THE WORLD OF MUSIC.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 239, 8 October 1932, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE WORLD OF MUSIC.

DIAPASONS AND ECHOES. PROM FAR AJTD ITEAR. (By ORPHEUS.) COMING CONCERTS. To-night and until Octobcr 22.—Grand Opera Season. October 21, 22 and 24.—Szigetl Violin Recitals. The Aeolian Orchestra's third concert of the season will be given on Thursday evening, October 13.

A concert, arranged by Mr. E. Varley Hudson, will be given by the associate members of the Auckland Society of Musicians in the Lewis Eady Hall on October 17. ~

Owing to there having been only one entry, the "string competition," which was to have been held by the Auckland Society of Musicians last month, had to be abandoned. The "piano competition," for which raany entries have been received, will be held on November 15.

At a meeting of teachers of singing in Auckland, held last week, it was decided to hold a schools' music festival in August, 1933. There is every possibility that "Music Week" will be revived and held in conjunction With the schools' festival.

A quarter-tone piano would be a great boon to accompanists in some of our broadcasting studios; but even this would have been useless when several male voice quartets and duets were being sung at a local station one evening last week, so numerous and so wide were the divergences from pitch.

Owing to the Town Hall having been taken for the Lex Maedonald concert, the Municipal Choir's second concert of the year, which was to have been given on October 15, has been postponed to a later (late. This makes the third postponement of the concert, caused by the Town Hall being taken by other bodies.

Three Auckland composers will be represented at the concert to be given in Christehureh at the end of October by the Society of Musicians. This concert will be devoted solely to works by New Zealand composers. Auckland's contribution to the programme will be an instrumental trio (piano, violin and 'cello) by Mr. Harry Luseombe, two songs by Mr. Tracy Moresby, and one bv Mr. Owen Jensen.

Musical circles in Wellington have suffered, a great loss in the death of Mr. Charles Webb, which occurred in the middle of last month. The late Mr. Webb was, for a number of years, the chairman of the Royal Wellington Choral Union, and in that capacity did a great deal to make that body the progressive and successful musical society it has become. Besides being a most abl administrator, he was a very lovable man, whose passing on, at the comparatively early age of 49, will be regretted by all who knew him.

In a letter received recently by Mrs. Mayo M. Boult, from her daughter, Mrs. W."G. Duftield, of Melbourne, enthusiastic reference is made to the playing of the world-famous Hungarian violinist, Szigeti, in the concert given there by the Gonservatorium Orchestra a fortnight ago, when the great master played two concerti. Mrs. Duftield, who plays in the first violins of the orchestra, says that two rehearsals, each lasting three hours twenty minutes, were held for this performance, and that it was the most glorious experience she has had for twenty years, since when she led in Gustav Hoist's orchestra in England. This was the concert given in the Melbourne Town Hall, which was packed to the doors, over 500 people being turned away.

Thus writes "Auribus," in the December number of the "Musical 'limes : "Broadcasting as she is done in France. First an announcer told us, in French and English, that we were about to hear a. record of So-and-So's Tzigane Band. Thereupon followed a record of an organ solo, after which the announcer said that we had just been listening to So-and-So's Tzigane Band. He then said that we would next listen to M. playing the organ. Thereupon followed a record of a Tzigane Band, after which we were told that we had been listening to M. ■ on the organ." The other evening the present writer was listening to a "B" station, and this is one thing that happened. First the announcer told us, in a very pleasant modulated voice, that we were about to heard a record, "Ma Sonny Boy's Got Adenoids" (at least it sounded like that), and then followed about four minutes of silence, broken by the voice of the announcer, informing us, quite pleasantly, that "the record you have just been listening to was Somethingplione BR two-five-three-double-eight." Fortunately this was one of the occasions that we prefer it to happen that way. What had occurred, no doubt, was that the announcer had merely omitted to switch over from the microphone to the turn-table after the announcement.

Josef Szigeti, the famous Hungarian violinist, had a disconcerting experience whilst playing at a recital in Adelaide quite recently. His 60-year-old bow snapped at the tip as he was playing his last encore. It was the first time in Szigeti's career that such a thing had happened. At the close of the piece Szigeti, visibly upset at the occurrence, explained the reason for the interruption, and sought a lawyer from the audience, who will act as witness that the break occurred during the playing of a piece. With his Guarnerius violin and other bows, the bow is insured. Szigeti regarded his bow mournfully afterwards. "It is a beautiful bow," he said, "by your famous English maker, John Tubs. I have played with it since 1906. I cannot think what caused the break, unless it was the cold climate which caused the hair to contract and increased the tension on the delicate wood; the heat of the Red Sea on my way here may have helped. Yes —I was upset, but the great sympathy between me and the audience for the concert I compensated." Szigeti tapped the bow sadly, and showed where he had worn it down by millions of pressures with his little finger. He will have it repaired, hut will never dare to play with it again in public. It will be only a memento.

The Auckland Amateur Operatic Society has decided to postpone its proposed production of "Lee Cloches de Corneville" to early in 1933.

Some terse and pungent criticisms taken from "The Musical Times": "Miss Ganna Walska dressed up to sing at Wigmore Hall. Her costumes were becoming, but not becoming enough to distract one's attention from her indifferent singing. She made a hash of Schubert."

. . . "On her showing at Grotrian Hall, Miss Phyllis Brooks has much to do before she can hope to attain to a professional standard. Her programme had been well chosen, even if it gave little chance of effecting dramatic distinctions. But Miss Brooks obviously did not know how to act up to the limit of her music's injunctions, even when opportunities did arise for use of the loud pedal. It was drawing room singing. Miss Brooks' enunciation was poor."

However progressive the Germans may be in their architecture, engineering, pedagogy or sports, when it comes to opera they remain thoroughly conservative. Then they turn from /their flattopped houses, their steel furniture and matter-of-fact outdoor life to Carmen's colourful gipsy life, to the Minnesingers' contest on the Wartburg, or the story of the Knight of the Holy Grail. "Carmen" is still the most popular opera in Germany, judging from the number of its performances, which reach 400 in a year. Next follow "Tannhauser," "Lohengrin," "Frieschutz" and "The Magic Flute." "Madam Butterfly" and "Troubadour" both have a 6core of 250 performances in a year. Beethoven's serious "Fidelio" and Puccini's sentimental "Bolieme" prove equally attractive. So do "Aida" and "Meistersinger." Lortzing, too, is much loved by the Germans. Modern composers cannot vie with the popularity of a Wagner or Verdi.—"Christian Science Monitor."