MUSIC and RECORDS

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 273, 13 August 1932, Page 17

MUSIC and RECORDS

Bv

C.L.M.

Stray Notes. Ailsa Nicol, an Associated Board exhibitioner hailing from New Zealand, was heard at a chamber concert in the Duke’s Hall, London, on Thursday, June 23. The piece was the Air de Salome, “H est doux, il est bon,” from Massenet’s “Herodiade,” and the occasion was the second terminal concert given' by students of the Royal Academy of Music. A song in tune with the sentiments of these hard times has been written by Donovan'White. to words by John J. Gow. It is entitled "Out of My Heart.” To some the words and music may seem rather trite, but there is an appeal in the former, and an easy melody in the latter, that should find a response. • _, . Writing of Josef Szigetl a few days ago the critic of the “Sydney Morning Herald” said: “When one thinks of Mischa Elman one thinks of large, full tone. When one thinks of Tbihaud one thinks of a radiance of poetic feeling. But in the case of Szigeti' no- single quality or fefotip;'Of qualities springs to mind. All the qualities, all the excellencies, are bound together in a unified synthesis, and in which no member obtrudes itself at the expense of the others. There is profound intellect, and there is profound emotion. It is superfluous to write about Szigeti’s technique. He

has soared far .above the plane where technique counts for anything in. its own right.” ■ The Harmonic Society, under ' the conductprship of Mr. H. Temple White, Will render their second concert for the season in the. Concert Chamber of the Town Hall next Thursday evening. A varied programme will be presented by the choir, -including a . setting by H. Balfour Gardiner .of John Masefield’s. “News from Whydah” and a “Rhapsody on Welsh Airs” arranged by Percy E. Fletcher. Assisting artists will be Miss Hilda Chudley, the popular contralto, Mr.* Trevor Thomas, bass-baritone, and Miss Elvira Whycherley, a talented young ’cellist from Palmerston North. Miss Ava Symons.

Unquestionably the liigliligbt of the Wellington Symphony Orchestra’s concert last week was the bizarre arid picturesque “Symphonie.Espagnole” of Lalo, with Miss Ava Symons as the soloist. Miss Symons played 'the subtle passic;-'ite music of this beautiful work with a witchery arid grace altogether entrancing, and once more one is tempted to express the view that this artist has great claims to virtuosity. The Lalo “Symphonic," in her hands, was shot through with light , and shadow, and gorgeous accent, yet expressed as one unified, dignified and well-proportioned whole. At the conclusions of the concert an Englishman who was playing- •in the orchestra. said that Miss Symons's playing in this number reminded him forcibly of Rene Chemet, probably the finest of contemporary French women violinists, and he asked Miss Symons whether she had heard of her. Miss • Symons, to his immense amazement, said that she had not only heard of her but had lived with Mlle. Chemet in London and studied the Lalo with her! .

Tschiaikowsky’s “1812” overture is dtio fdr a long rest. Within the last week or two the old Napoleonic war piece has beOn exposed to the fire of two local orchestras, and in neither case was the effect very thrilling, despite the usual einbellishments of brass band's, organs and bells. Truth to tell, this “Overture.” from its very combatant nature, will bear frequent repetition, arid one hears it so well done by big orchestras over the air that indifferent performances by local orchestras do not. satisfy. Galli-Curci.

Gtiili-Curci’s Australian season has been even more successful than when she last visited the lands of the Southern Cross. The present concert tour is certainly the. outstanding musical event of the period. The first concert will be given oh Thursday, August 25, and the second on Saturday, August 27, after which Christchurch (August 30, September 1 and 3), Dunedin (September 7 and 10) will be visited. A Bare Manuscript. , >

Recently there has been an expressed desire amongst church organists to investigate and. reproduce church music of the Middle Ages, . In Wellington Mr. Ernest Jcnnfer ' hag particularly interested himself in research work, and lifts reproduced a number of ancient workg on the organ of the Basilica in Hill Street,, while Masterton has an enthusiast in Mr. Charles Kerry, organist of Knox Church.

The hymn book illustrated on this page gives an interesting insight into this fascinating study. The volume is a 1 magnificent specimen' of a fifteenth century handwritten manuscript from the eolle<?tion qf Mr. A. Clemas, of Masterton, who has probably the finest private collection of rare books and manuscripts in the Dominion. The manuscript consists of a remarkable collection of musical devotibns in honour of the Virgin Mary and some of. the saints. It is beautifully and clftarly written, and is in perfect condition. It was at one time in the possession of the sisterhood of the Convent of. St. Agatha,. Enns, Austria.

Recorded Music. Unusual Interest will be aroused by the complete performance of Saint-

Saen’s “Carnival of Animals,” given by the' Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra. One of the numbers, “The Swan,” is familiar to most people. The music all through is captivating. Descriptive melodies convey vivid and witty impression of the lion, the. elephant, mules, tortoises, kangaroos, etc., as well as birds, fossils, and so on. The reverse side of the last record is occupied by a charming rendition of Tschaikovsky’s “Song Without Words,” in A Minor, Op. 40, No. 6. (H.M.V.) The full beauty of Brahms’s beautiful “Requiem” is revealed in an excerpt, “How Lovely is Thy Dwelling Place,” sung by the choir of the Temple Church, London, under the organist and director of the choir, G. Thalben Ball. This choir is famous for its boy sopranos, who play a prominent part in the success of this recording. (”M.V.) “Musical Chairs” is a very useful record for children’s patties. Fragments of various well-known nursery rhymes are well played by ,the New Mayfair Orchestra with long intervals between them, allowing plenty of time for play. Among the nursery rhymes heard are: “See-saw Marjorie Daw.” “London Bridge,” “Hickory Dickory Dock,’” “Oranges and Lemons,” and many others, the record concluding with “Rule Britannia.” (H.M.V.) A lyric soprano with clear and musical top notes, Sylvia Cecil makes two charming numbers of two of HaydnWood’s most successful songs, “It is Only a Tiny Garden’ and “Roses of Picardy.” (H.M.V.)

Sands, and bandsmen (By “Kneller Hall.”) TO CORRESPONDENTS.—-Band secretaries are invited to forward reports of , ccncerts and band functions generally by Wednesday of each week, in order ■ 'tq ensure publication in the following Bands’ Street Day Appeal. In recognition'of services rendered for various charitable purposes since its inception, the Wellington Brass Bands’ Association have been granted.permission, by the City Council to hold a Street Day appeal for funds, arid it will take place next Friday, August 19, and in the event of unfavourable weather on that date, will be postponed to the following Friday, the 26th. Six Wellington, bands are participating in the appeal, and each-band Is being allotted a district with the privilege of having a Stall-tor the sale of donated goods, etc., and any ladies desirous of assisting the bands, either by collecting or donating goods for stalls, are kindly asked to ring telephone 41—748, and' all inquiries will be attended to. The appeal to be made to the citizens of Wellington next Friday by the Various city bands should meet with a ready response. Owing to the hard times which 'most of them are experiencing financially, it Is toiicb-and-go whether some of them will be able to carry on until the summer arrives and open-air programmes will be resumed. It seems almost unnecessary to repeat that bandsmen are a self-sacrificing body of men actuated solely by love of their hobby, and that an acknowledgment of their services —such as the Street Day collection next Friday—would be a graceful gesture and an encouragement to keep on until better times arrive. When public functions are arranged the bands are generally looked to to give a hand, and in this they have been generous to a. degree,.so it is earnestly hoped that the spirit of gratitude will be manifest on the occasion of the bands’ SOS next week. Proposed District Contest.

At a recent meeting of the Wellington Brass Bands’ Association it was decided to make application to hold a one-day band contest in December next, and if permission was granted, to invite the bands of the V/airarapa to participate. In 1927 a prominent businessman of the city donated a very valuable sliver cup for competition among the .Wellington bands>irresi>ective of grades, for quickstep purposes, and it has been contested for on two occasions, the Artillery Band being successful the first time and the Municipal Tramways Band the second. It is proposed to revive the contest for the trophy, and an endeavour

will be made to get other trophies for | test selections between-the A.and.B. [ grades of the association. The necessary ! permission has been granted, subject to I certain conditions being fulfilled, and a special meeting is being called for AugI ust 24 to finalise the matter. The opin- ■ ion is freely expressed that as the national contest is not being held in February next, a local contest, with possibly twelve .bands from Wellington and vicinity, would no doubt be a financial success. Minor Band Activities. At a meeting of the management committee of the New Zealand Brass Bands’ Association last week a permit I was granted the Canterbury Provincial District Association to hold a-contest ' at Ashburton on October 8. for B and C grade bands. It is gratifying to note the activity among the junior grades and the number of contests that have been or are being arranged for. Contesting has for its principal aim the furtherance of the cause of brass bands and the discovery of the most efficient exponents on the various instruments. , As, most of the class bands are recruited from the ranks of the lower grades, these friendly competitions are. valuable. , Application Too Late. As mentioned last week, it had suggested in Palmerston North that, in connection with the Royal Show to be held there in November next, an additional attraction would be the holding of a band contest. An application was accordingly sent to the New. Zealand Brass Bands’ Association asking for a permit to hold a contest as above stated, but the executive of the association has had regretfully to decline to issue the desired permit on the ground that as Masterton had made all arrangementsfor holding a district competition on November 19, two permits could not be granted for contests in the same month. The two centres, it is also considered, are too close to each other. Naval Reserve Band. ' On Sunday last the R.N.V.R. Band, under the conductorship of Mr. Harry Baker, held a very successful concert in the De Luxe Theatre. The building was well filled, arid all the items on the programme had a good reception. The band will be “on the air”,next Sunday. Its affairs, are running along smoothly, and a splendid spirit of comradeship ekists between the bandsmen. A good B bass player would be' welcome, one with a pood disposition and willing to “do his bit" Hastings Moving. Hastings Citizens’ Band has communicated with Mr. John G. Osborne, secretary of the New 1 Zealand Brass Bands’ Association, on the subject of holding a band contest in the above town, and inquiring as to what attitude the association would be likely to adopt toward the proposal. The secretary has replied that as the projected Christchurch- contest has been abandoned it is operi to Dunedin and Nelson to renew their applications, which had already been lodged some time ago and which of course had preference. Seeding that the Christchurch contest for 1933 had been regarded as a •definite fixture, the secretary therefore assumes that Hastings has in view a contest for 1934, and the proposal will come before the controlling body in due course. Concert Season Ending. “Quick March” writes: “The Sunday concert season is drawing to a close, and mixed feelings will mark its termination. This year has been the most difficult of any as far as finance is concerned/ , So, many being out of work has a good deal to db with this state of affairs. The public do not give the support they should do; they all seem anxious to give the smallest coin. It is a good job for the bands there are no smaller coins than the ‘threepenny bit.’ The withdrawal of the' City Council subsidy has made its mark also on the bands’ financial position, and it is to be hoped the council will soon be in a position to renew the grant.”