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APRIL 2, 1921
THE
MUSIC
TRADE
REVIEW
57
LOUIS GRUNBERQ WINS $1,000 PRIZE
SPECIAL MUSIC FOR BURLESQUE
PREDICTS ERA OF NEW MUSIC
Writes Best Original Work for Orchestra—Karl
McKindly Gets Second Prize of $500
Regular Score Prepared for "Peek-A-Boo" for
Its Summer Run at the Columbia
A. Baldwin Sloane, Composer, Outlines Views
on Jazz and Classical Music—Thinks Jazz Is
Dying—Deplores Imitation of Classics
Conductor Walter Damrosch, of the Symphony
Society, interrupted the season's final concert to
make the announcement of the names of two
American composers of original works for or-
chestra who won prizes of $1,000 and $500 of-
fered last Spring by the president and guarantor
oi the Symphony Society, Harry Harkness Flag-
ler. Louis Grunberg, of New York City, took
the $1,000 prize with a manuscript entitled "The
Hill of Dreams," which will be performed at
the orchestra's first concert next season. Mr.
Grunberg is a brother of Jacques Grunberg,
founder and leader of the Miniature Philhar-
monic.
Karl McKindly, of Centre Church House,
Hartford, Conn., woti the second prize with the
composition entitled "The Blue Flower."
According to the present plans the 1921 edi-
tion of "Peek-A-Boo" will open at the Columbia
Theatre, New York, in May for a Summer run.
"Peek-A-Boo" this year will be known as a
musical revue and Jean Bedini, the producer,
has arranged a music score especially written
for the production. Heretofore burlesque shows
have had new songs procured without regard
to appropriateness as regards situations. The
departure from this custom will, no doubt, have
many imitators.
Harry Archer has written the "Peek-A-Boo"
music and P. D. Cook the lyrics. The feature
songs of the show will be "Hitch Your Wagon
to a Star," "My Melody Dream Girl," a song
called "Cuddle" and "The Life of the Party."
SOME GEOGRAPHICAL HITS
Several Witmark Numbers That Have Become
Hits Bear Geographical Titles
One of the members of the staff of M. Wit-
mark & Sons, the well-known New York music
publishers, recently stated that it was a curious
feature of some of their song successes of the
present season that they are what might be
called geographical as to title.
In substantiation of this statement he called
attention to "Kentucky Blues," the original title
ot which was "I Got the Blues for My Old Ken-
tucky Home." This has been followed by their
waltz, "Wyoming," and their most recent issue
is a number entitled "Michigan," a comedy song
by Malvin Franklin and Alex Gerber. Two of
the favorites of the earlier season were "Tripoli"
and "Rivoli."
ACOUIRES "JAZZ ME BLUES"
Edw. B. Marks Music Co. Secures Sales Rights
to Promising Number
The Edw. B. Marks Music Co. has acquired
the sales rights of "Jazz Me Blues," formerly
published by the Palmetto Publishing Co., of
Baltimore, Md. This number, which has been
featured by Lucille Hagamin, the well-known
delineator of syncopated songs, now touring the
country, and who made a feature record of the
number for the Arto Co., Inc., has had more
than the usual popularity, and for a novelty
song it promises to have a good sale.
On and after April 15 the publishing firm of
T. B. Harms and Francis, Day & Hunter will
In- known as Harrjis, Inc. This change will in
no way affect the T. B. Harms Co. or the Vic-
toria Pub. Co.
"For a time jazz furnished a weird excite-
ment to jaded nerves by its newness, and a cer-
tain form of comicality, and then it began to
lose its popularity," said A. Baldwin Sloane the
other day. "It was just like hearing the same
story many times too often. There was jazz
everywhere. I think the situation can be appre-
ciated when one recalls the first laugh at a
story, and then the constant repetition of this
story leaves no humorous suggestion at all.
The American thoroughness in doing things ma-
terially hastened the end of jazz. We are very
apt to run our courses in the ground, and so,
in my opinion, jazz is dying, if not already dead.
"Right royally did jazz reign as king for its
day," continued the composer, "but like other
crazes it has blown itself out. This, to my mind,
was the inevitable evolution, for there never was
any real bottom to jazz. I feel certain that the
material now in the making, and yet to come,
will present no opportunity for the scoop of the
blackened clarinet and the saxophone.
"Both these instruments are goodly ones and
I am not offering them any insult, for I think
they have been sufficiently outraged by the stuff
they were called upon to play in order to com-
ply with our American whimsies and the rag.
"Syncopation obtains, however, since synco-
pation can be carried for a long distance, on and
up from ragtime, but all the song writers have
left the 'Blues' and gone to other and, I cer-
tainly think, better things. I deeply regret to
say I have noticed a distinct move, by way of
not a few songs and fox-trots, to take the writ-
ings of classic composers and either to use the
melodies verbatim for any number of bars or
else to paraphrase them in a thinly disguised
manner. I think it is deplorable that this is
done.
"It is really pitiful if this is done innocently,
but it is a lamentable matter when it is done on
purpose. There are a number of reasons for my
attitude, the first being it will cause the public
to think that the writer who resorts to this is
giving out original things. The second reason
is that the producing managers may possibly get
the idea that this is 'great stuff' and demand it
of the other composers, and then, if the better
class of men are persuaded to emulate their
musically helpless brethren, the result will be
we composers will have to cater to another
craze.
"Aside from this danger, I am very optimistic
about the near future for music. I believe ma-
terial will be given by the composers and man-
agers that will be far and new from jazz, but
melodious to a degree."
Consult the universal Want Directory of
The Review. In it advertisements are inserted
free of charge for men who desire positions
of any kind.
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