Evening star., 1933-07-01
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL,

| After one had heard the music played
by . good orchestra, and sung by good
principals and good choruses, one had
no dificulty at all in bringing back the
mood Of the moment and the music,
when one undertook to interpret 1t ut
first hand.
Even II q mandolin were all that was
available, for doing justice to sixteen
leading roles, the choruses, and the en-
tire orchestra, 1t suflced admirably, II
one happened to possess Imagination.
If quartet was to be rendered, each
part could be played by itself, or as
many as two combined, after q rudi-
mentary fashion. =
Perhaps more ingenuity was mani
tested than musicianship, but the
opera company" got a great deal OF
fun out of the impromptu performance,
and who shall say that the music, at
least in intent, was not very good, too?
| 4 Il \ X
Part of the pleasure of it all, how
ever, was the trip to the music store.
the purchase of the new music, and the
bringing of it home again.
This Is Joy known to thousands IN
the purchase Of all the products which
mankind loves, needs. and uses. but
somehow the thrill Of anticipation was
l ~
musical scores than with anything else.
Did this forecast that one was to be
a musician? II 50, 1t failed, as 50 many
| forecasts do fail. We would warn all
persons against making predictions. HUI
manity unfortunately. or fortunately,
possesses no means whereby accurate
prophecy can be made; predictions that
are not accurate are worse than useless.
They are disturbing.
Unwrapping the score was labor OF
love. The package held music. one OF
| the finest gifts to man. To think tnat
| the store held innumerable such pack
ages, all carefully laid away In black
drawers! The clerk knew just where
| to 70 to get Robin Hood" or THE
| Queens Lace Handkerchief"
Now one was to have the happiness
of recreating, in little. the stage where
| on but last week one had listened to
FRA Diavolo" for four nights running.
| At each performance new beauties had
come to light. 1t was an amazing dis
covery to make. that the human ear
could not capture all the melodies at
one hearing.
1t was melody. after all, which one
priced. Surely one made no apology
| to any one Tor thdt preference. dt tndt
| time. and despite the years one makes
no apology for 1t now.
The music one remembers!
1t is melody and always melody.
Tune is. II not everything, at least
| great deal. Tune may be complex. or
simple. and all degrees Of complexity
and simplicity, but pattern, in the mu-
sical sense, 1t has.
There Is me,odic invention displayed
by q human mind and heart-we will
not forget the heart-working with mu-
sical notes and spaces and mathemat-
ical time.
As . novelist works with words. ere
ating with them. or. rather. through
what they do through the mind OF the
reader. character aid action and the
rest, 20 the composer. the real COM
poser, catches a hint of something be-
yond humanity. when he creates .
great song.
Sheer melody let 1t be!
The great songs are just great tunes.
although some are . great deal more
complicated than others. "On Yonder
Rock" is q simple pattern. yet with
nuances unexcelled in the whole realm
Of music 1t is good to know that the
world still finds it thrilling.