BUT WHO IS HAROLD?

- From The Choir  Herald, November 1989

Children are wonderful. They hear what we say, and they say what they hear. That goes for singing, too. 

Everyone has heard about that mysterious character called "Round John Virgin", who appears each Christmas in the ever popular "Silent Night". For years, I thought he was part of the Nativity Scene!

Perhaps you have heard about the child who learned the Pledge of Allegiance, proudly stating, "... one nation, and a vegetable, under God." That poor kid probably didn't eat his green beans either!

Another popular individual that appears at the beginning of ball games is Jose, the one to whom the question is asked, "Jose, can you see?"

The Lord's Prayer has suffered many interpolations as well. My favorites are "Give us this day our jelly bread." and "Lead us not into Penn Station."

That's not as violent as "There is a bomb in Gilead." Heaven forbid!

The problem is universal, of course, and our friends in England are often hearing their children proclaim, "God shave the Queen!". How embarrassing!

"Gladly, the Cross-eyed Bear!" shows up from time to time, as does Harold. Who is Harold? Don't know, but he is part of the Lord's Prayer and a regular Christmas guest: "Our Father Who art in heaven, Harold be thy name." and "Hark the Harold Angels Sing." Must be a new choir in town.

In case you wondered, we have evidence that the shepherds were not just watching their sheep that night, for it has been clearly sung over and over "While shepherds washed their socks by night." Well, why not?

Yes, children are wonderful. And this is the season for our children to recall once again the ageless story of that first Christmas. May the message be clear, may the joy be real, and may Harold bless you, everyone.

SCORES TO SETTLE 0217

STICKING WITH IT 

 At the age of twelve, Daniel Barenboim was a poised, accomplished pianist with three years of major concerts to his credit. In the summer of 1955, he was taking a conducting class at the Salzburg Mozarteum. The school had brought a series of guest teachers, conductors who were working at the Salzburg Festival, each of whom would instruct the class for a day. 

 Among the guest teachers was the formidable George Szell, long-time conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra, who had been given credit for building it into what one critic called “the world’s keenest symphonic instrument”.  Young Barenboim had met Szell a year earlier, auditioning successfully for him as a pianist. But now the boy was on the spot. On the day that the stern and strict Szell was to teach to the class, it was Barenboim’s turn to conduct. 

 Szell was known to enjoy putting musicians into difficult situations to see how they would cope. 

 He was sceptical when he saw the young pianist. “What are you going to conduct?” he asked. 

“Well,” Barenboim said, “I have prepared Beethoven’s Fourth Symphony.” It was one of the works the class had been assigned. 

 Szell tightened the screws. “I want to see what you will do with the Fifth Symphony,” he said. 

 Even at the age of twelve, Barenboim knew that keeping the orchestra together for the beginning of the Fifth Symphony was a terror for most conductors.

 Bravely, he began to lead the orchestra. Very quickly, the whole performance fell apart. With pointed words, Szell advised Barenboim to stick with the piano and become a serious musician.

But Barenboim stuck with conducting, and thirteen years later, as he was to lead the London Symphony in Carnegie Hall, he was told that Szell was in the audience. The strict lesson for a twelve-year-old paid off. Szell, who was now its Music Adviser, invited Barenboim to become the ongoing conductor of the New York Philharmonic.