Glee Clubs at Sanders

The Tigers were strangely cowed through their whole performance last night, but the Harvard Glee Club turned in crisp renditions that put the rival chorus at an even greater disadvantage than they would have suffered singing alone.

Lackluster tone and a consistent tendency to flat notes plagued the Princetonians in every one of their pieces, from the Hassler Cantate Doming to Black-eyed Susie. Their bass section was so weak as to be superfluous, and even the "Hey" in one of their football songs was fairly pallid. The first half of their selections slogged along rather dully during a medley of Three German Romantic Choruses by Schubert, Schumann, and Weber, respectively. The horn accompaniment, though an improvement over many a brass ensemble, still cast a submarine gloom over three already drab and awkward numbers.

In the second quarter, Harvard took the stage to the relief of most right-thinking music fans in the audience. Elliot Forbes drew at least two peerless moments out of his well-coached squad. Diffusa Est Gratia by Nanino approached a plane of spiritual majesty, especially during those exquisite final measures which required impressive breath control. In addition, Milhaud's setting of the twenty-first psalm was presented splendidly, in spite of its truly difficult chord patterns.

After a short halftime, the Princeton club returned with some folksongs and three choruses from Offenbach's La Vie Parisienne. Except when their thin-voiced, quavery soloists spoiled things, the Tigers sang these raffish songs pretty well. But I suppose that music about well-pomaded young men-about-town was rather congenial to them.

I will pass over the rest of Harvard's selections, merely reinforcing my initial sentiments. Russell Cartwright deserves special mention for his Vaudeville solo in Princeton, That's All, but undivided praise should go to the Harvard Glee Club as a whole for a real team effort. I need hardly say which side won.