MUSIC AND THE WAR

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16590, 13 January 1916, Page 3

MUSIC AND THE WAR

A passenger to • Christchurch by tho Ruahine was Miss Muriel Little, an English exponent of the Hedmondt-Gerhardt School of Voice Production. To a ISiews reporter Miss Little said:— " It has had a very disturbing effect, as might be expected, on musical circles and musicians generally at Home. The music teachers bewail tho la£k of fresh pupils. Many of their old pupils have gone to the hospitals as nurses, 'the musicians now are u.uidng livings by appearing at the cainp entertainments, for winch it has been decided by the promoters, that they shall be paid. The ordinary musical recitals have practically fallen through, and the outcome is that the music hall standard has been largely raised, and tho very best musicians now appear on tho music hall stage Though, of course, no lover of music can deny tho great and beneficial influence of German music, yet at the present timo the public will have none of it under any consideration. The public taste is for Russian and French music—even more so than for Italian. Then, of course, the war has taken a great number of artists as fighters On the German side, Kreisler, the great violinist, has been fighting, and has been wounded, and Thibeau, the French violinist, has also gone to the front. Except for the camp concerts and music hall music is at a standstill It is regarded as a luxury, except as a means of amusement for the troops. People will not think of it otherwise than as a luxury, and as they are averse to giving money for pleasure or luxuries music has suffered. One thing in music in England is that the standard is improving. The foreign training is being recognised as superior to the English, and there is a great movement on foot towards founding a College of Technique in England. Music in England is regarded simply as a means to satisfy an ill-trained public That, most consider, is enough. But on the Continent music is regarded as a serious study—a trade, a profession—and thus concert technique is regarded as of great importance—only second to the artistic value. So Madame Goodwin, Tobias Matthey, and others are working haTd to get the importance of technique recognised by, and in fact to start an English school independent of those on the Continent."