LITERARY AND MUSICAL COMPETITIONS.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 13741, 24 May 1910, Page 9

LITERARY AND MUSICAL COMPETITIONS.

-o FIFTH DAY.

The contests promoted by tho Christchurch Literary and Musical Competitions Society were resumed yesterday. The atteiid._ii-.-s at tiie -liorning and afternoon .sessions were I airly good, and there mis a large attendance at tbe evening ws-sion. over which the 1-tev. T Tait ".'resided. Hie features vi the evening were the finals of the contralto sol j in which Miss Fernando**, Wellington, was hoard to much better . dvantagc than at the morning .■■e.sieii), the character dialogues, and the dr-iiving-room entertainm«»nt. There was no competition m the last mentioned class, tmt Miss t'owan and party gave a drawing-room entertainment, which drew forth from Mr Baeyertz the following remarks, which ho made prior :o announcing the results of tbo contests of tbe day:—•"l'm Mire our thanks are due to Miss Cowan. Miss Gardner, Miss Pitcher, Miss Brewins, .Mrs Montague, .Messrs Colin Grey and i'ordcry. who amused us .-o. It is to bo "bonod, now the possibilities of this iorinoi entertainment ire understood, that the competition will not fall through nest year. The performance to-night v.-as an excellent impromptu and tbe most interesting item of the competitions so far." One of the character dialogues, '•Hubert and .Arthur," in which the parts wero taken by .Mr P. A. Devercux and Miss Brewins, was not a competition item, Miss Brewins being under the ago limit fixed for the open competitions. Referring to Miss Brewins, Mr Baeyertz said that on his recommendation she had been awarded a special prize of half a guinea for her clever work in "The Seven Fiddlers," in which section she was ineligible, being under the age limit fixed.

The results ol yesterday's contests aro as • follow :

GENTLEMEN'S HUMOROUS RECITATION.

Ten cut oi' the fifteen who entered for this contest (.ompetcd und gave their own selection. The appreciation of humour on the purt oi !iom« ot the competitors was not always apparent, and tho choice of selections that wero somewhat lengthy w_3 auother fault. 'Hit- judge decided to recall Mr P. A. I)evcreii- (Christ-church), who g„vo '* llio Groom's Story.'' Mr G. A. Har.sard (Addingtou.l, whoso selection was "How McfJongall 'lopped tho Score," Mr A. H. Hobday (Dunedm., whoso choice was "The Enchanted Shirt," and Mr A. D. Aitken (St. Albans), who gave 'The Story of Middierib." In giving his decision, the judgo raid:—" In this section Mr Hobday did very well, but his selection was rather satiric than humorous. Mr Hansard has _ keen sense of humour, and maintains the interest well. Mr Aitken is heavy <md ponderous. Mr Dovercux has a gocd range, but ho sometimes failed in emphases <uid inflexions, though his dialect was well maintained. I'm afraid humour is not a strong point with most competitors." First, Mr Devereux, 128; second, Mr Aitken, 111; third, Mr Hansard, 113.

CONTRALTO SOLO. In this contest five out of -the seven who entered competed and, speaking generally, fairly good interpretations wero given of the test selections—"Thou'rt Like a Tender Flower" (Schumann) in G flat, and "To-night" (Franz) in D flat. Neither piece i 3 adapted 10 bring out tho lower register, and practically tho only competitor who pcs3enscd a contralto voice was Miss Cleo. Fernandos (Wellington), who gavo a very fine rendering of the two itcni3. The judgo decided to recall Mi';s Lucy G. James (Dunedin), Miss R. G. Cresswcll (Christchurch), and Miss Fernandos. In giving his awe.td, the judgo said:—"ln this Bection the winner was the only true contralto. Her voico was not always quite steady, but she gavo a fine, broad and elegant readin;. of both Kings. The second prizo winner sang very well, but she is inclined to force. Hor reading lacked breadth, but she has improved immensely ainco last year's competitions. The young lady who comes third sang too loudly and too quickly in parts; she sings on tho consonants instead of tho vowels, and her phrases wero too much chopped up into sections. Hoy/over, she has a voico well worth training. First, Miss Fernandos, 141; second, Miss James, 120; third, Miss Cresswell, 104."

VOCAL DUET. . This contest was open to either ladies or gentlemen, and all who entered competed. Good renderings wero given of "When the Wind Hlows in from the Sea" (Smart), by the competitors, and the judge decided to reca.ll them all. Tho competitors wero: — Alias M. Pitcher ond Mr E. Morgan (Duneciiu), Miss M. Jennings (Papanui), and Mr F. Parsonsoa (St. Albans), and Miss. Agnes Richardson (Linwood), and Mr R. S. Allwricht (Christchurch). Tho judgo, in .nnouncing his decision, said:—"Of the winning duettists, tho baritono had a fine sympathetic voice; in fact, the best of the three, though at times ho was a little heavy for the -mezzo. Altogether tbe most artistic performance. The second pair's mezzo was tho best of the three, hut tho ensemble and balance were not so good as that of the winners, and nuances were not always regarded. The ether duettists' work was marred beoanso the baritone was. far too _c_vy for the mezzo, and tike balance w_s thus upset. Thero was also ft lack of delicacy of approach and variety. First. Miss Richardson ond Mr Ailwright, 121; second, Miss Pilchor end Mr Morgan, 107; third, Mi~> Jennings and Mr Par-onson, 105 marks." PREPARED SPEECH. Three out of the seven who entered for this contest competed, and the subject—"Tho Advantages and Disadvantages of Compulsory Military Training"—-gave considerable opportunity lor oratorical talent. Two of tho competitors—Messrs R. N. Gray (Christchurch) tmd —. D. Aitken (Christ-church) —dealt with tbe subject principally from the point of view of its disadvantages, though their arguments wero addressed chiefly against a system of conscription. Mr Aitken and Mr A. J. Highway (Dunedin), the other competitor, spoke in favour of such a system that ia being evolved in New Zealand. The judge, Mr Geo. T Booth, gave his decision in the evening. In doing so, Mr Booth said tnat the subject was a pretty big one to discuss effectively and exhaustively in eight minutes; two of the three competitors had cut it in half, one dealing with the advantages and the other with th. disadvantages; Mr Aitken alone tackhd the whole subject, and did so with considerable success. The matter of all the speeches was distinctly good, well thought out, and well arranged, and well prepared — too well prenared for easy and natural and st'onta-tieous " delivery on the part of two of tho speakers, that their minds were <nuaged tryins? to recall tho words rather than ii marshaPing their arguments and arranging their ideaß. The manner of delivery of each speech was fairly good, the enunciation was quite as Rood as could be expected, but intonation left much to be a-c----sirrd. The first prize he awarded to Mr Aitksn, and the second to Sir Gray. Of M*r Heighway ho said that though he was beaten on th** present occasion he was by no means disj*Taoed. LADIES* HUMOROUS RECITATION. There was considerable competition in this secition. nine out of tho ten ladies who entered hiking part. The pieces given were scloctid by the competitors, and some were fairly fiood examples of humour. The judge decided to recall Miss Lillian King Duneelin'i, who recited "College Re-visited"; Miss Lulu Arnold (Wellington), who gave "Wntchin' the Sparkin'"; and Miss G. Helen Gardner (Dunedin), whose selection wd-> "Tho Trials of a Schoolmistress." The judge, in giving his decision, said:—"With tho exception of tho first anu second prize winn-ers. tho competitors have not displayed a very keen sense of humour either in their choice of pieces or in their reciting. The winner gave a very clever performance indeed— the voices were perfectly differentiated, and the recital was quite a brilliant bit of v-ark. The second prize winner was bright, nr.d her recitation magnetic. Tho third was' inclined to recite, instead of speaking naturally. First, Miss Gardner, i-10; second, Miss Arnold, 128; third, Miss King, ICQ." SCOTTISH SONG. This section was open to either lady or "ent'.eman vocalists, and nine out of the Fourteen entrants competed. Very few of tbo competitors were consistent in their ti_c of the Scottifh di-lect. i. notable exception being Mrs Rait ! Wellington 1 , whose selection was "O Sin:; Tae Mo the Auld Scotch Saris-s." From a purely musical standpoint other competitors gave belter . intcrpr.'t.tioa» of the items selected by them. The j»v-s;c decidtd to recall: Mr A. S. Mitchell iSeßon!, whose song ws3 "iis-ry": Mr Hm;h McLe-id (Christchurch). wlio pave 'The Msrcli ->f the Cameron Men' ; :tnd Mis.-s F. J. Pnccy (Dunedin), who ?anp. "Coaun* Thro' the Rye." Jn piving his decision the jud.e said:—"This was a very disappoint:*-.: "section. Mr Biackie, who did so well :c the Irtsh song, sang out oi tune almost throughout, ar.d several other competitors suffered from the same complaint. Even the winner might have made much -nor** of her song. Her dialect was poor, ond ?he did not make nso of the mezza voce. The Fccond prizo winner has a goodish light tenor voice, but his phrasing wan bed at time?. He does not open his tnr-oat. I and suffer* from muscle tightening. The I third sang too slowly and with too little I

anim.tion, enunciation good, hut phrasin;fonltr. First. Mist P.cev. 1C0: second. Mr Mitchell. 113; third, Mr McLcod. 113."

CHARACTER DIALOGCE. There were four pairs o: competitors _ n this contest, _ad tbe dialogues c_s>seu by til., competitors were all _h_kcs_ e„ri-u. In two instances—''\Vois_y and Cromwell" nnd the quarrel scene tram "Ju'ius Caesar"—the contestants appeared in costume. Tbe jud_<*i gave his awards ws ioi'o'vs:—First, Mi.t Lulu Arnold " Wellington' and Miss Una Owen—"Portia and Nerrisa —130 mars.; sccjrd. Mr .\. „. Young «-v C. J. Smith (Ch/istcburcbi—"Wolsev and Cromwell"—lls j ir-arki; third. Miss K. M. Dcvercnx and JJr j P. A. Devereus—Murder Scene, from "Mncbcth"—llo markii. Referring to the I'rst j prise winners the judge raiu:— "For the most part, very good work. Mis« ArnoM had moat of the 'fpt.' nnd she took cc-.v sion by the hand—nice voice, jrcsturcs .r.d inflexion*-. Mis.i Owen wan keenly intoiligi*nt in whet she had toj do." Of 'he socend pmc-taker* he snid: —"Wolsey a good voice, but i-" rather monotonou-". and drops his voice at comma?: hut he '■.-.■"! more impressive than Cromwell." Of >he third" r.ri.e-taker-» he said: — "Mr Devereux v-as inclined to double himf-elf up »s he <*i* in 'Hicbr.rd 111..' hut he rnve n very ?00-l wrformnnec. Miss Devcreu_'s voice still wants strengtheni'iff. hut it lias much improved «inoe last y«ar." The competitions will be icsun.ed today at 10 a.m. with tho humorous recitation for boys or girls, lit teen years end under, own selection; to bo followed at 10.30 by the sacred solo (bass), ar.d at 11 by the Shakespearean dialogue. In the afternoon the tenor solo, and the character recital contests will be held. At tbe evening session the tenor solo, story without words, vocal trio (ladies), r.iid the comedietta contests will take place, and tho winners in the literary 'classes will be anniunced. Mr Baeyertz stated yesterday evening that to-morrow he would bo"at His Majesty's Theatre the whole day to give advice to the competitors in" the "elocutionary contests, and all day on Thursday' to givo advice to those who took part in the vocal sections. TO Tn_ EDITOR OK " THE PRESS " Sir, —Can you inform mc why these Competitions are held so late in tho season? Now, I venture to say that there is hardly one competitor who has not hod his or her nerves mere or toss affected, and this in itself does not make one feel warmer, and to have the cold to contend with must detract from one's performance. Speaking from an onlooker's point oi view, to sit three hours during tho afternoon in His Majesty's Theatre at this time of year is anything but pleasant. Thankling 3'ou, and trusting the committee will sco their way to remedy this at a future time.—Yours, etc., INTERESTED. TO THE EDITOR OF "THE TRESS." •Sir, —In perusing your columns of to. dny my attention was drawn to the statement of .Mr Baeyertz, the adjudicator for the above, in which be states that "there has never been such a fine selection of songs in any competition in Australasia as that made for tho Christchurch competitions." While I admit the items chosen are excellent ones, and that the selection committee deserve every reasonable praise for their careful selection, I would like to state that Mr Baeyertz is a long way off the mark when he makes the above statement. I would ask him to think well before flattering selection .committees. If Mr Baeyertz would refer to the Newcastle (N.S.W.) Annual Eisteddfod of 180S, I fancy he would find that programme to compare with any competitive programme given to competitors in any of the .States of the Southern Cross. I, as a New South Wales competitor agree fully with his remarks as regards studies being beneficial, and havo found them to be to my great advantage. I would. like to say that Mr Baeycrts-'s decisions are everything that is satisfactory, and his remarks on the various items should he carefully studied by competitors. Competitors should always remember that there is only one judge, and that his decision is final and that -lithough they may lose, they-should., never try and argue against the judge's derision, as I "have .heard some of the competitors do during these competitions in this city of 'ast week's programme. If th.ey wish to know why they did not beat the other fellow, I advise them to ask tho adjudicator, and he will find it a pleasure to tell them wdiere their faults lie. Wishing the present session the success it so greatly deserves to be —Yours, etc., N.S.W. EISTEDDFOD COMPETITOR.

TO TCTE EDITOR OF •"THE PRESS." Sir, —-In connection with the recent choir contest, it would he exceedingly interesting to possible futuro competitors and the music-loving public, to learn by what curious method of reasoning, the judgo of that particular class arrived at the decision whi.h awarded first prise in tho second section to tho Greymouth choir. . Whilo acknowledging, with all due courtesy, their superiority in tho sacred liumbe- - , one could not fail to be struck by their wholly inadequate rendering of the secular one ("Hail, Bright Abode"! It was a marked contrast to the local choir, which, though open to correction, showed by its crisp, correct, and dignified interpretation, a grip and appreciation of tho difficult music, hardly to be expected from the average choir. It was a most enjoyablo proof of what can be dono by perseverance, and an able conductor. The winning choir in its interpretation lacked breadth, dignity, and almost every other quality necessary to the successful performance of such a composition. Apart from these defects, the actual reading, in some places, was absolutely incorrect —sustained notes were deprived of half their value, the turn which lends such grace to the principal theme was, in every instance, blurred and ugly, and in tho trio for sopranos and altos, the music was completely deprived of tts snirited. martial character by an utter disn'Rard for the dotted quavers. All these very noticeable faults, combined with lack of tone, faulty production on the part of *tn_ altos. _nd tho weak leads of the tenors, produced a result which was most unsatisfactory. Yet by Rome extraordinary means tho visitors load by ten marks! Unless the adjudicator can give some reasonable explanation for his amazin-*; derision, it is safe to predict that it will have tho undesired effect next year of warning off other choirs who.do not care to aspiro to his peculiar standard of excellence. —Yours, etc., TANNHArSER.

TO THE EDITOR 0". "THE PHESS." Sir, —In making his award last evening in this section the judge, Mr Booth, made the remark that of the three speakers only one fully treated tins subject as set forth, and* that the other two split it into divisions, each taking one section. The subject, as framed, was ''The Advantages or Disadvantages of Compulsory Military training." At first sight this appears awkwardly framed, and the upshot confirms that impression. The "or," of course, provides an alternative. and is different from ''advantages and disadvantages" tbe interpretation given by the judge. In order that there might be a proper understanding of what was required, I wrote from Dunedin to tbe secretary, askiii*. definitely whether the one speech of eight minutes' duration was to treat of both brunches, or whether it was in the competitor- discretion to confine himself to one issue. The. reply was distinctly that the alternative "or" meant the competitor to select one of the issues and treat it. MiGray, the other competitor, was verbally given the same understanding, arid acted upon it as did 1. Therefore, in jostico to us both, J would wish this explanation made, and tho stijii-.estion of the judge that we avoided the full scope or the subject, modified. Thi-: note has. of course, no reference "to the justice of the award niade, with which, ;n fact, Mr Gray and myself heartily agree.—Yours, etc.. A. J. HEIGHWAY. May 23rd.