Lord Berners has given us so much in the way of parody and burlesque in music that one inevitably looks for something of the kind in all his work. But, until the very end of this piece, it is not clear whether it is intended as a satire on the more scholastic and pedantic form of Fugue, or a serious contribution to the subject. It is not quite in conformity with all the established rules, and is laid out for a very large orchestra, with the percussion department strongly reinforced. The final cadence, however, with its unexpected Major third in the very last note, is surely meant to startle us into laughter. That was, at any rate, the effect on the audience when it was first played at a promenade concert in London.

The New Portia
A Sketch by Dion Titheradge

Kate Challico sits at her desk with papers,law-books, manuscripts tied with red tape. Her husband interrupts her.

Orchestra
Pastorale d'Ete - Honegger

British listeners have heard for themselves how confidently Honegger can handle big masses of choral and orchestral tone, as he does in the dramatic Psalm, 'King David.' And at least one of his powerful orchestral pieces has also been broadcast, 'Pacific 231,' in which he sets forth the romance of a great railway engine
In contrast to these, here is a 'comparatively slight work; scored for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, one of each, and strings. It has for motto J'ai embrasse l'aube d'ete' (I have embraced the dawn of summer), a quotation from Rimbaud. Over a softly throbbing accompaniment the horn begins with a suave melody. This is answered by the oboe and continued by horn, bassoon, and first violin. Throughout the work the strings, and for the most part the wood winds, have running figures suggestive of the soft winds of spring. A suggestion of spring's capricious moods is heard in a delightfully naive canon, which makes an appearance as neat as it is unexpected. There is a more stirring middle section with the indication-vif et gai (lively and gay). In it the music rises to a vigorous forte, and after a return to the opening calm, to a still more robust fortissimo. The work closes, however, in the gentle spirit in which it began.

Elsie Gaskell (Soprano)
Moon Marketing - Powell Weaver
Her Gown - Henry Sachs
L'amour, toujours l'Amour (Love, always love) - Friml
Don't talk to me of Spring - Victor Young
Orchestra
Lullaby for a Modern Infant - Besly
Pavane pour une Infante defunte (Pavane for a dead Princess) - Ravel

Present-Day Courtship

A Wordy Duologue by Ronald Bottomley
In a garden one night in June the moon shines with special clearness on a stone garden seat just big enough for two.

Orchestra
Two Light Syncopated Pieces - Coates