In the Wake of the Week's Broadcasts

Radio Record, 18 March 1938, Page 6

In the Wake of the

Week's Broadcasts

NOT MANY ‘WOULD SWITCH OFF

J had heard Priestley’s "Laburnum Grove" over the air befure the Kathleen Taleoner production was broadcast by 4YA last week, so nny greatest interest lay in trying to pick flaws in a

local presentation of a difficult play. ‘Laburnum Grove" is a very "talkie" play,

and demands differentiation of voices if confusion is to be avoided, a point not always, by any eaus, borne in mind by producers, I thought Miss VFaleoner uust have given this aspeet very careful cousideration, for a marked difference in the various voices could be notived. The whole presentation hinted at a realisa-

tion of microphone values, and producer and cast deserve praise for the manner in which they handled a tricky and lengthy play. A play has to be wellhandled to keep listeners tuned-in for 80 minutes, but [I don’t think many would switch off "Laburnum Grove."

HIGHLIGHT IN CANTERBURY

Highlight of the musical week in Christchurch was undoubtedly the presentation by the 83YA Orchestra, conducted by Mr. Will Hutchens, and with Mr. Gil. Dech at the piano, of *"Concerto

for Piano and Orchestra in A. Major" (Mozart). Mr, Dech is a man of parts.

When he was first in Christehureh seme local musicians were inclined to think that his prefer

A ences lay with purely "popular" music. He soon, by his performances, scouted those ideas, and his latest musical offering sets the seal of well-nigh perfection on bis piano artistry. There are 24 players in this orchestra, and each is a selected artist capable of playing any work instrumentally suited, How much the Mozart production pleased 3YA listeners was shown next morning by the mail. Besides supporting Mr. Dech in the concerto, the orchestra, which he conducts when nob on solo work, played a "Suite for String Orchestra," by Scarlatti, extremely well, A little niore of this. type of radio offering would be welcome to many listeners,

LISTENERS KEPT ON THE MARK

Running commentaries on the Canterbury athletic championships. held last week at Lancaster Park were specially interesting, because the 3YA announcer had a brain-wave for an un-

usual scheme. He induced V. P. Boot to tell listeners about part of C. H. Mat-

thews’s run and Matthews to drop a few words into the microphone about Boot’s methods of boosting up human speed on the track.

PARADE OF TALENT IN THE SOUTH

Br . The special programme arranged anid presented by members of the Otago branch of the Council of the Music Teachers’ Association from 4YA last week. was much more _ entertainine

than many listeners had expected. The pick of the southern city’s talent took

we part in the presenta- " tion, including Dr, V. E. Galway (city organist), Mr, Max Scherek, Mr, C. Roy. Spackman, Mr, Alfred Walmsley, Mr. Wilfred Kershaw, Mr. G. W. Johnstone, Miss Meda Paine and Miss Mary Cc

Martin. The whole programme given was good, but even if it had not been, it would have been worth while listening to if only to hear Dr. Galway and Mr, Scherek in the duet for two pianos, Bach’s Fugue in © Major, and Messrs. Walmsley and Kershaw in the duet, No. 2 Scene and Duet from "Faust." wk

MUSIC AS A DELICATE ART

The excitement of something new is just ag keen for us to-day as people say it was to the old Athenians. That’s why I liked the "picture-songs" of some modern composers like Martin

Shaw, Herbert Brown and Michael Head, given by Myr, Newton Goodson from 2YA last week.

They showed music ag a delicate art, in which the song could portray a Chinese scene, a woman swinging along in a palanquin, the countryside sleeping at noon, and the Royal Academy of Music’s cat purring and talking with a cat’s sardonic humour, over its latest litter of kittens. There is no doubt Mr. Goodson’s voice ig excellently produced, He sang these most difficult songs with undoubted. cleverness, and the accompaniments were delicately played. The selection of songs for radio is no less an art than singing them. ie

HOW MUCH FOR A LIFE?

Nn Ts life u boon and, if so, how much is it worth, is a problem that philosophers have been trying to solve from the first dawn of reason. One or two of them, such as dry old Schopenhauer, in fact,

decided that as the first part of the question could be answered in the

negative, the second part did not arise. In these days, it seems, twelve good and true jurymenu ure liable to-be landed at any time with this highly speculative proposition. They are expected to give an-answer in an hour or so, to a question that the

philosophers have not been able to resolve in centuries. All this I gathered from a neat and clear exposition over the ‘air from 2YA last week by the editor of the Law Journal, It was a good talk. In a quarter of an hour he.. gave a clear outline of the Law Reform Act, under ..,vhich. a relative may claim compensation after one’s death through an accident caused by someone else’s negligence, That is to say, if I die through a motor accident caused by the driver’s negligence, my relatives cat claim that the life I have lost would have been worth £1000 to me. But the rum thing is that I can’t then collect the £1000 that might have made my life worth living. There is a wide field for radio talks like this, and, properly given, they will always interest a wide audience, — a

HEARD HISTORY THE MAKING.

. +¢o0 . ‘Shortwave brought the Central Wuropean drama (tragedy,.if you like) very, close to home, over the ‘week-end.

On Saturday, I tuned in just in time to catch the relay in English of Hitler's

proclamation Austria-all how the ° would not about about Reich allow

Germans to be persecuted, and how the world had to be convinced that Germans in Austria were going through a period of joy and blissful emotiom Then came the ordinary news session in English from Berlin, harping on the same theme of Germany’s role as saviour of Austria, calling Dr. Schuschnigg a plain liar and denying that there had been any intimidation or threat of force by the Nazis. I’d like to have heard the French version, but unfortunately their news session in Hnglish is at the same time as the German. But better was to come on Monday morning when [ tuned in to the German station at 2 a.m, It was worth niissing my sleep to hear history in the making as the actual voices of Her Hitler and Dr. Seyss Inquart, new chancellor of Austria, came over the air in a broadcast of their speeches from Linz, in Austria. Without knowing German J could pick Hitler’s voice at once from having heard it in news. reels. And the cheering made it quite plain that it was the Fuhrer in person (It must be very wearying making speeches when you are a dictator, You bellow one stirring sentence and then ave interrupted by a burst of well-train-ed cheering which lasts for ages. Ané su it goes on throughout the speech). On this particular occasion, even Hit ler seemed to become a little tired 0 the applause. You could hear him call ing for silence several times. At tlx end of his speech the cheering laste¢ for a solid ten minutes, intersperse: with the singing of the Austrian National Anthem and the "Horst Wesse! song. Safe at home thousands of mileaway, I hummed the ‘Marseillaise’ ¢« myself just as a counterblast to all the ‘enthusiasm, Incidentally, what I heard of Hil ler’s speech quite disproved the rumou: that he is losing his voice. es

RADIO WRITES ITS _ FOOTNOTES.

Footnotes in newspapers to the new: of the passing of some notable figurr are not as a rule very exciting but foot: notes on the radio to notable musicians. like that of the NBS from YYA one

evening last week on the news of the death of the com poser of "Destiny

Waltz,’ can stir the memory through the senses in a very definite way. The -brief sketch: of. the composer’ s life, and the tale of the Welshmen in Australia -lost #4 the hills and then saved by hearing the tinkle of a cheap gramo phone as it played "Destiny Waltz’‘were all that was wanted before the old waltz that had some magie in it seemed to steal out over the air agair from the past, It is in the doing of little things like these that radio links itself up closely with the peoplein a more than utilitarian sense, Stir people’s memories and very often you stir their affection. One small point of tech. nique occurred to me. Wouldn’t it have been better to have the waltz softly played all the time as a background to the narrator’s voice? 4