Music
CHILDREN'S CONLmcni.
AT a children's concert given about three years ago I remember that the opening phrase of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony was illustrated by introducing the tale of Jack and the Beanstalk • the giant's " Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum " was used as a verbal motto, so that the phrase could be recognized at each entry. I objected, and still object, to that kind of illustration. It is like the old-fashioned nursery methods of teaching inarticulate babes to talk by making sounds which are withaut any kind of imitative or etymological foundation. Later, when they are supposed to be old enough " to talk properly," they have the trouble of unlearning all the first instruction, and are even rebuked for lapses into baby talk.
When lecturers on music are faced with an audience of children, they seem to think it necessary to adopt an apologetic attitude, as who should say : I know you think my subject very dull, but if you will bear with me, I will make it as light and amusing as possible." And if they are analysing a com- position, they drag in all kinds of extraneous ideas and label the themes with semi-humorous captions, hoping thereby to secure the attention and to help the memory of the audience. If any one of these lecturers were challenged on this point. he would probably give such an answer as this : " There Is no other way of explaining a work like Beethoven's Fifth Symphony to children. A purely musical explanation would be beyond them." Exactly. Alid this surely -indicates that the Fifth Symphony is an unsuitable work for a children's concert.
'The problem of choosing a programme for a children's ' concert is difficult, and is not 'solved by a set - of hard and fast rules. But perhaps it is necessary to postulate that what is roughly known as programme music is _preferable to absolute music. The visual sense is constantly being used for reference and for parallel in the sense impressions of children.. It provides the most practical means of arriving at the significance of the impressions. I can think of no piece of music which could fire the imagination of an audience of young people more swiftly and powerfully than " The Ride of the Valkyries," for example.
Music associated with a definite measure or occasion, such as a polonaise, minuet, serenade, nocturne, or barcarolle, will always be apt in a children's programme. There is no need to abuse this suggestion by letting loose a quantity of worthless music. Even a march can invoke our finer feelings, as we ' know from certain examples by Beethoven, Berlioz, Wagner, and Elgar (E flat Symphony). Incidental music can also be profitably used, especially in those cases where it has been arranged in the form of a suite. What better intro- duction to the appraisement of delicate nrchestration could be found than Mendelssohn's music for " A Midsummer Night's Dream " ? -
Great care should be exercised in the choice of a symphony for such programmes as we are considering. 'In my own opinion, Beethoven should be left severely alone in the early stages, until the form and manner of speech of a symphony has been made familiar through examples by Haydn and Mozart ; and when the time is ripe I suggest that Beethoven should be introduced through the Sixth, not the Fifth, Symphony. Schubert's " Unfinished " would be a good choice, because of its lyrical quality, which can never fail to make appeal to youthful minds since they are more responsive to the melodic element of music than to any other. The programnie of a children's concert I attended recently was admirably arranged. (This was one of the excellent concerts arranged by Mr. Robert Mayer.) It included two overtures, " The Maestersingers "and Leonora No. 8," Haydn's " London " Symphony, Debussy's " Fetes " and a Brahms Hungarian Dance. The children (as many of them as I could observe) were following the music closely, and were especially quick in attending to picturesque details, such as the distant trumpet call in the Leonora Overture and the little march episode in " Fetes." Before 'each work Dr. Malcolm Sargent gave a short, happily worded description and played some of the' thematic material on a piano. The success of this concert, I am certain, was due to two reasons above all others : first, the programme had been carefully prepared with the special conditions in view, and was not too long ; second, Dr. Sargent introduced no irrelevance for
the sake of illustrating his descriptions. BASIL MAINE.
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