New Britain herald., 1915-05-04

lClara and David Names In New
 York Tribune.)
 The entire nature and action of a child may be remoulded through music. This is not an idle dream nor a mere theory; it is a substantial fact proved in many cases during fif- teen years of work in the Music School Settlement, in East Third street Through the proper study of music the unmanageable child As may be made tractable, just as through wrong n1thods the manageable one may become ungovernable. Not only has this work been done with chil- dren drawn from the neighborho od that surrounds the Music School Set clement, but with little ones who live in luxury uptown, where the air is sweet and clean, and in homes where they are surrounded with beautiful things, for the incoSrigible child is found not alone in the slums-slle lives in mansions as we'll. st :.
 The child of this type is one in whom ideals have been crushed or suppressed. It is a spiritual as well as physical condition that brings out qualities that brand him as bad 7 But in these children there is hope, for they at least have the courage of their convictions. while the gener- ally accepted good child is one often made so through slavery. ts!@
 The first thing to do with the "in- corrigible" child is to turn his. mind into channels of interest, to aid him in discovering 8 personal ideal and music is one of the greatest aids in such a direction. aThcre Is subtle sense in an art expression thatsaids the human being in realizing his ideal. To awaken the beauty ana ap- preciation of harm mony is more impor- tant than to give the child a so- called thorough education. tg.A
 When it is said that music will in fluence the unmanageable child it IS not meant that mere listening is all that is required, though there have been great changes when such chil- ldren have been placed in surround ings where music is a feature. Teach the child to play. All children want to play on some instrument. This may seem exaggerated, but notice the little ones inclination to tender years to play on some toy instrument. A baby loves to sit by the piano and | the child grows older that either the lack of an instrument, or through making a drudgery of music by old fashioned methods, this desire for musical expression is crushed.
 It is necessary that the whole idea of music teaching be changed and the terrible custom of subjecting the child to hard daily practice when 1t can do nothing but make a most lnorrid noise shouuld be stopped, for it is subjecting the child to the most nerve-racking physical torture-not to say anything about its neighbors. You cannot take a child, good,- bad ! or indifferent, put him to work al l the piano with an utterly uncongen- l ial teacher, make him practice cer. l tain set hours a day set scales in g l set way and bring forth good results
 Either you are going to produce . 1 spiritless good child or rebel Scales are tuneless affairs represent ing to .the child nothing but drudgery l Chords that form harmonic instruc. ton are interesting so begin with these, secure the childs interest ane
 never fear but the matter of techniqu,
 will follow.
 | Tn the settlement a new method 0 music teaching has been develope, (which leads to the study of the bed I and the coordination of mind an. muscles which should lessen the tim required in daily practice, and it i extraordinary what can be done.
 1 Take the violin, for instance. Hov l often has it occurred that persol l almost mentally deficient can be nor \ exDreSSiyn on the iraStriIrn ey1t thai on so sensitive and refined that the yer. elements which would make him l fine musician are a source of diff culty; There must be somethin I that keeps us all from doing wha we want to do. Every expression i made through the use of the body. B.
 realizing this and trying to rbrin, ] about a coordination between tn mind and muscles we have gotten a the very health of the child. H