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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
Mr. Sauer. " It is better than Berlin even,
because Berlin is blase.
There the audi-
ence has ceased to enjoy—it criticises only.
New York is Berlin, Paris, and Vienna in
one.
" After a while, when the ocean trip can
be made in two or three days, and great
artists can come here as easily as they now
pass from Vienna to Paris and to Berlin,
the New York audience will get blase, too.
But you have perhaps twenty years yet of
keen appreciation, and will be for that time
the source of inspiration to all great artists
of the world.
"Piano playing," he said, referring to
the present condition of that art, "is at its
culmination.
The highest skill and per-
fection were reached by Rubinstein and
Liszt; but in this generation there are four
or five who, in powers of technique, expres-
sion, and interpretation, are their peers."
Herr Sauer said that it is his plan to
spend the summer at his home in Dresden.
He will not play again, he said, until Janu-
ary next, when he expects to make a short
tour in Vienna, Paris, Berlin, and London.
He does not expect to visit this country
again. (?)
*
fected by the citizens' committee, which is
fully organized and has been at work for
some weeks planning what shall be done
during the four days of the convention.
One of the principal features of the con-
vention will be the open air concert with a
chorus of one thousand trained voices,
which will render patriotic airs. The pro-
ject originated among the members of the
German musical societies of the city.
Washington park will probably be the place
selected for the concert, and Wednesday,
June 28th, has been suggested for the date.
The German singing societies will contri-
bute all their strength and several hundred
more vocalists will probably be secured
from the visiting and local members of
the association.
*
IN-an article in Pearson's magazine Austin
*• .-Fryers refutes the generally accepted
idea that clever children seldom re-
tain their special talents when they
reach the age of maturity. " Many of
the greatest celebrities in history gave
very early evidence of the ability for
which they afterwards became world-fam-
ous.
Indeed, it is almost safe to say that
every celebrity has had a clever childhood,
T H E Manuscript Society has decided to for where we meet an instance of a re-
*
broaden its organization so as to make puted dunce, it is nearly always the case
it harmonize with its development into a that someone has been able to discern the
national society. It has adopted a new latent talent struggling to find expression.
title, The Society of American Musicians Michael Angelo was an infant prodigy who
and Composers, and it has amended its by- attracted crowds to see the works he exe-
laws governing qualifications for member- cuted when but seven years of age. Mor-
ship and admission of compositions to the land exhibited sketches at the Society of
society's concerts. The new officers elected Arts when he was but five; Sir Thomas
consist of President, Edward A. McDowell; Lawrence was in great request as a por-
First Vice-President, Reginald De Koven; trait painter when he was but ten years
Second Vice-President, Homer N. Bart- old; and Gainsborough v was famous at
lett; Corresponding Secretary and Treas- eleven. Among musicians, Weber, Mo-
urer, Lucien G. Chaffin; Recording Secre- zart, and Schumann head the list of in-
tary, Louis R. Dressier, and Librarian, fant prodigies. Weber wrote his first
opera before he was eleven; Mozart
Peter A. Schnecker.
- :
v
toured Europe as a pianist when he
*
was but six; and Schumann published
T H E latest musical contribution from the compositions at the same age. The imita-
*
pen of Col. A. B. De Frece adds con- tive arts seem to lend themselves more
siderably to his fame as a composer^ and is, naturally to instinctive effort, but the in-
perhaps, his happiest effort. It is a ballad, tellectual giants of literature also afford a
entitled, "My Dearest Love " the'words vgry representative gathering of ' infant
and music of which are, written by the prodigies.' Macau-lay at eight wrote a com-
composer, and bears the imprint of the pendium of universal history; Goethe's
well-known firm of Wm. A. Pond & Co., efforts attracted attention before he was
124 Fifth Avenue.
The composition is six; Victor Hugo wrote a novel before he
highly meritorious. The words, delightful was eleven, which was worthy even of his
in sentiment, are wedded to a melody later reputation; Pope and Byron both
which is unusually pleasing while the scor- wrote good verse when mere boys; Eliza-
ing is most effective. In fact '' My Dearest beth Barrett Browning read Greek at eight,
Love" possesses all those elements which and some of her lasting work was com-
should make it a great favorite in recitals posed before she was fifteen. Women who
in parlor or concert.
have become famous have, in very many
The occasional contributions made by instances, given considerable promise of
Col. De Frece to contemporary music con- their fuller talents in their childhood, and
vey not only an idea of his versatility, among them is the notable instance of
which is so widely acknowledged in journal- Charlotte Bronte, who wrote poems, plays,
istic and social circles, but they furnish a and eight novels before she was thirteen."
key to the artistic and aesthetic side of his
character which makes the genial Colonel
such a wide favorite.
'T'HE story (since contradicted) comes
T H E plans for the eleventh annual con-
vention of the New York State Music
Teachers' Association which meets in Al-
bany June 26, 27, 28 and 29, are being per-
*
from Paris that Paderewski, the pi-
anist, was secretly married last December
to Mine. Elena Gorski, the divorced wife of
Ladislas Gorski, a well-known violinist,
formerly a member of the Lamoureux Or-
chestra. It is said as soon as a dispensa
tion is received from the Pope an ecclesi-
astical marriage will follow.
Time and time again it has been reported
that Paderewski was about to marry, but his
friends said it would never occiir, that the
memory of his dead wife, to whom he was
passionately devoted, was always with him.
Speaking of this famous pianist brings to
mind that there is only one Paderewski.
An illustration of the extraordinary effect
which the great Pole's playing has on ordi-
nary people is furnished in the following
extract from a letter to a London paper:
"Men call him Paderewski, this sad-faced
messenger of the gods. His name does not
matter; where he is, he is not. Beeth-
oven and Chopin are.. Their spirits may
rest, for they have found a voice. * * * I
breathed rare mountain air for days. The
spell was upon me. I had walked with
the gods. I felt I could be my ideal self.
I could be, do, suffer anything. I could
go to the stake for any cause if Paderewski
would play my funeral march. * * * Mr.
Wood thought he was conducting that or-
chestra, I suppose. He was not. Pader-
ewski held it in the hollow of his hand.
He fixed his eye upon it and the men
played as they had never played be-
fore in all their lives.
He magnetized
it.
In playing with him it was great-
er than itself.
He was the soul of it.
It bore him up on the wings of an orchestra
inspired. It sank into silence with him
and died away in pianissimos that came in
far echoes from over the hills of silence.
Great Beethoven faded, and Chopin spoke
to us with his own voice. We listened,
breathless, to the end when the strange
spirit whispered to us in one mighty pas-
sage after another. Gigantic passages they
were, yet no one thought 'how clever,'
each one felt 'how great,' as the spirit
came along in its last glorious march, up-
borne by the inspired orchestra. It was
like the march of some white war-horse of
the gods. It passed on to victory, out of
sight, and deafening cheers brought the
vision to an end, and I went out into the
night walking in a land of ghosts."
*
C V E N Constantinople is a more musical
~
city than Boston, acccording to a writer
in the Evening Post. While our pharisai-
cal, pretentious Hub was unable to appre-
ciate Wagner, Gounod, and Mozart, as pre-
sented by the finest opera company ever
assembled anywhere, Constantinople has
got as far as Wagner's "Parsifal," which
not long ago was produced there in concert
form by local musicians under Prof. Paul
Lange, and evoked great enthusiasm. The
Sultan alone is, it is to be feared, Boston-
ian; that is, he pretends to like music, but
doesn't care for it in his heart of hearts.
He has a habit of having famous soloists
play for him, and then sending an adjutant
with a bag of gold ($500), which must be
placed before the artist and picked up by
him to make sure that he got it. Then he
inquires how much the artist would ask for
a permanent engagement—but whatever
the answer, nothing more is ever heard of
him. The latest virtuoso to submit to this
process was M. Cesar Thompson. He got
his bag of gold, and when he was asked
what his terms would be, he answered $4,-
000 a month—which, by the way, would be
about $8,000 a year more than the Grand
Vizier receives.