Pueblo chieftain., 1921-06-17
Ry frederic ]. Haskin.

Washington. D. c., June 14.--Lift up
your voice in song!
This advice is now being widely dis
tributed thruout the country by musi-
cal experts. and has gone SO far that
a bill has even been introduced in Con-
gress to compel congressman to sing.
The time may come when candidate
for the senate will put forward as one
of his qualifications that he is a basso
profundo of the first order; when. at
the conclusion of a debate on the farm
credit bill. the agricultural bloc In the
senate will rise and sing in chorus
THE Old oaken Bucket or some other
Affecting rural ditty.
But Congress Is only sample OF
the country at large in Its indifference
to music. according to the experts. and
the reason we are not a musical pec-
pie is that we listen too much and do
not sing and play enough. The So
called music lover who can make no
music himself is myth. If man
really loves music he will lsarn some
thing about it he will very likely come
thing about II he viii very likely come
to appreciate IT.. But the thousands
who attend concerts in a state of COM
plete musical ignorance. while they
may get something out OF II. are not
| realizing the joys and benefits OF mu-
| sic as much as the colored lady who
sings a hymn to the rnythm OF her
genunections before the washboard.
| One of the foremost of these pro-
| pagandists for personal participation
| m music Is Mr.. Robert Lawrence who
recently conducted municipal Music
week in Washington and who plans to
go all over the country preaching the
gospel OF homemade melody.
Inducing The People To Sing
| Americans do not sing, he says. and
/ yet Americans like to sing. Mr.. Law
renee experimental with this PROPOSE
, tion and hit upon a solution. The thing
to do was TO get th.m together and
offer them good music fires and give
them a chance to sing too. He tried
IT and 1t worked. People who could
not come out merely TO indulge in an
orgy OF community singing came to
hear the artists on the program.
{ Others who were q trifie bored by som.
OF the heavier numbers woke up and
enjoyed themselves when the audience
was taught to sing "old Macdonald
( Had a Farm" with variations And.
thru listening TO good music and try
ing to make = little themselves. the
tastes Of the people broadened.
The Psychology of IL IL interesting.
A golfer Will read anything about his
favorite game The trapsze artist
! watches with keen appreciation when
4 fellow expert performs. An audience
that has just been singing rSuwanee
River" is In n better frame of mind to
enjoy a professional rendition of the
a~rtette from Lucia. The more we
know about a thinE the more capacity
We have for appreciation.
The success OF the com bination con-
cert and singing programs showed that
people can be easily interested In sing
| ing. With = live-wire song leader. =
poular selection Of songs, ana enough
people singing around them. few peoe
pie fail 10 tune up and Join In the
chorus.
Once we abandon our ultra conserv-
ative attitude. our audience habit. We
can begin to get real JOY out or mu-
sic. Mr.. lawrence promises. apd the
capacity for apprectating good music
will grow.
Tn Naples" ~ sAy., ..lonxshoremen
loading sh!ps have bsero heard sins-
ing Faust. One man UP in the stern
would take the part Of Nephistopheles.
another near by Ginning In another
role. and others singing chorusee at
the .SToper time. In Wales. factory
vorkm<n gather outside Of their shopa
At noon and sing choruses from Han
dei's 'Aessiah'-Just because they en-
Joy II.
To advance the cause Of good mu-
sic here We must attack the proposi-
ton from reasonable standpoint.
Bubbles may not be classic. but
you can start an audience singing II
when you could not expect II to at
tempt an operatic selection. 0radu-
ally. As rscrsationai singing In devei-
opad into community institution.
more ambitious music may be called
for by tho singers. when they are ready
for IL
The popular and stunt torEs. how
ever. are just much music as an
opera is. aitho not so high . form of
music SIM. We do not say that only
perscns who understand trironometry
can uSs mathematics Everyone uses
mathematics in making change and
counting up dates. Why. then. should
anyone say that music is only for the
person who can understand q sym
phonyr'
Mr.. Lawrsnce concludes from his ex-