland before returning to Dublin on 7 October and then travelling to Belfast, en route for Scotland.
Paganini gave two concerts in Belfast’s Theatre and one in the
ballroom of the Commercial Buildings, and then left for Scotland on 12
October.
Also in the concert party were the soprano Signora Costanza Pietralia and the pianist Pio Cianchettini (an English-born nephew of the pianist and composer Dussek).
Also in the concert party were the soprano Signora Costanza Pietralia and the pianist Pio Cianchettini (an English-born nephew of the pianist and composer Dussek).
LH pic: Portrait of Niccolò Paganini, 1831, by Eugène Delacroix (1798 – 1863). Original in the Phillips Collection Washington DC.
The Belfast-printed playbill for the Grand Concert in the Theatre on Saturday evening, 8 October 1831, lists the programme as:
Above: Lithograph, c.1820, by Karl Bégas (1794-1854).
Part I.
Fantasia - Grand Piano Forte (extempore) Pio Cianchettini.
Aria ‘Una Voce poco fa’ - Signora Pietralia - Rossini.
Preludio e Rondo, with accompaniment, composed and performed by
Signor Paganini.
Aria ‘Ah s’estinto’, Signora Pietralia - Mercadante.
Capriccio ‘Il Carnivale di Venezia’ composed and performed by
Signor Paganini.
Part II.
Fantasia - Grand Piano Forte, Pio Cianchettini.
Cavatina ‘Mi vien da ridere’ - Signora Pietralia - Pavesi.
Sonata Sentimentale on the ‘Preghiera’ in ‘Pietro L'Ereminta’ composed and performed on One String (the Fourth) by
Signor Paganini.
Aria ‘Di tanti palpiti’ - Signora Pietralia - Rossini.
Variazioni sul Tema ‘Nel cor piu’ composed and performed by
Signor Paganini.
Conductor Pio Cianchettini.
Fantasia - Grand Piano Forte (extempore) Pio Cianchettini.
Aria ‘Una Voce poco fa’ - Signora Pietralia - Rossini.
Preludio e Rondo, with accompaniment, composed and performed by
Signor Paganini.
Aria ‘Ah s’estinto’, Signora Pietralia - Mercadante.
Capriccio ‘Il Carnivale di Venezia’ composed and performed by
Signor Paganini.
Part II.
Fantasia - Grand Piano Forte, Pio Cianchettini.
Cavatina ‘Mi vien da ridere’ - Signora Pietralia - Pavesi.
Sonata Sentimentale on the ‘Preghiera’ in ‘Pietro L'Ereminta’ composed and performed on One String (the Fourth) by
Signor Paganini.
Aria ‘Di tanti palpiti’ - Signora Pietralia - Rossini.
Variazioni sul Tema ‘Nel cor piu’ composed and performed by
Signor Paganini.
Conductor Pio Cianchettini.
RH pic: Original playbill from the Royal Academy of Music collection.
The following recollection of Paganini’s Belfast concert appeared in the Belfast News-Letter on Friday, 15 November 1844.
‘… [Paganini] arrived in Belfast, where appreciation and reward soon showered upon him; the greatest excitement prevailed, and, though the prices of the Theatre were raised to double the usual cost, it was full to overflowing … crammed to excess …
‘He came in and approached the footlights, with his fiddle loosely dangling in his hand – his face pale and wan – his hair long, lank, and black, and his appearance altogether was startling and unearthly. He seemed to have come from some dark and unknown region … for his shrunk and attenuated frame insinuated a long absence from the elements of human sustenance.
‘But, though in every other respect he seemed cold and motionless, when the time came, he took his firm-fixed and commanding stand, threw his instrument to its position, and applied his long bow to the strings, which at once uttered a marvellous concord of sweet, impassioned, and soul-stirring sounds …
‘His features were still cold, ashy, and frozen, and neither the strong burning lights, nor the plaudits of the audience, could relax their rigidity. … His bow was of unusual length …
‘He returns with only one string (the fourth) to his violin, which may be said to combine and contain his very soul, and on which he is to play, to make his last appeal and parting claim to immortality.
‘He came in and approached the footlights, with his fiddle loosely dangling in his hand – his face pale and wan – his hair long, lank, and black, and his appearance altogether was startling and unearthly. He seemed to have come from some dark and unknown region … for his shrunk and attenuated frame insinuated a long absence from the elements of human sustenance.
‘But, though in every other respect he seemed cold and motionless, when the time came, he took his firm-fixed and commanding stand, threw his instrument to its position, and applied his long bow to the strings, which at once uttered a marvellous concord of sweet, impassioned, and soul-stirring sounds …
‘His features were still cold, ashy, and frozen, and neither the strong burning lights, nor the plaudits of the audience, could relax their rigidity. … His bow was of unusual length …
‘He returns with only one string (the fourth) to his violin, which may be said to combine and contain his very soul, and on which he is to play, to make his last appeal and parting claim to immortality.
‘The whole house was spell-bound, and death-like silence pervaded throughout … A pale, faint smile was seen to play on his lips and spread a gentle influence on his face. A slight but stiff inclination of the body, indicative of his sensibility of the deafening applause he received – and he disappeared.’
The full text of the Recollection is available in this PDF:
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Belfast’s new Music Hall, 1840
As the town of Belfast increased in size, eventually there was a need for a larger concert venue and the Anacreontic Society built the Music Hall in May Street to a design by the architect Thomas Jackson (1807-1890). He also designed the Old Museum in College Square North, the Town Hall in Victoria Street and St Malachy’s Church with its fine Strawberry Hill Gothic fan-vaulting.
The 1861 Belfast Street Directory, reporting on Literary and other Institutions, recorded that:
‘The Anacreontic, which is the oldest [of the two Musical Societies in Belfast], gives its private rehearsals and public concerts in its own building, the Music Hall, a handsome Doric edifice in May Street.’
On Thursday evening, 26 March 1840, there was a Grand Opening Concert in the Music Hall, featuring three singers, one being the very young Catherine Hayes (1825-1861).
The orchestra of ‘Eminent Professors, and also several distinguished Amateurs, from a distance, together with the whole Musical strength of the Anacreontic Society’ opened proceedings with Cherubini’s Overture Anacreon, ended the first part with Weber's Overture Der Freischütz, and framed the second half with movements from Beethoven’s Second Symphony. The conductor was James Thompson May.
The Music Hall, seating around 550, quickly became the main venue for concerts. One major drawback however was the lack of an organ.
‘The Anacreontic, which is the oldest [of the two Musical Societies in Belfast], gives its private rehearsals and public concerts in its own building, the Music Hall, a handsome Doric edifice in May Street.’
On Thursday evening, 26 March 1840, there was a Grand Opening Concert in the Music Hall, featuring three singers, one being the very young Catherine Hayes (1825-1861).
The orchestra of ‘Eminent Professors, and also several distinguished Amateurs, from a distance, together with the whole Musical strength of the Anacreontic Society’ opened proceedings with Cherubini’s Overture Anacreon, ended the first part with Weber's Overture Der Freischütz, and framed the second half with movements from Beethoven’s Second Symphony. The conductor was James Thompson May.
The Music Hall, seating around 550, quickly became the main venue for concerts. One major drawback however was the lack of an organ.
Note: The Music Hall was eventually renamed the Victoria Memorial Hall, but only from around 1917. I’ve found no corroborating evidence to support the oft-quoted belief that it became the Victoria Memorial Hall in 1887 for the golden jubilee of Queen Victoria (see notes at the end of this section). Perhaps that was a confusion with the Queen Victoria Memorial Hall and Schools (foundation stone laid in October 1895) connected with Christ Church, Durham Street.
Nor should it be confused with the
Victoria Hall in Victoria Street (see 1855 below).
The Music Hall, May Street, in 1983 (demolished thereafter).
© Photo copyright Albert Bridge and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
For a great photo of the Music Hall, probably dating from the late 1860s or early 1870s, see In Belfast Town - early photographs from the Lawrence Collection, Brian M. Walker and Hugh Dixon, The Friar’s Bush Press, Belfast, 1984.
The same collection has a picture of the new Ulster Hall, probably taken around 1864 - certainly before the building of the adjacent Bryson House.
The same collection has a picture of the new Ulster Hall, probably taken around 1864 - certainly before the building of the adjacent Bryson House.
From the Belfast News-Letter, 6 March 1840 Belfast New Music Hall
‘The music room is particularly deserving of admiration. It is … decidedly superior to any of the kind in Ireland, … an ornament to the town …
‘The elevations partake of the Grecian character, or, perhaps, more properly, the Italio-Grecian, the columns being after the example of the Ionic Temple on the Ilissus, near Athens, and the members and mouldings being also Grecian; …
‘The elevations partake of the Grecian character, or, perhaps, more properly, the Italio-Grecian, the columns being after the example of the Ionic Temple on the Ilissus, near Athens, and the members and mouldings being also Grecian; …
‘The Building contains the Music Hall, or Concert-room, which is 70 feet long, 35 wide, and 30 high; with a gallery of 16 feet wide, situated over the grand stair-case, making the entire length inside 86 feet.
‘The Concert-room is approached from May-street through a commodious hall, having a stair-case 15 feet wide … The Concert-room is to be lighted by a magnificent chandelier, in the centre, as well as by auxiliary ones of smaller dimensions
‘Immediately under the Concert-room is a Supper-room, … connected by three pair of folding doors with a Committee-room … so that the whole may be thrown into one, forming a room … suitable for public meetings, dinners, etc.
‘The Concert-room is approached from May-street through a commodious hall, having a stair-case 15 feet wide … The Concert-room is to be lighted by a magnificent chandelier, in the centre, as well as by auxiliary ones of smaller dimensions
‘Immediately under the Concert-room is a Supper-room, … connected by three pair of folding doors with a Committee-room … so that the whole may be thrown into one, forming a room … suitable for public meetings, dinners, etc.
RH pic of the Music Hall is from the 1855 edition of Belfast & its environs: or, Stranger’s Guide; with a map of the city.
‘Under these rooms, a large kitchen is provided, with spacious cooking apparatus, and accommodations for a porter and his family, to take charge of the building, leaving a very extensive cellar, suitable for a bonded store, wine vaults, or any such purpose, having a separate gate of entrance from the Stable-lane. …
‘The building is of a very great height, yet appears to stand remarkably well. The situation was most unfavourable, having been the site of an old river, which formerly ran in that direction; but every precaution has been taken to render the foundation secure, as far as possible.
‘The working drawings, and specifications were furnished, and the erection of the building superintended, by Mr Thomas Jackson, Architect, 20, Waring-street; … The building was erected by Mr. P. Lundy, Builder, Joy-street, … ’
‘The building is of a very great height, yet appears to stand remarkably well. The situation was most unfavourable, having been the site of an old river, which formerly ran in that direction; but every precaution has been taken to render the foundation secure, as far as possible.
‘The working drawings, and specifications were furnished, and the erection of the building superintended, by Mr Thomas Jackson, Architect, 20, Waring-street; … The building was erected by Mr. P. Lundy, Builder, Joy-street, … ’
Note: Thomas Jackson (1807–90) designed the Old Museum in College Square North in partnership with Thomas Duff of Newry in 1830-31. Jackson eventually set up in business on his own and his work included the Music Hall, St Malachy’s Church, the Scottish Amicable Life Assurance Company’s building (later owned by G. Heyn & Sons), and many Victorian mansions including Wilmont House, Graymount House and Craigavon House.
Full article from the Belfast News-Letter, Friday, 6 March 1840, as a downloadable PDF:
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Footnote: I know this is jumping ahead in the time machine, but on Wednesday 18 October 1882 a large meeting, chaired by John Blakiston-Houston DL of Orangefield House, was held in the Music Hall. The members of the Ulster Constitutional Union voted to amalgamate with the Ulster Constitutional Club.
A subsequent meeting that same day resolved that the Club should purchase the Music Hall to use for social and political purposes. The Northern Whig, Friday 1 June 1883 reported that ‘architectural plans for somewhat extensive renovations are now being executed on the Music Hall for the the use of the club ... The upper or third floor, which constitutes the Music Hall proper, will remain in its present form ...’
And so, with the building renovations completed, Sir Stafford Northcote (1818-1887), the Tory leader in the House of Commons, declared the new Ulster Constitutional Club open on Wednesday 3 October 1883.
The occasion was captured pictorially in these two illustrations (interior and exterior) published in The Graphic, Saturday 13 October 1883, page 361.
My thanks to Ken Jordan for pointing me in the direction of the above 19th century illustrations.
Ken Jordan also took the photograph on the right, showing the building during demolition in September 1983. A sad occasion. Belfast seems all too happy to demolish its more interesting and historic buildings.
The photograph is particularly good for illustrating the different internal levels as described in the Belfast News-Letter article above: the Concert Room at the top, the Supper and Committee Rooms below, and, in the basement, the Kitchen, Porter’s family accommodation and the Wine Cellar.
Just to complete this potted history of the Music Hall’s
demise, it’s worth noting that, masquerading as the Ulster
Constitutional Club, it had a very short life.
There’s also a really fine photograph taken by Robert Welch (1859-1936) of the building, likely around 1885-87. It’s in the collection of the National Museums NI and can be viewed here.
Late in 1886, it was sold by auction with a note that ‘these extensive and central premises, lately occupied by the CONSTITUTIONAL CLUB, and formerly known as THE MUSIC HALL, MAY STREET, [are] held for ever at the small annual rent of £27 ... The Premises are in first-rate order, a large sum of money having been recently spent upon them.’ (Northern Whig, Saturday 13 November 1886, page 1).
It was purchased by the CIYMS and by March 1887 was mentioned in advertisements as the Church of Ireland Young Men’s Society Memorial Hall (late the Music Hall), May Street. One year later it was simply the Memorial Hall, May Street.
Later, in succession, it was rented by John Griffiths’ Cycling Corporation as a school for instruction in the art of riding (Jan 1897), and by the City of Belfast Gymnasium offering Ladies’ and Children’s Afternoon Classes and Ladies’ Night Classes (1903).
I’ve only found it entitled ‘Victoria Memorial Hall’ in newspapers from 1917 onwards when it was used for missionary conferences and Brethren church services.
Liszt in Belfast, 1841
Franz Liszt (1811-1886) advertised a single concert in Belfast’s new Music Hall on 15 January 1841 with Lewis Henry Lavenu (1818-1859) conducting.
Liszt shared the platform with three singers (22 year old Mary Steele, 17 year old Louisa Bassano, and 30 year old Welsh tenor John Orlando Parry) and the “Principal Flautist at the Philharmonic Concerts”, 26 year old Joseph Richardson.
This concert was part of a financially disastrous tour arranged by Lavenu which covered Liverpool, Ireland (including Dublin, Cork and smaller towns) and Scotland between November 1840 and January 1841.
Belfast was the last stop on the Irish tour before the party departed for Portpatrick in Scotland from Donaghadee on Sunday afternoon, 17 January.
The Belfast concert was only half full, an audience of 200 – a result of cold weather and, as Roy Johnston has pointed out (in The Piano in Nineteenth Century British Culture, Ashgate, 2007), the arrival in Belfast the following day of Daniel O’Connell with all the worries of potential trouble (the Belfast garrison had been reinforced from Dublin to counter the expected street violence).
This concert was part of a financially disastrous tour arranged by Lavenu which covered Liverpool, Ireland (including Dublin, Cork and smaller towns) and Scotland between November 1840 and January 1841.
Belfast was the last stop on the Irish tour before the party departed for Portpatrick in Scotland from Donaghadee on Sunday afternoon, 17 January.
The Belfast concert was only half full, an audience of 200 – a result of cold weather and, as Roy Johnston has pointed out (in The Piano in Nineteenth Century British Culture, Ashgate, 2007), the arrival in Belfast the following day of Daniel O’Connell with all the worries of potential trouble (the Belfast garrison had been reinforced from Dublin to counter the expected street violence).
Above: Liszt in the concert hall, 1842, after a drawing by Theodor Hosemann (1807-1875). © Klassik Stiftung Weimar.
Liszt, aged 47 -
a photograph by Franz Hanfstaengl, Munich, 1858.
a photograph by Franz Hanfstaengl, Munich, 1858.
RH column: from the Northern Whig, 9 January 1841.
Similar types of miscellany concerts were presented by other visiting stars including the Irish soprano Catherine Hayes, the tenor Sims Reeves, soprano Giulia Grisi and her tenor husband Giovanni Matteo Mario (simply known as 'Mario') and the bass Luigi Lablache.
From the Belfast News-Letter, Friday 2 September 1842:
ITALIAN OPERA — CONCERT TO-MORROW EVENING.
We need hardly remind our friends that the unequalled and
unrivalled vocalists, who compose the company of the
Italian Opera in London, Madam Grisi, Lablache, Mario,
etc., etc., will give their grand concert to-morrow evening,
in the Music-Hall. As we have already said, so we now
repeat, that a similar opportunity may, in all probability,
never again present itself to the inhabitants of Belfast,
of witnessing such an array of combined musical talent,
and of hearing the performances of the most celebrated
artistes of the present day.
We need hardly remind our friends that the unequalled and
unrivalled vocalists, who compose the company of the
Italian Opera in London, Madam Grisi, Lablache, Mario,
etc., etc., will give their grand concert to-morrow evening,
in the Music-Hall. As we have already said, so we now
repeat, that a similar opportunity may, in all probability,
never again present itself to the inhabitants of Belfast,
of witnessing such an array of combined musical talent,
and of hearing the performances of the most celebrated
artistes of the present day.
LH pic: An 1844 lithograph portrait of the Italian soprano Giulia Grisi (1811-1869) as Adalgisa in Bellini's Norma, a role she created in 1831.
Belfast Classical Harmonists’ Society and the Victoria Hall
Another major development in the town’s musical life was the founding in December 1851 of the Belfast Classical Harmonists’ Society which rode high on the wave of oratorio, then all the fashion.
Under its conductor, William Vipond Barry, a Cork man and pupil of Liszt, this Society (according to the 1861 Belfast Street Directory) “was established for the express purpose of disseminating a taste for vocal music, of a refined description among the general community … It has a large number of members.”
Under its conductor, William Vipond Barry, a Cork man and pupil of Liszt, this Society (according to the 1861 Belfast Street Directory) “was established for the express purpose of disseminating a taste for vocal music, of a refined description among the general community … It has a large number of members.”
From the Belfast News-Letter, Monday 24 January 1853
THE SOCIETY’S FIRST DRESS CONCERT this Season will take place in the MUSIC HALL, on WEDNESDAY Evening, 2nd February, on which occasion selections from the great choral works of Beethoven, Mozart, Mendelssohn, &c, will be performed by a chorus of nearly 100 performers.
Mr. BARRY will also perform a grand Pianoforte Concerto, and other works, which will be heard in public for the first time in Belfast.
The Belfast Classical Harmonists’ Society.
SECOND SEASON.
President – The Earl of BELFAST.
SECOND SEASON.
President – The Earl of BELFAST.
THE SOCIETY’S FIRST DRESS CONCERT this Season will take place in the MUSIC HALL, on WEDNESDAY Evening, 2nd February, on which occasion selections from the great choral works of Beethoven, Mozart, Mendelssohn, &c, will be performed by a chorus of nearly 100 performers.
Mr. BARRY will also perform a grand Pianoforte Concerto, and other works, which will be heard in public for the first time in Belfast.
Director – Mr. W. V. BARRY.
Orchestral Conductor – Herr GRANT.
Orchestral Conductor – Herr GRANT.
Tickets and Programmes to be had from Mrs. HART, Castle Place; Mr. COFFEY, High Street;
and the Secretary, Mr. H. CINNAMOND, Castle Place.
and the Secretary, Mr. H. CINNAMOND, Castle Place.
Reserved Seats, 4s; Body of Hall, 2s; Gallery, 1s.
Doors open at a Quarter past SEVEN; Concert to commence at EIGHT o’clock.
Doors open at a Quarter past SEVEN; Concert to commence at EIGHT o’clock.
As early in its existence as 1854, audiences were outgrowing the Music Hall and the Classical Harmonists moved to the Victoria Hall on the second floor of 20 Victoria Street, adjacent to Queen’s Square where the Albert Clock would be built a decade later.
The Society even bought an organ for this hall, giving an organ inauguration concert in March 1855.
The Society even bought an organ for this hall, giving an organ inauguration concert in March 1855.
Read more about the hall’s new organ, its organists - and more - in this PDF:
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RH pic: This corner building is the home of the Victoria Hall (on the second floor), though perhaps with some artistic licence. The artist is looking from High Street towards the River Lagan with the soon-to-be built Albert Memorial Clock just out off shot on the left of the picture.
The pic is a detail from a drawing by W.J. Barre of his planned Albert Memorial Clock. The original, in colour, is in the Ulster Museum.
The pic is a detail from a drawing by W.J. Barre of his planned Albert Memorial Clock. The original, in colour, is in the Ulster Museum.
Above pic: This detail from a 19th century photograph (courtesy of Rushlight Magazine) is a more realistic portrayal of the Victoria Hall, looking diagonally from Custom House Square, past the Albert Memorial Clock.
It’s the building to the right of the foreground lamppost with the tall windows on the second floor.
It’s the building to the right of the foreground lamppost with the tall windows on the second floor.
LH pic: The Victoria Hall on the corner adjacent to the Albert Clock in 1922, revealing that Barre's drawing was accurate enough in its depiction of the windows.
Below pic: A postcard (Morris & Co, Liverpool) from before 1916 (when it was sent) of the Albert Memorial, Belfast. The Victoria Hall is on the right.
The Victoria Hall was where Jullien brought his orchestra in the second half of the 1850s and where, in 1859, Jenny Lind, the Swedish Nightingale, with her husband, the pianist Otto Goldschmidt, and the violinist Joseph Joachim gave two evening concerts and a charity matinée.
Jenny Lind in 1820.
Belfast News-Letter, Thursday 1 November 1855
CLASSICAL HARMONISTS’ SOCIETY.
GRAND DRESS CONCERT.
GRAND DRESS CONCERT.
Commemorative of the late Earl of Belfast, and in aid
of the General Hospital.
UNDER THE IMMEDIATE PATRONAGE OF
HIS EXCELLENCY THE LORD LIEUTENANT.
President.
Lord DUFFERIN AND CLANDEBOYE.
Conductor.
Mr. W. V. BARRY.
THE COMMITTEE HAVE THE PLEASURE
of announcing , that a GRAND DRESS CONCERT
will be held, in the SOCIETY’S MUSIC-HALL,
VICTORIA STREET, on FRIDAY Evening,
2nd November, at which the following distinguished
Artistes will assist:—
Mr. CHARLES HALLE, Pianist;
Miss RANSFOND, Soprano;
Mr.TENNANT, Tenor;
Mr. LODER;
Mr.SALA.
Mr. SALA will read an Ode, composed expressly
for this occasion, by Denis Florence M’Carthy,
Esq,. The Society will perform in Male Chorus, as
originally inaugurated by their late President; and
a Grand Duo, for Two Pianos, composed by the late
Earl of BELFAST, will be performed by Mr. HALLE
and Mr. BARRY, at the express desire of the
Marchioness of Donegall.
Doors open at Seven o’clock;
Concert to commence at Eight.
Tickets, numbered and reserved, 5s.
Plans of the Hall can be seen at Messrs. COFFEY’S
and HART’S, where places can be secured.
Carriages to set down with Horses’ heads towards
Ann Street.
HENRY CINNAMOND, Hon. Sec.
Belfast News-Letter, Tuesday 22 January 1856
MONS. JULLIEN’S GRAND VOCAL AND ORCHESTRAL CONCERT.
The concert given by M. Jullien last night, in the Victoria Hall, was altogether a brilliant and successful one. The attendance, as might have been anticipated, was most numerous and fashionable, the reserved seats being occupied by many of the gentry of the town and the surrounding districts, including numbers who came from a considerable distance to hear the famous band of the facile princeps of orchestral effect.
The reserved seats were carefully ticketed … No more tickets than represented the number whom the Hall would conveniently hold were issued, and this judicious precaution – which, we understand, was suggested by M. Jullien himself – prevented the pleasure of the entertainment from being marred by undue crushing and squeezing, and the other “ills which flesh is heir to.”
The performance was such as might be expected from the unrivalled talent of this celebrated corps musicale.
Nothing could surpass the perfection … The music was richly varied by the imitative description of composition and sound – including echoes, the voices of birds, the ringing of bells, the pealing of trumpets &c., ...
The only vocal performer engaged was Madame Rosetta Gassier … though the orchestral accompaniment was extremely full and loud, her voice soared above the roar of the instruments as clear as if it was the only sound which was heard. It drew down immense applause, and the lady was again encored.
Frederick Richard Chichester, the Earl of Belfast (born 1827), died of scarlet fever at Naples on 11 February 1853. He was a poet, novelist and composer.
Along with the Grand Duo, his other compositions included the Rita Waltz, “published for the benefit of the destitute Irish”, 1847; Souvenir de Cowes – Deux Nocturnes: [No 1] Le Calme de la mer, [No 2] Regret de l’absence; possibly 1845; and Third Nocturne: La Reverie, 1847.
Along with the Grand Duo, his other compositions included the Rita Waltz, “published for the benefit of the destitute Irish”, 1847; Souvenir de Cowes – Deux Nocturnes: [No 1] Le Calme de la mer, [No 2] Regret de l’absence; possibly 1845; and Third Nocturne: La Reverie, 1847.
LH pic: Detail from "Statue of the late Earl of Belfast", an engraving by R.A. Artlett from the statue by F. MacDowell RA.
The Ulster Hall, 1862
Throughout these years, Belfast’s population continued to grow and grow, thanks mainly to the cotton and linen industries. In 1800 Belfast had a population (in round figures) of just 20,000. By 1815 it was 30,000. By 1831 it was 53,000; 1841 – 70,000; 1851 – 87,000; 1861 – 121,000.
Now more industrial and prosperous than ever, Belfast was increasingly aware of its responsibilities. A need was identified for a new venue, corresponding to the civic halls in many other towns and cities in Great Britain. The hall should accommodate large-scale balls and offer music to the working classes at a very low admission price.
The Ulster Hall Company was formed, including representatives from the Anacreontic Society and the Classical Harmonists. A prospectus was published in 1859, shares were issued and a competition held for the design of the new hall.
Out of 43 entrants, the chosen winner was the Newry-born
architect William Joseph (or sometimes James) Barre (1830-1867), who,
four years later, would also design Bryson House, adjacent to the Ulster
Hall.
In 1865 Barre won another design competition, this time for the Albert Memorial Clock.
In 1865 Barre won another design competition, this time for the Albert Memorial Clock.
LH pic: W.J. Barre
Belfast News-Letter, Friday 26 October 1860
Last night, the first subscription concert of the season, in connexion with the above flourishing society, took place in the Victoria Hall. The assemblage was an exceedingly brilliant one.
Every seat in the body of the hall was occupied, and the galleries were crowded to excess. The complaints of defective ventilation were very general, and if the Classical Harmonists are resolved to bring together such audiences in the Victoria Hall, it seems essential that some means should be taken to give a larger supply of fresh air, and to render the heat less oppressive than it was last night. A few open windows only serve to give colds to those who happen to sit near them, and, at any rate, that is not the way in which adequate ventilation can be best secured.
The society nobly maintained its reputation and the object for which it was founded in the selection of the programme of last night’s concert [Handel’s Acis and Galatea, followed by a ‘miscellaneous selection’ including a cantata by the conductor, G.B. Allen, various songs, a trumpet solo, a concertina solo, etc.] ...
CLASSICAL HARMONISTS’ SOCIETY’S CONCERT.
Last night, the first subscription concert of the season, in connexion with the above flourishing society, took place in the Victoria Hall. The assemblage was an exceedingly brilliant one.
Every seat in the body of the hall was occupied, and the galleries were crowded to excess. The complaints of defective ventilation were very general, and if the Classical Harmonists are resolved to bring together such audiences in the Victoria Hall, it seems essential that some means should be taken to give a larger supply of fresh air, and to render the heat less oppressive than it was last night. A few open windows only serve to give colds to those who happen to sit near them, and, at any rate, that is not the way in which adequate ventilation can be best secured.
The society nobly maintained its reputation and the object for which it was founded in the selection of the programme of last night’s concert [Handel’s Acis and Galatea, followed by a ‘miscellaneous selection’ including a cantata by the conductor, G.B. Allen, various songs, a trumpet solo, a concertina solo, etc.] ...
Belfast News-Letter, Friday 1 March 1861
The grand concert given by the Classical Harmonists’ Society, last evening, attracted an audience which filled the Victoria Hall to its utmost limits, and if the stewards could have solved the problem of putting two bodies into the same space, they would have found an ample field for the display of their talents.
All the inconveniences of entrance and exit were, of course, felt to the very utmost; and many a fervent wish was uttered that the Ulster Hall might soon be ready to receive its occupants.
Of the concert itself, Madame Catherine Hayes was of course, the central figure, and her singing fully justified the great expectations of the audience. The selections made for her were ample and diversified, and her talents had great scope for display …
THE CLASSICAL HARMONISTS’ SOCIETY
MADAME CATHERINE HAYES
The grand concert given by the Classical Harmonists’ Society, last evening, attracted an audience which filled the Victoria Hall to its utmost limits, and if the stewards could have solved the problem of putting two bodies into the same space, they would have found an ample field for the display of their talents.
All the inconveniences of entrance and exit were, of course, felt to the very utmost; and many a fervent wish was uttered that the Ulster Hall might soon be ready to receive its occupants.
Of the concert itself, Madame Catherine Hayes was of course, the central figure, and her singing fully justified the great expectations of the audience. The selections made for her were ample and diversified, and her talents had great scope for display …
LH Pic: Catherine Hayes (1818-1861), London c.1850.
Courtesy of Basil Walsh, author of Catherine Hayes: The Hibernian Prima Donna, Irish Academic Press, 2000.
Courtesy of Basil Walsh, author of Catherine Hayes: The Hibernian Prima Donna, Irish Academic Press, 2000.
The Ulster Hall couldn't come soon enough. But it was worth waiting for.
The Belfast Street Directory for 1861 reported:
"The Ulster Hall Company have now in course of erection, in Bedford Street, a splendid and spacious building, intended to provide accommodation for audiences numbering from 2,000 to 3,000 persons, and suited, as well for concerts on a large scale as for exhibitions of art, public dinners, balls, meetings for legitimate purposes, &c."
The Belfast Street Directory for 1861 reported:
"The Ulster Hall Company have now in course of erection, in Bedford Street, a splendid and spacious building, intended to provide accommodation for audiences numbering from 2,000 to 3,000 persons, and suited, as well for concerts on a large scale as for exhibitions of art, public dinners, balls, meetings for legitimate purposes, &c."
Charles Brett, in his Buildings of Belfast (1967, revised 1985), described Barre’s Ulster Hall exterior as "rather lumpish and elephantine", while the inside was "airy and dignified, though it lacks the sparkle Barre envisaged".
And sparkle it certainly lacked. Funds had dried up, and so, quoting Brett, "much of the ornament was omitted on grounds of economy". The interior walls were simply given a coat of whitewash.
Below is Barre's colour drawing of how he envisaged the Hall. But do see the wonderful photograph of how its interior actually looked c.1863. That photo from the National Library of Ireland's Lawrence Collection is farther down this page.
Below is Barre's colour drawing of how he envisaged the Hall. But do see the wonderful photograph of how its interior actually looked c.1863. That photo from the National Library of Ireland's Lawrence Collection is farther down this page.
RH pic: Interior of the Ulster Hall, Belfast -
Architectural Perspective (1862) by W.J. Barre
© National Museums Northern Ireland Collection Ulster Museum
Architectural Perspective (1862) by W.J. Barre
© National Museums Northern Ireland Collection Ulster Museum
Opening concerts, Ulster Hall, May 1862
Excitement was building and, probably much to the relief of the Ulster Hall Company and its shareholders, a new grand organ had been promised from an anonymous benefactor.
However, it would not be ready in time for the opening concerts.
The Classical Harmonists' Society came to the rescue and its Victoria Hall organ was transported to the Ulster Hall.
However, it would not be ready in time for the opening concerts.
The Classical Harmonists' Society came to the rescue and its Victoria Hall organ was transported to the Ulster Hall.
The plan was for a right royal event. On Friday 13 December 1861 (Friday 13th - not an auspicious date!), the Belfast News-Letter carried this announcement:
THE NEW ULSTER HALL – The Opening Concerts under the Patronage of Her Majesty.
The Secretary to the Classical Harmonists' Society, Mr. Dunn, has just received from Lord Dufferin, President of the Society, the following communication: –
"Highgate, Dec. 9, 1861.
“Sir – I am happy to be able to inform you that Her Majesty, the Prince Consort, and the Prince of Wales, have been good enough to consent to patronise the concerts you contemplate giving on the occasion of the opening of the New Ulster Hall at Belfast. – I have the honour to be your obedient servant,
“DUFFERIN.”
The Secretary to the Classical Harmonists' Society, Mr. Dunn, has just received from Lord Dufferin, President of the Society, the following communication: –
"Highgate, Dec. 9, 1861.
“Sir – I am happy to be able to inform you that Her Majesty, the Prince Consort, and the Prince of Wales, have been good enough to consent to patronise the concerts you contemplate giving on the occasion of the opening of the New Ulster Hall at Belfast. – I have the honour to be your obedient servant,
“DUFFERIN.”
That was not to be. The next day, the Prince Consort, Prince Albert, died.
LH pic: Advertisements in the Belfast News-Letter of 2 May 1862 for the opening concerts in the new Ulster Hall.
From the Belfast News-Letter, Friday 2 May 1862
Opening of the Ulster Hall. – We are glad to learn that the first concerts to be given in this splendid building are likely to be the most successful in every respect that have ever taken place in the North of Ireland.
Yesterday was the first day for issuing reserved seat tickets for the performance of "The Messiah," on Monday evening, the 12th instant, and we understand that about 250 were then disposed of.
We would recommend our readers to make early application for their places, as there is a limit even to the capacity of this noble hall.
We observe by a letter in another column from Mr. Dunn, the secretary of the Classical Harmonists’ Society, that the special trains to Lisburn will run through to Armagh if there are forty passengers.
We have little doubt that there are more than this number of musical people in the County Armagh who will avail themselves of such an opportunity.
Opening of the Ulster Hall. – We are glad to learn that the first concerts to be given in this splendid building are likely to be the most successful in every respect that have ever taken place in the North of Ireland.
Yesterday was the first day for issuing reserved seat tickets for the performance of "The Messiah," on Monday evening, the 12th instant, and we understand that about 250 were then disposed of.
We would recommend our readers to make early application for their places, as there is a limit even to the capacity of this noble hall.
We observe by a letter in another column from Mr. Dunn, the secretary of the Classical Harmonists’ Society, that the special trains to Lisburn will run through to Armagh if there are forty passengers.
We have little doubt that there are more than this number of musical people in the County Armagh who will avail themselves of such an opportunity.
Quite apart
from the trains from Armagh and Lisburn, there was the problem of
co-ordinating all the horses and carriages on the night (parallels here with the first performance of Messiah in Dublin over a century earlier!).
And then there was the even greater problem of what to wear.
And then there was the even greater problem of what to wear.
Below: The important issue of morning dress - from the Belfast News-Letter, Thursday 8 May 1862.
Below: An advertisement from the Belfast News-Letter, Thursday 8 May 1862.
These concerts were clearly going to be highly fashionable.
Benjamin Hartley, of Magasin de Modes, 18 Castle Place, Belfast, advertised Ladies’ Opera Cloaks, Lace Shawls, Wreaths, Head-Dresses, Bouquets, etc., etc.
But what was on the programme for these grand concerts?
Sounds long? The Belfast News-Letter clearly thought so:
Benjamin Hartley, of Magasin de Modes, 18 Castle Place, Belfast, advertised Ladies’ Opera Cloaks, Lace Shawls, Wreaths, Head-Dresses, Bouquets, etc., etc.
But what was on the programme for these grand concerts?
- Monday 12 May was a performance of Handel’s Messiah.
- Tuesday 13 May was a performance of Weber’s Der Freischütz, along with a 'miscellaneous selection'.
'At half-past eleven, Herr Elmes began to play a violoncello solo, which was only too long, considering the hour; and Miss Whitham and Mr. Perren sang solos afterwards.
'Miss Whitham and Miss Moseley also sang the “Hear me, Norma,” duet; but, as it was already after midnight, there were many who were obliged to resist the temptation of listening to a charming performance. The concert closed with the National Anthem; and we congratulate the society and all who were concerned upon its great success.’
'Miss Whitham and Miss Moseley also sang the “Hear me, Norma,” duet; but, as it was already after midnight, there were many who were obliged to resist the temptation of listening to a charming performance. The concert closed with the National Anthem; and we congratulate the society and all who were concerned upon its great success.’
Nonetheless, the new Ulster Hall was deemed a great success.
The Belfast News-Letter described it in great detail (see the complete article in the PDF below - well worth reading).
And there were certainly high hopes for the future:
The Belfast News-Letter described it in great detail (see the complete article in the PDF below - well worth reading).
And there were certainly high hopes for the future:
"... while Belfast is a busy mart of industry, the monotonous hum of the spinning-jenny and the continuous clack of the power-loom can be hushed to silence, in order that the rich and the poor, the manufacturer and the sons and daughters of toil, may meet together beneath the arched roof of the new Hall, to listen to sweeter sounds and more melodious strains than machinery can produce, and to spend there a few short hours of relaxation, pleasure, and enjoyment."
Right: Interior of the Ulster Hall from the Lawrence Collection, probably dating from c.1863 - certainly before the organ’s silver plaque recognising Mulholland’s munificence had been fitted.
Photograph used courtesy of The National Library of Ireland.
Note that the painting of the organ case remained more or less just so until the 2009 'restoration' when it was coated with a dark wood stain, making the instrument seem much bulkier in the hall.
Photograph used courtesy of The National Library of Ireland.
Note that the painting of the organ case remained more or less just so until the 2009 'restoration' when it was coated with a dark wood stain, making the instrument seem much bulkier in the hall.
Nor did the décor go unnoticed by the News Letter correspondent in 1862:
"The space between the windows, and at the same height around the walls
over the orchestra and the end gallery, has been beautified by numerous
figures, representing the shamrock, the harp, &c, as emblems of Erin
and its old bardic poetry. Over this again are masks which add to the
appearance of the whole. ... The hall itself was seen to the greatest advantage. The beautifully stuccoed roof, the spacious and handsome gallery, with its ornamental balustrade, and its graceful supporting metal pillars, and, at the further end, the orchestra and the organ, combined in the general effect ..."
And as can be seen from the photographs above and below, the hall’s lighting was innovative:
"In order to provide for the lighting of the Hall at night, twelve sun-lights have [been] placed in the ceiling, forming entirely 750 jets.
Beneath the gallery is also well lighted with gas, so that no portion of the house can be left wanting good light."
Beneath the gallery is also well lighted with gas, so that no portion of the house can be left wanting good light."
All thanks to a local company:
"The entire sun-lights in the Ulster Hall have been supplied and fitted-up by the Messrs. Musgrave, and on a greatly improved principle, which tends to add much to the ventilation of the hall by the consumption of air in the lights causing a free circulation of fresh air throughout the building. These sun-lights are also readily ignited in a manner wholly different from that of the lights in the Commercial Newsroom; the plan, which is exceedingly simple, having been recently introduced by the Messrs. Musgrave."
Crucially, the acoustic properties of the hall were deemed excellent:
"... its acoustic properties are admirable. It is easily filled by a note, which, even to those close to the platform, is not disagreeably loud; and there is not the faintest shadow of that spectre which is supposed to haunt the architects of concert halls – the Echo.
"The only drawback last night was the organ. The Classical Harmonists removed their organ thither from the Victoria Hall, but it looked rather small ... when the grand organ, which the munificence of an unknown friend has placed at the service of the directors, has been put up, the concerts that are given in the hall will be made much more effective."
The PDF below is a contemporary description of the new Ulster Hall.
The PDF below is a review of the opening concert on Monday 12 May 1862.
The PDF below is a review of the second concert on Tuesday 13 May 1862.
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Ulster Hall new building review BNL 13 May 1862.pdf Size : 119.829 Kb Type : pdf |
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Ulster Hall opening concert review 13.05.1862.pdf Size : 204.441 Kb Type : pdf |
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Ulster Hall second concert reviewed 14 May 1862.pdf Size : 136.479 Kb Type : pdf |
Left: One half of a stereo pair photograph dating c.1864 (Bryson House would fill the empty site on the left from 1865).
Photograph by courtesy of The National Library of Ireland.
Note the coat of arms aloft rather than the concrete shield featuring the red hand of Ulster. A cast-iron verandah was fitted to the front of the projecting porte-cochère by W.H. Lynn in 1882.
C.E.B. Brett, writing in his 1967 book, Buildings of Belfast, 1700-1914 (revised edition - Friar's Bush Press 1985), states: "[The Ulster Hall] was originally crowned by a rather pleasant coat of arms supported by the old deer and wolfhound of Ulster: in 1959 the loyal burgesses of Belfast rendered themselves ridiculous by removing this and replacing it by a crude concrete red hand, from which the paint is continually peeling."
Photograph by courtesy of The National Library of Ireland.
Note the coat of arms aloft rather than the concrete shield featuring the red hand of Ulster. A cast-iron verandah was fitted to the front of the projecting porte-cochère by W.H. Lynn in 1882.
C.E.B. Brett, writing in his 1967 book, Buildings of Belfast, 1700-1914 (revised edition - Friar's Bush Press 1985), states: "[The Ulster Hall] was originally crowned by a rather pleasant coat of arms supported by the old deer and wolfhound of Ulster: in 1959 the loyal burgesses of Belfast rendered themselves ridiculous by removing this and replacing it by a crude concrete red hand, from which the paint is continually peeling."
The Ulster Hall’s new organ from William Hill & Son
First things first: before the new Ulster Hall organ could be installed, the Classical Harmonists’ organ had to be sold.
Who bought it? Answers please!
From the Belfast News-Letter, Friday 18 July 1862
The mid-19th century was a time of great change in the development of the pipe organ in these islands. The all too gentle British-built organ, with its reliance on stops at the same basic 8’ pitch, was far removed from the highly-developed continental instruments which relied on choruses right up to mixtures, including on the pedals.
One of the most innovative builders was William Hill (1789-1870), who had worked for the organ builder Thomas Elliot and then gone into business with him in 1818, marrying Elliot’s daughter in 1825 and taking over the business on Elliot’s death in 1832.
In 1803, Elliot himself had taken over the former business of the great Swiss-born John Snetzler (1710-1785), one of the leading organ builders in Britain in the mid 18th century. Hence the tradition that Elliot and Hill were descended from Snetzler.
Snetzler had worked in Germany and Holland before moving to London. His instruments, for the record, included those of St Malachi’s Parish Church, Hillsborough (1772-3) and St Anne’s Parish Church in Belfast (1781).
Snetzler had worked in Germany and Holland before moving to London. His instruments, for the record, included those of St Malachi’s Parish Church, Hillsborough (1772-3) and St Anne’s Parish Church in Belfast (1781).
LH pic: William Hill, organ builder
Just as builders like William Hill were adopting the German approach of full choruses, there was the rise of the ‘modern’ 19th century development which sought for a more colourful mix of sounds, often equating to an imitation of orchestral instruments. This is particularly apparent in the organs of the French builder Cavaillé-Coll.
The Ulster Hall Company (or was it the mysterious organ benefactor?) commissioned William Hill and Son to build the new Ulster Hall organ. After all, the new hall itself emulated similar halls in some of the English cities and it was Hill who had built the large organ in Birmingham Town Hall in 1833-37.
Hill had had a quarter of a century to perfect this sort of town hall instrument, bringing together the traditions of historic German instruments with their complete choruses, and the more modern symphonic tradition of imitative instrumental stops.
Nicholas Thistlethwaite, writing in Grove Music Online, suggests that Hill’s mature work “is associated with a radical redesigning of the English organ, stimulated by a growing awareness of historic European schools of organ building, and a desire to provide an instrument suitable for the performance both of Bach and of the repertory of orchestral and choral transcriptions”.
Nicholas Thistlethwaite, writing in Grove Music Online, suggests that Hill’s mature work “is associated with a radical redesigning of the English organ, stimulated by a growing awareness of historic European schools of organ building, and a desire to provide an instrument suitable for the performance both of Bach and of the repertory of orchestral and choral transcriptions”.
The resulting four manual 1862 Ulster Hall organ was a great success. Christopher Nickol, writing in the Gramophone, September 2005, described it as having ‘a rich, singing “organo pleno” and more colour and charisma than 21st century instruments of similar size’.
Writing of William Hill’s work, Cecil Clutton describes it as standing "somewhere between the French and German organs of his day and this is why it - and the Ulster Hall organ outstandingly so - is remarkably versatile in almost all areas of the repertoire."
But the Belfast public had to wait for the 1862 Musical Festival to assess the new instrument and learn the name of the generous benefactor.
But the Belfast public had to wait for the 1862 Musical Festival to assess the new instrument and learn the name of the generous benefactor.
Andrew Mulholland and Dr. Chipp
The benefactor’s name was made clear in the newspapers some months before the celebratory Festival.
Belfast News-Letter, Saturday 2 August 1862
The Organ for the Ulster Hall.
It is now pretty generally known that the munificent donor of the grand instrument which is at present being manufactured by Messrs. Hill & Son, of London, for the Ulster Hall, is Andrew Mulholland, Esq.. D.L., J.P., Springvale.
The pleasing fact was communicated to the Board of Directors by their excellent and energetic chairman, W. T. B. Lyons, Esq, J.P., at the meeting of the Board on Thursday, and the Directors, as a slight acknowledgment of the princely gift, have ordered from Messrs. Hunt & Roskell, of London, a very beautiful silver plate, enriched with figures and appropriate devices, and which will bear the name of Mr. Mulholland upon it as the donor of the organ. This plate will be placed in a prominent position on the instrument, and will commemorate the munificence of the gentleman who has presented it to the Ulster Hall.
The Organ for the Ulster Hall.
It is now pretty generally known that the munificent donor of the grand instrument which is at present being manufactured by Messrs. Hill & Son, of London, for the Ulster Hall, is Andrew Mulholland, Esq.. D.L., J.P., Springvale.
The pleasing fact was communicated to the Board of Directors by their excellent and energetic chairman, W. T. B. Lyons, Esq, J.P., at the meeting of the Board on Thursday, and the Directors, as a slight acknowledgment of the princely gift, have ordered from Messrs. Hunt & Roskell, of London, a very beautiful silver plate, enriched with figures and appropriate devices, and which will bear the name of Mr. Mulholland upon it as the donor of the organ. This plate will be placed in a prominent position on the instrument, and will commemorate the munificence of the gentleman who has presented it to the Ulster Hall.
The Organ will be unquestionably the finest instrument in
this country, and will have every modern improvement, Mr. Mulholland
having selected the best and most costly instrument from amongst the
plans submitted to him.
The Directors have been fortunate enough to secure the services of an organist second to none in London – the well-known Dr. Chipp, with whose name and merits the musical public are well acquainted.
Dr. Chipp will arrive in Belfast in October, and superintend the erection of the organ, which, it is hoped, will he quite ready for a performance in December next. The Belfast public have certainly reason to congratulate themselves on being about to possess such a magnificent instrument, and to have a performer so well calculated to do it justice; and they will, we believe, have opportunities of hearing organ performances by Dr. Chipp once a week during the year.
The Directors have been fortunate enough to secure the services of an organist second to none in London – the well-known Dr. Chipp, with whose name and merits the musical public are well acquainted.
Dr. Chipp will arrive in Belfast in October, and superintend the erection of the organ, which, it is hoped, will he quite ready for a performance in December next. The Belfast public have certainly reason to congratulate themselves on being about to possess such a magnificent instrument, and to have a performer so well calculated to do it justice; and they will, we believe, have opportunities of hearing organ performances by Dr. Chipp once a week during the year.
Andrew Mulholland (1792-1866) was a former Mayor of Belfast, 1845/46.
Andrew’s father, Thomas Mulholland, had founded a thriving
cotton spinning business which, just at the right time, was converted
into a flax spinning business in 1823.
Andrew’s son, John Mulholland (1819-1895) was created 1st Baron Dunleath of Ballywalter in 1892.
It was Andrew’s great, great, grandson, Henry Mulholland, the 4th Baron Dunleath (1933-1993), a wonderful organ enthusiast, who oversaw the restoration of the Ulster Hall organ in 1976-78 by N.P. Mander Ltd.
Andrew’s son, John Mulholland (1819-1895) was created 1st Baron Dunleath of Ballywalter in 1892.
It was Andrew’s great, great, grandson, Henry Mulholland, the 4th Baron Dunleath (1933-1993), a wonderful organ enthusiast, who oversaw the restoration of the Ulster Hall organ in 1976-78 by N.P. Mander Ltd.
LH pic: Andrew Mulholland who paid for the Ulster Hall organ.
The Hunt & Roskell silver plate (pictured on the right) reads:
"Presented to the Ulster Hall Compy. by Andrew Mulholland Esqr. Spring Vale Decr. 1862"
Its decoration features supportive angels, harps and the Ulster coat of arms.
"Presented to the Ulster Hall Compy. by Andrew Mulholland Esqr. Spring Vale Decr. 1862"
Its decoration features supportive angels, harps and the Ulster coat of arms.
That newspaper report of Andrew Mulholland’s name and Chipp’s arrival in October was insufficient for some people.
The Musical World for 16 August 1862 reported:
The Musical World for 16 August 1862 reported:
Ulster Hall, Belfast … The new organ being built for the Hall by Hill is almost ready for erection; but as no announcement of the inaugural Festival is yet made, what are the directors about? – Your own Correspondent.
LH pic: Portrait of Andrew Mulholland Esq., from J. B. Doyle, Tours in Ulster: A Hand-book to the Antiquities and Scenery of the North of Ireland, Hodges and Smith, Dublin, 1854.
So, who was Dr. Chipp?
His father, Thomas Paul Chipp (1793-1870), was well-known in musical circles. Chipp sen. had been educated in the choir of Westminster Abbey and was a pupil of Clementi. He was noted as a distinguished performer on the harp, for which he wrote several popular pieces. In later life he was best known as a drummer, playing with all the main London orchestras for 53 years. He played at three coronations: of George IV, William IV, and Victoria.
Edmund Thomas Chipp (1823-1886), the organist, was the eldest of his two sons; the cellist Horatio Chipp (1827 - sometime after 1901) was the other son.
Sir George J. Elvey recorded that "in the earliest days of Queen Victoria’s reign, the Queen’s Band included such noted musicians as Sainton, Cusins, John Day, Dr. [Edmund] Chipp (afterwards of Ely), Horatio Chipp, Hardy, Hill, Weist Hill, Anderson, Cramer, and members of the Griesbach and Harpur families. They constantly assisted Mr. Elvey … a splendid orchestra …"
His father, Thomas Paul Chipp (1793-1870), was well-known in musical circles. Chipp sen. had been educated in the choir of Westminster Abbey and was a pupil of Clementi. He was noted as a distinguished performer on the harp, for which he wrote several popular pieces. In later life he was best known as a drummer, playing with all the main London orchestras for 53 years. He played at three coronations: of George IV, William IV, and Victoria.
Edmund Thomas Chipp (1823-1886), the organist, was the eldest of his two sons; the cellist Horatio Chipp (1827 - sometime after 1901) was the other son.
Sir George J. Elvey recorded that "in the earliest days of Queen Victoria’s reign, the Queen’s Band included such noted musicians as Sainton, Cusins, John Day, Dr. [Edmund] Chipp (afterwards of Ely), Horatio Chipp, Hardy, Hill, Weist Hill, Anderson, Cramer, and members of the Griesbach and Harpur families. They constantly assisted Mr. Elvey … a splendid orchestra …"
John E. West’s Cathedral Organists, Past and Present (1899) gives this resumé of Dr. Edmund Chipp’s life:
EDMUND THOMAS CHIPP, Mus.D., Cantab., (1860)
Son of T. P. Chipp, the drum player. Born Christmas-day,1823. Chorister in the Chapel Royal. Violinist in Her Majesty’s Private Band and other Orchestras. Organist successively of Albany Chapel, Regent’s Park; Percy Chapel, Tottenham Court Road; St. Olave’s, Southwark; St. Mary-at-Hill; Royal Panopticon, Leicester Square; Holy Trinity, Paddington; St. George’s Church and Ulster Hall, Belfast; Kinnaird Hall, Dundee, 1866; St. Paul’s, Edinburgh, 1866; and Ely Cathedral, 1867-1886. Died at Nice, December 17, 1886. Buried in Highgate Cemetery. Composer of Church Music, Organ Music, [Job, an oratorio; Naomi, a sacred idyll]; &c.
Son of T. P. Chipp, the drum player. Born Christmas-day,1823. Chorister in the Chapel Royal. Violinist in Her Majesty’s Private Band and other Orchestras. Organist successively of Albany Chapel, Regent’s Park; Percy Chapel, Tottenham Court Road; St. Olave’s, Southwark; St. Mary-at-Hill; Royal Panopticon, Leicester Square; Holy Trinity, Paddington; St. George’s Church and Ulster Hall, Belfast; Kinnaird Hall, Dundee, 1866; St. Paul’s, Edinburgh, 1866; and Ely Cathedral, 1867-1886. Died at Nice, December 17, 1886. Buried in Highgate Cemetery. Composer of Church Music, Organ Music, [Job, an oratorio; Naomi, a sacred idyll]; &c.
RH pic: line drawing of Chipp in later life when he was organist of Ely Cathedral (Source: Wikipedia).
Portrait of Mendelssohn
It was the music of Mendelssohn’s Organ Sonatas, Op.65, which helped to drive forward the development of the organ in the British Isles. They were published in 1845 and Chipp was one of the first to take them up, by all accounts playing all six in succession at Walker’s organ factory in April 1846. On another occasion it’s said that he played all six from memory for Mendelssohn himself.
Just six months before Mendelssohn died he wrote a nice testimonial for Chipp:
"I have heard Mr. Edmund Chipp perform on the organ and the manner in which he played one of the most difficult of my Organ Sonatas has given me a very high opinion of his talents and his skill as a musician and as a performer.
London, 7th May 1847.
FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY."
Just six months before Mendelssohn died he wrote a nice testimonial for Chipp:
"I have heard Mr. Edmund Chipp perform on the organ and the manner in which he played one of the most difficult of my Organ Sonatas has given me a very high opinion of his talents and his skill as a musician and as a performer.
London, 7th May 1847.
FELIX MENDELSSOHN BARTHOLDY."
Belfast had done itself proud with Dr Chipp, investing in a man of talent and drive.
Oh that the current City Fathers were as visionary in their support for live music-making and artistic drive in Belfast today (thinking of the Ulster Orchestra).
Oh that the current City Fathers were as visionary in their support for live music-making and artistic drive in Belfast today (thinking of the Ulster Orchestra).
Dr. Chipp was coming to Belfast with a considerable portfolio of appointments ahead of him. He would be organist of the Ulster Hall, organist of St George’s Church, High Street, and conductor of both the Anacreontic Society and the Classical Harmonists’ Society.
He arrived in Belfast on 7 October 1862 and it was publicised that he was planning to attend the Classical Harmonists’ concert on Saturday 10 October 1862.
On 5 November 1862, as part of the PR campaign for his arrival, the Belfast News-Letter republished a tribute to Chipp which had appeared in The Musical World on 25 October.
He arrived in Belfast on 7 October 1862 and it was publicised that he was planning to attend the Classical Harmonists’ concert on Saturday 10 October 1862.
On 5 November 1862, as part of the PR campaign for his arrival, the Belfast News-Letter republished a tribute to Chipp which had appeared in The Musical World on 25 October.
In London, “Dr. Chipp attracted crowds by his masterly playing, and delighted musicians by his selections, which invariably included pieces suited to the instrument, and never condescended to the trivial exhibitions of which we have had many examples in the same building. The fugues of Bach, Handel, and Mendelssohn, grand choruses from the best oratorios, and other works of the kind, have formed the staple of Dr. Chipp’s programmes – an agreeable contrast to the operatic selections, overtures, and worse, which sound so ridiculously small, and are so entirely at variance with the scope and character of a great organ ...
“But it is not merely as an organist that Dr. Chipp is favourably known; his name as violinist having been for years honourably associated with the orchestras of the Philharmonic, the Opera, the Sacred Harmonic Society, and all the ‘festivals,’ metropolitan or provincial; while his Organ Sketches, and other published works, show him to be as accomplished a musician as he is a practised executant.
“The fact of Dr. Chipp’s abandoning London as the sphere of his professional exertions, in favour of a country town, even though that country town is Belfast itself, the most musical in musical Ireland, must therefore be seriously regretted. We have not so many earnest labourers among us that we can afford to lose one of the most earnest and gifted of them all.”
Here is the complete Belfast News-Letter/Musical World tribute as a PDF:
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Tribute to Chipp Nov 1862.pdf Size : 48.049 Kb Type : pdf |
The Belfast Musical Festival, 1862
At long last, the two day Belfast Musical Festival (not counting the preliminary Public Ball) was within sight.
Press advertisements gave the details of the three concerts and the performers:
Press advertisements gave the details of the three concerts and the performers:
From the Belfast News-Letter, 24 November 1862
BELFAST MUSICAL FESTIVAL.
A PUBLIC BALL WILL BE HELD IN THE ULSTER HALL, on TUESDAY EVENING, 16th December, 1862, in honor of the visit of his Excellency the Lord Lieutenant, the Earl of Carlisle, K.G., to Belfast, to be present at the Festival.
COMMITTEE.
The Mayor of Belfast.
The High-Sheriff of Antrim.
The Viscount Massereene.
The Lord Dufferin and Clandeboye.
The Lord Lurgan.
Sir Edward Coey, J.P.
John Barbour, Esq.
Henry Blackburne, Esq.
E. J. Bristow, Esq.
William Coates, Esq., J.P.
C. Cordner, Esq.
H. Sharman Crawford, Esq.
S. D. Crommelin, Esq., J.P.
J. M. Darbishire, Esq.
James Dickson, Esq.
John Emerson, Esq.
R. F. Gordon, Esq., J.P.
James Hamilton, Esq.
Henry Harrison, Esq., J.P.
J. A. Henderson, Esq.
J. M. Higginson, Esq.
J. B. Houston, Esq., J.P.
T. H. M. Jones, Esq., J.P.
Major Mackenzie, J.P.
Jasper Macaulay, Esq.
John M’Gildowney, Esq., J.P.
John M’Master, Esq., J.P.
T. H. H. M’Neile, Esq., J.P.
W. S. Mitchell, Esq.
Capt. R. J. Montgomery, 5th Dragoon Guards.
John Mulholland, Esq., J.P.
Samuel Murland, Esq., J.P.
George Murney, Esq.
Henry Seeds, Esq.
G. K. Smith, Esq.
Robert Thomson, Esq.
James Torrens, Esq.
W. T. B. LYONS. Chairman.
BELFAST MUSICAL FESTIVAL.
A PUBLIC BALL WILL BE HELD IN THE ULSTER HALL, on TUESDAY EVENING, 16th December, 1862, in honor of the visit of his Excellency the Lord Lieutenant, the Earl of Carlisle, K.G., to Belfast, to be present at the Festival.
COMMITTEE.
The Mayor of Belfast.
The High-Sheriff of Antrim.
The Viscount Massereene.
The Lord Dufferin and Clandeboye.
The Lord Lurgan.
Sir Edward Coey, J.P.
John Barbour, Esq.
Henry Blackburne, Esq.
E. J. Bristow, Esq.
William Coates, Esq., J.P.
C. Cordner, Esq.
H. Sharman Crawford, Esq.
S. D. Crommelin, Esq., J.P.
J. M. Darbishire, Esq.
James Dickson, Esq.
John Emerson, Esq.
R. F. Gordon, Esq., J.P.
James Hamilton, Esq.
Henry Harrison, Esq., J.P.
J. A. Henderson, Esq.
J. M. Higginson, Esq.
J. B. Houston, Esq., J.P.
T. H. M. Jones, Esq., J.P.
Major Mackenzie, J.P.
Jasper Macaulay, Esq.
John M’Gildowney, Esq., J.P.
John M’Master, Esq., J.P.
T. H. H. M’Neile, Esq., J.P.
W. S. Mitchell, Esq.
Capt. R. J. Montgomery, 5th Dragoon Guards.
John Mulholland, Esq., J.P.
Samuel Murland, Esq., J.P.
George Murney, Esq.
Henry Seeds, Esq.
G. K. Smith, Esq.
Robert Thomson, Esq.
James Torrens, Esq.
W. T. B. LYONS. Chairman.
RH pic above: Helen Lemmens-Sherrington (1834-1906), soprano, married to Jacques-Nicolas Lemmens, the Belgian organist and composer.
LH pic above: c.1859, Elliott & Fry Studio, London, now in the Meserve-Kunhardt Foundation collection.
John Wilbye Cooper (?-1885), tenor, “who for many years acted as Mr Sims Reeves’s ‘double’,” pupil of George Benjamin Allen. Made his Philharmonic Society (London) début on 30 May 1859 (conductor was Sterndale Bennett).
LH pic above: c.1859, Elliott & Fry Studio, London, now in the Meserve-Kunhardt Foundation collection.
John Wilbye Cooper (?-1885), tenor, “who for many years acted as Mr Sims Reeves’s ‘double’,” pupil of George Benjamin Allen. Made his Philharmonic Society (London) début on 30 May 1859 (conductor was Sterndale Bennett).
The contralto Elizabeth Annie (Bessie) Palmer (1831-1910), was a pupil of Manuel García (1805-1906).
The Welsh bass, William Lewis Thomas (1826-1896), was highly regarded as a "true bass". He also sang for the Philharmonic Society (London) but I've not been able to find much else about him.
The Welsh bass, William Lewis Thomas (1826-1896), was highly regarded as a "true bass". He also sang for the Philharmonic Society (London) but I've not been able to find much else about him.
Also from the Belfast News-Letter, 24 November 1862
BELFAST MUSICAL FESTIVAL,
UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF HIS EXCELLENCY THE LORD LIEUTENANT, THE EARL OF CARLISLE, K.G.
INAUGURATION OF THE GRAND ORGAN,
THE MUNIFICENT GIFT OF ANDREW MULHOLLAND, ESQ., D.L., J.P., SPRINGVALE.
On WEDNESDAY EVENING, 17th December,
THERE WILL BE A GRAND CONCERT,
At which, in addition to other Music,
an ORGAN INAUGURATION ODE,
Composed expressly for the occasion by Edmund T. Chipp, Esq., Mus. Doc. Cantab., will be performed.
On THURSDAY MORNING, 18th December, A GRAND CONCERT,
AND ON THURSDAY EVENING,
Haydn’s Oratorio, THE CREATION,
will be performed.
The Principal Vocalists engaged for these Concerts are:—
Madame LEMMENS-SHERRINGTON.
Miss PALMER.
Mr. WILBYE COOPER.
Mr. LEWIS THOMAS.
CONDUCTOR:
EDMUND T. CHIPP, Mus. Doc. Cantab.
The BAND and CHORUS will consist of about TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY PERFORMERS.
The BAND, which will be the Finest ever assembled in Belfast, will comprise, in addition to the Members of the Anacreontic and Classical Harmonists’ Societies, who have kindly volunteered their services on this occasion, and available local talent, the following eminent Players, selected from the Band of the Royal Italian Opera, Covent Garden: –
Mr. T. WATSON, }
Mr. S. R. WEBB, } Violins
Mr. W. WATSON, }
Mr. H.WEBB, Viola
Mr. HORATIO CHIPP, Violoncello.
Mr. C. SEVERN, Double Bass.
Mr. R. S. PRATTEN, Flute.
Mr. G. HORTON, Oboe.
Mr. JNO. WILSON, Clarinet.
Mr. J.HUTCHINS, }
Mr T. ANDERSON, } Bassoons
Mr. CHAS. HARPER, }
Mr. J. W. STANDEN, } Horns
Mr. W. B. HEALEY, Trombone.
Mr. T. P. CHIPP, Drums.
The CHORUS will consist of the Members of the Two Local Societies, strengthened by the addition of a number of the celebrated Bradford Chorus Singers.
PRICES OF TICKETS:
WEDNESDAY EVENING CONCERT.
Reserved Seats (numbered chairs), Balcony or Area,
.. 7s 6d.
Unreserved Seats, .. .. .. .. 3s 6d.
THURSDAY MORNING AND EVENING CONCERTS.
Reserved Seats (numbered chairs). Balcony or Area, .. .. .. 5s 0d.
Unreserved Seats, .. .. .. .. .. 2s 6d.
Area, .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1s 0d.
Serial Tickets (Transferable), admitting to
the Three Concerts – Reserved Seats, .. .. 15s 0d.
Full particulars, as to the issuing of Tickets and further arrangements, will be announced in a few days.
JOHN DUNN, Jun., Secretary.
Ulster Hall,
Belfast, 22nd November, 1862.
BELFAST MUSICAL FESTIVAL,
UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF HIS EXCELLENCY THE LORD LIEUTENANT, THE EARL OF CARLISLE, K.G.
INAUGURATION OF THE GRAND ORGAN,
THE MUNIFICENT GIFT OF ANDREW MULHOLLAND, ESQ., D.L., J.P., SPRINGVALE.
On WEDNESDAY EVENING, 17th December,
THERE WILL BE A GRAND CONCERT,
At which, in addition to other Music,
an ORGAN INAUGURATION ODE,
Composed expressly for the occasion by Edmund T. Chipp, Esq., Mus. Doc. Cantab., will be performed.
On THURSDAY MORNING, 18th December, A GRAND CONCERT,
AND ON THURSDAY EVENING,
Haydn’s Oratorio, THE CREATION,
will be performed.
The Principal Vocalists engaged for these Concerts are:—
Madame LEMMENS-SHERRINGTON.
Miss PALMER.
Mr. WILBYE COOPER.
Mr. LEWIS THOMAS.
CONDUCTOR:
EDMUND T. CHIPP, Mus. Doc. Cantab.
The BAND and CHORUS will consist of about TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY PERFORMERS.
The BAND, which will be the Finest ever assembled in Belfast, will comprise, in addition to the Members of the Anacreontic and Classical Harmonists’ Societies, who have kindly volunteered their services on this occasion, and available local talent, the following eminent Players, selected from the Band of the Royal Italian Opera, Covent Garden: –
Mr. T. WATSON, }
Mr. S. R. WEBB, } Violins
Mr. W. WATSON, }
Mr. H.WEBB, Viola
Mr. HORATIO CHIPP, Violoncello.
Mr. C. SEVERN, Double Bass.
Mr. R. S. PRATTEN, Flute.
Mr. G. HORTON, Oboe.
Mr. JNO. WILSON, Clarinet.
Mr. J.HUTCHINS, }
Mr T. ANDERSON, } Bassoons
Mr. CHAS. HARPER, }
Mr. J. W. STANDEN, } Horns
Mr. W. B. HEALEY, Trombone.
Mr. T. P. CHIPP, Drums.
The CHORUS will consist of the Members of the Two Local Societies, strengthened by the addition of a number of the celebrated Bradford Chorus Singers.
PRICES OF TICKETS:
WEDNESDAY EVENING CONCERT.
Reserved Seats (numbered chairs), Balcony or Area,
.. 7s 6d.
Unreserved Seats, .. .. .. .. 3s 6d.
THURSDAY MORNING AND EVENING CONCERTS.
Reserved Seats (numbered chairs). Balcony or Area, .. .. .. 5s 0d.
Unreserved Seats, .. .. .. .. .. 2s 6d.
Area, .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 1s 0d.
Serial Tickets (Transferable), admitting to
the Three Concerts – Reserved Seats, .. .. 15s 0d.
Full particulars, as to the issuing of Tickets and further arrangements, will be announced in a few days.
JOHN DUNN, Jun., Secretary.
Ulster Hall,
Belfast, 22nd November, 1862.
The Belfast News-Letter's review of the Inauguration Concert gave the organ's specification and explained each of the organ's keyboards in some detail, before dwelling on the music-making itself. These concert reviews are certainly well worth reading in full and PDFs are supplied below. But these are some descriptive highlights:
For the occasion Chipp had composed an Organ-Inauguration Ode to words by Rev. William McIlwaine of St. George’s Church, High Street. These words were printed in advance in the Belfast News-Letter on 16 November and once again in the review of the concert (see the relevant PDF below).
"Belfast has long anticipated the inauguration of the
grand organ in the Ulster Hall; has waited long to see its vast
proportions and hear its pealing harmonies; and yet the reality has not
in any respect fallen below the expectations even of the most sanguine
…
"One of Mr. Mulholland’s principal objects in presenting the organ to the Ulster Hall Company was … to give an opportunity to the working classes to hear from time to time the best music from a truly splendid instrument, at such a rate as would enable the humblest artisan to enjoy advantages which even the opulent could but rarely purchase until now.
"The massive instrument has been erected; and no one who heard it last night, as it now whispered soft as a silver flute, now pealed loud as the angry thunder, could fail to recognise not only the greatness of the instrument itself, but its special adaptation to the purpose which it was intended to accomplish. It is a concert in itself; and, under the hands of the accomplished gentleman who is to preside at it, many a time will it delight thousands of the artisans of Belfast assembled to listen to its marvellous and charming strains."
"The massive instrument has been erected; and no one who heard it last night, as it now whispered soft as a silver flute, now pealed loud as the angry thunder, could fail to recognise not only the greatness of the instrument itself, but its special adaptation to the purpose which it was intended to accomplish. It is a concert in itself; and, under the hands of the accomplished gentleman who is to preside at it, many a time will it delight thousands of the artisans of Belfast assembled to listen to its marvellous and charming strains."
The Chairman and Directors of the Ulster Hall Company were idealists. They stated, in rich visionary prose and long, long sentences:
“The noble organ which is this evening for the first time to peal forth its glorious harmonies is the gift of an honoured townsman, who, when he lived amongst us, was distinguished by his munificent contributions to every object for the amelioration of the working-classes, and who, although now residing at some little distance, has proved, by this princely present, that the interests of those classes are still as dear to him as ever.
"His special object in presenting the organ to this hall was, that the thousands in this town who crowd the humbler walks of life might, from time to time, be permitted to enjoy the finest music, at a cost so moderate as to be little more than nominal.
"His special object in presenting the organ to this hall was, that the thousands in this town who crowd the humbler walks of life might, from time to time, be permitted to enjoy the finest music, at a cost so moderate as to be little more than nominal.
“Often and often we hope to see the vast area of this
hall filled with listeners whose ears are accustomed daily to the whirr
of busy wheels or the ring of the ceaseless hammer; and, when another
generation has ripened into manhood, and passed from manhood into age,
still the name of the princely donor will live among them – still the
splendid instrument, unimpaired by time, will breathe forth its
enchantments: illustrating anew the truth, that ‘life is short, but art
is long.’"
“We may expect that, from the first, the organ performances in the Ulster Hall will attract large audiences, and have an important educational influence; for, happily, the cloud that has closed so densely around other manufacturing districts has not fallen heavily on this. Here, too, we trust, the voice of the orator may often plead the cause of truth, and touch the best emotions of the heart; and here, when national events fill a people with grief, or stir them with a common joy, thousands may meet to express their sympathies or unite their congratulations."
And what of Dr. Chipp’s playing?
"We have left to the last what was after all the great feature of the concert, the organ performances by Dr. Chipp. It was in these that the audience were afforded an opportunity of judging of the power and resources of the instrument, and of the great ability of the performer, and it is not possible to overrate either.
"The first of these performances was God preserve the Emperor, with variations by Dr. Chipp himself. The astonishing acquirements of the performer as a pedallist were in this solo exhibited to perfection. Rapid passages and intricate variations were played by the two feet, which crossed over each other, and flew from side to side and from note to note with an agility that often baffled the keenest eyes, and might have been envied by the most accomplished reel-dancer that was ever attached to a Scottish clan.
"Nor were his hands idle. The grasp of the instrument, if we may so say, which Dr. Chipp took, asserted itself from the first. He could call any one of the three thousand pipes to his assistance at will, and the noble instrument, a giant amongst its brethren, was obedient to every touch of the master. From soft, and almost vocal combinations it changed, under his hand, to a wild tempest of tumultuous sounds, all answering their purpose, indeed, and all grandly characteristic; and then, again, it died away in sweet and appealing harmonies, until its closing notes were lost amid a burst of genuine applause.
"Nor were his hands idle. The grasp of the instrument, if we may so say, which Dr. Chipp took, asserted itself from the first. He could call any one of the three thousand pipes to his assistance at will, and the noble instrument, a giant amongst its brethren, was obedient to every touch of the master. From soft, and almost vocal combinations it changed, under his hand, to a wild tempest of tumultuous sounds, all answering their purpose, indeed, and all grandly characteristic; and then, again, it died away in sweet and appealing harmonies, until its closing notes were lost amid a burst of genuine applause.
"The second composition was a fugue of Bach’s, which was played with wonderful skill. It was evidently Dr. Chipp’s purpose to give in the performance an idea of the power of the instrument, and an amazing volume of sound was poured forth as part followed part, the trumpets and trombones telling with triumphant effect, and ever and anon giving out the leading theme above the general hurricane of harmony."
The following day Dr. Chipp again excelled himself - this time showing off Hill’s tuba mirabilis stop.
"Dr. Chipp played two solos on the grand organ – the first, Mendelssohn’s Sonata No. 2; and the second, Handel’s Harmonious Blacksmith, arranged by Dr. Chipp. The allegro and fugue in the sonata were particularly fine.
"The Harmonious Blacksmith was introduced by some passages in which the “tuba mirabilis” stop, the pipes of which stand out almost at right angles from the ornamental front of the organ, played an important part.
"The theme was then played, with a softness and simplicity that contrasted with the thunders and complications of subsequent variations, in many of which the air was performed by the pedals alone.
"One variation, which formed a canon on the air, was particularly noticeable; and that with which this splendid performance was brought to a close was marvellous, not only for the great power which was embodied in it, and which made the house vibrate again, but for the sharp distinctness of every note and the exquisite blending of the numerous stops which were in action."
"The Harmonious Blacksmith was introduced by some passages in which the “tuba mirabilis” stop, the pipes of which stand out almost at right angles from the ornamental front of the organ, played an important part.
"The theme was then played, with a softness and simplicity that contrasted with the thunders and complications of subsequent variations, in many of which the air was performed by the pedals alone.
"One variation, which formed a canon on the air, was particularly noticeable; and that with which this splendid performance was brought to a close was marvellous, not only for the great power which was embodied in it, and which made the house vibrate again, but for the sharp distinctness of every note and the exquisite blending of the numerous stops which were in action."
The following three PDFs give the full text of the Belfast News-Letter’s coverage of the 1862 Belfast Musical Festival.
The first includes the 1862 specification of the instrument; the second is a review of the Inauguration concert; the third reviews both concerts on the second day.
The first includes the 1862 specification of the instrument; the second is a review of the Inauguration concert; the third reviews both concerts on the second day.
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Opening Festival Concert 17.12.1862.pdf Size : 105.081 Kb Type : pdf |
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Second day of Festival concerts 18.12.1862.pdf Size : 160.537 Kb Type : pdf |
Dr. Chipp’s organ recitals
The social exercise of providing cheap music-making for the working classes didn’t ever develop a head of steam.
Within a week, prices were halved to attract more people.
Within a week, prices were halved to attract more people.
Belfast News-Letter, Monday 22 December 1862
PERFORMANCE BY Dr. CHIPP IN THE ULSTER HALL.
On Saturday evening, Dr.Chipp gave on the grand organ, Ulster Hall, the first of a series of performances designed more particularly for the working classes.
The terms of admission were, on the most moderate terms – 1s to the balcony, and 6d to the area and promenade.
The attendance was limited; owing no doubt, in a great measure, to the unfavourable state of the weather.
The programme, which was executed with Dr. Chipp’s usual ability, was as follows: –
Overture – “Lover’s Well,” Balfe;
Chanson – (Study No.2), E.T. Chipp;
Fugue – “St. Ann’s,” Bach;
Chorus – “Hallelujah” (Messiah), Handel;
Fantasia – “The Harmonious Blacksmith,” E.T. Chipp;
Andante, Pleyel;
Sonata No.1 – Recit. And Allegro Assai Vivace, Mendelssohn;
National Anthem – “God save the Queen” (Varied).
Dr. Chipp was frequently and loudly applauded.
PERFORMANCE BY Dr. CHIPP IN THE ULSTER HALL.
On Saturday evening, Dr.Chipp gave on the grand organ, Ulster Hall, the first of a series of performances designed more particularly for the working classes.
The terms of admission were, on the most moderate terms – 1s to the balcony, and 6d to the area and promenade.
The attendance was limited; owing no doubt, in a great measure, to the unfavourable state of the weather.
The programme, which was executed with Dr. Chipp’s usual ability, was as follows: –
Overture – “Lover’s Well,” Balfe;
Chanson – (Study No.2), E.T. Chipp;
Fugue – “St. Ann’s,” Bach;
Chorus – “Hallelujah” (Messiah), Handel;
Fantasia – “The Harmonious Blacksmith,” E.T. Chipp;
Andante, Pleyel;
Sonata No.1 – Recit. And Allegro Assai Vivace, Mendelssohn;
National Anthem – “God save the Queen” (Varied).
Dr. Chipp was frequently and loudly applauded.
Belfast News-Letter, Saturday 27 December 1862
The Organ Performance at the Ulster Hall.
This evening, Dr. Chipp is to play an admirable selection of music on the grand organ, and we presume there will be a crowded attendance.
The prices have been reduced and it is now within the power of every artisan to enjoy a rich treat, at a mere nominal price.
For threepence, admission may be obtained to the body of the Hall, and one of the first performers of the day may he heard playing on one of the noblest instruments in the world.
Surely this is a temptation to which thousands will yield in these cheerful holiday times.
The Organ Performance at the Ulster Hall.
This evening, Dr. Chipp is to play an admirable selection of music on the grand organ, and we presume there will be a crowded attendance.
The prices have been reduced and it is now within the power of every artisan to enjoy a rich treat, at a mere nominal price.
For threepence, admission may be obtained to the body of the Hall, and one of the first performers of the day may he heard playing on one of the noblest instruments in the world.
Surely this is a temptation to which thousands will yield in these cheerful holiday times.
Despite these concerts and recitals, it’s clear that the organ had not yet been fully completed. William Hill himself came to Belfast to see the job through.
The Belfast News-Letter for Saturday 10 January 1863 carried this report:
The Belfast News-Letter for Saturday 10 January 1863 carried this report:
The Organ Performances in the Ulster Hall.
We learn with pleasure that the Ulster Hall organ is now completely finished.
Mr. Hill, the celebrated organ builder, has himself been in Belfast for several days, actively superintending the completion of the instrument; and every portion of it is now in the most perfect order.
We believe that the opinion of Dr. Chipp and of the best judges who heard the instrument is, that for tone and finish there does not exist its superior. The eminent builders, Messrs. Hill & Son, of London, have achieved a great success; and it must be highly gratifying to the generous donor to know that his intentions have been so well carried out.
The programme for this evening is highly attractive, and, with Dr. Chipp as the performer, those who attend may anticipate a rare treat.
We learn with pleasure that the Ulster Hall organ is now completely finished.
Mr. Hill, the celebrated organ builder, has himself been in Belfast for several days, actively superintending the completion of the instrument; and every portion of it is now in the most perfect order.
We believe that the opinion of Dr. Chipp and of the best judges who heard the instrument is, that for tone and finish there does not exist its superior. The eminent builders, Messrs. Hill & Son, of London, have achieved a great success; and it must be highly gratifying to the generous donor to know that his intentions have been so well carried out.
The programme for this evening is highly attractive, and, with Dr. Chipp as the performer, those who attend may anticipate a rare treat.
In the first season of Chipp’s tenure as the Ulster Hall's organist (receiving a salary of £300 per annum) he gave 57 solo recitals.
Roy Johnston (1924-2012) collated all the first season’s programmes from press advertisements. Arrangements prevailed during that first season (including operatic overtures, oratorio choruses, symphonic and chamber music) but there were many Bach Preludes and Fugues along with all six of Mendelssohn’s Sonatas.
Roy Johnston (1924-2012) collated all the first season’s programmes from press advertisements. Arrangements prevailed during that first season (including operatic overtures, oratorio choruses, symphonic and chamber music) but there were many Bach Preludes and Fugues along with all six of Mendelssohn’s Sonatas.
In his PhD dissertation Concerts in the Musical Life of Belfast to 1874 (Queen's University Belfast, 1996), Roy Johnston wrote:
The following season, in an attempt to reduce costs, the programmes were no longer itemised in the press advertisements and local singers were added to the organ programmes to attract larger audiences.
"In a rare review of a Saturday recital, BNL [Belfast News-Letter]
8.6.1863 acknowledged that with the exception of Liverpool [where W.T.
Best was the organist], Belfast was unique in having concerts of such
quality, but said they were attended by scarcely half a dozen of the
artisan class for whose benefit they were intended."
The following season, in an attempt to reduce costs, the programmes were no longer itemised in the press advertisements and local singers were added to the organ programmes to attract larger audiences.
Above: the Ulster Hall organ console
The ending of Chipp’s tenure in Belfast (January 1866), the story of his successor (at half the salary) Alfred Cellier who lasted for three years before going on to a great career in light opera, and the creation of the Belfast Philharmonic Society are properly subjects for a future feature.
Perhaps Dr. Chipp was too nice a man to sustain a vibrant artistic agenda in Belfast.
In Liverpool, Dr. Chipp’s city organist colleague William Thomas Best (1826-1897), pictured below, seemed better able to fight his corner:
Perhaps Dr. Chipp was too nice a man to sustain a vibrant artistic agenda in Belfast.
In Liverpool, Dr. Chipp’s city organist colleague William Thomas Best (1826-1897), pictured below, seemed better able to fight his corner:
The Atlas, 7 February 1868 Law, Police, Crime, etc.
Next day the musical profession took a turn in the courts. Mr. Wilbye Cooper brought an action against Mr. Best, the organist of St. George’s Hall, Liverpool in which Mr. Best allowed the verdict to go against him by default; and yesterday Mr. Under-sheriff Burchell sat to assess the damages.
Lately when “The Messiah” was being performed, Mr. Best, with that attachment to his instrument common to all professors of the organ, insisted on playing, although neither he nor his organ was wanted, as Mozart’s accompaniment was being used.
This conduct annoyed the audience and Madame Rudersdorff [soprano soloist], and drew a rather forcible expression of disapproval from Mr. Wilbye Cooper [tenor]. Mr. Best calmly argued with the lady, and only called her impertinent, but he struck Mr. Wilbye Cooper a violent blow, which gave that gentleman great pain.
In court Mr. Best offered Mr. Cooper £50 and a humble apology, both of which Mr. Cooper accepted, and the Under-sheriff rejoiced that harmony was restored.
Next day the musical profession took a turn in the courts. Mr. Wilbye Cooper brought an action against Mr. Best, the organist of St. George’s Hall, Liverpool in which Mr. Best allowed the verdict to go against him by default; and yesterday Mr. Under-sheriff Burchell sat to assess the damages.
Lately when “The Messiah” was being performed, Mr. Best, with that attachment to his instrument common to all professors of the organ, insisted on playing, although neither he nor his organ was wanted, as Mozart’s accompaniment was being used.
This conduct annoyed the audience and Madame Rudersdorff [soprano soloist], and drew a rather forcible expression of disapproval from Mr. Wilbye Cooper [tenor]. Mr. Best calmly argued with the lady, and only called her impertinent, but he struck Mr. Wilbye Cooper a violent blow, which gave that gentleman great pain.
In court Mr. Best offered Mr. Cooper £50 and a humble apology, both of which Mr. Cooper accepted, and the Under-sheriff rejoiced that harmony was restored.
Dr Chipp’s farewell concert took place in the Ulster Hall on 26 January 1866. It was a performance of Mendelssohn’s Elijah by the Belfast Vocal Union “under the direction of Dr. E.T. Chipp. … Dr Stewart ably presided at the Organ.” (The Musical Times, 1 March 1866).
The sound of the Ulster Hall Mulholland Organ
Peter Sweeney plays the Toccata from Boëllmann's Suite gothique, Op.25.
This was recorded in the Ulster Hall on 23 October 1984
This was recorded in the Ulster Hall on 23 October 1984
Boellmann Toccata.mp3
Commercial recordings featuring the Ulster Hall organ include these four:
Far right: Gillian Weir plays Stanford’s Concert Piece for organ and orchestra, Op.181; Ulster Orchestra/Vernon Handley (Chandos CHAN 8861).
Near right: 2 CD set of Gillian Weir playing a very wide range of organ music (Priory PRCD 6000).
Near right: 2 CD set of Gillian Weir playing a very wide range of organ music (Priory PRCD 6000).
Far left: Jane Watts plays Bonnet, Dupré and Flor Peeters (Priory PRCD 377).
Near left: Jane Watts plays Organ Concertos by Richard Popplewell; Ulster Orchestra/Sir David Willcocks (Priory PRCD 874).
Near left: Jane Watts plays Organ Concertos by Richard Popplewell; Ulster Orchestra/Sir David Willcocks (Priory PRCD 874).
A complaint - one we’ve all heard before!
Thursday, 2 October 1862
CLASSICAL HARMONISTS’ SOCIETY.
To the Editor of the Belfast News-Letter.
Dear Sir, Previous to the erection of the Ulster Hall, it was generally thought that the smallness of our public rooms accounted for the high rate of admission which we had to pay in order to hear our eminent vocalists.
I see by advertisement in your columns that, instead of the public being benefited by the acquisition of a large hall, the front seat ticket-holders of the above society, at least, will have to pay a somewhat higher figure than hitherto.
In former years I paid for six tickets £1.1s, or 3s 6d each. Now, it appears, the price for eight tickets will be £1 11s 6d, or nearly 4s each.
The building of the Ulster Hall should be beneficial to all classes of the community. I mean that I, as a front-seat ticket-holder, should not be called upon to pay more in the Ulster Hall than I paid in the Victoria Hall. On the contrary, the committee should be in a position to announce that, in consequence of the increased space available in the new hall, they can, at the old rates of subscription, give four concerts instead of three, and then offer still further inducements to the working classes, which, no doubt is their intention.
I think the committee have made a mistake. The advantage arising from the new hall should go, in the first place, to the public, and through the public to the Classical Harmonists’ Society.
It seems to be antagonistic to the tendency of the times – retrogression rather than progression – which tells us that increased accommodation means disadvantage to the public.
– I enclose my card, and am, Sir, your obedient servant, A Guinea Subscriber.
CLASSICAL HARMONISTS’ SOCIETY.
To the Editor of the Belfast News-Letter.
Dear Sir, Previous to the erection of the Ulster Hall, it was generally thought that the smallness of our public rooms accounted for the high rate of admission which we had to pay in order to hear our eminent vocalists.
I see by advertisement in your columns that, instead of the public being benefited by the acquisition of a large hall, the front seat ticket-holders of the above society, at least, will have to pay a somewhat higher figure than hitherto.
In former years I paid for six tickets £1.1s, or 3s 6d each. Now, it appears, the price for eight tickets will be £1 11s 6d, or nearly 4s each.
The building of the Ulster Hall should be beneficial to all classes of the community. I mean that I, as a front-seat ticket-holder, should not be called upon to pay more in the Ulster Hall than I paid in the Victoria Hall. On the contrary, the committee should be in a position to announce that, in consequence of the increased space available in the new hall, they can, at the old rates of subscription, give four concerts instead of three, and then offer still further inducements to the working classes, which, no doubt is their intention.
I think the committee have made a mistake. The advantage arising from the new hall should go, in the first place, to the public, and through the public to the Classical Harmonists’ Society.
It seems to be antagonistic to the tendency of the times – retrogression rather than progression – which tells us that increased accommodation means disadvantage to the public.
– I enclose my card, and am, Sir, your obedient servant, A Guinea Subscriber.