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The beginnings and development of a New Zealand music: The life ...

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39<br />

dominance <strong>of</strong> the machine in modern civilization is detrimental to human<br />

happiness", <strong>and</strong> leading the affirmative in the motion "That this House<br />

would not fight for King <strong>and</strong> Country except to repel invasion".<br />

Despite<br />

suffering heavy defeat (29-6) in this latter motion (one suspects that<br />

affirming the motion was a lost cause in the prevailing climate <strong>of</strong> the<br />

school), Lilburn was voted one <strong>of</strong> the four best speakers <strong>of</strong> the evening. 19<br />

In 1930 he won the French <strong>and</strong> Maths prize for form Vb, <strong>and</strong> in<br />

1932 he was the winner <strong>of</strong> the Ellen McCombe prize 20 as well as the Stamp<br />

Club essay prize on the topic <strong>of</strong> "<strong>New</strong> Zeal<strong>and</strong> Pictorial <strong>and</strong> Air Mail<br />

Issues".<br />

Having passed his matriculation in 1930, <strong>and</strong> while still<br />

attending school, he enrolled extramurally at Otago University College,<br />

successfully sitting English I, History I <strong>and</strong> French I in 1932, <strong>and</strong><br />

History II <strong>and</strong> Economics I in 1933. 21<br />

From 1931 onward, Lilburn was a representative <strong>of</strong> the Lantern<br />

Guild as well as being on the committee <strong>of</strong> editors for <strong>The</strong> Waitakian,<br />

regularly reporting on swimming <strong>and</strong> occasionally on debating, "lectures<br />

<strong>and</strong> addresses" <strong>and</strong> "concerts <strong>and</strong> entertainments".<br />

In the December 1933 issue he reported on a concert given 1n the<br />

Hall <strong>of</strong> Memories by the Russian pianist Paul Vinograd<strong>of</strong>f.<br />

Chopin programme except for the Beethoven Concerto in C Minor.<br />

wrote:<br />

It was an all­<br />

Lilburn<br />

"<strong>The</strong> performance <strong>of</strong> this master pianist was certainly the finest<br />

<strong>of</strong> its kind that the school has had yet".22<br />

Lilburn also occasionally contributed poems to the magazine.<br />

In the May 1933 issue two such poems were published:<br />

one entitled<br />

Harmony, a convoluted effort along the lines <strong>of</strong> Shelley, the other, a<br />

simple statement entitled Memory.<br />

"Though you are old<br />

Your beauty passed away,<br />

And love grown cold<br />

As Time in gaining sway -<br />

19 <strong>The</strong> Waitakian vol.18 no.l, May 1933:28.<br />

20 No mention is made- in <strong>The</strong> Waitakian as to what this pr1ze was for.<br />

21 As reported in <strong>The</strong> Waitakian.<br />

22 Concerts <strong>and</strong> entertainments. <strong>The</strong> Waitakian vol.18 no.2, December<br />

1933: 194.

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