Methods and aids in music educationand education of young people), which was published in a Paris
newspaper.
‘It is not the importance of listening to music that I wish to em-
phasize, but the fact that every human being should be given an oppor-
tunity to play a musical instrument and to acquire the necessary tech-
nical ability to fathom the secrets of this form of art and enjoy the
treasures which it has to offer to all mankind.
‘It is my deep conviction that mere listening to music will never
suffice to make possession of an adequate musical education the general
rule, and that the benefits which every individual can derive from
studying an instrument with an efficient teacher are not only inestim-
able, but unattainable in any other sphere.
‘For there is no other branch of activity that mobilizes all our capa-
cities-mental, psychical, nervous and physical-at the same time, and
obliges us to co-ordinate them strictly and perfectly so as to serve a
higher purpose than our own, namely that of a great composer. Nor is
there any other field in which the two fundamental elements of the
human personality-intelligence and sensibility-are forced to function
continuously together at the most varied rhythms and speeds.
‘And, lastly, is there any other field in which the subdivision of our
faculties is so conscious and subtle that our 10 fingertips are able to
produce all the many variations required?
‘All this reasoning is intended to convey to you that, if every person
learnt to play a musical instrument, the result would undoubtedly be the
development in each of them of certain basic qualities, such as concen-
tration and self-control; I would, however, draw your attention to
other, equally convincing arguments.
‘There are countless people through the world who are gifted
for music. How can these gifts be discovered and developed, if those
possessing them are not given the means to express themselves in the
language of music?
‘If one has never learnt to read or recite, how can one ever go on
the stage and convey to the audience the ideas, feelings, words and
poetry of great creative geniuses like Molihre or Racine? No-one can
become a good actor unless he has initially received a rational training
in reading or recitation, which enables him to avoid stammering,
breathlessness or any faults of diction and intonation; in instrumental
music, where the problem of virtuosity is by no means the least difficult
to solve, a strictly rational training is even more essential.’
If we advocate, as we do, that every person be taught to play an
instrument, we must obviously be able to offer each individual a series