The Washington times., 1938-01-13
GIFTED PIANIST
and TEACHER IN.
LECTURE HERE.
Education of Listener
Nine. Samaroffs Topic.
BY WILLIAM NEWMAN

The education of the lay listener
was the theme of Nine. Olga
Samaroff- -Stokowski's lecture, yes
terday afternoon, at the New
Hampshire Avenue home Of Mrs.
Joseph Letter.
This gifted pianist and teacher,
who like other American teachers
of artists, finds this country in
different to its native talent, be-
lieves that the cure for all our
musical ills flowing out of preju-
dice and superficiality lies in
training the non-professional to
listen as an artist. There is an
art of listening that is quite as
important a factor in the musical
performance as are the creative
and reproductive arts.
MUST BE HEARD
Nine. Samaroff pointed out that
music, unlike sculpture, for ex-
ample, is by no means a finished
work of art when the composer
writes the last note of his manu-
script. It still does not exist until
it has been heard. The performer
Is necessary to it's production and
the listener to its reception.
The education of the composer
is as old as the art and that of
the performer likewise. but until
the present decade there has been
no effort to train the listener.
Any one can learn to use his ears
as intelligently as his eyes, &C
Cording to the laboratory research
conducted by Nine. Samaroff and
her associates. They have proved
that it is possible for the man
who can neither play nor sing to-
have as intelligent and as stimu-
lating a contact with music as is
that of the professional.
URGES EDUCATION
Deploring the prima donna
worship so prevalent in this coun-
try and now so greatly increased
through the exploitation in Holly
wood of various personalities Of
the opera and the concert hall,
Nine. Samaroff. believes that its
only remedy is education. Other
nations have adopted protective
measures assuring their artists
against alien competition much
as we protect our industrialiStS.
The lecturer believes that such
measures succeed in England,
France, Germany, Italy and Rus
Eia because supported by public
opinion. 81, .a'- t"T
In this country, according to
Nine. Samaroff, public opinion is
all in favor of the imported artist
as opposed to the native. Her
remedy for situation which she
believes to be grossly unjust, is
not legislation, however, but edu-
cation. Once the great body of
lay music lovers of the country
have intelligent contact with the
art, it is her conviction that they
will be able to estimate it on its
merits and will be less impressed
by inherited prejudice or by the
patter of the managerial sales
men touting European talent.
,-s. NATIVE ARTIST
Her audience then was invited
to listen to a young native artist,
Rosalind Tureck, trained entirely
In this country, winner of many
competitive honors and already
overcoming by her significant tai
ent the prejudice that has de-
,stroyed the careers of so many
young American artists.
If perfect style and taste inter-
'eStingly informed by a fine recre-
,attVe imagination make a perfect
performance, one is justified in dis
missing Miss Toureck's interpreta-
tion of Bach English suite with
those words. Her listeners were
equally persuaded of her Chopin
readings and her adventures into
modern virtuosity as represented
AlhANass