Canada '67; 4

Even here here this is Canada 67 a weekly glimpse at some of the thousand and one in which Canadians are celebrating their country's 100 birthday. But it's not just a year of laughter for Canada. There is much more to this celebration but something else in the wind is Jack Brooks might say Canadians abroad are known for two things. They talk more on the telephone than any nation in the world and they are considered a quiet unassuming people with no particularly strong characteristics. A sort of vaguely friendly self-effacing nonentity politely deferring the others on almost any question. Now or for better or worse that picture is changing color the search for identity or watch you will. The fact remains that Canadians are now a nation of flag wavers and not

just meek and mild little penance with a maple leaf but gigantic maple leaves emblazoned in scarlet glory on vast fields of white nylon mingled with the blue and white Fleur de lease of Quebec in the colors of other provinces. And Centennial flags of many different colors and the gold on blue flags of Expo 67 the International Exposition now being hosted in Montreal during Canada's centennial year plus flags of many nations. Once back of this flag waving the flowers of flags that lined the streets but Declan houses festoon the cars decorate the stores and shopping centers and a riot of life in color and joie de vivre to our lives. Reading perhaps for ever the staid pace of yesterday. Well partly it's because Canada is host to the World Expo. Partly it's a sense of belonging as Canadians take pride in flying their new maple leaf flag and partly its pride in a particular beloved province. Its coat of arms its motto its flag

its culture its way of life and partly I like to believe its because Canadians find themselves in a festive mood. Its not every year you celebrate your 100th birthday. And so orders for Expo flags provincial flags Canadian flags flags of all nations continue to pour into suppliers day by day. We can guarantee delivery. We can keep up with demands our every day comments. Even the government must wait. Or again people who have the bug keep falling want to be first on the street or a quote one display generates enthusiasm for another. All over the country it's the same. The orders pouring in. The flags going out the streets bedecked like rainbows with flags flowers colored lights. And it all started like the Chinook the Indian wind a spring a quiet whispered now everywhere the flags are waving snapping briskly up the staffs as a fresh strong wind

sweeps the land. This is Jack Brooks reporting from Montreal. There's trains out by the Royal Canadian Highland regiment of a Black Watch waft over Expo 67 several times a week. The June signals the arrival of heads of state who come to take part in their country's national day at the World's Fair. We'll have more on these national days and later programs. But right now it's the tune we're wondering about and especially its title one can again we talk to an expo doesn't seem to feel included. We have been termed as a bit of the protester gallium in a sense we are because we have had a lot to protest about but we don't carry any bitterness. All we want is more understanding. Just as every other

pavilion does and the whole purpose of Expo to get to know man and his work this is simply all we would like. That's Venus star a hostess at the Indians of Canada Pavilion which contains perhaps the best example of Expo a clear minority message well stated. The pavilion itself is a beautiful blue stylized with a roof dreams visit it and asked Venus star about it. Example. We have been left out of Canadian history very very much and. Not really necessarily some way feel and this is the very first opportunity we've had to tell the world exactly how we feel our life has been since European contact. Now for a very very quick tour through the salient we come to the entrance the reception area or welcome area as we call it and are greeted by what we call a not welcome figure and its purpose is precisely that to welcome the visitors to

ex-pats from Canada and the world. And then we go into a section we call the land area. Now the this section falls into the pattern that we have. Planned for the pavilion and that is to cover the past the present and what we hope for the future not only the future of the Indians but the for the future of the world. And here in the land area in the past area we might say we have tried to describe to show our way of life the spirit of our life before European contact. And then and then we try to describe the kind of troubles that we had as far as the economy is concerned as far as religion is concerned. Education and the whole spectrum of just living you know and this of course is very difficult in the religious section way. I have tried to show how we feel toward

Christianity and toward what we understood our religion to be because we never had a religion as such to us religion was very simply a way of life and very very much closely connected. And we have tried to show this by choosing a bear as a representative of our natures gift to our lives and how dependent we were on the great spirits and how closely we had to live with them and a Christian cross superimposed on this we feel Christianity was somewhat imposed. Yes I know that people have come from the beginning definitely get this feeling how did you design the pavilion How did all the Indian people get together to agree upon one design. Quite a while ago there were a series of conferences held across the nation three in fact one Easter in one central and one western and and here the Indian people discussed what they wanted to say and how they wanted to say it. And during the years there was an architect who sat here and submitted

drafts of the structure of the building and the interior design and the sort of thing and we okayed it. The effect has been very good. I understand the reaction to being very strong. What reactions have you had from Canadians who have gone through the pavilion mostly who spoken to you as some people. Aren't quite sure what their reactions are and they don't say very much but those who are brave enough say that it's about time we've known the truth and who are most people surprised most most people are awakened and are aware for the first time and sort of marvel at their ignorance. Being Canadians and not knowing very very much about their other fellow Canadian and to any people who go through offer any suggestions for the future of the Indian It had no because I think we have stated quite quite strongly in our pavilion that whatever our future is going to be we would like to determine ourselves the most wonderful thing thing that they have said is.

I would like to help. We just wish we knew how we could help. What is the reaction that you've had from fellow Indians going through that kind of smile broadly with a gleam in their eyes and say you know we are going to go down in history favorably for once because of our pavilion here at Expo as Jack Brooks intimated at the beginning of today's program 1967 is a year of real achievement for Canada. To many Canadians It seems this is the first time this country has come up with something breathtaking enough to make all the world Marvel never has a universal and international exhibition assembled. So many participating nations as the Montreal one has never has the theme of an exhibition been so all embracing as man and his world and no exhibition or festival of any kind has ever offered entertainment on the scale of Expo 67 World Festival of the performing arts. This last event alone is making history. Here's Ken Murphy.

One of the current World Festival attractions differs from all the others in that instead of merely contributing to the international flavor of the festival as does the Boston Opera say or the kabuki theater it is in itself an international event. I refer to the voice competition in which singers from 17 countries are now taking part. Now there would have been an international voice competition here. Even if there had been no world festival or no Expo 67 Montreal joined the international music competition movement two summers ago with a piano contest and followed that up last summer with one for violinists It is therefore more by accident than by design that the current singing competition is part of the Expos World Festival. The competition began on Monday May 22nd by the time the winners are announced on June 3rd. The World Festival will have seen the Australian Ballet the Stockholm Royal Opera the Old Vic company the Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus and a troupe of Australian variety artists come and go. But I doubt that any of

the 37 singers in rule of the competition will have had time to see any of these attractions or anything else connected with Expo for the Montreal music competitions have become famous or perhaps infamous as among the most grueling in the world. The 12 of the 37 who make it into the third and final round of the competition will by June 3rd have performed more areas and more concert songs than the average concert artist is required to prepare for an extended world tour. They will have some in at least five languages with piano and with orchestra and they will have learned in one week a song written especially for the competition. But if the standards are high the rewards are too. With a $10000 first prize and 11 smaller ones down to $500. The Montreal competitions are the most lucrative in the world. This is no doubt why they attract so many worthwhile contestants. This year's thirty seven were selected from over 200 applicants. Only three countries are

represented by more than one singer. The USA with 15 Canada with 5 and the USSR with 3. The other singers are from the Argentine Bermuda Colombia Cuba France Germany England Holland Hungary Italy Norway the Philippines Portugal and Rumania. The judges chosen by their respective governments are from Bulgaria Canada France Great Britain Italy Czechoslovakia the USA and the USSR. Most of them are teachers connected with leading conservatories in their own countries. As it is well known that there are exactly as many methods of singing as there are singing teachers. One shudders at the wildly varying opinions which will exist within the jury as to the merits of any given candidate. May the best man win. Or more likely the best woman for the girls outnumber the men two to one.

And that's Canada 67 for this week produced by the international service of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Harding here invited you to be with us again in seven days. This program was distributed by national educational radio. This is the national educational radio network.