The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-10-19
Best Way to Educate Mus
icai Taste Of Community
Is Starting il With Band
Music

Music
| DR.. G. Walter Barr was talking
about Ke0kuk. past, present and
future. in the Office Of The Gate City
| this morning, and this is what he
said in as near his own words as
anybody can report them:
4 see John NageI has a new Keo-
kuk band on his mind now The
sooner Keokuk takes it on his mind
and gets the idea right in the Keo--
kuk mind, the better it will be for
this old town. remember well when
John Nagel had the street fair idea
on his mind, ard l was amazed after
working with him daily for awhile
that he had 90 much executive abil-
ity. He never got sufficient credit
for those original, monster street
fairs which have never been eQualled
here or any where else since. That
man has done lot for Keokuk, but
he's awfully afraid somebody will say
so out loud. Now he is forced into
taking up the band proposition
simply because there is nobody else
but him to do it, all things consid-
cred. And It's mighty good thing
for Keokuk that he is doing it.
The Masses and Music.
Some old German said once: Bad
people have no songs. I'm not so
sure about the exact truth of that.
for I've heard some pretty good
music in the city jail in the old
days; but 1t IL certainly true that
good music prevents crime and gives
humanity an LLlift, intellectually and
morally-whe1 you get the music
into the mass of humanity to leaven
it all through.
1T has always seemed pity to
me that the masses of the people
have to go 20 SO much trouble to
hear good music-not to mention the
money it costs generally. They want
music; they don't care much whether
it be good or poor music, SO that it
is easily accessible; they listen to
the acrobat executing music on a
second hand piano in a movie house,
because 1t is easy to get to. and be-
cause 1t is incidental to the routine
of their lives. If we would make
real music incidental to their weekly
routine, they would listen to that
good music-and they won't other
wise. ought to know, for l belong
to those same masses and Pm just
that way. and so are you all. even il
you don't ad:nit IT and pose must
cally. I've written miles of musical
criticism and am an honorary mem
Der of the Monday Music club. but
! won't go to too much trouble to
hear really good musical recital
and there are thousands like me.
That Old Home Town Band.
You can't teach people to like
good music by having famous artists
perform in concerts mean the
masses like me. You've got to be-
gin at what they like now and gradu-
ally increase their musical taste. You
can't get man or woman, or child
to like good literature by buying him
OF her some of Henry James novels.
taught my child to like reading by
starting him on the Quincy Herald and
gradually changing the bill of fare
until he reached the heights. It is
the same way with music.
Everybody likes band music. and
candid people and great musicians
admit they like 1.-THE people who
sneer at it are the posers who care
fully practice how to pronounce the
names Of those Poles and Hungarian
composers and on that try to make
us believe thay are musician experts.
What music tvs te / have, and what
musical knowledge have. is an evo-
luton from band composed of store
clerks and farmer boys with Bridge
port Concert Band in big letters on
it's bass drum-I used to enjoy huge
ly its labors or the Fourth OF July.
and l even attended its practice over
Lanterman's restaurant, / liked 1t SO
much. And have that band to thank
today for my enjoyment OF Schu-
mann-Heinck, Nagel's setting of
Thanatopsis,. and Liberati's great per-
form ances If keokuk gets a real
municipal band, in ten years the
Monday Music club will have to build
another Casino out by the park to
hold its artists concerts in.
Present Improves on Past.
"Oh, You make me tired talking
about it being hard to make such a
thing go here, how the merchants
have been solicited to death, and how
Keokuk has spent money buying in
struments for a band to have the
band dissipate in six months That
doesn't amount to a tinker's obstruc-
ton to solder when we are talking
about band conducted by Kindig
and promoted by John NageI as
Keokuk booster.
1.-The merchants make small
minority of this town after all. al
though Won news men find them