S.F. Examiner Yehudi Menihin Post

Enjoy! -Tessa

“I have been asked to write a humorous account of our vacation in three hundred words. It is a difficult subject to approach humorously, as the trip was not really a funny one and, besides, belonging to the last generation, I doubt whether I could ever be amusing when given only three hundred words. The very tempo for our summer vacation was so different from the feeling I receive each time I think of three hundred!

“We moved slowly and in telling about it I feel like “Pat with his paint” – if he didn’t hurry up, he’d run out before he finished! You see, we were in the hills forty-five days. It makes one imagine how Beethoven might have felt if he had been asked to use the themes of his Fifth Symphony in a one-page A B A.

“Well, let’s try:

“Miss Clement and I jogged along never faster than two miles an hour if going up, no matter whether afoot or horseback. There were hills and mountains, trails far from any roads, warm sunshine, hot rocks, rugged canyons, cool forests, meadows with colorful flowers, and lakes and streams. There was Benson Lake, where we camped five weeks, eight thousand feet up, wild and lonely; there were swimming, fishing, walking, being lazy, reading, sleeping, and much cooking and eating; there was “the bear, bacon bag episode,” lasting nearly a week. To do it justice would take all the three hundred words. Other things of interest were the sea gull, the chipmunks, birding, treeing, botanizing, and of course the pack trip in and out, three days horseback each way, with the famous packer, “Skeeter,” and the three mules loaded with “grub” (lighter coming home, naturally). There were the last few hours down the canyon wall of Yosemite, by dry Yosemite Falls and into the “civilized,” dancing, jazzy, speeding valley. We, still dressed in mountain clothes and still pulsing to the mountain tempo, felt all too queer by contrast: felt sad, leaving this beautiful, natural and healthy life, but there was the Conservatory waiting.

“If you should be interested, however, in really reading about the trip, you may borrow the diary from Ada Clement. This will take you several hours, but it is worth it.”

The Lyre, Volume 5, No. 14, October 1931

Unfortunately, we don’t have Ada Clement’s diary from this trip in our Archives. We are thrilled, however, by this colorful description of their summer vacation!

From 1925 to 1930, the famous Swiss composer Ernest Bloch was director of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. In an era marked by rampant factionalism, Bloch brought to the city—and to his position—a utopian view of music as a unifier of various races, religions and classes. While in San Francisco he wrote a piece inspired by Chinatown, a grandiose tribute to the United States (his adopted country) dedicated to Abraham Lincoln and Walt Whitman and a beautiful solo for violin and piano, prompted by his meeting 11-year-old Yehudi Menuhin.

On Sunday, January 22 at 2 p.m., Leta Miller, professor of music at the University of California-Santa Cruz, will discuss Bloch’s years as director of the Conservatory in an illustrated lecture stemming from her new book Music and Politics in San Francisco. The lecture will be accompanied by rare photos and audio examples. It will be followed by performances of Bloch’s “Nigun” from the Baal Shem suite and “Prayer,” part of the suite From Jewish Life. After the lecture/performance, all are welcome to view a Bloch exhibit in the Conservatory’s library.

Miller is a specialist in twentieth-century music of the United States. Her book Music and Politics in San Francisco: From the 1906 Quake to the Second World War was published by the University of California Press in October 2011. Miller has also written two books on composer Lou Harrison (coauthored with Fredric Lieberman) and published two dozen articles on Harrison, John Cage, Henry Cowell, Charles Ives and various aspects of music in the San Francisco area. Although no longer active on the concert stage, Miller previously performed widely on modern and baroque flute and has been featured as soloist on more than 15 recordings.

Ernest Bloch at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, 1925-1930
Leta Miller lecturer

Axel Strauss violin
Yun Ting Chiu cello
Amy Chiu piano

Sunday, January 22  2 p.m.
Osher Salon
Free, no tickets required

For more information: www.sfcm.edu

MAYOR’S OFFICE, San Francisco

May 5, 1926

To the Editor, The Lyre:

        I have read with interest the copy of The Lyre which you sent to me, and I congratulate you upon the interesting publication, for which you and your associates are responsible.

        The popular rising of good music in all of its varied interpretation is one of the greatest attributes of cultural progress.

        Municipal authorities of San Francisco have long recognized this, as evidenced by the many musical events presented by the Board of Supervisors and myself at the Municipal Auditorium.

        I remember very clearly what small audiences we attracted when these events first began, but the prices were kept at the lowest possible point, the music was the best that could be procured, and the result has been a most gratifying increase in attendance, until today a concert or a recital at the Auditorium under municipal auspices crowds that great building to its very doors.

        To the San Francisco Conservatory of Music I offer my congratulations for the wonderful work of musical education that it is performing, and I hope that as the years pass by your institution will become ever more important in the life of the community.

With my personal compliments and best wishes, I am

                                                                                Very sincerely yours,
                                                                                James Rolph, Jr., Mayor.

The desk on which they worked had a large wooden writing surface, which, through the years, became full of drawings, sketches, autographs and jokes. When it was time to move to the current location at 50 Oak Street, Conservatory IT Director Jeff Fisher rescued this board from Ortega Street, and had it beautifully framed. Below are just a few details from the board. Thanks to Jeff, this fun and decorative piece of the Conservatory’s past has been saved, and is rightfully treasured!

One of my favorite images from our collection is this of Lillian Hodghead, Ada Clement and Ernest Bloch out enjoying nature. The small details, from their dress, their expressions, even the plant clipping that Lillian holds make this brief moment memorable, and I am happy to share it here!

By Mary Louise Clement

Thanksgiving Day is almost here,
With all its good old-fashioned cheer,
When friends and family get together,
No matter what may be the weather.
Our mothers bake for days before,
Cookies, pies, and cakes galore.
Such “smells” that penetrate the house
That one could scarcely blame a mouse,
Much less a child within the house,
If he should take a tiny bite
Of delicious goodies there in sight.

The Lyre, Vol. 5 No. 14, October 5, 1931

Happy Thanksgiving!

A wonderful photograph of Ernest Bloch was found today, again with the help of Conservatory staff member Chris Basso! The image is fading, but the autograph can still be read … “To Ada, for the snowy days, Ernie”.

Head Librarian Kevin McLaughlin found this set of treasures recently, and has given it to the archives for safe keeping.

The music is “Eight Songs” by the Pasmore Trio. It is accompanied by a letter dated April 1, 1938 and two photographs, one dated September 2, 1912. The letter and photographs are addressed to Mrs. Minnie F. Owens from H.B. Pasmore of the Pasmore Trio.

This is just one recent example of the many wonderful items we have collected, and we look forward to sharing more in the future!