Florence De Jong

Florence De Jong0:00

This download is the only extract the BBC has of this edition of Desert Island Discs. The presenter was Roy Plumley.

Presenter0:08

mister Young, what part of the country are you from? Are you a Londoner?

Florence De Jong0:11

Londoner and a coffin, born in Hovood.

Presenter0:14

You come from a musical family?

Florence De Jong0:16

Very musical.

Florence De Jong0:17

Dad and mum were very musical people.

Florence De Jong0:21

We were four sisters. Yes. The eldest Celeste Barger, very famous pianist and organist.

Florence De Jong0:27

She played with Henry Wood in the Hall here St George's.

Florence De Jong0:33

And the second sister was a violinist, one of the leaders of the Kensington Symphony Orchestra.

Florence De Jong0:39

Then there's myself, and then, last but of course not least, Ina.

Presenter0:44

Inabarga

Florence De Jong0:44

In the baga. That's the base system.

Presenter0:45

That's about it.

Presenter0:47

Was your father a professional musician?

Florence De Jong0:50

Oh yes. Yes.

Florence De Jong0:52

played many instruments.

Florence De Jong0:54

And he was a very fine conductor. He was one of the first creators of the large orchestras in the cinemas. In London we had the Angel Cinema.

Florence De Jong1:04

And dad had a band of twenty.

Presenter1:04

In Eslington.

Presenter1:06

And Daniel.

Florence De Jong1:08

I was so interested to hear

Florence De Jong1:11

the orchestra and the special arrangements that my father used to put to these pictures.

Florence De Jong1:18

And I felt I've got to learn how to do this.

Presenter1:21

Nope.

Florence De Jong1:21

And I used to go and sit in the orchestra after school hours.

Florence De Jong1:26

And that's how I learnt the business.

Presenter1:28

At that age, had you already started piano lessons at school, as most school girls have?

Florence De Jong1:32

Goodness miss.

Florence De Jong1:33

I play the piano

Florence De Jong1:36

Oh, not too badly. I wasn't a virtuoso.

Presenter1:39

What was your first professional appearance?

Florence De Jong1:42

Pooh.

Florence De Jong1:44

A little cinnamon in Oxford Street, opposite the Lions' Corner House, Tottenham Court Road.

Florence De Jong1:51

It was next to the tube station, was a small cinema house belonging to a mister Bay, a Turkish man.

Florence De Jong1:59

who had also the Hoban cinema.

Florence De Jong2:02

I used to relieve my oldest sister, because at that time she had two engagements she had the piano job.

Florence De Jong2:08

at this little cinema, and then she was with

Florence De Jong2:10

George Eberdees waltzed dream at Daly's in the evening, so of course that meant that she had to be in the green room by half past six. So from six till half past I took over. With a I think I had a repertoire of five pieces, piano pieces, okay. And then I would go up to the Polytechnic

Florence De Jong2:29

Regent Street.

Florence De Jong2:31

I was a relief pianist.

Presenter2:32

I was young.

Florence De Jong2:32

I was about fourteen, fifteen, just after school.

Presenter2:36

Yeah.

Florence De Jong2:37

We left school at fourteen in those days. Okay.

Presenter2:40

And then from the piano you graduated to the organ.

Florence De Jong2:44

Oh yes, so the organs came into the fore and

Florence De Jong2:47

I thoroughly enjoyed getting on the shall I say the king of instruments.

Presenter2:52

What was your first resident post as an organist?

Florence De Jong2:56

At the Printery Path rig.

Florence De Jong2:59

This was d uh during the Fourteen Eighteen War.

Florence De Jong3:03

And then from there

Florence De Jong3:05

Um mister Evans, the director, asked me to go to the

Florence De Jong3:10

New gallery to try the new organ. He said, This is a wonderful organ, the new wurlitz are all

Florence De Jong3:16

If you complain, the job is yours. Well, of course.

Florence De Jong3:20

I tried it, I couldn't refuse it. So that's how I came into the new gallery.

Presenter3:22

So

Presenter3:25

You were at the new gallery for many years, weren't you?

Florence De Jong3:26

Yes, thirteen years.

Presenter3:28

Thirteen year.

Florence De Jong3:28

From the time it opened

Florence De Jong3:30

Right up to

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the time when I had to leave because they want to exploit me, they want to send me out on different halls. And I didn't want I said, No, let me stay in the new gallery No, they just wouldn't. They thought I was showman enough by that time to go out, you see.

Presenter3:39

Yeah.

Florence De Jong3:47

And then I met my second husband, mister Lew Morris.

Florence De Jong3:50

who had built many of the cinemas in England.

Florence De Jong3:54

So I said, well, listen, but I've got to go out for the Gaumont. I'll I'll join you.

Florence De Jong3:59

And then I left and I joined my late husband.

Presenter4:02

He went out on his cinema.

Florence De Jong4:03

Yes, that's right.

Presenter4:04

Let's have another record. Watch number three.

Florence De Jong4:06

The Siegfried title. I think that's one of the finest works of Wagner.

Florence De Jong4:11

Such wonderful repose and that and it's it's a very special memory to me.

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The first night of the new gallery, opening, with a full orchestra.

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Finest musicians practically in the country.

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I think there were a bell.

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Twenty eight there.

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My first husband, Harry De Young, was the violinist and conductor.

Florence De Jong4:32

And we play that number.

Florence De Jong4:34

There was Aubrey Brain, the horn player, famous horn player.

Florence De Jong4:39

Hayden Draper, clay net.

Florence De Jong4:41

and myself playing the Klisiglot, which was the harp stop.

Florence De Jong4:45

On the world itself.

Presenter4:47

Now, mister Young, it must have been a great moment to come up on that lift with all the spotlights on you and the spangles sparkling on your dress.

Florence De Jong4:56

If the lift works all right, yes, it's a wonderful uh shall I say, evasion. Yeah. But it happened once I was finishing up, you know, tremendous finale.

Florence De Jong5:08

and pressing down the button, suddenly there was an unearthly screech. I thought the the roof was coming in.

Florence De Jong5:15

and I noticed that the console was going slightly to the left, down.

Florence De Jong5:20

with the most unearthly screeching noise.

Florence De Jong5:24

I managed to press the stop button.

Florence De Jong5:27

and I was left hanging on one side.

Florence De Jong5:31

Well, panic in the orchestra and panic in the in the audience and two of the doormen coming down with long ladders and I was dragged off the organ, most ungraceful exit.

Presenter5:46

With the only organist to go down on the lift sideways. Of course, when you stayed in one particular cinema for a long time, it meant preparing a different show every week with

Florence De Jong5:50

But

Presenter5:55

Uh

Florence De Jong5:55

So we have a large slide. Yeah, very interesting work.

Presenter5:59

Yes, a a theme like usually with a title like Immortal Melodies from the Emerald Isle or something like that.

Florence De Jong6:05

Great operas.

Presenter6:06

Yes. It was a long day, of course, three or four shows.

Florence De Jong6:10

Mhm. We never minded that.

Presenter6:13

And very difficult, I should think, to present a programme because you're facing away from the audience.

Florence De Jong6:18

At the New Galley it was different. I was on the side, so I could watch my audience.

Florence De Jong6:23

I always watched, I always knew the Queen Mother.

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when she and the Duke of York would come in,

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in their courting days, and they would sit in the front row.

Florence De Jong6:35

And then it would be my big moment. I thought of all them beautiful melodies on Pur de Moor, Song of Songs.

Florence De Jong6:43

She was a very petite, lovely little figure. I can see her now as she walked up the stairs with the black

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Tailored suit He was poured into that suit.

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and the fringe her hair was in the little fringe, and then she had this little bit of black lace nonsense on her hair, and a r red rose, a large red rose.

Florence De Jong7:04

I wonder if the Queen Mother remembers.

Presenter7:06

Yeah.

Florence De Jong7:06

I shall never forget it anyway.

Presenter7:06

Uh

Presenter7:07

Yeah.

Presenter7:09

You um spent a lot of time playing on ocean liners.

Florence De Jong7:15

Oh, yes. Alibusime de Jane.

Presenter7:17

Also, you name it.

Florence De Jong7:18

of the Union Castle and the Cunard Line.

Florence De Jong7:22

I was coming back from South Africa after I sold my cinemas.

Florence De Jong7:25

'Cause I had to because television was coming in and uh I took a few trips. And during those trips I used to play.

Florence De Jong7:34

on the ship. They used to go down in what they call the pig and whistle for the crew.

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play downstairs for them and play for the first class and the cabin class.

Florence De Jong7:43

And it was very interesting.

Presenter7:45

I'm sure it will. Now, you're playing at the National Film Theatre on the South Bank.

Presenter7:50

which often shows silent films and you provide the piano accompaniment. This of course is what you cut your teeth on in your very early days.

Florence De Jong7:57

Very

Presenter7:59

It's a very specialized form of musicianship.

Florence De Jong8:02

Well, you need, um, shall I say, a lot of practice not a l knowledge of music.

Presenter8:07

Yes. I've seen Q sheets that used to be supplied by the distributors of silent films for the use of musicians. Have these survived? Are are you given one of these?

Florence De Jong8:16

No, I never ask for these sheets, because I always play in the dark.

Presenter8:21

So you're improvising, you're interpreting the way you'll feel as you watch the film.

Florence De Jong8:25

Definitely.

Presenter8:26

Do you indicate sound effects like pistol shots and that sort of thing?

Florence De Jong8:30

Well, occasionally. I could do that better with an organ, but with a piano it would get rather tiresome.

Presenter8:35

What's the most difficult film you've had to accompany recently?

Florence De Jong8:40

Well, there was one, a continental film.

Florence De Jong8:44

with a lot of action and very difficult machinery. I think it was called Metropolis.

Presenter8:50

Oh yes, yes, a German film.

Florence De Jong8:52

That's right.

Presenter8:53

And some of the surrealist films that you do.

Florence De Jong8:55

We don't have many of them, thank heaven.