Evening star., 1946-12-01
Making
PORTLAND. Greg.
MAN who didn't get q LOB

ASA<AAS W&&t AA0AA 6Vu g J0A
A and some youngsters
\ playing fiddles in an attic
started an organization
which Is making musical history
for the 23d year.
The Portland Junior Sym
phony, open to any talented
youngster, is the only civic chill
dren's orchestra In the world
which plays original, unsimplified
scores, uses no professionals and
includes all symphonic instru-
ments.
Junior, not Juvenile" musi-
clans emphasize. 'It's as far
from the ordinary school orches-
ira as Bach is from boogie-
woogie."
Created by Jacques Gershko-
witch, a brilliant Russian con-
ductor who studied under Rim
sky-Korsakoff and won his coun-
try,s highest student honors,
the Junior Symphony has
earned world wide recognition. It
weathered the depression, though
the professional Portland Sym
phony folded in 1888.
London Conductor
Hears Them Short Wave
It's fans include some OF the
country's top musicians. Sir
Hamilton Harty, conductor OF
the London Philharmonic, arose
before dawn to hear a short-wave
broadcast. La Argentinita, famed
Spanish dancer, once held her
ensemble in Portland "A hours
beyond departure time to attend
q rehearsal. Listeners to ma
tional broadcasts have sent in
comments like this:
children! Ridiculous; those
can't be children. This Is real
symphony"
Douglas Van Fleet, who played
the horn solo of Tschaikowsky's
Fifth" in the opening fall con-
cert is just IS. An earnest little
towhead plays the kettle drums.
Pretty bobby-soxers in dirty sad
die shoes and Sloppy-Joe sweat
ers fill the violin section.
Nearly 1000 children have gone
through the ranks; many to
coveted musical posts. Eugene
Linden went from the Junior
Symphony to become conductor
of the Tacoma (Wash.) Philhar-
monic at 81. Geraldine Peterson,
q former young concertmaster,
is playing with Stokowski. 9th
ers have become composers, pro-
fessors in top music schools,
professional musicians.
Director Talks to Them
AS He Would to Artists
Mr.. Gershkovitch, dramatic,
dynamic artist with a flair for
drawing out youngsters ability
and admiration, says training
children is like training any other
symphony except harder. Be-
cause they have less experience.
II talk to them like artists" !"
he says. That is the difference
between a school orchestra and
the symphony. II you talk to
them like children; they will
never play good. No. You must
talk to them like artists"
Four boys from the trombone
section walked out Of a rehearsal
mopping their brows. "Whew!"
mumbled the kid in the letter
mans sweater. "Is he in a bad
mood! He got so mad at the
bassoons he broke his baton into
bits and threw 1t on the floor. :"
Inside, Mr.. Gershkovitch shout
ed "Pleez! Terrible! In his
thick Russian accent. Stop!
Stop! You play like children!
Do it again"
Players Sacrifice
Much for Music
IT scold them very much" MIR.
Gershkovitch admits. "If they
talk too much, I scold them. #
they go to the street in inter-
mission, I scold them. # there
are too much sweethearts, I
scold them. If they chew gum, !
scold them. Gum! Hah, that
is the worst sim"
During the depression, players
roller r-skated back and forth with
heavy instrument cases; one
small boy trudged 10 miles to