COMPETITIONS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1108, 22 April 1911, Page 11

COMPETITIONS.

TO BE HELD IN OCTOBER, | There was a large attendance of the General Committee of the New Zealand Competitions Society, held last evening, Dr. A. Izard, vice-president in the chair. It was announced that dates, commencing on October 24, had been pencilled for the Opera House and Town Hall, the competitions to be held in the theatre,'mid the linal gatherings in the large hall. The Town Hall was not considered practicable for the holding of competitions such as pianoforte, vecal, and elocutionary. Those classes for school children particularly would ho uttqrly ineffective in such a vast hall, from the pubic point of view. At the request of the committee, Mr. Scott Colvillc, secretary of the Auckland Competitions Society, attended tlio meeting, and in the course of an informal address imparted some very valuable information as to the arrangement of the classes and the management of the competitions generally. One point ho particularly emphasised was that in selecting test pieces for the vocal classes the key of the study should bo set out, and the edition (in the case of instrumental items) should be clearly nominated. Tho omission to do so elsewhere had caused a lot of trouble to the judges. Mr. Colville also dwelt on the educational value of choir competitions and ho suggested that there should bo thrco tests for choirs —an anthem, a hymn, and a part song, audi that the prize should be awarded to the choir scoring the highest aggregate points all round. It is also proposed to have competitions for Boy Scouts, to which end the local Scout-masters are to be approached. Part singing for school children had always aroused a fine competitive spirit, and had been tho means of bringing about a great improvement in the singing of children-attending the primary schools. Various other points of interest were raised by the speaker, which wore duly noted. In the course of tho meeting Mr. J. Dykes (secrctarv) mentioned that Messrs. AValker and Hall, of Sheffield, through the firm's local manager, Mr. 1 Atkins, had offered a £5 ss. cup for competition. Mr. A. H. Holmes promised to convene a mooting of representatives of the debating societies in 'Wellington with a view, of interesting them in "the debating competitions.