NEW ZEALAND MUSIC.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXII, Issue 63, 12 September 1911, Page 2

NEW ZEALAND MUSIC.

At the time arr&ngemente were being mad<s for the NeW ; Zealand concert at the Crystal Palace, one of the series giv«n in connection with the Festival of Empire, I noted that the lack of names of New Zealand composers was causing some harass to the management, ' who naturally wiehed to make the occasion on© of special New Zealand interest throughout, and that when the name of Mr. Alfred Hill was mentioned it was received with pleasure, as al«o was that of Mr. Arnold Trowell— -two composers, ' at any rate, had been discovered, and both did great credit to their country when the concert took place in July. But "A New Zealander" who was present at the concert was not altogether pleafted, and he has unburdened himself thus to The Times:— "Many of us New Zea-landers^ had come 13,000 miles, and Were anticipating with delight the New Zealand concert at the Crystal Palace on 18th July. At last we wers to get a chance and hearing, but great wa« our disappointment tojlnd.that it was quite unrepresentative, "hough called 'New Zealand-—H ills music, which is really beautiful and grand. Was most cruelly cut. Only was the Adagio of the Symphony performed, and all the fine effects of the whole lost, from a Colonial standpoint - most unfair and unmusical. One might as well read a verse of Kipling, and say that one has read the whole poem. A. Medley and Maughan Barnett's compositions were not even given a chance. Th^ accompanist was an Englishman, tho conductor also, and h« naturally found room for two 'items of his own compositions, one comprising three different dances (no cutting 'there). On an ordinary occasion we tnould have been delighted and honoured in including them in our programme, but this only time that we were to be heard in England it was too hard that we were crowded out. And, if I may say it, the musical public have had a loss, at any rate, in not liearing Sill's music, so original, fresh, and really music."