MICHAEL DRAKE From the moment singer William W White made the initial spoken introduction last evening he held the capacity audience in his hands and this was immediately augmented by the rich vein of sound in the wide ranging Roger Quilter's Three Shakespeare Songs, and particularly in Charles Ives' sombre tale of slow march.

MICHAEL DRAKE

From the moment singer William W White made the initial spoken introduction last evening he held the capacity audience in his hands and this was immediately augmented by the rich vein of sound in the wide ranging Roger Quilter's Three Shakespeare Songs, and particularly in Charles Ives' sombre tale of slow march.

With wonderfully complimentary piano accompaniment this was a programme of not only outstanding artistry but brilliant entertainment and the audience was reluctant to let Messrs White and Marshall leave — at least until Ole Man River left his mark.

The settings of Spirituals were full of emotion as both singer and pianist relaxed into the free arrangements, as they had done in Aaron Copeland's lyrical Old American Songs — songs of relative simplicity given real dimension.

Earlier Paul Bowles will have been a name new to many but his Blue Mountain Ballads were musical painting in an amalgam of styles.

Those English masters of folk songs, Vaughan Williams and Britten were given centre stage too with the same panache — and of course we knew what happened in the Foggy Dew but this was sung and played with a real twinkle. If the Prom means popular this one will take some beating.