New-York tribune., 1920-06-20
Music League of
Peoples Institute
Fights Ragti1ne

Richards "Let the Hills and Valleys
Resound," "March Of the Men Of Har-
lech" and other music of equally high
standard is put forward as proof Of the
truth of motto Of the Music League
Of the Peoples Institute, which is that
"Ragtime is not the measure Of musi-
cal appreciation in New York"
This festival, held recently at the
American Museum of Natural History,
was promo oted by the Music League and
the Hudson Guild, and the children
had as their conductor Tall Esen Nor
gan, known as leader of big choruses.
That ragtime is not the measure of
musical appreciation in New York, is
not only the text Of the Music League
If the Peoples Institute, but it is it's
inspiration and its theory, and the
League points to this children's chorus
and to others and to it's own record of
the last eight years to prove that its
statement is correct.
In these eight years the League has
provided more than 600 concerts for
audiences which have totaled $4,000
in single year. That figure was
reached last year when ffty-fve of its
concerts were given in the Lewisohn
Stadium of the College of the City of
Aork, and the League hopes this
year to double that number with the
concerts which are to be given nightly
in the Stadium.
The Music League believes in music
of high class, in symphonic music, in
in in fo)l
it believes in the great mass of the
people and in its inherent good taste
for music-in fact, for that very class
Of music.
The purpose Of the league is to in
culcate into the minds OF each gen
Grafton as it grows, knowledge of
and love for the music which has
stood the test of time as we'll as for
the music of the present day, which
reaches the standards which recog-
nlzed authorities on music have ac-
cepted. 1t also aims to give pleasure,
recreation and culture to those of ma
ture age.
The league operates so far as pos
siblc near the homes of those for whom
1T works; in schools, at settlement
houses and community centers and in
parks. 1t assemblies choruses of chill
dren-onc in Chelsea Park numbered
5,0oo-and trains them to sing; it pro-
notes musical contests in the schools,
prepares and stages pageants, organ
izes and educates bands, singing So
cietles and orchestras. 1t works with
philanthropic organizations already es-
tabhshed in the districts in which it
finds work to be done. 1t has the
cooperation Of eminent musical artists,
who at times play or sing at these
concerts, giving their services free for
those whom financial conditions other
wise would bar from hearing them.
Some of the concerts are free; at
others, such as the Stadium concerts,
charges for admittance are made, but
even for these concerts thousands of
tickets are distributed to students and
lovers of music and others unable to
purchase them. These distributions
are made through settlement and
neighborhood houses, religious, pub
lie and semi-public and other philan-
thropic institutions, such as Bellevue
Hospital, Bronx House, Christadora
House, the Clara de Hirsch Home, the
Convent of the Sacred Heart. the Edu-
School, the Friendly CLUB in Eighty
second Street, the Girls Community
Club, Greenwich House, the Hannah
Lavenburg House, Hartley House, the
Hudson Guild, the international In
stitute, the Kips Bay Neighborh rhood
House, the League of Women Workers
the Lenox Hill House. Local No % of
the Garment Workers, Meinhard
House, the Music School Settlement,
the National League for Women Work
ers the New York War Camp Commu-
nifty Service, night schools for foreign
crs, public libraries, the Rehabilitation
Club, the Seamen's Church Institute,
Stuyvesant House and the Young
Women's Christian Associations.
With such allies and such sphere
of influence the Music League is vol
situated to repel with good music any
invasion threatened by rag"