March 23, 1922
MUSICAL COURIER
46
MUSIC AND PUBLIC EDUCATION
By GEORGE H. GARTLAN Director of Music in the Public Schools of New York City
MUSIC IN THE PRIMARY GRADES
THE HIGHER TECHNIQUE OF SINGING
X\I' 2AY Aulhor of the Uniqae Booh
of Voice “The Practical Psychology of Voice,” pub. G. Schirmer Studio: 50 West 67th Street
HENRI
Complete rocal method
RENATO ZANELLI
BARITONE, METROPOLITAN OPERA COMPANY
Modern Tendencies in Education Versus Old Fashioned Theories
greatest defects is the short sound of A. Vocal teachers adopt the broad sound of A because they realize that it has a more soothing effect and is susceptible to less nasality than the short sound of A. In school training, the methods which are used are those which lend themselves more to the common sense theory of voice training than the highly specialized form. It is important that all children should sing well, but it is more important that they should sing intelligently, and frequently a formalism produces the very opposite effect to that which we hope to accomplish. There is no method by which a child can successfully adapt formal instruction to actual practice. Success in voice training depends largely upon the ingenuity of the teacher, but there are certain fundamental principles which must be observed, practised and carried out.
The Teaching of Music Through Appreciation.
Each year brings forth a new scheme for teaching appreciation to little children. There is no doubt that at this early age the idea of listening is much more important than the idea of doing. Correctness in speech is accomplished through imitation, and this principle of instruction can be applied directly to music. If we can successfully adopt the same type of instruction in music we will get a comparable result.
The future of public school music success must of necessity depend upon those elements in teaching which work to a more intelligent interpretation of the child mind, rather than a more skillful adaptation of method.
Much harm can result from an insistence on method, and the greatest caution should be exercised in the selection of material. New ideas are slowly but surely creeping in, and saner methods must be inaugurated to keep pace with the development of school music as a subject fit for the little child.
Adelaide Gescheidt Artists’ Activities
Fred_ Patton and Judson House, artists from the Adelaide Gescheidt studios, were soloists at the Union Theological Seminary lecture recitals, given by Clarence Dickinson, February 21 and 28. Irene Williams was soloist with the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra February 19. One hears of the Gescheidt pupils on all sides; now in concert, then in oratorio, again -in opera or church circles, and in all their activities they bring the highest art to their audiences.
NEW YORK CONCERTS
Thursday, March 23
Symphony Society of New York, afternoon. .Carnegie	Hall
Philharmonic Orchestra, evening .............Carnegie	Hall
Amy Grant, opera recital, mprning.............Aeolian	Hall
Kathleen Beresford Picard, afternoon..........Aeolian	Hall
Idelle Patterson, song recital, evening.......Aeolian	Hall
Ilse Niemack, violin recital, evening............Town	Hall
Friday, March 24
Philharmonic Orchestra, afternoon............Carnegie	Hall
Symphony Society of New York, evening________Carnegie	Hall
Thomas O’Kelly, song recital, evening.........Aeolian	Hall
Wilhelm Bachaus, piano recital, evening..........Town	Hall
Ruth Draper, original character sketches, afternoon,
Selwyn Theater
Margarita and Max Selinsky, recital for two violins,
evening .....................................Chalif	Hall
Saturday, March 25
Erna Rubinstein, violin recital, afternoon__Carnegie Hall
Symphony concert for young people, morning. .Aeolian Hall Guy Maier and Lee Pattison, two-piano recital, afternoon,
Town Hall
Woman’s String Orchestra, evening ...............Town	Hall
Mannes’ Orchestra, evening.. .Metropolitan Museum of Art
Sunday, March 26
Philharmonic Orchestra, afternoon...........Carnegie Hall
Symphony Society of New York, afternoon.. .Aeolian Hall
Society of the Friends of Music, afternoon....Town Hall
Elena Gerhardt, song recital, evening.........Town Hall
Ruth Draper, original character sketches, evening,
Selwyn Theater
Clara Butt, evening ..........................Hippodrome
George Reimherr, song recital, evening. ..National Theater
Monday, March 27
Charles Carver, song recital, afternoon......Aeolian Hall
New York Trio, evening.......................Aeolian Hall
Cora Chase, song recital, afternoon...........Town Hall
Chamber Music Art Society, evening............Town Hall
Tuesday, March 28
Philadelphia Orchestra, evening............Carnegie Hall
Augusta Redyn, song recital, afternoon.......Aeolian Hall
Felix Salmond, cello recital, evening........Aeolian Hall
Margaret Eldridge, piano recital, evening.....Town Hall
Ruth Draper, original character sketches, afternoon,
Selwyn Theater
Philharmonic Orchestra, evening,
Metropolitan Opera House Wednesday, March 29
Schola Cantorum, evening...................Carnegie Hall
Thursday, March 30
Philharmonic Orchestra, evening..............Carnegie Hall
Ernesto Berumen, piano recital, afternoon. . .Aeolian Hall
William Juliber, piano recital, evening.......Aeolian Hall
Lucilla de Vescovi, song recital, evening.......Town Hall
The changes in public school music have perhaps been more marked in the primary grades than in the intermediate and grammar grades. For many years school music meant the singing of songs whenever children were gathered together for assembly purposes. Gradually this type of instruction was superseded by a carefully articulated course of study for each grade. In the beginning this meant that the subject of sight reading was included as part of the regular course for the first year. A great deal of very clever work was accomplished as a result of this method, and for a considerable length of time teachers believed that because results could be obtained by this method, that such education was important. A complete study of intervals was carried on in the first and second years, on the theory that it was important for children to know all about intervals before they learned to read music. This theory has been largely exploded through the introduction of the so-called “song” method in the primary classes. This song method has been abused more in practice than in theory, because to carry out successfully the song method, a great deal of time and attention must be devoted to phrase-wise teaching.
By phrase-wise teaching we mean the selecting of certain musical phrases from songs, with an idea that these music phrases must be memorized and later analyzed. In the hands of unskilled class teachers such a method frequently amounts to rote teaching without any definite standard by which a follow-up system can be made to determine the actual value of teaching.
Prior to the introduction of the so-called song method, the work in the first two years was divided against itself. On the one hand we had the formal learning of rote songs, and on the other we had the first steps in formal sight reading. These two subjects were absolutely apart from each other. The little child considered the first to be mere singing, and the second to be music. It was logical for children to reason this way, although the intention was entirely opposite. The actual insistence in music teaching was placed upon the reading of music, whereas rote songs were considered merely from the standpoint of recreation between studies, rather than actual music teaching. Today the very opposite is recognized as the correct thing to do.
Formalism in the Early Grades.
For a long period of time the type of instruction which was prevalent in the primary grades developed a certain technical response to the reading of music. The results were largely in the nature of “stunts,” because people realized that it was possible to accomplish these results, and for that reason persisted in an attempt to gain their ends, regardless of the deleterious effect upon the children themselves. Recently it was determined that no matter what successes were obtained in this direction there was no particular gain as far as the individual child was concerned, because in the third year it was necessary to revert to the earliest steps in teaching to accomplish what we thought had been accomplished in the first two years.
Education in the early grades should mean the proper orientation of the child’s mind toward the work which he is later expected to do. In music this should mean the preparation by the class teacher of the subject to the extent of arousing the necessary interest in music. This can be done only by reducing the technic of music to its simplest terms, and devoting the largest part of the time to the appreciation of music and the singing of good songs. In spite of this fact there are a great many people who today still persist in forcing this unusual type of instruction upon the children in the primary grades.
Modern Tendencies.
The kindergarten type of instruction is not altogether consistent with the instruction which is carried on in subsequent grades. We are told that the motive behind kindergarten instruction is to develop the individuality of the child, and to permit every opportunity for self-expression without indulging in any formal instruction. In itself this is a very good thing, but it can not be carried beyond the kindergarten stage. There is a certain amount of didactic information which every child should have, whether he gets it in school or at home does not change the. point of view. For many years it was believed that the break between the kindergarten and the first year was too great, and because of this fact educators introduced the kindergarten extension course, the idea being to carry the child through the first year with a type of instruction sympathetic and coordinated with that of the kindergarten grade. We doubt if there has been any real check-up system on this type of instruction to determine whether or not children leaving the kindergarten extension classes are prepared to enter the second year of the regular school course. Our personal observation has been that in music they are not prepared. The adjustment, however, is very simple, all that we need is to have the kindergarten extension group adopt the same type of instruction which is being used in the first two years of a regular school course.
Voice Training in These Grades.
It is a well recognized fact that all young children are faulty in musical tone production because the physical tendency is to abbreviate everything that they do. Reduced to simple terms, it means that it is difficult for children to sustain a tone for any specified length of time, and their vocal response is largely a disjointed succession of tones, instead of a full easy legato style.
It has further been proved that any attempt to teach formal voice training in these grades is detrimental to the interests of children, and for that reason only the simplest form of vocalization is today adopted, and this is accomplished largely through its direct application to the songs which are sung as part of the daily routine. One of the
ARTHUR J. HUBBARD INSTRUCTOR
.	. . f Vincent V. Hubbard
A,,x,tant. { Caroline Hooker
SYMPHONY CHAMBERS. BOSTON
Teacher ol Vocal Art and Operatic Acting.
S4S W. tilth St. New York ’Pbone Cathedral 614S
GEORGE E.
SHEA
CARL BEUTEL
American Pianist and Composer CONCERT AND LECTURE RECITAL
Manttement: JOHN WESLEY MILLER, 1400 Broadway, New York Citjr
EDGAR
STILLMAN KELLEY
STEIN WAY HALL	- NEW YORK. N. Y.
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I Gelestine Gornelison I
MEZZO-SOPRANO
TEACHER OF SINGING
I STUDIO, 3122 EUCLID AVE.	CLEVELAND, OHIO |
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(.with LESCHETIZKY 1903-06) STUDIO: 722 The Arcade, Cleveland, O.
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