p. 242

==To The Editor,
Musical Opinion.==

Sir,

I am not a "wireless fan" so perhaps dont understand as well as
I should. However, as a child I was told "that when in doubt, always ask."
So now can someone please tell me why practially all the broadcast organ
music (cinema particularly ) is accompanied by an ever present and nerve
shattering "wobble." In other words Temolo with a very large T. ? The
Sopranos do it, either because they have been badly trained or not trained
at all. The Violinists and Cello' players do it becasuse its a bad habit
they can't help, but surely its a very simple matter to just push in one
little draw-stop, - if only for a minute or two to give the poor works a
rest - so that everything (whether it be the "War March of the Priests" or
full organ or "Sally broke the Jampot" on a simple stop ) is not diluted
with temulant every and all the time.

[underlined] Second question. [end underline] Why is it that every large cinema organ ( which we are
continually reminded is Messrs. [Misters] So-and-So's masterpiece and cost ₤.10,501)
has apparently only two soostops [stops], one of which sounds like a penny tin
whistle, and the other a horrible cloying flute, also served up with thick
hot tremulant poured all over it? Is it impossible to play the modern
substitute for melody or any other kind of stop or is it thought that the
mind of the average cinema audience is so undermined with "slush" that it
can no longer appreciate beautiful sounds? And this is where the Organ
Builders ought ( in my humble opinion ) to be [severelyy?] set on. Could'nt
they have found any better quality of tone for their one and only solo tone?
For [dash-it-all?[, it does'nt matter whether its an organ in the Regal Cinema
at Timbuctoo or Tottemham the predominating solo stop is very plainly labelled
" 8 ft. [foot] [hooting?] flute." I thought the [Tibia?] this, that and the other, died
their timely death years go, why was it necessary to resurrect such a
horribly decomposed corpse adn push it under [thenoseofdevil's?] nose whether
he likes it or not?

[underlined] Third question. [end underline] Do the builders of large cinema organs ever listen to
these stops, and if so, are they ever tempted to go round on the quiet and
chop them up for firewood to melt down the other before mentioned tin whistle?

Finally in case some professional organists ( other than cinema ) think of
patting themselves on the back too soon may I ask why, when tired of
syncopated tremulant, we switch over to Queens or some other Hall, hoping
to hear something worth listening to, we are given a very fine 40 minutes
exhibition of how well the organist can do five-fiver exercises or the
kind of key twiddling every organ finisher does when he is trying for bad
notes. When will some of our Broadcasting organists realise [realize] that there
really [underlined] are [end underline] a few compositions other than "Sonata by Max [Gorkytoff?]" or some-
other [someother] unholy vender of fireworks.

Yours truly,

[[H. E. Milne.]]

South Norwood. S.E. 25.