"THE CURSE OF NATIONALISM"

New Zealand Listener, Volume 3, Issue 53, 28 June 1940, Page 11

"THE CURSE OF NATIONALISM"

An Examiner Looks At Music In The Dominions

¢¢T seems to me that the colonies suffer under a curse of nationalism." This challenging statement was made by Dr. Edgar Ford, visiting English musician and composer, examiner for Trinity College of Music, London, in an interview with The Listener the othereday. Over a cup of tea in a Wellington hotel, Dr. Ford amplified the statement. New Zealanders, or Australians, or other people of the Dominions. and colonies, he said, expressed intense pride in being what they were-but were rather inclined to forget that they were all part of the British peoples. Dr. Ford feels that if the peoples of the British possessions were not so insistent on their aloofness from the Mother Country (some colonials even regarded Englishmen with a certain derision), they would acquire a cultural background which at the moment is missing. The insularity. complex of colonials, thinks Dr. Ford, is reflected in their music. For: example, during the many years in which he had travelled throughout the Empire, although he had found numbers of capable and technically excellent musicians, he said he had found very few with a knowledge of "the literature of music"-in other words, a real cultural background for their work. Sundays in Paris Dr. Ford left England just over a year ago, and since then he has been examining, and giving a large number of recitals and lectures in Australia. He spoke of the war, and about Paris-that metropolis of the art-loving world -and mentioned with a smile how he usually spent Sunday when he was at home. Sunday in England, he said, was as gloomy and ‘boring as tradition had it, so his usual plan of campaign on a Sunday had been to catch a boat to France. Arriving in Paris about four o'clock, he would have a meal and a rest. Then dinner-and then the opera. "The Parisians have a secret which few other people have," said Dr. Ford, " They have found the secret of the art of living." His Music in Auckland Dr. Ford is himself a composer of distinction, and he has recently been at work on a symphony, the first movement of which has already been played. The completed composition will probably be given its first, performance when he returns to Australia. He has written a number of light works, and some of them will be featured by the Studio Orchestra under Harold Baxter in the evening programme from YYA Auckland, on Saturday, July 6, including " May Morning " Suite, and "Springtime in Puppet Land." In the course of his work as an examiner, Dr. Ford has naturally had some amusing experiences. One day, for instance, a boy came into the examining room. He was to play the piano. Seeing a rug under the piano stool, he asked if it could be removed, as it would " deaden the sound." The request seemed

peculiar, as the rug was nowhere near the instrument itself. However, Dr. Ford agreed, expecting to hear another Paderewski at least. In fact, the boy played horribly! Another time, a woman came in for a singing examination. She was clad in flaming red, had put on rouge in formidable quantities, and belladonna in her eyes. She carried, too, a massive collection of rings, bracelets and necklaces. And then she began to sing "I renounce the things of this world," followed by an invocation to angels clad in raiment pure and bright. Two Beecham Stories And speaking of amusing stories, Dr. Ford recounted two about Sir Thomas Beecham. The: first incident occurred while Sir Thomas was visiting America. Soon after he arrived at his room in a New York hotel, the telephone rang. Sir Thomas picked up the receiver. "Hello, is Sir Thamas Beecham thar?" drawled a voice. Being assured that Beecham was there, the voice continued, "Waal, Sir Thamas, Ah’m the prasident of ther English-Speakin’ Union in Noo Yark." "I don’t believe it," said Sir Thomas, hanging the receiver down. The other story dates from Sir Thomas’s divorce. The great man was in Manchester at the time, and during the day the newspaper posters screamed out such sensational headlines as "Sir Thomas. Greets Lady in Pyjamas," etc. Now, Manchester has the reputation of being very staid and proper. That night Sir Thomas was to conduct a big symphony concert, The concert-goers arrived, but when Sir Thomas stepped into the conductor’s rostrum, not a murmur came from the audience. Not a handclap or a whisper disturbed the. silence. Calmly Sir Thomas surveyed them for a moment; then, ‘turning to the orchestra, he said, " Gentlemen, let us pray." To conclude on a reassuring note for prospective candidates at musical examinations: Examiners may appear terrifying in the examination room, but in reality they are generally the most human people one could hope to meet. Dr. Edgar Ford proved that during this interview.