A BITTER PILL

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 547, 27 December 1928, Page 14

A BITTER PILL

Beecham Hates Brass Bands “HORRID MUSIC” Though he is the greatest friend of English music, Sir Thomas Beecham is well aware of its shortcomings.. In a recent address at Leeds, he launched another savage attack against his country’s lassitude in art. “England is a musical wilderness,” he proclaimed, paying special attention to that “superannuated, obsolete, disgusting, noisy, horrid form of music”—the brass band. “It is the most difficult thing in the world for me to find a singer,” went on Sir Thomas, “and yet there are great English singers. They are not to be heard in this country, though you may hear them in every other country under the sun. The idol of the Austrian nation, the darling of Vienna, was an English tenor from Lincolnshire. You have never heard him in England, and I venture to say from my experience up to date that you never will. These singers will go where the best opera is, and they will not remain, even for patriotism, where there is no opera.” Speaking of the state of music in his country, Sir Thomas said: “You have that superannuated, obsolete' disgusting, noisy horrid form of music known as the brass band. I cannot pass through a street in the North of England without some awful sound breaking upon my ear and making life horrible. “Out of the open window comes this terrible sound, this grinding, this snuffling, this grunting—like all the hogs out of all the hoggeries in the world.

“There is plenty of that. There is not a cafe in England, or on the continent, where people can talk or rest; there is not an hotel where it is possible to sleep at night, because of the blare of saxophones, banjos, and tomtoms, which go on till four o'clock in the morning. “The whole of life is made wretched and ugly by this filthy sound. “Germany has 135 opera houses and 210 permanent orchestras. Italy—poor Italy, groaning under the yoke of Mussolini —has 70 opera houses. Paris alone has five, and London, with, its eight million people, has no permanent musical institution of any kind.”

Shura’s Many Friends Perhaps no visiting artist has made so many warm friendships in so short a time as Shura Cherkassky, the 16-year-old Russian pianist, who was given a great farewell in Melbourne recently. Shura, as all his friends call him, states that he has many fond memories of his visit to Australia and New Zealand, and intends to return again in a few years’ time, when, he confidently declares, he will be a much better artist. After an exacting programme Shura made his only speech in Melbourne. “As this is my last recital in Australia, I w-ill play as many encores as you like,” he announced, amid deafening cheers; and then added as an afterthought. “But you must know that when I play ‘God Save the King’ the concert will be over.” Ten encores followed. Then three cheers were given for the boy. More cheers occurred outside as he descended the steps and drove away.