Thursday, June 25, 2020

The Australian Women's Weekly (1933 - 1982) Sat 5 Jan 1935 Page 14

Percy Grainger

ILLUSTRATING "tuneful percussions,"
a French version of a Java gong band
will be translated into the original Java-
nese during the course of a lecture-re-
cital by Percy Grainger to be broadcast
by all States on Sunday, January 6. The
composer, Debussy, was so much im-
pressed by the gong band engaged for
the recent Paris exhibition that he com-
posed "Pagodas" for it.

With a curious array of percussion in-
struments, Grainger proposes to show, in
effect, how Debussy sounds in the origi-
nal. The lowest notes of a grand piano
are to be struck by gong sticks to pro-
duce a soft percussion note, and oriental
effect will be enhanced by the celesta,
dulcetone, and marimba.

On Thursday, January 10, this notable
series of lecture-recitals will be closed
with illustrations of musical progress.
Percy Grainger proposes to give examples
of gliding tones, irregular rhythms, dis-
cordance harmony, intervals closer than
half tones, and "free" music of his own
composition.

—G.M.

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