Kennebunk High School - Rambler Yearbook (Kennebunk, ME)

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hour isn't much time when there is important work to .be done. Our regular organization directors prepared us for the public concert given at the end of the first week. Their aim and object during the second week was to rehearse us as intensely as possible so that the guest con- ductors wouldn't be too disappointed with what they saw and heard. U After orchestra my schedule called for woodwind clinic, a fascinating hour. ln clinic we traced the history of the clarinet, oboe, and fluteg ex- amined the actual instruments from the first one made, up to the present models-5 and discussed recordings ranging from clarinet concertos to Benny Good-man's jazz. We also had practice in sightreading duets, trios, and quartets on the various instruments. The full band rehearsal of the day came after the woodwind clinic. To me a band rehearsal was the ultimate source of enjoyment of the day. Dr. Frank Simon of the Cincinnati Con- servatory of Music was the guest conductor for our final concert. Playing under the baton of Dr. Simon for five days previous to this concert was no doubt the richest and most inspiring musical experience any student present had ever had. Under this great bandsman, who for many years was solo cornetist in Sousa's band, we surprised ourselves by playing better than we had ever believed was possible. A-fter lunch there were approximately twenty minutes in which to get back to classes. In my case this was band sectional for woodwinds. In this class we practiced the band numbers. Often individuals played phrases alone or in groups of two or four for practice. With a faculty director of woodwinds to correct our errors, sectionals were the next best thing to individual private instruction. From sectional rehearsal we went to Ballard Hall, the college building containing the piano practice rooms, where the class in music appreciation was -held. This course was taught by Professor Manton of the University's Music Department. In this class we learned from recordings, board work, and piano playing what is actually behind such words as fugue, oratorio, mass, and suite. Much musical knowledge was gained in this class that would never be learned by simply playing in a band or an orchestra. The classes of the day ended with orchestra sectional in T Hall. This was conducted in the same manner as band sectional, with even more individual attention if necessary because the class consisted only of clarinets rather than of all the woodwinds. From four o'clock until supper at five thirty everyone was allowed to use the time as he wished. The most popular sports were swimming in the outdoor pool, which has a diving board and a high tower, and play- ing tennis on any of the twenty-five or thirty courts on the college campus. The college shops on Main S-treet were popular, and the television set, that could be wa-tched from the booths in t-he drugstore, was also a big' attraction. During the day everyone was part of a large group united through one common interest, music-the love of it and the desire to make it. But during the evening the atmosphere was different. One by one the fellows came to the girls' dorm and waited respectfully in the lounge for their dates . Eventually everyone appeared at the social event planned for the evening. Often that meant a dance with one of the three student dance bands providing the music. Several evenings were spent square dancing with a pianist and a professional caller from Dover, New Hamp- shire. Movies were also as popular during those two weeks as they are at any other time. Promptly at ten o'clock a whistle blew which meant 28

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where they were :being consumed by the flames! All this time the fiend was so engrossed in hi-s devilish work that he didn't notice us. Suddenly Iiayndropped his pipe: and the fiend spun around wi-th murder gleaming in his one eye like a beacon. Dave turned to me and whispe1'ed, I think he intends to do us harm! I agreed with him. As the fiend advanced towards us, intending, no doubt, to fling us into the open furnace door, we sat down and held a short conference. None of us could rightly say that we 'had had dealings with a real live fiend before, and we didn't know how to dispose of him. George reached into his pocket and produced iust whrat we needed! It was an'old and battered copy of HOW TO PERFORM BLACK MAGIC . We im-mediately found that to disperse evil spirits it is necessary to place five crystals of iodized salt on their tails and one half a pound of pepper down their mouths. Fortunately, we had the necessary materials with us. The fiend was almost up to us now, all the while turning from one color to another, like an oil spot in the sunlight. Although he was a- rather shapeless mass, Jake grabbed what appeared to be his feet and applied quite a bit of bending stress: at the same time Russ depressed his stomach considerably with his foot: and the rest went to work antagonizing him in various ways. I grabbed my half pound sack of pepper which I alwavs carry for iust such emergencies: and I stuffed it, bag and all. down the foul. foul. fiend's facsimile of a throat. He didn't seem to like it. In fact, he was downright ungentlemanly about it! If it hadn't been for George and his salt, I probably wouldn't be here now. The minute that salt struck the fiend's tail, he j-ust groaned and vanished! This document has been composed for the enlightenment of various teachers. for we should all realize that high school students are basically good. When you see a paper airplane floating through the air. a spitball curving down the aisle, or an eraser jumping from the hands of an innocent soul. you'll know who is really to blame. That's right. None other than thf- foul. foul. fiend! Though his bodv KI use the term looselvi has departed. his spirit will probably be with us for as long as we have schools. KAYE MOODY, '50. EXPERIENCES AT SUMMER MUSIC SCHOOL i For two weeks last August two hundred and fifty high school stu- dents, representing twelve different states, attended the music school on the campus of the University of New Hampshire. This was a rich experience both musically and socially. It is difficult to keep to oneself and yet difiicult to share the enjoyment and inner satisfaction gained from these two weeks. However, I should like to relate, for those who are interested, something of a typical day at the Summer Youth Music School. Our daily schedule was as full and varied as it was possible to be. It began when the clock on Thompson Hall-or T Hall, as it is always referred to-struck seven o'clock. Everyone hurried eagerly down to the breakfast line. which extended outside the cafeteria door and was as lone' as the large brick building itself. At half past eight a general assemblv was held, at which Mr. Bratton, our head director, made any snecial announcements of the day. At nine o'clock classes began. For orchestra members that meant finding a chair, tuning up, and then wait- ing for the arrival of the director, Mr. Kushious of Portsmouth, N. H.

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everyone was to head for home. Fifteen minutes later all dormitory exits were locked. Please forget those who were locked outside their dorm. This was my fate just once! A hard cot felt as comfortable as a feather bed at the end of a stren-uous and happy day such as I experienced at the University of New Hampshire Music School last summer. JEAN MACDONALD, '50. -.i-....0......-.-..... THE END OF DAY It had been a -beautiful day, the kind you always wish for but never get. Tue sky was deep blue with an occasional cloud floating majestically across the heavens. A gentle breeze blew from the west as the sun sank nearer to the darkening 'hills. The water was dark blue in placesg and the rest took on the reflection of the sky with an occasional shimmering cloud in the water. The dull roar of the waves against the rocks added to the call of the wheeling sea gulls, their glistening feathers -shining in the sun. Below the wharf in the darkening waters many schools of small iish swam about. Occasionally a white body shot through the air and was followed by a sharp splash. Then up would shoot a fiery little tern with a small herring in his beak. In the distance ca.me the sound of a motor boat as it plowed toward its mooring. The air began to grow cool and the gulls settled on tall spars and poles and in the water. Slowly nature's noises quieted or ceased, but still the roar of the breakers kept on, seeming louder as other noises decreased. The sky to the west turned slowly to brilliant reds and yellows. The tide shifted and sta1'ted to rise on the shores. With it came cold southerly breezes from t-he Atlantic. Suddenly the quiet was -broken by a motor boat heading up the cove, its wake rolling steadily towards the shore fol- lowed by smooth water. The grass and reeds began to sway in the breeze. Patches of water started to fill with hundreds of tiny ripples. The skies to the east were now turning dark while the evening star -shone in the faint glow to the west. The islands in the hanbor looked sinister against the remaining sunset. The 'boats lay at anchor facing into the wind, their hulls showing white against the dark waters. The pier was now lonesome as everyone had gone home to supper. An occasional car was parked by the road, and a few people watched as the sky turned its colors and finally began to grow dark and cold. The harbor lay dark and quiet as the stars began to shimmer in the sky, for another day had passed by to be forgotten. CHARLES MACKINNON, '52. 29