CIVIC MUSIC COUNCIL

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25247, 28 July 1947, Page 8

CIVIC MUSIC COUNCIL

FINAL CONCERT OF FESTIVAL

AN ENJOYABLE PROGRAMME The Civic Theatre was filled on Saturday night for the last concert in the week of music organised by the Christchurch Civic Music Council. The programme given by the Christchurch Harmonic Society. Avonside and Christchurch Girls’ High Schools and the Christchurch Boys’ High School, consisted of works by British composers with the addition of one short work by Mendelssohn. It was a thoroughly enjoyable concert and a fitting ending to a week of fine music. Now that the Music Council has much wider powers than its parent body, the festival committee, it is probable—even desirable —that the arrangements for future festivals will be modified. Although much can be said about the advantages of having all the various societies coming together in a spirit of goodwill to run such a festival, there remains the fact that the concerts given by all our societies, mainly through their rehearsal arrangements, tend unfortunately to come one on top of the other in the normal course of events. We have several months without anything happening to any great extent through local effort, and then concerts break out like the measles. The main problem for the future is to space our concerts’ more evenly throughout the year, not to aggravate an already unfortunate state of affairs. There is now a healthy and happy spirit of goodwill among all our music-making societies and this is largely due to the festivals which have been so ably run in the past. The time has now come for gll to take a broader and deeper view ! of our musical activities and this same spirit of unselfish co-operation, if maintained, can bring about far-reach-ing results through the Civic Music Council which will benefit the societies, the listening public and the general cultural life of the city. The programme opened with the combined choirs of the high schools singing “Let Us Now Praise Famous Men” and “Laus Deo/’ by Dr. V. E. Galway, the Blair Professor of Music in the University of Otago, and “Worship,” by Shaw. There was much better balance of voices than in the combined choir at the recent secondary schools’ festival. All the work of the high schools’ choirs showed evidence of careful rehearsal on the part of Mr V. C. Peters and Mr Clifton Cook. The words were always clear, both in vowel differentiation and audibility of consonants; the phrasing and expression were given careful attention, and in every item there was good rhythmic vitality. There is still a rawness in the quality of some of the older boys’ voices. Only a few of them are guilty of this, but a few can spoil the tone of the others. Perhaps this was due to nervousness and excitement at the start of the concert, for it was not noticeable to the same degree later on when the combined choirs sang “Waiata Poi” and “Rolling Down to Rio.” These were splendidly sung with telling effect. Each boy should attend carefully to what he is told about producing his voice, for not only is the effect of strain in an adolescent voice unpleasant to the listener but also irreparable harm can be done to a voice at this critical stage of its development. The finest music and the best singing from this group was in Dr. Galway’s “Laus Deo,” a noble setting of Milton’s lovely words. In all their work, the combined choirs of the girls’ high schools sang in truly delightful fashion. The choir is beautifully balanced and they are always a treat to listen to. They ended their splendid group of songs with Edward German’s “Shepherd Dance.” Perhaps someone will one day write, as a counterblast—literally a counterblast—to the shepherd of romance, a good song about one of our realistic dog-cursing shepherds. Such a song is overdue.

An instrumental sextet from the Boys’ High School played arrangements by Mr Cook of Madrigal, by Simonette. and The Swan, by Saint Saens. It is to be hoped that the high schools will soon follow the examples of many other schools and form their own orchestras. The Sixth Form Singers of the Boys’ High School sang “Widdicombe Fair” and “The Song of the Flea” with comic effects well carried out A faster tempo would have been more effective in both items. There are some good voices here. “Remember, O Thou Man.” by C. S. Lang, would have been more impressive if sung more slowly. It loses dignity at such a gallop. The Christchurch Harmonic Society, conducted by Mr V. C. Peters, sang all their items with their usual polished skill, although the basses were occasionally ragged in their timing in “The Highwayman.” The society has had but little time for rehearsal since their last concert, but this and a slight losing of pitch at the end of Dr. Galway’s beautiful part song. “Now Silent Falls.” were the only flaws in a most interesting programme excellently sung. “The Highwayman,” by Armstrong Gibbs, is dramatic music of the first order. It was very well sung, and special mention must be made of the moving atmosphere created by the lovely pianissimo singing of the sopranos and altos in the ambush scene. This was some of the best dramatic singing heard here for many a long day. Mr Maurice Till is to be congratulated on his fine accompanying. Another item was a setting by Martin Shaw of John of Gaunt’s speech on England from Richard 11. It strains after effect and seems to suffer from harmonic indigestion. The unnecessary repetition of the words breaks up their beautiful flow. Parry’s setting of a paraphrase of these words is much better. “Everyone Suddenly Burst Out Singing,” by Dr. has great harmonic strength and direct-

ness of approach. It was delightful to hear, on one programme, four of Dr. Galway’s fine compositions. “The Shepherdess” is gorgeous part writing. The music fits the words like a glove the hand. “Now Silent Falls” is dedicated by the composer to Mr Peters. One does not wish to play the silly

game of “naming the best New Zealand composer,” but Dr. Galway’s. music is like the man himself, erudite S but unassuming and natural, steeped in the great legacy of the past but with a fresh message for the present, and always leaves one feeling much the better for encountering it. —C.F.B.