Wanted—A Chair of Music

With the formation of the Training Orchestra, the revival of the Scola Cantorum Choir, and of Sunday afternoon organ recitals in the Town Hall, a question has arisen which for a long time has lain dormant in the minds of many students of V.U.C.—why is it that we have no Chair of Music in our College? Perhaps the lack of enthusiasm which Wellingtonians have shown in the past towards things musical can in part be attributed to this very fact; or else, is it purely coincidental that the other three cities in New Zealand which boast University Colleges—all of which teach Music—can also boast active symphony orchestras, a high standard of choral work, and enthusiastic support for recitals? An Illustration of this: A few years ago organ recitals in our Town Hall ceased because of the apathy of the citizens; on the other hand, the Sunday evening recitals by Prof. Galway in the Dunedin Town Hall are one of the highlights of that city's cultural life; Otago University has an alert School of Music—surely there is an obvious connection between these facts.

Probably many part-time students do not realise that out of all the subjects that part-timers would normally take at a University College in New Zealand, music is the only one not taught at V.U.C., which is essentially a "part-time" College, Music, perhaps the most popular of all cultural subjects. is not taught at a College which should aim to provide the cultural background of a student's career. Surely the evidence is overwhelming. Music plays an essential part in many students' lives. A Music Faculty is a necessity.

It may not be necessary to provide facilities for completing a Mus B. degree, but many students would welcome the chance to take music to at least one stage for Arts.

Again, many part-timers at V.U.C. have come from other Colleges in the seemingly inevitable drift to the Capital City, and so lament the fact that music is now out of reach—a forbidden subject. May it not be too far distant when this anomaly of University education in Victoria is a forgotten thing of the past.