MUSIC SHEETS AND INSTRUCTIONS - THE AUSTRAL SCHOOL OF MUSIC

1933
Overview

Two rectangular cards
First card Chart A and Chart B zig zag line connecting black dots and small circles.
Second card Chart C, Chart D and Chart E. Chart C and D on top line, each side of centre fold. Chart E lower half of card. All charts show a zig zag line connecting black dots and small circles.
1.
(No envelope)
Particulars of the Postal Tuition
Lesson 1 Nearer my God to Thee - music sheet and A few Practical and Important Hints
(Page is torn, incomplete tear from top of page, through the word Nearer, downwards to the centreline. Someone has attempted a repair by using 2 pieces of adhesive tape on rear of page)
Instructions for Tuning (green coloured sheet)
Lesson number One Introductory
Music sheet Believe me if all those endearing young charms
Chart A This chart shows the Sectional Parts of the Instrument (2 pieces)
Rear of Chart A Directions Explaining Left Hand (Left piece of paper) and Directions Explaining Right Hand (Right piece of paper)
Chart B This chart shows the Correct Positions of the Hands when playing the Instrument

2.
Lesson Number Two Silver Threads Among the Gold instructions on how to play the song
Silver threads among the gold sheet music. - torn in 2 pieces along the centreline, a home repair has been made by using 2 pieces of adhesive tape on the front of the page.

3.
Lesson 3 Robin Adair - Instructions on how to play the song
Lesson No. 3 Robin Adair sheet music

4.
Lesson No. 4 Home sweet Home Instructions on how to play song
Lesson No. 4 Home sweet Home sheet music (small tear on bottom of page, centre fold)

5.
Lesson No. Five Anne Laurie - playing instructions
Lesson No. 5 - Anne Laurie sheet music (black smudges in top left corner of page)

6.
Lesson No. 6 - My old Kentucky Home - playing instructions
Lesson No 6. My Old Kentucky Home music sheet

7.
Lesson No. Seven Where the River Shannon Flows playing instructions
L sson 7 (e is missing from word lesson) Where the River Shannon Flows sheet music

8.
Lesson Number 8 Vamping and Correct Time instructions
Chart C Vamping and Correct Time Lesson 8 exercises
Front of page Exercise No. 1 Chords only instructions, How to Count Correct Time when Vamping
Reverse of page Playing Vamping and Treble together: (part of r from word Treble missing) Exercise No. 2 Treble and Chords, Instructions for the above Exercise

9.
Lesson Number Nine The Blue Danube Waltz playing instructions
Blue Danube Waltz music sheet. Tears from top and bottom of page, along the centre fold.

10.
Lesson No. 10 - Santa Lucia - playing Instructions (smudges in upper right corner of page)
Lesson No.10 Santa Lucia music sheet

11.
Lesson Number Eleven Aloha Oe (Farewell to Thee) playing instructions
No 12. Aloha Oe (Farewell to Thee) music sheet. By H.M. Queen Liliuokalani Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of the sheet reads Copyright MCMXII by W.A. Quincke & Co L.A. Cal.
Printed by arrangement with Allan & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music.

12.
Lesson No. 12 The Pal that I Loved Stole the Girl that I Loved Instructions on how to play.
The Pal That I Loved Stole The Gal That I Loved. Music sheet. By [indistinct] Pease & E.D. G. Nelson. Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of sheet Copyright MCMXXIV by Leo Feist Inc. N.Y.
Printed by [faded text] with Allan & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music.

13.
Lesson Number 13 Three Oclock in the morning Instruction on how to play the song.
No 10. Three Oclock In The Morning music sheet. By Julian Robledo. Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of the sheet reads Copyright MCMXXI by Wests Ltd London.
Printed by arrangement with Allan & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music.

14.
Lesson Number 14 Pal of My Cradle Days Instructions on how to play the song
No. 11 Pal Of My Cradle Days music sheet. By AL PIANTADOSI Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of sheet reads - Copyright MCMXXV by Leo Feist Inc. N.Y.
Printed by arrangement with Allen & Co. Melbourne for The Austral School of Music.

15.
Lesson Number 15 Paddy Maloney Instructions on how to play song.
No 2 Paddy Maloney music sheet. By Pat Dunlop Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of page reads Copyright MCMXXVI by Allen & Co Melbourne.
Printed by arrangement with Allen & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music.

16.
Lesson Number 16 Mexicali Rose Instructions on how to play the song
No. 4 Mexicali Rose music sheet. By Jack B. Tenny Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of page reads Copyright MCMXXIII by W.A. Quincke Los Angeles. Calif.
[Indistinct] by arrangement with Allan & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music.

17.
Lesson Number 17 The Midnight Waltz Instructions on how to play
No 18 The Midnight Waltz music sheet. By Walter Donaldson Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of page Copyright MCMXXVI by Allan & Co Pty Ltd Melbourne
Lower right corner ALLANS, Collins St logo

18.
Lesson Number Eighteen - Im Sitting on Top of the World Instructions on how to play.
No 6. Im Sitting on Top of the World music sheet. By RAY HENDERSON Arr. by N. AARONS
Text in bottom corner - Copyright MCMXXV by Leo Feist Inc. N.Y.
Printed by arrangement with Allen & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music.

19.
Lesson Number 19 Hawaiian Lullaby Instructions on how to play
No 5. Hawaiian Lullaby music sheet. By ETHEL BRIDGES Arr. by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of the page reads - Copyright MCMXIX by Leo. Feist Inc. N.Y.
Printed by arrangement with Allen & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music.

20.
Lesson Number 20 I Miss My Swiss Playing instructions `
I Miss My Swiss - music sheet By L.WOLFE GILBERT and ABEL BAER Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of page Copyright MCMXXV by Leo. Feist Inc. N.Y.
[Faded text] arrangement with Allen & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music

21.
Lesson Number 20 I Miss My Swiss Playing instructions
I Miss My Swiss - music sheet By L.WOLFE GILBERT and ABEL BAER Arr by N. AARONS
Text at bottom of page Copyright MCMXXV by Leo. Feist Inc. N.Y.
[Faded text] arrangement with Allen & Co Melbourne for The Austral School of Music
Smudges on right side of music sheet. This is a duplicate of lesson 20.

Historical information

In 1933 Vera Briggs started to acquire mail order music lessons and sheet music from the Austral School of Music for the Guitar - Mandolin - Banjo. Located in the South British Chambers, 23 Barrack street, Perth, the school had Australian offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane as well. Some controversy arose in the mid 1930's when subscribers to the lessons discovered they were paying too much, and locked into a payment plan they no longer wished to be paying, thus prompting other music schools to take out advertisments informing the public that their music school was not associated with The Austral School of music.
The music sheets would have been accompanied by a zither for students to practice their lessons on. Vera ordered the sheet music while living at the family farm Sussex in Byford in the 1930s. She seems to have stopped ordering the music in 1935.
Vera's daughter, Lois, has no memory of her mother playing an instrument or displaying any music talent.

Details

Details

Registration number
cwa-org-33-COA2020.33b
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Year
Statement of significance

Music sheets and instructions/ lessons were owned by Vera Briggs (nee White) from Sussex farm in Byford. The lessons were sent to Vera from the Austral School of Music's office located in Perth. Vera was living on Sussex Farm in Byford at the time, and the lessons would have been used in a attempt to learn how to play music, using the instrument that accompanied the first set of correspondence in 1933.
Vera's daughter Lois has no memory of her mother playing any instrument, but does recall her father Robert Hanham Briggs playing the piano at the family home.

Primary significance criteria
Social or spiritual significance
Comparative significance criteria
Interpretive capacity
Rare or representative
Well provenanced
City of Armadale - History House

City of Armadale - History House

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