Wichita eagle., 1888-08-16
THE SINGING SCHOOL.
TEACHING EXPRESSION TO A class
OF LITTLE GIRLS.

~ III 49, 0iN6Os
9 Vast Improvement on the Methods q
the Old Fashioned ''Singin' skule
. Te:,cher-A Surprised Audience-Nove
Features of q Rehearsal.
how to sing with the eyes is the burden o
: new system which Mr.. W. l. Tomiin
taught choir of seventy-ive little girls TO
. aepublic performance at the Music Teachers
convention in the city.
The girls were ranged in sort Of amphi
theatre, with Mr.. Tomlins and the piano il
the center. 'Now," said Mr. Tomlins, s..
want you to mean what you sing; want 70,
: to let your faces show what your voices ar,
uttering; want you to be merry when the
music is merry, and sad when the music i:
sad"
The girls began to run up the scale Glow
at first, said their teacher. Imagine me tc
be i'll in bed. You have come to ask after
my health"
And the maidens, with an air of concern
and heightened faces, and notes quite low
but clear, tiptoed their way gently along the
scale.
Louder" cried Mr.. Tomlins; IT am bet
ter; am convalescent; you are happy to
know that l shall soon be out again."
And with expressions of joy, with smiles
and congratulations, the girls went over the
ground again.
"And now" shouted Mr. Tomlins, 81 am
as well as ever. am out with you for pic
mic. 1t is the Fourth Of July, and we are
romping in the fields"
With wild burst of song the little ones
rushed up the scale withe tremendous pecan
Of delight.
Hold on to the top note" said Mr. Tom
Inns. "Hold on to it. Imagine that you are
up in the clouds. Fancy yourself little an
| gels floating in the sky. Up-up-up Now
softly flutter down"
The spectators applauded vigorously. They
had never seen so much significance extracted
from an octave. And the singers, having
within the compass of notes visited a sick
room, gone on picnic, shouted for the
Fourth of July, and foated like angels in the
nimbus of glory, sat in whirl half Of pleas
ure, half Of amazement
Next" said Mr.. Tomlins, 'let us sing
Come Out, IT'S Now September"
And off went the children with the refrain:
All among the barley
Who would not be blithe
When the free and happy barley
Is smiling on the scythe?
"Stop, stop, STOP" cried the teacher; "you
mustn't cross a barley field like that You
must dance, you must trip, you must be
merry"
In an instant all the faces changed Girls
who were intent on catching the notes began
to think Of the words Away they swung to
the lit of the song. Little tots wagged their
heads or mechanically touched their skirts as
if to lift them for dancing And SO they be-
gin again, tripping among the barley, per-
forming sarabband among the ripened grain.
The difference was astonishing
SO the little children passed to the second
part:
The yellow leaves are paling and kindlirs into
red,
And the ripe and golden barley is hanging down
its head.
Here they were taught that the paling Of
the leaves was to be accompanied with
quietude of bearing, a sadness of voice; that
tho kindling into red was to be expressed
with emphatic and positive conviction. And
as for the ripe and golden barley, that was
to be celebrated with the joyous exultation
of 4 harvest song. Four lines could hardly
be made to carry more variety of express
sion.
A sweet and tranquil evening hymn was
given with the same changes Of note and
look. The children's voices sank low as the
gloom of night was supposed to approach;
then swelled into fervor at the thought Of
divine protection; then broke into rapture as
the heavens opened and the angels descended
in floods of light upon the sleeping child. |
Like sacred song at twilight, falling from
the organ loft Of dim cathedral, it sank
into the heart and moved the sensitive to
tears
''And now" said Mr.. Tomlins, after a
long silence, Il will sing you song myself.
You will begin by applauding me, and little
Elsie opposite will bring me this posy Of
flowers when have done"
Mr.. Tomlins' song. which was given -
show the children how soloist phrases and
stands before an audience, told of some
in nest with their mother:
''Whoo," said the little ones; 'whoo,' said she,
All in their nest in the old pine tree.
And when little Elsie, a golden haired
baby, had presented posy of flowers, the
children took up the refrain. Every detail
was infinitely criticised. Don't sing old
pine tree" said Mr.. Tomlins. las though its
age were a reproach to the pine tree. 1t was
a nice old pine tree; pine tree which birds
would naturally choose to nest in. Sing odd
with quite another accent"
The little girls pursed up their mouths and
smiled sympathetically, and SO made the pine
tree quite a respectable ornament Of the
forest. And after that there was glad bar
vest song, and the performance was over
II think" said Mr.. Tomlins to the specta-
tors, as they gathered around to congratu-
ate him, this system will find universal ac-
,eptance. If the teachers approve it in the
it is likely to become popular in
the schools"
And where did you get the little girlsF'
81 sent around to the superintendents Of
,ix Sunday schools and asked them to send
ne all the younger girls that cared to coma
You see what they have learned. Chicago ;