eOOD LUCK,
CHORAL ENSEMBLEI
GOOD LUCK,
CHORAL ENSEMBLE!
Z 541
VOL. XXL
WINSTON-SALEM, N. C.. FRIDAY. FEBRUARY 21, 194L
Number 17.
SALEMITE
INTERVIEWS
HELEN JEPSON
(By Chubby Hayes)
A bored and blase manner, tall,
statuesque, blondness — that was
Helen Jepson. She greeted me
graciously with just a trace of a
smile. She was extremely patient
while the photographer took pic
tures—interviewers and photograph
ers were less than nothing to her—
she took us in her stride. Her every
motion was studied and composed.
The tiny, forward-jutting, blue hat
never bobbed—there was never any
enthusiasm. Once she smiled when
she talked about Gershwin whose
music she likes very, very much.
Once she grimaced when discussing
Negro folk music which she doesn’t
think white-folks can sing at all.
She was studiedly indifferent
when asked which opera she favor
ed—she likes them all—well, may
be Pelleas et Melisande a little
better than some. Her lovely hands
adorned with two exceptionally
large moonstone rings deviated only
once from their careful repose—
when she told me about her rustic
116 acre farm which is only 85
miles from New York and where
she spends all her free time. Her
hands swept in a graceful arch.
“I’ve kept it very simple,” she
said. “The main house only has
four bed-rooms, although there are
guest cabins all around.” There are
no electric lights, just kerosene
lamps and kerosene refrigerators.' ’
Her accompaniest was in and out
of the room all the time. Yes, she
was quite fond of him. He had
been with her four years, and his
name was spelled W-a-l-l-e-n-
b-o-r-n. To ever.y question she gave
an answer, and that was all—no
elaboration—.just an answer. Miss
Helen Jepson was that afternoon
with the warm sunlight pouring in
on her blond hair a very beautiful
woman, but she might have been
any hard working young person.
She had none of the glamour and
spontaneity which footlights and an
appreciative audience were to bring
her that evening.
MATH CLUB
ENTERTAINS
NEWMEIffiERS
At a banquet Tuesday night, Feb
ruary night the Mu Alpha Thetas,
entertained nine girls made eligible
for membership in the club by their
excellence in the mathematics de
partment during the past semester.
Th girls thus honored at the an
nual affair in the basement of Bit
ting building were: Mary Lib Bray,
Mary Lou Brown, Violet Bostion,
Barbara Weir, Mary Ellen Carrig,
Margaret Kempton, Becky Howell,
Harriet Sink and Jane Perry.
A patriotic motif was carried out
in the decorations of the room and
the table. Bed candles banked with
green leaves and replicas of Wash
ington’s fabled hatchet were placed
on the mantle above the open fire
and down the center of the table
at which 35 persons were seated.
The place cards were attractive
silhouettes of George Washington.
Seated at one head of the table
were: Catherine Harrell, president;
Mr. Curlee, advisor; and Eleanor
Hutchison, vice-president. At the
foot of the table were: Bobby
Whittier, treasurer; Dr. Eondthaler,
and Betty Anne White, master of
ceremonies. Mrs. Rondthaler was
seated half way down the table op
posite Anne Ewing, who during the
course of the meal initiated the
new members by requiring that
(Continued to Page 4)
Photo Courtesy Journal-Sentinel
HELEN JEPSON
FRENCH CLUB
DISCUSSES LOVE
What is love? Dr. Downs, at the
French Club meeting, Wednesday
evening, February 19, attempted to
answer this question with the help
of French poetry.
In this hour of informal conver
sation and discussion, he read also
selections from Andre Maurois’s
En Amerique, in which the famous
French author describes his visit to
Smith College and presents his im
pressions to this strange life in a
city of women.
The French Club is now begin
ning an hour of conversation whiclir
is to be held every Monday night
for the benefit of students who
want to learn to express themselves
in the French language. It is hoped
that their meeting will give French
students an opportunity to learn to
use the French language with
greater facility and less self-con
sciousness.
Outside of its monthly meeting
and weekly consersation hours, the
French Club is planning a banquet
which will be held in the latter
part of May.
PASSION PLAY
ENACe HERE
Under the sponsorship of the
Junior Chamber of Commerce the
famed Passion Play of the Black
Hills has been brought to Winston-
Salem vyith a presentation of eight
performances.
The Passion Play was pushed out
of Europe by armies. Since then the
troupe has translated its story into
the English language and has
traveled from city to' city giving
about 400 performances each year.
The play is shown in 22 scenes,
beginning with Palm Sunday.
Jesef Meier is featured as the
Christus in the lavish drama which
has been produced for years. Meier
is 36 years old and has never
known any other life than the
Christus he plays. His grandfather
and his grandfather’s father — as
far back as seven generation—^have
been the Christus.
A fleet of trucks bearing tons
of equipment for the staging of
the famed play rolled into town
Tuesday. It was pointed out that
VOICE COURSE
IS OUTLINED
Wednesday chapel was taken
over by Mr. Bair, who, with the
cooperation of his voice majors,
tried to show the successive stages
in the cultivation of a voice. Mr.
Bair said that the first require
ment of a singer is the “singing-
drive,” or to be exact, the urge to
express oneself in song. But the
actual training of a voice is a long
and difficult procedure. Beginners
are started on the simple exercises
—which, incidentally, didn’t seem
so simple. Elaine Ripple every ably
demonstrated one. Others who
demonstrated the suceeding steps
were: Ella Lou Taylor, Juanita Mil
ler, Marion Gary, Peggy Eaton, and
Jane Garrou. Annie Hyman Bunn
sang beautiful an Italian aria,
Jenny Linn and Becky Nifong both
sang difficult numbers used to de
velop technical facility.
Catherine Swain and Mr. Felix
Arnold sang with professional skill
a selection from Faust, and were
given a spontaneous burst of ap
plause. The Choral Ensemble sang
with Marion Gary as soloist in Ave
Maria.
Although several of the artists
were sick (among them were:
Lindy Stokes, Johnsie Bason, and
Mary Sue Briggs), the program was
quite a success. It is the first op
portunity many of us have had to
see the splendid work Mr. Bair and
Ms pupils are doing in the Music
Department.
CHORAL ENSEMBLE
LEAVES TOMORROW
FIFTY-TWO STUDENTS
MADE HONOR ROLL
-*
In chapel Wednesday morning Dr.
H. E. Eondthaler announced the
names of the 52 students whose ex
cellent work during the past se-mes-
ter placed them on the Honor Bolls
of the college. Eighteen of these
made the “A” Honor Roll and 34
achieved the B plus average which
entitles them to the “B plus” Honor
Roll. Due recognition was accorded
these students by the faculty and
students.
The lists are:
“A” HONOE KOi.L:
Seniors:
Gladys Blackwood
Margaret Holbrook
Sarah Linn
Eleanor Welch
Juniors:
Eugenia Baynes
Dorothy Dixon
Carrie Donnell
Doris Shore
Be^ce Thomas
Margaret Vardell
Sophomores:
Sara Barnum
Betty Vanderbilt
Freshmen:
Mary Ellen Carrig
Mary Phinney
Harriet Sink
Peggy Jane White
Business Department
Jane Cannon
Special: Mrs. Alice Rondthaler
the equipment needed and used in
the production is almost as great
as that used by a circus.
One of the most improtant fea
tures of the great historical drama
are the lighting effects. In scene
after scene these effects show the
pale dawn blending into a brilliant
sunny light of day, and then, late,
into the peaceful calm and stillness
of night.
Another outstanding feature is a
mixed choir singing Handel’s tri
umphant “Hallelujah Chorus” as
the Christus makes his ascension.
Matinees and evening perform
ances at 2:00 and 8:00 p. m., are
being given Wednesday through
Saturday,
“B” PLUS HONOR BOLli
Seniors:
Marvel Campbell
Elizabeth Dobbin
Louise Early
Sallie Emerson
Martha Hine
Marian Johnson
Katharine King
Lillian Lanning
Virginia McNeny
Martha Louise Merritt
Lena Winston Morris
Dorothy Mullen
Leonore Eice
Euth Schnedl
Martha Stonestreet
Jnniois:
Louise Bralower
Leila Johnston
MJargaret Moran
Alice Purcell
Dorothy Sisk
Mary Worth Walker
Cecelia Castellow
Margaret Leinbach
Mary Lu Moore
Mary Elizabeth Rand
Elizabeth Read
Barbara Whittier
Freshmen;
Marian Burreniek
Shirley Gosselein
Henrie Harris
Prances Harrison
Rebecca Howell
Eusebia Midgette
Betty Moore
Business Department:
Charlotte Denny
Jeannette Dowling
Kitty McKoy
SENIORS OFFER
MASQUERADE
All you jumping-beans, keep in
mind the Mexican Fiesta that the
seniors are working their fool (?)
heads off over—that isn’t a really
good evening Saturday if you brush
good evening Saturday if you ????
up on the old costume, add a black
mask and a white man, and trot
him down to the gym around 8:30.
In other words, dearies, G. Wash
ington won’t be idle at Salem Col
lege Saturday night—^he’ll be run
ning around in a sarape and
sombrero, humming “Cielito Lindo”
in pasa double time. And you had
better be there too!
THREE DAY TOUR BEGINS
IN EARLY MORNING
The Choral Ensemble leaves Sat
urday morning, February 22nd, in
the early glimmerings of dawn for
the week-end tour which has been
plaiined by the executive committee
of the group. After the early de
parture from Salem, the girls will
clamber out of their latest-model
Greyhound bus for breakfast in
Statesville.
The first concert will be given
Saturday afternoon in Asheville at
the Asheville School for Boys.
Sarah Linn will be the featured
soloist at this performance.
The Ensemble will then journey
to Bryson City, Tenn., where the
girls will spend the night after a
performance in which the outstand
ing soloist will be Leonore Rice.
The most exciting part of the
tour is the trip to Atlanta for a
sacred concert in the Druid Hills
Presbyterian Church. Margaret Var
dell will taken an outstanding part
at the organ, playing several solos,
and playing the difficult instru
mental parts for the beautiful and
unusual number by Karg-Elert,
written for organ and women’s
chorus.
Monday morning, again in the
cool grey dawn, the Salemites will
climb aboard for the last lap of
the concert tour. The last perfor
mance will be given at Davidson
College Monday night, and at this
concert Margaret Vardell and Sarah
Linn will bo featured. This stop at
Davidson will be enjoyed by all the
Salemites, if oververheard remarks
can be trusted, as it appears to be
the highlight of the tour.
Realizing the value of audience
reaction, the Choral Ensemble,
under the direction of Clifford
Bair, has worked out a duel pro
gram ideal, to fit every need of
the audience. A secular program
will be given at Asheville, Bryson
City, and at Davidson. One of the
highlights of this program is the
opera excerpt from “Cosi fan
Tutti,” or “A School for Lovers,”
by Mozart. Kathryn Swain, Marian
Gray, and Lillian Stokes will sing
the roles in this presentation. The
sacred program to bo given at
Atlanta gives a representative
selection from each of the choral
schools since the earliest Gothic,
and each number expresses the re
ligious aspirations and desires of
man from the late Medieval period
to the present day.
Eleanor Welch will take an out
standing part on every program,
playing harp solos, and presenting
harp interludes between each choral
number. These interludes, of Elea
nor ’s own composition, introduce)
the theme and character of each
selection and serve as a tie to bind
the program into a unified whole.
Special acknowledgment should bo
given to the members of the execu
tive committee of the Choral En
semble—Marian Johnson, president
and student conductor; Johnsie
Bason, secretary - treasurer; and
Margaret Leinbach, manager—for
their efficient work in planning the
details of the tour. Much of the
money to defray the expenses of
the trip has been raised by the
Ensemble, through the sponsoring
of such groups as the Davidson
Glee Club and the Little Symphony
of the University of Michigan.
With its interesting program and
ensemble work, its distinctive qual
ity engendered by the inspiring
direction of Mr. Bair, with its tour
planned in detail by its efficient
leaders, the Choral Ensemble should
do much on ths tour to add to
the esteem which already belongs
to Salem College and its School of
Music.