World of Music

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 234, 2 October 1937, Page 9 (Supplement)

World of Music

IVotes Of The Day From Far And Near (By ORPHEUS.) Efrem Kurtz, brother of Edmund Kurtz, the well-known 'cellist, who is noted as one of tlie outstanding conductors of ballet, conducted at the famous Hollywood Bowl last month. Efrem has long been associated with the Monte Carlo "Ballet Russe."

Sound is wused by a disturbance of the atmosphere, which transmits itself outward through the air. This takes place by having each disturbed air particle push the one beyond it, so that tlie disturbance travels outward somewhat like an engine's push through a train of loosely coupled care. A» concert will be given T>y the Auckland Society of Musicians on Sunday afternoon, October 10, in the Lewis Eady Hall. The programme will be provided by professional members of the society. Songs will be given by Madame Aileen Johns and Miss Berta Carr, and instrumental numbers by Marjorie Gully, Kathleen O'Leary and the Vincent Aspey instrumental trio. OPERATIC CONTRALTO. Brnna Castagna, the contralto who scored euch a great success when the Italian o[>era company appeared here about five years ago, has recently been appearing in Los Angeles in ,''ll Trovatore" and "Carmen." These operas were presented at the Hollywood Bowl by the Loe Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra in association with the Los Angeles Opera Chorus. Her performances were veTy highly praised. CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY. The programme few the Auckland Chamber Music Society's fourth and concluding concert of the season, to be given on October 21, will be in the hands of the following quartet of players:—lna Bosworth (violin), Lois Walls (viola), Lalla. Hemus ('cello) and Leo Whit taker (piano). The works to be presented are: —Piano quartet, No. 1, G Minor (Mozart); trio for violin, viola and 'cello (Schubert); piano quartet, No. 1 in C Minor, Opus 15 (Faure). PIANO CLASSES IN CANADA. Evelyn Howard Jones, of London, England, a distinguished Welsh pianist, has been brought to Toronto to hold a master class in piano playing. The course consists of 10 three-hour lecturelessons, covering a two-week period. The success of last year's class, which was attended by pianists from all parte, of Canada as well as from the United States, was due, it is said, to the ability and artistry of Mr. Jones, who ie to be in charge this year. This is a scheme which might well be adopted with advantage to students and teachers of the piano in this Dominion. A NOISE ANNOYS MOISEIWITSCH. There was a great deal of coughing during the progress of the piano recitals friven recently by Benno Moiseiwitsch. 1' rom the expression of extreme concentration on the famous pianist's features it might have been thought that he was so immersed in his playing, so far above all mundane maladies a« common coughs, that he was totally oblivious to any sound except that of his instrument. However, when the writer aeked him whether he could hear any extraneous noises while he was playing, the answer of "the poet of the i piano was sharp and to the point— Of course I can," he said. MUSIC IN SYDNEY. Great interest is being taken in orchestral music in Australia at the present time, says Edmund Kurtz, the noted cellist, who passed through Auckland a fortnight ago on his way back to rejoin the Chicago Symphony Oi chestra. There are about 2000 subscribers to the orchestral concerts in Sydney alone and excellent orchestras have been formed in all the principal a V' ,• r, do " bt tlle P° lic y of the Australian Broadcasting Commission in engaging experienced conductors from overseas has done much to stimulate orchestral music in the Commonwealth. If our National Broadcasting Service were to follow suit new life would be put into music in this Dominion.

"MUSEEK VERY BEOOTIFUL." Schneevoigt, the Dutch conductor, who is now directing concerts in the ommonwealth under contract to the Australian Broadcasting Commission, ?vidently considers that mueic is beet beard in the dark. Before presenting several of his numbers, Schneevoigt, iS a quaintly jocular address to the audi ence, told his hearers that "dis m4e e k is veery, veery beootiful," and could enjoy it most if they "opened wide the ears and closed tight, veery

MUSICAL REVIVAL. 7t L ' k f - Horace Stevens, Mr Jascba " , a concert given bv him recently in the Birmingham Town Hall audience was a comparatively noor <>"e and his experiences/ no doubt ? are hTthe' F, °r V* te],i ' lg "lE",' I 't h / * Un, ' ted States - J n tht United States," he said, "conc its are packed with young people- in Inland only . the older* geSaiion ■'rea to?" nc f rts - 1,1 London, the atcht city in the world, there is not °S,:„dT c ,,cert V 1 «£ ■Auckland.). Commenting up on these ''Week[y%o a st" riter T the ®"" m ' n gham weekly rost remarks:—"As this <*reat violinist is talking about musical culture m comparing the new world with the old, it is permissible to quote a few iemarks by Sir Thomas Beecham, who recently spoke at a meeting of the Critics Circle in London: 'In all his experience he could not recall a time when the signs and portents as regarded music were better or more healtij While we had not an opera house in every big town -we had 4700 choral societies, all making their own music. In the United States no one made music, i he whole musical culture of the United f-« eS - 8, a thln o of manufacture and artificiality. So we are compelled t-t . - this outburst by Mr. Heifetz as being something purely personal; that finding a declining public for hie own recitals lie senses a falling-off in violin audiences and therefore arrives at the conclusion we are a musically decadent nation. He fails to jealise that expert fiddlers and pianists are as plentiful as blackberries that is, from the impresario's viewpoint—and if a public occasionally tires of beef it is not necessarily because it is suffering from an organic disease; it may only be a little functional indigestion." °

"I don't know what you mean," Scott •aid without smiling.