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MUSEC

ARTS

Music On The Job
For City Workers

By CYNTHIA CARTER

cow_wy eS for men and women on our production front? |

Definitely—yes!” Gregori Garbovitzky, well known

Vancouver musician and conductor, :
in discussing the Vancouver Symphony’s all-Russian program. f

told me this week

“But make no mistake about it. The musicians who perform
for our workers must be perfectly trained, perfectly re-

hearsed.”

Garbovitzky does not think that
music during working hours would
prove of much benefit in most
basic industries here.

“JT do not think it advisable to
present music while workers are
at their jobs. In the first place,
here on the Goast where most of
our industries are basic ones, the
noise connected with production
would make musical appreciation
impossible. Secondly, when a
worker is on the production line
his mind is where it should be—
on his work, not on trills and
arpeggios,” he said. “During lunch
jJunch time it is a different story.
Music should be provided. This
idea has been put into practice
in England and in the Soviet
Union with great success.

‘Music for this purpose must be
earefully chosen. The emphasis
should not be on ‘highbrow’
music. I do not say this because
I feel- that the working people
cannot appreciate Stravinsky and
Beethoven. I merely think that
Victor Herbert and Gilbert and
Sullivan are more relaxing. For
the rest periods give workers
happy music. Hayden is 2 fine
choice, for his purity of style and
his happy endings.”

Palme Dutt Outlines Labor's Responsibility In War

SKED about the advisability fe
pro- §
grams direct to factories, the con- §

of broadcasting special

ductor replied: that while radio
should be employed when other
methods were impossible, a much
sounder
izing small groups of younger
musicians and vocalists for per-
sonal appearances at each plant.

“Smaller groups would be need-
ed for this,” Garbovitzky explain- §

ed. “It is all very well to talk
about symphony for the workers.

But let us be realistic. The phil- §

harmonic isn’t the answer. In
the near future I intend to choose
select groups of competent mu-
sicians—perhaps from the Van-

couver Symphony and the Junior &

Orchestra—whose services will be
offered to each plant engaged in
war production.”

Garbovitzky said that only
skilled musicians should be chos-
en for this work.

“Most advocates of ‘music-for-
the masses’ suggest that we should
send our second-rate artists to the
workers because ‘they don’t know
anything about music anyway.’
This is a very cynical idea,

“Perhaps the average worker

idea was that of organ- }

GREGORI GARBOVITZEY

has not the advantages of an ex-
tensive musical education. But is
that any reason to believe that
his perception has dulled? On the
contrary. It is our duty to pro-
vide the finest at our disposal
for his appreciation, if we hope
to develop his interest. Only the
best is good enough for fighters
on our production front.”

BRITAIN IN THE WORLD FRONT—By R. Palme Dutt—Progress Books—$1.75.

HE strengthening of unity through extension of the democratic anti-fascist front, both on
a national and international scale, to rally the broadest sections of the people of the

United Nations in their life-and-
in the World Front, the most recent book

death struggle against Hitlerism is the main theme of Britain
to come from the pen of Palme Dutt, noted Marxist

writer and editor of Labor Monthly for the past twenty-one years.

Dutt does not generalize. He
does not indulge in high-sounding
phrases. Instead, he puts forward
a concrete program for victory
over fascism. Although the book
deals with the situation in Eng-
Jand in the spring-of 1942, so
many of the same situations exist
in Ganada, and indeed in all capit-
alist democracies in the United
Wations, that this book should be
read and studied by every one
eager for a speedy victory over
Hitlerism and a peace which will
embody the common aspirations
of humanity toward freedom and
justice.

Supporting his argument with a
wealth of “documentation, Dutt
shows conclusively that capitalist
democracy can be organized and
mobilized for victory. “. One
of the most significant facts of
fhe recent period has been that
jin contrast to the collapse of
France in a few weeks, and the
Anglo-American reverses, it has
been precisely the most advanced
democratic forms of organization,
the People’s Armies of the Soviet
Union and China, which have won
successes against Nazi Germany
and against Japan,’ he states.

e
UTT sees the role of the labor
movement in national unity as

a decisive one. He states: “Within
the broad unity of the national
front for the defeat of Hitler, the
organized workers, representing
the most active and politically
conscious sections of the demo-
cratie forces of the nations have
a distinctive role to play, and a
foremost responsibility to fulfill.”

Wot only is the working class
the class which bears the decisive
burden of the war effort, both in
industry and in the armed forces,
but it is the least hampered by
cousiderations for vested interests
and fears of weakening of struc-
ture of property rights. On the
contrary, it welcomes what is new
and progressive, and realizes that
all its organizations and interests
are directly menaced by fascism.
It has no temptation to become a
tool of Hitler. Dutt points out
that it is significant that, as
stated by Labor Minister Ernest
Bevin, Quislings have never come
from the working class, but al-
ways “from higher up.”

e
UTT warns that in order to
fulfill the task of creating na-
tional unity, and thus establish-
ing the only possible basis for
victory, the labor movement itself
must be united and organized to

the highest degree.

There is no room now for “bans
and exclusions” against united
front action within the movement
by leaders of the Labor Party.
Giting the mass demonstrations
for the second front organized
by the Communist Party of Brit
ain and the trebling of its mem-
bership as examples of how a
united minority can influence
public opinion, Dutt says “how
much more could be achieved if
the entire working class move-
ment were brought behind these
demands and mobilized in united
activity on a common immediate
program.”

In the campaign for this pro-
gram, Dutt points out that legis-
lation against democratic rights
of organization and freedom of
the press are most detrimental to
the war effort. He shows that in
France, before the collapse, since
the labor press had been banned
by the reactionaries, the people
were completely in the dark as
to what was going on, and were
thus betrayed into the hands of
fascism.

RITAIN in the World Front
deals with all the aspects and
problems of the war. From the

A True Short Story

The Last Kopek

By S. Morich

4 eae offense committed by. the
old peasant -woman Maria
Ivanova, residents of a German-
occupied village in the Veronezh
district, Kalinin region, was fail-
ing to bow when a German officer
passed by.

She was immediately arrested
and two mounted soldiers took
her to the commandant’s office,
nine miles away. Soldiers on
horseback laughed, joked and
smoked pipes while Maria Ivan-
ovna had to keep pace with them
afoot.

At last they reached the com-
mandant’s office. The command-
ant was having dinner and she
had to wait. When dinner was
over the commandant rested to
settle his heavy meal. Then they
brought him a plate of berries.

At last the Commandant came
eut and pronounced the sentence.
“For failing to show proper Tre
spect to a German officer we
must inflict a severe, very Severe,
penalty. But Tama good-hearted
man, Since you are 2 poor woman
you will just pay a ten kopeks
fine.

“But that isn’t all,’ added the
Commandant. “Tomorrow at nine
o'clock in the morning sharp you
will pay the first kopek. After
that you will come here every
day at nine a.m. sharp and pay
one kopek until you have paid
the entire sum. If you are one
minute late you and your entire
family will be severely punished.
Now, march!”

t
VERY evening Maria Ivanoyvna
Jeft the house in order to be
on time at the commandant’s of
fice in the morning. She was 2

position of India and the colonial
peoples, for whom he advocates
the fullest extension of democratic
and self-governing legislation, to
the position of the new people’s
army, women in the war effort,
the civilian population, home pro-
duction of food, and war produc-
tion, Dutt’s thesis is that “we
need more democracy, not less.”

He advocates effective govern-
ment control, within the limits of
existing legislation, over war
production, the production of
food, services to the army, with
removal of the present tie-up of
business interests directly con-
cerned in war contracts with the
control agencies; and the effective
participation of the workers on
labor-management committees.

Dutt concludes: “Great prob-
lems and great tasks lie before
us. We need to defeat fascism.
We need to ensure that the world
we shall create after the defeat
of fascism shall not permit the
continued domination of those re-
actionary forces which have pro-
duced fascism and the present
evils, but shall correspond to the
aspirations of the people for free-
dom, for a durable peace and for
better conditions of life. We can
achieve these aims, provided that
we fulfill our present tasks and
build up our strength and unity
of the working class and popu-
Jar forces in the battles of today
to be capable of controlling the
issue of the future. The greatest
responsibility here rests with the
working class.’—la Von Tooth.

walk.
Bread had long since been e
up in all the villages in the nei

ford even that. Villages teem:
with beggars; many had died
starvation.

the fields and her heart ache
with grief. The earth lay
ploughed and unsewn. Only he
and there last year’s ear of fra
shook in the wind and cor
flowers blossomed,

Every morning the commanda
Summoned soldiers to witness ©
scene. The clerk accepted the
pek and issued a receipt w.
soldiers joked and jeered.

The commandant said: “Yo
are very punctual. Let’s see—ho
many miles have you covered

now? You still owe seven &
peks -.0 - six. kopeks =) 2 2 i
kopeks . . > how many mil

would that make?” And so ever
day. z

The woman kept silent. She ha
a sick old man at home
children.

e
EBOPLE in the village kn

us like this!’
“Weyer mind, Maria Ivanovna,”
said the old blacksmith. i

Germans will pay yet with blood

for your kopeks. We've got
long account to settle with the
and these kopeks aren’t the I

part of it.’

Nine kopeks had been paid.
Maria Ivanoyna had already
walked nearly one hundred and
eighty miles to pay them. New
she was en route to pay the last
kopek. This time, at the entrance
to the village where the command-.
ants office was situated, she Was”

rudely stopped by the German’

patrol who kept watch there in-
stead of the usual solitary sentry.

“Where are you goins?” she
was asked gruffly. “I am paying
a fine.”
fo ahead.” i

Se :

Be before they let her pro-
ceed they searched her. Mari
Ivanovna noticed that some
changes had taken place in the.
village since yesterday. 4

q
:

Half of the house where the —

commandant lived was wrecke
Soldiers scurried hither and thith
er. Some new officer kept shou

ing at them. He also shouted

at Maria Ivanoyna.
‘What do you want here?”
“T’ve come to pay the fine.’
“What fine?”

e
HE Commandant’s clerk w
pered something in the of
ficer’s ear. Maria Ivanovna mean=
while looked around and realised
what had happened. The ol
blacksmith had been right. Dur

ing the night the guerrillas had §

paid a visit here.

“T must see the Commandant
in person,” she said. “He himself
accepts the fine.” os

“Ah, that .. . All righti’

aay

f3?

aS
“Go away, get out of here,” said

the officer and turned away in 4%

disgust when she proferred him
the kopek.

Maria Ivanovna placed the koe te
pek on the porch and withdrew

some distance. Then she saw Ol
diers carrying out a coffin con-

taining the body of the Com=—
mandant. Guerrillas had killed

him during the night. i

;
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