HIGHBROWS OR "HICKS"?

New Zealand Listener, Volume 3, Issue 59, 9 August 1940, Page 4

HIGHBROWS OR "HICKS"?

Sir,-For at least the second occasion recently a symphony of Beethoven and one of Rachmaninoff have been duly advertised in your programme for a certain time. Our hopes of good music have been raised, we have made our arrangements to suit, sometimes we have stayed at home when otherwise we should gone out-and then our hopes are dashed to the ground. The giants of the past are set aside without warning, and the ringside giants of the present

ruthlessly take their place. Why should intelligent people be derived of good music for the amusement of the "hicks"? It is a poor advertisement for our New Zealand wireless and the mental standard of the New Zealand public when the admittedly good stuff is relegated to the side stations and the grotesque and hideous gabble of the ringside commentator is given to our national stations. Why put good music in that part of the programme where it may be thrust aside? Why not let the bad push out the bad, and give us our music in some safe part of the programme? Another hint to programme compilers. Don’t mix, or alternate, good music with rubbish, the classics with swing or "drool," a ’cello with a Hawaiian onestring swooping band. It pleases neither the high nor the low-brow to have one item of his favourite music followed by one of his béte noire. Give us at least forty-five minutes of one class, and then may the gods of good luck grant that we may find a similar programme to our taste on another station. We are specially handicapped here as we cannot get the side-stations so far south. Fortunately we can console ourselves with the Australian stations. Yours, etc.,

GRUMPY

Invercargill,