Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-07-06
M u S I c.
BY HELEN FETTER.

the graduation from STU
dent recitalS and ever wonder
what comes next?
Naturally, the individuals who
obviously have the spark of genius
combined with persistence in
preparation for big careers have
their years ahead for a decade at
least definitely planned out.
But how about all the others
who study from year to year,
knowing in their souls that they
will never be great artists no mat
ter how much patient and some
times overzealouS teachers urge
them on? Some of these students
have no illusions at all. They are
the happy individuals who realize
the great value of music to them
for its sake alone. They will not
think for a moment of attempt
ing music career, but merely an
tlclpate the very considerable
pleasure that music is going to
bring them in their homes in
later years in hours of relaxation.
On the contrary, however, there
also is a considerable group of
students who have marked talent
but not genius. This is the group
that is most in danger of falling
into the abyss between the other
two safe roads. Even the best
meaning teachers do not some
times clearly and with franknesS
that is real friendlinesS point out
the limitations of the talent of
such students, but rather let them
think that their gift has bigger
market value than it could ever
possibly achieve. These are the
students who stand in grave dan
ger of having their love and study
of music make them definitely
unhappy, even if it doesn't seri-
ouSly menace them by running the
possibility of making them useful
citizens contented in other ca
reers and enjoying their music
simply as a side issue.
4 x
THERE is another important
angle to this very problem.
Granted that there are students
in every community, like many
the writer can recall in Washing
ton at this time, who have amaz-
31lE ICOIlIl1Cd1 ShllI dU
upon some instrument or in sing
ing, yet whose artistic gift is only
mediocre, surely there is a place
for such would-be musicians in
the more modest programs and
less ambitious organizations and
in the field Of teaching in places
throughout the United States.
But the difficulty is to convince
students that these are the places
for them.
Every young singer who does
not have a Supremely wise teacher
is liable to allow buoyantly gay
visions of the stages Of the Chi
cago and Metropolitan Grand
Opera Houses come before their
imaginations when studying Una
voce POGO fa," or LIE ReVe," or
mon Occur SQUIRE a ia voix"
The presentation of student re-
citals with the enthusiasm and
applause of largely biased audi
ence Of relatives and invited
friends, and bouquets of flowers,
encourages the young instrument
talist to feel that the formal con-
cert stage may not be out of reach |,
after all.
The awarding of scholarships |
to talented children who haven't |
genius and preliminary triumphS |
in community tryouts for national
additions also have definitely |
harmful potentialities as we'll as
the admirable and philanthropic |
intent of the doners' generosity.
These talented boys and girls
are inclined to be the artistic |
counterpart of the rural youths
who break from the parental ties
as soon as possible to seek fame
in the big world.
At a conference of music super
visors held in Chicago this
Spring an unusually worthwhile
address that dealt with the prob
lens for the musically gifted
youth of America was given by
DR.. John Erskine, famed prima-
rily for his book THE Private
Life of Helen of Troy" and later,
musically, for his work as head
of the Juilliard School of Music
in New York.
The main point of the problem
most urgent for solution was ex-
pressed by him as follows:
1.-THE fact is simply this, that in
our land where you have numeri-
cally more talent than elsewhere
in the world and where we are
beginning to cultivate it, where
we have young opera singers COM
ing on, there is no opera for them
m Ci11c in rxynnrn fro T0in0
these youngsters to be orchestra
players, there are no orcheStras
for them to play in. If you should
succeed in producing such mas
terly singers as we have just lis
tened to Emilio de GogorZa),
there is almost no platform from
which they can sing, and if you
can produce composers they will
have no chance, practically, to
hear their compositions.
THAT condition follows an
other condition, that all the mu-
Sicians who are trained in this
land to follow career, the very
best of your students in schools,
those that are urged to go on to
fulfill their destiny, will all try
to fulfill it in very few cities,
chiefly in the East.
To-day in New York, to some
extent in your city here, Chicago,
and to a great extent in Boston
and Philadelphia, you will find
far more symphony players than
all the population could listen to
If they gave their whole time to
it, trying to play or starve. You
will find singers of very great gift
;@L rxyiI1 &V1d tho