The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 56, No. 26, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 3, 1969 Page: 3 of 6
six pages : ill. ; page 21 x 14 in.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
< ' . V
fine arts
4Resurrection' bares HSO faults
By THOMAS ZIMMERMANN
The "Resurrection" Sympho-
ny, in case anyone needs to be
reminded, is one of the bigger
masterpieces of the 19th cen-
tury—bigger both in scope and
the number of musicians re-
quired, and the vast extent of
Mahler's conception. This is mu-
sic of astounding skill as well,
in which a supreme master of
the art and science of orches-
tral writing sought to encom-
pass no less than life, death and
the rising of spirits thereafter.
This is also music of such
depth, power and overwhelming
emotional tension that it leaves
you in something of a daze. Be-
cause Mahler was so complex,
and his musical style so inclus-
ive, the nature of the symphony
can range with equal validity
from the stormy first movement
through the folksongish andan-
te to the eerie scherzo, wonder-
ful contralto solo of the "Pri-
mal Light" movement, and im-
posing choral finale of hope and
affirmation.
Temperament
Mahler had what might be
called a lengthy temperament.
He was not one to condense his
thought, such as Webern, and
consequently his scores require
both time and receptive atten-
tion. I would describe the audi-
ence at the recent Houston
Symphony Orchestra concert
under the direction of Sir John
Barbirolli as being rapt.
The "Resurrection" takes al-
most 80 minutes, and except for
a few late arrivals and early
departures, everyone in attend-
ance seemed totally involved in
the proceedings. The HSO was
augmented with extra brass
players and a 250 voice chorus,
plus two soloists.
As a conductor Mahler never
spared himself, and as composer
he never spared those who were
to perform his music. The
"Resurrection" makes great de-
mands on an orchestra. For the
most part things went well up
to the finale. True, there were
bad moments here and there,
but these were of no importance
and were attributable to inade-
quate rehearsal time in pre-
paring such a large-scale work.
Bad Taste
But the finale, where all the
vast choral, solo and orchestral
forces merge, the augmented
brass section was simply dread-
ful, sounding at times like a
sloppy high-school band. This
left a bad taste, but in the main,
thanks mostly to the gentle
guiding hand of Sir John, the
performance was moving, and
drew at the end a rousing ova-
tion of applause and cheers.
I, for one, question this type
of reception, for the Mahler
2nd, like Wagner's "Parsifal,"
should properly be received in
silence.
It remains for me to mention
the excellent contribution of the
chorus and the beautiful sing-
ing of the contralto solo by
Kerstin Meyer.
The real tragedy here is that
while the performance was not
great, it should have been. We
have the money in our city to
insure the success of a great
orchestra. Admitting this, why
is it necessary for the orchestra
to beg each year for survival ?
With sufficient funds, adequate
rehearsal time will become a
reality and the large scale
works of Bruckner, Wagner,
Strauss, Mahler and others will
no longer be strangers to our
concert hall. Those of us who
care should work toward this
end.
gandalf and the invasion force
Mofher's death
"Mother Radio" is Dead.
KFMK left the air last Wednesday, to return
as an "easy-listenin'" station. Those' with the
money (mf's) decided that Houston wasn't ready
for a progressive-underground-hard rock radio
station. I hesitate to refute this raison de mourir
because its absurdity is so easily recognizable.
Nevertheless . . .
Remember the John Mayall concerts. There
were no posters, no advertisements, no promos—
except on KFMK. Jubilee Hall was packed three
times. Could, fifteen hundred people be wrong?
Remember the Love-Ins on the hill. Unlike
Love-ins in- New York or on the West Coast,
there were no bands, few flowers, no poetry,
no musical instruments at all—just bunches and
bunches of neat people wandering around, dis-
covering that .they're not alone, stoned on the
sunshine and the Frisbees, and the kites. Who
pushed the Love-Ins?
Remember the funky bumper stickers. Leave
them on, as a .sort of silent, sarcastic protest.
Sure—no room for a rock music station.
It is hard to find an article about the radio
business that doesn't mention the great number
of "underground" stations springing to life all
over the country. (The grapevine has it that
one station in Detroit plays nothing but Beatles
and Stones.) However, all. the stations in Aus-
tin have taken four giant steps (Mother May I?
Yes, you may) toward the right. The only rock is
on KUT (the UT station) and that only two
nights a week.
And now, KFMK is gone. It is rumored that
KRBE is going toward "easy-listenin' " and KILT
never was where it's at. There is some discrep-
ancy between the trend, we think, and the actual
state of things in Texas. Yet., there is a small bit
of: hope. Pacifica will be in action soon, and will
'have both sides of the news. Also, there are at-
tempts being made to build a new Mother some-
where else. Good luck, men.
What was the real reason that Mother died?
Perhaps it was the not-afraid-to-be-heard style
of the editorials, and the controversial shows
produced for the station by Pacifica. Remem-
ber the five-part documentary on Black History?
And the sharp words about U. S. involvement
in the Middle East conflict? And the criticism
when the Sharpstown kids were expelled for pub-
lishing a newspaper? And the statement on our i
times at the end of each broadcast: "And the
war goes on."
Recall that KFMK was the first of the news
media to have a good, comprehensive report on
the Masterson presidential controversy (Saturday
morning at 9). Just before leaving the air, the!
station was 'readying a__ five-part documentary 1
on marijuana, sponsored by Pacifica. The evidence
is too strong to be coincidental—the radio sta-
tion which went under was the only one to pre-
sent any critical analysis, any sort of charges
against the Establishment. Be careful not to
blame the announcers or the program director for
the change—they were simply "released" with no
notice at all.
KFMK used to advertise that Houston now
offers a choice for those who like rock (music
with a beat to it: "Y'know, y'can dance to it.").
That wasn't true; before KFMK, there was no
radio station. During its lifetime, there was a
station, but no choice. Now, once again, Houston
has no radio station, no choice, no Mother.—frodo.
HAVE YOUR SHEEPSKIN DIPLOMA
EXPERTLY FRAMED
by
Wellhausen's Picture Frame Shop
Half Century In Houston
In The Village
2427 Rice Blvd. JA2-51G6
Coney Island
| off the Squarej
Coney Island 25c
Chili 65c
Enchiladas 85c
Tacos 85c
Short Draft 20c
Tall Draft 30c
Coffee 10c
Soda Pop 10c
HOURS
10 a.m.-2 a.m.
114 Main Street
Adjacant to the
Travelers Hotel
ONE'S A MEAL
BROOKS SYSTEM SANDWICH SHOPS
FINE FOODS FOR EVERYONE
2520 Amherst
In The Village
9307 Stella Link
Stella Link Center
24 HOUR LOCATIONS AT
9047 South Main
4422 South Main
-CA 7-8749-
C'
PLANTATION
215 Milam Houston, Texas
ON OLD MARKET SQUARE
8:00 TILL CURFEW
EVERY NITE BUT SUNDAY
ATTENTION POOL PLAYERS
YOUR RICE I.D. IS NOW YOUR
MEMBERSHIP CARD
IE CUE
America's Finest Billiard Clubs
No Other Memberships Necessary
"In The Village"—2138 Rice Blvd.
LOCATED ABOVE THE
LeCUE-BRUNSWICK SHOWROOM
OPEN 8:00 AM—2:00 AM DAILY
12 NOON to MIDNIGHT SUNDAY
Downtown—1104 Rusk at Fannin
25 Tables—Open 24 Hours, 7 Days a Week
SOUTH TEXAS
VENDORS
4529 Harrisburg
"Serving the Rice Campus with
Automatic Vending Machines"
RENT A NEW
STYLISH TUXEDO
only S9.95
FORMAL WEAR
NOW 4 CONVENIENT LOCATIONS
Downtown—till San Jacinto 224-6195
Southwest—5514 Weslayan—Montclair Center 666-2249
Gulf Freeway—7432 Gulf Freeway (Exit 10) 644-3683
Spring- Branch—Memorial—606 Memorial City 464-1693
<>
(he rice thresher, april 1969—page '.i
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Bahler, Dennis. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 56, No. 26, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 3, 1969, newspaper, April 3, 1969; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245055/m1/3/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.