Dissonant Note

Silver-haired old Edwin Franko Goldman is dean of American bandmasters and a firm believer in himself (as "internationally famous") and in the soothing magic of music. Bandmaster Goldman thought he knew one reason why G.I.s were so unhappy in the Pacific (see ARMY & NAVY) : they didn't hear enough music, and what they did hear was awful. He had made a U.S.O. tour to the Philippines and Japan to lead U.S. Army bands. When he got back, he blew a loud blatt at the War Department:

"We found that many bands had members who could barely produce a sound on their instruments, had no knowledge of music and could not read it. ... In one instance we found that a ... band had not played . . . together for three months.

"The only musical organizations worthy of the name in the Pacific Theater are the Philippine Army Band, the Manila Symphony Orchestra, the Nippon Symphony Orchestra, the Tokyo Philharmonic and the Tokyo Metropolitan Band."

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