Evening star., 1925-06-14
CHILDREN SHOWN
LEARNING MUSIC
King-Smith Demonstration
Gives Various Stages of
Rhythm Teaching.

demonstration of the work
done in the children's music classes
at King Smith Studio School last
week proved a refreshing expert.
ence to the large audience that over
flowed the big studio. First came the
tiny children of 6 and years in rhyth
mic work, some expressing rhythm
with balls, some listening for time
signs and time patterns and express
ing these at the blackboard, and 9TH
ers walking different kinds of time
patterns to different moods. The ear
work done by these little children also
aroused great interest, as they played
games in which they recognized by ear
any tones played on the piano.
Children a little older recognized by
ear or sang any interval called for,
while the older boys and girls recog-
nized or sang chords and cadences.
All this so that we may listen in
telligently to music as well as play in
telligently."
Another interesting phase was the
work in original composition, Mrs.
King Smith saying that the value of
this work lies not only in the fact that
1t develops the creative side of the
children, but also that they use in a
very real way all the different sub
jects taken up-intervals, chords,
meditation, form, etc.-thus building
this knowledge in and making it their
own. The tiny children played their
own original melodies. In one class
Mrs. King Smith asked the audience If
they could tell from their tunes which
of the children were born in Russia,
and there was a ripple of interest
when little Ninitchka and Tonitchka
McCully played their own lullabys in
characteristic Russian minor moods,
while those of the other children were
in major keys.
Other original melodies were: "My
Little Boat" by Finley Wright;
Flip Flop" by Nelson Jones, and
Lullaby" by Jane Standifer. Robert
Merritt wrote both the words and
music of his melody. "A Winter
Song" Herta Cappel played her own
Clock Song" and Peter Goodwin
played charmingly his composition,
Butterfly" which he had also har-
May Golibart and Richard Fletcher
also played convincing original mel
odies, which they had Interestingly
harmonized.
The older classes, having taken UP
modulation, and all things being grist
to their musical mill, showed truly
remarkable work in composition =
ICoi INiOillcI III spanish Dance,
Jane KRONER in an amusing from
bone Solo," Julia Neff in a weird
Indian Dance" Leonard Berman in
THE North Wind" "A Spring Song"
played by him and sung by three
girls, and a rollicking Round" sung
by all the members of the class, and
Mary Josephine Baker, in "Barca-
role" of unusual rhythm.
Other children who played num-
bers memorized and transposed in
class, playing them in any key
called for by the audience, were Jane
and Billy Cassidy, Helen Bloedorn,
Clark Henderson, Feedor McCully,
Margaret Jones, Katharine and Peter
Goodwin, Paul Stoutsenberger, Bar
bara and Mary Martha Golibart, Kin
ney Broekings, Stella Golibart, Andor
Cappel, Randall and Walter Connolly.
Margaret Clark, Robert Somers, Mar
tin Henderson, Edith and Billy
Townshend, Margaret Jones, Har-
riett Haig, Christine Merit, Phoebe
Kent, John Wylie and June Cushing,
whose playing of Chopin prelude"
was especially charming.
All of the children are developing
musical ears and good rhythmical
sense; all are learning to express
themselves through music, which
proves that music is a possibility for
all and not for only the talented few.