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

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featuring entertainment from a wide variety of New Zealanders domiciled
in England. Organised and directed by Shayle Gardiner, this concert -
a matinee - was to devote its proceeds to " ••• the Provision of Comforts
for New Zealanders in His Majesty's Forces". 16 This New Zealand Centenary
Matinee was scheduled for April of 1940 and was to include an appearance
by the Sadler's Wells Orchestra conducted by expatriate New Zealander
Warwick Braithwaite.
Lilburn, with a thought to contributing an item for the programme,
wrote to Braithwaite offering to write a work especially for the concert.
Braithwaite's reply to Lilburn was direct and to the point, a letter that
clearly illustrates the problems facing a young composer at that time:
"Mar 5th '40
Dear Mr Lilburn
23 Linden Lea
N.2.
(I hope that's your name as I found great difficulty
in making anything of your signature and the above is, even
so, only a wild guess.)
You have made a proposition very difficult to answer
as I know nothing of your work. Could you possibly guarantee
that the overture would be suitable, or even a success or
even playable?
At a concert of this sort each item must be 100%
direct appeal in whatever category it may be and the only
way I can be sure of this is by being sure that the item
is either well known or bound to make an appeal. In your
case your work is entirely unknown tome and although I
must remedy that state of affairs for my own sake, I
cannot promise to avail myself of your kind suggestion.
In the case of an unwritten work - I could or should only
risk such a promise from a tried composer whose work is
known.
Don't be discouraged by these foregoing remarks
but bring some of your orchestral work to me so that I
may judge for myself.
I am at Sadlers Wells on Sat. afternoon conducting the
'Barber of Seville'. Come to the performance & to my
room afterwards.
Best wishes,
Yours sincerely
WarWLC . k BraLt . h wa1te. . ,,17
At the Saturday meeting, the conductor was sufficiently impressed
with Lilburn's work to agree in principle to the idea of a composition
16 New Zealand Centenary Matinee, programme to concert. Copy with
author.
17 Letter housed at Alexander Turnbull Library.