The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-01-28
January 24. 1919.

MT. Ira F. Randall Birmingham, Ala. interest the contest which is taking place by the music teachers. mer- chants and the public school autholi- ties and as musician and citizen, in terested in the welfare of our commit nifty, I feel it my duty to speak out in the interest of the cause you are representing, and the citizens fight against music credits and music meth- ods being used in public schools. by eliminating other standard methods and I think it Is deplorable that the school authorities are not more constd- crate in the patronage of our local merchants, who support the, schools of our city, who have been deprived, to my personal knowledge, of the sale of band instruments now used in the high schools, and also discrimination | in importing band teachers, while equal | or as good material could have been secured at home.
 I believe in standardizing the music students examination, but not in dis eliminating against the old masters work
 Trusting that some good will come out of this controversy for all who are concerned, I am, yours truly. PHILIP MEMOLI | And now let me submit an editorial ! from the pen of MT. Presser, editor of ! The Etude, one of the largest and most national music magazines published in | America, of date September. 1917
 STAND FOR REVENUE ONLY
 | whether or not standardization in
 music is desirable in America may still ! be a moot question, but one thing is | certain and that is that the American , people will not tolerate standardization l that is largely standardization for revenue only.'' The schemes of try | ing to foist upon the American public | any sets or courses of proprietary mu- | sic books and then attempting to make those books the legal standard imme- I diately arouses the righteous indigna- l ton of teachers everywhere. l Such books are usually sold at a price at least 10 times their actual | worth. More than this. their agents never hesitate to intimate to the little
 unsophisticated teacher that such l books are sure to become the only legal 1 standard Then they browbeat the I teacher by telling her that unless she | takes the books she will be forced to I give up her professional work. Some | timid little teachers have been stupid 1 enough to think that unless they paid | tribute to a book publishing house by | a | that would make them poor for year) | thev would lose their source of liveli- | hood.
 | Musicians with hig names are sub 1 sidized to support the work and teach ] it.
 l Fortunately there are men with the | vision to see that such a course must | be injurious in the long run. In fact, 1 musicians of high character the coun- try over are up in arms over stan ! da rdization for revenue only" Ame~i | can music must not be commercialized | or made proprietary by any group of ] mercenaries.
 1 A legitinate publishing business in he open field selling it's goods in a 1 fair and square manner. at establish-
 ed rates. is one thing. house pur- | porting to sell similar works with a | few editorial revisions at an exorhi-
 tant price. and then attempting to get l the public to believe that it has es-
 l tablishAd standards through which The
 legal fitness of teachers to practice
 their profession is to be determined,
 | is quite a different thing.
 Such system would put 100 per
 cent tax upon the music teacher and
 the student. the revenue from which
 would 20 directly into the pockets of
 he promoters of the scheme whose
 only connection with musical educa- :
 | ton is that of making money from it.
 I Don't be fooled.
 | IT an agent of any book or music
 ruhlshine hnnse approaches any read
 | ar of The Etude with a set of books or
 .r course to he sold at price exor- {; hitant that it is beyond all reason And ! uses the areurrent that it will be ille-
 ral to teach with any other method.
 he reader may draw his own conciu-
 sion about the matter. It is not the
 policy of our government to support