EMPIRE IMPRESSIONS OF A MUSICIAN

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 290, 7 September 1928, Page 7

EMPIRE IMPRESSIONS OF A MUSICIAN

AUSTRALIA UNDER THE LASH “NEW ZEALAND A MODERN GARDEN OF EDEN’’ Mr. Maurice Besley, solo pianist and accompanist, who visited New Zealand last year with Miss Phyllis Lett, under the management of Mr. E. J. Gravestock, has been airing his views on his Empire tour in the London “Saekbut.” a musical journal of some standing in the Old Country. Mr. Besley is as observant as he is witty and outspoken. After describing, quite humorously, in ocean concert, lie arrives in Australia.

“As everyone knows, the national emblem of Australia -is the Kangaroo, the national weapon is the bottle.” says Mr. Besley. “When the latter becomes like the Queen of Sheba, and has no spirit in it, it is used for bashing in the head Qf the first passer-by who looks like having a fold watch or a shilling. This is literally true of many parts of Melbourne and Sydney, and no one seems capable of stopping it. Melbourne is over-run by pushes, as they call them—gangs .of hooligans who descend upon picture palaces and suburban dance halls, while often the Fitzroy Gardens are unsafe after dark. Ii Sydney only the very bravest would dare to walk across the domain late at night. There are streets there full of underworld as low and dangerous as any in Chicago; so far it is quite safe co take a taxi in Sydney, whereas in Chicago it is not unless you know the driver or take a Yellow.

“One of the surprising features of Australia is the excellence of the bookshops ; not only in the five capital cities, but also in the small towns there seem to be unusually clever buyers of books. and I have found it much easier to obtain first editions and out-of-the-way books in Australia than anywhere except Charing Cross Road. One gathers from this that in such an island corner of the world the demand for good books is very great in proportion to the number of readers. On the other band, music-shops m Australia are completely lamentable; there seenis to be no demand for anything but tripe. Of course, it is possible to obtain copies of the classics, but usually they foist upon the unsuspecting Australian

some horrible reprint of an antiquated and bad edition which purports to be tin Australian production. I have come across many such editions, ami the misprints, bud readings, and bad editing of those volumes is deplorable When some enlightened person asks for. say, a Scriabin SomPa. or a work of Goossens or Ba. . at its long leisure the retail shop will order it from London and in about six months the copy will arrive. After the work lias been heard, another person will order it. and the performance is repeated, and so on. . . .

“Australians are by nature very musical, but they have at present no standard of taste. Under Verbrugglieu they bad a really good orchestra, the remains of which now form a quite respectable opera band during the Tait opera seasons--.ltalian artists and Italian conductors. Australian-con ducted orchestral performances are pitiful, particularly in .Sydney, where I have seen their own Press r-fer t< such things as ‘the worst performance ever heard on any platform whatsoever.' At Melbourne Bernard Heinze is doing magnificent work, but it will take him many years to make his ori chestra even second-rate. The latent talent of Australian students. I should say, is“ rather above the average in | England, a fact that I think must be due to the climate, food, out-door life, sunshine, and the •■'•neral superior standard of living; e the poor children are well-fed and well-clothed, their homes are airy and spacious, and much of the day is spent in the open air. The physical health and happiness thus assured seem to find a natural reflection in the musicianship ■ of the children. There are dozens of good teachers out there, particularly those trained in Europe, and as in England hundreds of bad ones. . . . “But this is too depressing: let us go across to New Zealand." continues Mr. Besley. “Now Zealand is a modern Garden of Eden: I am sure the in habitants are closely related to the angels, and of all the places in the world I have seen. New Zealand is the most beautiful, the most soothing, and the most friendly. The great disadvantage of New Zealand is that it is four days from Australia —only four, but these four days are enough to keep out all the banality and vulgarity of the larger place. New Zealanders have soft voices and warm hearts, they are very artistic, musical, and generally cultivated; they live in a land flowing with the milk of human kindness and the honey of a sweet disposition ; their country contains within its narrow boundaries the climate of CeylonJ the mountain snows of Switzerland, the hot springs of France, and the best fishing,in the world—deep sea, or trout. They are loyal to the core, whereas Australia is very nearly openly disloyal; if they have ‘God Save the King’ in an Australian theatre, it is the signal for an indecent rush for the exit; in New Zealfind it is a signal for the whole audience to stand to attention and to sing in the very best community style the whole verse of the Empire’s hymn. > I shall never forget my tour with Phyllis Lett in New Zealand, if only for the stirring performances of ‘God Save the King’ at the end of the programmes: I often came off with tears in my eyes. Not. however, even in New Zealand can they play anything approaching a decent bass to this tune; I think that no musical degrees or letters should be given to any candidate and no musical director appointed to any picture palace until he or she can play a decent version of the National Anthem. I must say in England the playing is usually pretty good, although the behaviour of the audience often is indecently Australian. ....