THE WORLD OF MUSIC.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 205, 29 August 1936, Page 8 (Supplement)

THE WORLD OF MUSIC.

NOTES OF THE DAY.

FROM FAR. AND NEAR.

(By ORPHEUS.)

The Nelson Harmonic Society last week put into rehearsal "The Bohemian Girl."

The Christchurch Harmonic Society has commenced'rehearsals on the C°^°" nation Scene from "Boris Goudonov."

News from Adelaide states that Philip Hargrave, the Australian boy pianist wlio° toured the Dominion in 1934, has decided to abandon his musical career and become a doctor. Philip is an exceptionally brainy boy and is certain to excel in whatever walk of life he chooses. At the same time, one can not help feeling sorry that this charming lad has given up music.

Edmund Kurtz, the 'cellist of the Spivakovsky-Kurtz Trio, passed through Auckland last week en route to North America, where he is to undertake a concert tour which will last about eight months. Mr. Kurtz, who is accompanied by his wife, will return to Australia next May to join up again with the Spivakovskys, Jascha and Tossy, in a tour of the Commonwealth.

The profit made by the Royal Wel j lington Choral Union from its recent performance of "Elijah" was the greatest in the history of the society, greater even than that made at the 1912 performance of "Messiah," when the cast of soloists included Kirkby Lunn and Andrew Black. Other choral societies endeavouring to make both ends meet by cutting down expenses might draw a lesson from the success of the Wellington society, the committee of which evidently doe 3 not believe in the policy of being "penny wise, pound foolish," but carefully avoids it—with some considerable financial gain.

According to advices received recently in Wellington, there is a chance that Leopold Premyslav, the brilliant violinist and conductor, may settle in New Zealand. " Premyslav, who has been playing in Australia, is now on his way to South Africa to fulfil... engagements at Capetown, Johannesburg and Durban. It is his intention to return to Australia in November to act as musical adjudicator at the annual examinations of the N.S.W. Conservatorium of Music in Sydney, after which he may possibly tour the Dominion. The Russian is said to be a very, fine artist, who has been associated as soloist with most of the great orchestras and conductors of Europe and America. He studied under Joseph Joachim, Eugen Ysaye and Wilhelmj.

Nobody with any knowledge of the subject will join issue with Mr. Maughan Barnett's statement to a southern paper that choral recordings cannot compare with the actual flesh and blood performances of oratorios. The writer was discussing this particular aspect of recording with Dr. Malcolm Sargent, who remarked that the recording companies had not yet given sufficient attention to the matter of adequately presenting choral works on the disc. It is quite another matter, however, as regards orchestral and piano recordings. Listening in the writer's home to Sclinabel playing the Beethoven C Minor Concerto with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by himself, Dr. Sargent remarked that the reproduction was so realistic that the piano sounded as if it were actually in the room. In this case both the recording and the amglrJiejK '^rar^^hgHbefft*

On nel'alf of the Royal Wellington Choral Union, the whole of the performance of "Elijah" under the conductorship of Dr. Malcolm Sargent was permanently recorded on discs. The recordings were made from the broadcast, and are said to be particularly good. It would be interesting to hear these from the local stations —minus the; static, which marred the reception of the original performance at locations distant from 2YA.

Interviewed in a Wellington paper recently, Mr. Maughan Barnctt, late city organist, was most pessimistic regarding the effect both radio broadcasting and the gramophone were exercising upon music. His point of view was that they were doing the cause of music a great ileal of harm. Sir Henry Wood, an English musician whose experience in the world of music is quite equal to — even possibly greater —Mr. Barnctt's, holds a contrary view. This is what he says about broadcasting: "Wireless has done more than anything else to improve our appreciation of music. People are learning more and more to distinguish between what is good and what is not. The most popular Brahms violin concerto was not a favourite at first, because people were not used to it. With the help of radio, people will understand new developments in music."