The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1877-03-14

Is not unlikely that u majority Of the
regular medical practitioners In the dis.
tricts Of every one Of the Senators and
Representatives at Harrisburg are grad.
uates Of the Jefferson, and has had the
benefit Of the clinical instruction hereto.
fore conducted by the College at its own
expensc.-PML Ledger.
Our CHURCH CHorRs,-Duriug short
visit from home, which accounts for the
omission Of our article last Saturday, we
spent part Of Sunday at a Methodist
Church In u neighboring city, In which
the choir Is one Of the old fashioned kind,
a volunteer choir, uncertain and nm.
Wieldly as all such diIorganiLed bodies
are. The gentlemanly usher, being doubt.
less impressed by our elegant CLOTHES, con.
yeyed US 10 one Of the front seats In the
"synagogue," where not having any one
to interest our thoughts beyond the
preacher, We could listen attentiyely 10
the choir, which was situated, in the back
Of the church-no the front-fo In
the gallery over the stairway, the old
fashioned place, We are thus confused
because when outside, we call the en-.
trace front Of the church, when inside,
the preacher at the far end from the en-.
trance, we call that the front, and the
other "front" the back. We think there
were four sopranos, two altos, three ten
ors and four BASES in the choir, which
sang "a voluntary the old
anthem, Jerusalem my glorious
home" Well, preserve us from
ever hearing "Gee-me.Bal.em" sung
with so much wrechedness again, or
hearing the old tune "St. Martins" sung
as diSmally and drSwly.out as we did on
this occasion. AS good fortune would
have it, the next hymn was "Nearer My
God to Thee" in which the people ali
took \ hearty interest, as also in the long
metre doxology at the close Of the ser.
mon. Had 1t not been for this relief the
music would have been most wretched.
The excellent sermon on "Be not weary
in we'll doing" encouraged US In the
hope that some day there would be no
more such music 10 listen 10, that such
choirs might give way to better ones and a
standard raised akin to that we hope for
in better world. That this choir could
have done better we are sure Of, but the
fault in that az most all such chOirs, is las
is also the case in most musical societies)
the superficial knpwledgs singers have Of
music. Scarce one in a hundred can
read music at sight, or even tell beyond
the number Of sharps or flats Ia the
signature, what key they may be singing
in. The fact is, our chorus singing Is
mostly u failure because singers who
may be gifted with full, rich, fine voices,
do not know their musical A B Cs, and
consequently have to learn everything
by note. II they learn in this way, I'M
less the singers are possessed OF goodly
quantity Of "brass," they must be ner-
vouS, uncertain and timid, Just as likely
to be right as wrong, liable ut any mo-
ment TO break down, and on the occasion
Of public performance, consider them
selves "in luck" If they get through with
out a balk. We know how chorus sing
ing is spoiled where the majority Of
singers hang on the sounds coming from
the leader in their part, because unable
to read with certainty, and shrink to ut
ter their own sound till they hear one
from some one in whom they have conf.
dence, then let forth their tone too often
the wrong one) with vehemence fatal
to all that may be expressed in the word
taste. When we hear Of the solo So
prano having to have her part fixed
in her mind, ground into her very
soul, by playing it over seventy times
seven for her; that the alto knows no dit.
ference in the sound OF note that may
have sharp or flat before il; that the
tenor was to be Grammed and primed by
persistent and patient efforts; that the
bass considers il superauous TO attempt
pronounCing the words in his effort 10
grunt out something he calls his part, it
IS wonder so much success is attained.
With an uncertain conductor or perhaps
none at all, singers, even good singers, are
apt to sing badly in chorus notwithstand-
ing Giligent practice. While the theory
OF congregational singing or volunteer
choirs is very nice, it does not prove 80
in practice, and the constant efforts OF
churches to have good choirs OF quar-
tette character, prove the fntility OF the
old form. We all know that the better
class Of singers in volunteer choirs are
always tempted into choirs where they
are paid, and it leaves the poorest class TO
make the music. tits right that it isso-a
musical education is not to be had for
nothing, any more than is clergymans;
and as the music in church now days
plays very important part in the SER
vice, it is just rs reasonable to want ex-
cellence in singing and playing, as excel
lence in the preaching. We know people
who 90 to church who think nothing OF
paying three or four dollars for two seats
at concert, two or three times year to
hear a noted singer sing one or two
songs; but think it 4 dreadful tax to pay
five dollars year towards having good
music every Sunday, and grum-
BILE and grumble over paid choir.
Such folks are not bit consistent.
1t is this stinginess on the part OF the
congregations, to which much OF the un.
satisfactory condition Of the choir sing.
ing is owing, for perhaps one or two sing.
ers Of ability are paid a pittance, and the
other singers get nothing, The paid sing.
erH, can perhaps appropriate their pay
to study andso outstrip the unpaid sing
ers in ability, with the certain result OF
unsatisfactory quArtette singing. Com.
plant is therefore instituted against the
choir, and (hul) paid choirs are voted a
nuisance. Now just for experiments sake,
we should like to see some one church
say to four good voices, go study hard
for this year, We will pay for your music
lessons, in return give us the best you
can. We would wager the cost, the
church would be repaid tenfold.