Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-02-04
MUSIC FESTIVAL AS A SOURCE
OF EDUCATION IN AMERICA
Kunwald Symphony Orchestra

ny 'IIhSl SOhduNlOl "
l believe that the way for America
to become a musical nation is for all
the people, young and old, rich and
poor, to 4CiSh to play good muSic.
When you play music yourself, serious
music, Chamber music, you at once be-
come better listener. because the best
music, the music that has been taken
from the rich storehouse of the genius
of the world must be understood, it
must be studied, and the way to study
thing is along the line Of perfecting
yourself in it. The more YOU study
music, the more cultivated your mind
becomes, and the more you play classi-
cal music, the more you realize all its
variations, its difficulties, its power,
the inspiration which gave birth to 1t
and the joy which it's production must
forever give the world. The reason
that / believe in symphonic institu-
tions is that am confident that peo-
pie who attend the symphony orchestra
regularly, who grow to love it, who fol-
low the music with intelligence as well
as emotion, will eventually desire to
play the music, and once we have audi
ences for our concerts, who are musi-
SldllS luClISClNGS, VIC W III DNt5ilA w Wv
ate great music in America.
80 that the lack in America is not
so much what you call culture, for
find very many sincere music lovers in
this country, people who are willing to
make heavy sacrifices to bring beautt-
full music to their friends and fellow
countrymen, people who care more to
hear music than for any other artistic
pleasure; but do find serious musi-
cal lack, namely, that the great ma
jority of people in the audience have
not the desire to play themselves.
81 believe that through the musical
festivals, such as we have had in Gin
cinnati for great many years, we will
not only widen the interest in music,
but we will help to create the desire to
produce and to execute music, because
the people who come together in these
festivals are people who have worked
hard for the privilege of singing and
playing in them. A two years train
ing is necessary for any chorus before
it is permitted to appear in the Gin
cinnati May Festival. And | am con-
WINGED that two years training with
rich and beautiful music, in the atmo-
sphere of people who love music, is
going to bring about inevitably in
most Of the workers the desire to be-
come actual musicians, not merely
music listeners or music performers.
You see, these festivals are not made
up of what is usually called the trained
musician-they include children from
the schools, people from all over the
city, with. of course, some famous
singers for the leading parts, the Gin,
cinnati Orchestra to bear the burden
of the accompanying work.
at has been the custom in a good
many Western cities to hold what we
called spring Festivals series of con.
certs by a local chorus doing certain
amount of good work with one or two
famous singers and an orchestra from
some other city. A limited number OF
rehearsals are held and an oratorio is
given, symphony concert and prob,
ably popular concert. This is a good
thing for the cities, for the people, for
musical progress, but it is not enough
| hope | do not prove myself too much
of local patriot when | say that the
Cincinnati festivals have for many
years been established on more artis
tic and practical basis. We can boast
a chorus for our city which is com.
posed Of the same people who have
been members of it for twenty or thirty
years, and for long time this chorus
has devoted two years for the prepara
tion of works TO be given in five days.
There can be no question that these
festivals are of the greatest value in
developing musical taste, in helping
the people to become musicians, in en-
larging the culture of the whole COM
munity, and incidentally, too, in help
ing the city as business center. Our
May festivals are the greatest oratorio
celebrations of the Middle West, and
l do not believe that they can be over
estimated if you want here in America
to become great musical nation as
you have become a great commercial