February 1, 19 2 3
son, Room 407, Ryrie Building, 220 Yonge street, Toronto, Canada.
Class^ number one for choral societies is open to any organization of not less than fifty voices in Canada or the United States. The same opportunity is offered to eight part church choirs. The association hopes very much that American conductors will be interested.
Prof. Schnee to Remain in New York
Prof. Woldemar Schnee, well known hand training specialist, who came to New York at the solicitation of a large number of prominent musician's, arrived in New York on November 1, and since that time has been active in strengthening and eradicating defects of the hand at his studio, 137 West 86th Street.
Professor Schnee told a representative of the Musical Courier that he contemplates making New York his permanent home, but will go to Berlin from time to time to satisfy those who are anxious to benefit by his method of hand training. Among those who were instrumental in bringing Professor Schnee to New York, mention must be made of Ossip Gabrilowitsch, Clarence Adler, Ernest Schell-ing, Oliver Denton, and others. A partial list of world celebrities whom he has benefitted includes: Xaver Schar-wenka, Wassily Safonoff, Alexander Scriabin, Anton Arensky, Alexander Tanieiff, Mme. Essipoff, Moritz Rosenthal, Joseph Joachim, August Wilhelmj, Issay Barmas, and others.
It will interest readers to know that Professor Schnee is preparing several articles for the Musical Courier on
MUSICAL COURIER
W. WARREN SHAW’S IDEAS ORIGINAL AND VIGOROUS
His Book, The Lost Vocal Art, Endorsed by Ruffo, Fremstad, Gadski, Bispham, Curtis, Ladd and Marafioti
in time bear fruit. The American student is particularly intelligent and American vocal teachers are for the most part sincere, painstaking and conscientious according to their lights. Most of them do the very best they can for their pupils.
“I am optimistic regarding the future ־of vocal art in this country. Teachers are becoming less hide bound and are cultivating an open mind. Former narrow tendencies are gradually giving place to those of broader scope and vision. Real investigators are becoming more numerous and the prospects for more regular improvement I believe are brighter.
“There are, however, a number of generally accepted doctrines which must be abandoned before the vocal atmosphere clears. The hue and cry of breath control or breath support has been followed to such an extent and for such a long time that it positively seems like a sacrilege to attack such an acknowledged bulwark of orthodox voice culture.
“This venerable sine qua non of the teacher and singer of the present generation I consider to be the most vicious, pernicious and wholly undermining influence in the vocal world today. ... A distinguished musician of New York remarked to me at the concert of the University Glee Club at the Metropolitan Opera House that Mr. Swayne, the soloist of the occasion, exhibited almost faultless singing, due, undoubtedly, to his perfect breath control. I replied, ‘No. Not so! Mr. Swayne’s well nigh faultless singing, be it in long sustained passages, in beautiful mezza
On the evening of January 23 the University Glee Club, under the direction of Arthur D. Woodruff, at the Metropolitan Opera House, gave its fifty-seventh members’ concert. The soloist on this occasion was Noah H. Swayne, 2nd, basso, charter member and former president of the University Glee Club. He was a big success. He deserved to be. He does everything that a singer should do in just the way that a singer should do it; he possesses a beautiful and powerful natural voice that has been made more beautiful and more powerful by proper training; and he possesses musicianship that has been developed in the same way.
! Mr. Swayne sang II Lacerato Spirito, Verdi; The Wanderer, Schubert; King Charles, White; Uncle Ned, Foster;
LOISA PATTERSON
During a month’s engagement
WITH BACHMAN’S BAND AT
Palm Beach, Fla.
IS SINGING
“LOVE SENDS A LITTLE GIFT OF ROSES”
WOLDEMAR SCHNEE
Hand Studies—one on the natural (perfect) hand and its further development, and one on the defective (overabused) hand, as well as its prevention and cure.
Philadelphia Orchestral Concert Broadcasted
What was announced in the program insert as “An epoch making event” by the Philharmonic Society of Philadelphia was the first broadcasting of a large orchestral concert in Philadelphia by the Philadelphia Orchestra, with Sascha Jacobinoff as the soloist, playing the Brahms concerto. Seated comfortably at home on a stormy evening, it is estimated that within a radius of 500 miles some 500,000 persons—or a number equal to 150 times the seating capacity of the Academy of Music—heard this concert. Thus, adds the progratn insert, “enabling the Philharmonic Society to fulfill its chief aim, which is to give music to the masses.”
voce or piano passages, or in virile, sonorous declamation, has developed his breath control automatically.
“His breath control is the result, the effect, but not the cause. His singing has developed his breath control, not vice versa. Unfortunately for many, many misguided students of singing it is not the same thing. There is a wonderful psychological principle governing the matter which is bound to be understood before regular progress can ever be expected.
“If you want to secure breath control, never control the breath.”	p
Rachel Kinsolving to Present Gay MacLaren
On Thursday afternoon, February 8, Gay MacLaren will appear at The Playhouse, Chicago, under the management of Rachel Busey Kinsolving. Miss MacLaren will give an imitation of the original company in Enter Madame.
The dainty, diminutive person who owns to the imposing name of Rachel Busey Kinsolving was asked how she accomplished the tremendous volume of work involved in handling the courses and single recitals from her office during the season. “Just keeping at it,” she said, “about twenty-two hours a day.”
Toronto Music Competition Festival
A most extensive Music Competition Festival is to be held in Toronto during the week beginning April 30. This is an inaugural attempt although the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba have fostered successful competitive _ festivals for some time. Any amateur or amateur organization in the province of Ontario is qualified for entry upon filling out the proper entry form and paying a nominal fee. The competition includes choral societies, church coirs, commercial choirs, choirs of ladies’ and of men’s. voices, vocal duets and solos, singing by groups of school children, school bands and orchestras, piano and organ solos, solos on orchestral instruments, bands and orchestras, folk dances and compositions. Entrants are classified according to number of participants, size of town or school and difficulties of test pieces. The class divisions, list of test pieces and contest regulations are published in a .syllabus which may be procured by applying to J. S. Atkin-
W.' WARREN SHAW
Old Watt and the Rabbits, Homer; and two Negro spirituals by Burleigh. He also sang an obligato to a Yale college‘ song sung by the chorus. He was acclaimed by the audience and had to give several encores. He is a thoroughly well-rounded artist with a big, sonorous voice, and he possesses in addition to this an exquisite mezza voce and pianissimo, which he uses in the love songs after the manner of a lyric tenor. His diction both in English and Italian is perfect. He is also an entertainer, natural born, and his announcements of his encores, his explanations of the meaning of the spirituals, were masterpieces of humor and pathos.
Mr. Swayne is a pupil of W. Warren Shaw, not a pupil of Mr. Shaw and some other teachers, but a pupil of Mr. Shaw and Mr. Shaw only. Mr. Shaw is a voice expert, author of a book entitled The Lost Vocal Art, which has been endorsed by Titta Ruffo, Fremstad, Gadski, Bispham, Dr. Holbrook Curtis, Dr. George T. Ladd of Yale University, and Dr. P. M. Marafioti, author of Caruso’s Method of Voice Production. It is published by Lippincott and is now in its third edition.
Mr. Shaw trained George Hamlin for his operatic debut. Mr. Hamlin came to Mr. Shaw broken down vocally from too much study, and was put in shape for the success he afterwards made. He opened with the Chicago and Philadelphia Company in the role of Paul Merrill in Herbert’s Natoma and afterwards studied with Mr. Shaw Goldmark’s Queen of Sheba. Fremstad studied with Mr. Shaw in 1914, and he has had many pupils of nearly as great note.
As is set forth in his book, Mr. Shaw’s ideas are original and vigorous. He utters an angry “nonsense” to many a cherished can’t phrase of the studios and seems able to prove that much of what is taught is either incorrect or exaggerated. Perhaps one may be permitted to call his method psychological,—it is a word he often uses when talking of it. However, we are unable at this time to give details. We can only speak for results,—and they speak for themselves.
Speaking of the art of voice production in general, Mr. Shaw says: “We have many evils in the prevailing systems of training, the result of individual hobbies resting on false principles or on no principles at all. On such uncertain foundation no generally satisfactory results can be obtained. In the matter of voice culture both teachers and students have been seriously handicapped by the national tendency to follow the hue and cry in the hope that it may lead to something worth while. If results are not forthcoming it is generally accounted for by the teacher as the lack of musicianship or stupidity of the pupil. The possibility of error regarding the instruction seldom has entered into the thoughtful consideration of the teacher. The method was infallible, and the cut and dried formula of each particular method sacred and inviolable.
“The utter hopelessness of the situation, however, is relieved by the gradual acceptance of vital truths which will
MADAME VALERI.
“In examining a student’s voice and finding it at fault, I always suggest to him to consult There is no voice defect that can escape her notice and that cannot be corrected by her ability, tremolo included, when bad training has not gone so far as to cause looseness in the vocal chords.”
381 WEST END AVE., Entrance on 78tti St.
BONCI
Mezzo Soprano
410 Knabe Building New York
CLAIR EUGENIA SMITH