Broadcast of Music Scheme Approved

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 565, 18 January 1929, Page 8

Broadcast of Music Scheme Approved

WELLINGTON OPINIONS MR. PLUMMER'S PROPOSALS (Ft *otn Our Resident Reporter) WELLINGTON, To-day. “A boon for the small country societies,” is how Mr. John Bishoo, the English conductor of the Royal Wellington Choral Union describes the tentative proposals of Mr. C. R. Plummer, of Auckland, to improve the Dominion’s musical organisations by a process of subsidies from listeners-in. Mr. Bishop, however, is doubtful whether the amount proposed by Mr, Plummer (£4,000 per annum) would be large enough to accomplish much with the city societies. He admits that the scheme is fraught with possibilities, and that it is impossible to tell how much good it may do until it is tried. Mr. Plummer suggested a levy of about 2s to be paid by each listener-in, the fund thus collected to be used for the purpose of subsidising the musical societies, who thus would be freed from the fear of causing their concert hall audiences to fall off and would be able to broadcast. At present they are not heard “on the air.” Other leading musicians in the city, though, are not very enamoured of tbe scheme, which they describe as favouring the New Zealand Broadcasting Company at the societies’ expense. They point out. too, that the amount of money proposed to be collected would not go very far among the larger societies.