LIGHT MUSIC

New Zealand Listener, Volume 32, Issue 813, 25 February 1955, Page 5

LIGHT MUSIC

Sir.-As one of the middlebrows to whom Mr. Price’s contribution in your issue of January 28 refers, may I heartily congratulate him on so ably expressing what, I am sure, most listeners feel about such a large part of our programmes, Where he would segregate items designed to suit the intelligence of morons, however, and provoke others to homicide, I would go further and eliminate them altogether, and then surely, in time, the noise lovers would become educated to an appreciation of more worthy and harmonious sounds. I would like to ask what is the method of selecting records for purchase. Are they selected by representatives of the Broadcasting Service or, as would seem to be the case, are the sweepings of the recording factories just bought indiscriminately by the ton? To me, the world’s most offensive noises are produced by very young babies crying determinedly, tin can bands with screeching trumpets, moaning Minnies and tired. sad wailing Willies whose noises seem to be recorded so prolifically in, but not exclusively in, the United States of America, and whose unmusical wails are usually connected with almost unintelligible words-certainly unpoetic words, of sentimental drippiness. It speaks well for the Italians that, even if they do record rubbish at all, they -keep such records at home, and rarely export anything that has no merit; but from the kind of noises referred to above, please spare me. Let me hear the announcer occasionally say, "Listeners, you will not be inflicted with that monstrosity again."

T. A.

URWIN

(New Plymouth).