Tillsonburg District High School - Tatler Yearbook (Tillsonburg, Ontario Canada)

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mazurkas, two etudes, Opus 10, Nos. 2 and 12 tthe Revolutionary Etude j, and the lN'altz in E Flat tOpus 185. It is common in such affairs as this to leave the best till last, and Malcuzynski's program was no exception, for it ended with the extremely difficult and spectacular Scherzo No. 3 in L' Sharp Minor . The final chord of this number set off wave after wave of applause which resulted in the illus- trious Pole's return for one encore, and then another, and yet a third, until he linally re- appeared only to bow, indicating that three encores was the limit. Immediately, streams of people clutching their souvenir pictures began to make their way towards various doors in quest of their autographs. At last I managed to arrive at the door of the greenroom where the celebrated pianist sat in a low, leather- covered arm chair beside a small table. I was struck by his friendliness as he an- swered politely any questions or remarks from admirers that time would allow. He was pale, and closeup looked younger than at a distance, although still frail A lone woman twhom I took to be Mrs. Malcuzyn- ski, if indeed there is onel remained placidly and unobtrusively on a chesterfield at the other end of the room. I laid my picture on the table, and his long, lean. white fingers explained a fragment of his skill, as he ap- plied his illegible signature-apparently a mark of greatness! He said that he yas very tired after his performance, and I be- lieved him. Decorum demanded, of course, that I should not linger to stare at greatness, but at least as I moved towards the steps at the door, l could not help looking back-as I shall in my memory for years to come- upoii this exciting moment with Malcuzyn- ski. Richard Jones, XII. My Hit Parade Glenn Miller's In the Mood is surely reet. It's an oldie with a rhythmic beat. Third Man Theme is an Englishtune Ry Guy Lombardo: you should hear it soon. Tell Me XVhy by Ralph Flanagan, Copying the style of Miller again. Tony Martin's There's No Tomorrow Fills youths with spine-tingling sorrow. Running close second to his incomparable style 76 Vic Damone's vocals will last quite a while. Doris Day sings the River Seine XYith a lilting voice that applause does gain. The haunting words of Sentimental Me , Hy the Ames Brothers, in my heart will al- ways be. Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Hoy by Bing Gives my Hit Parade an added zing. The Cry of the XYild Goose by Frankie Laine Stimulates joy in some and in others pain. C'est Si lion by Danny Kaye Brings joy like the flowers in May. My Favourite of course is Mel Torme, Of him and his vocals much I could say, In that velvet fog I could lose myself long And it's all done with just a song! Claire Macliwan. XII. Answers. 1. Key. 2. Measure. 3. Note. 4. Sharp. 5. Rest. 6. Time. 7. Staff. S. Score. 9. Flat. 10. Scales. Elizabeth Gibson, XIA. ,..T1.0 ..,1 A MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD tfontinued from Page Sixteenj faithfully for many years. As ai. ex- student, l ask you to think rather kindly of it when you pass through its doors for the last time. lt will have completed its duties as an educational centre for the Tillsonburg district and at the time of writing, your lloard has not arranged for its disposition. llnt in a country such as ours. we must move. on to bigger and better things and I am happy to have had some small part in this progress of secondary education. In conclusion, I wish to thank your Editor for his kind invitation to bring this message to you, and also to congratulate him and his staff on the publication of The Tatler. With best wishes for the future of the Stu- dent llody and Teaching Staff of the Till- sonbnrg District lligh School, l remain, Sincerely yours, J. n. v.fxi-i.12iQ, THE TATLER

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My Opinion of Jazz Everyone, I think, agrees that jazz has, and will continue to have, its proper time and place. That jazz is capturing an al- most overbearing position in modern musi- cal tastes is another more serious aspect. Although I thoroughly enjoy and appre- ciate classical music from Bach to Gilbert and Sullivan, I feel that, for the teen-age generation especially, no other arrange- ment of lyrics and tunes, can replace the currently-popular jazz ballad. Although disguised under thousands of eye-catching titles, the chief essentials of modern music seem to be an emphasized beat and a roman- tic theme. Thus, as long as people are human, they will be dancing and falling in love and the typical ballad is bound to sur- vive in its simple short-lived varieties. As Shakespeare said, If music be the food of love, play on. However, jazz is definitely over-done. When one is exposed to the jumbled non- sensical lyrics accompanied by a screaming trumpet, such as the current Be-Bop suc- cess or when one attempts to understand the weird disjointed bars of Kenton's In- novations for 1950 , one suddenly wonders if man, instead of advancing, is returning to an ancient, barbarous civilization. On the other hand, American jazz assisted by the short wave, has offered a strong in- ternational link. American popular music, served up by a disc jockey is helping this country win the world's good-will and opinions. Comments and requests have poured into our radio stations from Malaya, from Sweden, from Alaska. Even when the lyrics are completely un- intelligible, people of foreign countries seem to crave the gay rhythmic American melodies. It seems strange that nations whose skilled old masters once led the musical realm, can now be requesting our simple, shoddy hits . Consequently, I feel that the arrival of jazz has been accompanied by a disastrous downfall in musical standards. Can any one of today's Hit-Parade favourites hope to be sold, two hundred years hence, as Chopin's immortal compositions will be? Will the meteoric rise of American jazz label our twentieth century as a dark age of music? Although I enjoy jazz im- mensely in its proper place, I fear such results. Shirley Holland, XIII THE TATLER A Moment With Malcuzynski The concert was announced for 8:20 sharp, but not until nearly 8:35 was the auditorium darkened and all attention drawn to the stage where stood the large, black concert grand. Suddenly from the entrance on the left, a thin, frail-looking man darted out, to be met by the excited applause which one would associate with XX'itold Malcuzynski, the world's greatest living pupil of Paderewski and greatest in- terpreter of Chopin. The concert was, in fact, being held to commemorate the cen- tenary of the death of Frederic Francois Chopin, and from my seat in the fourth row, I had an excellent view of the entire per- formance. Finally, after surveying the audience for several seconds, Mr. Malcuzynski deliber- ately faced the keys, and commenced play- ing. The performance of the first number, Polonaise in E-Flat Minor , could not help but immediately convince the audience of the musician's skill-that is, if the extensive advance billing could have left any skeptics! The burst of applause at its conclusion was typical of the subsequent reactions during the evening. Ballade No. 4 , one of the concert's long- est numbers, seemed able to display fully Malcuzynski's artistic temperament. At the end of this second number, he fairly re- bounded from his seat, and made a hurried exit, seemingly oblivious of his several hundred auditors. However, upon his re- turn within a few seconds, he completed the first half of the program by playing Chopin's B-Minor Sonata . I had thought that perhaps the pianist's unscheduled exit after the Ballade was to indicate that he was omitting the Sonata, but when I had heard it, I was glad that I had been mis- taken. During the ensuing intermission, the ushers - university students - passed through the audience, selling reproductions of a clever pencil drawing of Malcuzynski and explaining that the proceeds of their sale were to go in aid of the Polish Literary Institute of Paris. They told us that at the end of the performance, Mr. Malcuzynski would autograph the pictures. The second part of the concert was of a somewhat lighter style, for it included two 75

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My Eighteen Years l was born in Montreal but 1'm not a French-Canadian and I hate pea soup. l received my first violin at the age of six, but never really took lessons until the age of nine. XYe travelled much and that slowed up my musical training. From Mon- treal we went to Cornwall, to Timmins, then to Frankford, Ontario, and finally to Toronto, where I really grew up fin height anywayjj. I took lessons from Professor Chris llafeff at the Royal Conservatory of Music. Many were the times I came out of the studio with the tears rolling down my cheeks from the bawling out I received be- cause my lesson was poor. But I will never forget him for what he has done for me. llc is a great man and a great teacher. I have performed in many places such as Kingston, Toronto, Montreal, Bowmanville, Trenton, Batavia, Oshawa, Bradford, Sud- lmry, and North Bay. ln Toronto I have performed at the Masonic Temple, Massey Hall, Eaton Audi- torium, Maple Leaf Gardens, Hart House, The lfxhibition and in many churches of all religions. l have also entertained at the Mental Hospital in Toronto, The Mercer Reformatory for XYomen tthat was inter- estingj and at the Bowmanville Peniten- tiary for Boys. XYhile in Toronto I belonged to seven different orchestras including The Univer- sity of Toronto Symphony and two dance orchestras. On top of practising seven times a week with these orchestras I had pupils to teach and performances to play, plus my own practising and school work to do., Later l was called to do radio dramatics and was on CFRB for two years as Peter Ilan. I also took parts in mystery stories over CKEY. During the war I entertained at army camps and hospitals and did many performances with a minstrel show. To relax in the summer time I joined the Mer- chant Marine and worked on the lake boats as a deck-hand. Sports have been a part of my life just as long as music. So far during my high- school training I have participated i11 track and field, rugby, basketball, baseball and THE TATLER X hockey. At Tillsonburg I have only gone in for track and field because other activ- ities have kept me from sports. This has been a brief glance at my past. XVhat is in store for me in the future is yet to be seen, I would like to enter the school teaching profession and also violin teach- ing. Then l'll be able to give instead of take. Yours sincerely, Steven Choma. ilu jllilemnriam Almost on the eve of the publica- tion of this issue of the Tatler, the tragic news reached the Tatler staff and the school that Dalton Murr and Bob Laur had lost their lives when Bob's plane crashed on Thursday, june lst, near Ostrander. Dalton, a popular member of Grade XIII this year, was active in the school's orchestra and cadet band. Among his out-of-school activities were painting with oils, and scouting. Last year he had attended the XVorld Scout Jamboree in Norway as a mem- ber of the Canadian Scout contingent. A member of Grade XI last year, Rob had not returned to school this year, having decided to devote as much time as possible to flying his own plane. His enthusiasm for flying re- sulted in his becoming the youngest licensed pilot in Canada. In school he was a valued member of the school's orchestra and band. Speaking for a school saddened by the sudden and untimely loss of two of its members, the Tatler staff extend their deepest sympathy to the sorrow- ing parents, Mr. and Mrs. John Laur and Mrs. D. Murr. Y 77