Philadelphia Conservatory of Music - Variations Yearbook (Philadelphia, PA)

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Un Coming jkrougk fhe gacl' JDO? There is a fable abouf a philosophical and opfimisfic wag who once remarked fhaf, befween one fhing and anofher crowding info his way of life, he didn'f righfly fhink he'd spenf enough fime really frying hard fo gel' fo heaven: buf, he said he made sure fhaf he had a couple of friends wearing halos, and when his fime came fo apply for admission info heaven, he was counfing on fhese friends fo keep Sf. Pefer busy af fhe Pearly Gafes so fhaf he could sneak in fhe back door. Well, fhere are a few of us here who are very grafeful fo fhe friends who keep fhe back door open fo Ief in fhe embryo musician. You musf have heard fhis sfrain around school: l am a bookkeeper lor clerk, or secrefary, or iusf a high-school gradl, buf I love music and I wanf fo be a musician. The besf parf abouf if is fhaf everyone is so kind and considerafe of fhe Iimifafions of fhaf sfafemenf, even fhough if somefimes causes sifuafions like fhe following: Here is Sfudenf A , abouf fwenfy years old, who has sfudied and lived wifh music for ninefeen and fhree-quarfer years, and is iusf filled wifh invenfive, arfisfic musicianship. Then we have Sfudenf X who iusl' couIdn'f sfudy before now, has some kind of dormanf musical abilify, is abouf-well, fhis or fhaf age- and knows fhe sharp and flaf scales: buf, don r gel' foo involved in fhis 'relafive harmonies' business yef. To ordinary feachers in an ordinary school, such a sifuafion creafes a problem of ferrifying proporfions. They wrife books abouf if, have long heafed conclaves abouf if, and, finally, give up in despair. Buf ours is nof an ordinary school, and we have far, far from ordin- ary feachers. Available here for Sfudenf A are all fhe fools necessary 'ro advance fo fhaf Number One cloud dream , and Sfudenf X can plod happily along foward fhe wonderful day when hard work and confacf wifh fhe arf of music will evenfually lead fo fhe full achievemenf of- I love music: I AM a musician. Sfudenl' X STELLA FERRARI

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Third, fake an inferesl in fhe various aris. Archilecfure-ihere never were so many beautiful buildings and slrucfures in 'rhe world as io-day: painiing, sculpfure, music lihaf goes wifhoui saying as il' is your professionl, poeiry, which fhrough fhe beaufy of ifs rhyfhm and sound musi' inevifably appeal +o a highly sensifized person. Lasl, gef info fhe habif of reading. Read anyihing lhal' appeals 'lo you so long as il' is fine and worlhwhile. Bul' above all, read 'rhe classics, and you will grea'I'ly increase your knowledge of life, of human beings, and of whal makes ihem l'ick. Follow +l1ese suggeslions consisfenlly, and one day you will find yourself possessed of a weal+h of knowledge and unders+anding. You will find lhal' you have insured your being inferesling +o yourself- inleresfing noi only in youih when you are surrounded by a hosl of relaiives and friends, buf also inferesling fo yourself in old age when you musl' increasingly depend upon your own resourcefulness for com- pany. For, remember, you are fhe one person in ihe world from whom you can never gel' away. MRS. GRETCHEN AMRHEIN I was born in the year of good old '29, And was said to have been quite a child. The nurse said my hands were just simply divineg Now-that statement is driving me wild .' For the years flew away just as fast as could be. And my hands were my pride all the time. Soon I learned how to count from small one up to three. And I learned how to sing and say rhyme. Then-one day my dear Ma heard a tale about Bach, And she thought him a wonderful mang So she put all her furs and her rings into hock, And then started to work on her plan. Well-the very next day my hands went into use, And they haven't stopped working since then, For I practice all day and I worry all nightg Something tells me I'm nearing the end .7 So to all of you people with hands rough and red, This poem I do dedicate. ,lust be thankful to goodness you're not nearly dead Like me-with piano my fate. Gilda Leshem

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Qui' Cponfemyaorarg manic The average music lislener seeks in vain for familiar landmarks in ihe new 'ronal scheme of ihings which, so far, has been explored by our modern composers. American composers, who have so naiurally been imbued wi+h 'rhe pioneer spiri+, are using shorf, concise, compacl forms, wi+h a minimum of +hema+ic developmeni' and repe'ri+ion. If fhere is repe+i+ion, if musl' noi' be 'foo obvious or self-evident Sequences are 'Frowned upon, as are +he foo regular four, eighf, sixreen measure groupings, and +he ordinary cadence is pracrically +a- boo. Old laws of harmony and voice leadings are oufmoded. Fixed, +oo regular melody is no+ popular. In i+s place is pui' line, or figure, or confrapunial mo+ion and, very frequenily, color or design insfead of emorion. Modern music has evolved 'Through +he process of eliminafion of mos+ of fhe fundamen+als of 'rhe pash however, new mefhods are nor fo supercede 'rhe old ones. The real necessiiy is +o clarify fhe maferials belonging 'ro fhis age, nor 'ro refurn +o classic melhods. Many composers have sfudied and incorporaled +he more desirable of ihe modern meih- ods info one sfyle, allowing 'rheir individual sfyle fo develop nafurally. The person whose world of music begins wilh Bach and ends wi+h Brahms will have rebellious reac+ions fo our confemporary music. He +ries 'ro fi+ wha+ he hears info old cafegories. The new musl' be wrong because il' breaks all appareni' rules. Everyone is disiurbed by some- fhing he does nor undersfand. To +he unini+ia+ed I would suggesr +ha+ a more rhorough invesri- gafion be made in+o +he possibili+ies of modern music. Many good books can be ob'rained which explain +he infricacies of lhe new +onal sys'rems. Some of fhese are: Marian Bauer's 20+h Cenfury Music , Aaron Copland's Our New Music , Horace Alden Miller's New Har- monic Devices , and Henry Cowell's New Musical Resources. Bur +he bes'r mefhod is lisfening. Perhaps al firsi' fhings will seem infangible, buf lhe ear will gradually become accusfomed 'l'o fhis new ional music. Almos+ every composer in lhe pasi' was accused of being foo radi- cal for his fime. A+ some period in fhe fuiure our coniemporary music will be considered conservafive. The lisiener musf learn ihe +ru+h of Feruccio Busoni's sfafemenf, There is norhing new under The sun-only fhings which have come info being earlier or lafer. The modern and fhe old have always been. ALFRED PIKE