Evening Star Newspaper, December 15, 1929, Page 83

FOREIGN PROGRANS WL B PRESENTED Rebroadcasts Will Christmas Day Program Offered by N. B. C. The Christmas flowing according to plans announced by the National Broadeasting Co. In addition to the pretentious holiday pro- grams which will originate in America, arrangements are being made to pick up programs originating in England, Germany and Holland and rebroadcast them through the N. B. C. system on Christmas day. High spots in the Christmas programs will be the broadcast of the Interna- | tional Christmas Carol Sing in which 15,000 voices will be heard: the broad- cast of a Christmas eve midnight mass from the Shrine of the Sacred Heart in Washington, the chimes from Old Trinity Church in New York, the spe- cial_children’s services from Trinity on Christmas eve, a special Santa Claus program from the N. B. C. studios and | the oratorio, “The Messiah,” which will be heard the Sunday preceding Christ- mas day. Christmas Carol Sing. Feature stockings of radio | listeners this year will be filled to over- GALAXY OF The International Christmas Carol | Sing, which has been arranged under | the general direction of the New York Advertising Club, will be heard through- | out the world as short-wave transmit- ters associated with the N. B. C. will send it to foreign listeners. The carol sing will be broadcast from 8 to 8:30 p.m. Christmas eve. Soloists and choirs from 1,100 churches in New York, vocal groups from 400 civic clubs, the Police Department Glee Club, the Police Band, the Edna White Brass Quartet and other widely known musical groups will take part. ‘ The Christmas eve chime service and the children’s festival service, from Trinity Church, will be broad- both | cast from 2 to 4 o'clock the afternoon | of the day before Christmas. Trinity's famous chimes will be heard again at midnight and will ring for 10 minutes. The midnight mass from Washington will go on the air at 12 o'clock Christ- mas eve and is expected to last two hours, It will be a full choral mass and will be sung by some of the best known | vocalists in the capital. Microphones will pick up the seryice from the church, | Shrine of the Sacred Heart. Salon Singers Offered. A program of Christmas carols. sung by the Salon Singers and with an or- chestral background will be heard through the N. B. C. system from 11 o'clock until midnight Christmas eve. A fireside concert, featuring orchestral arrangements of old, homelike melodies, has been planned for Christmas eve from 11:30 to midnight. Earlier in the evening there will be a special pro- grom of Christmas melodies from 6 to 6:30 pm. by the Black and Gold Room Orchestra under Ludwig Laurier; the Santa Claus program for children from 6:30 to 7 p.m., and a speciad pro- gram of spirituals by the Utica Jubilee Singers from 7 to 7:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon, December 22, the oratorio, “The Messiah,” will be sung. The singers include Genia Zielinska, Elizabeth Lennox, Lewis James, Theo- dore Webb and the Salon Singers. The program will be heard through a N. B. C._network. Dickens' immortal Yuletide story, “The Christmas Carol,” will come to life Christmas eve when it is presented dramatically in the Soconyland Sketches. The radio version will be heard Tuesday, December 24 through an N. B. C. network. Variety for Christmas Day. A variety of radio fare has been ar- ranged for Christmas day. Jolly Bill and Jane will be heard as usual though in a ‘specially arranged program. At 9 o'clock in the morning the Kris Kringle Band will go on the air for an hour. WEAF will be the New York outlet. Among other N. B. C. Christmas day features to be heard through WEAF during daylight hours include the evo- lution of Christmas at 2 p.m.; a Russian Christmas at 3 pm., and a Christmas symphony program by a 45-piece or- chestra at 4 p.m. Polish carols, a_ program featuring Genia Zielinska, will be heard through an N. B. C. network including WJZ at 10 o'clock Christmas morning. Mistle- Yoe Memories, which has as its theme melody “Kiss Me Again,” will precede this program. At 4 o'clock Christmas afternoon the radio guild will present “Prunella,” a fantasy by Laurance Housman and Granville Barker. BROADCAST “LA TOSCA.” WEAF Stations Will Carry Pre- miere Saturday. The premier broadcast of Puccini’s “La Tosca” will be made on WEAF and coast-to-coast stations Saturday evening, as one of six Puc- cinl operas being presented during the ‘Winter season. Soloists will be Frances Alda, so-| prano; Merle Alcock, contralto; Mario Chamlee, tenor, and Pasquale Amato, baritone. A 50-plece orchestra is di: rected by Gennaro Papl. The opera- logue, written by Robert A. Simon, will be narrated by Deems Taylor, composer and librettis | A star in many musical comedy succ Crumit, has forsaken the footlights and is | stone programs over WMAL and other C. B. S. stations. the youngest singers in radio, will be the guest soloist in the Mobiloil concert over WRC and other N. B. C. stations Wednesday. opera prima_donna, returns to the microphone Thursday night in the Victor | program to be broadcast by WRC and BEATRICE BELKIN Boe SHERWOOD ses, Julia Sanderson, who, with Frank now appearing in the weekly Black- Beatrice Belkin, one of Mary Garden, the grand, other N. B. C. stations. When “Night | Club Romances” observes its first anniversary over WMAL and associated Colum- bia stations Tuesday, Don Clark, author and producer of the program, will take the leading part in the program. Bob Sherwood directs and plays the chief role in the Dixie Circus programs heard every Friday over an N. B. C. network. PATIENS ENDY RADID PROGRAVS Earphones Needed in Govern- ment Hospitals to Enable All to Hear Broadcasts. Only those of the listening radio au- dience who have been confined to their homes with illness or undergone hospi- talization in one of the Government or civic hospitals can realize the true benefit and delight of receiving the splendid broadcasting programs now available. The casual listener who is able to get about and enjoy other forms of entertainment, of course, appreciates broadcast programs when he chooses to listen in, but there is little entertain- ment available to the bed patient, espe- cially if he is in a hospital where the lights go out at 9 o'clock and there is nothing left for him to do but consider his own misfortunes or go to sleep. According to Carl H. Butman, secre- tary of the Federal Radio Commission, who has just been discharged from the Naval Hospital, there is nothing which the patients look forward to more anx- jously than the receipt of the broadcast programs in the afternoons, and espe- cially in the evenings after 9 o'clock, which is literally “taps” in this Gov- ernment hospital. Of course, loud speakers cannot be used. Not all the patients are able to enjoy the privi- lege of listening in individually because the hospital is short 100 head phones, and it is in the interest of the patients, particularly in the Government hospi- tals, who are denied this privilege that written in the hope that CHRISTMAS GREETING CARDS ORDER EARLY We Are Showing Attractive Designs Livingston, Inc. 722 13th St. N.W. complete equipment may be assured in the form of Christmas presents. Although the Naval Hospital is wired so that phones may be attached to every bed, and there are 435 beds in the various wards, the hospital can supply phones for only three out of four patients, Replacements Are Needed. Some time ago, through the aid of the Roxy fund, local hospitals were wired and equipped for the reception and relay of broadcast programs to every bed, but in the last few years many head phones have been worn out, been damaged beyond repair or lost. The Roxy fund is now exhausted, and official advices to the hospitals in- dicate that no more head phones can be secured from this source. Appropri- ations of the Navy are not available for this purpose, and so an appeal’is being made to the radio listeners who have sets of head phones in good con- dition which they no longer use since the adoption of the loud speaker, so much more attractive and adaptable for use in the living room. Broadcast listeneners are therefore urged to look: through their discarded radio apparas tus to ascertain if they have not one or more pairs of head phones.in good shape which they might donate as a Christmas present to the Naval Hospi~ tal. In the event such phones are found, it is requested that they be de- livered to the headquarters of the De- partment of the District of Columbia, American Legion, Room 211 Transpor- tation Building, Seventeenth and H streets. Austin 8. Imirle, director of welfare and relief of the Department of the District of Columbia of the American Legion, has offered to take charge of these phones in the event the radio listeners respond to this appeal, and turn them over to the hospital. In the event the number of phones re- ceived is in excess of those needed by the Naval Hospital, they will be given to the Walter Reed Hospital or other local hospitals short of such equipment. Given New Receiving Set. ‘The Naval Hospital radio equipment has been augmented recently by the donation of a new receiving set from a radio manufacturer, so that two re- celving sets are now available. The operator will now be in a position to offer continuous programs from fairly early in the morning until approxi- mately 11 or 12 at night. Due to the fact that the hospital had only one set, it was only operated half time, since its constant operation would possibly cause excess wear and tear and might put out of commission the only receiv- ing set available for carrying the pro- grams to the various wards. As the system of wiring at the receiving sta- tion provides for the immediate switch- ing of the ward circuits from one set to another, it will now be possible for the O})rrawr to change from the program of one station to that of another with- out undue interruption, or even to sup- ply two programs, one to certain wards and another to the balance, which was not possible in the past. It is believed that shortly the request of the chaplain for a microphone and suitable connecting equipment will soon be filled, so that the chaplain or the executive officer will be able, when de- sired, to address all patients in the hos- pital by means of the present wire sys- tem. This will make possible the con- ducting of religious ceremonies on Sun- days, the transmission of any impor- tant communications of a general na- ture to all patients and even the dellv- ery of a local program presented fh some part of the hospital to all the patients and service men confined there, approximately 65 per cent of whom are patients sent to the Naval Hospital by the Veterans’ Bureau. If the listeners could visit the wards after hours and see with what interest the patients assume their head phones when the programs are available, it is felt certain that those who have serv- iceable head phones would gladly re- spond to this plea. Listeners who have available phones are urged to leave them at the district office of the American Legion at their earliest opportunty, so as to insure their delivery to the hospital before Christmas. Then every patient may have the privilege of listening in to the Christmas programs, instead of only those of the 400-odd who have been in the hospital long enough to rate a pair of head phones. STATIONS WILL MERGE. WHO and WOC Become Central Broadcasting Company. DAVENPORT, Iowa (#)—WHO, Des Moines, and WOC, Davenport, are to be merged into a new organization, the Central Broadcasting Co., using the clear channel assigned to Jowa and syn- chronizing the two transmitters. The merger was made because of the re- allocation of November, 1928, when the two stations were put on half time, ac- cording to B. J. Palmer, head of WOC. et Choir to Broadcast Program. ‘The Atlantic City Festival Choir of 140 voices is to give a Christmas eve program on WPG, Arthur Scott Brook, organist and director of the choir, will be at the organ. MBER 15 1929—PART FOUR. Behind the Microphone BY THE RADIO EDITOR. executives, Ralph Ed- il munds, manager of Sta- tion WRC, who goes to New York to take a new and more important position in the National Broad- casting Co. Ever since the opening of WRC, back in August, 1923, Mr. Edmunds has been an outstanding figure in the development of the station. Starting as its program director he later became manager, which position he continued to hold when the National Broadcasting Co. took over the management and operation of the station. In New York Mr. Edmunds will work with Keith McLeod, general musical director of the National Broadcasting Co. The work of this department includes the se- lection of artists for the network programs and supervision over the musical features. The post was given Mr. Ed- munds because of his long experi- ence in musical work. For more then 20 years before identifying himself with radio he was in the concert field and had been asso- ciated with the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, the Chicago Civic Opera Company, the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra and many other outstanding musical organizations. Born in London, Mr. Edmunds received his education in the pre- paratory schools of England and France, at Eaton College and the Lycee Louis le Grand. He came to the United States in 1900 to ac- cept a post at the Metropolitan Opera House. Radio broadcasting, particularly the broadcasting of entertain- ment, was comparatively new when Mr. Edmunds came to WRC. In those days the station operated only a few hours a day, local tal- ent supplying all of the entertain- ment. Since then a tremendous change has taken place. WRC op- erates more than 17 hours a day and program material is supplied from all parts of the country. * %k X X ASHINGTON today loses W one of its veteran radio Radio broadcasting is proving daily that the American people are believers in moderation and temperance. It is indicating un- mistakably that they are not in favor of extremes. And it is re- vealing itself as the mightiest force in the interest of education since the invention of printing. Several years ago surveys and letters indicated that jazz music bands were the popular favorites of the listening public. Every sta- tion in the country immediately featured jazz. For a time the lis- teners were literally drowned in a flood of blue notes. Slowly, but with increasing force, the fans rebelled. The broadcasters, quick to sense the change in sentiment, switched to other forms of music, such as semi-classical, symphony music, classical music and simple tunes. For a time, however, music was about all that could be heard over the air. This was followed by a reaction against too much music, and the listeners became interest- ed in talks, lectures, travelogues and speeches. Too great a per- centage of music and talks, lec- tures, etc., in a program whetted the listeners’ appetite for novel- ties, such as comedy sketches, SEND HOME Price Only $1.00 A TALKIE A record of your voice or any musical instrument can be made instantly. Why not wish the home_folks “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year” in this personal way. The price is only $1.00 SECOND FLOOR 1303 F St. N.W. Majestic Radio novelty broadcasts, unusual ex- periments, etc. Too much music, too many talks and lectures and too many novelties began to create interest in radio plays and the continuity sketches in which the same characters were heard from week to week. Probably it is true that music will always be the foundation of broadcasting, but the listening public demands and will continue to demand real variety in pro- grams. It has found out that it quickly gets surfeited of too much of any one kind of entertainment. It has become educated in mod- eration through the forcible les- son of contrast that has come when any immoderate emphasis has been placed on one particu- lar radio feature. It has realized that too much of any one thing is not good. A balanced variety program is what the radio audience wants and what it should get. * ok X Xk Why is it that the “unseen lis- teners” would rather hear con- traltos and baritones, and yet the most popular singers are sopranos and tenors? The science of radio may be mysterious, but it is not more so than the whims of the radio audience. These—and what happens at the studio end of the ether waves—are vividly described by Helen Christine Bennett in Mc- Call’s for January: “From millions of letters the radio broadcaster believes that orchestras which play dance music selections are the most pop- ular of all entertainments. Paul Whiteman's, Ben Bernie’s, Vincent Lopez’ orchestras are high in fa- vor. So far, the violin is the most popular solo instrument. These two instrumental features are more popular than singing. In the singing field male voices are far more popular than female and baritones lead the list. “It is true,” she says, “that bari- tones are generally the most pop- ular. But the most popular stars today in male voices are tenors. When a singer gets a following it doesn’t seem that the general rule applies. Rudy Vallee, Wendell Hall, James Melton, Franklyn Baur, Morton Downey and Red- fern Hollingshead have built a personal following that eclipses for the moment that of any bari- tone. “Women are far less popular than men, and contralto voices in general are more popular than sopranos. Yet at the present time Olive Palmer, a coloratura so- prano, and Jessica Dragonette, a lyric soprano, have bigger follow- ings than any of the contraltos. We know these things definitely through letters and the demands | for personal appearances. “Singing is far more popular than talking, but the most popular talking performer is the an- nouncer. Our announcers are al- most matinee idols. - “In times past every one wanted to be on the stage; now every one wants to be in the movies or on the air. It is no small job to an- yj‘,‘{('(lN | country. | conductors have been in charge of the nounce a program. A man must have a good voice, be able to speak at least three languages, under- stand something of history, sci- ence, literature and have a fine appearance. You do not see him, of course. But the artists who perform do, and he is for the time their manager. His pay envelope, like that of the artists he directs, varies greatly. A good announcer gets from $100 to $500 a week or even more; from $25 for a single turn to $300 an hour. “The most important factor dominating radio performance is time. Radio is run much as any newspaper or magazine. They sell space to advertisers; radio sells the waves it controls for a certain length of time. “Suppose a soap manufacturer buys a half hour’s radio time. If the broadcasting studio protracts that half hour by one minute, and the program given is being relayed by 60 stations, that 1 minute is multiplied by 60; the manufac- turer has really received an extra hour of radio time, for which he has not paid and which may have to come off another man’s time. “As a result of this time selling, watches and clocks all set to- gether fairly permeate broadcast- ing studios. Specially regulated stop watches are everywhere, in the hand of the announcer, on music racks, on the piano. And the director is fairly strung on time. His is the responsibility. As he finishes, another studio holds performers waiting, tense, to go on. As his act ends the invisible audience must at once have an- other. “‘Five seconds of silence,” say the broadcasters, ‘are enough to lose thousands of listeners. There must not be a second’s waste. If a number finishes too soon, the company must fill in, or the an- nouncer must. An announcer who can improvise in such emergency is a jewel. Never can we be silent.” 20,000 CHILD.REN TO SING IN SYMPHONY BROADCAST Pupils Will Present Carols Over Columbia Chain Thursday Afternoon. ‘Voices of 20,000 school children raised in song will be heard over WMAL and the nation-wide network of the Colum- bia Broadcasting System at 3:30 o’clock Thursday afternoon in a special pro- gram of the St. Louis Symphony Or- chestra, to be broadcast from the New Arena in St. Louis, Mo. The concert, with Frederick Fische conducting the 80-piece orchestra, is the first of several like appearances of this organization for the entertainment of parochial and public school children carols, and a specially selected chorus of 1,000 high school students, under direction of Eugene Hahnel, music su- pervision for St. Louis schools, is 1o be heard. The St. Louls Symphony Orchestra, now in its fiftieth year, is the second oldest organization of its kind in the Many internationally known orchestra and many equally well know: musicians have been heard in its rank “Hill Billies’” Return. ‘The Pickard family will be back on WJZ and stations Saturday evening with their hill billy songs. Model S-81 (Less Tubes) artists may receive | of St. Louis. The children attendmx‘ the concert are to sing two Christmas Where You Get GENUINE RCA TUBES 90 DAYS FREE SERVICE IMMEDIATE DELIVERY" WE CARRY ALL MODELS | $67.00 $10 DOWN COMPLETE NOTHING MORE TO BUY | OKAY RADIO CO. 1141511th St. N.W. 1760 Pa. Ave.N.W. J Y (g e _MODEL 92 $l 750 Complete with Tubes House & “Furniture of Merit”. —that “Mighty Mon- arch of the Air’— you can make it a memorable Christmas —repeated every day in the year—for Ma- jestic is synonymous with reliability and dependability. Come in for a demon- stration. You are wel- come to our costless credit—if you wish. Herrmann Seventh at Eye WE BREMER-TULLY MORE CHANNELS ARE HELD NEEDED | Lack of Wave Lengths Is Re- | garded as Greatest Proh- ! lem of Broadcasting. | By the Associated Press. Broadcasting’s greatest problem from an engineering standpoint is still the lack of wave lengths. Despite many experiments in syn- chronization, the cleared channel sys- tem and the division of time, “too few channels for too many stations,” is said to be the chief cause of poor reception conditions and the constant worry of governmental engincers. Radio’s big trouble, says Capt. Guy Hill, chief engineer for the Federal Radio Commission, is that of too many broadcasting stations. ‘The Middle West, or fourth radio zone, has long been considered the “sore spot” of broadcasting. Conges- tion of stations, particularly in the Chicago area, has been one of the toughest allocation problems. Several | stations, recognized as giving superior | program seriice, have been required to | share time with two or more stations on the same channel owing to the lack of wave lengths. When the commission shifted several stations in the fourth zone to improve reception, a number of broadcasters, adversely aflected by the change in frequencies, appealed to the courts. What had benefited some stations ap- parently had injured others. Synchronization tests have failed, in the opinion of the engineers, to develop a practical method for simultaneous operation of high power stations on & single channel without interference, The most feasible method, that of syn- chronization by wire, is said to be too costly for use by stations located long distances apart. Several big stations, now dividing time, are urging establishment of more cleared cl}:mncls to allow them full Christmas ! 0/d Companys Lehigh Onthracite means Safe, Economical Heal Tune in the OLD also | COMPANY’S | SINGERS every Sunday, 6.30 p.m. WEAF & Assoc. N. B. C. Stations oLD COMPANY'S LEHIGH ANTHRACITE © L. C. N.CO. 1929 $1214_ a a For o Merry Ghristmins— this year and next—give the family Here is the Bremer-Tully De Luxe open console at a price you’ll be glad to pay! 9 tubes, including rectifiers. Four SCREEN GRID tubes. Big 10- inch electric super-dynamic speaker. MODEL $-82, same chassis as above,in French door console. Priced (less tubes) $159 a Bremer-Tully! It will bring them many hours of the finest reproduc- tion and win their everlasting appre- ciation, for Bremer-Tully is the FINER radio. Its preci sion workmanship means close tuning—bringing in dis- tant stations you never heard of beforel NEW YORK RECORDING LABORATORIES 1219 Wisconsin Ave. HU SPECIALIZE IN TCHISO FURNITURE CO. 1814-16 Fourteenth St. N.W. West 2310 Home Demonstrations NO FINANCE CHARGE OPEN EVENINGS NORTH 7669--0800 Hines’ Ra: Home Furniture Co. .236 4% St. S.W. Potomac Radio 509 7th St. S.W. .100 15th St. N.E. .704 10th St. N.W. ...3219 M St. N.W. dio Service. ..1305 S St. S.E. 1145 7th St. N.W. .1814 14th St. N.W. .2705 14th St. N.W. 829 7th St. NW. 17th St. NW , .133 15th St. S.E. 13307 M _St. N.W. Ave. N.W. Spring, Md. K St. N.W. Takoma Park, D. C. Cherrydale, Va. Co. Chevy Chase Havenner’s Radio Store, 1203 Good Hope Rd. S.E.......Anacostis, D. C, v