New-York tribune., 1922-11-26
By II. E. Krehbiel

che editor Of this department recently
s .as time seems TO be come when some
thing ought to or might be said on the
,ah,ecs Of college gloe ciahs. That
someshing might be interesting and
what in the glib phraseology Of the
day wpald be called constructive crit
.csnl@ How easily the phrase flows
hes the pens, pencils and tyrewriting
zschines Of every person who finds
ainself annoyed or grieved at every
aewspaper utterance which clashes
wth somebody or something in which
he has personal interest II the crit
ical writer has no such interest, but
shows disposition 10 defend the gen
esal good Of art. or encourage proper
taste, his utterences, no matter how
amiably EXPRESSED, are destructive
criticism" as a matter of course, and
he Is admonished that the proper
province Of criticism is construction.
Nine times out Of ten the critic knows
tha. what hia critic wants Is pro-
motion Of wkaSsvor mediocrity OF thing
or person in which he has personal
interest.
The letters to which we referred at
the beginning have, however. not been
inspired By this spirit. They have been
letters of approval or of request for
helpful suggestion. The latest, from
the hand Of man intimately con-
cerned In the guidance OF the glee club
Of university, brings the agreeable
Information that not only he, but
others in similar position, are eager to
improve the standard of college giec
clubs In respect OF music as we'll as
performance. The example Of Harvard
is cited and che wish expressed that
the days OF tho oldtime popular col
lege singing and mandolin twangling
might give way TO something Of a
higher musical standard.
Some weeks ego we confessed to
enetime ambition TO see an improved
state Of elee club music and plan
which once obsesscd us that balalaika
music might be heard along with some
hing better than the oldtime singing
81 doggerel songs. At the same time
we said that after reflection we had
concluded that this might be asking
TOO much, because it would involve
perhaps too much technical study CT
music. In short, college students
would have to learn to read notes and
make them audible instead Of trusting
to their ears alone and the leadership Of
popular young men who can make
tunes and harnonies that match them
in q wny at the plauoforts without
moving thing about the science Of
music But, Lord bless usl That is
the way in which hundreds and thou
sands Of songs which are printed and
sold and make their composers" rich
are made The gifted man writes
jingle, or takes another mans Jingle of
verse and whistles tune, or picks 1t
out with one finger on the pianoforte;
hack musician (there is enc or moro
in the employ Of every publishing shop
concerned IN the industry writes
pisnogorte accompaniment, and there
you are. Sometimes the salcs run into
the millions and the royalties into the
ssas Of thousands. There is no use in
introducing this thing into the present
squatioa.
But between The old class songs and
others IN which the collegiate idea Is
stressed and the demand that college
glee clubs shall lift themselves by their
hoctstraps to the heights Of Palestrina
and Bach and look down with derision
on everything else there is q tremendous
territory worthy OF exploration and ex-
ploitation. There are brows OF adnli-
rable dimensions and sympathy between
those classed as high and low. We srs
not conscious that we ever encouraged
musical vulgarity IN any form, and yet
We are sure that If we wsre son Of
Fair Harvard we should go into con-
niption fits OF delight IL our club sang
a Bach or Palestrina notet for us at
club concert. In fact the circumstances
might stir up our critical bile unduly
and compel us TO say something like ''Let
the shoemaker stick to his last" or If
We wanted to affect classical learning
quote the saying In Latin. Nevertheless,
we should be proud Of the club if 1t were
to sing the same thing in chapel, and
sing it we'll. Or even at a competition
among glee clubs the purpose of which
vas to show the degree of excellence
sttainable.
Now here is what we are driving at,
sad the thing is not wholly new, but has
toand its illustration in many college
seag books, though we think not quito
% Slyidly as in that issued soma months
ago by the Harvard Glee Club. There
s fine field for college glee club ac-
ayity lying between tho capella music
!" the masters of the ecclesiastical style
saa the inane and vulgar songs which
We used to hear almost exclusively WREN
me mad time TO so to giee club concerts.
mere are the old glees and catches OF
sae Englishmen who wrote when Eng
tres