HIGH BROWS AND LOW BROWS

New Zealand Listener, Volume 3, Issue 70, 25 October 1940, Page 6

HIGH BROWS AND LOW BROWS

Sir,-I have been amused by the letters of Mr. Garland and the others on the everlasting subject of programmes. Most of these letters are full of the usual selfishness, Mr. Garland wants all classical music, "Low Brow" wants dance music with vocal interludes by orchestral leaders, and apparently no classical music. Both seem to want to force the other to listen to what he approves or not listen at all. I love classical music, but not all the time. Dance music with vocal interludes is loathsome to me at any time. But lots of people enjoy it who pay licence

fees that provide me with plenty of other good things to choose from. When someone starts moaning about "lul-lul-luvy" and the "Moo-moo-moon" to the silvery tinkling of tin-cans and the soothing pounding of tom-toms, I can always tune the all-powerful dial to something more pleasing. I’m sorry for the few who like only jazz and only the classics. Why don’t they try to widen their tastes? If they’d try pleasant light music, light opera, good English ballads, interesting talks, and go adventuring round the dial a bit, they’d have far less limited lives. Mind you, Mr. Editor, I think you’re partly responsible for the recent outburst of selfish dogmatism. You asserted that Tchaikovski was morbid. And you repeated it! You didn’t say he seemed so to you. You may, of course, be a world-famed authority on Tchaikovski, but did you ever hear the Nutcracker Suite? If you find the

"Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" morbid, I weep for you. You must be morbid indeed! And the "1812 Overture," too? Poor man! I deeply sympathise. And his Symphony Pathetique? It is pathetic, perhaps, even sad, in parts, but great music without some sadness would be rather unreal, don’t you think, for life is full of light and shade. Now then, "Low Brow" and Mr. Garland, before you pulverise me, remember, please, that there are other people in the world besides you-SUGAR PLUM (Auckland). (We did not say that Tchaikovski’s music was morbid. We said that he was. If our correspondent will read any authentic Life of the musician he will realise that "morbid" was a very mild word.-Ed.).