Dronfield House Play

enced. We heard such dramatic moments as the Chorus's strident shout of "Barabbas!", and that astonishing musical phrase of the Roman soldiers, "Truly this was the Son of God". In our Chapel, words have to be articulated very carefully, especially when the two halves face each other instead of looking down the Chapel; the Choral Society rose warmly to the climaxes, sang incisively and maintained a good balance.

After an interval, Timothy Day played Bach's Prelude in B minor on the organ, taking us through its convolutions with discreet brilliance. The orchestral items were picked to suit the capacities of the orchestra. Whatever initial doubts one had about intonation were dispersed by the rousing ensemble and the real excitement generated in each piece. Each movement really caught fire. This enthusiasm also marked the extract from the Choral Symphony, though the Choral Society's German, for all their manifest effort, got lost somewhere in the apse. Even so, this too was a blaze of sound.

All this in fifty-five minutes. We are grateful to Mr. Pemberton and Mr. Sandercock not only for preparing and conducting the works but for planning so appropriate a concert. P.D.R.G.

"THE MAYOR OF LOWER THRUSTLETHWAIT"

The Dronfield House Play, though fairly modest in what it set out to achieve by comparison with other recent House Plays, was most entertaining. A light, one act comedy, it flowed easily, aided at times by the obvious embarrassment and confusion of some of the cast and the devices usual to the less serious House performances. The good production and