DOMINION ARTISTS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 2 August 1924, Page 16

DOMINION ARTISTS.

PRELIMINARY MEETING. A VERY USEFUL IDEA. LONDON, May 29. About one hundred overseas people, interested in the proposed Dominions’ Artists’- Association, attended the meeting this week to hear Dr. G. A. Pfister, Miss Nathalie llosenwax, and Mr. Gibson Young give an outline of what should prove to be a very useful pro ject. Primarily, the idea originally was to young Australian singers who come to England to seek education and training. Dr. Pfister found that all these aspirants to fame had unlimited confidence in themselves, their talents, and their art. All of them were perfectly sure that there was plenty of room in their profession and that ultimately they would succeed. They thought that the world was still living as in the days of Melba, when there were no such things as cinemas, jazz steps, and wireless, and other inducements which keep the people away from concerts. In those days a recital cost about £2O. Young people do not seem to realise that nowadays there are anyJ. thing from ten to twelve recitals daily during the season in London; students often come to England without the advice of people who ought to be able to tell them of the conditions, and often when they get here they find that their voice is not as good as it was thought to be when they left home. Numerous tragedies could be told about young vocalists who, when they did arrive, for -want of information placed themselves in the hands of .socalled teachers who. really had no qualifications as voice producers, and who went from one teacher to another until at last _ they suffered morally through disappointment, and financially, because of all the fees they had paid away. If there had been in existence some kind of club or organisation where students could lia-ve had advice many a tragedy would have been averted. It wa s realised that the need for help in advice in this direction was great, s o Dr Pfister and hi s friends decided to make public their project, to enlist the sympathy of many who might he glad to help', and to extend the scope of the association to all students from overseas Dominions regardless of their intended profession, thus making the organisation of use to vocalists, instrumentalists, artists, sculptors, actors, journalists, novelists'*, etc. —indeed, to asnirants in all departments of the talents.

Dr. P'fister made some outspoken comments about the futility of recitals: “When a student,” he said, “thinks he is ready to appear in public, he goes to a concert agent. What these recitalgivers do not understand i s that recitals are absolutely useless. Who goes to them? Their personal friends! That will not give them a reputation! Critics go, and write a few words in the newspapers, and these newspaper cuttings are collected and put into pamphlet form, and there it all ends, £7O gone and no result! I have seen about 300 or more of these Press notices, and I have never met an artist who has not had excellent criticisms. But 1 have never had the pleasure of meeting a concert manager or a, conductor or a secretary of a choral society who will engage an artist on the strength of Press notices. What is the recital for if you cannot get positive results ? Concert agents are not there to make artists, but to make money for themselves. Aspirants in, all branches of art are faced more or ¥® s the same difficulties, and fighting alone they can do very little, whereas if all would pull together and’ help one another with advice they could at least do something to lessen the difficulties and the burden of the beginners. No one knows better than those who have already made their career that the times in 1924 are not the times of 1914, and still less aye they those of 1.904 and 1894. Concert en-. gagements are fewer, fees paid have gone clown, cost of living has gone up. At the present time there are 3000 professional vocalists in London who are oompeting for the few engagements that are available and worth while.” It is the one ai mof the association, when formed, to give a series of Dominion concerts annually. At these the best musicians .will appear, critics will be invited, the young people will thus be heard, and the expenses incurred by the individual recital will be a thing of the past. The list of overseas students m the possession of Dr Pfister and his provisional committee already consists of about 500 names, and he saw no reason why the majority : of these should not be .enrolled as members. The associatidn will have branches in all the chief centres in the Dominions, and those in charge will be kept acquainted with the professional barometer here, thus being able to gauge the prospects for people anxious to come to London for further tuition in the hope of o-et-ting a good start in life. ° iVGss Rosemvax explained her hopes of finding suitable premises for hostel and club,, and Mr. Gibson Young dealt with preliminary suggestions for raising the necessary finance. The meeting was quite preliminary in character, but full of promise. All present were interested and enthusastic. As set out, the chief aims of the club will be: 1. To provide a mutual point of meet, mg and a home in a central position m London. 2. With the assistance of representatives m the various States of the Dominions to form definite advisory links with those countries. 3. lo give help and advice to young artists about to launch their careers. 4. To undertake, on economical and uncommercial basis, the management of their recitals in London. 5. To act as press agents and concert agents for Dominions’ artists of all types, and generally to advance the artistic and utilitarian aims of Dominion artists.

Hie provisional committee includes the following names: Madame Rosina Lt u Ss Mnnson, Miss -Nathahe Rosenwax. Miss Lute Drummoiitl, and Miss Daisy Kennedy; Messrs Peter Dawson, Joseph Kay's, Earle Sp ecs-, ancl Gibson Young. in order to bring this movement belore the general public it has been derided (a) to give a series of Dominions' artists’ conceits in the Central Hall, Westminster, during July and August - 0>) to challenge English artists to a cricket match to he held at Lord's or the Oval in August. those present at the inaugural meeting included representatives from Australia, New Zealand, South. Africa and Canada, while apologies were received irom many interested neople who were unable to attend. Thseful suggestion * were made bv Mr Khayle 'Gardner. Mr. A. H. Ninnis. Mr. J. (.ollinson. Mr. Peter Dawson, and others, and one man. now a student in London, promised that when he returned to Australia lie would for five years devote 2.V per cent, of his gross earnings to the benefit of the proposed association.