Late Sir E. Elgar Utterly Condemned Jazz

Radio Record, Volume VIII, Issue 25, 28 December 1934, Page 6

Late Sir E. Elgar Utterly Condemned Jazz

To the Editor Sir,-‘Amused’ still says that jazz ranked most high in the voting when he knows it was only third on the list (even assuming that dance music is all jazz, which it has not quite got to yet). He also forgets that crooning per se is not necessarily built on any jazz rhythm, and cannot legitimately be added to votes for dance music. Again, it is not accurate to say that one has to wait until a late hour to hear a modern foxtrot or waltz; the daily programmes are filled with them ad nauseam-the very thing I have been complaining about. As for asserting that. his radio set would be no good to him.for all the good things enumerated in the New Zealand national programmes, we can only assume that he is "non compos mentis,’" and I challenge him to shed his nomde plume. Serious art does not monopolise the air, and nobody has ever suggested that it should. "Fealthy-Minded" has rather given himself away; if he finds jazz the only thing worth listening to he would appear to be a very useless citizen to this country. There are certain people who prefer to: be continuously drunk, to ill-treat their wives, even to live a criminal existence; -but we should never dream of taking. them as any kind of standard. Further, to suggest that our King and, e.g., the Duke of Gloucester, are not worth listening to, savours much of the lese-majestie; no wonder he adopts a nom-de-plume! He suggests that there is no evil in music. Does he know. either the story or music of. "Tannhauser" and the moral it presents? Has he no conception of the difference between a Venus and an Elizabeth? Or is he so steeped in this evil jazz that he knows nothing about good music. Dare he, also, come out in the open? Unfortunately, by now, we are not allowed even to have Sunday wnpolluted, so that suggestion is worthless. Finally, the reference to the late Sir Edward Blgar igs meaningless and mis-Jeading-I .was. fortunate enough _ to.

be included among his friends in London, and I can vouchsafe from my own personal intercourse with him that (as he was the first to acknowledge talent in others) he utterly condemned jazz and all its unholy works!-TI am,

etc,

J. D.

PARKIN

Timaru.