PERSONALITIES of the week

Radio Record, Volume VIII, Issue 37, 22 March 1935, Page 10

PERSONALITIES

of the week

BOULT AT OXFORD {RANK HOWES meets Adrian Boult at Oxford before the war and deseribes a few incidents. "The Christ Church man with the bald head, continually cropped up If I went to sing in the Bach Choir he was there playing the piano, or singing the bass solos. If I went to our local competitions festival, he was there, too, competing in a chamber music class with 2 youth who has since become a famous clarinet player (Frederick Thurston). He coached our choir in Parry’s "Pied Piper.’ He was seen on the river "stroking" the House second eight. Then A.B. disappeared-I discovered afterwards he had gone to Leipzig to learn a thing or two about conducting from the great Nikisch, A BAKER’S SON PIETRO MASCAGNI (now in his 72nd year), is best known for his Sicilian opera "Cavalleria Rusticana," which won him a prize offered by a publisher. His more ambitious efforts have been hardly successful. The composer’s early days’ -were adyenturous. Itis father, a baker, intended the boy to be a lawyer, but Pietro studied

music in secret. Darly successes wou his father over, and he was sent. to Milan. Becoming tired of the academie classes at the Conservatoire, young Mascagni joined a travelling opera company as conductor. Later he gave pianoforte lessons, until the furore created ‘by. "Oavaleria Rusticana" brought him fame and money. "I’ve written 14 operas," said Mascagni recently, "all as good as ‘Cavalleria Rusticana,’ yet the world persists in ignorin gthe other thirteen." PARTLY SPANISH QNE of the best mezzo-sopranos on the records is undoubtedly Ninon Vallin, who, although described as French, is partly Spanish, which possibly accounts for her splendid singing of de

Falla’s Spanish songs, especially those from his ballet, "Tuove the Sorcerer." Like Conchita Supervia in her Spanish songs, her very voice changes, and is’ charged with. dark passion: Apart from her Spanish songs, Ninon Vallin is best known’ as’ the greatest interpreter of the songs. of Reynolds Hahn. As an,

absolute contrast to the‘songs of "Love the Sorcerer," we have such exquisite numbers as "If My Thoughts Had Wings," "The Exquisite Hour’ and others. Her voice is impressively beautiful and rich and without any of that distressful vibrates that disfigures the art of so many modern singers. ONE OF "THE SIX’ NE of the youngest of the French group of young composers, formerly known as "The Six,’ Francis Poulene (born 1899), is already a man with a past. In his youth he consorted with rik Latie, Milhaud, Auric, Jean Cocteau and others of the "miscellany" class. He was intimate with Picasso and the Cubists, he set poems by that ’ flippantly earnest rebel, Guillaume:Appollinaire, and now, having sown his wild oats, he is said-to be going the way of all rebels-back to the classics. Poulenec’s goal is apparently Mozart. Jt is not yet certain that he has reached it, but there is plenty of time. He plays personally in the recording of his own trio. LIPSCOMB’S METHODS P.| LIPSCOMB’S methods in putting thrillers on gramophone records have taught him the art of compression, and in his own words he describes how much onecan get into a few minutes, but there is no opportunity . for frills or beating about the bush. Mr. Lipscomb says:-"There can be -no fencing for an opening, no housemaid or butler to lead up to the entrance of a principal actor. For each play we have to open with great emphasis, and at once inspire the imagination of un-

known thousands of listeners in the theatre royal of the sitting room, In preparing an accepted thriller for the gramophone, I pick my, players, read the script to them,.hold a couple-of fr P hearsals, have try-outs in front of microphone in.the recording studio for the technical staff to .make.sure of bal-ance-of voices, etc. We have many ingenious devices to gain our effects. You think that you hear a. revolver fired. Well, you do not, it is merely that a man ‘snaps his finger and. thumb close to the microphone, because this gives the desired’ noise, whereas -an -actual pistol explosion.would. be ineffective, A knock at the door is tried twenty. times in-yarious parts of the studio until the right tone is registered, and the ,tramp ot, feet is gained by gloved hands being pressed upon a box filled, with shingle. An explosion, we found, could be‘represented by the dropping of a Chinese gong, a tray or a collection of old iron strung together, to produce a full-toned sound rather than a sharp detonation which would not be effective." { ATTRACTIVE BLONDE HEH crowning glory of Hisie Carlisle is her attractive golden blonde hair, A lady journalist learned that an

egg shampoo on e week and a camomile the next week kept it in perfect colour, while an "Alice" band kept it tidy during rehearsals. The style of dressing favoured was a flat wave and lost of curls, with an attractive coxcomb. When asked if she brushed it a lot and rarely wore a hat, her questioner knew the answer would be "yes," and it was. Elsie Carlisle is heard at the B.B.¢:. fairly frequently, and her admirers af numbered by thousands all over the world. In most countries ‘it is. her excellent gramophone records that endear her to radio listeners.

BEGAN AS PIANIST (USI SUDDIERBY, one of England's sweetest singers, started her musical career ay a pianist; and won the Corl Medal of the Associated Board au the Diploma of Associate of the RCM. Indeed, in those days, she hardly realised that, she had-a voice. What is more curious is that her friends thought that she had a con- . trulto voice. and when. at lepgth she decided to have singing lessons, and first went to Sir BE. C. (then Dr.) Ba-ri stow. organist at York Minster, she . sang him two contralto songs. He. howerer, at once perceived that her yoice wis capable of considerable ex-

pansion, and eventually, trained her so that she was able to sing soprano parts for all the choral societies ni the country. Her singing of Bach is particularly delightful, FROM TYNESIDE De. EDGAR BAINTON is one oe those distinguished musiciaus Or the da; who look back gratefully to having enjoyed Sir Charles Stanford's teaching at the Royal College-almoai. a diploma in itself. Following a successful term as Principal of the New-castle-on-Tyne Conservatoire,. he was uppointed Director of the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music

in Sydney. As a conductor, Edgar Bainton has done much to improve the standard of music in the nérth at Wugland. Verily Newcastle-on-'Pyue's loss is Sydney’s gain. His published works include a symphony, "Befor: Sunrise," for contralto solo, chorus au. orchestra; a foil pianoforte and orchestra; "Phe Tower," and "A Hymn to God the Father,’ for chorus and orchestra.