'THE Temporary PublishinJ Offiees : 28, Stockwell Park Crescent,

London, S.W.9.

GRAMOPHONE

Edited by

COMPTON MACKENZIE

EdiWrial Office: Isle of Herro,

Channel Islands

Vol. 1.

JUNE, 1923

No.2

EDITORIAL

IT would be premature to assume that THE GRAMOPHONE is a success; but we have rec~ived such a large number of encouraging letters that we may be allowed to think that the paper will soon establish i tself as a very great success. Our chief difficulty is going to be getting ourselves known, and, when we are known, getting ourselves distributed. Modern commercial conditions are not ideal for a small private enterprise like ours, . and we shall have to rely for some t ime to come on personal recommendation from readers to possible readers. I t will help us very much if use is made of the subscription forms printed at the end of each number. I know personally what a bore i t is filling up forms and sending off postal orders, but a paper like ours depends so much on what we may expect in the future that I must earnestly beg our enthusiastic supporters to help us in this way.

I know that the personal note is unduly emphasised in these early numbers, but that IS a feature which will gradually disappear, and with each new number I hope to eliminate a l i t t le more of myself. I am also aware that we have not yet made any real attempt to cater for those interested in the technic of the instrument. But this side of gramophone l i terature is having our attention, and in the near future we shall devote a number almost exclusively to a consideration of instruments, soundboxes and needles.

I do not want to intrude here upon the survey of the April,l\1ay and June records which we shall make in our next number; but I cannot let pass the occasion to congratulate the Vocalion Company on their unusually interesting supplements of the last quarter. These would be noteworthy if only for the reappearance of Madame Gerhardt, but they have also given us an opportunity of hearing Miss Evelyn Scotney, an Australian soprano of the Metropolitan Opera House, New York. Her voice has a good deal of the quality of Madame Galli-Curci's, and unless I were to indulge in angelic comparisons I could say no more.

His Master's Voice has now given us His Majesty's Voice and Her Majesty's Voice. We ·venture with the greatest respect to congratulate both the august performers on the success of their record as a record, which, judged on i ts merits alone, is a remarkably fine piece of recorded speaking.