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Show Music Lovers Await Coming of Gieemen ! Friday night, October 30, is the date; the place is the Casino Theatre, and the active participants in the biggest and most important musical event of the year will be the Royal Welsh Gieemen, a choral ensemble of international fame. The chorus, which is under the direction dir-ection of Dr. Joseph Bowen of Porth, South Wales, a widely known and able musician, is coming under the ; auspices of the faculty and student body of the Gunnison Valley high school, which has been for several years instrumental in bringing to the public, attractions of exceptional merit. This Welsh organization appearing in many of the larger cities of the world, has, in the opinion of the musical musi-cal critics, fully sustained the reputation repu-tation of - Wales for contributing as fine choral organizations as may be found anywhere. The genius of the Welsh in choral work is beyond all question an inheritance of centuries, as music and poetry have from time immemorial been the chief diversions of the people. In commenting upon the work of .his chorus with especial reference to its prqsent Americain tour, director Bowen savs, ''We love to sing, in the knowledge that music is the universal univer-sal language of the soul. Where speech fails, music is only beginning. Music can make men's hearts as steel in the face of battle, when thousands are stricken down or trampled into the earth, or it can melt those hearts in tender love and make them tremble at a sweetheart's whisper. It cleanses cleans-es the soul for worship, and it is in this branch of music that the Welsh are preeminent." In the opinion of leading critics, ! Dr. Bowen's ensemble ranks unusual-i unusual-i ly high in blend, precision, and varied graduations of tone. Aside from the singers, the organization includes I Professor Gethin B. Davies, solo pi-I pi-I an'st, and an associate of the Royal i College of Music in London. Among the soloists of outstanding merit may be mentioned Herbert Free, tenor, scholarship holder of the Royal College; Col-lege; Gwylim Jones,, famed in his native land as the "Welsh Caruso"; and W. D. Lloyd, basso, known in Wales as the "Thunderer". There are i several others in the ensemble, of fame as soloists. The program which will he given in full next week, will include American Amer-ican numbers, as well as Scotch, Irish, English, and Welsh songs and glees. |