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diff --git a/19748.txt b/19748.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..38c03d2 --- /dev/null +++ b/19748.txt @@ -0,0 +1,10569 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Story-Lives of Great Musicians, by +Francis Jameson Rowbotham + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Story-Lives of Great Musicians + +Author: Francis Jameson Rowbotham + +Release Date: November 10, 2006 [EBook #19748] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STORY-LIVES OF GREAT MUSICIANS *** + + + + +Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Jeannie Howse and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + + + * * * * * + + +--------------------------------------------------------------+ + | Transcriber's Note: | + | | + | Inconsistent hyphenation and unusual spelling in the | + | original document have been preserved. | + | | + | A small number of musical symbols (flat, sharp and natural) | + | have been transliterated for this document. | + | | + | Obvious typographical errors have been corrected in this | + | text. For a complete list, please see the end of this | + | document. | + | | + +--------------------------------------------------------------+ + + * * * * * + + [Illustration: BEETHOVEN. + _Frontispiece._ + From photo RISCHGITZ.] + + + + + STORY-LIVES + + OF + + GREAT MUSICIANS + + + BY + FRANCIS JAMESON ROWBOTHAM + AUTHOR OF + 'STORY-LIVES OF GREAT AUTHORS,' 'TALES FROM PLUTARCH,' ETC. + + + _ILLUSTRATED_ + + + NEW YORK + FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY + _PUBLISHERS_ + + + + + TO + THE MEMORY OF + FREDERICK WESTLAKE, R.A.M. + + + + +PREFACE + + +Following the plan of his previous volume of _Great Authors_, the +writer has here endeavoured to weave into more or less story form a +few of the facts and incidents in the lives of some great musicians. +It is hoped that young readers--and especially those to whom music is +a subject of study--will take a greater interest in some of the +masterpieces of composition when they have learnt something about the +composers themselves, and the circumstances under which they wrote. + +The author desires to express his acknowledgments for the assistance +he has derived from the following works: + +Grove's _Dictionary of Music and Musicians_; Bitter's _Life of +Sebastian Bach_ (translated by J.E. Kay-Shuttleworth); Rockstro's _Life +of George Frederick Handel_; Williams's _Handel_ in 'The Master +Musicians'; Townsend's _Haydn_ in 'The Great Musicians'; Jahn's _W.A. +Mozart_ (translated by P.D. Townsend); Schindler's _Life of Beethoven_; +Nohl's _Life of Beethoven_; von Hellborn's _Franz Schubert_ (translated +by A.D. Coleridge); Benedict's _Sketch of the Life and Works of Felix +Mendelssohn-Bartholdy_; Hensel's _The Mendelssohn Family_; Hiller's +_Mendelssohn: Letters and Recollections_; Devrient's _Recollections of +F.M. Bartholdy_ (translated by C.N. Macfarren). + + + + +CONTENTS + + + PAGE + +BACH 3 + +HANDEL 37 + +HAYDN 89 + +MOZART 151 + +BEETHOVEN 215 + +SCHUBERT 269 + +MENDELSSOHN 315 + + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS + + + PAGE + +GAZING AT ITS COVERS THROUGH THE LATTICE DOORS OF THE +CUPBOARD 4 + +BY THE LIGHT OF THE MOON HE BEGAN HIS TASK 9 + +CHRISTOPH SEIZED THE MANUSCRIPT BOOK AND THE COPY 10 + +DURING THE WINTER MONTHS THE SCHOLARS WERE SENT OUT TO +SING IN THE STREETS 12 + +THE KING EXCLAIMED REPEATEDLY: 'ONLY ONE BACH! ONLY +ONE BACH!' 30 + +HANDEL'S BIRTHPLACE, HALLE, SAXONY 38 + +BECKONED SILENTLY TO THE REST TO FOLLOW HIM 41 + +HE CALLED TO THE COACHMAN TO STOP 44 + +THE DUKE PRAISED HIS PERFORMANCE 46 + +A RESORT TO SWORDS 55 + +A GRAND PROCESSION OF DECORATED BARGES FROM WHITEHALL +TO LIMEHOUSE 63 + +THE STROKES OF HIS HAMMER ON THE ANVIL KEPT TIME TO +HIS SONG 66 + +'DID NOT YOU SAY YOU COULD SING AT SIGHT?' 'YES, SIR, +BUT NOT AT FIRST SIGHT!' 76 + +HE WAS IMITATING THE PLAYING OF A VIOLIN 94 + +ST. STEPHEN'S CATHEDRAL, VIENNA 101 + +HE MANAGED TO SAVE SUFFICIENT TO PURCHASE TWO VOLUMES 104 + +THE TANTALISING PIGTAIL 109 + +'WHOSE MUSIC IS THAT WHICH YOU WERE PLAYING JUST NOW?' 117 + +HAYDN ENJOYED HIS FIRST SIGHT OF THE WAVES 133 + +LISSON GROVE A CENTURY AGO 135 + +HAYDN'S EYES FILLED WITH TEARS 145 + +HE PAID NO HEED TO THE ENTRY OF A SERVANT 152 + +THEY REMAINED STANDING, ROOTED TO THE SPOT 160 + +PLAYED BEFORE THE COURT AT VERSAILLES 164 + +CHELSEA AT THAT TIME WAS A RIVERSIDE VILLAGE 167 + +THE CARRIAGE WHICH WAS TO CONVEY THE TRAVELLERS DREW +UP AT THE DOOR 188 + +'THERE IS THE DOOR!' 199 + +'NOW THEN, LUDWIG, TIME FOR PRACTICE!' 220 + +'PAY ATTENTION TO THIS YOUNG MAN, FOR HE WILL MAKE A +NOISE IN THE WORLD SOME DAY' 228 + +SEATED BEFORE AN OLD, WORN-OUT PIANO 230 + +HAYDN PRAISED THE COMPOSITION HIGHLY 233 + +TAKING HIS HAND, TURNED HIM ROUND TO THE AUDIENCE 255 + +THEY INDULGED IN JOKES AT THE EXPENSE OF THE +SPECTACLED BOY 273 + +HIS CLEVER PLAYING ATTRACTED THE ATTENTION OF THE +LEADER 275 + +MANY EVENINGS WERE PASSED IN MUSICAL ENJOYMENT 282 + +THEY FOUND SCHUBERT HARD AT WORK 291 + +SCHUBERT FLED FROM THE ROOM 302 + +'HERE IS A GENTLEMAN WHO KNOWS ALL ABOUT THE NEW OPERA' 325 + +THE TUTOR'S CARRIAGE MET THEM 330 + +'THE SUCCESS WAS BEYOND WHAT I COULD HAVE DREAMED' 348 + +'WOULD NOT THAT BE SPLENDID FOR AN ORATORIO!' 362 + + + PORTRAITS + +BEETHOVEN _Frontispiece_ + +BACH 5 + +HANDEL 39 + +HAYDN 91 + +MOZART 153 + +SCHUBERT 271 + +MENDELSSOHN 317 + + + + +BACH + + + + +STORY-LIVES OF GREAT MUSICIANS + + + + +BACH + + +'Christoph, I wish you would let me have that book of manuscript music +which you have in your cupboard--the one which contains pieces by +Pachelbel, and Frohberger, and Buxtehude, and ever so many others--you +know which I mean. I will take such care of it if you will only lend +it to me for a little while.' + +Christoph was about to leave the room, but he turned sharply to his +little brother as the latter put his request. + +'No, Sebastian, I will certainly not lend you the book, and I wonder +that you have the impertinence to ask me such a thing! The idea of +your thinking that you could study such masters as Buxtehude and +Frohberger--a child like you! Get on with what I have set you to +learn, and do not let me hear any more of such fancies!' + +With that Christoph shut the door behind him, and Sebastian was left +to ponder sadly upon his elder brother's harshness in refusing to +accede to his simple request. The disappointment was very keen, for +little Sebastian had been longing to get possession of that precious +volume. For several days past he had spent hours in his brother's +absence gazing at its covers through the lattice doors of the +cupboard, and feasting his eyes upon the names of the musicians which +were written on the back in bold letters in Christoph's hand. + + [Illustration: '_Gazing at its covers through the lattice doors + of the cupboard._'] + +What harm could there be in his _trying_ to play the works of those +masters? It seemed so unreasonable to the ten-year-old child, for he +was passionately fond of music, and exceedingly quick at learning; yet +Christoph persistently kept him to simple pieces such as he could +master without the slightest difficulty, and which, therefore, +afforded him no gratification whatever. He longed to be studying more +advanced works, and there were times when this longing seemed +insupportable--when the soul of this earnest child-musician rose in +revolt against the tyrannical treatment of his elder brother. +Christoph's lack of appreciation of Sebastian's capacity and gift for +music was, moreover, so marked as to crush the feelings of love and +respect which otherwise would have found a place in Sebastian's heart +for the brother whom the sad circumstances of his childhood had made +his guardian. + + [Illustration: BACH. + From photo RISCHGITZ.] + +Johann Sebastian Bach, as the young musician was named, was an orphan. +Ten years before the period at which our story opens--on March 21, +1685--he had first seen the light in the long, low-roofed cottage, +which is still standing in the little German town of Eisenach, +nestling at the foot of the wooded heights which form part of the +romantically beautiful district of the Thuringer Wald. It is a country +abounding in legendary lore, which, taking its birth from the recesses +of the interminable forest, and perpetuated in ballad, has for ages +found a home in the sequestered valleys lying locked between the +hills. On one of the latter, overlooking the town, stands the +Wartburg, in which Luther made his home, and where he translated the +Bible into the German tongue. + +Sebastian's father, Johann Ambrosius Bach, organist of Eisenach, was +the descendant of a long race of musicians of the name who had +followed music not merely as a means of livelihood, but with the +earnest desire of furthering its artistic aims. For close upon two +hundred years before Sebastian was born the family of Bach had thus +laboured to develop and improve their art in the only direction in +which it was practised in the Germany of those days--namely, as a +fitting accompaniment to the simple, but deeply devotional, services +of the Lutheran Church. So greatly had the influence of this ancient +and closely-united family made itself felt in regard to church music +that at Erfurt, where its members had practised the art for +generations, all musicians were known as 'the Bachs,' although no Bach +had actually resided in the town for many years. + +That Sebastian should have shown a fondness for music at a very early +age is not, therefore, to be wondered at; but, beyond learning the +violin from his father, he had not progressed far in his studies when, +in his tenth year, he found himself bereft of both his parents and +taken into the charge of his brother Christoph, who filled the post of +organist at the neighbouring town of Ohrdruff. Christoph, who was +fourteen years older than Sebastian, possessed nothing more than an +ordinary amount of talent for music, and in addition lacked the sense +to appreciate the gift which his little brother at once began to +display in response to his teaching. To give Sebastian lessons on the +clavier and send him to the Lyceum to learn Latin and singing and +other school subjects seemed to Christoph to comprise the full extent +of his responsibilities; but that Sebastian possessed genius which +called for sympathy and encouragement at his hands appears only to +have aroused in him a feeling of coldness and indifference, amounting +at times to stern repression. + +Beneath this shadow of ill-feeling Sebastian suffered in silence, but, +fortunately, the force of his genius was too strong to be crushed, and +the spirit which was lacking in his brother's lessons he supplied for +himself. The injustice of the denial with which Christoph had met his +request for the loan of the manuscript music-book had fired him with +the determination to possess himself of the treasure at all costs, and +even the drudgery of playing over and over again pieces which he +already knew by heart appeared to him in the new light of +stepping-stones to the attainment of his cherished desire. Yet for +some time it was difficult to see how the book was to be abstracted +without his brother's knowledge. + +One night, long after the other inmates of the house had retired, +Sebastian stood at the open casement of his chamber, buried in +thought. The moon was flooding the valley with her silvery light, +rendering the most distant objects clear and distinct, and throwing +into still deeper shadow the sombre hills which encompassed the town. +But the boy had no thoughts to bestow upon the music of the scene thus +spread before his eyes; his mind was absorbed by a great project which +he was resolved upon carrying out that night, and to which the +presence of the moon lent a promise of success. Perfect stillness +reigned in the house, and Sebastian, deeming that the opportune moment +had arrived for embarking upon his venture, closed the casement and +crept softly downstairs to the parlour. + +The moonlight shining into the room revealed the position of every +object, and a glance sufficed to show him that the treasure he sought +was in its accustomed place, but the cupboard, of course, was locked. +He squeezed his little hands through the lattice-bars, and after much +effort managed to reach the manuscript book. To draw it towards him +required even more dexterity, but at length that was accomplished; and +then came the crowning feat--to get it through the bars. During this +time Sebastian had been tormented by fears lest his brother should +have discovered his absence from his bedroom, and nothing but his firm +determination to accomplish his purpose prevented him from quitting +the room and returning to his bed. + +For a long time his efforts to pull the book through the bars were in +vain, but after trying each bar in turn he found one which was weaker +than the rest, and having brought the book to this spot, he succeeded +at last in forcing a passage for it by bending the bar, and the +coveted volume was freed from its prison! + +Breathless with exertion and excitement, the child hugged his treasure +to his breast and stole back to his chamber. On gaining this haven of +safety, he listened for some time to ascertain whether his movements +had aroused the household, but finding that everything remained as +silent as before, he drew a chair to the little table before the +window, and by the light of the moon, which still streamed into the +room, he feasted his eyes upon the pages before him. Then, taking his +pen and some manuscript music-paper with which he had provided +himself, he began his task of copying out the pieces contained in the +book. + +An hour or more slipped away in this absorbing occupation, and it was +not until the moon had shifted her position, so that her rays no +longer afforded the necessary light, that Sebastian ceased to ply his +pen. Then, having hidden the book away and removed all traces of his +work, the now wearied little musician sought his pillow and fell fast +asleep. + +This was but the beginning of endless nights of toil pursued whilst +the house lay hushed in slumber. For six months, whenever the moon +sent her friendly rays through his casement, did Sebastian prosecute +his task, until the night arrived when he found himself at the last +page. The fear of discovery had ceased to haunt him as time went on, +and now he could only reflect with joy at the accomplishment of his +long task, and creep into bed utterly unmindful of everything +else--even of the precaution of putting his work out of sight! + + [Illustration: '_By the light of the moon he began his task._'] + +Alas, for poor Sebastian! he was to pay dearly for this act of +forgetfulness. As he lay sleeping--his dreams filled with the +realization of the fruits of his untiring industry--the books lying +open on the table where he had left them, and the moonbeams falling +gently on the page whereon his fingers had traced those last passages +but a few minutes before, the door opened, and a figure stole softly +into the room. It was Christoph himself, who, fancying he heard sounds +proceeding from Sebastian's chamber, had come to seek the cause. His +glance fell upon the open books. With a stride he was at the table, +bending over them. The next moment he raised his head and darted an +angry glance at the child's sleeping figure. But Sebastian only +smiled, and murmured something in his sleep, and the elder brother +turned once more to examine the writing. As he scanned the pages which +witnessed Sebastian's heart-work throughout those long months his face +hardened. There was no pity in his breast for the child who had thus +displayed his devotion to the art which he himself must have loved +after his own fashion--no sympathy for one who had spent so many hours +snatched from sleep in acquiring that which he, Christoph, had had it +in his power to bestow as a free gift--only anger and jealousy at the +thought that he had been outwitted by his little brother. With his +mouth curved into a cruel smile, Christoph seized the manuscript book +and the copy, and, taking them from the room, hid them away in a new +place where Sebastian could not possibly find them. + + [Illustration: '_Christoph seized the manuscript book and the + copy._'] + +It was well for Sebastian that his love of music enabled him to +overcome the bitter disappointment occasioned by his brother's +cruelty, and so to continue the struggle for knowledge in the face of +such terrible odds. But there was one thing which served to comfort +him in his hour of trial, and of which Christoph was powerless to rob +him, and that was the _memory_ of the beautiful music he had copied +with such infinite pains. This in itself must have been a resource of +priceless value to him in helping him to bear with his brother's +oppression. + +A new life opened for Sebastian when, at the age of fifteen, he +quitted his brother's roof and, with a school-fellow from Ohrdruff, +entered the Michael Gymnasium, or Latin School, attached to the Church +of St. Michael at Lueneburg. The discovery that he possessed a +beautiful soprano voice gave him a place at once amongst those +scholars who were selected to sing the principal parts in the Church +services in return for a free education. Lueneburg possessed two +schools, attached respectively to the Churches of St. Michael and St. +John, and the rivalry between the two was so keen that when, as was +the custom during the winter months, the scholars were sent out to +sing in the streets in order to collect money for their support, the +respective routes to be traversed had to be carefully marked out so as +to prevent a collision. + +Bach had not been long at St. Michael's, however, ere his wonderful +voice, which had attracted much attention at the services of the +church, began to break; but, fortunately, his knowledge of the violin +and clavier enabled him to retain his place in the school and to enjoy +the educational advantages which it offered. He was working hard at +his musical studies, spending a portion of each day in the convent +library, where the works of the best composers were to be found. But +all his thoughts and aspirations were beginning to centre themselves +upon the instrument which, before all others, had the power to stir +his musical soul to its depths. His love for the organ soon developed +into a passion which overcame every obstacle offered to its +gratification. The extremes of hunger and bodily fatigue were alike +powerless to restrain his desire to study the capacities of the organ +as these were brought forth by the ablest hands. His poverty forbade +the hope of his receiving instruction on the instrument, though later +on he gained much valuable help from his friendship with the organist +of St. John's Church at Lueneburg. In those early days, however, Bach +was almost entirely self-dependent--a penniless scholar, fortunate in +finding his services rewarded by the plainest and meagrest of fare, +yet swayed and urged forwards by a fixed determination to conquer and +attain the knowledge upon which he had set his hopes. + + [Illustration: '_During the winter months the scholars were sent + out to sing in the streets._'] + +Hamburg, which in those days merited the description applied to it of +the 'Paradise of German music,' is situated at a distance of about +twenty-five English miles from Lueneburg; but when Bach was told that +the renowned Johann Adam Reinken, the 'father of German organists,' +played the organ at St. Katherine's Church in the city, he seized the +first opportunity that presented itself of tramping the whole way +thither in order to hear him. With Bach to listen was to learn; but to +enjoy this privilege he had to secrete himself in a corner of the +church where he could not be seen, for he had been warned that such +great players as Reinken resented the intrusion of strangers whilst +they were practising. + +The deep joy of listening to such a master must have seemed to +Sebastian a fitting reward for his long tramp, and we may picture him +on his homeward journey, weary and footsore, but with his mind stored +with the memories of what he has heard. This visit to Hamburg was the +precursor of many others, though, of course, such expeditions could +only be undertaken when, by means of street singing, or in some other +way, he had contrived to save a few shillings to pay for food and +lodging. But he often went short of food rather than deprive himself +of a chance of hearing his beloved Reinken. On one occasion he had +yielded to the temptation of lingering at Hamburg until his funds +were almost exhausted, and he was confronted by the prospect of a long +walk with no means of satisfying his hunger until he reached the end +of his journey. Nevertheless, he set forth with a light heart, for his +stock of knowledge had been greatly enriched by the prolonged visit, +and, after all, what were five-and-twenty miles to the young musician, +possessed of limbs replete with strength and a head full of glorious +dreams? + +He had not proceeded many miles, however, ere the keen wind made his +want of food painfully apparent, and the music within him became +drowned by the clamourings of Nature. At this juncture he found +himself opposite a small hostelry, from the open door of which a most +savoury odour was issuing--an odour so rich in the promise of all that +he needed that it brought him to a standstill. The kitchen window was +nigh, and he could not resist the temptation of peering into the room +to ascertain what was in preparation. At that moment he heard a window +above him thrown open, and a couple of herrings' heads were tossed +into the road. Probably some benevolent guest, attracted by the +youth's starving looks, had taken this means of bestowing upon him the +remains of his repast. The herring was a favourite article of food in +Germany, and poor Bach was only too glad to avail himself of this +feeble chance of satisfying his cravings. But what was his +astonishment, upon pulling the heads to pieces, to find that each +contained a Danish ducat! The acquisition of so much wealth fairly +took his breath away, and for a moment he almost forgot that he was +famishing. On realising his good fortune, he lost no time in entering +the inn and regaling himself at the expense of his unknown benefactor. +The money did more than this, however, for it enabled him to reckon +upon another visit to Hamburg in the near future. + +That distance formed no obstacle to Bach's ardent desire to obtain +knowledge is proved by the fact that he performed several journeys on +foot to Celle, which was distant some forty-five English miles to the +south of Lueneburg, in order that he might hear the band at the ducal +Court. The Duke's musicians were chiefly Frenchmen, and French +instrumental music formed the principal part of their work. There was +but little opportunity in Germany of hearing this important branch of +music, and Bach seized upon the first chance that presented itself. He +was now making rapid progress with his studies, and his friendship +with Boehm, the organist of St. John's Church at Lueneburg, was a great +incentive to him in his love for the organ. + +After remaining three years at the Lueneburg school, Bach obtained a +post as violinist in the private band of Prince Johann Ernst, brother +of the reigning Duke of Saxe-Weimar. This, however, was merely to fill +up the time until he could secure an appointment in the direction in +which his affections as well as his genius were guiding him. The +opportunity for which he sought was not long in coming. A visit to the +old Thuringian town of Arnstadt, in which three members of his family +had successively filled the post of organist in past years, took him +to the new church to inspect the organ which had just been erected by +the consistory. Arnstadt, in fact, was one of the centres in which the +influence of the Bach family had made itself felt, and whence several +of its members had gone forth to other parts of the country. The +savour of the former presence of the Bachs was still fresh in the +minds of the townspeople; the consistory of the new church, moreover, +were on the look out for a thoroughly capable organist, and Bach's +request to be allowed to try the organ was, therefore, willingly +granted. + +No sooner had they heard him play than they offered him the post, and, +furthermore, stated their willingness to augment the pay attached to +it by a contribution from the town funds. Bach, therefore, found +himself installed as organist with a salary of fifty florins, with, in +addition, thirty thalers for board and lodging--equivalent in all to +about eight pounds thirteen shillings of English money--a small enough +salary indeed! but one which in those days was considered to be a fair +emolument for the services of a young player. On August 14, 1703, +Bach, who was then eighteen years old, entered upon his duties, having +previously taken a 'solemn pledge of diligence and faithfulness, and +all that appertaineth to an honourable servant and organist before God +and the worshipful Corporation.' + +The requirements of the post left him plenty of leisure in which to +pursue his studies and improve his playing. Up to this point he had +done very little in the shape of actual composition, his aim having +been to perfect himself in a knowledge of the requirements of the +instrument on which he had fixed his heart's choice, to which end he +had spared no diligence in studying the works of the greatest masters. +Now, however, he set about teaching himself the art of composition, +for which purpose he took a number of concertos written for the violin +by Vivaldi, and set them for the pianoforte. By this means he learnt +to grasp the connection of musical ideas and the manner in which they +should be worked out, and as this exercise implied the rewriting of +many passages in order to adapt them for the piano, he gradually +attained facility in expressing his own musical thoughts on paper +without first playing them on an instrument. Thus, without assistance +from anybody, he worked on alone, very often till far into the night, +to perfect himself in this important branch of his art. + +From the outset, however, his playing at the new church excited +attention and admiration, and that it should, nevertheless, have +failed to entirely satisfy the authorities was due, not to any lack of +power, but simply to the extraordinary manner in which the services +were accompanied. The fact is that Bach had no sooner seated himself +at the organ than he straightway forgot that choir and congregation +were depending upon him, and began to indulge his fancy to such +lengths that the singing soon ceased altogether, and the people +remained mute with astonishment and admiration. Naturally, these +flights of genius were not exactly in accordance with the wishes of +the consistory, who, moreover, saw little prospect of their choir +becoming efficiently trained under the circumstances. Yet, +notwithstanding there were frequent disputes between Bach and the +elders of the church with regard to his vagaries, so marvellously were +the authorities influenced by the power and beauty of his playing that +they overlooked his faults for the sake of his genius. + +That Bach must have tried their patience sorely cannot be denied. On +one occasion, being specially desirous of visiting Luebeck, in order to +hear the celebrated organist Buxtehude perform on the organ at the +Marien-Kirche during Advent, he obtained a month's leave of absence +for the purpose. Fifty miles lay between Arnstadt and the town which +formed his destination, but Bach resolutely performed the entire +journey on foot, so eager was he to profit by the playing of this +master. Once at Luebeck, he became so wrapped up in the musical +attractions of the town that he completely forgot his promise to +return to his post until reminded by his empty purse of the fact that +he could no longer prolong his stay. By this time he had gratuitously +extended his leave from one month to three! Hence it is not surprising +that on his return to Arnstadt the consistory should have expressed +serious displeasure at his neglect. On the other hand, it affords a +striking proof of the esteem in which his playing was held that the +authorities should have allowed him to retain his post in spite of all +that had happened. + +It was not long before the services of the young musician were sought +by the Church authorities of several important towns, whither the fame +of his organ-playing had spread. He longed to find a wider scope +wherein to prosecute his aims for raising the standard of Church +music. Arnstadt had become too narrow for his desires, and, +consequently, when, in 1707, he was offered the post of organist of +St. Blasius', at Muehlhausen, near Eisenach, he accepted it at once. +The invitation was coupled with a request that he would name his own +salary--a compliment to his powers to which he modestly responded by +fixing the sum at that which he had lately received; but, in addition +to pay, his emolument comprised certain dues of corn, wood, and fish, +to be delivered free at his door. His post at Arnstadt was filled by +his cousin, Johann Ernst, to whom, as he was very poor, and had an +aged mother and a sick sister to support, Bach generously handed over +the last quarter's salary which was due to him on leaving. + +With this improvement in his worldly prospects Bach deemed that he +might prudently marry. He had been contemplating this step since the +time, some months before, when he had incurred the displeasure of the +Arnstadt authorities by introducing a 'stranger maiden' into the +choir--a proceeding altogether contrary to rule, but one which, like +the rest of his faults, was condoned for the sake of hearing him play. +The 'stranger maiden' was no other than his cousin, Maria Barbara, the +youngest daughter of Michael Bach, of Gehren, with whom he had fallen +in love, and to whom he was married on October 17, 1707. + +It was customary in those days for organists to maintain their +instruments in repair, and Bach's first duty on entering upon his new +post was to undertake some extensive alterations in the organ +committed to his charge. The completion of these repairs, however, was +left to his successor, for Bach did not retain his position at +Muehlhausen for more than a year. He was filled with a desire to raise +the standard of Church music, reverently desirous of clothing the old +services in a new dress--one which should elevate the thoughts of the +worshippers to a higher plane by giving to the words of Scripture a +fuller and more sympathetic interpretation. In this longing for +freedom from the old modes of Church music, by which, owing to the +rigid simplicity of the Lutheran services, the truths of religion were +trammelled and obscured, Bach hoped to have secured the support and +sympathy of his congregation; but he soon found that his efforts were +unappreciated. For us, who now see this longing for the first time +clearly expressed in his life, and who know what important fruits it +was destined to bear in the future, this stage in the career of +Sebastian Bach possesses a peculiar interest. In his letter to the +town council announcing his resignation he explains that he has +'always striven to make the improvement of Church music, to the honour +of God, his aim,' but that he has met with opposition such as he sees +no chance of being enabled to overcome in the future. Moreover, he +states that, 'poor as is his mode of living, he has not enough to +subsist on after paying his house-rent and other necessary expenses.' + +The shortness of his means, with a wife and the near prospect of a +family to provide for, no doubt had a good deal to do with Bach's +decision to resign his post at St. Blasius' at once. He had, in fact, +already received the offer of a more important engagement. An +invitation to perform before Duke Wilhelm Ernst of Weimar early in the +year 1708 had been seized upon in the hope that it might lead to an +appointment at the Court. The hope was not disappointed, for the Duke +was so delighted with Bach's playing that he immediately offered him +the post of Court and Chamber Organist. Bach had always been on the +best of terms with the elders of St. Blasius' Church, however, and the +separation was accompanied by marks of friendliness on both sides. +Thus we see Bach acting once more on his own initiative--choosing his +path deliberately as he saw the opportunity for furthering the great +objects he had in view. + +The wider scope for which he had been longing was now within his +grasp, and from the date of his appointment at Weimar he began to +compose those masterpieces for the organ which in after-years were to +help to make his name famous. Hitherto we have followed the fortunes +of Sebastian Bach as a zealous student, self-dependent, and almost +entirely self-instructed as regards his art, battling against poverty +with stolid indifference to the drawbacks and discomforts that fell to +his share, unmindful of fatigue, seeking neither praise nor reward, +but with his mind wholly set upon the accomplishment of his +life-purpose--the furtherance of his beloved art. The promise of his +childish days had been largely sown in sorrow and disappointment. He +had not been hailed as a prodigy of genius. No crowd of wondering +admirers had gathered to listen to his childish efforts, and to +prognosticate for him the favours of fame and fortune in the near +future. Not even his parents, loving him as they doubtless did, could +have done more than dared to entertain the hope that he would do +honour and credit to the musical name which he bore ere they sank into +their untimely graves, and left him to fight the battle of life alone. +No; the childhood and youth of Sebastian Bach were stages in the life +of a genius which were entirely destitute of the advantages of either +wealth or the patronage of the great, and as such they command our +interest and respect. + +Henceforth we have to picture Bach as settled in his Weimar home, no +longer as a student, but as a player and composer whose fame was +gradually spreading throughout the country. So rapid had his progress +been both on the organ and the pianoforte that he was even led to +overestimate his own powers, and one day remarked somewhat boastingly +to a friend that he could play any piece, however difficult, at sight +without a mistake. The friend, disbelieving his statement, invited him +to breakfast shortly afterwards, and placed several pieces on the +pianoforte, amongst them being one which, though apparently simple, +was in reality extremely difficult. He then left the room to prepare +breakfast, and Bach, seating himself at the instrument, began to play +over the pieces. Coming to the difficult work, he struck into it very +boldly, but after proceeding a little way he came to a stop, then +tried it again from the beginning, and once more halted at the same +place. His host then appeared bringing in the breakfast, and Bach, +turning to him, exclaimed, 'You are right. One cannot play everything +at sight--it is impossible!' + +In August, 1712, Zachau, the organist of the Liebfrauen-Kirche at +Halle, and Handel's old master, died, and Bach, whose knowledge and +practical skill in the matter of organ construction had now become +widely known, was asked to plan a new instrument for the church. He +accordingly made his plans, and then, induced by the thought of having +a fine organ under his control, he applied for the vacant post. The +elders of the church, having heard a sacred cantata which he composed +for the occasion performed under his direction in the following year, +were most willing to accede to his application, but Bach, fearing that +his independence would be threatened by the conditions attached to the +position, withdrew at the last moment. Nevertheless, so great was the +appreciation in which his abilities were held that when the new organ +was completed he was invited to Halle for the purpose of inspecting it +and testing its capabilities. + +In 1714 Duke Wilhelm Ernst raised him to the position of +Hof-Concertmeister--a step which afforded increased scope for the +exercise of his powers. Every autumn for several years he utilised his +leave of absence by journeying to the principal towns in order to give +performances on the organ and clavier, by means of which his +reputation was greatly enhanced. It was on one of these tours that he +found himself in Dresden at a time when expectation was rife +concerning the powers of a remarkable French player who had just +arrived in the town. Jean Marchand, as the Frenchman was named, had +achieved a great reputation in his own country, where, in addition to +filling the post of organist to the King at Versailles, he was +regarded as the most fashionable music-master of the day. His +conceited and overbearing manners, however, had led to his banishment +from the French Court, and he had undertaken a tour in Italy with +triumphant success before coming to the German capital. Bach found +everybody discussing the Frenchman's wonderful playing, and it was +whispered that he had been already offered an appointment in Dresden. +The friends of Bach insisted that he should engage Marchand forthwith +in a contest in defence of the musical honour of his nation, and as +Bach was by no means indisposed to pit himself against the conceited +Frenchman, he gave his consent to the challenge being dispatched. +Marchand, for his part, showed an equal readiness to meet Bach, +foreseeing an easy victory over his antagonist. The King promised to +grace the contest with his presence, and the time and place were duly +fixed. It was agreed that the contestants were to set each other +problems to be worked out on the piano, the victory to be adjudged by +the connoisseurs who were present. + +The day fixed for the trial arrived. A brilliant company assembled, +and at the appointed time Bach made his appearance; but his adversary +had not arrived. The audience awaited his coming for some time with +impatience, and at length the news was brought that Marchand had left +the city suddenly that morning! It transpired that on the previous day +Bach had been performing on the organ in one of the principal churches +of the town, and Marchand, attracted by the crowd, made his way into +the building and listened to Bach's wonderful playing. So greatly had +the music impressed him that, when he learnt who the player was, he +began to tremble for his success at the coming contest. As the time +approached his fears grew apace, and at length, without a word to +anybody concerning his intentions, he fled from the city. + +The year 1717, in which the above event took place, was marked by a +further advancement in Bach's fortunes, for on his return from +Dresden he was appointed Capellmeister to the young Prince Leopold of +Anhalt-Coethen. His new position left him abundant leisure in which to +follow the bent of his genius in regard to the composition of +instrumental music, and many of his finest works were written at this +time. His relations with the Prince were of the most cordial +character. The latter was an enthusiastic lover of music, and on his +frequent journeys to various towns in order to gratify his taste he +insisted on having Bach as his travelling companion. Thus, for several +years Bach continued to lead a life which in every respect brought him +much happiness, and added not a little to his fame. Then a great +sorrow befell him, for during one of these expeditions with the +Prince, when, owing to their movements, he was unable to receive news +from home, his wife died suddenly, and when he returned to Coethen it +was to find the family plunged into grief, and the mother already +buried. + +The close of the year 1721 saw Bach married to his second wife, Anna +Magdalena Wuelkens, a daughter of the Court trumpeter at Weissenfels. +Anna Magdalena was in every way suited for the wife of a musician, for +she had a deep love for music, in addition to possessing a beautiful +voice. Moreover, as time went on, her reverence for her husband's +genius, which she used every effort to promote and encourage, did not +fail to make itself felt in influencing the musical tastes of her +children. + +Life, meanwhile, at the Court had not proceeded so happily for Bach as +heretofore, and in the year of his marriage he made a journey to +Hamburg with the object of competing for the post of organist at the +Jacobi-Kirche. His playing on this occasion excited the greatest +admiration, though, as a matter of fact, this was not the first time +he had awakened the enthusiasm of Hamburg audiences by his +performances; but the organ on which he now played was an +exceptionally fine one, and responded so perfectly to his touch as to +assist in imparting to his improvisation the character of an inspired +performance. When the trial came to an end, every one present felt +certain of the result. Not one of the competitors had approached Bach +in feeling or execution. Yet, notwithstanding the popular verdict in +his favour, the prize was snatched from him and given to +another--younger, unknown, and even insignificant man, who, however, +was enabled to offer four thousand marks for the position, whilst Bach +could only present his genius. + +Nevertheless, Bach, with his characteristic indifference to fortune, +made no protest against this unfair treatment, but went quietly on +with his work at Coethen, waiting for a fresh opportunity to present +itself. He had now become personally known to the famous and aged +organist of Hamburg, Reinken. At one of his visits he improvised on a +theme composed by the master in the latter's presence, and when he had +finished, Reinken seized him by the hand, and as he shook it exclaimed +with emotion, 'I thought that this art was dead, but I see that it +still lives in you!' This was the last meeting between Bach and the +organist from whose playing he had derived so much profit, for shortly +afterwards Reinken died at the age of ninety-nine, holding his post up +to the last. + +His life at Coethen was largely devoted to composition. His only pupils +appear to have been his wife and his sons, in whose musical education +he evinced the deepest interest, and for whose benefit he wrote many +works, including several books of studies and his famous 'Art of +Fugue.'[1] Another of his great works, the 'Wohltemperirte Klavier' +(Well-tempered Clavichord), better known in England under the title of +'The Forty-eight Preludes and Fugues,' was begun at this time. It is, +perhaps, the most popular of all Bach's works, and the idea of writing +it is said to have occurred to him whilst staying at a place where no +musical instrument of any kind was available. That he should have sat +down to write the first part of this monumental work (the second part +was not completed until twenty years later) in a place where from +sheer force of circumstances his fingers would otherwise have been +condemned to idleness is not surprising when we consider the mental +activity by which Bach's character was distinguished. He could not, in +fact, be idle. When not playing, or composing, or teaching, he would +often be found hard at work engraving his compositions on copper, or +engaged in manufacturing some kind of musical instrument--at least two +instruments are known to have been of his own inventing. The one idea +which seems to have pervaded his whole life from beginning to end was +to be of the greatest use to the greatest number of his +fellow-creatures, and it was this noble purpose which was urging him +at this time to discover a wider sphere of work. The Coethen post, +while it gave him abundant leisure for composition, did not satisfy +his longing to be of greater use in the furtherance of his art--a +longing which can only be appreciated when we study the works which at +this period were occupying his mind. Moreover, the Prince, who had +recently married, no longer showed the same devotion to music as +heretofore--a change of feeling that necessarily produced a +corresponding slackening of the ties of friendship and interest which +had formerly existed between the Prince and his Capellmeister. The +opportunity which Bach sought came at length when, in 1723, he was +appointed cantor of the Thomas-Schule at Leipzig, and director of the +music in the Churches of St. Thomas and St. Nicholas in the town. + +With this appointment Bach entered upon the final stage of his career, +for he retained the Leipzig post until his death. The story of his +connection with the Thomas-Schule is one that redounds to his honour, +for, in spite of considerable opposition at the hands of the +authorities, who failed to appreciate his genius and hampered his +activity by petty restrictions and accusations; in spite, also, of the +poverty of the material with which he was called upon to deal, he +laboured unceasingly to raise the standard of efficiency in the +scholars whose training was committed to his charge, and from whose +ranks the choirs in the two churches under his control had to be +furnished. Apart from his duties, however, those twenty-seven years of +Leipzig work and intercourse are marked out for us as comprising the +period during which he wrote and dedicated to the service of the +Church those masterpieces of undying beauty--the Passions according to +St. Matthew[2] and St. John. In these works, and in the 'High Mass in +B Minor,' which also belongs to this time, but more especially in the +first-named work, we seem to witness the crowning-point of those +generations of striving for the advancement of the art which have +indissolubly linked the name of Bach with the history of music. Bach +himself stood on the top step of the ladder: with him the vital +forces of the race exhausted themselves; and further power of +development stopped short.' + +The life at Leipzig was distinguished by the simplicity which had +always been Bach's chief characteristic. That he was imbued by deeply +religious feelings is evidenced by the works to which we have just +referred; his genius, in fact, found its highest and noblest +expression in the interpretation of the spirit of the sacred writings. +Next to his art--if, indeed, they can be considered apart--came his +devotion to his family, in the training and welfare of whom he took an +absorbing interest. Outside these twin centres of attraction he hardly +ever ventured, and though his fame brought him notice, and to some +extent honour as well, his desire for retirement became stronger as +the years went on. + +His modest, retiring disposition is well illustrated by an incident +which marked the latter period of his busy life. His third son, Carl +Philip Emanuel, had entered the service of Frederick the Great, and +was acting as cembalist in the royal orchestra. His Majesty, who was +exceedingly fond of music, and a considerable player on the flute, had +repeatedly expressed a wish to see Bach, and from time to time sent +messages to this effect to the old composer through the latter's son. +Bach, however, intent upon his work, for a long time ignored these +intimations of royal favour, until at length, in 1747, Carl brought to +him an imperative demand from his royal master which Bach saw that he +could not disobey without incurring the King's displeasure. +Accordingly, he set out for Potsdam with his son Friedemann. The King +was about to begin his evening music when a servant brought to him a +list of the strangers who had arrived at the castle that day. +Frederick glanced at the paper, and then turned to his musicians with +a smile. 'Gentlemen,' said he, 'old Bach has come!' and down went his +flute. Bach was immediately sent for--he had not time even to change +his travelling-dress--and with many excuses he presented himself to +the King. His Majesty received him with marked kindness and respect, +and when the courtiers smiled at the old musician's embarrassment and +his somewhat flowery speeches, Frederick frowned his disapproval. He +then conducted Bach through the palace, showing him the various points +of interest, and insisted on his trying his Silbermann pianofortes, of +which he had quite a collection. Bach extemporised on each of the +instruments, and then Frederick gave him a theme which he reproduced +as a fantasia, to the astonishment of all present. The King next +requested him to play a six-part fugue, and Bach extemporised one on a +theme selected by himself. The King, who stood behind the composer's +chair, clapped his hands with delight, and exclaimed repeatedly, 'Only +one Bach! Only one Bach!' It was a visit replete with honours for the +old master, and when he returned home he expressed his gratitude by +writing down and elaborating the piece which he had composed on the +King's theme, dedicating it to His Majesty under the title of +'Musikalisches Opfer' (Musical Offering), and sending it to Potsdam +with a letter begging its acceptance. + +Late in life, and just after he had completed his great work, 'The Art +of Fugue,' Bach became totally blind--the result, no doubt, of the +heavy strain to which he had subjected his sight when, in order to +educate himself, he had copied out entire many of the works of older +masters. Nor can we overlook the fact that, when a child, his sight +must have been injured by the long, self-imposed task of copying music +by moonlight. He suffered a great deal in consequence of the drugs +which were administered in the hope of restoring his eye-sight, but, +notwithstanding, he continued to work up to the last. On the morning +of the day on which he died--July 28, 1750--he startled those about +him by suddenly regaining his sight, 'but it was the last flickering +of the expiring flame. He was allowed to see the light of this world +once more before leaving it for ever.' A few hours later he became +unconscious, and passed away in his sleep. + + [Illustration: '_The King exclaimed repeatedly, "Only one Bach! + Only one Bach!"_'] + +Considered apart from his works, the life of Sebastian Bach stands out +as a noble example of untiring industry and perseverance; but we miss +the brilliancy and fire which in the case of many other great +musicians have served to render their lives so outwardly striking and +marvellous. The genius of Bach was a mighty power working unseen, +buried beneath a simple exterior. Unlike Handel, that other great +master of his time with whom he has been so often compared, Bach lived +a life of comparative retirement, never travelling beyond the confines +of his own country, making no bid for popularity, and to the last +remaining unaffected by praise or censure. All his life long he was +seeking knowledge and truth, never contenting himself with a belief in +his own unaided powers or judgment, but always showing the keenest +interest in the progress of his art as evinced by the works of other +musicians of his day. One little instance will serve, perhaps, to +bring out clearly this marked difference between these two great men: +Bach was truly desirous of making Handel's acquaintance, and tried on +several occasions to gratify this wish. On the last occasion he +travelled to Halle on learning that Handel was revisiting his +birthplace from the scene of his triumphs in London, only to find on +his arrival that his contemporary had departed for England earlier in +the day. Handel, on the other hand, is not known to have expressed the +least desire to meet the man whose fame rested upon so solid a +foundation of excellence. The one was self-centred, the other wholly +centred upon art for art's sake--yet both were great. + +It is convenient to speak of Bach's life as having been divided into +three stages or periods, each marked off from the rest by the nature +of the works to which it gave birth. Thus, the Weimar period is that +to which is assigned the major portion of his organ music. The Coethen +period, on the other hand, produced few compositions for the organ, +but was mainly devoted to instrumental chamber music; whilst to the +Leipzig period belongs the production of nearly all his finest Church +compositions. + +Bach was laid to rest in the churchyard of St. John's Church at +Leipzig, but neither stone nor cross exists to mark the spot. Only the +register of deaths preserved in the town library remains to tell us +that 'A man, aged sixty-seven, M. Johann Sebastian Bach, Musical +Director and Singing Master of the St. Thomas School, was carried to +his grave in the hearse, July 30, 1750.' + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] The word 'fugue' is derived from the Latin _fugare_, 'to put to +flight,' and aptly expresses the manner in which the various parts of a +fugue, as they are successively introduced, seem to 'chase the subject, +or motive, throughout the piece.' + +[2] For an account of the revival of this great work, exactly one +hundred years after its first production, see the story of +Mendelssohn. + + + + +BACH'S PRINCIPAL COMPOSITIONS + +Passion Music (St. John). 1724. +Passion Music (St. Matthew), for double choir. 1729. +Passion Music (St. Luke). 1734. +Mass in B minor, 1732-1738. +4 Short Masses in F, A, G minor, and G. + [These consist of settings of the Kyrie and Gloria only, being + the parts sung in the Lutheran service.] +4 Sanctuses in C, D, D minor, and G. +Magnificat in D. 1723. +Funeral Ode. 1727. +Christmas Oratorio, in six sections, for performance on successive + days. 1734. +Easter Oratorio. 1736. +191 Church Cantatas. +3 Wedding Cantatas. +6 Motets for five or eight voices. +22 Secular Cantatas. +371 Chorales for four voices, many of them taken from the + works named above. + [Of these compositions the Matthew Passion, the John Passion, + the Christmas Oratorio, the Magnificat, the Motets, and 25 of + the Church Cantatas have been printed with English words.] +The Well-Tempered Clavier (48 Preludes and Fugues). } + 1722-1744. } +Klavier-Uebung, or Clavier Practice, in four parts. } + 1731-1742. } +Musicalisches Opfer (Musical Offering). 1747. } For clavier +The Art of Fugue. 1749. } alone. +Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue. } +6 Partitas. } +6 English Suites. } +6 French Suites. } +3 Sonatas for clavier and flute. +6 Sonatas and 1 Suite for clavier and violin. +3 Sonatas for clavier and viol da gamba. +7 Concertos for clavier and orchestra. +1 Concerto for clavier, violin, and flute. +6 Concertos ('Brandenburg Concertos') for several instruments. +2 Concertos for violin and orchestra. +1 Concerto for 2 violins. +3 Concertos for 2 claviers. +2 Concertos for 3 claviers. +3 Sonatas and 3 Partitas for violin alone. +6 Suites for violoncello. +3 Sonatas for flute. +4 Overtures. } +1 Symphony. } For orchestra. +6 Sonatas. } +18 Preludes and Fugues. } +3 Toccatas. } For organ. +113 Preludes. } +24 Chorales. } + + + + +HANDEL + + + + +HANDEL + + +In a garret choked with lumber of various kinds, to which the dust of +years had imparted the greyish hue of neglect and decay, a little +fair-haired boy was seated before a spinet, fingering its yellow keys +with a tenderness that betokened his fondness for the instrument. The +level rays of the setting sun streaming through the dimmed casement +lighted up the child's head with its clustering curls, as he bent over +the keyboard. The little spinet was almost dumb, and the voice which +had cheered so many lonely hours spent in its companionship was hardly +more than a whisper. Yet even so the boy loved to listen to it, for +the spinet could speak to him as no living voice could speak; its +sweet, faint sounds stirred the heart within him as nothing else in +the whole of his childish world had the power to move it, awakening +and creating fresh sounds that grew ever stronger as the hours flew by +unheeded. To him the greatest joy of existence was to steal away to +his garret next the sky and whisper his secrets to the friendly +spinet. + + [Illustration: _Handel's birthplace, Halle, Saxony._] + +George Frederick Handel, as the boy was named, was the son of a +surgeon of Halle, Lower Saxony, in which town the child was born on +February 23, 1685. Even before he could speak little George had shown +a remarkable fondness for music, and the only toys he cared for were +such as were capable of producing musical sounds. With this love for +music, however, the father showed no sympathy whatever; he regarded +the art with contempt, as something beneath the serious notice of one +who aspired to be a gentleman, and that his child should have +expressed an earnest desire to be taught to play only served to make +him angry. He had decided that George was to be a lawyer, and in order +that nothing should interfere with the carrying out of this intention +he refused to allow the boy to attend school, lest his fondness for +music should induce some one to teach him his notes. Poor George was +therefore compelled to stifle his longing whilst in his father's +presence, and content himself with 'making music' in the seclusion of +his own chamber. It may seem strange that Handel's mother should not +have interposed in order that her boy should be taught music, but +there is no doubt that the elderly surgeon ruled his household with a +firm hand, which not even his wife's intercession would have made him +relax. Moreover, Dorothea Handel was by nature far too gentle and +submissive to seek to turn her husband from his decision. 'Meister +Goerge,' as he was styled, had been twice married. Dorothea, his second +wife, was much younger than her husband, and possessed a gentle +disposition that served to win her a place in the hearts of all who +knew her, and that little George Frederick had his mother's sympathy +in his love for music we cannot doubt. + + [Illustration: HANDEL. + From photo RISCHGITZ.] + +Handel was about five years of age when the wistful glances which he +bestowed upon other children who were more fortunate than he in being +permitted to learn music aroused the active sympathy of a kind friend, +who procured for him a dumb spinet--a small harpsichord having its +sound deadened by strips of cloth tied round the strings. The +instrument was secretly conveyed to a lumber-room in the surgeon's +house, where a corner had been cleared for its reception, and thither +would Handel delightedly repair at such times as he could do so +without attracting notice. Hour after hour would pass whilst thus +enrapt, until the shades of evening fell, or the moonbeams creeping +across the instrument aroused him from his reverie. Often when the +house was hushed in slumber the child would leave his bed, and steal +away to the garret in order to commune with his beloved art. Day after +day he laboured thus, mastering his difficulties one by one, his love +and his genius preventing him from feeling the hardest work a +drudgery. + +For some time this secret practising continued without arousing +suspicion on the part of the other inmates of the house. One night, +however, when the child had resorted to his favourite spot, he was +suddenly missed by those below, and, as it was known that he had been +sent to bed, some fears were felt as to what could have become of him. +The servants were summoned, but could give no account of him; the +father was fetched from his study, whither he had retired, and a +search began. The alarm increased when it was ascertained that the +child was in none of the living-rooms of the house, and it was decided +that the garrets and lofts must be searched. Calling for a lantern, +the surgeon ascended the stairs leading to the lumber-room; it was +possible that the boy might have found his way thither on some +childish expedition, and there fallen asleep. Great was the father's +surprise, on reaching the top-most landing, to hear faint musical +sounds proceeding from behind the closed door. Noiselessly retracing +his steps, he summoned the rest of the household, and then, ascending +the stairs in a body, they paused outside to listen. Sure enough the +old garret was full of melodic sounds! Now near, now far off, they +seemed to the listeners to be wafted from another world; there was +something uncanny about it, and the maids gazed into each other's +faces with a scared expression, as the master softly lifted the latch, +and, having peeped into the room, beckoned silently to the rest to +follow him. + +It might have been one of the angel choir itself whom these good +people of the under-world had stumbled upon unawares! 'Meister Goerge,' +lifting his lantern above his head, peered forward into the darkness, +whilst the women clasped their hands in astonishment at the vision +presented to their gaze. For there, seated before the spinet, was the +white-robed figure of the child, his face half turned towards them, +and his eyes, as they caught the light of the lantern, revealing the +dreamy, rapt expression of one who is lost to every earthly +surrounding. + + [Illustration: '_Beckoned silently to the rest to follow him._'] + +This discovery does not seem to have produced any outburst of anger +on the part of the father. Possibly he was touched by the child's +devotion, or by his entreaties, and felt unwilling to deprive him of +what, after all, he could only regard in the light of an amusement. At +any rate, little Handel appears to have continued his practising +without interruption. The progress which he made with his studies, +however, made him long for an opportunity of hearing others play, and, +very naturally, of being allowed to express his musical thoughts upon +an instrument capable of responding with a fuller sound, though the +fulfilment of this latter wish was more than he dared hope for whilst +his father remained obdurate. One day, when Handel was seven years +old, his father announced his intention of paying a visit to the +castle of the Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels to see his son--a step-brother +of George Frederick--who acted as valet de chambre to the Duke. Handel +was most anxious to be allowed to accompany his father, because he had +heard that the Duke kept a great company of musicians to perform in +his chapel. But the father refused his consent, and the boy turned +away with a look of fixed determination in his eyes, which it was +well, perhaps, that the elderly surgeon did not perceive. 'I will go,' +muttered the boy to himself, as he sought the seclusion of his garret; +'I will go, even if I have to run every inch of the way!' + +Handel did not know then that no fewer than forty miles lay between +his home and the ducal castle, but having formed his bold resolution +he awaited the moment when his father set forth on his journey, and +then, running behind the closed carriage, he did his best to keep pace +with it. The roads were long and muddy, and although he panted on +bravely for a long distance, the child's strength began at last to +fail, and, fearing that he would be left behind, he called to the +coachman to stop. At the sound of the boy's voice his father thrust +his head out of the window, and was about to give vent to his anger at +George's disobedience; but a glance at the poor little bedraggled +figure in the road, with its pleading face, melted the surgeon's +heart. They were at too great a distance from home to turn back, and +so Handel was lifted into the carriage and carried to Weissenfels, +where he arrived tired and footsore, but supremely happy at having won +his point. + +Handel had certainly not formed too bright a picture of the musical +delights of the Duke's home. The musicians were most friendly towards +him, and, as he was by no means shy where his beloved art was +concerned, they soon became good friends. His delight was great when +he was told that he might try the beautiful organ in the chapel. The +organist stood beside him and arranged the stops, whilst the child, +with a feeling of coming joy that was almost akin to fear, placed his +fingers upon the keys. The next moment his hesitation had vanished, +and the sounds were coming in response--one minute low and deep, then +mysteriously calling to him from distant corners of the dim galleries, +like sweet angel voices which he had the power to summon by the +pressure of his fingers. In his lonely garret, fingering his spinet, +he had longed for such an opportunity as this, to be enabled to make +the great organ-pipes sing to him in whispers, or to thunder back to +him in grand, deep chords that would set the whole air vibrating with +music. And now the opportunity he craved for had come, and he could +speak his musical thoughts into this noble instrument, which had the +power to draw from the depths of his soul all that that soul +contained. Ah, Handel was glad now that he had persevered and worked +so hard at his music. He was glad, too, that he had undertaken that +long, toilsome run behind his father's carriage, for it had brought to +him the greatest joy of his life. + + [Illustration: '_He called to the coachman to stop._'] + +On several occasions after this the organist came to the chapel on +purpose to listen to Handel as the latter played, and he was so struck +by the boy's genius that he determined to surprise the Duke by letting +Handel play His Highness out of chapel. Accordingly, on the following +Sunday, when the service was concluded, the organist lifted Handel on +to the organ-stool, and desired him to play. If the young player had +needed courage and self-confidence, it must have been at this moment +when bidden to perform before the Duke and all his people. But he +needed neither, for he instantly forgot all else but the music which +he was burning to express, and without a moment's hesitation complied +with the organist's request. + +The Duke and his friends had risen to their feet as Handel began to +play, but the former, who was a good musician himself, instantly +detected a difference in the playing, and, glancing towards the +organ-loft, he was astonished to behold the figure of a child bending +over the keys. But as he listened his astonishment became greater, for +it was no longer the child's figure that arrested his attention, but +the melody which was pouring forth from the instrument. Instead of +walking out of the chapel, the Duke remained standing where he had +risen, with his gaze riveted upon the child player, and of course the +members of the household likewise kept their places. At length, when +Handel ceased to play, the Duke turned to those about him with the +inquiry: 'Who is that child? Does anybody know his name?' As no one +present seemed to know, the organist was sent for to explain matters. +After a few words from this official the Duke commanded that Handel +should be brought before him. When the boy appeared he patted him on +the head, and praised his performance, telling him that he was sure +that he would make a good musician. At this point, however, the +organist interposed with the remark that he understood that the boy's +father had refused to let him follow up his musical studies. 'What!' +cried the Duke in astonishment, 'is it possible that he can +contemplate anything so foolish and unjust as to stifle the genius of +his own son! I cannot believe it. Who is the father? Where does he +live?' On being told that the surgeon was staying in the palace, the +Duke sent for him, and having told him how much he admired his son's +performance, he pointed out to him that he would be doing a great +wrong to the child if he persisted in placing any obstacle in the way +of his advancement. 'I need hardly say,' concluded the kindly Duke, +'that such action on your part would, in my opinion, be quite unworthy +of a member of your own honourable profession.' The father listened +with respect to what the Duke had to say, and then (though with +obvious reluctance) consented to allow the boy to pursue his studies. +'Come,' said the Duke, as he saw that his point was won, 'that is +good, and, believe me, you will never regret it.' He finally turned to +little Handel, and, patting him once more on the head, bade him work +hard at his music, and then took his leave. The child would have +thanked him, but his heart was too full for words, and tears of +gratitude started to his eyes as the kindly nobleman turned away. At +last the wish of his heart would be fulfilled. Happy was the journey +that had so happy an ending for the young musician. + + [Illustration: '_The Duke praised his performance._'] + +As it was now settled that Handel should devote himself to music, it +became necessary to place him with a good teacher. Friederich Zachau, +an excellent musician, and the organist of the cathedral at Halle, was +chosen to instruct the boy in composition as well as to give him +lessons on the organ, harpsichord, violin, and hautboy. Zachau was +extremely pleased with his pupil, and, perceiving his extraordinary +aptitude and genius, he did his best to bring him on. The organist +possessed a large collection of music by composers of different +countries, and he showed Handel how one nation differed from another +in its style of musical expression, or, to put it another way, how +the people of a particular country felt with regard to the art. Zachau +also taught him to compare the work of various composers, so that he +might recognise the various styles, as well as the faults and +excellencies of each. All this time, too, Handel was set work in +composition. Before long he was actually composing the regular weekly +services for the church, in addition to playing the organ whenever +Zachau desired to absent himself--yet at this time Handel could not +have been more than eight years old. + +It was at the end of three years' hard work that Zachau took his pupil +by the hand, and said: 'You must now find another teacher, for I can +teach you no more.' Well and faithfully indeed had Zachau discharged +his duty toward the pupil for whom, to use his own words, he felt he +could never do enough, and grateful must Handel have been for all his +care and attention. The parting was sad for both master and pupil, but +with both the art which they loved stood before all else, and so +Handel was sent to Berlin to pursue his studies. + +It is hardly to be wondered at that the people of Berlin should have +regarded as a prodigy a child of eleven who was capable of composing +music for Church services, as well as of playing the organ and +harpsichord in a masterly fashion. There were two well-known musicians +living in Berlin at the time, named Ariosti and Buononcini, to whom +Handel was of course introduced. The former received the boy very +kindly and gave him every encouragement, but Buononcini took a dislike +to him from the first, and seems to have done his best to injure the +little player's reputation. Under the pretence of testing Handel's +powers he composed a most difficult piece for the harpsichord, and, +setting it before the child, requested him to play it at sight. The +piece bristled with complications, and Buononcini confidently +anticipated that Handel would break down over its performance. To his +chagrin, however, the boy played it through with perfect ease and +correctness, and from that moment Buononcini regarded him as a serious +rival. Indeed, Handel's skill in improvising both on the organ and +pianoforte created astonishment in all who heard him, and despite +Buononcini's hostility he made many friends. The Elector himself was +so delighted with his playing that he offered him a post at Court, and +even expressed his willingness to send him to Italy to pursue his +studies. Handel's father, however, refused his consent to both +proposals; no doubt he thought that if the boy developed according to +the promise which he showed it would be necessary to keep him free +from Court engagements, since it had happened in the case of others +that great difficulty had been experienced in breaking away from such +connections. The royal patrons of music were most anxious to obtain +the services of the best musicians, and naturally were very loath to +part with them when once secured. It was therefore determined that +Handel should return to Halle, and be placed once more under the care +of his old master. As may be imagined, Zachau was delighted to receive +his pupil back again, and, with no less joy on his part, Handel set to +work with increased energy to master the science of composition. + +Whilst Handel was delighting the people of Berlin with his playing, a +little boy, who was destined to become one of the greatest of +musicians, was injuring his sight by copying out by moonlight the +manuscript music which he had taken from his elder brother's cupboard, +and helping to support himself by singing in the street, and at +weddings and funerals, snatching every moment that could be spared +from such work for adding to his knowledge of composition and +playing. That little boy was Johann Sebastian Bach. + +About this time Handel formed a friendship with a young student named +Telemann, who was studying law at Leipzig. Curiously enough, +Telemann's history up to this point bore a close resemblance to that +of Handel. From a child he had been passionately devoted to music, but +it was his parents' wish that he should study law, and now, in +obedience to his mother's desire, he had come to Leipzig University. +The love of music, however, was strong within him, and the meeting +with Handel seems to have fired his passion anew. Yet he resolutely +set his face against the temptation to stray from the path laid down +for him, and to strengthen his resistance he put all his manuscript +compositions in the fire--all save one, which lay forgotten in an old +desk. It happened that a friend lighted upon this solitary manuscript +by accident, and recognising its beauty showed it to the Church +authorities of Leipzig. They in turn were so delighted with it that +they immediately offered the composer the post of organist at the +Neukirche, at the same time sending him a sum of money for the +manuscript, and requesting him to compose regularly for the Church. At +this juncture Telemann abandoned the struggle against his love for the +art, and to his mother, who was supplying him with the means of +living, he wrote, saying that he could no longer hold out against what +he felt to be his true sphere of work, and mentioning that he had +already begun to receive remuneration for the compositions. At the +same time he returned the money which she had sent towards his +education, and begged her not to think too hardly of him. The fact +that his talent for music could produce money seems to have melted the +mother's heart, for she instantly wrote to her son, and not only +returned the money he had sent, but gave him her blessing into the +bargain. + +From this point Handel and Telemann became fast friends, and worked +together at their musical studies, and it is interesting to record +that the latter afterwards became one of the most celebrated German +composers of his day. So numerous were his compositions, in fact, that +it is told that he could not reckon them, and perhaps no other +composer ever possessed such a facility in composition, especially in +Church music. When reminded of his extraordinary talent, however, he +used to say laughingly that a good composer ought to be able to set a +placard to music. + +The death of Handel's father, which took place at this period, left +his mother with very small means, and Handel at once determined that +he must work for his own living, so as not to deprive his mother of +any portion of her limited income, to which, indeed, he hoped to make +some addition ere long. But for the present, it was necessary that his +education should be completed in accordance with his father's +injunction, and so Handel continued to attend the University classes +in classics. From this time he acted as deputy organist at the +Cathedral and Castle of Halle, and a few years later, when the post +fell vacant, he was duly appointed organist, with a salary of L7 10s. +a year and free lodging. The duties were many, and included attendance +on Sundays, festivals, and extra occasions, the care of the organ, and +obedience to the priests and elders of the church. The organ was of +the old-fashioned kind, in which the bellows were worked by the feet +of the blower, who for this reason was called a 'bellows-treader' +(_Baelgentreter_). Handel was now seventeen, and longing for greater +things; but he could not expect to earn much in so small a town as +Halle, and so, in January, 1703, he said good-bye to his mother and +his old friend Zachau, and set out for Hamburg to seek his fortune. + +His first engagement at Hamburg was a very small one. The Opera House +orchestra needed a _ripieno_ (supplementary violin), and Handel +accepted the post. What reason he had for letting it be understood +that he possessed only a slight skill in playing is not shown, for to +play _ripieno_ meant that he was expected simply to help out the +orchestra when additional harmonies were required, and to give support +to the solo parts. As may be imagined, this must have seemed very easy +work to Handel, nor was it long before he found an opportunity of +showing what he was capable of doing. At that time it was the custom +for the conductor to preside at the harpsichord, where, with the score +of the piece before him, he kept a check upon the players, and, where +necessary, beat the time. One day the conductor was absent through +some accidental cause, and no arrangement had been made to fill his +place. Handel thereupon without a word stepped up and took his seat at +the instrument, and conducted so ably as to excite the astonishment of +the other performers. Having thus revealed his powers, he was +thereafter permanently established in the post. + +Handel had not been long in Hamburg before he made the acquaintance of +a most remarkable man named Mattheson. In addition to being an +exceedingly clever musician and composer, Mattheson was a good +linguist and a writer on a variety of musical subjects. He had formed +a resolve to write a book for every year of his life, and he +accomplished more than this, for he lived to be eighty-three years of +age, and at the time of his death he had published no fewer than +eighty-eight volumes. Despite the vanity which formed so large a part +of his character, Handel could not fail to be attracted by so +accomplished a man, and their acquaintance soon ripened into a +friendship which lasted for many years. Shortly after they became +known to each other the post of organist in the church of Luebeck fell +vacant, and Handel and his friend determined to compete for it. +Accordingly, they set out together in the coach, with the evident +intention of enjoying themselves. They had a poulterer as +fellow-traveller, who seems to have been quite of the same opinion, +and as they journeyed to Luebeck they told stories, composed 'double +fugues,' (which it is to be hoped the poulterer appreciated), and +altogether had a very merry time. On reaching their destination they +paid a round of visits to the organs and harpsichords in the town, +trying them all in succession, and it was then arranged between them +that Handel should compete only on the organ and Mattheson on the +harpsichord. Matters, however, were not destined to be carried to the +point of actual trial, for they suddenly discovered that the +successful competitor would be required to wed the daughter of the +retiring organist, and as neither musician contemplated taking so +serious a step, they promptly retreated to Hamburg without even +seeking an audience of the would-be bride! + +The self-will and determination which marked the character of Handel +as a child clung to him through life, and not even the closest ties of +friendship prevented his obstinate temper from asserting itself +whenever occasion arose. Handel's temper, opposed to Mattheson's +vanity, gave rise to a quarrel between the two friends which might +have been attended by very serious consequences. Mattheson had written +an opera called 'Cleopatra,' in which he himself took the part of +Antony, and it had been his custom after the death of this character +to take his place at the harpsichord and conduct the rest of the +opera. This had been the arrangement with the former conductor, and +Mattheson did not doubt that it would be adhered to when Handel +presided at the pianoforte. But Mattheson had clearly reckoned without +his host, for when the actor-composer, having departed this life on +the stage, suddenly reappeared through the orchestra door and walked +up to Handel's side with the request that the latter would yield his +place to him, he was met by a flat refusal on the part of the +conductor in possession. Possibly Handel may have been struck by the +absurdity of a personage whose decease had only a few moments before +been witnessed by the audience desiring to reassume his mortal dress +in the orchestra. Mattheson's vanity, on the other hand, was no doubt +deeply injured by his being made to look foolish, and he left the +theatre in a rage. + +At the conclusion of the piece Handel found his friend awaiting him at +the entrance. An altercation took place, and it is said that Mattheson +went so far as to box Handel's ears. A public insult such as this +could only be wiped out by a resort to swords, and the belligerents at +once adjourned to the market-place, where, surrounded by a ring of +curious onlookers, they drew their weapons. After several angry +thrusts on either side, the point of Mattheson's sword actually +touched his adversary's breast, but, fortunately, was turned aside by +a large metal button which Handel wore on his coat. The consciousness +of how narrowly he had missed injuring, if not actually killing, his +friend brought Mattheson suddenly to his senses, and, the bystanders +at this juncture interposing between them, the duellists shook hands, +and thenceforth, it is said, became better friends than ever. + + [Illustration: '_A resort to swords._'] + +The life at Hamburg was a very busy one--full of teaching, study, and +composition. With the growth of his fame the number of his pupils +increased, and Handel was enabled not only to be independent of his +mother's help, but even to send her money from time to time. He now +began to practise a habit which remained with him always--that of +saving money whenever he could. Unlike most students of his age, he +was impressed by the fact that, in order to produce with success works +which were essentially works of art, one should be to some extent +independent. It was during these student days that he composed his +first opera, 'Almira, Queen of Castile,' which was produced in Hamburg +on January 8, 1705. Its success induced him to follow it up with +others, and then, in the following year, he set out for Italy. It was +a journey he had been looking forward to during these years of hard +work--ever since the time, in fact, when the Elector's offer had been +refused by his father. Now he could go with the feeling that he was a +composer of some note, confident that his works would at least obtain +a hearing from the Italians. But this tour was not undertaken with the +idea of making a holiday: it was to be a time of hard, continuous work +as regards both operas and sacred music, by which his fame as a +composer was to be greatly enhanced. + +At Florence, where he stayed for some time, he composed the opera +'Rodrigo,' which was received with great applause. The Grand Duke was +so delighted with it that he presented Handel on the first performance +with fifty pounds and a service of plate. At Venice he brought out +another opera, 'Agrippina,' the success of which was even greater than +any previously produced. The audience were most enthusiastic, rising +from their seats and waving their arms, whilst cries of 'Viva il caro +Sassone!' (Long live the dear Saxon) resounded through the house. That +a German composer should thus have taken Italian audiences by storm is +an indication of the power which Handel wielded through his music, +especially when we consider the rivalry which existed between the two +countries in regard to the art. At the same time it must be remembered +that the works of Handel which were performed in Italy were composed +under Italian skies, after close study of the productions and methods +of the masters of Italian opera, and when the composer himself was +imbued with what he had observed of the tastes and customs of the +people. The quality of his works, however, must have served to +convince the Italians of the strength which the sister country was +capable of putting forth in support of her claim to be regarded as a +home of musical art. + +Whilst on this tour Handel was present at a masked ball when +Scarlatti, the celebrated Italian performer, aroused great applause by +his playing on the harpsichord. Handel, whose identity was unknown to +both Scarlatti and the audience, was next invited to play, and excited +so much astonishment by his performance that Scarlatti, who had been +listening intently, exclaimed aloud, 'It is either the famous Saxon +himself, or the devil!' Later on, at Rome, the two performers competed +in a friendly manner on the organ and pianoforte, and though it was +undecided as to which should have the palm for the latter instrument, +Scarlatti himself admitted Handel's superiority on the organ, and ever +afterwards, when people praised him for his playing, he would tell +them how Handel played, and at the same time cross himself in token of +his great reverence for his gifted rival. + +In Rome itself Handel's interest was deeply aroused, and he returned +for a second visit to the city in 1709. It was here that he composed +and produced his first oratorio, the 'Resurrection,' which added to +his fame as a writer of sacred music. During this second visit he +witnessed the arrival of the Pifferari, a band of shepherd-fifers, who +each year left their flocks on the Calabrian hills, and journeyed to +Rome to celebrate the birth of Christ by singing and playing an +ancient chant in memory of the shepherds of Bethlehem. Handel must +have retained this simple melody in his mind, for many years later he +introduced a version of it into his great oratorio, the 'Messiah,' +where, under the title of the 'Pastoral Symphony,' it accompanies the +scene of 'the shepherds abiding in the field.' + +The following year Handel returned to Germany, and went to Hanover, +where he was most kindly received by the Elector (afterwards King +George I. of England). The post of Capellmeister, with a salary of +about L300, was offered and accepted, but Handel had a further favour +to prefer. He had for long cherished a desire to visit England, +whither the noise of his fame had already extended, and whence he had +received many pressing invitations. His request for leave of absence +for this purpose was at once granted by his royal master, but ere +Handel could turn his steps to these shores a stronger claim upon him +remained to be satisfied: this was to visit his mother and his old +master, Zachau. We may imagine the meeting--the mother proud of her +son, Zachau equally proud of his pupil. How glad the hearts of both +must have been to welcome back one who had so abundantly justified +their confidence in his powers! Short as the time had been, the young +musician had accomplished a great work for his country, for his +compositions had sufficed to show the Italians the height to which the +music of Germany had risen. It now remained for him to bring the +English under his subjection, and of his success in this direction he +had little fear. When the autumn came Handel took leave of his dear +ones, and, with the sorrow of parting tempered by joyful +anticipations, he set sail for England. + +Italian opera had of late become the fashion in the musical world of +London, but so much dissatisfaction had been aroused by the manner in +which it was produced that it needed all the genius and power of such +a master as Handel had shown himself to be to restore it to popular +favour. We have, therefore, to think of Handel coming to London, with +the fame of his Italian tour clinging to him, to a people longing for +music which they could appreciate. That fame had paved the way for a +cordial reception; he must next show them what he could do. In the +February following his arrival Handel produced his opera 'Rinaldo' at +the Queen's Theatre in the Haymarket, having expended just a fortnight +in composing and completing it! The opera was a triumphant success. +For fifteen nights in succession (a long run in those days) the house +was crowded with an enthusiastic audience, and the charming airs which +were first uttered within the walls of the Haymarket Theatre were +afterwards wafted to the furthest corners of the three kingdoms. Even +to-day, when many of us hear for the first time the airs 'Lascia ch'io +pianga' and 'Cara sposa,' we seem to fall at once under the spell of +their charm; and can we not imagine the effect which these beautiful +songs produced upon the Londoners of nearly two centuries ago, as they +were voiced by the great singer Nicolini? We have mentioned but two of +the airs which have ever remained popular, but the opera abounded in +graceful melodies that could not fail to captivate the ear of a people +who had been languishing for the sunshine. + +It is interesting to recall the manner in which the opera was put upon +the stage in those days. Every effort seems to have been made to +render the scenes as realistic as possible, though occasionally this +straining after effect was carried to an excess that excited ridicule. +Thus, in the scene for Act II of 'Rinaldo,' representing the garden of +Armida, the stage was filled with living birds, which were let loose +from cages. As the opera was produced in the winter months, the only +birds available were sparrows--a fact which gave rise to sarcastic +comments in the papers. The practice, however, might have been justly +condemned on account of its cruelty. + +Handel was now firmly established in the favour of English +music-lovers. They had expected great things of him, and they were +not disappointed. There was a body of true musicians in London at that +time to whom the presence of the composer must have given special +delight. Regular concerts, where amateur musicians could meet for the +purpose of playing and hearing the best music, were unknown, and it +was left to the enterprising zeal of one humble individual to +originate the idea of the regular weekly concerts in London which +later on became so widely known and appreciated. In a small shop near +Clerkenwell Green lived a small-coal dealer named Thomas Britton. In +those days 'small-coal,' or charcoal, was extensively used amongst the +poorer classes, and regularly each morning Britton would shoulder his +large sack of the fuel and go his round through the streets, disposing +of his burden in pennyworths to the inhabitants. When the round was +finished he returned home, changed his clothes, forgot that he was a +small-coal man, and became a musician. Nor were there wanting many +belonging to far higher stations in life who were ready to testify to +the deep love for the art which distinguished the small-coal dealer. +In a long, low-pitched room above the shop, which had originally +formed part of a stable, Britton had collected a large number of +musical instruments of various kinds, as well as the scores of some of +the best music of the day. To this humble apartment would repair +numbers of amateur and professional musicians belonging to all ranks +of society, from the highest to the lowest. No one paid for admission, +and the sole qualification expected of the visitor was that he or she +should be a lover of the art. Thus, at the weekly gatherings in the +small-coal man's loft, might have been seen peers of the realm, poets +and artists, singers and performers, both known and unknown, mingling +freely together, drinking coffee provided by the host at one penny +per dish, and settling themselves down to enjoy the best chamber music +of the day. Handel was not long in finding his way thither, and he +became a regular attendant, always presiding at the harpsichord. The +fame of Britton's assemblies grew apace, and led eventually to the +establishment of regular weekly chamber concerts in London. + +This first visit to England seems to have implanted in Handel a +sincere affection for the country and its people, and although he +returned to Hanover and took up his duties again at Court, he felt +convinced that London was the centre in which his genius could have +its fullest play. It was not long, therefore, before he obtained fresh +leave of absence to visit England, giving in return a promise to +present himself at his post within a 'reasonable' time. How he carried +out this promise we shall see from what follows. London was only too +glad to see him again, and his acquaintances became more numerous than +ever. Lord Burlington invited him to stay at his seat, Burlington +House (now the Royal Academy), in Piccadilly, where the only duty +expected of him in return for the comforts of a luxurious home and the +society of the great was that he should conduct the Earl's chamber +concerts. It is difficult to realise that Burlington House stood then +in the midst of fields, whilst Piccadilly itself was considered to be +so far from town that surprise was felt that Lord Burlington should +have removed himself to such a distance from the centre of life and +fashion. The loneliness of Piccadilly at that period may be surmised +from the fact that it was not safe to traverse the thoroughfare after +nightfall unless protected by an escort strong enough to repell the +attacks of highwaymen who haunted the neighbourhood. + +The time passed so quickly amidst the pleasures of society and the +unceasing devotion to composition that Handel himself probably failed +to realise that he was gratuitously extending his leave of absence +beyond all 'reasonable' bounds. His fame had made great progress all +this while, and when the wars in Flanders at length came to an end +with the signing of the peace of Utrecht, he was called upon to +compose the _Te Deum_ and _Jubilate_, which were performed at the +Thanksgiving Service held at St. Paul's, and attended by the Queen in +state. To signalise this great event, as well as to mark the royal +favour in which the composer was held, Queen Anne awarded Handel a +life pension of L200. It is small wonder, then, that he should have +been slow to sever, even for a time, his connection with the world of +London. Amongst his numerous acquaintance of this time was a certain +Dr. Greene, a musician of some ability, but more perseverance, whose +attentions to the composer were so persistent as to partake of the +nature of persecution. Handel was never the man to cultivate an +acquaintance for which he had no liking, and it was a part of his +character to make no effort to conceal his dislikes either for persons +or things. When, therefore, Dr. Greene sent him a manuscript anthem of +his own to look over, Handel put it on one side and forgot it. Some +time afterwards Dr. Greene went to take coffee with the great man, and +having waited vainly for some reference to his manuscript until his +patience was exhausted, he burst out with: 'Well, Mr. Handel, and what +do you think of my anthem?' 'Your antum?' cried Handel in his broken +English. 'Ah, yes, I do recollect, I did tink dat it vanted air,' +'_Air!_' exclaimed the astonished and indignant composer. 'Yes, air,' +responded Handel, 'and so I did hang it out of de vindow.' + + [Illustration: '_A grand procession of decorated barges from + Whitehall to Limehouse._'] + +The death of the Queen must have awakened Handel with a shock to a +sense of his neglect of duty, for the Elector of Hanover thereupon +came to England as her successor. That King George would be likely to +receive Handel with favour was out of the question, notwithstanding +the monarch's love of music and the fame which had grown about his +Capellmeister's name. The offence lay far too deep for that, and +Handel realised that he must employ some special means of grace to +secure his master's pardon. The opportunity he sought for came ere +long. A royal entertainment on the Thames was arranged, in which there +was to be a grand procession of decorated barges from Whitehall to +Limehouse. An orchestra was provided, and Handel was requested by the +Lord Chamberlain to compose the music for the fete, in the hope that +by so doing he might pave the way towards a reconciliation. Handel +acquiesced, and the result was the series of pieces which have since +been known as the 'Water Music,' The King was so delighted with the +performance that he had it repeated, and, learning that Handel was +conducting it in person, he sent for him, and not only granted him a +full pardon, but conferred upon him an additional pension of L200. Nor +did the royal favour stop here, for he was shortly afterwards +appointed music-master to the daughters of the Prince of Wales at a +salary of L200 a year. Handel was thus raised to a position of +independence, for as the original grant from Queen Anne continued in +force he enjoyed a total income of L600 a year, a sum which in those +days was equivalent to a considerable fortune. + +It was not long after this that Handel was appointed chapel-master to +the Duke of Chandos, at the latter's palace of Cannons, near Edgware. +The post up till then had been held by a certain Dr. Pepusch, but he +resigned at once in favour of Handel. Anything more princely in style +than Cannons could hardly be imagined; its size and magnificence were +the talk of the country for miles around, whilst the fabulous riches +of its owner and his luxuriousness of living earned for him the title +of 'The Grand Duke,' The palace itself has long since disappeared, but +the chapel originally attached to it has been preserved, and now forms +the parish church of Whitchurch, or Little Stanmore. The interior is +furnished and decorated after the fashion of the Italian churches, but +it is not on account of its structural beauty that the church has +become the object of interest to thousands of pilgrims who annually +make their way to the village of Edgware; it is the knowledge that it +was here that Handel composed his first English oratorio, 'Esther,' as +well as numerous anthems and other minor works. The manuscript score +of this fine work--which is but rarely heard now--is to be seen in the +Royal Collection of Handel manuscripts at Buckingham Palace, though a +portion of it is missing. No one who finds his way to the church of +Little Stanmore should fail to notice the organ, for it is the +instrument used by Handel from 1718 to 1721, and on which he played +the organ parts of 'Esther,' when the oratorio was performed for the +first time in the Duke's chapel. With the lavishness that was his +chief characteristic the Duke handed to the composer on this occasion +L1,000, but in so doing he may have been actuated by a sincere desire +to add to Handel's independence. Those were very happy and busy years +which Handel passed at Cannons. Amongst the numerous compositions for +the harpsichord belonging to this period is the suite of pieces which +includes the air, with variations, popularly known as 'The Harmonious +Blacksmith,' The origin of this title has for long been a matter of +discussion; it is quite certain that Handel himself did not so name +the piece, for the manuscript bears the title only of 'Air et +Doubles,' nor was it ever known by any other name during the +composer's lifetime. Yet there are few of us, perhaps, who willingly +reject as fable the story which for many years after Handel's death +was believed to have given a true account of its origin. According to +this story Handel was one day walking to Cannons through the village +of Edgware, when he was overtaken by a heavy shower of rain, and +sought shelter within the smithy. The blacksmith was singing at his +work, and the strokes of his hammer on the anvil kept time to his +song. Handel, it is said, was so struck both by the air and its +accompaniment that on reaching home he wrote down the tune with a set +of variations upon it. Assuming this story to have no foundation in +fact, no satisfactory explanation has been forthcoming to account for +the origin of the title, and when, in 1835, the story was +investigated, it was claimed that both anvil and hammer had been +traced as having passed through several hands. The blacksmith's name +was said to have been Powell, and the anvil is described as bearing a +capital P, and, further, that 'when struck with the hammer it gives, +first, the note B, but immediately afterwards sounds E. These notes +correspond very nearly with the B-flat and E-flat of our present +concert pitch, and therefore coincide very closely with the E-natural +and B-natural of Handel's times,'[3] Again, with regard to the air +itself, the contention that Handel took it from another composer has +never been proved, and there is 'absolutely nothing to show that it is +not the work of Handel.'[4] + + [Illustration: '_The strokes of his hammer on the anvil kept + time to his song._'] + +It is difficult for us to imagine the road leading from the Marble +Arch (then called Tyburn) to Edgware as being infested by highwaymen. +This fact, like that regarding the condition of Piccadilly, serves to +show in a striking manner how circumscribed the London of those days +must have been. Handel must often have had to travel between Cannons +and London, but we do not hear of his having been robbed by the way. +The Duke, however, was attacked on more than one occasion, and he +always performed the journey with an escort of his favourite Swiss +Guards, of whom a body was kept to protect the palace. + +For several years the production of opera 'after the Italian style,' +which Handel on his coming over had done so much to stimulate, had +languished for lack of funds. To many Londoners who were fond of music +the sight of the closed doors of the King's Theatre in the Haymarket +imparted a feeling of regret and loss. When, therefore, a number of +rich patrons of music met together and decided to form themselves into +a society for the purpose of reviving the opera in London, the project +was received with signs of general pleasure. The King was greatly +interested, and subscribed L1,000 to the venture. Handel was at once +engaged in the double capacity of composer and 'impressario,' the +latter duty charging him with the selection and engagement of singers. +The new society was to be called the Royal Academy of Music, but we +must not confuse this body with the Royal Academy of Music existing +at the present day, which was founded in 1822. + +Handel now set out for Germany with the object of visiting Dresden, +where the Elector of Saxony was maintaining a company of the best +singers for the performance of Italian opera. On his return journey he +paid a visit to Halle, where he found his mother alive, and overjoyed +to see him, though the cheery welcome of his old master Zachau could +no longer be heard, for the old man had gone to his rest. There was +another sad note about this visit, for on the very day that Handel +left for England Sebastian Bach, filled with a longing to meet his +great contemporary, arrived at Halle, whither he had journeyed from +Coethen, only to find that he was a few hours too late. This was the +last chance of their meeting, for when Handel paid his next visit to +Germany Bach was dead. + +Early in the following year the doors of the theatre in the Haymarket +were besieged by a huge crowd, anxious to secure seats for the +performance of Handel's new opera, 'Radamisto,' which was being +produced by the Royal Academy of Music. The applause was deafening, +and the success of the opera was assured. But Handel was not to be +left to enjoy his honours in peace; an opposition party had already +arisen, who were moved to do him evil partly from envy, and partly +because he had stirred them up to resentment by his dominancy and +self-will. From Hamburg came his old enemy, Buononcini, to try his +fortune with the new society, and it was not long ere the rival +composers were engaged with a third musician, whose name is uncertain +(though some state it to have been that of Handel's friend of his +Hamburg days--Ariosti), in the composition of a new opera. It was +arranged that this work should form a kind of competition, with the +object of determining whether Handel or Buononcini was the better +composer. Thus Handel wrote the third act, and Buononcini the second, +the first act being committed to the hands of the third musician, +whose claim to be regarded as a rival was very small in comparison +with the others. When the new work, 'Muzio Scaevola,' was performed +Handel's act was pronounced by the principal judges to be much +superior to that of Buononcini's; the latter's friends, however, +refused to accept a defeat, and being joined by others, the battle +waxed exceedingly hot. The newspapers took it up, and very soon +nothing else was talked about but the rival merits of the two +composers. Numerous verses were composed on either side, as well as +others which poked fun at both parties. Amongst the latter was an +epigram written by John Byrom, the Lancashire poet, which, without the +knowledge of the author, got into all the papers, and was considered +to hit off the situation more neatly than any which had gone before. +Thus it runs: + + 'Some say, compar'd to Buononcini, + That Mynheer Handel's but a Ninny; + Others aver, that he to Handel + Is scarcely fit to hold a Candle; + Strange all this Difference should be, + 'Twixt Tweedle-dum and Tweedle-dee!' + +That Handel showed scant consideration for those who differed from him +in regard to his works is proved by his treatment of the artists who +were engaged to perform for him. He could not be thwarted from his +bent, nor cajoled into doing anything that he disliked, whilst his +stubborn pride prevented him from yielding to any, whether great or +small. When, in 1723, his opera 'Ottone' was about to be produced, he +had engaged as prima donna the great Continental singer, Francesca +Cuzzoni. The lady does not appear to have possessed the sweetest of +tempers, and she showed her independence by not putting in an +appearance in England until the rehearsals were far advanced. This +could not have been pleasing to the composer, but when on her +presenting herself at the theatre she flatly refused to sing the aria +'Falsa Immagine' in the way Handel had written it, he burst into a +rage, and seizing her in his arms, cried: 'Madam, you are a very +she-devil, but I vill have you know dat I am Beelzebub, de prince of +devils!' with which he made as if to throw her out of the window. +Cuzzoni was so frightened by his fury that she promised to do as she +was bid. Accordingly, she sang as he directed, and made one of her +greatest successes with the song. How much the public appreciated the +singing of this gifted artist we may guess when it is told that the +directors obtained as much as five guineas for each seat when she was +advertised to sing. + +Although he would brook no contradiction on the part of those who were +engaged to execute his works, Handel spared no pains to help them over +a difficulty, or to show how his music should be expressed. At times, +however, his temper took the form of the most unsparing sarcasm. One +day a singer at rehearsal protested against the manner in which Handel +was accompanying him on the harpsichord, and in a fit of anger +exclaimed: 'If you continue to accompany me in that fashion I will +jump from the platform on to the harpsichord, and smash it!' 'Vat!' +cried Handel, looking up in surprise, 'do you say you vill jump? Den I +vill advertise it at once, for people vould come to see you jump dat +vill never come to hear you sing!' + +We have not space to describe the whole of the works which Handel +wrote for the Royal Academy of Music. His industry was untiring, and +the fertility of his genius was such that within a period of eight +years from the beginning of the Society's work he had composed and +produced no fewer than fourteen operas. Amongst this number was the +opera called 'Scipione,' in which is to be found a 'Triumphal March in +D,' which the Grenadier Guards claim to have been specially composed +for their regiment by Handel before its inclusion in the opera. The +Guards are very proud of their march, and the band still plays it +under the title of the 'Royal Guards March.' + +During the whole of this time, however, Handel's enemies never ceased +their opposition, and, despite successes, it was soon apparent that +the rival parties were bent on destroying each other. The enormous +cost incurred in producing operatic works, added to the losses +occasioned by quarrels and dissensions amongst the singers, many of +whom deserted Handel to join his enemies, at length brought the Royal +Academy to the end of its resources. In 1727, when the society was +tottering to its fall, the rival theatre in Lincoln's Inn Fields +brought out the famous work called 'The Beggar's Opera,' written by +John Gay, which formed the first English ballad opera. Its success was +stupendous; London was taken completely by storm, and everybody was +soon singing and humming its catching airs. Fickle as the public taste +had hitherto shown itself to be in regard to musical productions, it +now became fixed on the new work, and opera in the 'Italian style' was +completely deserted. What was the secret of this wonderful success? +Simply this: a poet seized upon a number of the most entrancing airs +which the musical genius of England and Scotland had produced, many of +them belonging to ancient times, together with the favourite melodies +of the day, and he set them to words which were utterly unworthy of +the sentiment inspired by these beautiful compositions. The richest +stores of ballad music were pillaged for this degrading work; the +march in Handel's 'Rinaldo' was stolen to form a robber's chorus, +whilst the exploits of Captain Macheath and his highwaymen companions +were held up as models of daring and gallantry when performed to the +most captivating of airs. The public hailed the piece with delight; +the ladies modelled their dresses on the stage costume of 'Polly,' the +heroine, and decorated their fans with the words of her songs, and for +sixty-two nights the walls of the Lincoln's Inn Fields theatre shook +with thunders of applause from gallery, pit, and stalls. In thus +speaking of a work which not only held London captive for so long, but +was afterwards performed in every part of the kingdom, we must not +forget that its remarkable popularity was due in some measure to the +brightness of its dialogue; to its witty sayings hitting off men and +manners of the day; but, above all, to the exquisite beauty of its +melodies, which served to lay a glamour over what otherwise would have +undoubtedly been condemned as vulgar. + +The success of the 'Beggar's Opera' completed the ruin of the Royal +Academy of Music, but Handel, undismayed by the failure of this great +scheme, and setting his enemies at defiance, went once more to Italy +to collect a new company of singers, for he was determined to carry on +the work himself with the fortune which his operas had brought him. On +his way home he paid a visit to Halle, where he found his aged mother +stricken by illness. She lingered until the following year (1730), +when she died at the age of eighty. For several years Handel struggled +to build up the fortunes of Italian opera in London, but the +persistent rivalry and opposition of his enemies, combined with the +decadence of musical taste on the part of the public, caused his +losses to accumulate, until, in 1737, he found himself, after repeated +failures, deeply in debt, and with his health broken down by overwork +and anxiety. The whole of his fortune of L10,000 had been swallowed up +in this disastrous enterprise, and it was a poor consolation for him +to know that his rivals failed in the same year with a loss of +L12,000. Not even at this juncture, however, would his indomitable +will submit to the force of circumstances. After a brief rest at Aix +la Chapelle, with a course of vapour baths, he returned to London +prepared to begin the battle afresh, and although he had lost to a +great extent the favour of the rich, his popularity was such that a +statue of himself was executed by public subscription, and erected in +Vauxhall Gardens, an honour which, as has been truly observed, had +been paid to no other composer during his lifetime. + +It was only after several failures that Handel was at length convinced +that it was useless to attempt to re-awaken the interest of English +audiences in Italian opera, and yet, although he made no concealment +of his regret at the abandonment of a line of composition in which he +had so greatly excelled, it was with no diminished vigour or +determination that he now, at the age of fifty-five, turned his +attention to work of a serious character. And if we admit that Handel +excelled in operatic work, what shall we say of the oratorios which +formed the later creations of his genius? To many of us, perhaps, his +name is so intimately associated with the titles of his religious +works that we are almost ready to believe that all which had gone +before was merely in the nature of preparation for such noble works as +'Saul,' 'Israel in Egypt,' 'Samson,' 'Jephtha,' and, above all, the +'Messiah.' It is on the 'Messiah' alone that our space permits us to +dwell, and we will endeavour to relate the story of how this great +oratorio came to be written. + +It was in 1741 that the plan of writing the 'Messiah' was formed, but +it is not known whether the subject originated with Handel himself, or +was suggested to him by a friend named Mr. Charles Jennens, a man of +great literary tastes and acquirements, who lived a retired life in +the country. It is certain, however, that Mr. Jennens selected and +wrote out the passages from the Scriptures, and sent them to Handel to +set to music, and for the care and choice exercised in this +compilation we owe to Mr. Jennens a deep debt of gratitude. Towards +the end of this year Handel received an invitation from the +Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland to visit Dublin, as the Irish people were +very desirous of hearing some of his compositions performed in their +country. Handel accepted the invitation very willingly, for he saw in +the tone in which it was conveyed an assurance of the sympathy of the +sister isle, as well as a prospect of being enabled to retrieve his +fallen fortunes. He left England at the beginning of November, having +previously sent a promise to Dublin that he would devote a portion of +the money realised by his performances to three charitable +institutions in that city. The music of the 'Messiah' must have been +actually composed before he set foot upon the ship at Chester, for at +the end of the following month we find him writing to Mr. Jennens from +Dublin, and referring to the latter's oratorio, '"Messiah," which I +set to music before I left England,'[5] Moreover, he must have had the +manuscript score with him on his voyage, though his friends in London +were ignorant of the fact; for we learn that being detained at +Chester for some days by contrary winds, he got together at his inn +several of the choir boys from the cathedral in order to try over some +of the choral passages in the work. Needless to say, the title of the +oratorio was not allowed to transpire on this occasion, but many of us +may feel curious to know whether any of these young singers felt +impressed by the beauty of the parts which it was their envied lot to +'try over' in the composer's room at the hostelry. One at least of +these trial performers must have carried away an unpleasant experience +of the great man's impetuous temper. 'Can you sing at sight?' was the +question put to each before he was asked to sing, and one broke down +lamentably at the start. 'What de devil you mean!' cried Handel, +snatching the music from his hands. 'Did not you say you could sing at +sight?' 'Yes, sir, I did,' responded the confused singer, 'but not at +_first_ sight!' + +The welcome extended to Handel by the people of Dublin was a very warm +one; the performances were a great success, and then we get the first +public mention of the new oratorio. At the 'Musick Hall in Fishamble +Street, Dublin' is to be performed 'Mr. Handel's new grand Oratorio, +called the "Messiah," in which the Gentlemen of the Choirs of both +Cathedrals will assist, with some Concertos on the Organ, by Mr. +Handel.' It was further announced that the proceeds would be devoted +to two charitable institutions, and 'for the Relief of the Prisoners +in the several Gaols.' These latter were miserable persons who had +been imprisoned for debt, and whose sufferings through neglect and +poverty were such as to excite deep compassion. Four hundred pounds +was the sum realised by this performance, which took place on Monday, +April 13, 1742, and no doubt the poor prisoners felt very grateful to +the composer, who had thus put into practice the very precepts which +his sacred work inspired. So great was the success of this first +performance that a second was called for, the announcement of which +contained an earnest appeal to the ladies to leave their hoops behind +them. This singular request was obeyed, with the result that +accommodation was found for one hundred more persons than on the first +occasion. + + [Illustration: '"_Did not you say you could sing at sight?_"' + '"_Yes, sir, but not at_ first _sight!_"'] + +The citizens of Dublin seem to have been very loath to part with +Handel, whilst he, for his part, must have felt in the warmth of his +reception some recompense for the neglect from which he had been made +to suffer in London. The visit was therefore prolonged for many +months, and it was not until March 23, 1743, that a London audience +gathered to witness their first performance of the 'Messiah'. How is +it possible to give, in a few words, an idea of this great work? When +we hear the 'Messiah' performed we are struck by its magnificence and +beauty of expression; the language of Scripture seems to be clothed, +as it were, in a beautiful garment of music which, ever changing as +the oratorio proceeds, appears to give the fullest and most exact +expression to each portion of the sacred story. At one time the music +blazes forth like a jewelled crown when it catches the sun; at another +it soars heavenwards like the song of the lark; once again it pours +forth like the thunderous roar of a huge cataract, filling our ears +with the majesty of its volume; then, again, it sinks to the tender +moan of the wind as it sweeps through the trees; but everywhere and at +all times it seems to exactly fit the words, and to give them their +noblest expression. The oratorio opens with an overture, grand, yet +simple, and designed to prepare our minds for the story which follows. +Then we hear the words of the prophet Isaiah, 'Comfort ye my people,' +telling of the coming of the Messiah, and relating the signs by which +His approach is to be heralded--'Ev'ry valley shall be exalted,' +etc.--and leading up to the revelation, 'The people that walked in +darkness have seen a great light,' and so to the mighty outburst of +harmony--'Wonderful! Counsellor!'--with which the prophecy reaches its +culminating point. When these words are thundered forth in chorus we +seem to have suddenly presented to our eyes a picture of the Messiah +as He was revealed to the mind of the Prophet. But note attentively +what follows. With the concluding notes of that grand choral outburst +still ringing in our ears--the designation of a mighty Prince, a great +Counsellor--we find ourselves, at the ushering in of the Nativity, +not, as the words of the chorus would seem to predict, at the +welcoming scene of a great Prince in all his splendour, but in the +presence of a group of lowly shepherds tending their flocks in the +quiet fields of Judaea. How wonderfully striking is the contrast +between the grandeur of the concluding chorus and the simplicity and +quiet beauty of the scene now presented to us by the Pastoral +Symphony! It is founded upon the ancient melody which Handel had heard +the Calabrian shepherds play at Rome[6] many years before, and soon +the air is ringing with the chorus of the heavenly host, 'Glory to God +in the highest,' followed by the joyful outburst, 'Rejoice greatly.' +Then comes the revelation of what Christ shall be to His people--'He +shall feed His flock like a Shepherd,' 'His yoke is easy and His +burthen is light--' with which the first part comes to an end. + +In the second part we are shown the incidents leading up to the +Passion, and our emotions are deeply stirred by the pathetic music +indicating the sufferings of our Lord. What could be more touchingly +beautiful than the air, 'He was despised and rejected of men'? in the +writing of which Handel is said to have burst into tears. Then, the +Passion past, we have the realisation of all that that sacrifice +meant, the awakening of hope, followed by the triumphal chorus, 'Lift +up your heads, O ye gates!' and after a succession of beautiful airs +and choruses we reach the culminating point of the Recognition in that +grand hymn of praise, the 'Hallelujah Chorus,' with which the second +part concludes. + +Scarcely have the glorious hallelujahs of the last chorus died away +ere the beautiful strains of the air, 'I know that my Redeemer +liveth,' are ringing in our ears; from this we are led to the chorus, +'Worthy is the Lamb,' indicating the glorification of the sacrifice, +and the marvellous concluding chorus of the 'Amen,' which strikingly +portrays the unified assent of heaven and earth to the Godhead of +Christ. + +On the occasion of the first performance of the 'Messiah' in London, +at which the King was present, the vast audience were so impressed by +the grandeur of the music and the reverence which it inspired that +when the 'Hallelujah Chorus' began, and the words, 'For the Lord God +omnipotent reigneth,' rang out, they one and all, including the King, +sprang to their feet as if by a given signal, and stood until the last +notes of the chorus had been sounded. From that time forward it has +been the custom at performances of the oratorio to stand during the +'Hallelujah Chorus.' + +No other sacred musical work has been the means of securing for the +sick and needy so much relief as that which the 'Messiah' has effected +by its frequent performances in various parts of England and on the +Continent. Handel, as we have seen, gave the proceeds of its first +performance to help the sick and miserable, and his good example has +been followed by many others. Later on his compassion was aroused by +the poor, helpless little inmates of the Foundling Hospital. We all +know the Foundling Hospital, in Guilford Street, Russell Square, but +perhaps we do not all know why it is that Handel's portrait is there +accorded the place of honour, or why the foundlings should hold the +composer's memory in such reverence. Handel did not, it is true, +establish the hospital; it was founded in 1741 by one Captain Coram, +out of the profits of a trading vessel of which he was the master. But +nine years later (in 1750) he presented the hospital with a fine +organ, and, in order to inaugurate the opening of the instrument, he +announced that he would perform upon it the music of the 'Messiah.' So +great was the demand for seats upon this occasion that it was found +necessary to repeat the performance. Handel afterwards presented a +manuscript score of the oratorio to the Foundling, and undertook to +give an annual performance of the work for the benefit of the charity. +Eleven performances under his direction were given at the Foundling +before his death, by which a sum of L6,955 was added to the hospital +funds. Nor did this good work cease with the composer's death, for we +learn that the annual performances continued to be given, and that +seventeen of these brought the total amount by which the 'Messiah' +benefited the hospital up to L10,299, a fact which of itself speaks +volumes for the appreciation in which the oratorio was held. + +In connection with the gift of the 'Messiah' score to the Foundling an +amusing story is told, which serves to illustrate the imperiousness of +Handel's temper. The directors of the hospital were desirous of +retaining for themselves the exclusive right to perform the 'Messiah,' +and with this idea they sought to obtain an Act of Parliament +confirming their rights. When Handel heard of the proposal, however, +he burst out in a rage with, 'Te teufel! for what sall de Foundlings +put mein moosic in de Parliament? Te teufel! mein moosic sall not go +to de Parliament!' And it is hardly necessary to add that 'de moosic' +did not go to 'de Parliament.' + +It is difficult, within the compass of this little story, to convey a +just idea of the extraordinary amount of work which Handel's life +comprised. One oratorio after another followed the 'Messiah,' none of +them entitled to rank with that great work for either loftiness of +subject or grandeur of expression, yet many containing passages of +unrivalled beauty. 'Jephtha,' which was the last oratorio he composed, +contains the magnificent recitative, 'Deeper and deeper still,' and +the beautiful song, 'Waft her, angels.' It was while writing 'Jephtha' +that Handel became blind, but, though greatly affected by this loss, +it did not daunt his courage or lessen his power of work. He was then +in his sixty-eighth year, and had lived down most of the hostility +which formerly had been so rife against him. Who, indeed, could for +long withstand so imperious a will, backed by such unquenchable +genius? With increased fame, moreover, his fortunes had built +themselves up once more, so that when he died he left L20,000 to be +disposed of by his executors. + +The range of Handel's compositions was gigantic; there was no branch +of the art which his genius did not penetrate and adorn, but it is as +a writer of choruses that his power is seen at its best. 'No one,' +writes Mr. Julian Marshall, in his biography of the composer, 'before +or since has so well understood how to extract from a body of voices +such grand results by such artfully simple means as those he used.' No +master, we may add, has given us music which expresses with greater +clearness, beauty, or force the passages of Scripture it is intended +to illumine than that which is to be found in the choral parts of +Handel's oratorios. Handel was the greatest master of counterpoint the +world has ever seen, and this power enabled him to give musical +expression to written words with an ease and fluency which can only be +described as marvellous. Yet it is not its marvellous character which +strikes us when we hear his work for the first time so much as its +oneness with the subject it portrays; we feel that it is like some +grand painting, in which colour and form are so charmingly blended as +to make a perfect and indivisible whole. + +It is often alleged that Handel copied from other composers, and that +such was the case there is abundant evidence to show. It must be +remembered, however, that in his day people did not attach to +originality of ideas the value which we allow to them now. Handel, +however, did more than this: he not only borrowed ideas or themes +which--to a great extent, at least--were regarded as common property, +but he actually embodied in some of his works _entire passages_ taken +from the compositions of comparatively unknown composers. For this no +justification is possible; nor, on the other hand, can it be urged +that Handel stole other men's brains because he lacked power to use +his own. The only thing that it seems possible to say by way of +explaining a practice which must be condemned as dishonest is that +Handel in all probability did not realise his offence or view it in +the light in which we view it at the present day. Everything in his +life and character argues against the idea of his committing an action +which he held to be mean or dishonest. No man could have been more +fearlessly independent, either in thought or action, and, whatever +other faults he possessed, his character has always been regarded as +strictly honourable. + +Handel was a big man, with a very commanding presence and a fiery +temper, which, as we have seen, was apt to explode at trifles. He did +not hesitate to launch the most virulent abuse at the heads of those +who ventured to talk whilst he was conducting, and at such times not +even the presence of royalty could make him restrain his anger. But +when Handel raved the Princess of Wales would turn to her friends, and +say softly, 'Hush, hush! Handel is angry.' He had a rooted dislike to +hearing his orchestra tune up in his presence, and he gave strict +orders that the performers were to get this business over before he +arrived. One night, however, when the Prince of Wales was to be +present, a wag gained access to the orchestra and secretly untuned +every instrument. When the Prince arrived and the audience were all +seated, Handel 'gave the signal to begin _con spirito_, when such a +discord arose that the enraged musician started from his seat, +overturned the double-bass, seized a kettledrum, threw it at the +leader of the orchestra, and lost his wig. He advanced bareheaded to +the front of the orchestra, but was so choked with passion that he +could not speak. Here he stood, staring and stamping, amidst general +convulsions of laughter, until the Prince presently, with much +difficulty, appeased his wrath, and prevailed on him to resume his +seat.' + +Handel's fondness for the pleasures of the table was one of the +weaknesses which his enemies did not fail to make the most of, and +which has given rise to more than one story. For instance, it is told +that he went into a dining-house one day and ordered 'dinner for +three.' The waiter, having received the order, disappeared, and was +absent so long that Handel lost patience, and, ringing the bell, +demanded to know why the meal was delayed. 'Sir,' replied the waiter, +'I was awaiting the arrival of the company.' 'De gompany!' cried the +famished musician, in a voice which made the glasses jingle, and +caused the waiter to start back in dismay, 'I am de gompany!' + +Dr. Burney, the eminent musician and friend of Handel, has described +the composer's countenance as having been 'full of fire and dignity.' +'His general look,' continues the doctor, 'was somewhat heavy and +sour, but when he did smile it was the sun bursting out of a black +cloud. There was a sudden flash of intelligence, wit, and good humour +beaming in his countenance which I hardly ever saw in any other.' His +sense of humour was keen, and he could relish a joke--especially when +it was not directed towards himself. When visiting Dublin he was +accompanied by the celebrated violinist Dubourg, who was engaged to +play at his performances. One evening Dubourg was delighting the +audience with an extempore cadenza, and wandered so far away from the +original key that he found it no easy matter to return to it. At +length, after some moments of suspense, the shake was heard which +announced that the violinist was about to return to the theme; Handel +thereupon looked up from the harpsichord, and, in a voice loud enough +to be heard throughout the hall, exclaimed, with significant emphasis, +'Velcome _home_ again, Mr. Dubourg!' + +In bringing our story of Handel's life to a close, we are tempted to +make a brief comparison between Handel and that other great master who +lived and worked at the same time--Sebastian Bach. When we compare the +two men we perceive this marked difference between them--namely, that, +while Bach evinced a complete indifference with regard to public +praise, but a very deep interest in the works of other musicians, +Handel cared a great deal for what the public thought of his works, +and was too much absorbed in his own music to give much attention to +the compositions of others. The one wrote for posterity; he published +but little, and it was only when half a century had passed since his +death that the musical world awoke to a sense of the inestimable value +which attached to the works which that life had produced. Handel, on +the other hand, studied the tastes of his own day as regards both +sacred and secular music, and devoted the whole of his life to the +supply of that demand on the part of the public which he had done so +much to create and develop. + +Full as was Handel's life as regards the fulfilment of its great +object, it was in other ways extremely simple. Few things outside his +incessant round of work interested him, but he was fond of going to +the theatre, and he had a passion for attending picture sales. Of his +charity we have spoken, but we may add that he was always ready to +help those in distress, and he helped to found the Society for Aiding +Distressed Musicians. The last occasion in which he appeared in public +was at a performance of the 'Messiah' at Covent Garden, on April 6, +1759. On the 14th of the same month his death took place at the house +in Brook Street where he had resided for many years. He was buried in +Westminster Abbey, where a grand monument was later on erected to his +memory. His chief manuscripts came into the possession of King George +III., and are preserved in the musical library at Buckingham Palace. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[3] Rockstro's 'Life of G.F. Handel,' 1883. + +[4] Grove's 'Dictionary of Music.' + +[5] It is a fact that this stupendous work was completed in twenty-four +days! + +[6] In the manuscript score preserved at Buckingham Palace the symphony +is marked 'Pifa,' a shortening of the Italian word 'Pifferare,' to play +on the fife. + + + + +HANDEL'S PRINCIPAL COMPOSITIONS + + +8 ORATORIOS, etc. + La Resurrezione (1708); two Passions (1704 and 1716); Acis and + Galatea (1720); Esther (1720); Deborah (1733); Athalia (1733); + Alexander's Feast (1736); Saul (1738); Israel in Egypt (1738); + Ode for St. Cecilia's Day (1739); L'Allegro, il Penseroso, ed + il Moderato (1740); The Messiah (1741); Samson (1741); Joseph + (1743); Semele (1743); Belshazzar (1744); Hercules (1744); + Occasional Oratorio (1746); Judas Maccabaeus (1746); Alexander + Balus (1747); Joshua (1747); Solomon (1748); Susanna (1748); + Theodora (1749); The Choice of Hercules (1750); Jephtha + (1751); The Triumph of Time and Truth (1757). +Utrecht Te Deum and Jubilate. 1713. +12 Chandos Anthems. 1718-1720. +2 Chandos Te Deums. 1718-1720. +4 Coronation Anthems (Let thy Hand be Strengthened, My Heart is + inditing, The King shall Rejoice, and Zadok the Priest). 1727. +Funeral Anthem (The Ways of Zion do Mourn). 1737. +Dettingen Te Deum. 1743. +40 OPERAS, mostly remembered only by a single aria. The following may + be named: + Almira (1705); Rodrigo (1707); Agrippina (1709); Rinaldo (1711); + Radamisto (1720); Muzio Scaevola (Act III. only--1721); Ottone + (1722); Scipione (1726); Admeto (1726); Ezio (1732); Serse (1738). +Water Music. 1715. +17 Suites de Pieces for the clavecin. +40 Concertos for various instruments. + + + + +HAYDN + + + + +HAYDN + + +The Cathedral of St. Stephen, standing in the central square of +Vienna, looked grey and cheerless in the misty atmosphere of a +November evening. Evensong had just concluded, the worshippers had +dispersed, and the great square itself was silent and deserted, save +for one or two hurrying pedestrians crossing it on their homeward way. +One of these, however, formed an exception to the rest, for he seemed +to be in no hurry to leave the square. On reaching the further side he +hesitated, glanced up at the clock, and then, turning about, paced +listlessly up and down, as if uncertain whether to go or remain. Not +even the rain, which now began to fall in that silent, hopeless +fashion which predicts a thoroughly wet evening, appeared to assist +the wanderer in coming to a decision. He was a mere stripling, short +of stature, shabbily clothed, and with a keen look on his pale face +that betokened a want of food and rest. + +The square was dimly lighted by lamps stationed at wide intervals, and +the shadows cast by the great building effectually concealed the form +of the youth as he entered them in the course of his restless walk. +It was evident that he was in a state of acute distress, and equally +evident that this spot held some peculiar attraction for him, for now +and again he cast a glance at the church walls, or lingered beside the +closed door which was used by the members of the choir. Presently, as +he was passing, the door opened, emitting a stream of yellow light +across the wet pavement, and a number of youths sallied forth, talking +and laughing together as they came. At the sound of the creaking +hinges the destitute boy shrank back into the shadow, as if he were +afraid of being recognised--which, indeed, was the case. Nevertheless, +on catching a glimpse of one young face, as the figure of its owner +almost brushed against him, he could not refrain from exclaiming under +his breath, 'Michael!' + +So low was the tone in which the name was uttered, that, although the +chorister's face, with the light from the doorway falling upon it, was +turned for a second in the speaker's direction, the boy failed to +grasp the meaning of the sound, and hurried on with his companions; +and with a deep sigh the poor wanderer turned away. + +At that moment a young man who was crossing the square from the +opposite side paused to turn up the collar of his coat. In so doing he +became aware that a pair of eyes was regarding him with a sorrowful, +appealing gaze from the depths of the shadows. In another moment he +had advanced to the youth's side and laid his hand upon his shoulder. + +'Joseph! can it be you? Man, how wet you are!' The outcast shivered +under the friendly touch. 'What are you doing? Where have you been +living?' continued the questioner, drawing the youth into the light of +a lamp, and regarding his pale, tired face with astonishment. + + [Illustration: HAYDN. + From photo RISCHGITZ.] + +'Nothing--nowhere. I am starving, that is all,' was the reply. + +'Starving--you! This is Reutter's handiwork,' said the other angrily. +'Have you seen your brother Michael? I met them coming out just now. +Was he not with the rest?' he added in a gentler tone, still keeping +his hand on the lad's shoulder. + +'Yes, he was there; but he didn't see me,' replied the wanderer +hesitatingly, adding, 'I was afraid the others might notice my +distress.' + +The friend bit his lip and seemed to be meditating. At last he spoke. +'Well, see here, Joseph, we cannot stand longer in the rain; come home +with me. You know I haven't a palace to offer you, but such as it is +you are welcome to a share of it for one night at least.' And so +saying he drew Joseph's arm within his own, and, bidding him walk +fast, the pair quitted the square. + +Well might honest Franz Spangler, who held no higher or more lucrative +post than that of tenor singer in the choir of St. Michael's Church, +warn his young friend not to expect the luxury of a home replete with +comforts. Indeed, anyone comparing the two young men as they threaded +the narrow streets leading to Spangler's abode would have found it no +easy matter to determine which presented the shabbier appearance; +though, having decided this point to his satisfaction, he would have +been at no trouble in estimating the sort of house to which the +chorister would be likely to introduce his friend. + +Situated in the poorest quarter of the town, the house presented a +sufficiently poverty-stricken appearance to warrant the meanest +opinion being entertained with regard to Spangler's powers of +hospitality. The kind-hearted singer was, in fact, almost as poor as +the youth whom he had befriended, with the additional responsibility +entailed by a wife and child. Nevertheless, to the homeless, starving +lad who now followed his protector up the crazy stairs leading to the +garret which comprised the latter's home, the chorister seemed by +comparison prosperous and well-to-do. Was it not luxury to be invited +to seat himself beside the scanty fire burning in the stove, and to +feel its warmth slowly penetrating to his chilled bones? Was it not +luxury to one who had tramped the streets--those endless, pitiless +streets--during the past eight-and-forty hours, without food or +shelter, to taste the warm bread-and-milk which his kindly hostess had +contrived to eke out of her small stock? Finally, was it not the +height of luxury to such an one to stretch his weary limbs beside the +dying embers, and sleep the sleep which exhausted nature demanded? + +The heart of Spangler might well have been touched by the distress +into which his young friend had fallen, seeing that he was already +acquainted with some of the circumstances to which his forlorn +condition was due. And life had promised so differently for poor +Joseph but a short while ago! When, some four years prior to this +meeting, he had welcomed the coming of his younger brother Michael to +the Cantorei, or choir-school of St. Stephen's, he could not have +divined that this brother would, indirectly, be the cause of his being +turned adrift into the streets. Yet such was the melancholy fact, and +as to the manner in which this was brought about we may properly +inquire while the subject of this history lies wrapped in slumber +beside the garret stove. + +About fifteen leagues to the southward of Vienna, and amidst the +marshy flats bordering upon the River Leitha, lies the little village +of Rohrau, which derives its name from its situation. At the extreme +end of the long, straggling street which comprises the village +stands, close to the river banks, a low, thatched building--half +house, half cottage--with a wheelwright's shop adjoining. The house +stands back a little way from the road, with a patch of greensward +before it, on which, in the days to which our story belongs, one might +have seen a waggon or two in process of repair, and possibly have +caught a glimpse of the worthy wheelwright himself at his work. + +Mathias Haydn, master wheelwright, and sexton of the little church +standing on the hill outside the village, was in the fullest sense +entitled to rank as a worthy: he was not only a deeply religious man, +but one who was looked up to and respected by every one in the village +and for many a mile around. There was an air of refinement about his +home which raised it far above the level of the homes by which it was +surrounded. A strong taste for music formed a part of Mathias's +nature, and it was shared to a great extent by his wife Maria. +Regularly each Sunday evening, when the duties of the day were +finished, he would bring out his harp, which he had learnt to play by +ear, and accompany himself in songs and hymns. He had a pleasing tenor +voice, and sang with great expression. The wife also sang well, and, +joining in with her husband on these occasions, their example soon +induced the children to add their voices to the concert. + +The long winter evenings were those specially devoted to music. It was +at one of such times, when the village street was deserted, and the +keen wind was sweeping it from end to end, sporting with the snow, +lifting it in whirling clouds, and building up drifts at every corner; +whilst away on the lonely marshes the ice-bound river lay shimmering +in the frosty moonlight, and the blast soughed through the tall reeds +and grasses, that the following little scene was being enacted within +the kitchen of the wheelwright's cottage. + + [Illustration: '_He was imitating the playing of a violin._'] + +On the oaken settle next the stove sat a child of about five years of +age, following with the closest attention his father's performance on +the harp. In his hands were two sticks, with which he was imitating +the playing of a violin, keeping accurate time with his bow to the +rhythm of the music. The rapt expression on the boy's face was not +lost upon the father, and thoughts which more than once had occupied +Mathias's mind as he watched his child's clever imitation of the +village schoolmaster's playing of the violin were recurring with +redoubled force on this occasion. And when the boy lifted up his sweet +treble voice in unison with the rest its beauty sent a thrill through +the father's heart. His own life had been a keen disappointment with +respect to his passionate love for music--a love which had made him +yearn to know more of the art for which he had so profound a +reverence. Hence the determination that his child should have every +chance that he could afford of developing such talents as he possessed +gathered strength as he perceived the manifestations of delight on the +part of little Joseph every time the harp was produced, and as he +noted the quickness and accuracy with which the boy learnt the simple +melodies that were played to him. And as time went on these thoughts +kindled a hope in the father's breast that his little Joseph might one +day become a musician, and perhaps--who could tell?--he might even +rise to be a Capellmeister! + +Joseph Haydn, the subject of our story and the centre of his father's +hopes, was born on March 31, 1732, and had attained his sixth year +when the first step towards the settlement of his future was taken by +his parents. Previous to this event Mathias had confided to his wife +the hopes which he entertained with regard to Joseph's musical career, +in the expectation that she would share them. Maria, however, did not +incline to her husband's views on the subject. She cherished a strong +desire that Joseph should eventually join the priesthood, and fancied +that she detected in the boy's reverence for sacred music a natural +leaning in that direction. + +Matters were at this juncture when an unexpected visit was paid to the +cottage by a distant relative named Johann Mathias Frankh, the +schoolmaster of Hainburg, a small town about four leagues from Rohrau. +Frankh, who was himself a fair musician, happened to visit the family +at the moment when they were engaged in their evening concert, and the +sight of Joseph with his toy violin at once attracted his attention. +The purity and accuracy of the child's singing, moreover, soon +convinced the schoolmaster that he had in him the makings of a good +musician, and without knowing anything of the parents' wishes or +intentions, he immediately proposed that Joseph should be placed under +his instruction. 'If you will let Sepperl (the Austrian diminutive for +Joseph) come to me,' said he, 'I will take care that he is properly +taught. I can see that he promises well.' + +Mathias gave a willing consent to the proposition, and Maria's +objections having been overruled (she kept to herself the hope that +this might, after all, prove to be but a stepping-stone to the +fulfilment of her wishes), in a very short time Joseph and his father +were seated in the waggon and jogging on their way to Hainburg. + +The new world into which Joseph found himself launched had many +drawbacks, but one excellent side. His 'cousin,' as he termed Frankh, +was a strict but careful teacher, and under his care the boy not only +learned to sing well, but also acquired a good deal of knowledge +regarding the various musical instruments in use at that time. In +other respects, too, his education was looked after; and as his +quickness at learning was remarkable, and his cousin did not scruple +to employ physical force to enable his pupil to master his +difficulties, Joseph made rapid progress, despite the fact that he was +often flogged when he should have been fed. The strict discipline to +which he was subjected may not have been without its value in inducing +habits of method and order in the boy's studies; but in many ways his +life was rendered unnecessarily hard. The schoolmaster was a married +man, but his wife showed the utmost indifference towards the little +fellow who had hoped to find in her a second mother, but who found +instead that he was neglected in every way. Next to religion itself, +Mathias and Maria had instilled into their children a positive +reverence for personal cleanliness. Joseph's distress, therefore, at +finding himself bereft of a mother's care became greater day by day as +he saw the rents in his clothing passed over and the means of keeping +his body in the state to which he had been accustomed unprovided. What +this meant to a sensitive child with a rooted aversion to dirt may be +imagined; nor were his sufferings in any way reduced by the attention +which his destitute, neglected state drew upon him. Try as he might to +forget his misery in his books, he could not but be aware of the +pitying glances which were cast at him by those whom he encountered in +his walks, or who passed by as he sat reading on the step outside his +cousin's door. + +Though ashamed of his appearance, Joseph was in no danger of losing +his self-respect--the love of cleanliness and order had been too +deeply implanted to be easily uprooted; moreover, his childish reason +whispered to him that the present state of things could not last for +ever, and in the meantime he bravely resolved to make the best of it. +He was receiving lessons on the clavier and violin, but the training +of his voice occupied the foremost place, and when not in school the +boy was nearly always to be found in the church, listening to the +organ or the singing. In a very short time he had made such progress +as to be admitted to the choir, where he joined his sweet young voice +in the singing of the Masses. + +Already his mind was beginning to feed upon those higher branches of +music which his natural gifts enabled him to appreciate. His +reverential nature was strongly shown in regard to his music, and it +was in the church alone that he could obtain the gratification of a +sense which was surely leading him on to greater things. As the days +went by he was conscious of a yearning for something that his present +surroundings could not supply. His thoughts were constantly travelling +towards a city wherein he had centred his hopes, and where he knew he +should find his heart's desires. That city was Vienna. It was before +his eyes as he stood in the choir of Hainburg Church; it came between +him and his book as he sat in the schoolroom conning his lesson; it +was in his dreams as he slept, as it was foremost in his thoughts on +waking. But Vienna lay afar off; and looking down at his ragged +clothing, and reflecting upon the poverty that surrounded him, Joseph +wondered if it would ever be possible for him to realise his dream. + +'Sepperl, come here; I want you.' It was his cousin Frankh's voice, +calling to him as he was leaving the schoolroom one morning. 'There is +to be a procession through the town next week, in honour of a +respected citizen who died yesterday. They have asked me to supply a +drummer, and I thought of you at once. Come, I will show you how to +make the stroke,' and, taking Joseph by the hand, he led him into the +yard where, having improvised a drum by turning a tub bottom +uppermost, Frankh placed a stick in the boy's hand and bade him beat +the time of a march. A few attempts sufficed to convince Frankh of his +pupil's proficiency, and Joseph was duly installed in the drummer's +place. Owing, however, to his small stature, it was found necessary to +call in the help of a schoolboy of his own height, and as this boy +happened to be a hunchback, he was enabled to carry the drums on his +back at the proper level for Joseph to beat them. The comical effect +thus produced proved too much for the gravity of many of the +bystanders, but Joseph went through his business with solemnity, +secretly deriving much pleasure from this public exhibition of his +skill, and thereafter he always retained an affection for the +instrument as well as a knowledge of how it should be played.[7] + +Haydn had just completed the second year of his school life at +Hainburg, when an event happened which brought the realisation of his +dreams suddenly within his grasp. The Capellmeister of St. Stephen's +Cathedral, in Vienna, George Reutter, was paying a visit to his +friend, the pastor of Hainburg, and in the course of conversation he +mentioned that he was in want of some good voices for the cathedral +choir. 'Then I think I can find you one at least,' replied his friend; +'he is a scholar of Frankh's, the schoolmaster here, and possesses an +excellent voice. Shall we send for him?' Reutter agreed, and a message +was accordingly dispatched to Frankh. + +In due course the schoolmaster appeared, leading Haydn by the hand, +and the pair were ushered into the presence of Reutter. + +The Capellmeister eyed the boy kindly, and, drawing him to his knee, +said, 'Well, my little fellow, can you make a shake?' + +Joseph looked up brightly. 'No, sir; but, then, no more can my cousin +Frankh here.' + +Reutter laughed at this outspokenness, and then, telling Haydn to +attend to him, he proceeded to show him how the shake was to be +performed. After a few attempts Joseph succeeded in satisfying his +instructor, who praised him for his quickness. During the experiment +the boy's eyes had been fixed on a dish of cherries standing on the +pastor's table. Reutter, perceiving the longing thus silently +expressed, reached out his hand for the dish, and telling Joseph that +he had earned his reward, he emptied the contents into the boy's +pockets. + +Haydn was next requested to sing a portion of a Mass which he knew by +heart, and when this trial was finished the Capellmeister expressed +his willingness to take him into the Cantorei of St. Stephen's. + +The boy's heart leapt within him as he heard the words. It was so +unexpected; it seemed almost too good to be true! Then suddenly the +thought of his ragged clothing swept across his mind, and the tears +started to his eyes. Surely, they would never admit such an urchin as +he to the famous choir-school! Reutter, however, did not seem to heed +his untidy state, and Haydn took heart of hope that after all this +might be remedied. In the letter which he wrote to his parents, asking +for their consent, he included an appeal for money wherewith to +purchase new clothing. Mathias had a large family to support on his +slender earnings, but he contrived to send a few florins for the +purpose, and as both parents at the same time gave a willing assent to +his leaving Hainburg, Joseph felt that every obstacle to the +fulfilment of his happiness had now been removed. The parting with his +teacher, however, was not accomplished without some regrets, for, +after all, Frankh, despite his severity, had done well by his pupil, +and that pupil was not slow in expressing his gratitude for all that +he owed to his relative's instruction. + +Possibly, if Joseph could have looked across the leagues which lay +between him and the city to which he was journeying with a power of +prophetic vision that enabled him to realise a portion of the future +that awaited him, he might have experienced some degree of misgiving. +But, happily for him, no cloud arose to obscure the sunny picture +which his imagination had drawn of the life that was opening before +him. Roseate, indeed, were the hues in which his fancy had painted +that picture, and foremost of all the objects that it contained was +the famous cathedral, with its magnificent spire pointing into the +clouds, its richly-sculptured stones, its glorious nave, flanked by +noble pillars, and its lofty vaulted roof, echoing to the voices of +the choir, or reverberating to the notes of the organ, the whole +flooded by the soft light falling from the painted windows. To picture +all this from the descriptions which had been given to him was to +conjure up a vision of indescribable beauty. And then, the Cantorei +itself--had not his cousin Frankh assured him that he would be taught +singing and to play the clavier and violin by the best masters, in +addition to Latin, writing, and cyphering? Lastly, there was the life +which went on outside the cathedral and the choir-school--the life of +a city within whose walls music had established a home, wherein she +flourished as nowhere else in the wide world could she be said to +flourish. + + [Illustration: _St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna._] + +All this, and more, had the eight-year-old musician learnt from +conversation and report during his two years' sojourn at Hainburg; and +of all this was he thinking as he travelled to Vienna with a heart and +mind yearning to enter into the joys and labours of such an existence. + +With what fervour he embarked upon his studies at the Cantorei, as +well as how quickly he progressed under the care of his teachers, may +be imagined. Child though he was, nothing in the shape of learning +came hard to him, and difficulties seemed to be created only in order +to be successfully overcome. Very soon came the desire to compose; but +just here the toughest obstacle of all, perhaps, presented itself--the +studies comprised no instruction in counterpoint. Still, Joseph was +not to be daunted. Seizing upon every scrap of music-paper that he +could find, he covered it with notes. 'If only the paper is nice and +full, it must be right,' he said to himself, as he bent his energies +to the task. + +Reutter, however, gave him no encouragement to proceed in this +direction. 'What are you about, Haydn?' inquired the Capellmeister +one day, as he lighted upon the boy suddenly in the midst of a +composition. Joseph looked up with a flush mantling in his cheeks. 'I +am composing, sir,' he answered. 'Let me see it,' requested the +master. It was a sketch of a 'Salve Regina' for twelve voices. Reutter +glanced at the work, and then tossed it back. 'Why don't you try to +write it for _two_ voices before attempting it in twelve?' was his +only comment, uttered in a sharp tone, in which sarcasm was too +plainly apparent. Joseph blushed deeper than before. 'Oh,' he said +simply; it was all he could say, for the master's sneer had struck +home. 'And if you must try your hand at composition,' continued +Reutter in a somewhat kinder tone than before, as he observed the +tears spring to the boy's eyes, 'let me advise you to write variations +on the motets and vespers which are played in the church.' With this +parting piece of counsel he passed on, leaving poor Haydn as much in +the dark as before with regard to how he ought to proceed. 'If only he +would instruct me in counterpoint, how I would thank him!' was the +thought uppermost in Joseph's mind, as he put his despised work out of +sight. + +But no instruction in the art of composition was forthcoming from +either the Capellmeister or any of the teachers, and Haydn was thrown +back upon his own resources. He possessed the talent, however, as well +as the perseverance, and of neither of these qualifications could they +dispossess him, and so, taking to heart Reutter's well-meant +admonition, he set to work afresh. His resources in the shape of +pocket-money were almost nil, yet by dint of scraping and denying +himself he managed to save sufficient to purchase two volumes, upon +the outsides of which his eyes had often feasted as the books lay +temptingly displayed upon the shelf of the second-hand bookseller. +One of these works was Fux's 'Gradus ad Parnassum' (a treatise on +composition and counterpoint), and the other Mattheson's 'Vollkommene +Capellmeister' (the Complete Chapel-master). + + [Illustration: '_He managed to save sufficient to purchase two + volumes._'] + +Precious indeed were these hardly-acquired volumes. Every moment that +could be snatched from schoolwork or choir-practice was devoted to +mastering the difficulties of the 'Gradus,' and in acquiring knowledge +concerning the high office which he had secretly set his heart upon +obtaining. There was unconscious humour in the fact that, following +upon Reutter's reproof to his over-ambitious strivings, the chorister +should have set himself to study the duties of his master's post. Yet +the temptation to smile is checked by the thought of the lonely +student giving up his play-hours to self-imposed study, battling in +grim earnest with problems that might well have turned the edge of a +determination less keen than that which was set to conquer them, and +battling thus unassisted and often, no doubt, against the craving for +food and fresh air which is inseparable from boyhood. + +It would be wrong, however, to suppose that Haydn absented himself +wholly from his companions and their merry games. There was within him +a soul for play as well as for work, and there were occasions when the +spirit of mischief obtained the ascendancy. The choir was frequently +required to perform in the Royal Chapel when the Court was in +residence at Schoenbrunn. The palace there had been newly erected, and +the workmen had not removed the scaffolding, a fact which was hailed +with delight by the choir-boys as affording an unlooked-for means of +relaxation. One after another climbed the poles, each striving to +outdo the rest in attaining the highest point. In vain did the Empress +Maria Theresa, who had perceived them from her windows, issue +prohibitions and threaten dire punishment to the offenders--the sport +went on unchecked. At length a moment arrived when Joseph, who had +beaten his companions by climbing to the top of the tallest pole, and +was daring them to come up to him, was detected by the Empress in the +very act. The Hofcompositor was sent for, and the figure of Haydn +rocking himself to and fro on the pole duly pointed out. 'Give that +fair-haired blockhead einen recenten Schilling' (slang for a 'good +hiding'); 'he is the ringleader of them all,' said the Empress. The +descent of Joseph from his elevated perch, and the descent of the +Hofcompositor's rod, were events which speedily followed the royal +command. + +A love of fun formed an essential part of Haydn's nature, but music +came before anything else. Even when playing with his fellow-choristers +in the cathedral square he would break away from the game at the first +sound of the organ, and enter the church to listen. His desire to +perfect himself in music was so strong that to the ordinary hours of +study and practice he voluntarily added several more each day, with the +result that he was often working sixteen or eighteen hours out of the +twenty-four. + +Five years had passed amidst these happy surroundings when Haydn awoke +one morning with the joyous thought that that day was to witness the +arrival of his younger brother Michael at the Cantorei. How eagerly he +had looked forward to this break in his life, with what zeal he had +planned how he was to assist Michael in his work, when he had smoothed +the young one's entry, helped him over his shyness, and shown him all +the delightful scenes and circumstances which his new life would +comprise. It had infused new vigour into his resolutions, and fired +him with fresh ardour for his own work, this coming of his brother to +share with him the pleasures which he had possessed for so long alone. + +Joseph's unselfish and generous feelings may have helped to blind his +vision to the little cloud which, almost from the moment when +Michael's pure young treble notes first soared aloft into the +cathedral's vast recesses, had begun to shut out some of the sunshine +that had gladdened his own existence. Certain it is that he had no +inkling of the sorrow which his brother's advent was destined to bring +upon him. Michael's progress was remarkably rapid, and it was soon +apparent that Joseph's prospects were as surely declining. The voice +which hitherto had enabled him to hold the chief place in the choir +showed signs of breaking, and one after another of the solo parts +which formerly he alone had been selected to sing were assigned to the +new chorister. Joseph's failing powers were unmistakably betrayed when +he sang before the Court, and, though intended only as a joke, the +Empress's remark to Reutter that Haydn's singing had come to resemble +the crowing of a cock, sufficed to open the Capellmeister's eyes to +the fact that Joseph must be put back. Consequently, at the +celebration of St. Leopold in the presence of the Emperor and Empress, +the singing of the 'Salve Regina' fell to the lot of Michael, whose +rendering so entranced his royal hearers that they presented the young +chorister with a sum of twenty ducats. + +To no one could it have been plainer than to poor Joseph himself that +the sun of his glory at St. Stephen's had set never to rise again. His +place was now virtually taken by the brother whose coming he had +welcomed, and the royal favours which heretofore had been allotted to +him were transferred to Michael for good. Mortified as he must have +felt at the slight thus accorded to him, Haydn cherished no feelings +of resentment towards the brother by whom he had been supplanted. He +had the good sense to attribute his misfortune to his failing voice +alone and to fall back upon the belief in his own powers to make his +way as a musician, which formed his one unfailing resource and comfort +during those darkening hours. + +How long Haydn might have remained at the Cantorei, in spite of his +breaking voice, and the consequent lessening of his importance as a +member of the choir, cannot be told; but an incident which happened at +this period settled his future as far as St. Stephen's was concerned, +in a manner as summary as it was unexpected. + +It is odd that Haydn's actual dismissal from the school must be laid +at the door of his love of fun, and that one who was so hard-working +and so wrapped up in his music should have been unable to resist the +temptation to play off a practical joke upon one of his colleagues +under the very eyes of the Capellmeister. Nevertheless, such was the +case, and a bright new pair of scissors, which had found their way +into his possession, was the means by which Joseph executed his joke, +and at the same time severed his connection with the Cantorei. It was +the fashion in those days for boys to wear pigtails, and Haydn's gaze +was one day riveted upon the movements of a pigtail belonging to the +chorister seated immediately in front of him. The pigtail was twitched +to and fro, or jerked up and down, in accordance with the movements of +its owner's head, with a vivacity which was at once fascinating and +exasperating to behold. The new scissors were being opened and closed +in Joseph's fingers--the itching to cut something was too strong to be +resisted--the tantalising pigtail was twitching under his very +nose--and the next moment, ere the owner of the scissors could realise +the crime he was committing, the once active pigtail lay as dead as +any doornail upon the floor. + +The punishment meted out to Haydn for this offence was slight--a mere +caning on the hand; but the indignity and disgrace of being caned +before the whole school was not to be borne. He pleaded for +forgiveness: 'Rather than submit to such a disgrace he would leave the +school.' Reutter had for long been seeking an excuse for turning the +lad adrift; a chorister without a voice was useless to him, and here +was his chance. 'You must take your caning first, and then you shall +have your dismissal,' he said, with cruel meaning in his tone, for he +knew Haydn's spirit. + +Joseph underwent the disgrace, and then, whilst the physical pain of +it yet lingered, he packed up his two precious volumes, placed the +remainder of his belongings on his brother's bed, and choking back the +rage that was almost suffocating him, he walked quickly out of the +building into the street. + + * * * * * + + [Illustration: _The tantalising pigtail._'] + +Having thus related the manner in which our hero was launched upon the +sea of adversity, without means of subsistence, and with no better +companion in his misery than the wrath aroused by the sense of his +harsh and unjust treatment, we must return to the point at which we +left him stretched beside the stove in Spangler's garret. At the same +time we desire to correct an impression which the reader may have +formed from the opening portion of our story that, at the moment of +his chancing upon this friend in need, Joseph was longing to return to +the comfortable quarters which he had quitted in such fiery haste. +Such an impression would be far from representing the true state of +Haydn's feelings at the time. He had, indeed, hoped to encounter +Michael--to speak a word with him, to beg of him, in fact, a crust of +bread; but his heart failed him when he saw his brother amongst his +companions, and pride stepped in as well to prevent him from exposing +his distress to so many curious eyes. Thus far he had yielded to the +promptings of hunger, but his resolution not to re-enter the school +had stood firm, in spite of the cravings of nature, in spite of his +friendless position, in spite of the long dreary vista of want which +the past eight-and-forty hours had opened to his eyes. He had acted +upon the impulse of the moment, but the bitterness of the cause which +prompted that action remained--nay, more, it was already acting like a +tonic upon a nature disciplined to look difficulties bravely in the +face. Those few hours of sound sleep put new life into his frame, and +when he awoke it was with the resolve to refrain from any further +attempt to see his brother, lest his desperate condition should +unsettle the younger one and render him unhappy. It would be a hard, +uphill fight, but he would fight it alone--not even his parents should +hear of him again unless he succeeded. + +'Now, Joseph, what do you propose to do?' was the inquiry of his host, +when the morning fast had been broken by a porringer of +bread-and-milk. 'Have you made up your mind to go back to the school? +or will you send word to your people that you intend to return home?' + +'I will never go back to the school,' answered Joseph firmly, 'and as +for going home, that is even further from my intentions than the +other.' And then he told his friend of the poverty which reigned at +home in consequence of the large and growing family, and the disgrace +which he should feel in casting himself as a burden upon those he +loved, especially after what had occurred. 'Sooner than do that,' he +exclaimed, 'I would rather starve in the streets. But, indeed, I +believe it will not be so bad as that; I have made up my mind to +support myself by music, and _I will never give in!_' + +Now Spangler, albeit a man of humble attainments, and a being, +moreover, who had set no very high ideals before his eyes, was not, as +we have seen, destitute of the quality of sympathy, nor could he +entirely obliterate from his memory a time when he himself had been +fired by a spark of ambition, and had recognised a longing to +accomplish something great. True, the spark had been but a feeble one +at best, and the unceasing demands upon his powers to supply the bare +necessaries of life, occasioned by an early and imprudent marriage, +had done their best to crush it out of existence. Nevertheless, the +memory of that time remained, and being freshly stirred by the +contemplation of his young friend's forlorn state, it united itself +with the stronger germ of sympathy, and blossomed out into a generous +proposal that Haydn should continue to occupy a corner of his garret +until such time as he could obtain employment. + +Haydn gratefully accepted the kindly offer, assuring Spangler that he +would repay his hospitality both in money and thanks. He gave this +assurance in the belief that its fulfilment could only be a question +of a short time. But many weary months, spent in fruitless +applications for employment and equally futile endeavours to secure +pupils, were destined to pass ere the first vestiges of success made +themselves apparent. Haydn was now seventeen, and possessed of the +appetite of a schoolboy; how to satisfy his natural cravings, +therefore, must have been almost as difficult a problem as that of +obtaining work. The rigours of an Austrian winter, too, added not a +little to his miseries, ill-fed and thinly clad as he was, but still +he struggled on, hopeful that the advent of spring would bring good +luck with the sunshine. + +Spring came at last, and found him still without means of subsistence, +yet not without the solace of hope. Notwithstanding the uncongeniality +of his surroundings, he had found opportunities for study, and never +had his treasured volumes seemed more precious to him than during +those long winter months, when despair haunted him like a shadow from +which there seemed no means of escape. His sole earnings had been the +pence flung to him from the windows as he stood singing in the +snow-covered streets, either alone or in the company of other youths +as destitute as himself. But now spring had come; the glorious sun had +chased away the snow and the biting frost, and the poor chorister felt +its genial rays quickening the life-blood in his veins, and awakening +his cramped muscles to action. It is only the pinched and starved +human beings of this great Northern Hemisphere who really know what a +beneficent food-giver is the sun. + +One morning, as Haydn stood idly wondering what he should do next, a +procession of men and women, headed by several priests, passed by, +bound for the shrine of the Virgin at Mariazell. Struck with an idea, +Haydn joined the cavalcade, and on reaching the church in which the +pilgrims were to assemble, he sought out the choirmaster, and, telling +him how and where he had been trained, begged for employment. With a +contemptuous glance at the ex-chorister's ragged clothing, however, +the master bade him begone, saying 'that he had had enough of lazy +rascals such as he coming from Vienna to seek for work.' The tears +started to the lad's eyes as he turned away. Would nobody hold out a +helping hand? He had been speculating upon this opportunity as he +trudged along the road until it seemed almost a certainty; and must +this cup, too, be dashed from his lips? + +A few minutes later he perceived the choristers entering the church by +a side-door, and, emboldened by hunger, he slipped in amongst them, +donned a surplice, and took his place in the stalls. Finding himself +next to the principal soloist, he requested that he might be allowed +to share the latter's copy. The request was indignantly refused, but +Haydn, who knew the service almost by heart, resolved to await his +opportunity. When the moment arrived for the singing of the solo, he +snatched the copy from the chorister's hands, and, lifting up his +voice, sang the part with such exquisite finish and beauty of +expression as to electrify the rest of the choir and excite the +admiration of the master. + +At the conclusion of the service Haydn was sent for by the +choirmaster, who, after expressing his regret for his former +abruptness, asked him to stay with them until the following day. Poor +starving Haydn was only too glad to accept the invitation, and when +the morrow arrived he was told that he might extend his stay for +several days longer. When, therefore, he finally returned to Vienna, +it was with a small sum of money jingling in his pockets and a frame +invigorated by a liberal supply of such food as it had not been his +privilege to taste since the day when he quitted the Cantorei of St. +Stephen's. + +It was the first gleam of sunshine that had crossed his path since +those happy days, and it served to dispel some of the gloomy +desperation which, during the long, dark days of winter, had laid +constant siege to his resolutions, which had, indeed, once or twice +nearly shaken them from that bed-rock of belief in his own unaided +powers which, coupled with his simple faith in God, had sustained him +and sent him forward from day to day. Often had he lain, shivering and +famished, beneath his scanty coverlet in the corner of the garret +allotted to him, watching the stars shining through the skylight above +his head, and praying, with all the earnestness of a warrior-knight of +the Middle Ages, for strength to battle with the temptation of +despair. If music--the music that raises and ennobles, that +strengthens, and uplifts the soul of man to heights which bring him +nearer and ever nearer to a true conception of God--were destined to +find a voice in Haydn's soul, that music must have owed its inception +to those midnight hours of silent communion--those struggles with +natural want--which were passed beneath the rafters of his miserable +lodging. + +And gradually his determination prevailed. The tide of fortune sent +some ripples of success to his feet. A few pupils were induced by the +trifling charge which he made to let him give them lessons on the +clavier; a like desire for economy probably induced others to employ +his services occasionally as violin-player at balls and other +entertainments; whilst one or two aspirants for musical honours +permitted him to undertake the revision and arrangement of their +compositions at a small fee. Such cheering signs of improved +prospects, feeble in themselves, assumed in Haydn's eyes the aspect of +rewards for which he could not be sufficiently grateful. + +And then the tide of success came with something like a rush. A worthy +tradesman, named Buchholz, who loved music, and had occasionally +invited Haydn to sing and play to him after business hours, was +touched by his distress, and as a proof of his faith in the struggling +musician's honour, as well as with a desire to help him on his way, he +lent him the sum of a hundred and fifty florins, to be repaid, +without interest, when opportunity permitted. + +To Haydn such a sum seemed a veritable fortune, and, indeed, it +brought with it the power of effecting great changes in his life. He +was now enabled to quit the tenement of Spangler and take a garret of +his own, or what was, in truth, a portion partitioned off from a +larger garret. As an exchange the new abode was not without its +drawbacks. Semi-darkness prevailed even at midday; there was no stove, +and as the summer had come and gone and winter was once more upon the +city its discomforts were speedily made manifest by the rain and snow, +which found their way through the broken roof. Nor were his neighbours +in the least inclined to respect his desire for quietude. +Nevertheless, in spite of these hardships, Haydn was happy--'too +happy,' as he himself put it, 'to envy the lot of Kings'; for had he +not added to his priceless treasures the first six sonatas of Emmanuel +Bach, which he lost no time in mastering? More than this, he had +become the possessor of a little clavier--a poor, worm-eaten +instrument, it is true, but one which brought much solace to him in +his loneliness. + +On the third story of the house in which Haydn was living lodged an +Italian poet of some celebrity--Metastasio by name--between whom and +the friendless ex-chorister an acquaintance sprang up which resulted +in Haydn's introduction as music-teacher to the poet's favourite +pupil, Marianne Martinez. Upon the heels of this piece of good fortune +followed a second. Through Metastasio's interest Haydn became +acquainted with Nicolo Porpora, the most eminent teacher of singing +and composition of his day, who was at the time giving singing-lessons +to Marianne. But before sufficient time had elapsed for the latter +introduction to produce any definite result, Haydn had found +employment in a new and unlooked-for direction. + +It was a common fashion in Vienna at that day for poor and struggling +musicians to earn a few florins by serenading personages of note in +the town; but as the number of would-be serenaders was always far in +excess of the number of celebrities who aspired to be thus honoured, +the pecuniary advantages, as a rule, were very small. It happened, +however, that Felix Kurz, the manager of one of the principal Viennese +theatres, had lately married a beautiful woman, whose charms were the +theme of conversation in fashionable circles, and it occurred to Haydn +and two of his companions to serenade the lady with music of the +former's own composing. Accordingly, the trio repaired one night to +Madame Kurz's windows and began their performance. Presently the door +opened, and the figure of Kurz appeared, enfolded in a dressing-gown. +Beckoning to Haydn, he inquired, 'Whose music is that which you were +playing just now?' 'My own,' replied the serenader. 'Indeed!' +responded Kurz, opening his eyes in surprise. 'Then just step inside, +if you please,' Haydn obeyed wonderingly, and having been first +introduced to madame, who complimented him on his performance, he was +conducted by the manager to the parlour, where refreshments were +produced for himself and his companions. 'Come and see me to-morrow,' +said Kurz to Haydn at parting. 'I think I have some work for you.' + +When Haydn put in an appearance on the following day the manager at +once proceeded to business. He explained that he had just written a +comic opera, to which he had given the title of 'The Devil on Two +Sticks,' and was looking out for a musician to set it to music. He had +been struck by Haydn's serenade on the previous night, and believed +that he would do. 'Now,' he continued, 'there is a tempest scene at +sea for which appropriate music is needed. Let me hear what you would +suggest.' + + [Illustration: '"_Whose music is that which you were playing + just now?_"'] + +Haydn seated himself at the harpsichord, but as he had never seen the +sea in his life, he felt at a loss how to begin. After trying a few +chords he mentioned his difficulty to Kurz. 'Oh, I haven't seen it, +either,' responded the manager airily; 'but I imagine it is something +like this'--and he began to throw his arms into the air as he paced up +and down. 'Picture a mountain rising, then a valley sinking; then a +second mountain, and another valley--mountains and abysses following +one another--there you are!' + +In vain Haydn grappled with the subject--trying it in fifths, in +fourths, then in octaves--the excited manager meanwhile tossing his +arms about, and shouting and gesticulating. It was all to no purpose. +At length, losing all patience, Haydn cried, 'The devil take the +tempest!' at the same moment plumping his hands with a crash on to the +extreme ends of the keyboard, and then rapidly bringing them together. +'That's it, that's it! You've got it now!' cried the delighted Kurz, +springing at the astonished composer and embracing him with fervour. + +From that moment all went well, and the opera was completed to the +author's satisfaction, albeit Haydn, glad as he was to receive his +reward, felt that he had little cause for self-congratulation at the +results from a musicianly point of view. The opera was duly produced, +and received with some measure of approval; but its life was no longer +than its merits deserved, and Haydn himself was not desirous of +delaying its interment, for he had higher work in view. + +We must now return to his acquaintanceship with Porpora. The +singing-master had observed Haydn's skill in playing the harpsichord, +and thinking that he saw his way to turning the poor musician's +abilities to a useful purpose, he offered to employ him as +accompanist. Haydn gladly accepted the proposal, hoping that he would +thus be enabled to pick up something of the master's method. Though +ostensibly engaged to play the accompaniments of Porpora's songs when +the latter was giving his pupils their lessons, Joseph soon found that +he was regarded in no higher light than that of an ordinary +serving-man. The discovery of this fact, however, occasioned him no +dismay, nor did he exhibit the slightest repugnance at being called +upon to clean his master's shoes, brush his coat, or dress his +periwig. In vain did the sour old man hurl such epithets as 'fool,' +'blockhead,' 'dolt,' at his musical valet in return for the latter's +attempts to minister to his personal comforts. Haydn's sole object was +to be near Porpora in order that he might garner each crumb of +knowledge--each hint, however small--that the great man chanced to let +fall from his stores of learning; and the master, noting his +perseverance and also the gentleness with which he took his buffetings +and sarcasms, gradually softened towards his dependent, and, beginning +by giving him a stray piece of advice now and then, ended by answering +all his questions, and setting him right where he needed correction in +his compositions. To crown all, Porpora brought Haydn under the notice +of the nobleman in whose house he was teaching, with the result that, +when the nobleman took his family to the baths of Mannersdorf for +several months, Haydn, to his delight, was allowed to accompany the +party in the capacity of Porpora's accompanist. + +This piece of good fortune proved to be the turning-point in his +career, for the eminent musicians whom he met at Mannersdorf not only +received him very kindly, but evinced the greatest interest in his +compositions, many of which were performed during this visit. His +acquaintance with one of these musicians--a well-known violinist named +Dittersdorf--ripened into friendship, and led to Haydn's receiving +violin lessons at this master's hands. Another solid advantage +accruing from his association with Porpora lay in the fact that the +nobleman himself, struck by Haydn's progress, and desirous of helping +on one who showed so great a talent for art, allotted him a pension of +six sequins (L3) a month. Haydn's action on receiving the first +instalment of this generous bounty was consistent with his desire to +maintain a neat appearance, as well as an indication of the distress +which his privations had hitherto caused him to suffer: he instantly +repaired to the nearest tailor's and purchased a suit of black. + +On his return to Vienna fortune continued to smile upon him, as if +anxious to atone for her neglect in the past. One after another sought +his aid in teaching and composing, with the result that he was enabled +to raise his terms and move into decent lodgings. His struggles, if +not actually ended, had become so lightened as to leave his mind free +to pursue the higher walks of his art in comparative peace. From +another quarter, too, the hand of friendship was extended to him. He +received a summons to present himself at the house of the Countess +Thun, whose devotion to music was only equalled by her generous +patronage of those in whom she discerned the signs of genius. The +Countess had lately heard one of Haydn's clavier sonatas performed, +manuscript copies of which had, in accordance with the custom +prevailing amongst unknown composers, been sent to the houses of the +aristocracy, and, being charmed with the beauty of the work, she had +inquired the name of the composer, with the object of engaging his +services. + +It is probable that the Countess had formed a very different +conception of Haydn's appearance from his work, for she could scarcely +conceal her surprise when he was ushered into her presence. That one +so ill-dressed and--it must be confessed--so uncouth of manner could +be the composer of such charming music seemed impossible. Her face +showed this so plainly that Haydn, knowing her generous character, +ventured to relate the story of his struggles. As he proceeded with +his simple narrative, the Countess's eyes filled with tears. She was +one of the noblest of women, and her heart was touched by the +reflection that the art which she loved should demand so much +sacrifice and suffering from those whose lives were wholly given up to +its ennoblement. She had supposed that one who could write such music +must have the command of money and the influence of wealthy +patrons--yet how different were the facts! Haydn's relation ended, the +Countess assured him that thenceforth he might count upon her as his +friend and well-wisher as well as pupil, and the happy young musician, +having attempted to express his thanks, withdrew with a heart +overflowing with gratitude. + +A future bright with promise had now dawned for Haydn. His works were +to be heard in the best musical circles of Vienna, and praise and +encouragement flowed in from every quarter. A wealthy music patron, +Karl von Fuernberg, who had recognised his genius, persuaded him to +compose his first quartet, and thus turned his attention to the branch +of composition in which he was later on to excel. At the instance of +this patron Haydn, in 1759, received the appointment of music-director +to a rich Bohemian nobleman named Count Ferdinand Morzin, who was an +ardent lover of music, and maintained a small orchestra at his country +seat. This was a great step in his advancement, and the year which +witnessed it is also memorable as having been that in which he +composed his first symphony. + +Haydn was now twenty-six, and no longer an unknown musician. One point +with regard to his compositions had already struck many whose judgment +carried weight, and had aroused some criticism on the part of the +connoisseurs: this point was their originality. He appeared to have +marked out for himself an independent line of work, and to be +following it up with a boldness that, in the eyes of certain of his +critics, savoured of an open defiance of established rules. But the +fact was overlooked by these critics that the circumstances of Haydn's +life had thrown him back upon himself and compelled him to be +original. His knowledge of counterpoint, to the rules of which he +showed a seeming disregard, had been derived almost entirely from +self-study. Without a single helping hand to guide him, he had +mastered the formidable difficulties of his 'Gradus'; and lighted only +by his inborn genius, he had deliberately chosen the path which he +felt to be that which would conduct him to the highest levels of his +art. The independence thus gained--and which speedily showed itself in +all that he wrote--was a possession born of suffering and solitude, +though never of ignorance, and as such it represented the truest as +well as the freest expression of his musical soul. With the dawn of +brighter days he had procured and studied all the works on theory that +were to be obtained, only to find himself strengthened in his +determination to adhere to the line which those hours of lonely study +and reflection had shown him to be the right one for him to adopt. +Few, indeed, of those who had risen to be masters in music could claim +to have been less influenced by the composers of their own or a +previous day than could Joseph Haydn; and the progress of our story +will show in what manner opportunity favoured the further growth and +development of that independence which even at the present stage had +impressed its stamp upon his works. + +We must first of all, however, relate what befell our hero in a very +different sphere from that in which we have hitherto followed his +fortunes. + +Some time before the period at which our story has arrived, Haydn had +been engaged to teach the harpsichord to the two daughters of a +wig-maker named Keller. As the lessons progressed the teacher became +conscious of a growing attachment for the younger of his pupils. There +was something spiritual about the character of this maiden which +appealed strongly to his musical temperament, though probably the +loneliness of his life at the time may have added force to his longing +to possess her for his wife. His poverty, however, must have convinced +him of the hopelessness of declaring himself at the moment, and for +some time his love remained as a cherished secret, fed by the hope +which formed almost his sole resource. But now that fortune had smiled +upon him he ventured to press his cause with assurance--albeit it must +be confessed that this assurance rested on no more secure basis than a +salary of some twenty pounds a year and the prospect of an extended +teaching connection. But his hopes were doomed to disappointment, for +the maiden had in the meantime elected to take the veil, prompted so +to do, most probably, by the very same leanings which had rendered her +nature so attractive to poor Haydn. + +Could he but have been content to bear with his disappointment, +seeking in his art the consolation which she had it in her power to +bestow, Haydn would have been saved much unhappiness in the future. +Most likely he would have adopted this course in the end, had his will +and his self-regard been stronger; but neither, it seems, was proof +against the blandishments of the match-making perruquier. Anxious to +secure an alliance with one who showed so much promise, Keller brought +all his powers of persuasion to bear in favour of Haydn's accepting +the hand of his eldest daughter, and, sad to relate, he succeeded. +Maria Anna was not only three years older than the man who pledged his +faith to her before the altar of St. Stephen's, but she comprised in +her nature as much of the quality of the virago as her younger sister +had exhibited of the angel. She was heartless and extravagant, prone +to outbursts of uncontrollable temper, and in every way utterly +unfitted to be the wife of a man whose fame had yet to be compassed. +Indeed, she soon showed that she had not the slightest reverence +either for her husband or his art; for all she cared, Haydn might just +as well have been a cobbler as an artist, provided he supplied her +with money to satisfy her extravagant desires. + +Fortunately for Haydn, the circumstances of his life were about to +undergo an important change. Count Morzin was compelled to reduce his +establishment, and hence dismissed his band and its director. What +might otherwise have proved a great misfortune for Haydn was, however, +the means of securing for him a post which not only raised him to the +position which he had set his heart on attaining, but precluded the +possibility of his wife's living with him. Amongst those who had +visited Count Morzin's house and listened with delight to the +performance of Haydn's compositions was the then reigning Prince of +Hungary, Paul Anton Esterhazy. No sooner had the Prince been made +aware of Count Morzin's intentions than he offered Haydn the post of +second Capellmeister at his country seat of Eisenstadt. The chief +Capellmeister, whose name was Werner, was old and infirm, but the +Prince retained him in his position on account of his length of +service. To Haydn, however, was assigned the sole control of the +orchestra, as well as a free hand in regard to most of the musical +arrangements. + +It is needless to recount the joyful feelings with which Haydn +received the news of his appointment, offering as it did the most +exceptional opportunities for prosecuting his beloved art. Not even in +his wildest dreams could he have pictured such magnificence as that +which greeted him on his arrival at the Palace of Eisenstadt. For +generations past the Esterhazys had been devotedly attached to music, +and the reigning Prince had spared neither pains nor expense to equip +his establishment with the means of performing not only the fullest +Church services, but complete operas as well. The sight of the huge +building, with its spacious halls and apartments and its troops of +servants; the enchanting grounds, decked with parterres of choicest +flowers; and the lakes and fountains scintillating in the sunshine, +must have presented to the young musician, fresh from his lodging in +the crowded city, a vision of endless beauty. The very air of the +place breathed a music of its own, as, laden with the perfumes of +countless blossoms, it was wafted into the apartments set aside for +his use. Hard work lay before him; but what work could be too hard +when performed amidst such exquisite surroundings as these, and for a +master whose unstinting generosity and fatherly care for those about +him were so widely known? From the outset Haydn realised that here he +would enjoy the freest scope for the exercise of his gifts, with the +additional advantage, for which the greatest masters might well have +envied him, of being able to give practical effect to whatever he +wrote before committing it to the judgment of the world outside. + +No wonder, then, that under such favouring conditions as these +compositions poured from his pen; nor was it long ere the musicians +whom he commanded had learnt to regard him with affection, and to vie +with each other in their eagerness to fulfil his wishes. + +In about a year from the date of Haydn's engagement Prince Paul Anton +died, and the event marked a further advancement in the composer's +fortunes. Prince Nicolaus, who succeeded his brother, was a passionate +lover of the arts and sciences, in addition to being one of the most +generous and warm-hearted of men. His succession implied an added +magnificence and pomp to what seemed already perfect. To Haydn he gave +an assurance of his good-will and appreciation by raising his salary +from four hundred to six hundred florins, and, later, to seven hundred +and eighty-two florins (or L78), allowed him to select additional +musicians, and at the same time gave him to understand that he should +look for an increase in the number of performances. The Prince himself +played the baryton, or viola di bardone--a stringed instrument of +sweet, resonant tone, which, like the viol da gamba, to which it bore +some resemblance, has long since ceased to be heard. As the Prince +prided himself on his playing, Haydn was required to produce endless +pieces for the instrument, and he was even at considerable pains to +acquire a knowledge of the baryton itself, thinking thereby to afford +his master pleasure. To his chagrin, however, he discovered that his +efforts in this direction were not at all appreciated by the royal +performer, who had no fancy to see himself outskilled. + +In 1766 Werner died, and Haydn succeeded to the full title. He had +thus reached the summit of his boyish ambition, and could look back +with pride to those early days when he studied the 'Complete +Chapel-master' in his lonely garret, and longed for the day to come +when his father's dream might be realised. And what of the parents +whom he had left behind in the little village? How had they fared +during these long years of struggle and success? The mother died seven +years before Haydn received his appointment to the Esterhazy family, +and while he was still striving to make his way; and the pleasure +which success had brought to him must have been tinged with the regret +that she had not lived to witness it. Mathias had married again, but +he managed to find his way to Eisenstadt, where, to his pride and joy, +he heard Joseph addressed as 'Herr Capellmeister!' Thither, also, came +Michael, who had been appointed director and concertmeister to +Archbishop Sigismund of Salzburg, to spend several happy days with his +elder brother. + +Haydn's fame as a composer had spread far beyond the walls of +Eisenstadt. Musicians of Leipzig, Paris, Amsterdam, and even London, +were playing his symphonies, trios, and quartets, whilst the _Wiener +Diarium_--the Austrian official gazette--for 1766 refers to him as +'the favourite of our nation,' and pays him the high compliment of +comparing him with Gellert, the most esteemed poet of the day. 'What +Gellert is to poetry Haydn is to music,' writes the critic. + +Werner's death was shortly followed by an event which implied a still +greater change in Haydn's surroundings. Prince Nicolaus had been +engaged in carrying out a scheme for the rebuilding of his +shooting-box near Suettoer on a scale of magnificence rivalling that of +Versailles in its palmiest days, and, the works being completed, the +Prince moved thither with the major portion of his household. No more +lonely spot or one more unhealthy in its natural state, could have +been chosen than that which formed the site of the new residence. +Standing in the middle of a salt marsh, forming the southern extremity +of the great lake called the Neusiedler-See, Esterhaz, as the palace +was named, was quite cut off from the outside world. The work of +draining and reclaiming the land, however, had effected such an +improvement that what in its primitive condition had been little +better than desolate swamp, resounding to the harsh cries of +wild-fowl, was now become a scene of veritable enchantment. The thick +wood which lay behind the house had been transformed into shady groves +and open glades for deer, whilst the front windows of the palace +looked upon extensive flower-gardens, with a profusion of hothouses, +summerhouses, arbours, and temples. The castle itself comprised a +hundred and sixty-two apartments, splendidly decorated, and filled +with costly collections of art. Even Eisenstadt itself paled before +the beauty and magnificence of this new palace of Aladdin which the +genie of wealth had raised on the dismal marsh. + +The provision for music and acting was on a scale as elaborate as that +of the rest of the palace. A splendid theatre, designed and equipped +for the performance of operas and dramatic works, had been reared near +the castle, and beside this stood a smaller theatre, fitted up for the +marionette performances, to the perfecting of which the Prince had +devoted much attention. The orchestra was reinforced by travelling +players of eminence, whilst, in addition to singers especially engaged +from Italy, various strolling companies were invited to give their +services from time to time. It was an essential part of the scheme +that this body of musicians and actors--temporary as well as +permanent--should form one family, with Haydn as its head; but the +appellation of 'Father Haydn,' by which the Capellmeister was known to +the members of his orchestra, had its origin in an affection which +owed nothing to discipline or arrangement. 'Friend, go back to the +first _allegro_,' was the wording of a direction written by Haydn on +the cover of one of his confrere's music-books, and it may be taken as +an indication of the happy relations which existed between the chief +of orchestra and his men. + +A picture of the daily life at Esterhaz from spring to autumn would +show a constant round of life in its fullest and gayest sense. +Visitors poured in at its hospitable gates in an unbroken stream; and +the strain upon those whose duty it was to provide amusement for the +pleasure-seekers must have been enormous. If there was abundance of +work, however, there was no lack of helpers, and thus Esterhaz became +a little world in itself--a centre of music and acting, as well as an +emporium of art treasures. Thither came the Empress Maria Theresa on a +visit, and Haydn seized the opportunity of reminding her of the +chastisement which she had ordered him to receive when, as a +fair-haired chorister, he had clambered up the scaffolding-poles of +the royal palace. 'Ah, well!' replied the Empress with a smile; 'you +must see yourself, my dear Haydn, that the whipping has produced good +fruit!' + +Prince Nicolaus, though an excellent master, and one for whom Haydn +entertained a deep affection, was, nevertheless, somewhat unreasonable +in expecting his Capelle to share his devotion to Esterhaz as an +almost continuous residence. The visits to Vienna were getting fewer +and shorter--even the winter at Eisenstadt had been reduced to its +shortest limits--and, admitting the attractions of the new palace as a +summer residence, the musicians were pining to see their wives and +families, and to breathe once more the air of the city. In 1772 the +stay at Esterhaz was prolonged so far into the autumn that the +musicians became impatient. The Prince had made no announcement of +the date of his departure, and Haydn at length resolved to convey to +his royal master a delicate hint of the orchestra's desire to be set +free. He therefore announced the performance of what he called 'The +Farewell Symphony'; and when the evening arrived, sixteen performers +took their seats in the orchestra to carry out the Capellmeister's +scheme, whilst the Prince, having no suspicion of what was intended, +occupied his accustomed place. All went as usual until the last +movement was reached, when one pair of performers rose from their +chairs, extinguished their candles, and quietly left the orchestra. +The music proceeded, and a little later a second pair arose, went +through the same pantomime, and disappeared, the Prince watching their +movements with a puzzled expression that almost destroyed the gravity +of the rest of the performers. Pair after pair thus left the building, +until at last only Tomasini (the Prince's favourite violinist) and +Haydn remained. Finally, Tomasini blew out his candle, bowed to the +Prince, and retreated, and as Haydn prepared to follow his example, +the Prince's eyes were opened to their drift. Good-humouredly +regarding the whole thing in the light of a joke, he exclaimed, 'If +all go, we may as well go too!' and immediately quitting the theatre, +he gave directions for the departure of the household. + +We must pass over the years which intervened between the date of the +'Farewell Symphony' (the merits of which as a musical work must not be +confused with the circumstances under which it was written), and the +year 1790, when, to his great grief, Haydn lost the master to whom he +had become so deeply attached. The Prince left Haydn a pension of one +thousand florins, on condition that he retained his post as +Capellmeister to the family. Prince Anton, however, who succeeded his +brother, had no taste for music. The Capelle was practically +disbanded, and though Haydn kept his official position, his constant +presence at the palace was no longer necessary, and he took up his +residence in Vienna. + +Some three years before this event several attempts had been made by +English musicians of eminence to induce him to come to London and play +at the professional concerts, but he had resisted these offers with +one and the same excuse--he could not leave the master whom he loved. +On the last occasion Salomon, the well-known musician and +concert-director, had dispatched a publisher named Bland to Esterhaz +to endeavour to persuade Haydn to alter his mind. Bland was shown into +a room adjoining that in which Haydn happened to be shaving, and +whilst seated there he overheard the composer growling to himself over +the bluntness of his razors. At length Bland caught the exclamation, +'Ach! I would give my best quartet for a good razor!' and without more +ado, he rushed off to his lodgings and returned in a few minutes with +a pair of razors, which he presented to Haydn. The Capellmeister +accepted the gift with a smile, and rewarded the enterprising +publisher with a copy of his latest quartet, which, later on, was +produced in London, and has ever since been known by the title of the +'Rasirmesser' (Razor) quartet. + +The death of Prince Nicolaus removed the only obstacle to Haydn's +undertaking a journey to London; consequently, when one morning he +found a visitor awaiting him at his house, who announced his business +thus: 'My name is Salomon; I have come from London to fetch you; we +will settle terms to-morrow,' Haydn regarded the matter as practically +settled. + +Mozart was in Vienna at the date of Salomon's visit. Haydn had been +strongly drawn towards the young musician ever since the time, five +years before, when, after listening to one of Mozart's quartets, he +had delighted the heart of Leopold Mozart by declaring that his son +was the greatest composer he had ever heard. Mozart's affection for +Haydn was equally warm, and now, on hearing that the latter +contemplated a journey to England, he tried to persuade him against +it, urging that he was advanced in years and unacquainted with the +English language. Haydn listened to his friend's objections, and then +observed with a smile, 'No matter; I speak a language which is +understood all over the world.' 'Then,' said Mozart, grasping Haydn's +hand as he spoke, it is good-bye, for we shall never meet again!' The +words were prophetic, for only a year later Haydn in London was +stunned by the news of Mozart's death. + +It was a stormy December day when Haydn and Salomon set sail from +Calais, and the passage to Dover was a long and trying one for the +travellers. Nevertheless, Haydn, taking his stand on the deck, enjoyed +his first sight of the waves, and as the spray dashed in his face he +recalled with a smile how he had attempted to write the tempest music +for the actor-manager Kurz. A long interval separated him from those +days of keen want and fierce struggle, when he strove, almost against +hope, to establish a foothold for himself in the music-loving city of +Vienna! Now he was travelling to a greater city, not as an unknown, +struggling student, but with the assurance of a welcome befitting one +whom fame had already claimed for her own. + + [Illustration: '_Haydn enjoyed his first sight of the waves._'] + +The night of his arrival in London was passed at Bland's music +warehouse, No. 45, High Holborn,[8] but the following day he went to +live with Salomon at the latter's lodgings, No. 18, Great Pulteney +Street, Golden Square.[9] Salomon had by no means overestimated the +warmth of the welcome which London was prepared to give to the +composer whose works were already familiar to English music-lovers. +From every quarter admiration and attentions were lavished upon him; +all the most celebrated people besought his acquaintance, and he was +invited everywhere. Yet his equanimity never deserted him. He took +everything very simply, and as if it were his due, and thoroughly +enjoyed the river parties and picnics which were arranged in his +honour. Not so, however, the lengthy dinners or evening entertainments +in town, where his ignorance of the language and customs of his hosts +made him feel less at his ease. The incessant noise of the streets was +a source of great discomfort to one who had been so long accustomed to +the silence of the country; and he positively refused to fashion +himself to the late hours of London. When, later on, he removed his +lodging to Lisson Grove, he writes in a strain of rejoicing to a +Vienna friend that he has at length found himself in the country amid +lovely scenery, where he lives as if he were in a monastery! It is +difficult for us to imagine the Lisson Grove of a century ago, when +the road stretched away through green fields and woodland spaces. + +The first of Salomon's concerts was held on March 11, 1791, at the +Hanover Square Rooms. The hall was crowded, and the performance of +Haydn's 'Symphony' (Salomon, No. 2) was received with great applause; +nor would the audience remain satisfied until the _adagio_ movement +had been repeated--an event of such rare occurrence in those days as +to call for comment in the newspapers. This marked the beginning of a +most successful series of concerts, at each of which Haydn received a +great ovation. His benefit took place on May 16, and realized L350. + +The Handel Commemoration Festival--the fifth and last of the +century--was held in Westminster Abbey during this visit, and it must +have been a moving sight to Haydn to observe the crowds flocking to +the Abbey early on that summer morning in order to hear the master's +greatest work. Haydn had secured a seat close to the King's box--a +position which commanded a view of the nave and the vast concourse of +listeners. Rarely had those venerable walls looked down upon such a +sea of expectant faces as that which was turned towards the distant +bank of musicians and singers when the moment drew nigh for the +performance to begin. There was reverence expressed in the hushed +silence which pervaded every nook and corner of the Abbey at that +supreme moment--a befitting reverence both for the dead composer whose +immortal work was to be celebrated, and for the sacredness of the +subject which he had chosen for illustration. As the oratorio +proceeded Haydn became more and more impressed. He had never heard the +'Messiah' performed on so grand a scale before, and when the opening +chords of the 'Hallelujah Chorus' rang through the nave and the entire +audience sprang to their feet, he burst into tears, exclaiming to +those around him, 'He is the master of us all!' + + [Illustration: '_Lisson Grove a century ago._'] + +The first week in July found him at Oxford, at Commemoration, whither +he had gone to receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Music. Three +grand concerts were given in his honour, the principal singers and +performers having been brought from London, and on each occasion his +compositions were greeted with great applause. He appeared at the +third concert clad in his Doctor's gown, and met with an enthusiastic +reception. It was evident, however, that he was not feeling quite at +home in his new vestment, for when the students clapped their hands +and shouted he raised the gown as high as he could, exclaiming as he +did so, 'I thank you,' whereupon the applause was redoubled. Haydn +writes to a friend that he had to walk about for three whole days clad +in this guise, and he only wishes that his Vienna friends could have +seen him. + +Amidst the wealth of incident which signalised his visit two little +scenes found a cherished corner in Haydn's memory. He was invited by +the Prince of Wales to visit Oatlands Park as the guest of the Duke of +York, who was spending his honeymoon there with his young bride, the +Princess of Prussia. The seventeen-year-old bride welcomed the sight +of Haydn's kindly face and the familiar sound of the German tongue, +and in one of his letters he describes how the _liebe Kleine_ sat +beside him as he played his 'Symphony,' humming the well-known airs to +herself, and urging him to go on playing until long past midnight. The +Princess also sang and played to him, whilst the Prince of Wales +played the violoncello, their attention being entirely given to +Haydn's works. It was during this visit that the portrait by Hoppner +was painted, which hangs in the gallery at Hampton Court. + +The second picture, though one of a very different kind, he himself +described as having afforded him one of the greatest pleasures of his +visit. He went to St. Paul's to witness the gathering of the charity +children at their anniversary meeting, and the sight of the children's +faces and the sound of their young voices echoing through the vast +building touched him deeply, and no doubt recalled to his mind the +singing of the choristers in St. Stephen's Cathedral in bygone days. + +Frau Haydn had evidently heard reports of her husband's successes, for +she troubled him with a letter at this time, in which she related how +she had found a small house and garden in the suburbs of Vienna, which +she felt would exactly suit her requirements when she became a widow. +She therefore begged that he would send her the money--a matter of two +thousand gulden--to complete the purchase. Haydn did not comply with +this simple request, but on his return journey to Vienna he inspected +the house, approved it, and bought it for himself! + +It was in passing through Bonn, on his homeward journey, that Haydn +met Beethoven, and praised the composition which the young assistant +Hof-organist submitted to him.[10] The reception accorded to the +composer on his arrival at Vienna was in every way worthy of the fame +which his London visit had added to his reputation, and every one was +anxious to hear the symphonies which had taken the Londoners by storm. + +The success of this visit led to a repetition in 1794. On this +occasion Haydn was accompanied by his faithful copyist and servant, +Johann Elssler, a son of the copyist to Prince Esterhazy, to whom, +since his birth, Haydn had acted as benefactor. Elssler's attachment +to his master was coupled with the greatest veneration for his genius, +and it was even reported that at such times as he thought himself +unobserved he would stop with the censer before his master's portrait, +as if it were an altar. + +Once more Haydn was to pass through a series of successes under +Salomon's direction. His symphonies formed part of all the London +programmes. His popularity reached a height that rendered him the +'lion' of the season. He was frequently invited to Buckingham Palace +to perform to the King and Queen, and he was not allowed to depart +without a pressing request on the part of her Majesty that he would +settle in England. When London went to Bath, Haydn went there too, in +company with Dr. Burney, the eminent musician, and at once became the +centre of fashion and interest. + +A description of all the incidents which this second visit comprised +would extend our story to an undue length. We will therefore content +ourselves by describing a touching little incident that marked his +homeward journey in August of the following year. To Haydn's complete +surprise he was invited by Count Harrach and a party of noblemen and +gentlemen to accompany them to the Count's park, situated close to +Rohrau, where a monument and bust of himself had been erected. He was +next taken to Rohrau itself, to inspect his old home and birthplace, +which had been preserved with every mark of loving care by those who +held the composer in such high esteem. + +Haydn's emotions were deeply stirred by this action on the part of his +countrymen, as well as by the sight of his dear old home. Memories of +his happy childhood crowded upon him as he stood before the door, and, +prompted by a sudden impulse, he stooped and imprinted a kiss upon the +threshold; then, bidding his friends enter the cottage, he pointed to +the settle which stood beside the stove, and told them that it was +when seated on that settle, listening to his parents' singing, that +his musical career had begun. What, after all, were the grand palaces, +in which he had passed so many years of his life, with their costly +furniture and troops of servants, compared with that dear old cottage +home in which he had dreamed his childish dreams of music, and +listened to the hammers in the workshop beating out the time as he +played on his toy violin? + +During his London visits Haydn had often expressed his admiration for +the English 'God save the King,' and he regretted that his own country +had no National Anthem of its own. This thought weighed the more with +him after his return because war had broken out with France, and he +felt that the people needed a means of giving expression to their +loyalty. He accordingly wrote the song 'Gott erhalte Franz den +Kaiser,' or 'The Emperor's Hymn,' which was performed for the first +time simultaneously at the Vienna National Theatre and the principal +theatres of the country on the Emperor's birthday, February 12, 1797. +This beautiful air was always a favourite one with Haydn during the +remainder of his life. + +A portrait of Haydn at this time shows a man of short, substantial +build, and a somewhat ill-proportioned frame. The face, of which the +aquiline nose, projecting under-lip, and massive jaw were strongly +marked features, was very dark, and its habitual expression was +dignified and earnest, with an inclination to sternness. The dark grey +eyes, however, shone with a benevolent light that afforded an insight +into their owner's true nature--indeed, he used to say of himself +humorously that 'anyone could see by the look of him that he was a +good-natured sort of fellow.' He always wore a wig, with side-curls +and a pigtail, and the wig partly concealed his broad forehead. His +dignified expression relaxed in conversation, but although he was not +at all averse to joking, his laughter was always moderate and +controlled. Towards children he showed a love and sympathy that never +failed to win their confidence and affection. The title of 'Papa +Haydn,' by which he was known both to young and old during his +lifetime and with which his memory has ever since been coupled, was +the natural outcome of the universal affection in which he was held by +all classes. He was the 'father' of his chapel, sympathising with them +in their difficulties, and interceding in their behalf with the Prince +whenever occasion arose. In the same way his interest went out to all +young and struggling men of talent, to whom he gave advice and help. +But the title 'Papa Haydn' may claim to possess a further significance +in its use at the present time, 'as if musicians of all countries +claimed descent from him.' + +Along with his indomitable industry went a love of order and method by +which every action was ruled, every habit framed. He rose very early +to begin work, for Nature seemed sweetest to him in her waking hours; +but he would never put a pen to paper or see a visitor until he was +fully dressed; and even when old age prevented his leaving the house +he maintained the same degree of punctiliousness in regard to his +appearance. His devoutness formed an indissoluble part of his nature, +and he regarded his genius as a gift of God which he was bound to use +thankfully for the benefit of mankind and to the glory of Him who gave +it. He never wrote a score without the words 'In nomine Domini' +appearing as an inscription, whilst 'Laus Deo' came at the end. + +Haydn's love of humour is brought out in many of his compositions, +notably in the 'Surprise Symphony,' where the drums come in with a +tremendous bang at the end of the _andante_ movement. He is said to +have invented this part in order to arouse the attention of the +audience and make the ladies scream. Again, in the 'Toy Symphony,' he +shows a child-like appreciation of drollery in producing genuine music +out of such toy instruments as tin whistles, jew's-harps, toy +trumpets, etc. The 'Toy Symphony' was composed at Eisenstadt, where, +having visited a village fair and purchased a number of toy +instruments, Haydn was seized with the idea of making his orchestra +play upon them--an order which upset their gravity so much that they +could hardly keep time for laughing. A little story illustrative of +his love of fun may be told here. During his second visit to London he +came in contact with a certain amateur violinist whose professed +fondness for the extreme upper notes of his instrument was such as to +incite Haydn to perpetrate a joke at his expense. He therefore wrote a +seemingly simple sonata for piano and violin, which he called 'Jacob's +Dream,' and dispatched it anonymously to the conceited violinist. The +player was charmed with the manner in which the piece began. It was +apparent that the composer thoroughly understood the instrument! As he +proceeded, however, the notes rose higher and higher, like the steps +of a ladder, and at length, seeing that there was no prospect of their +ever descending again, the perspiration broke out on his forehead, +and, flinging the music from him with disgust, he declared that the +writer knew nothing whatever of the violin! + + * * * * * + +Haydn was now sixty-five, but the crowning work of his life had yet to +be achieved. Whilst in London Salomon had shown him a poem, founded +upon 'Paradise Lost,' which had been written many years before, in the +hope that Handel would have set it to music. Haydn carried the poem +home, and later on conceived the idea of writing an oratorio on the +subject. From the moment of its inception the task of composing the +'Creation,' as the new work was called, became a labour of increasing +love with Haydn. 'Never was I so pious,' he writes, 'as when composing +the "Creation." I knelt down every day and prayed God to strengthen +me for the work.' The oratorio was first publicly performed in Vienna +on March 19, 1799, and created a profound impression. Haydn himself +was almost overcome by the sensations which the occasion aroused. In a +short time the 'Creation' was heard in every principal city of Europe. +In places where no means existed for its production choral societies +were formed for this special object, so that for many years the work +took equal rank in popular favour with the 'Messiah.' As a work of +art, however, the 'Creation' differs essentially, both in character +and style, from Handel's masterpiece. We have here none of the +declamatory passages which are so prominent in the 'Messiah,' the +story of the Creation being unfolded to us in a series of wonderful +tone-pictures--strengthened where necessary by choruses, but keeping +throughout to the epic character of the poem. Many of the passages are +strikingly beautiful. Who that has heard them can ever forget the +airs, 'With Verdure Clad,' and 'In Native Worth,' or the splendid +chorus, 'The Heavens are telling the Glory of God'? + +Whilst music-lovers were descanting on the beauties of the 'Creation,' +Haydn was busily composing a second oratorio founded upon Thomson's +famous poem, 'The Seasons.' The desire for work was as strong as ever, +but his health was declining, and the strain involved by so great an +undertaking proved too much for his strength. '"The Seasons" gave me +my finishing stroke,' was Haydn's often-repeated remark to his friends +after the oratorio had left his hands. But no trace of diminished +power is visible in the work itself, and the success which attended +its production was such as to place it on a level with the 'Creation.' + +With these two great works the flow of composition from the master's +pen fittingly closed. Upon the subject of his life-work as a whole we +may not dwell in this brief story. The history of music has accorded +to Haydn the high position which his works entitled him to occupy, and +the feeling of gratitude for those great gifts having been vouchsafed +to us is one that has grown deeper and deeper with the passing years. +Musicians and music-lovers all the world over give expression to this +gratitude by pointing to what he has accomplished for the symphony, +the quartet, and the sonata--to mention the three branches of +composition to which his genius was specially directed. Acknowledged +on every hand as the father of instrumental music, Haydn compels our +admiration by 'his inexhaustible invention as shown in the originality +of his themes and melodies; the life and spontaneity of the ideas; the +clearness which makes his compositions as interesting to the amateur +as to the artist; the child-like cheerfulness and drollery which charm +away trouble and care.' His insistence on the importance of melody was +a marked characteristic. 'It is the air which is the charm of music,' +he once remarked to the composer Kelly, 'and it is that which is most +difficult to produce. The invention of a fine melody is a work of +genius.' + +The honourable peace which should have been the companion of his old +age was marred by much physical suffering, through which, however, at +intervals his genial nature forced its way like sunshine through +clouds. Nor were his declining years without the solace of numerous +friends--indeed, by none to whom his great gifts and kindly +personality had brought pleasure and instruction was the old composer +forgotten, and nothing gave him keener delight than to gather his +friends about him to talk over the chief events of his life, and to +exhibit his collection of diplomas, souvenirs, and other mementoes, +which had been presented to him by his royal and noble patrons. + +Perhaps no more touching example could be given of the affectionate +esteem in which Haydn was held by all classes of music-lovers than +that afforded by the last occasion on which he appeared in public. He +had been for a long time living in retirement in the house which he +purchased on the outskirts of Vienna, but having expressed a wish to +be present at a performance of the 'Creation' at the University on +March 27, 1808, he was carried to the hall in his arm-chair. The +enthusiasm evoked by the spectacle of the aged composer being borne +into the arena was in itself a convincing proof that his popularity +had not lessened. But the emotions of the audience were more deeply +stirred when, at the passage 'And there was light,' Haydn lifted his +hand and, pointing upwards, exclaimed, 'It came from thence!' At this +point his agitation was so great that it was deemed prudent to remove +him to his home; and as the carriers lifted him up and bore him +towards the door, the people flocked about his chair to touch his hand +and bid him farewell. At the door itself the crowd was denser than +ever, and pressing through the throng came Beethoven, who, bending +over his old master, kissed him fervently on the hand and forehead. As +he passed through the exit Haydn turned to take a last look at those +who were standing and waving their farewells, and as he did so he +raised his hands as if in the act of blessing them. The next moment +the heavy portiere fell, and Haydn passed for ever from the public +sight. + +A year later the old musician lay stretched upon his bed listening to +the booming of the French cannon, which were bombarding the city. +Presently the crash of a ball which fell close to his house caused the +servants to utter a cry of fear, whereupon their master called out to +them, 'Children, don't be frightened. No harm can happen to you while +Haydn is by.' + +One day, shortly after this event, when Vienna was in the occupation +of the French, the faithful Elssler reported that a French officer +desired to pay his respects to the composer whom France held in such +veneration. The interview was granted, and the officer, before taking +his leave, sang 'In Native Worth,' from the 'Creation,' with so much +feeling and expression that Haydn's eyes filled with tears, and he +embraced the singer with warmth and tenderness. + + [Illustration: '_Haydn's eyes filled with tears._'] + +The end was now very near, and Haydn awaited the dread summons with +the resignation that was born of his implicit and child-like faith in +God. On May 26, 1809, he summoned the members of his household to his +presence, and, having been carried to the piano, he played his +favourite composition, 'The Emperor's Hymn,' three times over, with +great solemnity. There was something inexpressibly touching in the +master's selection of this air, which had been inspired by his love of +country and his loyalty to his Sovereign; for none knew better than +they who now stood around his chair how deeply he had suffered by +reason of the indignities which had been offered to his country. These +faithful friends realised that this solemn expression of devotion to +his King was intended to be a personal farewell, and as the familiar +strains of their noble anthem rang through the apartment, their silent +tears gave expression to the love and reverence in which the master +was held. Five days later, as dawn hovered on the sable fringe of +night, Haydn sank to rest. + +Owing to the fact that Vienna at the time of Haydn's death was in the +hands of the French, his funeral was conducted without the ostentation +by which, under happier circumstances, it would have been marked. +Nevertheless, there were many mourners, and amongst them a number of +French officers of high rank, whilst a guard of honour was formed +around the coffin by the French soldiers. A performance of Mozart's +'Requiem' was given in his honour at the Schotten-Kirche, and as the +news of his death spread abroad funeral services were held in all the +principal cities of Europe. The burial took place in the Hundsthurm +churchyard, near the suburb in which he lived; but in 1820 Prince +Esterhazy commanded the remains to be exhumed and reinterred, with +fitting ceremonial, in the upper parish church at Eisenstadt, where 'a +simple stone with a Latin inscription is inserted in the wall over the +vault, to inform the passer-by that a great man rests below.' + +FOOTNOTES: + +[7] The drums on which Haydn performed on this occasion are still +preserved in the choir of the church at Hainburg. + +[8] Since included in the building of the First Avenue Hotel. + +[9] The house has since been rebuilt to form the warehouse of Messrs. +Chatto and Windus. + +[10] See story of Beethoven, p. 233. + + + + +HAYDEN'S PRINCIPAL COMPOSITIONS + + +OPERAS: + The Devil on Two Sticks. 1752 (?) + Acis und Galatea. 1762. + La Vera Costanza. 1776. + Orfeo ed Euridice. 1793. +ORATORIOS: + Il Ritorno di Tobia. 1775. + [The well-known motet 'Insanae et vanae curae' is taken from this + oratorio.] + The Seven Words from the Cross. 1794. + [Originally composed as a series of pieces for orchestra in 1787.] + The Creation. 1798. + The Seasons. 1801. +MASSES: + Mass in F (Novello, No. 11). 1751 (?) + Mass of B.V.M. in E-flat (No. 12). 1766. + Mass of St. Nicholas in G (No. 7). 1772. + Mass of St. John in B-flat (No. 8). 1778. + Mass of St. Cecilia in C (No. 5). 1780. + Mass of Mariazell in C (No. 15). 1782. + Mass in C (No. 2). 1790. + Mass in B-flat (No. 1). 1796. + Imperial Mass in D (No. 3). 1798. + [Known in Germany as the 'Nelson Mass.'] + Mass in B-flat (No. 4). 1801. + Mass in B-flat (No. 6). 1801. + Mass in B-flat (No. 16). + Two other Masses not printed. + The four Masses, No. 9 (in C), No. 10 (in C minor), No. 13 (in C), + and No. 14 (Kyrie and Gloria only, in D), are not authentic. +Stabat Mater. 1773. +2 Te Deums. +12 Canzonets. 1790. +142 Symphonies. + [It will be sufficient to mention the 12 'Grand' Symphonies, + composed for Salomon's concerts, and a few others with + distinguishing names.] + Grand No. 1 in C. 1791-1792. + Grand No. 2 in D. 1791. + Grand No. 3 in G (The Surprise). 1791. + Grand No. 4 in B-flat. 1791-1792. + Grand No. 5 in C minor. 1791. + Grand No. 6 in D. 1791. + Grand No. 7 in D minor. 1795. + Grand No. 8 in E-flat. 1795 (?) + Grand No. 9 in B-flat. 1795. + Grand No. 10 in E-flat. 1793. + Grand No. 11 in D minor (The Clock). 1794. + Grand No. 12 in G (Military). 1794. + Symphony in C (Le Midi). 1761. + Symphony in G (Le Soir). 1761 (?) + Symphony in D (Le Matin). 1767 (?) + Symphony in A (The Farewell--Letter B). 1772. + Symphony in E minor (Trauer-symphonie--Letter I). 1772 (?) + Symphony in D minor (Lamentations). 1772. + Symphony in C (Maria Theresa). 1773. + Symphony in E-flat (The Schoolmaster). 1774. + Symphony in A (Feuer-symphonie). 1774. + Symphony in C (Roxelane). 1777 (?) + Symphony in D (La Chasse). 1781 (?) + Symphony in C (L'Ours). 1784-1786. + Symphony in G minor (La Poule). 1784-1786. + Symphony in B-flat (La Reine de France). 1786 (?) + Symphony in G (Letter V). 1787. + Symphony in C (Letter R). 1788. + Symphony in G (Letter Q--The Oxford). 1788 (?) + Symphony in C (Toy Symphony). 1788 (?) +83 Quartets for strings. + [The earliest were composed in 1753. The quartet including + variations on Haydn's 'Emperor's Hymn' (Op. 76, No. 3) was + composed in 1797.] +21 Trios for strings. +31 Trios for clavier and strings. +3 Concertos for pianoforte and orchestra. 1790. +9 Concertos for violin and orchestra. +22 Concertos for other instruments. +8 Sonatas for clavier and violin. +34 Sonatas for clavier solo. + + + + +MOZART + + + + +MOZART + + +In a small, barely-furnished apartment in the Archbishop's palace at +Salzburg, in Austria-Hungary, on a winter's morning in the year 1766, +a boy of ten years of age was seated at a table, his head resting upon +his hand and his eyes turned towards the window. Before him were +scattered a number of sheets of manuscript music-paper, several of +which were covered with notes, which his childish fingers had +patiently traced amidst a plentiful sprinkling of blots and smears. + +There was something pathetic about the appearance of the motionless +little figure, with its pale face, surmounted by a profusion of brown +curls, and the fixed, earnest expression in the large dark eyes--a +pathetic seriousness that implied a depth of reflection far beyond his +years, and to which the work upon which he was engaged lent additional +significance. Thus absorbed, the child paid no heed to the entry of a +servant bearing a tray, upon which was spread a simple breakfast; and, +following the instructions which he had received, the man laid the +tray on the table and quitted the room in silence. Outside the door, +however, the old servant paused for a moment in a listening attitude, +as if to catch the chink of moving cup and platter, and thus be +assured that the child had begun his meal. But as no sound came from +within, old Hans shook his head gravely, turned the key in the lock, +and, muttering to himself, descended the stairs. + + [Illustration: '_He paid no heed to the entry of a servant._'] + +The old servitor was puzzled, and somewhat troubled in mind as well, +by the boy's deep abstraction. That his master the Archbishop +cherished any feelings of harshness or resentment towards the solitary +little prisoner Hans refused to believe. Indeed, the Archbishop had +confided to him that he merely desired to test the child's powers of +writing original music. But to the old man's mind such a test was far +too severe to be applied to one so young, and something in the boy's +far-away look had touched his heart and tempted him to disobey the +stringent command which he had received not to converse with the +little writer. Even now, as he was descending the stairs, he felt +almost like a criminal in leaving the boy locked in his room without a +word of comfort or encouragement, and he was half inclined to turn +back on some excuse to speak with the prisoner and inquire how he +felt. At that moment, however, the ringing of a distant bell summoned +him to his master's presence. + + [Illustration: MOZART. + From photo RISCHGITZ.] + +Archbishop Sigismund was pacing to and fro in the dining-room when his +servant entered, his forehead puckered with a frown, and his eyes +fixed on the carpet. But he at once checked himself in his walk, and, +turning to Hans, said abruptly: 'Have you taken the child his food?' +'Yes, your Grace,' was the reply. 'And--er--how did he seem--well, +eh?' 'Quite well, your Grace.' 'You are sure of that?' a trifle +anxiously. 'Perfectly sure, your Grace,' replied the old man, though +he would have liked to have added a word as to his doubts concerning +the child's happiness; but the Archbishop dismissed him with a wave of +the hand, and, turning away, seated himself at the breakfast-table. + + * * * * * + +Several floors above that on which Archbishop Sigismund was eating his +breakfast the little captive sat patiently toiling at his allotted +task. In a sense the old man was right; for the test was as severe a +one as the mind of a man who was a good judge of music, and who +doubted the truth of what he had heard concerning his little captive's +astonishing genius, could well have devised. The boy was required to +set to music the first part of a sacred cantata founded upon the +'First and greatest Commandment'--'Thou shalt love the Lord thy God +with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and +with all thy strength' (Mark xii. 30). The Archbishop fully realised +the magnitude of the test, and he expected failure--he looked for the +child to break down. The time allotted for its fulfilment was one +week, at the expiration of which he would find a few boyish attempts +at composition, and nothing more. + +And why was Archbishop Sigismund so desirous of testing the boy's +powers of composition? A short time before the date at which our story +opens Leopold Mozart, Vice-Capellmeister at the Archbishop's court, +had related to his master some wonderful stories of his little son +Wolfgang--how the child had astonished and delighted every one by his +playing; how, when the father carried him and his sister Marianne to +Vienna and Paris and London, they had been invited to play at the +Courts, and how little Wolfgang had been praised by the royal families +and loaded with presents; and how he had already composed some +wonderful things, including several sonatas for the pianoforte, and a +symphony--the latter when he was only eight years old. + +There was no exaggeration in Leopold Mozart's description of his +child's powers, as to which, indeed, accounts from less partial +sources had already reached the Archbishop's ears. None the less, +however, was the old ecclesiastic inclined to attribute to a parent's +pardonable pride the anticipations which the father had formed with +regard to the boy's future, and more especially as those anticipations +rested upon the assumption that the child was a miraculous genius. +That Wolfgang could play remarkably well for a child of his age was +sufficient in itself to justify the extraordinary praise which he had +received; but that he was gifted to the extent of writing original +music of a sort worthy to be recorded the Archbishop may be excused +for doubting. At any rate, he resolved to settle the matter to his own +satisfaction by setting the boy to work under conditions which +precluded every chance of his being enabled to copy from the works of +other composers, and also--and this was a great point with the +Archbishop--of his being helped by his father. Leopold readily +assented to the conditions of the test proposed by his master, and so +little Wolfgang was duly installed as a close prisoner in the palace, +and supplied with music-paper, pens, and ink, and a subject on which +to write, in the manner in which we have already described. + +And now we must leave him for a space weaving harmonies in his attic +chamber whilst we recount his history up to the present point. + +Born on January 27, 1756, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart had attained his +third year when the father's attention was first drawn to his fondness +for music. In his little daughter Marianne, who was five years older +than Wolfgang, he had rejoiced to discover an extraordinary gift for +playing, and it was not long ere her music-lessons from her father +became a source of attraction for her little brother, who would cast +aside his toys and take his stand beside the piano as soon as he +perceived that Marianne's lesson was about to begin. There he would +remain until the lesson was finished, listening intently to everything +that was played or spoken. At other times he would amuse himself by +finding simple chords on the instrument, striking them over and over +again, and bending his head to catch the harmonies thus produced. At +length Leopold Mozart began to teach him, half in fun at first, but +very soon in earnest, for it was apparent that the child regarded the +lessons seriously. + +The father could not conceal his joy at the discovery of such early +promise on the part of his little son, whose progress, indeed, was so +rapid as to call for special care to prevent his learning too fast. +Marianne had a manuscript book in which her father used to write +simple pieces for her to learn, and very soon he was entering in the +book similar pieces for Wolfgang.[11] The rapidity and ease with which +the boy mastered these tasks opened his father's eyes to the fact that +Wolfgang possessed capacities far above those of an ordinary child. In +a short time the boy began to write in the book little compositions of +his own, some of them plainly showing that his skill in composing had +forged beyond the point at which his tiny fingers had the power to +express his ideas. + +One day, when Leopold Mozart had brought Herr Schachtner, the Court +trumpeter, home to dinner, they found Wolfgang busily employed with +his pen. In answer to his father's inquiry what he was doing, Wolfgang +replied that he was writing a concerto for the pianoforte. Leopold +asked to see it, but the boy was not anxious to have his work +inspected, and objected that it was not finished. 'Never mind,' said +Leopold, 'let me see it. It must be something very fine.' Taking the +paper into his hand, the father and his friend glanced at it +curiously. The sheet was bedaubed with ink-smears which almost +concealed the notes; the child had dipped his pen each time to the +bottom of the ink-bottle, so that when it reached the paper it had +dropped a huge blot. This had not disturbed him in the least, however, +for he had merely rubbed his hand over the offending blot and +proceeded with his writing. + +At first sight both Leopold and his friend laughed to see the manner +in which the composer had traced the notes over the smudges, but soon +Schachtner observed the father's eyes fill with tears of delight and +wonderment as he began to follow out the theme. 'Look, Herr +Schachtner!' he cried. 'See how correct and orderly it is! Only it +could never be of any use, for it is so extraordinarily difficult that +no one in the world could play it.' + +Wolfgang at this looked up quickly into his father's face. 'That is +why it is a concerto,' he explained, with flushed cheeks. 'People must +practise until they can play it perfectly. Look! This is how it goes;' +and he began to play it on the piano, but only succeeded in bringing +out sufficient to show his hearers what he meant it to be. + +His ear for music was wonderfully fine, for when only seven years old +he could detect the difference of half a quarter of a tone between two +violins. It was an ear of such extreme delicacy, in fact, that +anything in the shape of rude or harsh sounds caused him positive +distress. On one occasion Schachtner, at the request of Leopold +Mozart, who imagined that Wolfgang's aversion to loud sounds was a +mere childish fancy, blew a blast upon the trumpet towards the child, +but he regretted it the next moment, for the boy nearly fainted away +at the shock. + +'What took others months of practice to achieve came to him as a gift +of God,' his father used to say; and truly there seems to have been +something of the miraculous about Wolfgang's powers. His violin +lessons had hardly begun when one evening, as Leopold Mozart, Herr +Schachtner, and Herr Wentzl were about to play a set of six trios +composed by the last-named musician, Wolfgang put in a plea that he +might be allowed to play second violin! Needless to say, his request +was refused as a matter of course. The child, however, persisted, and +at length he was told that if he were careful to make no sound he +might sit beside Herr Schachtner with his violin and bow, to make +believe that he was playing. + +The first trio began, but it had not proceeded far ere Schachtner's +attention was drawn to the boy at his side. He was actually playing +the part--and playing it correctly! The second violin ceased bowing in +astonishment, and allowed Wolfgang to go on alone, which he did to the +end. Schachtner and the father exchanged glances, and the former +perceived that Leopold's eyes were full of tears. After this trial the +boy was allowed to play in the remaining pieces, unaccompanied by +Schachtner. At the conclusion, emboldened by success, he volunteered +to play the first violin's part--an offer which was greeted with +laughter; but, nothing daunted, he seized his violin and began, and +although he made many mistakes, and was on the point of breaking down +several times, he persisted to the end. + +With his devotion to music and all that concerned the art, Wolfgang +possessed a lovable, affectionate nature that yielded a ready +obedience to his parents' wishes. For his mother, Anna Maria, and his +sister Marianne he showed great fondness, but before either of these +he placed his father. 'Next to God comes papa,' he used to say. He +could be very merry on occasions, but a natural seriousness which +showed itself in connection with his love for music gave rise to fears +that he would not survive his childhood. Music to him was +all-absorbing--everything else had to yield to it, and nothing could +take its place. When Herr Schachtner, who had grown very fond of the +child, carried him from one room to another the march had to be +accompanied by the beating of a drum, and the only toys he cared for +were such as could make music. When musical sounds were not actually +forthcoming the rhythmical movements of his body and limbs implied +their existence beneath the surface. + +The family were in poor circumstances, for Leopold Mozart had no means +beyond the salary which he received from the Court. The discovery of +his children's gifts, therefore, offered the father a strong +inducement to turn their powers to advantage, both for the supply of +the family's needs and to provide for Wolfgang and Marianne a sound +education in music. With this object he determined to travel with the +children, as Salzburg itself offered no facilities for making their +talents known. A first experiment in January, 1762, proved so +successful that in the following September they set out for Vienna +with the object of playing before the Imperial Court. Wolfgang was at +this time six years old, and Marianne eleven. At Linz, where they +stopped for several days, they gave a successful concert under the +patronage of the Governor-General of the province. Every one was +delighted with the playing of the children, and they were fortunate in +securing the presence of a young nobleman who happened to be visiting +at the Governor's house on his way to Vienna, for he was sure to carry +the news of what he had heard to the capital. From this point they +continued their journey by water as far as the monastery of Ips, where +they purposed resting for the night. + +The grey old building, seated on the banks of the Danube, with the +waters of the river lapping the base of its walls, looked invitingly +restful to the travellers who sought its seclusion on that sultry +September afternoon. Three friars who formed part of the travelling +party entered the monastery at the same time, and on their retiring to +say Mass in the chapel Wolfgang contrived to slip in behind them +unperceived and to make his way into the organ-loft. Shortly +afterwards the Franciscan monks, who were entertaining a party of +guests in the refectory, were startled at hearing the organ pealing +forth from the chapel. One of the hosts left the table to ascertain +who the player could be, and, hastily returning, beckoned the company +to follow him. On reaching the chapel they paused to listen, holding +their breath, as their companion pointed to the tiny figure of a child +seated in the loft. Was it possible, they asked themselves, that a +child could produce such beautiful music? They remained standing, +rooted to the spot by the enchanting strains which poured from the +organ, until Wolfgang, happening to espy them, brought his voluntary +to a close and crept meekly down from his perch. + + [Illustration: '_They remained standing, rooted to the spot._'] + +Throughout the remainder of their journey to Vienna Wolfgang was the +life of the party, full of spirits and eager curiosity to learn the +name and history of everything they met. At the customs-house on the +frontier he made friends with the officials, and secured an easy pass +for the party by playing an air on his violin. Every one was charmed +with his conversation and sprightly intelligence, and, above all, with +his music. + +When they reached Vienna it was to find that the fame of the +children's playing had preceded them through the reports of those who +had witnessed the performance at Linz. A Court introduction was easily +obtained, for the royal family were desirous of hearing the prodigies, +and an early day was fixed for the visit to Schoenbrunn. It was +fortunate for Leopold Mozart that the Imperial family were devoted to +art. Charles VI. was an accomplished musician; his daughter, the +afterwards Empress Maria Theresa (of whom we have already heard in our +story of Haydn), had from an early age shown a fondness and talent for +music; whilst the Emperor Joseph not only sang well, but played the +harpsichord and violoncello. + +A kind and gracious welcome awaited the party on their arrival at the +palace. The Emperor took to Wolfgang at once, and was so delighted +with his performance that he called him 'kleinen Hexenmeister' (little +magician), and forthwith set to work to test his powers to the +uttermost. Not only was the boy made to play difficult pieces at +sight, but he instantly complied with the Emperor's joking suggestion +that he should play with one finger. The keyboard was then covered +with a cloth, so as to conceal the notes, but Wolfgang played just as +finely as before, receiving for this crowning feat the loud applause +of the company. The children were treated with great kindness by both +the Emperor and Empress; and Wolfgang showed his affection for the +august lady by climbing into her lap and giving her a hug, just as he +might have done to his mother. The performance at Court was repeated +on several occasions, each time with greater applause; and amongst the +audience was the beautiful Marie Antoinette, who, later on, became +Queen of the French. The boy evinced a strong fancy for the Princess, +and one day, when he happened to slip on the polished floor and was +helped to his feet by the Princess's hand, he turned to her with a +grave air and said, 'You are very good, and I will marry you,' 'Why, +pray?' inquired Marie, with a smile. 'Out of gratitude, of course,' +responded Wolfgang, still more gravely. + +He was not in the least shy at being called upon to perform before +personages of the highest rank, his behaviour to all being that of a +simple, unspoilt child. But when it came to the point of playing, the +serious concentration of which we have before spoken would take +possession of him, and everything else had to take a secondary place. +Not even the Emperor himself could then claim precedence of the +composer, should the latter happen to be present. 'Where is Herr +Wagenseil? Is he here?' inquired Wolfgang on one occasion, when about +to play a concerto composed by the Court musician. 'Pray let him come; +he knows something about it.' The father understood this request to be +in keeping with the boy's desire to play before a capable judge--a +condition upon which he invariably insisted whenever practicable. At +the bidding of the youthful performer Herr Wagenseil approached. 'Ah, +Herr Wagenseil!' said Mozart, turning to him, 'I am about to play one +of your concertos, and I want you to turn over for me.' The Emperor +happened to be standing next to the boy, but he smilingly made way for +the composer at once. + +Needless to say, after the favours shown them at Court, the children +at once became the rage in Vienna society. Invitations poured in from +every quarter, and as for Wolfgang, all the ladies lost their hearts +to the little fellow. The visit, however, was not without alloy, for +Wolfgang contracted scarlet fever, and on recovery was shunned for +fear of infection; but, on the whole, Leopold Mozart had good reason +to be satisfied with the success of his experiment. The children were +loaded with presents, but they valued none more than those which were +bestowed by the hands of the royal family, Wolfgang's present +consisting of a violet-coloured suit, trimmed with broad gold braid, +which had been made for the Archduke Maximilian; and Marianne's of a +pretty white silk dress. A painting of Wolfgang in his gala suit, +which was executed at the time of their visit, is still preserved. + +The following year Leopold Mozart undertook a longer journey, with the +object of making Paris the end of their travels, but they stopped at +various towns by the way for the purpose of giving concerts. At +Frankfort the first performance was so successful that it was decided +to give three more. An announcement in the newspaper at the time +describes Mozart as capable of naming 'all notes played at a distance, +whether singly or in chords, on the clavier, or on any other +instrument, bell, glass, or clock.' Leopold also gave out as an +additional attraction that Wolfgang would play with the keyboard +covered--a fact which shows that the Emperor's test had not been +forgotten. It was whilst they were at Frankfort that a boy of fourteen +came to one of the concerts and saw Mozart in his frizzled wig and +sword, and heard him play. That boy was Goethe the poet. + +They stayed five months in Paris, played before the Court at +Versailles, and excited astonishment and enthusiasm both there and +wherever else they performed. The mother accompanied them on this +long expedition, and on New Year's Day the family were conducted to +the royal supper-room, where the Queen drew Wolfgang to her side, fed +him with sweetmeats, and conversed with him in German. + + [Illustration: '_Played before the Court at Versailles._'] + +From Paris they journeyed, in April, 1764, to London, finding lodgings +in Cecil Court, St. Martin's Lane. London, with its crowded, busy +thoroughfares, its thronged markets, and its discordant street-cries, +must have seemed a strange place to the little travellers after their +experience of Continental cities. In regard to music itself, also, the +contrast must have been equally striking. The English were not +reckoned to be a musical nation, however much we loved music in our +homes and in the simple services of our churches; moreover, there was +an absence of the patronage extended to the art by the rich and +powerful classes, such as one would have met with on the Continent. +Hence its cultivation was slow, and pursued under immense +disadvantages. Nevertheless, the English knew how to appreciate good +music, and London was the centre to which all the greatest performers +were attracted, because they were sure, not only of receiving the +heartiest of welcomes, but of reaping more money by their performances +as well. English liberality and English appreciation have always +secured for our country the very best that the arts could produce. + +Leopold's first care on reaching London was to obtain an introduction +at Court. In this he was again fortunate, for King George III. and his +Consort were exceedingly fond of music, and it was not long before an +invitation came for the children to attend at the royal palace. King +George showed the greatest interest in Wolfgang, placing before him a +number of difficult pieces by Bach and Handel, with the request that +he would play them at sight. The manner in which the boy fulfilled +his tasks evoked the enthusiastic applause of the great company +present at the performance, and the plaudits were redoubled when, +after accompanying the Queen in a song, he selected the bass part of +one of Handel's airs and improvised a charming melody to it. The King +was so impressed with his powers that he would not let him go until he +had tried the organ, in the playing of which Wolfgang achieved a +further triumph. + +June 4 was fixed for celebrating the King's birthday, and for several +days before this event the coaches had been arriving in London loaded +with passengers from all parts of the country. Leopold Mozart had +fixed the following day--June 5--as the date for his first public +concert, and as the fame of the young musicians had by this time been +noised abroad, the hall was filled to overflowing. The father was +staggered by the success of the concert. 'To think,' he wrote home the +next day, 'that we took one hundred guineas in three hours!' That so +great a sum should be willingly paid in order to hear a child of eight +perform must, indeed, have been astonishing to one who had hitherto +had no experience of English munificence. Many of the performers, +moreover, declined to take any fee for their services--a fact which +served to add to the father's gratitude and astonishment. The +advertisement of the concert described Wolfgang and Marianne as +'prodigies of Nature,' and expressed the hope that Wolfgang would meet +with success in a country which had afforded such marked appreciation +and protection to his countryman Handel. + +A few weeks later Wolfgang played the harpsichord and organ at +Ranelagh Gardens, a celebrated pleasure resort of the Londoners of +those days, on behalf of a public charity, and held the delighted +attention of a huge crowd which had gathered to hear him. Not long +after this Leopold Mozart was seized with severe illness, and when he +was recovering, the family removed to Chelsea for the sake of the air +and quiet. Chelsea at that time was a riverside village, and the +lodgings of the Mozarts were in Five Fields, a name which conveys a +pleasant suggestion of the country, but, alas! it has long since lost +its ancient signification with its change to Lower Ebury Street, +Pimlico. + + [Illustration: '_Chelsea at that time was a riverside + village._'] + +As the children were not allowed to play any instrument, Wolfgang +spent the time in composition, and one day he confided to Marianne +that he was composing a symphony, and begged her not to forget to +remind him to give a good part to the horns, the horn being a very +favourite instrument with him in those days. The great work was duly +completed, and the father having regained his strength, the family +returned to town. They were accorded a further gracious reception at +Court, and in token of his gratitude Leopold Mozart printed six of +Wolfgang's sonatas for harpsichord and violin, and dedicated them to +the Queen, whose acceptance of the works was accompanied by a present +of fifty guineas. At the concerts which followed the overtures were +all of Wolfgang's composing, and on one occasion the children won +great applause by the performance of a duet for four hands, written by +Wolfgang, a style of composition which was then quite new. The novelty +of the prodigies, however, had to some extent worn off, and the public +were by no means so eager to patronise their performances. Leopold +endeavoured to reawaken interest in their doings by announcing private +exhibitions of the children's skill 'every day from twelve to +three--admittance two shillings and sixpence each person,' but despite +the smallness of the fee, and the fact that it included the privilege +of testing the powers of the performers by the audience, the number of +visitors was very small. + +In July, 1765, the family left London to visit the Hague, but now for +the first time heavy misfortune attended their journey. Both Wolfgang +and Marianne fell ill--the latter so dangerously as to cause Leopold +the deepest anxiety. No sooner had Marianne recovered than Wolfgang +was struck down a second time with violent fever, and it was several +weeks before he was sufficiently strong to resume his travels. During +his convalescence, however, he was so eager to pursue his studies that +he had a board laid across the bed to serve as a table on which to +compose. Their reception at the Hague was gracious and kindly, both +the Prince of Orange and his sister, Princess Caroline of +Nassau-Weilburg, showing a deep interest in their playing. After +leaving the Hague they paid a second visit to Paris, where they added +to their former triumphs, in addition to playing at many towns by the +way, and, finally, the long tour was brought to a close by the return +of the family to Salzburg in November, 1766. + +Up till now we have seen Mozart chiefly in the light of a musical +prodigy, exciting delight and astonishment by the exhibition of his +marvellous powers. By those around him, however, Wolfgang was beloved +for his own sake--for the simple, affectionate boy that he was. +Notwithstanding the praise which had been lavished upon him during his +travels, he remained unspoilt, and, apart from his music, as +child-like as ever. When not engaged in actual composition, his mind, +in the course of his long journeys, had been occupied with the +creation of an imaginary kingdom, peopled entirely by children, to +which he had given the title of 'Ruecken.' Of this kingdom he supposed +himself to be king, and he was never tired of planning and arranging +its buildings, drawing maps of the towns, framing the laws under which +it was to be governed, and generally providing for the comfort and +happiness of his subjects. It was all the outcome of a natural +tenderness of heart which was equally shown in his relations with +strangers and friends--a desire to place others before himself. + +At times, however, he could assert himself with considerable force. On +one occasion, shortly after his return to Salzburg, a gentleman of +rank in the town called upon the family, and being desirous of +conversing with Wolfgang, was at a loss how to address him. The formal +pronoun _sie_ could hardly be used to a child; _du_, on the other +hand, implied a familiarity which might be resented by so celebrated +an artist; the gentleman, therefore, took refuge in _wir_, and thus +began: 'So _we_ have been in France and England,' '_we_ have been +introduced at Court'; '_we_ have been honoured'; when Wolfgang +interrupted him hastily. 'And yet, sir, I do not remember to have seen +you anywhere but in Salzburg!' + + * * * * * + +We must now return to the point at which we left our hero in his room +in the Archbishop's palace. The little musician realises that upon his +shoulders rests the burden of justifying to the Archbishop his +father's expressed belief in his powers, and love and gratitude +whisper to him that he cannot do too much in striving to uphold the +judgment of his beloved parent. His gratitude to his father was only +what might have been looked for in one so naturally thoughtful for +others. Leopold Mozart had, indeed, made great sacrifices for his +children, and he was prepared to go to even greater lengths of +self-denial in order to procure for them a good education, and to +found a musical career for the son in whose God-sent gifts he placed +the most implicit faith. 'I offer my children to my country,' he wrote +to a friend at this time. 'If it will have none of them, that is not +my fault, and will be my country's loss.' + +And so, prompted by love and gratitude, Wolfgang works on until at +last the long task is finished, and the composer lays down his pen +with a sigh of relief. 'What will the Archbishop think of the work? +Will he laugh at it, and tell the father that he is mistaken in +believing that his son can write good music? Would this week of toil +be thrown away, and the sheets be cast into the fire?' + +Such are the thoughts of the child-musician as he glances anxiously +through the manuscript. 'Yet, no; it has some good points--as a +musician he is sure of that--and surely his Grace will not fail to +observe those good points.' + +Mozart's fears were groundless. When the old Archbishop came to +inspect the work, his face showed the pleasure and astonishment which +he felt. Boyish the workmanship may have been, yet there was nothing +of boyishness about the music itself. Wolfgang had taken the Italian +oratorio as his model, and the result showed how completely he had +mastered its forms. Such was the verdict which the connoisseurs passed +upon the work, nor did those judges fail to call attention to its +dignity and delicacy of expression, its well-chosen harmonies, and the +flowing melodies that were a foreshadowing of the Mozart of later +years. The cantata--the two remaining parts of which were composed by +the Court musicians--was performed with great success during Lent, +1767, by the students of Salzburg University, and in the programme the +eye of the composer met the words, 'The first part of this work was +set to music by Herr Wolfgang Mozart, aged ten years.' + +Wolfgang's studies had been much interrupted by travel, and now that +they were home again his father began to give him regular instruction +in counterpoint as a solid groundwork for future composition. There +were many little breaks in these studies, however, and one which +afforded Wolfgang immense delight whenever it came round was to visit +the monastery of Seeon, with the monks of which he was on a footing of +firm friendship. For one of the priests, known as Father Johannes, the +boy had a deep affection; and whenever the good man made his +appearance, Wolfgang would spring to embrace him, and, stroking his +cheeks, would sing his greeting to a little air of his own: + + [Illustration: Mein Han-serl! liebs Han-serl! liebs Han-serl!] + +The monks were always teasing Wolfgang about his tune. On Father +Johannes' fete-day the boy presented him with an offertory of his own +composing, in which he introduced the little melody as a birthday +greeting. The caressing little air runs through the piece, and is +'twice interrupted by the words, "Ecce Agnus Dei, qui tollit peccata +mundi" (Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the +world), given in a quiet, serious manner that has a charming effect.' +Good Father Johannes had no need to feel ashamed of the moisture which +gathered in his eyes as he scanned this tender little offering of his +child-friend on his birthday morning. + +But the visits to the old monastery were to be interrupted by a +further period of travel. Vienna was making great preparations for +celebrating the betrothal of the Archduchess Josepha, who had made +herself beloved of the people, and Leopold Mozart was desirous of +being present with his children at the festivities. Accordingly, they +set out in September, 1767, but no sooner had they arrived at the +capital than they were met by the news that the Princess had been +struck down with small-pox. A few days later the tidings of her death +spread grief and consternation throughout the city. The dread of +infection caused the nobility to flee the place, and Leopold hastened +to remove the children to Olmuetz. Their efforts to escape, however, +were vain, for both children developed the disease, and for nine days +Wolfgang was quite blind. A good Samaritan, in the person of Count von +Podstatzky, Dean of Olmuetz, received the family into his house, with a +noble indifference to the risk which he incurred, and treated them +with every kindness and consideration, so that with good nursing +Wolfgang and Marianne soon recovered. + +It was with renewed hopes that Leopold and his children once more bent +their steps to Vienna, only, however, to meet with fresh +disappointments. The Imperial family received them very kindly, but +the public evinced little desire to attend their performances. The +Empress lived in retirement, and the Emperor was practising a rigid +economy in regard to matters of entertainment and display--an example +which was followed as a matter of course by the nobility. Moreover, +the public taste for art was at a very low ebb, the preference being +for music of the lightest description. As if these were not +sufficiently serious obstacles to contend with, the twelve-year-old +musician was subjected to marked hostility on the part of the chief +performers of the city, who not only held aloof from his performances, +but did not scruple to vent their envy by speaking disparagingly of +his powers. That his son should be thus slighted without being heard +seemed to fill Leopold's cup of bitterness to overflowing. To oppose +such a phalanx of jealous rivals was impossible, and he had made up +his mind to shake the dust of Vienna from his feet and return home, +when the arrival of a messenger from the palace turned his sorrow into +joy. + +'See here, Wolfgang,' cried the delighted father, as he sought the +boy's side after the departure of the royal messenger, 'is not this a +recompense for our trials and waiting? Here are the Emperor's commands +to you to compose an opera--an opera, mark you!--for performance at +the Royal Theatre!' and Leopold gave the astonished Wolfgang a hearty +embrace, as he thrust the important missive into the boy's hand. + +Wolfgang read the letter through with the seriousness which always +characterised his manner when his beloved art was mentioned, and then, +lifting his face to his father's, he threw his arms around Leopold's +neck, exclaiming as he did so, 'It shall be done, papa--the Emperor's +commands shall be obeyed!' + +Fired with zeal to deserve the confidence thus reposed in his powers, +Mozart set himself to work to accomplish his gigantic task. In a short +time, with assiduous labour, he had produced no fewer than five +hundred and fifty-eight pages of music, and 'La finta Semplice,' as +the opera was called, was ready for rehearsal. In the meanwhile, +however, the envious ones had formed themselves into a cabal with the +object of hindering, and, if possible, preventing its production. All +kinds of mean and untrue things were whispered about the work, of +which not a single note had yet been seen or heard by any of these +detractors. The music was declared to be worthless, and when this +slander had been disproved by the testimony of those who were capable +judges, another sprang up to the effect that the work was the +production, not of Mozart himself, but of his father. This, too, was +swept aside only to be supplanted by a fresh outburst of jealousy. +Before long these evil reports found their way to the singers and +performers, who, from being at first loud in their praises of the +opera, began to express a disinclination to take part in the +performance, for fear of losing their reputation. Then Affligio, the +manager who had undertaken to produce the work, in like manner began +to draw back, and put off the rehearsals from time to time. Finally, +after a series of such postponements, when brought to bay by Leopold's +insistence, the manager declared that he would produce the opera if +the father desired it, but that it should not benefit the Mozarts, as +he would take care that it should be hissed off the stage. The Emperor +was powerless to interfere, as Affligio held the theatre independently +of the Court, and nothing remained to be done but to withdraw the +opera. + +This was a great blow to Mozart and his father, but, though +momentarily crushed by disappointment, they comforted each other with +the hope that the work would see the light at a later period. It was +now imperative that they should return to Salzburg immediately, more +especially as Leopold had received an intimation from the Archbishop +that his salary must cease so long as he stayed away. Their +circumstances were, in fact, much straitened owing to the ill success +of their visit, and during the weary months of suspense and waiting +they had been living upon the profits of their previous travels. They +were not allowed to leave Vienna, however, without a ray of sunshine +to cheer them on their homeward journey. Wolfgang had written an +operetta, 'Bastien und Bastienne,' founded upon a burlesque of one of +Rousseau's operas, and he had the pleasure of hearing his little work +performed before a select company of connoisseurs, and of receiving +their praises. Nor would the Emperor let him depart without a further +sign of royal favour, for he was commanded to write a Mass, an +offertorium, and a trumpet concerto to celebrate the dedication of a +new chapel in the city. The occasion was an important one, for the +ceremony was graced by the presence of the Imperial Court, and it must +have been a happy moment for Wolfgang when, having conducted his +compositions, he bowed his acknowledgments of the hearty applause +which followed. With this comforting assurance of the royal regard was +brought to a close an expedition which to both father and son had been +filled with trial and disappointment. + +Old Archbishop Sigismund, too, was forward in showing his sympathy +with Wolfgang on his return to Salzburg; for with a kindness which was +unexpected even at the hands of one who had already proved himself to +be a true friend, he gave orders that 'La finta Semplice' should be +performed in his palace. It was a fitting reward for the Archbishop to +bestow upon one whom he had subjected to so severe a test, and both +Mozart and his father were full of gratitude. Sigismund, moreover, +showed his appreciation of Mozart's genius by making him his +concertmeister, though no salary was attached to the appointment. As +regards the opera itself, as Mozart was shortly to write a work of a +much higher character, not much need be said; at the same time, when +we learn that the best judges of the day pronounced it to be in many +respects superior to the operas which were then in possession of the +stage, and that it pointed 'unmistakably to a glorious future for its +composer,' we may appreciate the remark with which one who was himself +a great musical judge sums up the opinion passed upon Mozart's first +opera: 'Surely, this is extraordinary praise for the work of a boy!' + +Leopold Mozart was now resolved upon undertaking a journey to Italy +with a view to completing Wolfgang's musical education. At that day +Italy stood foremost in the world as the home of music. Of Italy could +it be truly said, as it could be said of no other country, that music +was native to the soil. The craving for music pervaded every class--to +prince, and peer, and peasant alike, music was as natural a possession +as the very air they breathed. It was bound up with the people's +sentiments and passions, to which it afforded the truest expression, +and it was connected to an equal degree with their surroundings and +conditions of life. Consequently, every facility existed for the +development and encouragement of the art, whilst on every hand there +was a steady demand for the best that that art could produce. Thus, as +has been well said, there came to be formed in Italy 'a sort of +musical climate, in which artists found it easy to breathe.' More +than this, it became evident to musicians of other countries, as the +years went on, that he who aspired to do great things with his art, +and to establish a reputation for himself as singer, player, or +composer, must imbibe this atmosphere--for a time, at least--and put +the finishing touches to his education under the influence of the +Italian schools of composition and execution. + +In respect to musical art Germany and Italy were rivals. The music of +Germany was to a very great extent independent; but the spirit of +creation in Germany was not so universally diffused as in Italy, +being, as a matter of fact, chiefly confined to the northern +Protestant portion of the country. Again, the operas performed at the +German Courts were Italian; the music to be heard in the German +Catholic churches was written by Italian composers; whilst both +singers and performers were either drawn from, or had been educated +in, Italy. The two countries, as we have said, were rivals, and every +succeeding year witnessed the growth of this spirit in Germany; but +for long Italy held the supremacy in instrumental as well as in every +other class of music, as the result of that inborn love of music which +pervaded every grade of society throughout the country. + +And so in December, 1769, Mozart, who was now thirteen years of age, +came to Italy to listen to the brightly-clad peasants singing at their +work in the sunny fields; to watch them dancing on the vine-trellised +terraces that overlooked the deep blue waters of the lakes; to witness +the wonderful processions of the priests through the narrow streets of +the towns; and, above all, to hear the grand music in the cathedrals. + +Mozart's bright, happy nature was never more in evidence than on the +occasion of this journey, which he seemed to regard as having been +planned solely for pleasure. His merry jokes and light-hearted +conversation served to ingratiate him in the affections of all. +Leopold kept up a regular correspondence with those at home, but +Wolfgang never failed to add a little letter of his own, addressed +either to his mother or to Marianne, in which he joked about the +incidents of the journey, the people whom they met, or the friends +they had left behind. The letters were a mixture of German and +Italian, with an occasional bit of Salzburg _patois_ thrown in to make +Marianne laugh. But he relapsed into a serious style whenever he +referred to his playing or the performers whom they had heard in the +course of their travels. + +The young musician had, indeed, no lack of work before him, for, in +addition to the regular performances which formed the chief business +of the tour, he was set difficult problems to solve at sight by the +various professors who desired to test his powers. The fame of his +playing preceded him everywhere, so that the further they penetrated +into Italy the more numerous became the demands to hear him. At +Roveredo, where it was announced that he would play the organ at St. +Thomas's Church, the crowd was so great that the monks of the +adjoining monastery had to form a circle around Mozart to keep back +the press until the steps leading to the organ-loft had been gained. +The vast audience listened spellbound to the performance, and then +refused to disperse until they had gained a glimpse of the boy-player. +At Verona, where another triumph awaited him, and where one of his +symphonies was performed, the Receiver-General ordered his portrait to +be painted, and wrote a letter to the mother full of warm praise of +her wonderful son. + +On reaching Milan the chief musician of the city subjected Mozart to +the severest tests, from which he emerged victorious, and after +astonishing everybody by his playing and improvisation, he was +commissioned to write an opera for the ensuing season. It was at +Bologna, however, that he met with the most flattering reception. The +city contained many artists of the highest rank, over whom Padre +Martini, the famous composer of Church music and the first connoisseur +of the country, reigned like a king. Martini was, in fact, worshipped +by Italian lovers of the art, who deferred to his opinion in all +questions affecting music. But the Padre was very old, and had given +up attending concerts, so that every one was astonished when the +coming of Mozart brought the aged musician from his retirement to form +one of the brilliant gathering assembled at Count Pallavicini's +mansion to witness the boy's playing. It was a great compliment to +Mozart, but an even greater compliment to the country from which he +came, and Wolfgang put forth his best powers, with the result that he +earned the judge's warmly expressed commendation. Leopold was +overjoyed at Wolfgang's success, and opined that Bologna would form a +centre from which the boy's fame would spread all over Italy, an +opinion that was justified by the results. As for Martini, he took to +Wolfgang at once, insisted that he should visit him regularly whilst +they remained in Milan, and gave him fugue subjects to work out at his +lodgings. Mozart worked hard at these tasks, and the Padre expressed +himself as perfectly satisfied with the boy's knowledge of +composition. + +The journey to Rome, in fact, was a succession of triumphs, which it +would require a volume by itself to attempt to describe in detail. At +Florence he was invited to play before the Court of the Archduke +Leopold, and solved, 'as easily as if he were eating a bit of bread,' +the difficult problems proposed by the Court music-director, who was +regarded as one of the best contrapuntists of the day. Here he met +Thomas Linley, a boy of about his own age, the son of the English +composer, who was studying the violin under Nardini. Linley's playing +was already exciting much attention, and as he showed great promise in +his compositions as well, people were building high hopes as to his +future. Mozart and he instantly became close friends, and when the +time came for parting neither could restrain his tears. They were +destined never to meet again, for a few years later poor Linley was +drowned through the upsetting of a boat whilst on a pleasure excursion +in Lincolnshire. Mozart never forgot the bright friendship which had +flashed into his life during those few days spent at Florence, and +many years afterwards he would refer in terms of endearment to the +young genius whose career had been thus untimely cut off. + +It was Holy Week when Mozart and his father reached Rome, and the city +lay under the spell of that solemn time. The travellers at once bent +their steps to the Sistine Chapel in order to hear the celebrated +_Miserere_, written by Allegri, performed. Wolfgang had been looking +forward to this moment during the latter stages of his journey with +the deepest interest. He had heard from his father of the jealous +guarding of this wonderful work by the Romans; how it was expressly +forbidden to be performed in any other building than the Sistine; and +how the choristers were under strict injunctions not to remove their +parts of the score from the chapel. His anxiety, therefore, to hear a +work of which the fame had spread throughout the whole of Europe, had +hastened his progress to the Holy City. + +It would, indeed, be difficult to imagine anything more beautiful and +impressive than the singing of this wonderful _Miserere_.[12] It is +introduced into the solemn service called 'Tenebrae' (Darkness), during +which the six tall altar candles, by which the chapel is illuminated, +are extinguished one by one, until only a single candle is left, and +this is removed to a space behind the altar. Then, in almost complete +darkness, the _Miserere_ begins. A single voice is heard singing the +beautiful antiphon, as the short piece which ushers in the _Miserere_ +is called; the sweet notes die away into silence--a silence so +profound that the listener hardly dares to breathe lest he should +disturb it. Then at length the first sad notes of the Supplication are +heard, like the softest wailing of an anguished spirit; they gradually +increase in force until the whole building is ringing with the +plaintive melody in all its thrilling intensity. + +The solemnity of the service and the beauty of the music left a deep +impression on the mind of the young musician who heard it for the +first time. Leopold Mozart, too, was greatly affected by what he had +heard, and when they left the chapel to seek their lodgings neither of +them spoke a word. Once within doors, however, Wolfgang asked for pen +and paper, and, sitting down there and then, he wrote out the whole of +the _Miserere_ from memory. On Good Friday, when the work was to be +performed for the second time, he took his copy with him to the +Sistine, and, concealing it in his cocked hat, he made one or two +corrections in pencil as the service proceeded. It was not long before +the news of this extraordinary feat reached the ears of the Papal +musicians, and Wolfgang received orders to perform his version in the +presence of Christoforo, the principal soprano of the Sistine, who +could not conceal his amazement at finding it correct in every +particular. + +No better introduction than this was needed to secure for Mozart a +cordial welcome at the houses of the great, and during their stay in +Rome they were feted to their hearts' content. + +At Naples, which was their next stopping-place, Wolfgang played at the +Conservatorio alla Pieta before a brilliant gathering, and excited so +much astonishment that several of the audience openly declared that +his powers were derived from a ring which he wore upon his finger. 'He +wears a charm!' they cried; and when Mozart, hearing their remarks, +smilingly laid aside the supposed magic ring, and played even more +brilliantly than before, the enthusiasm was redoubled. After this the +Neapolitans vied with one another to show them honour and attention. A +carriage was provided for their use, in which they drove about amongst +the fashionable crowds on the Strada Nuova and the quay, on which +occasions Leopold wore a maroon-coloured coat of watered silk, with +sky-blue facings, and Wolfgang one of apple-green, with rose-coloured +facings and silver buttons. + +We have not space, however, in which to describe all the events of +Mozart's wonderful tour, and so we may only mention how they returned +to Rome at the instance of the Pope, who not only granted Wolfgang a +private audience, but bestowed upon him the Order of the Golden Spur, +thus entitling him to be styled 'Signor Cavaliere Amadeo'; how, when +next he wrote to Marianne, he jokingly concluded his letter as +follows: 'Mademoiselle, j'ai l'honneur d'etre votre tres-humble +serviteur et frere, Chevalier de Mozart'; and how his portrait was +once more painted in Rome by Battoni. A still greater distinction was +conferred upon him on his arrival at Bologna, for the Accademia +Filarmonica admitted him to their ranks as 'compositore,' +notwithstanding that their statutes required that members should be at +least twenty years of age. To test his qualifications for election he +was given an antiphon to set in four parts, and locked up in a room to +fulfil his task. At the expiration of half an hour he asked to be let +out, to the astonishment of the officials, who could scarcely credit +that he had completed the work in so short a time. The composition was +then examined by the professors, who next voted upon it, and finally, +amidst clapping of hands, it was declared that Mozart had been duly +elected. + +After some further intercourse with Padre Martini, who, before +leaving, presented Mozart with a testimonial, the travellers proceeded +to Milan, where Wolfgang set to work at once on the opera which he had +been commissioned to write. It was a great task, and we find him +writing to his mother and sister, begging them to pray for its +success, 'so that they may all live happily together again,' +'Mitridate,' as the work was called, was at length finished, after +three months' hard labour, some of which was devoted to fighting the +opposition emanating from both singers and rivals. The first +performance took place on December 26, 1770, and was conducted by +Wolfgang, whose appearance in the orchestra was the signal for a great +outburst of cheering, to be repeated again and again as the opera +proceeded. Then came loud cries of 'Evviva il Maestro! Evviva il +Maestrino!' in response to which Mozart gravely bowed his +acknowledgments, and at the same time bent his glance towards the spot +where his father sat with his eyes covered with his hand, in order to +hide the tears of pride and joy which filled them to overflowing. +Mingled with these feelings, however, Leopold felt a deep +thankfulness in his heart that he had been spared to watch over his +son's career, and to be a witness of his success. + +'Mitridate' had indeed succeeded even beyond their utmost hopes; it +was repeated twenty times before crowded houses, and its success +brought with it the honour of election as 'Maestro di Capella' (the +Italian equivalent of the German title 'Capellmeister') by the +Accademia Filarmonica. Mozart's position was now assured, and he had +nothing more to fear from intrigues or cabals. So that when, in +August, 1771, we find him once more in Milan, he is on cordial terms +with all his fellow-artists, and hard at work composing a dramatic +serenata for the approaching marriage of the Archduke Ferdinand with +Princess Beatrice of Modena. He is working amidst a Babel of sounds, +for in the room above dwells a violinist, in the room below another, +whilst a singing-master lives next door, and an oboist opposite. But +he is not dismayed. 'It is capital for composing,' he writes to +Marianne; 'it gives one new ideas.' + +The serenata, 'Ascanio in Alba'--an allegorical pastoral play--was a +great success, and Hasse, a master of opera, who had also composed a +work for the occasion, was fain to admit that he stood nowhere +compared with Mozart. 'This boy,' he exclaimed, 'will cause us all to +be forgotten.' The Empress, who had commissioned Mozart to write the +work, was so pleased with the result that, in addition to the +stipulated fee, she presented the composer with a gold watch with her +portrait set in diamonds at the back. + +Our story of Mozart's life has now reached the point which marks the +beginning of a series of misfortunes and trials of a far more serious +character than those with which his earlier struggles for fame had +been associated. There was no foreshadowing of these troubles at the +moment when the travellers set out on their return journey to +Salzburg, whither they were carrying the hopes which had been built +upon their successes in Milan. Shortly after their return, however, to +their great grief the good Archbishop Sigismund died, and both Leopold +and Wolfgang realised that they had lost their best protector and +friend. The news of the appointment of Hieronymus, Count von +Colloredo, as his successor was received by the townspeople with +feelings of displeasure and even dismay, for it was well known that +the character of Hieronymus was almost entirely opposite to that which +had made Sigismund beloved by his subjects. The Mozarts, father and +son, were soon made to taste the bitterness of the change. +Appreciation for art formed no part of the new Archbishop's nature, +and he lost no opportunity of showing his contempt for those who +followed it as a profession. Notwithstanding the fame which had now +gathered about Mozart, whose latest opera, 'La finta Giardiniera,' had +been produced in Munich, at the carnival of 1775, with the greatest +success, the Archbishop persistently refused to recognise his genius, +or to grant any facilities for enabling his dependents to better their +condition of life. Once, during his master's absence in Vienna, +Leopold had gone to the capital with Wolfgang, hoping to be able to +secure some appointment at the Court which might relieve them of their +necessities, but the effort was in vain. To his wife he wrote: 'Things +will and must alter; take comfort, God will help us.' But they +returned empty-handed. + +Despite the fact that monetary anxieties were daily growing more +pressing, and the aspect of affairs at the Salzburg Court remained as +hopeless as ever, Wolfgang worked at his compositions with untiring +diligence, and by the time he had attained his twenty-first year he +had accumulated a mass of music that embraced every branch of the art, +in addition to numberless carefully worked out studies of other +masters. But Hieronymus viewed his Concertmeister's industry with +disdain. Even when, by happening to be in Vienna shortly after 'La +finta Giardiniera' had taken the Viennese by storm, he had been made +the unwilling recipient of congratulations at the hands of the +nobility upon the possession of so gifted a composer, he had contrived +to evade an admission of Mozart's genius by protesting, with a +sardonic smile and outspread hands, that he knew nothing about such +matters. Even this disclaimer, however, did not prevent the Archbishop +from making use of Wolfgang's powers whenever their display could be +made to add to his own glorification. But nothing softened his +ill-nature; no degree of praise which was justly awarded either to +Mozart as a composer, or to his father for the care with which he had +conducted his son's musical training, availed to remove or even to +mitigate the deeply-rooted dislike which Hieronymus bore to father and +son. He professed to regard them both in the light of professional +beggars, and he never lost an opportunity of speaking slightingly of +Wolfgang's compositions. + +It was not long before the relations with the Archbishop became +strained to breaking-point. Wolfgang was now twenty-one, with a +reputation as a composer, but with no settled future; it was clear +that nothing was to be hoped for by his remaining in Salzburg, and +Leopold therefore resolved to undertake a professional tour with his +son. For this purpose a prolonged leave of absence was necessary; but +the Archbishop met Leopold's application with a curt refusal. + +Even Wolfgang's docile nature would bend no further under such +treatment, and he forthwith requested to be relieved of his duties. +The salary connected with his post of Concertmeister was trifling in +amount, and Hieronymus was fully aware of the value of the services +which he professed to estimate so lightly. But that one for whom he +had expressed contempt should thus presume to take action on his own +behalf rendered him furious. He would have nothing to do with either +father or son. 'After the Gospel, you are both free to seek your +fortunes wherever you please!' was his reply to Wolfgang's +application. This hasty decision, however, he afterwards retracted +with respect to Leopold, and the father realised that the only course +left open to him was to allow Wolfgang and his mother to travel +together. + +Arrangements were accordingly made, and early in the morning of +September 23, 1777, the carriage which was to convey the travellers +drew up at the door of Leopold's house. Now that the actual moment of +parting had arrived the father could with difficulty restrain his +emotion, and it was only when the carriage had driven off that he +remembered that he had forgotten to bestow a blessing on his dear +ones. Rushing to the window, he stretched forth his hand, to find that +he was too late--the travellers were already out of sight. + +Wolfgang's spirits, however, rose as the towers of Salzburg faded into +the haze of that September morning. No sorrow of parting could stifle +the sense of freedom that was springing up in his breast; he had +escaped from a town which was intimately associated in his mind with +tyranny and oppression, to seek his fortune in a new and wider world, +where he was confident that his gifts would meet with the recognition +they deserved. Thus buoyed with hope and confidence he entered upon a +sea of difficulty and trouble. + + [Illustration: '_The carriage which was to convey the travellers + drew up at the door._'] + +At Munich, where they first halted, Wolfgang endeavoured to secure an +engagement at the Elector's Court; but there was no vacancy, and +although his playing brought forth many promises of future help in +addition to applause, the prospect of obtaining immediate engagements +fell empty to the ground. 'Fine words and bravissimos pay neither the +postboy nor the host,' wrote the practical Leopold Mozart, when +Wolfgang applied to him for advice, and so mother and son went on to +Mannheim. Here, indeed, the prospects seemed to be much brighter. +Mannheim was a thoroughly musical town, and Mozart soon won both +esteem and admiration at the hands of the musicians. The Elector, Karl +Theodor, maintained an excellent orchestra, and with Cannabich, the +conductor, Wolfgang soon became great friends, giving music-lessons +to his daughter Rose. Nevertheless, albeit so gifted, and capable of +winning applause wherever he played, Mozart was constantly looking for +work that would bring in sufficient ready-money to maintain himself +and his mother, until something of a permanent nature could be found +for him. But here again disappointment followed disappointment. He was +desirous of staying the winter in Mannheim, in order to join some +friends who were leaving for Paris in the spring, but he must first +find something to do. He seized upon the opportunity of playing before +the Elector and the Electress as a possible means of securing their +children as pupils, and for some time success in this direction seemed +imminent. But his application was put off from day to day; weeks +passed over, and nothing was settled. + +Amidst these hopes and delays Leopold Mozart was writing from Salzburg +urging Wolfgang to decide upon a course of action. He reminded him +that he had put his time to but little use up to the present, and that +it was becoming increasingly difficult for him to supply the money for +their maintenance. Wolfgang must give him longer notice of their +change of plans, as 'otherwise all will go wrong'; and he warns his +son to be careful lest he be stranded without money--and 'no money +meant no friends.' + +There was justice in these urgings and warnings, for it was a fact +that to Wolfgang life in Mannheim had become so pleasant and +easy-going that it was time that he should be reminded of the call of +duty. In the midst of intercourse with friends, who were only too +willing to second his wishes to remain in Mannheim, Mozart was in +danger of forgetting the sacrifices which were being made for him at +home. Both father and daughter were indeed denying themselves and +working hard to keep up the supplies of money. In addition to being +heavily in debt on Wolfgang's account, Leopold had increased his +labours by giving music-lessons at a small fee, whilst Marianne was +practising all manner of shifts to make ends meet. Each fresh +disappointment which her brother's letters conveyed caused 'Nannerl's' +tears to flow with sympathy and vexation, and added to her father's +anxieties. + +The latest letter had brought the depressing intelligence that, after +tedious delays, the Elector had decided that he could not see his way +to offering Mozart the engagement which he sought. Nothing remained to +be done, therefore, but to relinquish the idea of wintering in +Mannheim. But coupled with this announcement of failure, Wolfgang had +let drop some complaints on the subject of lesson-giving which aroused +his father to the pitch of administering a severe rebuke. Wolfgang's +protest was to the effect that so long as he was called upon to seek +work in the shape of music-lessons at small fees, the time which he +felt ought to be given to composition must suffer serious curtailment, +with the result that his progress would inevitably be hindered, if it +were not brought to an actual standstill. There was doubtless sound +sense behind this protest, for who could deny that Wolfgang's aims +were high, or that he possessed the power to accomplish great things +with his art? It is, however, easy to understand that his expressed +disinclination to give music-lessons touched his father on a tender +point. 'And so,' Leopold writes, with more bitterness than he has ever +shown before in his letters--'and so you will throw away chances of +earning money, whilst your old father has to run from house to house +for a wretched pittance in order to support himself and his daughter, +and to send the little that remains to you, instead of paying his +debts!' He begs Wolfgang to reflect whether he was not treating him +as hardly as the Archbishop himself. Then follows a remark which +refers to Mozart's proneness to place undue reliance on promises, +instead of using his own judgment. 'You have judgment,' says Leopold, +'but a trifle too much of conceit and self-love, and you are inclined +to be over-confiding, and to open your heart to every one you meet.' + +However, Wolfgang's stay in Mannheim was, after all, prolonged over +the winter, through the efforts which his friends made to procure him +work; but when the spring came round, and the three musicians whom he +had promised to accompany to Paris were ready to start upon their +journey, he found an excuse for letting them go without him. Leopold +Mozart was a deeply religious man, and when he learnt from Wolfgang +that his reason for breaking off his intended journey was that his +three companions had not a particle of religion in them, he approved +his son's judgment without expressing any surprise at the tardiness of +his discovery. + +But Mozart had a deeper reason, which he was not so anxious to +disclose, and which perhaps he could not, without knowing his mind +exactly at the time, have explained. Be this as it may, however, +Mozart could never have been surer of anything than that his father +would have disapproved in the strongest manner of the feelings which +were swaying him at that moment. Yet if Leopold had but read between +the lines of his son's letters he must have seen why it was that +Wolfgang was seemingly so blind to his own interests, and so forgetful +of his duty to those who loved him at home. The fact is Wolfgang was +in love. And if the vigilant eye of the kindest and tenderest father +that ever watched with unremitting care over the welfare of a gifted +son could have pierced the space that separated him from Wolfgang at +the moment when he was perusing that letter of excuse, it might have +lighted upon the following little scene which was being enacted in the +parlour of a small house in Mannheim. + +A young man is seated at the harpsichord playing the accompaniment of +a song from the manuscript before him. Every now and then he lifts his +eyes from the music-sheet to let them rest upon the fair young face of +the maiden standing beside him, and that oft-repeated glance reveals +more than admiration for the singer's notes, pure and melodious as her +singing is--more than a recognition of the singer's charms, sweet +beyond question as those charms are; it reveals, in a word, the love +which is burning within the player's breast, a love as yet unspoken, +but beside which even art herself must for the time sink her +supremacy. + +Aloysia Weber, the fifteen-year-old maiden for whom Mozart had +conceived this attachment, was the second daughter of Fridolin Weber, +a member of the Elector's band. The young composer had been attracted +first by her voice, and later by her personal beauty, and both of +these gifts had gained in power through the sympathy he felt for the +family who were in poor circumstances. He longed to be able to help +them; Aloysia's singing was of a high order, and only needed to be +heard in public to secure the approval of the connoisseurs; he had +already written a song specially for her, and she sang it as well as +he could wish. Thus he wrote to his father, in the hope of enlisting +the latter's interest in his protege, adding that he only wished his +father could hear her sing. But he gave no indication in the letter of +those deeper feelings which animated his desire to be of use to the +family. + +The father, however, was soon to receive a communication which +startled him into a knowledge of the true state of affairs. Wolfgang +had formed a project for helping the Webers by undertaking a journey +to Italy in company with Aloysia and her father, with the object of +writing an opera in which Aloysia should appear as prima donna. Their +plans would embrace, with Leopold's sanction, a visit to Salzburg by +the way, when Wolfgang would have the pleasure of introducing the fair +singer to his parent and 'Nannerl,' by whom he was sure she would be +welcomed and beloved. Leopold was distracted by the proposal. 'What!' +he writes, in reply to Wolfgang's letter, 'are you so mad as to prefer +a vagabond life to Mannheim and fame! Away with you to Paris, and that +immediately. Take up your position among those who are really +great--_aut Caesar aut nihil_. From Paris the name and fame of a man of +talent spreads throughout the world.' The father wisely refrained from +making any direct allusion to the subject of Mozart's attachment, +trusting to the latter's sense of what was due to one who had made +such sacrifices on his behalf. His trust was not misplaced; duty and +affection prevailed, and with a heavy heart Mozart yielded to his +father's wishes, and his love-dream came to an end. His ready +compliance brought a most affectionate letter from Leopold, in which +he assures his dear Wolfgang that he does not entertain the least +mistrust of him; on the contrary, he has perfect confidence and hope +in his filial love. His good judgment, if he will only listen to it, +will direct him how to act. As for himself, he is resigned to +separation, and he adjures Wolfgang to live the life of a good +Catholic Christian. 'Love God and fear Him,' he continues; 'pray to +Him sincerely and devoutly, and let your conduct be such that, should +I never see you again, my death-bed may be free from anxiety. From my +heart I bless you.' + +The departure for Paris was now fixed, but the leave-taking with the +Webers was not accomplished without tears, for the family insisted on +regarding Wolfgang as their 'greatest benefactor.' Aloysia was +encouraged to hope for better things, for she had already been heard +in public on several occasions through Mozart's influence, and now she +was to be placed under the care of a celebrated singer named Raaff, +who had undertaken to carry on the training of her beautiful voice, +and to assist in bringing her out. + +The hopes which Leopold Mozart had built upon Wolfgang's prospects of +success in Paris were not destined to be fulfilled. The enthusiasm +which he had evoked as a marvellous prodigy was not to be elicited by +his matured powers as a young man, and the influence necessary to +enforce his claims to be recognised as a composer of standing was +lacking. Three months passed away in more or less unsuccessful +endeavour, and then the mother, who had been his companion and +comforter throughout this long period of trial and travel, was struck +down by serious illness, and on July 3, 1778, she breathed her last in +her son's arms. Wolfgang's first thought in the hour of sorrow was for +his father, and he wrote to an old friend at Salzburg, begging him to +break the sad news as gently as possible. When he knew that this had +been done he himself wrote a letter to his father, full of sympathy +and affection. + +Mozart now determined to leave Paris at once, and his father was the +more willing to acquiesce in this step because an offer had been made +by Archbishop Hieronymus to instal Wolfgang in the place of the Court +organist, who had just died, and to give him a salary of five hundred +florins, with permission to absent himself whenever he might be called +upon to conduct one of his own operas. The offer had also attached to +it the near prospect of being made full Capellmeister at the +Archbishop's Court. Leopold urged Wolfgang's acceptance, pointing out +that their joint income would in such case amount to one thousand +florins a year--a sum that would enable them to discharge their debts +and live in comparative comfort. + +Mozart, it must be owned, viewed the prospect of a return to Salzburg +under the implied conditions with positive dismay, but he could not +withstand his father's appeal. He set out from Paris immediately, +promising himself only one indulgence before entering upon the bondage +which lay before him--and that was to take Mannheim on his homeward +journey. Arrived at Mannheim, however, he found that the Webers had +migrated to Munich, whither the Elector had already gone to take up +his new residence. After exchanging greetings with a few old friends, +therefore, he bent his steps to Munich, hoping to find consolation in +a brief renewal of the happy hours which had left so strong an +impression on his memory. But, alas! his disappointments found their +crown within the Webers' dwelling. The family, it is true, received +him as warmly as of old; but she to whom his glance was first directed +showed in her eyes nothing more than a friendly welcome, and Mozart +was quick to perceive that his hopes had here no abiding-place. +Aloysia was fickle, and her affection had so far waned as to be unable +to withstand even the test afforded by Mozart's change of dress. When +he appeared before her with black buttons sewn upon his red coat, +after the French fashion, to indicate that he was in mourning, she +resented the innovation; and, after a brief intercourse, in which she +plainly showed that she had forgotten him for whom her tears had +flowed some months before, they parted. + +It was with a mind stored with invaluable experience, but with a heart +saddened and sore by disappointed love and ambition, that Mozart once +more entered the portal of his Salzburg home. If anything could have +cheered him at that moment and served to dispel the clouds which +seemed to obscure his future, it would have been the warmth of the +welcome bestowed upon him by the inmates of that home which he had +left nearly two years before filled with the brightest anticipations. +And, indeed, it was little short of triumphant, this greeting and +homage which poured in upon him from father, sister, and friends. In +_their_ eyes, at least, his successes were unshadowed by his failures; +to them he was still the Mozart, the genius amongst musicians, who was +yet to leave his mark upon the roll of fame. But, grateful as he felt +for these proofs of sincere affection and esteem, his aversion to +Salzburg and his duties at the Court remained in full force, and it +was with a new-kindled joy that he set forth once more for Munich, in +November, 1780, to complete and produce the opera which he had been +commissioned to write for the carnival of the following year. + +To the realisation of these the first-fruits of his previous sojourn +at Munich Mozart was to owe the establishment of his fame as a +dramatic composer of the first rank. 'Idomeneo,' as the new opera was +called, fulfilled the high expectations which his Munich friends had +formed from the composer's powers. Its reception at the rehearsals +rendered success a certainty, and the Elector, who was present, joined +with the performers in expressing his unqualified approval. At home +the progress of the work was watched with the deepest interest. 'The +universal subject of conversation here,' writes Leopold to his son, +'is your opera.' The first performance took place on January 29, and +as the Archbishop was then staying in Vienna, Leopold and Marianne +journeyed to Munich to witness Wolfgang's triumph. It was a proud and +happy moment for all three, and the enthusiastic applause which shook +the theatre at the close of the performance must have seemed to the +old father, who stood gazing with swimming eyes at the sea of waving +hands around him, to set the seal of greatness upon his son's career. + +Mozart was soon, however, to taste the bitterness of his bondage by +receiving orders from the Archbishop to attend him in Vienna. From the +moment of his arrival the arrogant ecclesiastic gave him to understand +that, except when his services were required for his master's +glorification, he would be expected to take his place amongst the +servants of the household, to dine at their table, and to receive the +like treatment and consideration. The indignities to which he was +subjected beneath the Archbishop's roof, however, did not for a time +prevent Mozart from feeling happy, for the aristocracy as a body +welcomed him with enthusiasm, and invited him to their houses to dine. +To Hieronymus, on the other hand, who was cordially detested by the +nobility, and especially by the Emperor Joseph, the fact that one of +his musicians--a mere domestic of his establishment--was made the +object of all this attention on the part of the great people of +Vienna, was in itself sufficient to rekindle the hatred which he had +always felt towards Mozart. It was a purely selfish feeling which had +induced the Archbishop to reattach Mozart to his Court; and now, when +he found that requests were flowing in from the nobility to be allowed +to hear the composer play at their own houses, where Hieronymus +himself was far from being a welcome guest, he gave full rein to his +spite, with the result that Mozart's life speedily became unbearable. + +The culminating point was reached when the Emperor purposely left the +Archbishop out of the list of guests invited to his summer residence +at Laxenburg. Enraged at the slight thus offered to him, Hieronymus +before leaving Vienna sought to gratify a portion of his revenge by +turning Mozart from his doors. Mozart had just before made up his mind +to quit the Archbishop's service, for his treatment had of late become +unendurable, and there was every prospect of his being able to make a +living in Vienna. He now requested an audience for the purpose of +ascertaining his position. Hieronymus seized the occasion for +showering upon the head of his Concertmeister all the abuse which he +could summon to his aid. Calling him 'villain,' 'low wretch,' 'low +fellow of the streets,' the Archbishop declared that none of his +servants treated him so badly. 'Your Grace is dissatisfied with me, +then?' said Mozart. 'What! you dare to employ threats! Fex! there is +the door! I will have nothing more to do with such a vile wretch!' +'Nor I with, you,' was Mozart's retort, as he quitted the room. + +Mozart was now virtually free from the intolerable burden under which +he had suffered, but his actual discharge was not obtained without +further indignity and insult. Leopold Mozart received the news of the +rupture with alarm, and endeavoured to induce Wolfgang to reconsider +his decision not to return to Salzburg. But even though an official +acceptance of his resignation was not then forthcoming, Mozart made a +stand for his independence. 'Do not ask it,' he wrote to his father in +reply. 'Demand of me anything but that. The very thought of it makes +me tremble with rage. I hate the Archbishop almost to frenzy!' + +We must pass over the time of struggle which followed the severance of +Mozart's connection with the Archbishop, when he found himself with +only a single pupil as a visible means of support, but, fortunately, +not without friends, and come to the point when, for the second time, +he fell in love. He was lodging with his old friends the Webers. +Fridolin Weber was dead; Aloysia had married, and was well known as a +professional singer; and Madame Weber, with her two unmarried +daughters, was living, in reduced circumstances, in Vienna. Mozart's +prospects had greatly improved, for his latest opera, 'Entfuehrung aus +dem Serail,' had brought him increased fame, both in Vienna and in +Prague, and he had secured the patronage of many distinguished +personages, in addition to that of the Emperor Joseph. Bachelorhood to +him now seemed insupportable. 'To my mind,' he says in a letter to his +father, 'a bachelor lives only half a life,' and so he had determined +to marry. The object of his choice was Constanze Weber, the third +daughter, and, despite Leopold's remonstrances, Mozart made her his +bride on August 16, 1782. + + [Illustration: "_There is the door!_"] + +His marriage marked the beginning of a new era of struggle, for +Constanze, though a devoted wife, was incapable of managing a home, +and as their means were uncertain to start with, they were soon +involved in a sea of monetary troubles, from which there seemed to be +no prospect of their extricating themselves. An unpropitious note had +been struck on the very day of the wedding, when it must have appeared +to Mozart that he had committed a crime in robbing the family of one +of its members. 'As soon as we were married,' he wrote to his father, +'my wife and I both began to weep. All present, even the priest, were +touched at seeing us so moved, and wept too.' + +With the friends and influence which Mozart's genius had ranged upon +his side it was hoped that a post of importance would by this time +have been found for him in Vienna. The bestowal of a Court appointment +would have relieved him of much of the drudgery of teaching and the +anxiety of tiding over periods when pupils and engagements were +scarce, but the Emperor, despite his sincere interest in all that +concerned the composer, showed a seeming disinclination to make a +proposal. Yet there could be no doubt of the appreciation in which +Mozart was held at the Court, for in a letter to his father at this +time he quotes a remark made by Prince Kaunitz to the Archduke +Maximilian on the subject of the Emperor's inaction with regard to +retaining Mozart's services: 'That men of that stamp only came into +the world once in a hundred years, and that they ought not to be +driven out of Germany, especially when, as good luck would have it, +they were already in the capital.' + +Mozart was, indeed, seriously contemplating a journey to London and +Paris, and had even begun to make his preparations, but his father's +urgent appeals for patience and further effort had the effect of +postponing for the time the carrying out of his schemes. In the +meantime Mozart seized the opportunity for which he had been longing +of paying a visit to Salzburg to present Constanze to his father, and +at the same time of fulfilling a vow which he had made that, if +Constanze became his wife, he would have a Mass composed by him for +the occasion performed in her honour. It was, on the whole, a very +happy visit, and later on, when Mozart and his wife had once more +settled down in Vienna, they had the pleasure of welcoming the father +on a return visit. Leopold found his son immersed in work, and it +gladdened his heart to witness the appreciation in which his playing +and compositions were held. One never-to-be-forgotten evening they +spent together in the company of Haydn, when, after hearing several of +Mozart's quartets performed, Leopold was made the happy recipient of a +testimony to his son's greatness, which he treasured above all else +that had been spoken or written in his favour, and which came as a +fitting reward for the unremitting care and solicitude which he had +bestowed upon Mozart's welfare and training. Haydn took the old man +aside at the close of the evening, and said: 'I declare to you before +God as a man of honour that your son is the greatest composer that I +know, either personally or by reputation. He has taste, and, beyond +that, the most consummate knowledge of the art of composition.' + +This pleasant time was rendered the happier by the fact that Leopold +found Wolfgang and his wife in somewhat better circumstances, and +their home brightened by the presence of a little grandson, Karl, who +clambered upon his grandfather's knee, and filled the old man's mind +with tender recollections of a little son whom he had lost before +Wolfgang's birth. But it was destined to be the last meeting between +Mozart and his father, for shortly after Leopold's return he was +seized with illness, on hearing of which Wolfgang wrote to him a +letter, in which he expressed his own views on death. 'As death, +strictly speaking, is the true end and aim of our lives, I have +accustomed myself during the last two years to so close a +contemplation of this, our best and truest friend, that he possesses +no more terrors for me--nothing but peace and consolation. And I thank +God for enabling me to discern in death the _key_ to our true +blessedness. I never lie down in bed without remembering that, +perhaps, young as I am, I may never see another day, and yet no one +who knows me can say that I am melancholy or fanciful. For this +blessing I thank God daily, and desire nothing more than to share it +with my fellow-men.' + +The news of his father's death, which occurred on May 28, 1787, +reached Mozart shortly after he had accomplished one of the greatest +successes of his life. The name of his latest opera, 'Le Nozze di +Figaro,' was on every one's lips; its performances in Vienna and +Prague had been hailed with enthusiastic delight by crowded audiences; +its songs were to be heard in every street, and wandering minstrels in +the country, as they halted at the village alehouses, were compelled +to satisfy their groups of listeners with selections from its +entrancing airs. Michael Kelly, the singer and friend of Mozart, who +took part in the opera, has thus described its reception by the +orchestra and performers: 'Never was anything more complete than the +triumph of Mozart, and his "Nozze di Figaro," to which numerous +overflowing audiences bore witness. Even at the first full-band +rehearsal all present were roused to enthusiasm, and when Benucci came +to the fine passage, "Cherubino, alla vittoria, alla gloria militar," +which he gave with stentorian lungs, the effect was electric, for the +whole of the performers on the stage, and those in the orchestra, as +if actuated by one feeling of delight, vociferated, "Bravo! bravo! +Maestro! Viva, viva, grande Mozart!" Those in the orchestra I thought +would never have ceased applauding by beating the bows of their +violins against the music-desks.' As for Mozart himself: 'I never +shall forget his little animated countenance when lighted up with the +glowing rays of genius; it is as impossible to describe it as it would +be to paint sunbeams.' + +Despite the success of 'Figaro' Mozart still remained a poor +man--still was he compelled to earn a living by the hated drudgery of +teaching. 'You happy man,' he said to a young musician who was leaving +for a tour in Italy; 'as for me, I am off now to give a lesson to earn +my bread.' The desire to visit England was once more uppermost in his +mind, and when the Emperor, with a view to retaining him in Germany, +appointed him Kammer-compositor at a salary of eight hundred gulden +(about eighty pounds sterling), it must have occurred to many besides +Mozart himself that such a 'beggarly dole' but poorly represented the +value which his Majesty professed to set upon the composer's services +to art. This feeling was accentuated in Mozart when he discovered how +trivial were the requirements of his royal master in connection with +the position. 'Too much for what I produce, too little for what I +could produce,' were the bitter words which he penned on the official +return stating the amount of his salary. + +The 'beggarly dole,' indeed, brought small relief to the domestic +anxieties which now more than ever oppressed Mozart and his wife. The +latter's ill-health necessitated frequent change of air, and in this +way tended to increase their embarrassments. Applications to friends +for assistance became more and more numerous. 'I am still most +unfortunate,' he writes in one of these appeals. 'Always hovering +between hope and anxiety.' Repeated attempts were made at reform. +Mozart even commenced to keep strict accounts of their expenditure, +but they came to nothing, for the want of management was always +apparent in every detail of his domestic life. Yet, despite all, the +merry side of Mozart's nature refused to succumb to the stress of +adversity; amidst his difficulties he retained the sunshine of his +boyish days, being as merry-hearted, and full of jokes, and as open as +a child. One winter day an old friend found him and his wife dancing +madly about the room; knowing Mozart's fondness for this pastime--his +favourite of all forms of amusement--the friend expressed his pleasure +at finding them so light-hearted, when Mozart, pointing to the empty +stove, explained that they were dancing in order to keep themselves +warm, as they had no money to purchase fuel. Horror-struck, the caller +darted from the house, and returned in a few minutes with his arms +laden with logs. + +To some extent a natural leaning to extravagance may be held +accountable for Mozart's embarrassments, for he was extremely fond of +dress, and had a great weakness for lace and watch-chains. But if he +indulged his tastes overmuch in this particular, he was no less lavish +in regard to giving where he thought help was needed. He could never +turn a deaf ear to the appeal of a beggar, and his kindness was +frequently imposed upon; even when monetary help was not forthcoming +to meet the request of a brother-musician, he would contrive to find +time amidst the pressure of his own work to compose a concerto for the +latter's benefit. To the animal world, also, his affectionate nature +went forth in no small degree, and he became deeply attached to a +starling, which had learnt to pipe the subject of the Rondo of his +'Pianoforte Concerto in G Major.' + +And if his distresses failed to diminish his joy in the very fact of +living, even less did they affect his powers of work. His father had +declared that 'procrastination was his besetting sin,' and Mozart was +certainly given to putting off the evil day as far as possible; but no +one knew better than Leopold Mozart himself how tireless was Mozart's +industry, or how boundless his powers of coping with a gigantic task +which he had set his mind to accomplish. When, in September, 1787, he +was at Prague, writing the score of 'Don Giovanni,' his favourite +resort was the vineyard belonging to his friend Duschek, situated +close to the city; here he would be seated at his work[13] whilst +conversation or skittle-playing went on around him, often quitting his +task to join in one or the other. The time was short, for the opera +was to be produced on October 29, and when the evening of the 28th +arrived it found the overture still unwritten. Nothing daunted, +however, Mozart bade his wife brew him some punch, and bring her book +of fairy-stories, and then, for hour after hour, he wrote on, whilst +Constanze read aloud to keep him awake. When sleep could no longer be +resisted he lay down for an hour or two, but when the copyist came for +the score at seven o'clock in the morning it was ready for him. His +musical memory was so marvellous that the merest scraps of notes, +jotted down whilst driving, conversing, or soothing his wife in her +pain, were sufficient to recall to mind without the slightest effort +the exact ideas which he desired to reproduce. An entire work would +thus be completed in his brain before he began to write a single note +on paper, and it was no unusual thing for him to be thinking out a +second part whilst writing down the first. 'He never composed at the +clavier,' says his wife, in speaking of his manner of work, 'but wrote +music like letters, and never tried a movement until it was finished.' + +The limits of our story forbid even a mention of the compositions +which made up the life-work of Mozart; the few to which we have found +space to refer are those connected with the chief episodes of his +career. Much less can we convey an idea of his powers of +improvisation. Hours snatched from sleep would be spent at the piano, +and into the silence of the night drifted many a divine melody which +no ear but his own was destined to hear. One who lived to be eighty, +speaking of those wonderful improvisations, says: 'I still, in my old +age, seem to hear the echo of those heavenly harmonies, and I go to my +grave with the full conviction that there can never be another +Mozart.' + +It was at such times that the inspiration of true genius shone forth +in his expression. Ordinarily there was nothing distinguished about +his appearance; the head, with its profusion of fine hair, was +somewhat too large for the body, which was short and slim; the face +was pale, and the nose a rather too prominent feature; the eyes were +large, well-shaped, and shaded by long lashes and bushy eyebrows, but +the expression was absent and restless. When seated at the piano, +however, the whole countenance changed; the eye became calm and fixed, +and every movement of his muscles spoke the emotion which his playing +expressed. + +Even the success of 'Don Giovanni'--at the performance of which the +Prague audience greeted Mozart's appearance in the orchestra with +thunders of applause and a triple flourish of trumpets--failed to +remedy the desperate condition into which his affairs had fallen; and +when his pupil and patron, Prince Karl Lichnowsky, proposed that he +should accompany him to Berlin, Mozart gladly accepted the invitation. +The visit, however, was productive of much honour, but very little +money, and at its conclusion he wrote to his wife: 'On my return you +must be glad to have _me_, and not think about money.' The King of +Prussia received Mozart with every mark of kindness and respect, and +being himself very musical, and desirous of having the best musicians +about him, he sought Mozart's advice regarding the proficiency of his +band. 'It contains some great players,' replied Mozart; 'but if the +gentlemen would _play together_ they would make a better effect.' The +King was evidently much impressed by this remark, for before Mozart +left he offered him the post of Capellmeister, with a salary of three +thousand thalers (equal to about six hundred pounds sterling). Mozart +was deeply affected by the munificent offer, and for the moment he +hardly knew how to reply; then, reflecting how much he owed to the +Emperor Joseph for the latter's friendship and interest, he said: 'How +could I abandon my good Emperor?' + +Though his loyalty had thus withstood the temptation of an offer +which, if accepted, would have ensured his liberation from the 'net of +embarrassments' in which he was so hopelessly entangled, the feeling +of resistance weakened later on, when his return to Vienna revealed no +improvement in the situation of affairs. Yielding therefore to the +advice of others, he told the Emperor of the King of Prussia's offer, +and at the same time tendered his resignation. Dismayed by this +unlooked-for resolution, the Emperor exclaimed: 'What, Mozart, do you +mean to forsake me?' The tone in which this remonstrance was uttered, +and the expression which accompanied it had their effect upon the +tender-hearted, grateful Mozart, and with emotion he answered: 'Your +Majesty, I throw myself upon your kindness--I remain.' + +Thus perished the only chance which was destined to fall within +Mozart's grasp of freeing himself from his troubles, for soon +afterwards the Emperor fell ill and died, and no renewal of the Berlin +offer was forthcoming. + +The coronation of the Emperor Joseph's successor, the Emperor Leopold, +took place at Frankfort, on October 9, 1790, and Mozart journeyed +thither for the occasion, having first pawned all his valuables in +order to raise the necessary funds. Whatever hopes Mozart may have +built upon the results of this tour were doomed to disappointment, for +though he visited and played at several towns on his return journey, +and was the recipient of numerous honours, his efforts produced no +permanent fruit, and the horizon remained as dark as ever. His arrival +in Vienna was timed with the departure of Haydn, whom Salomon, the +impressario, had come to carry off to London, and it was with a heart +heavy with gloomy forebodings that Mozart said good-bye to his truest +friend. + +The month of July, 1791, found Mozart hard at work writing a magic +opera to help a friend who had taken a little theatre in the suburb of +Wieden. Whilst thus engaged he was visited by a stranger, 'a tall, +thin grave-looking man, dressed from head to foot in grey,' who +refused to divulge his name, but stated that his business was to +commission Mozart to compose a Requiem for a personage whose identity +must likewise remain concealed.[14] After a brief colloquy the terms +were arranged, and the mysterious stranger rose to take his leave. As +he did so he looked fixedly at Mozart, and said warningly: 'Make no +effort to discover the identity either of myself or your patron; it +will be in vain.' + +Though somewhat disconcerted by the stranger's mysterious injunction, +Mozart felt all his love for Church music reawakened by the new +commission, and he set to work upon the Requiem without delay. His +labours on this composition, as well as on the magic opera, however, +were interrupted by a pressing request from the Estates of Bohemia +that he would compose an opera for the coronation of Leopold II. at +Prague. As the ceremony was fixed for September 6 no time was to be +lost, and, banishing every other thought from his mind, Mozart +prepared to set out at once for Prague. The travelling carriage was at +the door, and he was about to step into it when the mysterious +stranger suddenly appeared, and inquired after the Requiem. Startled +by the suddenness of the man's appearance, and at a loss to explain +his remissness, Mozart could only promise to fulfil the commission on +his return, and, hastily entering his carriage, he drove away. + +The strain involved by his arduous labours at Prague was increased by +the indifference with which his opera, 'La Clemenza di Tito,' was +received, and Mozart returned to Vienna with spirits depressed, and +mind and body exhausted by overwork. Nevertheless, he braced himself +anew, and on September 30 the new opera, 'Die Zauberfloete' (the Magic +Flute) was produced. Though somewhat coldly received at first, the +work increased in popularity at each subsequent representation, until +its success was everything that could be desired. A friend who had a +place in the orchestra on the first performance relates that he was so +enchanted with the overture that he crept up to the chair in which +Mozart sat conducting, and, seizing the composer's hand, pressed it to +his lips. Mozart glanced kindly at him, and, extending his right hand, +gently stroked his cheek. + +The Requiem was still far from finished, and to this work Mozart now +turned his attention. But it was too late; the strain and excitement +which he had undergone during the past few months had done their work, +a succession of fainting fits followed, and it was evident that the +marvellous powers which he had controlled in the past were no longer +under his command. With fast-fleeting strength came the oppressive +thought, haunting him from day to day, that he would not live to +complete the work. 'It is for myself that I am writing this Requiem,' +he said one day to Constanze, whilst his eyes filled with tears. +Vainly she endeavoured to comfort him; he declared that he felt his +end approaching, and, indeed, death--the 'best and truest +friend'--was very near him now, far nearer than they who gathered +about his bed, and sought to cheer him with the news that his freedom +from anxiety was at last to be assured by the combined action of the +nobility in securing to him an annuity--far nearer than they, or other +well-wishers, whose tardy recognition of his claims had come too late, +imagined. He who had 'always hovered between hope and anxiety' was now +hovering between life and death, soon to be released from all earthly +travail. + +On the evening of December 4 they brought the score of the Requiem to +him at his request, and, propped up by pillows, he began to sing one +of the passages, in company with three of his friends. They had not +proceeded far, however, before Mozart laid the manuscript aside, and, +bursting into tears, declared that it would never be finished. A few +hours later, at one o'clock in the morning of December 5, 1791, he +passed away in sleep. + +The body was removed from the house on the following day,[15] and +taken to St. Stephen's Church, where it received benediction. The +hearse, with the few mourners, then proceeded to St. Mark's +Churchyard, but before the burial-place was reached a terrific storm +of snow and rain burst overhead, and with one accord the followers +turned back, and left the hearse to proceed alone. And thus the master +of whom it was prophesied that he would cause all others to be +forgotten--he whose triumphs had caused him to be acclaimed by +thousands as 'grande Mozart'--was left to be buried by the hands of +strangers in a pauper's grave, without even a stone to mark the spot +where he was laid. + +And to this day no one knows exactly which is the resting-place of +Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[11] This manuscript book is preserved in the Mozart Museum at +Salzburg, and beneath several of the pieces may be seen the notes made +by the father at the time. For example, 'Wolfgang learnt this Minuet +and Trio in half an hour, when he was five.' or 'Wolfgang learnt this +Minuet when he was four.' + +[12] 'Have mercy'--a psalm of supplication. + +[13] The room and the stone table at which he worked are still shown to +visitors at the Villa Bertramka, Koschirz. + +[14] It was ascertained after Mozart's death that this personage was a +certain Count Walsegg, who desired a Requiem to be performed in memory +of his wife. The messenger was his steward. The reason for secrecy was +that the Count intended to pass off the Requiem as his own composition, +and in this he actually succeeded. + +[15] Mozart died of malignant typhus fever. + + + + +MOZART'S PRINCIPAL COMPOSITIONS + + +OPERAS, ETC.: + Bastien und Bastienne. 1768. + La finta Semplice. 1768. + Mitridate, Re di Ponto. 1770. + Ascanio in Alba. 1771. + La finta Giardiniera. 1774. + Il Re Pastore. 1775. + Zaida. 1780. + King Thamos. 1780. + [The three motets, 'Splendente Te Deus,' 'Ne pulvis et cinis,' + and 'Deus Tibi laus et honor,' are adaptations from this work.] + Idomeneo, Re di Creta. 1781. + Die Entfuehrung aus dem Serail. 1782. + Der Schauspieldirector. 1786. + Le Nozze di Figaro. 1786. + Il Don Giovanni. 1787. + Cosi fan tutte. 1790. + Die Zauberfloete. 1791. + La Clemenza di Tito. 1791. +15 Masses (1768-1783) and 1 Requiem (1791). + [The masses published by Novello as No. 7 (B-flat), No. 8 (C), + No. 9 (G), No. 12 (G), Nos. 13 and 16 (E-flat--one Mass), and + No. 17 (C), are not considered authentic. The same may be said + of the Requiem in D minor (No. 18). The celebrated Requiem + (also in D minor, Novello, No. 15) was completed by Suessmayer + after Mozart's death. The well-known Novello No. 1 (in C) and + No. 2 (also in C) were composed in 1779 and 1776.] +4 Litanies. +2 Vespers. 1779 and 1780. + [The 'Laudate Dominum' (in A) of the earlier setting is well + known.] +Te Deum in C. 1772. +Motet, Ave verum. 1791. +Cantata, Davidde Penitente. 1785. +41 Arias for different voices. +6 Vocal Trios and 1 Quartet. +41 Symphonies. + [The earliest symphony was in E-flat (1764). Mention may also be + made of three in the key of D--the Parisian (1778), the Haffner + (1782), and the Prague (1786)--and of his three last and + greatest--in E-flat, G minor, and C, the Jupiter--all composed + in 1788.] +31 Divertimenti, Serenades, etc. +Masonic Dirge in C minor. 1785. +8 Quintets for strings. +1 Quintet for clarinet and strings. 1789. +26 Quartets for strings. 1770-1790. + [The six quartets dedicated to Haydn were composed in 1782-85.] +6 Concertos for violin. +4 Concertos for horn. +1 Concerto for clarinet. 1791. +25 Concertos for pianoforte. + [We may mention the Concerto in D (1773), in D minor (1784), that + in G (1784), two in C (1784 and 1786), and one in C minor (1786).] +Concerto for two pianofortes in E-flat. 1780. +Concerto for three pianofortes in F. 1776. +2 Quartets for pianoforte and strings. +7 Trios for pianoforte and strings. +42 Sonatas for pianoforte and violin. + [The sonata in B-flat, dedicated to Mlle. Strinasacchi, was + composed in 1784.] +17 Sonatas for pianoforte solo. +5 Sonatas for pianoforte, four hands. +Rondo in A minor for pianoforte. 1787. +17 Sonatas for organ, with accompaniment. + + + + +BEETHOVEN + + + + +BEETHOVEN + + +It was a beautiful spring morning; the sun shone in a cloudless sky, +and the birds were singing blithely on the branches of the trees just +outside the window, as if inviting the child who stood within to come +out into the sunshine and be as free and happy as themselves. But he +could not respond to their call, for he was not yet half-way through +his long task. A pitiful little figure he made, mounted on a footstool +in front of the pianoforte, with his head resting wearily on his hand, +and his absent, dreamy gaze fixed upon the window. Scarcely five years +old, and yet condemned to practise endless finger-exercises until his +eyes grew dim with straining over the notes; kept a prisoner indoors, +apart from his playmates, when the sun was shining and the birds were +singing--and all because he happened to possess a great gift for +music, and because his father, realising this fact, had determined to +use the child's talents for the support of the family. + +Suddenly the door of the sitting-room opened, and a stern face was +thrust inside. + +'Ludwig!'--the tone was harsh and severe, and at the well-known sound +the boy awoke from his reverie--'Ludwig! what are you doing? Go on +with your exercise at once, and remember there will be no soup for you +until it is finished.' + +Then the door closed again, and Ludwig turned with a sigh to his +monotonous task. Why should his life be made so much harder than that +of other children? he might have asked himself bitterly. It was not +that he disliked music--no, he loved it--but he yearned for the +brightness and sympathy which seemed to be given freely to others, and +yet were denied to him. And as he strove to master his long exercise +his eyes wandered from the music to a portrait which hung over the +piano. It represented an elderly gentleman with a kindly face, bushy +dark hair, and large dark eyes. It was a humorous face, not handsome, +yet frank and pleasant, and decidedly clever. How clearly Ludwig could +recall the bright blue coat, with its large gilt buttons, which the +artist had faithfully portrayed! As the boy's glance rested upon the +portrait the recollection of the merry times he had spent with his +grandfather was presented to his mind. Once more he heard the old +man's genial laugh, and felt the gentle pressure of his hand upon his +curls. And then his playing! How little Ludwig had listened enrapt +whilst Grandfather Ludwig charmed forth those mysterious melodies +which seemed to be locked up at other times in the silent, prim little +clavier! Those were delicious day-dreams that Grandfather Ludwig had +the power to conjure up in his grandson's mind. But two years had +passed since the kindly old musician had gone to his rest, and during +those years the surroundings of Ludwig's childhood had changed for the +worse. + +The parents of Ludwig van Beethoven, as the boy was named, were +extremely poor. Johann Beethoven, the father, was a member of the +Court band of the Elector of Cologne, at Bonn, in which town Ludwig +was born on December 16, 1770. The German Princes of those days +maintained companies of musicians for the performance of Divine +service in their chapels, as well as for their private entertainment, +and such companies frequently comprised musicians of considerable +ability. Johann's position as tenor singer was but a humble one, +bringing in not more than L25 a year. The grandfather, who also +belonged to the band, first as bass singer, and later as music +director, had, on the other hand, achieved a considerable reputation, +both as performer and composer, and during his latter years his +earnings had gone far to support Johann's family, with whom he lived. +With the old man's death, however, this help ceased, and the family +means became greatly reduced. + +It was, no doubt, in consequence of the privation felt at this time +that the father was induced to keep Ludwig so hard at work. Mozart as +a boy had exhibited marvellous powers, and his performances in public +at an early age were attended by success. Johann, therefore, seemed to +think that his little son would have a chance of earning money by his +forced capacities for music. That a child of such tender years should +have been regarded in the light of a bread-winner for the family +appears unreasonable and hard; and it is not to be wondered at that +Ludwig failed to understand the necessity which led to such pressure +being put upon him. In his mother, Marie Magdalena, however, he could +always find a ready sympathy and a tenderness which must have served +to counteract, to some degree, the unhappiness occasioned by the +father's severity. But not even a mother's love could make up for the +loss the child had sustained by his grandfather's death, for the +excellent qualities of head and heart which the old man had exhibited +were just those which the boy missed in his father. To Ludwig music +meant everything--or, rather, it would have meant everything, even at +that early time, had its development only been continued under the +same kindly influence. + +Despite his severity and unreasonableness, however, Johann must be +credited with the determination that his boy's knowledge of music +should be as thorough as it was possible to make it with the means at +his command, and to this end he spared no pains. Moreover, in order +that Ludwig should not grow up in complete ignorance of subjects which +lay outside his art, he was sent to the public school of Bonn to pick +up what learning he could, though this chiefly comprised reading and +writing. With his schoolfellows Ludwig had little in common. They +thought him shy, because he kept to himself, and showed no desire to +join in their games. The truth was his mind was almost wholly absorbed +by music, and the consciousness that this great love had taken +possession of his soul, and was growing stronger day by day may have +made him inapt for games or boyish society, and thus may have led to +his taking refuge in his own thoughts. In the companionship of music +he could never have felt lonely, and in his walks between school hours +he found plenty to interest him. He never tired of sounding Nature for +her harmonies, and as he pursued his way through the fields and lanes +he listened to the peasants singing at their work, and then, catching +up the simple tunes, he fitted his own notes to them, so as to produce +beautiful and subtle effects of harmony. Many of those old folk-tunes +were closely connected with the history of the country to which they +belonged; they were often the musical expression of the feelings, +struggles, and passions of the people, and to Beethoven's sensitive +ear they conveyed a deeper meaning than they did to the simple +peasants who hummed or carolled them to the whirr of the +spinning-wheel, the blows of the forge-hammer, or the speeding of the +plough. + +Thus, with the drudgery of unremitting toil and constant reproof, the +years passed away until Ludwig was nearly nine. Hard as the lessons of +those years had been, there could be no doubt as to the progress which +he had made. Not even the severity and harshness of his father could +lessen or abate his yearning for musical knowledge; and so it came +about that one day Johann, regarding him with an expression more akin +to pride and satisfaction than that which Ludwig was accustomed to +read in his father's face, said, 'I can teach you no more; we must see +about finding you another master.' + +But how this was to be accomplished it is as difficult for us as it +must have been to Johann himself to imagine; for, so far from the +family circumstances having improved, the poverty was even more acute +than before, and such further efforts as the father may have been +induced to make to increase their comforts were negatived by his +growing addiction to drink--a fact which must of itself have caused a +further reduction in their resources. Fortunately, at this critical +period help was forthcoming in the shape of a musician boarder, who +agreed to give instruction to Ludwig in part return for his +accommodation. + +The coming of Tobias Pfeiffer, as the new boarder was named, must have +been regarded by Ludwig with some curiosity. Would he turn out an even +harder task-master than his own father had been? This question was +soon settled by the glimpse which Tobias early gave to his pupil of +his peculiar method of imparting instruction. Johann's evenings were +now chiefly spent at some tavern resort, whither it became the custom +for Tobias to repair at a very late hour, in order that he might give +his drunken landlord a safe convoy home. By this friendly help the +erring Johann escaped falling into the hands of the police--an +eventuality which would have resulted in his losing his employment. +Having fulfilled his friendly mission, Pfeiffer would betake himself +to Ludwig's bedside, and, with a shake which soon became familiar, +would arouse the boy with, 'Now then, Ludwig, time for practice!' At +this gentle admonition the sleepy child would rise obediently, rubbing +his eyes, and master and pupil descended to the sitting-room, where +they would play together till the early hours of the morning--Pfeiffer +giving out a theme, and Beethoven extemporising upon it, and then +Ludwig in his turn giving the lead to Pfeiffer. Extemporisation would +be followed by duets, until the approach of day gave warning that it +was time to retire to bed. Such music as these two players made in +the still hours of the night was, no doubt, but rarely heard in the +district in which they lived, and on the other side of the open +window, in the early dawn of the summer morning, a small knot of +listeners frequently gathered, attracted by the unusual performance +proceeding within. + + [Illustration: '"_Now then, Ludwig, time for practice!_"'] + +For about a year this curious mode of instruction continued, and +during this time Ludwig's education received a stimulus in the shape +of lessons in Latin, French, Italian, and Logic, given by a man named +Zambona. This Zambona was an eccentric personage, whose peculiarities +would appear to have been well adapted to the condition of things +prevailing in the Beethoven home. He apparently considered himself +qualified to fill a variety of posts, as he had acted as innkeeper, +chamber-porter at the Court, and book-keeper, in addition to being a +teacher of languages; but his worth was proved by the fact that +Beethoven made good progress under his tuition. Hitherto Ludwig's +playing had been confined to the pianoforte and violin, but at this +point a friendly hand was held out to him by an old friend of his +grandfather, named Van den Eeden, who for many years had held the post +of organist at the Court. 'Come to me, and I will teach you the +organ,' the kindly old musician said to Ludwig, and the boy's heart +leapt with pleasure at the generous offer. No doubt Van den Eeden saw +in the young player the signs of genius such as his old friend had +exhibited in no small degree in past years, and felt drawn towards him +in consequence. A new field was thus opened to Beethoven, and when, at +the end of a year, Van den Eeden resigned on account of ill-health, +and the post was given to Christian Neefe, Ludwig was happy in the +discovery of a new friend, who not only expressed his willingness to +carry on the instruction, but was quick to recognise the boy's +extraordinary talent. At this point of our story we get our first +glimpse of the fruits of Beethoven's work at composition. The death of +a friend who had assisted the family with money gifts inspired him to +write a cantata in his honour; but though it was performed at the +funeral, no trace exists for us of this little outcome of gratitude on +Beethoven's part. + +Ludwig was now ten years old, and in the winter of 1781 he made his +first essay at bread-winning for the family. The state of things at +home was wretched in the extreme, and the hopelessness of looking to +the father to retrieve the condition into which they had fallen +decided Ludwig's mother upon undertaking a tour through Holland with +the boy, in the hope that his playing at the houses of the rich might +bring in money. We may well believe that sheer necessity alone +impelled the gentle, ailing woman to such a step. Her faith in her +son's powers was evidently of a higher order than that of Johann, and +she must have seen that this exhibition of his talents at so early an +age not only implied an interruption to his studies, but also, to some +extent, a debasing of the art which she felt that he loved for its own +sake. The tour produced money--that chiefest need of the moment--and, +so far, it was a success; but Ludwig himself did not carry away any +pleasing recollections of his visit. 'The Dutch are very stingy, and I +shall take care not to trouble them again,' he afterwards remarked to +a friend; and there was no repetition of the experiment. + +In the following year a notice appeared in _Cramer's Magazine_, +calling the attention of music-lovers to a young player who, though +not more than eleven years old, could play with force and finish, read +well at sight, and--most remarkable of all--play the greater part of +Bach's 'Wohltemperirte Klavier' (Well-tempered Clavier), 'a feat,' +declared the writer, 'which will be understood by the initiated.' +'This young genius,' the article went on to say, 'deserves some +assistance that he may travel. If he goes on as he has begun, he will +certainly become a second Mozart.' + +The writer of this notice was Christian Neefe, and the subject of his +praise was none other than his pupil, Ludwig Beethoven. That the boy +should have mastered a work of such extraordinary difficulty as Bach's +collection of preludes and fugues may well have excited the +astonishment of his friend and teacher, whose praise was thus +deservedly given. But Neefe's confidence in his pupil's abilities was +shown in a more substantial manner during this same year. Van den +Eeden's death took place in June, and when the Court band had played +the old organist to his last resting-place Neefe received orders to +proceed with the rest of the performers to Muenster, whither the +Elector had already gone. Two days before the band left Bonn Neefe +called Beethoven to his side, and told him that he was going away for +a time. 'I must have a deputy to take my place at the organ here,' +continued the organist, looking keenly into his pupil's face as he +spoke. 'Now, tell me, who do you think I ought to appoint to the +post?' + +Ludwig's face was crossed by a shade of trouble. If his kind tutor was +going away, how did he know whether he would find his deputy equally +willing to teach him? But Christian Neefe was waiting for his answer, +and his eyes were shining with a kindly, half-amused light. 'I do not +know,' Ludwig began hesitatingly. But Neefe's eyes had grown serious, +and he now spoke with earnestness. + +'I have thought of a deputy, Ludwig, and I think I can trust +him--yes, I am sure I may trust him. The deputy shall be yourself!' + +Beethoven's surprise and delight may be imagined. But Neefe knew what +he was about, and in this preferment we may mark the first step in the +recognition of Beethoven's genius. The honour was great. To be +entrusted with the conduct of Divine service at the chapel, and to +receive the deference due to the position of organist--it must have +seemed incredible to Ludwig at first; and he was only eleven and a +half! To his mother he must first have carried the good news, and if +the father's expression had in it less of joy and thankfulness than +hers it must be attributed to the fact that no pay was attached to the +exalted position which Ludwig had obtained. + +Beethoven had now practically the choice of three instruments to +select from; but his heart did not waver for long, ere it became fixed +upon the pianoforte as the fittest interpreter of his genius, and he +was true to his first love to the end. His 'Three Sonatas for the +Pianoforte,' written about this time, gives us the first record of his +published works. Evidently those terrible finger exercises were +beginning to bear fruit, for the young musician had acquired +considerable command over the instrument of his choice--indeed, his +musical life was now beginning to open itself before him, and the +longing to do great things had taken possession of his soul. There +were no more tears at being forced to work, for the greatest +incentives to work--love and ambition--were now swaying him and +impelling him onwards at a speed which nothing could check. Neefe's +confidence and praise were more than justified, and before he had +completed his thirteenth year Beethoven received his first official +appointment at the hands of the Elector. He could now sign himself +'Ludwig van Beethoven, Cembalist im Orchester,' and his duties +comprised not only the playing of the pianoforte in the orchestra, but +the conducting of the band at rehearsals. With this accession, +however, there was still the fact staring him in the face of no money +coming in. Just at this time, too, the Elector Max Friedrich died; and +it was not until a year later, when Beethoven was appointed second +organist to the Court, under the new Elector Max Franz, that he began +to receive a small salary in return for his services. Thirteen pounds +a year sounds very little for so much work and responsibility, but +Ludwig was overjoyed to think that he could back up his announcement +to his parents with so substantial a fact as the receipt of an income. +For the poverty at home was keener than ever; Johann's earnings did +not exceed L25 a year, and as his voice was steadily declining, the +outlook for the family had become exceedingly black. + +The time would not appear to have been propitious for joking; +nevertheless, Beethoven sat in the organ-loft one day planning a joke. +He had just had a conversation with one of the chief singers of the +band--a tenor named Heller--and the latter had been boasting that his +knowledge of singing was so great that he could easily surmount any +difficulty as it presented itself. Beethoven inherited from his +grandfather a love of joking, and the temptation to lower the singer's +vanity was too great to be resisted. Accordingly, on the following +Sunday, whilst Heller was singing a solo to Ludwig's accompaniment, +the latter adroitly introduced a modulation of his own. Heller +unsuspectingly followed his lead, and fell into the trap devised for +him, with the result that, after attempting to keep up with the +organist, he lost himself entirely and, to the astonishment of the +congregation, came to a dead stop; and it was only when Beethoven +returned to the original key that the disconcerted singer could +proceed. Heller was naturally furious at the trick played upon him, +and lodged a complaint with the Elector. The latter, however, was too +good a musician himself to be angry at this exhibition of skill on the +part of his youngest performer, and he contented himself with +admonishing Beethoven not to attempt any more clever tricks. + +There was a dream which had taken possession of young Beethoven's mind +at this time. It was constantly recurring during the hours of work, +and when he lay down to sleep in his poorly-furnished attic it was +with the hope that the dawning of a new day might bring him nearer to +its realisation. Yet for some time the dream remained only a shadowy +companion to his working thoughts, ever present, it is true, and +sometimes glowing in brighter colours that seemed to give to it the +semblance of reality--but still, only a dream. But the vision seen +afar off was to be realised at length--Beethoven was to visit Vienna! +It was the city of his dreams, the centre of his longings, this +Vienna, just as it was the centre of the musical world of Germany at +that time. A kind friend had come forward with the offer to pay his +expenses for the journey, and Ludwig knew that his dream had come +true. + +As we have seen, the dire straits into which the family had fallen had +not hindered Beethoven's pursuit of musical knowledge. His genius had +steadily asserted itself under the most adverse conditions; and now we +are to picture the young musician, at the age of seventeen, full of +fire and energy, setting out on a journey which must have been fraught +with the brightest anticipations. He was to meet in Vienna the +greatest composer of the day. Mozart--the divine Mozart--was staying +in the city, planning the production of his opera, 'Don Giovanni,' +and it had been arranged that he should receive Beethoven and put his +powers to the test. + +On reaching Vienna, Ludwig made his way to Mozart's house, and with a +heart beating high with expectancy, and a face aglow with excitement, +he was ushered into the presence of the maestro. Mozart received him +kindly, but it was evident that his thoughts were preoccupied, for, +after desiring Beethoven to play, he began to turn over his papers in +a listless fashion. 'Ah!' thought Beethoven; 'he imagines that I have +merely come to play him something which I have practised for the +occasion.' Dismayed by this reflection, he took his hands from the +keyboard and, turning to Mozart, said, 'Will you give me a theme on +which to extemporise?' Aroused by his appeal, and the earnest look +which accompanied it, Mozart sat down and played a simple theme; and +then Beethoven, taking up the slender thread, improvised so +finely--allowing his feelings to flow into the music as he went +on--that a bystander could not fail to have been struck by the change +which came over Mozart's face as he listened. The abstracted look gave +place to one of pure astonishment. Then he arose from his seat, and, +stepping softly into an adjoining room, where a number of his friends +were waiting to see him, he exclaimed, 'Pay attention to this young +man, for he will make a noise in the world some day.' Beethoven, +meanwhile, played on and on, lost in the intricate melodies which he +was weaving out of the single thread, until the touch of Mozart's hand +upon his shoulder recalled him to earth to hear the master's praises +sounding in his ear. + +Vanished in a moment were the memories of the trials and hardships +which he had undergone in order to perfect himself for this day of +trial, for Beethoven realised that he possessed the power of +impressing so great a judge as Mozart; and praise and encouragement +were needed at that time, when he was trying to do his best, rather +than later on, when his powers were assured. Nor was this the only +recognition which his talents received on his visit. The fame of the +young player had reached the ears of royalty itself, and he was +granted an audience of the Emperor Joseph, whose love of music had +made him desirous of hearing for himself what the Bonn performer could +do. + + [Illustration: "_Pay attention to this young man, for he will + make a noise in the world some day._"] + +Beethoven's happiness, however, was soon to be clouded by sorrow, for +shortly after his return to Bonn his mother died--the mother to whom +he owed so much gentleness and sympathy in his childhood; she who was +always ready to forgive his outbursts of temper and impatience, and +to cheer and encourage him to further effort. How deeply he felt her +loss may be gathered from the letter which he wrote to a friend at the +time. 'She was, indeed, a kind, loving mother to me, and my best +friend. Ah! who was happier than I, when I could still utter the sweet +name of mother, and it was heard? But to whom can I now say it? Only +to the silent form resembling her, evoked by the power of +imagination.' That her death inspired some of his most beautiful +compositions we may suppose, for it is natural that his grief should +have found its best expression in music. A few months later his little +sister Margaretha died, and the sense of loneliness deepened. + +And then something bright came into his life. He made the acquaintance +of a family named Breuning, comprising a widow lady and her four +children--three boys and a girl--all of about his own age. The +youngest boy and the daughter became his pupils, and a close +friendship sprang up between them. He stayed at the house for several +days at a time, joined in their excursions, and in every way was +treated as one of the family. As the Breunings were intellectual +people, their friendship was a great help to Beethoven; his whole +nature expanded in the sunshine of their society, and very soon he +found himself taking a deep interest in the literature of his +country--a subject of which he had previously been ignorant. An +affection for English authors likewise grew from this intimacy with a +family of wide tastes and acquirements--indeed, new interests and +fresh paths of pleasant intercourse were opening to him every day, +whilst the separation from the miserable surroundings of his own home +invigorated him for work. Every hour that could be spared from his +official duties or his teaching was devoted to study and composition. +Most of his composing was done in the open air; and for this purpose +he provided himself with rough sketch-books, one of which he always +carried with him, so that he might jot down in it such musical ideas +as occurred to him during his rambles through the lanes and fields. + + [Illustration: '_Seated before an old, worn-out piano._'] + +It was during this happy intercourse with the Breuning family that +Beethoven made the acquaintance of a generous young nobleman, with +whom he not only became on the most friendly terms, but who both +helped him and encouraged his talents. Count von Waldstein, as the +nobleman was named, called one day on Beethoven in his poor room, and +found the composer, whose works he so much admired, seated before an +old, worn-out piano, on which he was elaborating one of his +compositions. The Count said nothing at the time, but shortly +afterwards Beethoven was astonished and delighted at receiving a fine +new instrument, accompanied by a message from his friend praying his +acceptance of the gift. It went to the Count's heart to observe the +poverty-stricken conditions under which the composer worked. That he +himself should be surrounded by every luxury, whilst the gifted +musician who laboured for his enjoyment was driven to practise all +manner of shifts to maintain himself in food and clothing, seemed +intolerably unjust. Yet Waldstein knew and respected Beethoven too +well to offend his pride by offering presents of money where no +service was required in return; and so he hit upon the harmless device +of helping his poor friend under the pretence that the Elector was +making him an allowance. But though he opened his purse in another's +name, he took care to let Beethoven see into his own heart, in order +that he might there read the sympathy and affection for which, +happily, no cloak was needed. + +How deeply Beethoven was moved by this friendship we may understand +when we listen to the grand sonata which, though it was not composed +until some years later, he dedicated to the Count. We want no better +title for this exquisitely beautiful work than that by which it is +known to the world--the 'Waldstein Sonata.' As the grand chords which +follow the opening bars strike the ear it seems as if Beethoven were +speaking to his friend--speaking to him out of the fullness of his +heart, out of his poverty and mean surroundings--and rising by the +strengthening influence of love to a height of eloquence and grandeur +which no spoken words could have attained. + +The conditions at home, meanwhile, were growing worse. Carl and +Johann, Beethoven's two younger brothers, of whom no previous mention +has been made, were engaged, the one in studying music, and the other +as apprentice to the Court apothecary, but neither was bringing grist +to the mill. The father had sunk still deeper under the degrading +influence of drink, and his voice was almost ruined by his excesses, +so that it had become increasingly difficult to maintain for the +family even the appearance of respectability. On more than one +occasion Beethoven, in returning home at night, had encountered his +drunken father in the hands of the police, from whose custody he had +succeeded in rescuing him only after much persuasion, and it seemed as +if his discharge from the band must be merely a question of time. The +state of affairs, in fact, could no longer be concealed from the +Elector, who, knowing the circumstances with which Beethoven had to +contend, finally ordered that a portion of the father's salary should +be paid over to Ludwig, in order that the money might be properly +expended for the support of the family. + +Meanwhile, at the Court itself great changes had been effected in +regard to the band. With a view to encouraging the growth of operatic +art, the Elector had established a national theatre, and Beethoven was +appointed viola player in the orchestra, in addition to retaining the +post of second organist to the chapel. The numerous performances of +operatic works by the company must have given Beethoven an insight +into what was to him a new branch of his art, from which he did not +fail to profit later on. His work in the band was not increased by the +changes which had been made, and as the Elector was frequently absent +from Bonn, he found ample leisure to pursue his studies in +composition, and to enjoy the intellectual society of his friends. +Four years thus slipped away, until the month of July, 1792, saw the +Bonn musicians preparing to receive a distinguished visitor. Haydn +was to pass through Bonn on his way to Vienna from London, where his +compositions and playing had created a sensation, and the band had +arranged a grand reception in his honour. Beethoven, of course, was +amongst the invited guests on the occasion, and he seized the +opportunity of submitting to the master a cantata which he had lately +composed. Haydn praised the composition highly, and warmly encouraged +Beethoven to go on with his studies--words which sent the young +composer back to his work with glowing cheeks and a determination to +accomplish greater things. + + [Illustration: '_Haydn praised the composition highly._'] + +The commendation of so renowned a master as Haydn must have gone far +towards convincing the Elector that by keeping Beethoven at Bonn he +was burying talent and cramping powers that only required a wider +scope in order to produce great works, and that, therefore, some step +should now be taken to develop his genius. It was with a heart +overflowing with joy and gratitude that Ludwig learnt that the kindly +Max Franz had decided to send him to Vienna, at his own expense, to +take lessons in strict counterpoint from Haydn. Surely this could mean +nothing less than that the days of adversity and struggling with +poverty had closed behind him for ever, and that a future bright with +hope had opened, upon which, though he might not forecast its results, +he could enter with courage and determination. He was now twenty-two, +and his compositions--published and in manuscript--had brought him +such fame and appreciation as the small German town could give to one +born and reared within its narrow sphere. Now, however, the bonds +which hitherto had fettered his genius were to be broken, and, freed +from the restraint of Court duties, he would be able to give full vent +to the powers which he was burning to express. + +In November of this year he bade farewell to Bonn and his friends, and +set forth on his journey, though not, we may be sure, without regrets +at parting with such true helpers and sympathisers as Count Waldstein, +the Breunings, and the man to whom he owed so much--Christian Neefe. +With the last named he left these words of thanks: 'Thank you for the +counsel you have so often given me on my progress in my divine art. +Should I ever become a great man you will certainly have assisted in +it.' In an album provided for the purpose his musical brethren +inscribed their farewells, and Waldstein's message ran as follows: + + 'DEAR BEETHOVEN, + + 'You are travelling to Vienna in fulfilment of your + long-cherished wish. The genius of Mozart is still weeping and + bewailing the death of her favourite.[16] With the + inexhaustible Haydn she found a refuge, but no occupation, and + is now waiting to leave him and join herself to some one else. + Labour assiduously, and receive Mozart's spirit from the hands + of Haydn. + + 'Your old friend, + 'WALDSTEIN. + + 'BONN, + '_October 29, 1792._ + +Little did either Beethoven or his friends imagine that he would never +set foot in Bonn again, but so it was to be. Two years later war had +broken out with France, Bonn was captured by the French Republican +army, and the Elector and his retinue were forced to fly the town. +Those two years had witnessed great strides in the march of +Beethoven's career. He had arrived in Vienna as a comparatively +unknown musician--though not, it is true, without recommendations from +Count Waldstein--but his marvellous command of the pianoforte, and, +more especially, his powers of extemporisation, had electrified his +hearers to such a degree as to secure for him a place in the front +rank of performers of the day. He was a constant visitor at the houses +of the aristocracy, with several members of whom he had become on +terms of intimacy. In the Prince and Princess Karl Lichnowsky he had +found true friends and sincere admirers, who not only welcomed him as +one of the family, but provided apartments for him in their house, and +bestowed upon him an annuity of L60. Many who had heard him play +forthwith engaged him as teacher, and on every hand his genius and +powers were the theme of the hour. + +It is hardly to be wondered at that with all this praise and +patronage on the part of the wealthy aristocracy (and it is necessary +to bear in mind that in Vienna at that time the musical profession was +entirely dependent upon the patronage of the nobility), Beethoven +should have encountered considerable hostility from other members of +his profession. For a good deal of the enmity which his success +aroused he himself was no doubt to blame; he took no pains to please +or conciliate, and he showed even more independence towards the rich +and great than towards those of his own rank. The result was that only +those who could afford to overlook his faults for the sake of his +genius--and for the sake of something else which lay beneath his crust +of obstinate pride and openly expressed disregard for rank and +wealth--remained constant to him. Of his obstinacy and self-will +several instances will be given in the course of our story; but it is +necessary at this point to draw attention to the early period at which +this determined force of character began to assert itself. It is an +astonishing fact, and one that demonstrates the extraordinary power of +Beethoven's genius, that in spite of everything that could be urged +against him--his origin, rudeness of manner and speech, refusal to pay +homage to the great--even his youth and the comparative shortness of +the time during which he had been before the public--Beethoven should +have not only won a front place as a performer, but also retained the +sincere regard and respect of men and women belonging to the worthiest +as well as the highest ranks of society. + +In the midst of the whirl of work and entertainment into which the +musical life of Vienna had plunged him, Beethoven was constant to +those whom he had left behind him at Bonn. He had not been absent more +than a month before he received news of his father's death. There had +been very little affection in his heart for the parent whose severity +had called forth his childish tears, and whose selfish indulgence had +increased the burden of his mother's existence, nor was Beethoven the +man to pretend what he did not feel. But with the father's death the +allowance which had been paid through Ludwig for the support of the +two sons, Carl and Johann, ceased, and this fact awoke Beethoven to +instant action. He wrote to the Elector begging that the grant might +be continued for his sake, and the request was granted. Later on we +shall see to what extent he carried his affection for at least one of +these brothers. + +With the Prince and Princess Lichnowsky Beethoven shortly became, as +we have said, on terms of the greatest intimacy. All Vienna looked to +the house of Lichnowsky for patronage and help wherever art or science +was concerned, and none looked in vain. To Beethoven--young, rough, +and almost untutored in the usages of society, but with his commanding +genius and his equally remarkable personality--the Lichnowskys were +kindness itself. The Princess saw to his comforts, and arranged his +engagements in the same motherly fashion as Madame Breuning had done +after his mother's death, whilst the Prince even went so far in his +consideration for Beethoven's sensitiveness as to direct his servants +to attend to the musician's bell before answering his own. Extreme +sensibility to what he deemed indifference or neglect on the part of +his friends was undoubtedly one of Ludwig's chief weaknesses; but he +resented angrily the Prince's discovery of the fact, and to mark his +displeasure he immediately engaged a servant of his own to wait upon +him. The regularity of the household arrangements at the palace was +another matter which grated against Beethoven's love of Bohemianism; +to be forced to dress for dinner, especially at a set hour of the +day, was to him an abomination not to be suffered. The workings of his +genius were not to be regulated by the clockwork contrivances of +civilised life, and hence he first took to dining out at some tavern, +where he could be at his ease, and finally went altogether into +lodgings. But the Prince and Princess, like the good, sensible people +they were, only smiled at the vagaries of their favourite, and if his +seat at their table was henceforth but too frequently vacant, they +kept for him a warm corner in their hearts; whilst, as for Beethoven +himself, his affection for his kind friends remained as strong as +ever. + +Careless as he was with regard both to dress and manners, there was no +trace of either carelessness or haste in his compositions, and he was +most insistent in having the latter performed in exact accordance with +his plans. One night, when his great work 'Leonore' was to be +rehearsed, the third bassoon failed to put in an appearance, and +Beethoven stamped about in a fury, heaping execrations upon the head +of the absent player. Prince Lobkowitz, who was present, and who was +one of Beethoven's chief patrons, laughed heartily at the composer's +outburst, and then tried to calm him by saying: 'Well, well, what does +it matter? You have the first and second bassoons safely here, surely +the third man doesn't count for much.' The rehearsal was at length +allowed to proceed, but Beethoven could not forget that his judgment +had been questioned by the Prince's mocking laughter, and as soon as +the performance had ended and the company had dispersed, he rushed +across the Platz to the gates of the Lobkowitz Palace, and shouted at +the top of his voice: 'Lobkowitzscher Esel! Lobkowitzscher Esel!' +('Ass of a Lobkowitz! Ass of a Lobkowitz!') + +Beethoven's temper was of the passionate order that is apt to explode +at the slightest provocation, and when once aroused he seemed to lose +all power of self-control. As one of his greatest friends[17] has +remarked, he needed at his elbow some one who possessed the ability to +give a humorous turn to what was spoken in the heat of the moment, so +as to put them all on good terms with one another again. As it was, he +would say the unkindest things even to his greatest friends, and +afterwards bitterly regret having said them. His manners were rude and +abrupt, but his great genius, combined with the absolute simplicity +and straightforwardness of his character, won him his way everywhere. +A personality so rare as Beethoven's had a charm for those who +worshipped genius, and thus he was forgiven speeches which no one else +in his position would have dared to utter. He manifested complete +indifference with regard to what people said of him or of his +works--only when his honour was in any way impeached did he blaze +forth in his own defence. He hated deception of any kind; in both +heart and action he was as open as the day, and he was quick to resent +a suspicion of deception on the part of others. On one occasion a +hitch occurred with regard to a performance of his works, and he +suddenly suspected three of his friends of having created the obstacle +for their own ends, although they had in reality been working hard to +overcome the difficulty. He accordingly sat down and wrote to each as +follows: + + '_To Count Lichnowsky._ + + 'Falsehoods I despise. Visit me no more. There will be no + concert. + + 'BEETHOVEN.' + + '_To Herr Schindler._ + + 'Visit me no more until I send for you. No concert. + + 'BEETHOVEN.' + + '_To Herr Schuppanzigh._ + + 'Visit me no more. I give no concert. + + 'BEETHOVEN.' + +Haydn and Beethoven did not get on well together; there seems to have +been something antagonistic in their natures which prevented anything +approaching to reciprocal feeling between them. Beethoven from the +first considered that he had a grievance against his master in the +fact that he did not make sufficient progress, owing to Haydn's being +so much occupied with his own work. This dissatisfaction led to his +seeking guidance in other quarters; but for about a year after his +arrival in Vienna he refrained from doing this openly, until Haydn's +departure for England gave him the opportunity of changing masters. +Thereafter he took lessons every day of the week from several of the +best musicians in the city both in playing and composition. +Albrechtsberger was the famous contrapuntist of his day, and Beethoven +derived much from his teaching; he does not appear to have impressed +his master, however, with a high opinion of his powers, for the old +man advised one of his pupils to have nothing to do with the young man +from Bonn. 'He has learnt nothing,' Albrechtsberger added, 'and will +never do anything in decent style.' This was in allusion to +Beethoven's wilfulness in persistently transgressing certain +established rules of composition. The old teacher failed to see that +Beethoven's refusal to be bound by hard-and-fast rules arose, not from +mere caprice, but from the force of a genius which would not submit to +be trammelled by any kind of artificial limitations. The wisdom of +Beethoven is, however, shown by the fact that he wrote out his +exercises with the most scrupulous care, and in exact accordance with +what were regarded as the laws of composition, for his genius, great +and original as it was, would not presume upon ignorance. + +But who could resist the young player when he seated himself at the +pianoforte and began one of those wonderful improvisations about which +so much has been written, but of the effect of which we can only +faintly judge by the fact that the hearers were held spellbound until +the finish? Who amongst that audience, gathered from the best and most +critical followers and lovers of the art that Vienna contained, gave a +thought to how many rules had been broken, or were likely to be +broken, by the player, or, indeed, had room for any other thought but +one of admiration for the music which was filling their ears and +charming their senses? 'His improvisation was most brilliant and +striking,' wrote Karl Czerny, the player and composer, and pupil of +Beethoven; 'in whatever company he might chance to be he knew how to +produce such an effect upon every hearer that frequently not an eye +remained dry, while many would break out into loud sobs; for there was +something wonderful in his expression, in addition to the beauty and +originality of his ideas, and his spirited style of rendering them.' +Ferdinand Ries, another of his pupils, has declared that no other +artist that he ever heard could approach Beethoven in extemporisation. +'The wealth of ideas which forced themselves on him, the caprices to +which he surrendered himself, the variety of treatment, the +difficulties, were inexhaustible,' And it must be borne in mind that +in respect to this art Beethoven was brought into competition with +several older and undoubtedly brilliant performers of the day, who, +until he came amongst them, had swayed their respective circles of +admirers. + +Yet, strangely enough, the emotion aroused in his hearers seemed to +find no response in Beethoven himself. Frequently when he discovered +how deeply he had moved his audience he would burst into roars of +laughter; at other times the sight of their emotion stirred him up to +angry resentment, and he would shout, 'We artists don't want tears, we +want applause!' That a player should open his soul in his music and +then abuse his audience for their inability to suppress the feelings +which he had aroused appears strange indeed. But the caprice and +wilfulness which marked his public playing are shown equally in his +relations with people in everyday life. What may have been his true +feelings is concealed--it is only the mask which is seen; and the mask +was so constantly worn that it no doubt deceived many. Every now and +again, however, we get a glimpse of his true nature in his intercourse +with those who knew him best. Irritable to a degree, and occasionally +outrageous as his conduct appears to have been, it needed but the +touch of another's grief to draw from him the golden thread of +sympathy. On one occasion he offended the susceptibilities of the +company assembled in one of the most fashionable drawing-rooms of +Vienna by using his hostess's snuffers as a toothpick! Yet, later on, +when that household was plunged into mourning by the loss of a beloved +child, and visitors were denied, it was Beethoven to whom the bereaved +mother opened her doors, and to whom she turned for sympathy. + +It is much to be regretted that the nobility of nature which was +really and truly Beethoven's attribute should have been so constantly +overshadowed and dominated by something else which, without being a +superior force, seemed by a strange perversity to be always to the +fore. Whilst, however, we would wish to give to every instance of his +goodness of heart its fullest weight, it would be useless, as well as +wrong, to endeavour to hide the fact that his conduct, even towards +those who desired to be his friends, and to whom he owed obligations +for acts of sympathy and kindness, frequently admitted of no excuse. +His anger, though sharp, was short, and left no sting behind; but his +unjust suspicions and scornful treatment of men whose confidence he +had won by his genius and force of character, were the cause of sorrow +and suffering to those whom he attacked, as well as of remorse to +himself, whereby his whole life was embittered, and his better nature +warped to ignoble ends. + +The good people of Vienna must, indeed, have been somewhat at a loss +how to take the genius who had thus burst into their midst and laid +them under captivity. Attempts at conciliation were more often than +not frustrated by his variable temperament; for though none was apter +than Beethoven to take offence, there was no one quicker to resent any +effort at mediation by a third party, on whose unfortunate head it was +only too likely that the irate composer would empty the vials of his +wrath. Nevertheless, his erratic behaviour did not sensibly lessen the +circle of his admirers or diminish the popularity which his fame had +brought him. Many of the fashionable ladies of Vienna came to him for +lessons instead of requiring his attendance at their houses; but such +condescension made no difference to the man who held that mind and +character alone were the qualifications by which men and women were to +be weighed in the social balance. If, therefore, the young ladies +talked or showed inattention during their lessons, he became furious, +and would tear up the music and scatter it over the floor. His rage, +indeed, seems to have been quite ungovernable at times. On one +occasion he was playing a duet with his pupil Ries when his ear caught +some fragments of a conversation which a young nobleman was carrying +on with a lady at the further end of the room. Instantly he jumped up +from the piano in a rage, and, taking Ries's hands off the keyboard, +he bellowed, 'I play no longer for such hogs!' nor could either +apologies or entreaties induce him to resume the performance. + +It was often a matter of some difficulty to get him to play, +especially when he was not in the humour. On such occasions he would +preface the performance by striking the keys with the palm of his +hand, or draw his finger along the keyboard from end to end, roaring +with laughter, and in other ways behave like a spoiled child. He would +not bear being pressed beyond a certain point. Once, it is related, he +was asked to play before strangers at the country-house of one of his +rich patrons, and flatly refused to comply; whereupon the host +jokingly threatened that, if he would not play, he should be confined +as a prisoner in the house. Beethoven on this jumped up and ran out of +the mansion, and though it was night, he walked three miles to the +next town, and thence posted to Vienna. The next day a bust of this +patron which stood on Beethoven's bookcase fell to the ground, and was +shattered to pieces![18] + +His views as to the superiority of mind and character over everything +else were certainly borne out by his actions. One day, when he was +walking with the poet Goethe near Uplitz, the Imperial family were +observed to be approaching. Goethe at once stood aside and removed his +hat, at the same time plucking his friend by the sleeve, to remind +him that they were in the presence of royalty. Beethoven, however, +seemed to regard this as a fitting opportunity for illustrating his +views on the independence of art, for, shaking off the hand that +detained him, he buttoned up his coat in a determined manner, planted +his hat firmly on his head, and, folding his arms behind him, marched +straight into the ranks of the Imperial party! If Goethe felt dismayed +at his friend's lack of respect, he must have been astonished to note +the result; for the Archduke Rodolph not only made way for Beethoven +to pass, but removed his hat, whilst the Empress was the first to bow +to him. + +In appearance Beethoven was short, broad, and strong-looking. His face +was not prepossessing. 'He was meanly dressed, and very ugly to look +at,' wrote a lady who knew and admired him, 'but full of nobility and +fine feeling, and highly cultivated.' It must have been difficult to +describe a face which was subject to such frequent changes of +expression, but its forcefulness must have been apparent to every +beholder. The eyes were black and bright, and they had a way of +dilating when the composer was buried in thought so as to impart to +his face an expression of being inspired. Gloomily abstracted as he +would be at times, when possessed by some absorbing train of ideas, +nothing could have been more cordial or more winning than the smile +which lighted up his face at the sight of a friend. With a mass of +dark hair surmounting a high and broad forehead, and the quick, +penetrative glance which shot from beneath the large overhanging +eyebrows, Beethoven's face must have struck the observer with a sense +of its strong individuality. Nevertheless, only a few of the portraits +have succeeded in conveying a true likeness of the man who was so +unlike every one else. His hands were hairy, and the fingers 'strong +and short, and pressed out with long practising.' He was very +particular about the position of his hands when playing, and as a rule +he kept his body quite still. When conducting, however, his movements +were constant and curious. At a _pianissimo_ passage 'he would crouch +down so as to be hidden by the desk, and then, as the _crescendo_ +increased, would gradually rise, beating all the time, until at the +_fortissimo_ he would spring into the air with his arms extended, as +if wishing to float on the clouds.'[19] + +It was one of the most striking of Beethoven's characteristics that he +dearly loved a joke. Ever since the time when he played off the rather +unkind joke on the singer Heller the passion for joking had grown upon +him to such an extent that evidence of its ruling force appears in +every chapter of his life. He occasionally introduced a joke into his +compositions. Thus, in the 'Pastoral Symphony,' we come across a trio +between a nightingale, a quail, and a cuckoo. Again, in other works, +such as the No. 8 Symphony, the bassoons are brought in unexpectedly, +in such a manner as to produce a humorous effect. He never missed an +opportunity of playing off a joke upon any of his friends, both in +season and out of season, and he always showed his appreciation of the +victim's discomfiture by roars of laughter. His letters are full of +puns, and he bestows uncomplimentary nicknames upon his intimates. One +day his brother Johann, who had acquired a small property in the +neighbourhood of Vienna, called upon him in his absence, and left his +card, bearing the inscription, 'Johann van Beethoven, Gutsbesitzer' +(Land proprietor). Beethoven was so tickled with the conceit of this +designation that he could not resist returning the card to his +brother with the following inscription scrawled upon the back: 'L. van +Beethoven, Hirnbesitzer' (Brain proprietor). Some of his jokes, +however, were in extremely bad taste. On one occasion a lady admirer +preferred a request for a lock of his hair as a keepsake, and he sent +her instead a wisp cut from the beard of a goat! With his inordinate +love of joking, however, he was a poor hand at bearing a joke that +told against himself. It is related that, having once been rude enough +to interrupt a player named Himmel in the midst of the latter's +improvisation by asking when he was going to begin, Himmel afterwards +wrote to him that 'the latest invention in Berlin was a lantern for +the blind'--a joke which Beethoven not only failed to see, but 'when +it was pointed out to him he was furious, and would have nothing more +to do with his correspondent.' + +His carelessness in matters of dress was very noticeable. Czerny, his +pupil, has described how he found him at home on his first visit, with +his shock of black hair and his unshaven chin, and his ears stuffed +with cotton-wool, whilst his clothes seemed to be made of so rough a +material, and were so ill-fitting that he resembled nothing so much as +a Robinson Crusoe. It is related that once, when he was engaging a +servant, the man stated as a reason for leaving his last situation +that he failed to dress his master's hair to the latter's +satisfaction. 'It is no object to me to have my hair dressed,' +remarked Beethoven, as he signified his approval of the engagement. He +always described himself as 'a disorderly creature,' and he certainly +merited the designation. He was clumsy and awkward in his movements; +he could not shave without cutting himself, or handle delicate things +without breaking them; and whilst composing he invariably spilt the +ink over the pianoforte. His handwriting was so illegible as to call +forth objurgations from himself whenever he was called upon to +decipher it. 'Yesterday,' he writes to a friend, 'I took a letter +myself to the post office, and was asked where it was meant to go to; +from which I see that my writing is as often misunderstood as I am +myself,' Nevertheless, he was very fond of letter-writing, as the +collections which have been preserved abundantly testify. + +The letters of great men are often valued for the opinions they +contain on persons and subjects of the day, as well as for the insight +they afford into the private thoughts and feelings of the writers. +Beethoven's letters contain no word-pictures of scenery or events; nor +do they express his views on questions or matters in which the world +at large might be supposed to take an interest. But they are none the +less valuable on that account; for they reflect the openness and +simplicity of his character, and lay bare his wishes, his hopes and +his disappointments, his joys and his sorrows--and especially his love +of fun--just as one or another of these feelings or aspirations was +uppermost at the moment. + +As a teacher Beethoven exhibited none of the carelessness or +impatience that characterised his personal habits. If the rendering of +a passage was not in accordance with his own ideas of what it should +be, he insisted upon the pupil playing it over and over again until he +was satisfied. He was comparatively indifferent to the playing of +wrong notes, but failure on the part of a pupil to give the right +shade of expression, or to grasp the true character of a piece, never +failed to arouse his anger. The one, he would say, might be an +accident, but the other showed a want of knowledge, or feeling, or +attention. + +Beethoven was by nature exceedingly unpunctual, and frequently kept +his pupils waiting for their lessons. Even Madame von Breuning, for +whom he had a strong affection, and who was one of the few people who +could be said to have managed him, often failed in persuading him to +be in time. 'Ah! I may not disturb him--he is in his _raptus_,' she +would exclaim despairingly, in allusion to his habit of relapsing into +gloomy reverie. And not even his dearest friend dared to intrude upon +him at such moments. His absent-mindedness was the subject of many a +joke. He often forgot to come home to dinner--a fact which, seeing +that he was a man, deserves to be recorded; and it is even said that, +on one occasion, he insisted on tendering money for a meal which he +had not ordered, under the belief that he had dined. At another time +he composed a set of variations on a Russian dance for the wife of an +officer in the Russian service--a compliment which was acknowledged by +the gift of a horse. Straightway Beethoven forgot all about the horse +until he was reminded of its existence by a long bill presented for +its keep. He persisted in shaving himself at his bedroom window, +without a blind, and exposed to the view of passers-by; and when he +discovered that this habit caused a crowd of jeering idlers to collect +in front of the house, he flew into a rage, and exchanged his lodgings +for others situated in a more retired spot, rather than discontinue +the practice. His explosive temper has furnished many amusing +anecdotes. One day his cook, who, in consideration of her master's +incurable unpunctuality, must be regarded as an aggrieved personage, +served up some eggs which were not to his taste, and he emphasised his +displeasure by throwing the entire batch at the head of the +unfortunate domestic. On another occasion a waiter who mistook his +order was rewarded by having the contents of a dish of stew poured +over his head. Even where his temper was not concerned his manners +were directly opposed to those prevailing in polite society--though, +in a large measure, this may have been due to his perfect simplicity +and his ignorance of what was expected of him. Thus, it is told that, +returning from one of his long walks in the pouring rain, he would +make straight for the sitting-room of the house in which he happened +to be staying and calmly proceed to shake the water from his hat over +the carpet and chairs, after the fashion of a retriever just emerged +from a pond, humming to himself the while some theme which had been +occupying his thoughts during his walk. One of his pleasanter habits, +to which he was greatly attached, was washing. He would pour the water +backwards and forwards over his hands with childish delight, and if, +as frequently happened, a musical idea suggested itself to him during +the operation, he became oblivious to everything else, and would +continue to send the water to and fro, spilling it in huge quantities, +until the floor resembled a miniature lake. + +Beethoven would never allow that his disorderliness was anything more +than personal, always contending that he had a love of order and +neatness with regard to his surroundings and arrangements. Yet here is +a sketch of the condition of his living-room, as seen by one of his +friends: 'The most exquisite confusion reigned in his house. Books and +music were scattered in all directions; here the residue of a cold +luncheon, there some full, some half-emptied, bottles. On the desk the +hasty sketch of a new quartet; in another corner the remains of a +breakfast. On the pianoforte the scribbled hints for a noble symphony, +yet little more than in embryo; hard by a proof-sheet, waiting to be +returned; letters from friends, and on business, spread all over the +floor. Between the windows a goodly Stracchino cheese, and on one side +of it ample vestiges of a genuine Verona Salami....' If an article +were missing Beethoven would declare that he knew just where to put +his hand upon it; and then, when two or three days' search failed to +discover its whereabouts, he would storm at the servants, asseverating +that they hid his things away on purpose to annoy him. But the storm +would clear as quickly as it had gathered, and peace reign once more, +until the next occasion called it forth; and the servants knew their +master's heart too well to be angered by his reproaches. + +The mention of his rambles in the rain recalls his fondness for the +open air. It was a passion which clung to him through life. As each +summer came round, during these years of unremitting toil, he would +hail with delight the moment when he could close the door of his +lodgings in the hot, stuffy city, and betake himself to some retired +spot where he could ramble about and hold communion with Nature, +secure from interruption. 'No man,' he wrote to one of his friends, +'loves the country more. Woods, trees, and rocks give the response +which man requires.... Every tree seems to say, "Holy, holy."' A +forest was to him a paradise. He would penetrate its cool depths, and, +selecting a tree which offered a seat in a forking branch close to the +ground, he would climb into it and sit there for hours, buried in +thought. It was amidst the trees of Schoenbrunn that he made the first +rough notes for several of his great works. With his back planted +against the trunk of a favourite lime-tree, his legs stretched along +the big branch, and his gaze fixed upon the network of branchlets and +quivering leaves above him, he sketched the framework of the oratorio +'The Mount of Olives,' the opera 'Fidelio' (or 'Leonore,' as it was +first called), and that glorious symphony which is known by the title +of the 'Eroica.' + +When not resting amidst the trees Beethoven would set off on long +walks through the fields, sketch-book[20] in hand, and humming or +roaring to himself as he went along. The rough jottings in the +sketch-books were later on developed with the utmost care, being +written out again and again, with fresh alterations and additions each +time, until every trace of crudeness had disappeared, and the finished +work stood out with such clearness and precision as to suggest that it +had been but that moment created. Nothing, indeed, has struck those +who have followed the gradual development of his work from the first +sketches which have been preserved more than the number of attempts +which mark the growth of the idea in the composer's mind, until it +assumed its final form. Yet there was no trace in the finished work of +the process of refining and elaboration through which it had passed. + +Very curious was the origin of some of the suggestions which found +their way into the sketch-books. It was Beethoven's practice to keep +one of these books by his bedside, in case an idea occurred to him +during the night, and it is told that he was once aroused by the +knocking of a neighbour who had been accidentally locked out of his +house in the small hours of the morning. The irate neighbour knocked +four raps at a time, with a pause at the end of every fourth rap, and +the rhythmic regularity of the sounds not only startled Beethoven out +of his sleep, but suggested a musical idea to his mind. Up jumped the +composer, and down went the idea in his sketch-book, and the next +morning the jotting was included in one of his most striking +compositions--the 'Violin Concerto in D,' where the passage, given to +the drums, is many times repeated. + +A village which formed one of his favourite resorts was Heiligenstadt, +situated about seven miles from Vienna. Here he went in the summer of +1802, after a severe illness. For some time past he had been suffering +from increasing deafness, and the malady seemed now to have reached an +acute stage, so that his country surroundings failed to exercise their +accustomed charm, and he fell into a deep melancholy. Indeed, he +appeared to have become impressed with the idea that his life-work was +ended, and that he had nothing to look forward to but the +companionship of an affliction which must sever him from the social +intercourse in which he delighted, and render his remaining years +solitary and miserable. It would be difficult to imagine a more +terrible calamity than that which had befallen Beethoven, or to +exaggerate its effects upon an over-sensitive nature such as he +possessed. As his deafness increased, his efforts to conceal the +results of the malady from those outside his own immediate circle +became more and more painfully evident. No one failed to observe how +he was affected, yet none dared to commiserate with him; and when he +discovered that his mistakes were drawing public attention to what he +was so anxious to hide, his mortification was intensified to a degree +that for the time destroyed his peace of mind and left him a prey to +melancholy. It was whilst in this state of mental and physical +depression that he penned from his village retreat the touchingly +eloquent letter which has since been called his 'will.' In this +epistle, which is addressed to 'My brothers Carl and Johann +Beethoven,' and which they are admonished to 'read and execute after +my demise,' Beethoven pleads for consideration both on account of his +irritability and his apparent lack of affection. To his misfortunes, +not to his faults, must be attributed the obstinacy, the hostility, or +the misanthropic attitude which he has shown towards those whom he +loves, and by whom he is loved in return. 'My heart and my mind,' he +says, as if in extenuation of this fancied ill-feeling, 'were from +childhood prone to the tender feelings of affection.' It is a pathetic +appeal to natures which, unfortunately for the writer, were the least +likely to echo its tenderness in their own hearts; for neither of the +brothers had ever shown him true affection. They had followed him to +Vienna to found a livelihood for themselves, and thenceforward, with +selfish zeal for their own interests, they had simply served to clog +his progress. Blinded by the nobility of his own character, however, +Beethoven now takes upon himself the entire blame for what he imagines +to be a lessening of the affection between them, and, sunk in health, +and viewing his future through the darkest of glasses, he reproaches +himself for what he could never have helped. Though his brothers are +the only persons who are actually named in this remarkable letter, no +one who reads it can doubt that Beethoven is addressing the world at +large, who will judge both himself and his works. + +Towards the end of this year his health had improved, but the deafness +remained constant, and he was at length compelled to desist from +conducting his works. Shortly after this an incident occurred which +must have served to convince him of the sympathy which the public felt +for him in his affliction. His great work, the 'Choral Symphony,' was +being performed, and the composer was standing on the platform with +his back to the audience, intently following the music. As the +concluding chords died away the whole house broke out into +enthusiastic applause. Again and again the shouts rent the air, but +Beethoven stood motionless, unmoved--a pathetic figure amidst the +storm. Possibly at this moment those whose ears he had charmed by his +music realised to the full the ineffable sadness of his condition, for +a reverential hush fell suddenly on the gathering. The next moment, +however, the storm of cheers broke out afresh, for a young singer, +named Caroline Unger, who had been taking part in the symphony, went +up to the unconscious composer, and, taking his hand, turned him round +to the audience. As the glance of the deaf man lighted upon the sea of +upturned faces, and he witnessed the emotion which his work had +aroused, he was deeply moved. + + [Illustration: '_Taking his hand, turned him round to the + audience._'] + +The 'Choral Symphony' ranks amongst the greatest of Beethoven's works, +but we should like to mention one of his smaller, though not less +famous, compositions--that which is known by the title of the +'Kreutzer Sonata for Pianoforte and Violin'--because no fitter +illustration could be found of the rapidity with which the composer +worked under pressure than is afforded by the beautiful work which he +dedicated to his friend Rodolphe Kreutzer, a violinist attached to +Count Bernadotte's suite of performers. He had undertaken the writing +of the sonata at the instance of a violinist, a mulatto named +Bridgetower, who was staying in Vienna, and it was to be jointly +performed by Bridgetower and himself. The concert was announced to +begin at 8 a.m., but when the public were hastening to the theatre in +the Augarten at that early hour of the spring morning, the music for +the pianoforte part was practically unwritten, with the exception of a +few scattered suggestions, whilst the variations, which are justly +renowned for their grace and beauty, were hurriedly written in at the +last moment, and had to be played by the violinist at sight from the +rough manuscript. The _andante_ is of unsurpassable beauty, and it was +rendered by the composer in such a manner as to excite the audience to +enthusiasm. Beethoven's powers of playing were never shown to greater +advantage than in his _andante_ movements. His execution of the +quicker parts was apt to be confused by his frequent use of the pedal, +but nothing occurred to mar or obscure the clearness and depth of +expression with which he rendered the slower movements, and it was in +these that his playing was most truly inspired. + +The year 1804 is a memorable one in the life of Beethoven, for it +witnessed the completion of his grand symphony, the 'Eroica,' the +rough idea of which had been sketched amidst the woods of Schoenbrunn +two years before. The suggestion of the work is said to have come from +Count Bernadotte, the French Ambassador at Vienna, with whom Beethoven +was on terms of intimacy; but the man whom it was intended to honour +by its dedication was the General whose exploits had shaken the whole +of Europe--Napoleon Buonaparte. Beethoven had been greatly attracted +by Napoleon's character. He believed in him as the one man who was +capable of making his adopted country a pattern for the world, by +establishing a Republic on the principles laid down by Plato. But his +confidence in the unselfishness of Napoleon's aims was soon to receive +a rude shock. The fair copy of the symphony, with its dedicatory +inscription, had been completed, and was on the point of being +dispatched to Paris, when suddenly the news reached Vienna that the +hero's glorious entry into the French capital had culminated in his +allowing himself to be proclaimed Emperor. In a moment Beethoven's +worship was turned into hatred and contempt. He seized the manuscript, +tore the title-page to shreds, and flung the work itself to the other +end of the room. 'He designs to become a tyrant, like the rest,' he +exclaimed, with scornful bitterness; and it was a long time before he +could even be induced to look at the music again, or to consider the +question of its publication. Eventually, however, he consented to its +appearing under a new title, the 'Sinfonia Eroica,' by which it has +since been known to the world. + +It is impossible within the limits of a short story-life to give even +a brief description of the composer's chief works, or to convey more +than an idea of how much work, despite his irregular habits, Beethoven +accomplished. His untiring industry in developing the rough jottings +which formed the foundations of his compositions has been mentioned; +but without following his life from year to year we can have only a +very imperfect conception of the actual amount of labour which was +involved in bringing to perfection the long list of works that we see +appended to the biographies of the composer. When we follow the story +of his life in detail, we are struck by the fact of his unceasing +toil. Nothing seems to have checked the constant flow of composition; +yet many causes were at work to hinder it, such as ill-health, +poverty, an ill-balanced temperament, and an oversensitiveness with +regard to the petty troubles arising out of his injudicious mode of +life. 'I live only in my music,' he writes, 'and no sooner is one +thing done than the next is begun. As I am now writing, I often work +at three or four things at once.' And think what such work meant! It +has been said that it is difficult to find in Beethoven's life +anything corresponding to the extraordinary beauty and grandeur of his +creations--in other words, there seems to exist no parallel in his +life, as he lived it, to the outpourings of his musical soul. There +is, indeed, little doubt that Beethoven had but one channel through +which to express his deepest thoughts and feelings--the language of +music. Through his music he reaches our hearts; by his music we are +brought into contact with his innermost soul; and by his music alone +can we know the man Beethoven as he really was. + +Yet his life was by no means devoid of noble qualities. It was in +every sense a great life, full of energy, full of power, full of a +determination which carried him through every obstacle, and enabled +him to hold his own against the attacks of his enemies. Apart, +however, from the genius that ennobled it, it was not a life which +could altogether compel admiration. The down-right simplicity and +directness of purpose which shone forth as Beethoven's chief +characteristics, and in themselves were undoubted virtues, were, +unhappily, overshadowed by faults and shortcomings of such magnitude +as to shut out much of the friendship and sympathy that he might +otherwise have enjoyed; and no one reading his life can doubt that he +stood greatly in need of such assistance. + +Nevertheless, Beethoven's faults were of the head, not of the heart. +At heart he was a man capable of loving and worthy to be loved. His +simple nature was easily touched by distress, and just as easily +imposed upon by those who designed to use him for their own ends. Many +of his quarrels and dislikes were either brought about or fomented by +persons in whom he had placed a mistaken faith. This was notably the +case with regard to the quarrel with Stephen Breuning, his best and +truest friend, to whom, after a separation of years, he turned with an +appeal for pardon that did honour to his heart. The letter accompanied +a miniature of the composer, and ran as follows: + + 'Beneath this portrait, dear Stephen, may all that has for so + long gone on between us be for ever hidden. I know how I have + torn your heart. For this the emotion that you must certainly + have noticed in me has been sufficient punishment. My feeling + towards you was not malice. No--I should no longer be worthy of + your friendship; it was passionate love for you and myself; but + I doubted you dreadfully, for people came between us who were + unworthy of us both. My portrait has long been intended for + you. I need not tell you that I never meant it for anyone else. + Who could I give it to with my warmest love so well as to you, + true, good, noble Stephen? Forgive me for distressing you. I + have suffered myself as much as you have. It was only when I + had you no longer with me that I first really felt how dear you + are, and always will be, to my heart. Come to my arms once + more, as you used to do.' + +Carl, the brother in whose unworthy behalf Beethoven had taken up the +cudgels against his best friend, was dead when this touching appeal +was written, but he had bequeathed to Beethoven a solemn charge which +was destined to bring to him who undertook it in the goodness of his +heart a burden of sorrow and bitterness. Carl had died penniless, and +his boy, who bore the father's name, thenceforth became to his Uncle +Ludwig as his own son. How good, how generous and self-sacrificing +Beethoven was to his nephew is testified by all who have written of +his life. He supplied him freely with money when money was by no means +too plentiful; he strove to satisfy his every need, either fancied or +real; and he lavished upon him a great love and solicitude to the last +day of his life. But Carl showed himself to be utterly unworthy of +this affection. He treated his uncle shamefully, and instead of +endeavouring to repay his kindness by steady perseverance, he was a +disgrace to the family whose name he bore. There is, unfortunately, +only too much reason for believing that Carl's want of affection, +coupled with his dissolute habits, embittered his uncle's existence, +estranged him from his friends, and hurried on his death. + +Of Beethoven's tenderness of heart numerous instances are recorded. He +devoted much of his time to arranging concerts for the benefit of the +poor and suffering, and in the midst of his popularity and the heavy +demands upon his time and strength he always found a means of helping +others. When he first came to Vienna to reside, he made the +acquaintance of a musician named Foerster, from whom he received +instruction in the art of quartet writing. Beethoven never forgot this +kindly help, and long afterwards, when Foerster was living in the upper +part of his house, he gave music-lessons to his friend's little +six-year-old boy. The lessons could only be given before breakfast, +and as Beethoven was an early riser, the boy had to get up in the dark +on those winter mornings and go down to the practice-room. May we not +picture for ourselves the little child seated beside the grave +composer in the dimly-lighted room, striving with chilly fingers to +find the right notes, whilst the master, bending over him, sets him +right with a tenderness which no one else is near to witness? + +'I feel as if I had written scarcely more than a few notes,' were the +words used by Beethoven in writing to a friend in 1824, when he was +near the close of his full and eventful life; and they serve to show +how exhaustless was that energy which neither sorrow nor disease had +the power to repress. Still, he yearns to 'bring a few great works +into the world, and then,' he adds, 'like an old child, to end my +earthly course somewhere amongst good people.' These latter years had, +indeed, been very full ones, both of work and anxieties, and the +inroads of disease had been steadily undermining his strength. Yet the +picture which is given to us of the composer when within a few months +of his death is a vivid portrayal of the triumph of mind-force over +physical weakness. He was staying in the country, at the house of his +brother Johann, and the picture of his daily life there is drawn by +the hand of his serving-man. 'At half-past five he was up and at his +table, beating time with hands and feet, singing, humming, and +writing. At half-past seven was the family breakfast, and directly +after it he hurried out of doors, and would saunter about the fields, +calling out, waving his hands, going now very slowly, then very fast, +and then suddenly standing still and writing in a kind of pocket-book. +At half-past twelve he came into the house to dinner, and after dinner +he went to his own room till three or so; then again in the fields +till about sunset, for later than that he might not go out. At +half-past seven was supper, and then he went to his room, wrote till +ten, and so to bed.' + +One more picture, and our story ends. Beethoven was lying on his +death-bed when the news was brought to him that Hummel, the musician, +with whom he had been intimate in the old Vienna days, had just +arrived in the city. Many years had elapsed since Beethoven had +severed his friendship with Hummel in a sudden fit of pique, and there +had been no attempt at reconciliation. But now, wasted by disease, and +fast sinking into his grave, there was no room in his heart for aught +but joy at the knowledge that one whom he had formerly liked was so +near him. 'Oh,' he cried, raising himself in bed when he heard the +news--'oh, if he would but call to see me!' No one seems to have +carried the message from the dying man, but it was answered. A few +days later Hummel came, and the old friends were at once in each +other's arms. Hummel, struck by the terrible signs of suffering in +Beethoven's face, broke into bitter weeping. Beethoven tried to calm +him, and, pulling from beneath his pillow a sketch of Haydn's +birthplace which he had that morning received, he cried, 'Look, my +dear Hummel, here is Haydn's birthplace! So great a man born in so +mean a cottage!' + +Beethoven died on March 26, 1827, having recently completed his +fifty-sixth year. Two days before his death he received the last +Sacraments of the Church. 'As the evening closed in, at a quarter to +six, there came a sudden storm of hail and snow, covering the ground +and roofs of the Schwarzspanierplatz, and followed by a flash of +lightning and an instant clap of thunder. So great was the crash as to +rouse even the dying man. He opened his eyes, clenched his fist, and +shook it in the air above him. This lasted a few seconds, while the +hail rushed down outside, and then the hand fell, and the great +composer was no more.'[21] + +On March 29, at three o'clock in the afternoon, Beethoven was laid to +rest in the Waehringer Cemetery, Vienna. The funeral was a very grand +one. Twenty thousand people followed him to his grave, and soldiers +were needed to force a way for the coffin through the densely packed +mass awaiting its arrival at the cemetery gates. Amongst the mourners +was Schubert, the composer, who had visited him on his death-bed, and +who acted as one of the torch-bearers. A choir of men singers and +trombones performed and sang several of the master's compositions, as +the great procession wended its way to the graveside, and Hummel laid +three wreaths of laurel upon the coffin before it was lowered to its +resting-place. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[16] Mozart had died in December of the previous year. + +[17] Schindler, 'Life of Beethoven.' + +[18] Moscheles, in Schindler's 'Life of Beethoven.' + +[19] Sir G. Grove, 'Dictionary of Music and Musicians.' + +[20] One of these sketch-books, filled with his notes, is to be seen in +the Manuscript Room of the British Museum. + +[21] Sir G. Grove, 'Dictionary of Music and Musicians.' + + + + +BEETHOVEN'S PRINCIPAL COMPOSITIONS + +OPERA: Fidelio. + [Produced in its original form in 1805, revised in 1806, and + again in 1814. There are four different overtures: 'Leonore,' + Nos. 1, 2, and 3, in C; No. 4, 'Fidelio,' in E. Published + in 1810 as 'Leonore,' and in 1814 as 'Fidelio.'] + Mass in C, Op. 86 (performed in 1807). 1812. + Missa Solennis in D, Op. 123. 1827. + Cantata: The Mount of Olives, Op. 85 (performed in 1803). 1811. + Ballet: The Men of Prometheus, Op. 43. 1801. + Overture and Incidental Music to Goethe's 'Egmont,' Op. 84. 1810. + Overture and Incidental Music to 'The Ruins of Athens,' Op. 113. + 1812. + Overture and Incidental Music to 'King Stephen,' Op. 117. 1812. +9 SYMPHONIES: + No. 1 in C, Op. 21. 1800. + No. 2 in D, Op. 36. 1803. + No. 3 in E-flat, Op. 55. The Eroica. 1805. + No. 4 in B-flat, Op. 60. 1807. + No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67. 1808. + No. 6 in F, Op. 68. The Pastoral. 1808. + No. 7 in A, Op. 92. 1813. + No. 8 in F, Op. 93. 1814. + No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125. The Choral. 1824. +Wellington's Victory (Battle of Vittoria), Op. 91 (performed in 1813). + 1816. +Overture to Coriolan, Op. 62 (performed in 1807). 1808. +Overture in C (Namensfeier), Op. 115 (performed in 1815). 1825. +Overture in C (Die Weihe des Hauses), Op. 124 (performed in 1822). + 1825. +Septet in E-flat for strings and wind, Op. 20. 1802. +Sextet in E-flat for wind instruments, Op. 71. 1810. +Sextet in E-flat for strings and two horns, Op. 81_b_. 1810. +2 String Quintets: + Op. 4 in E-flat. 1797. + Op. 29 in C. 1801. +17 String Quartets: + Op. 18, Nos. 1 to 6 (F, G, D, C minor, A, B-flat). 1801. + Op. 59, Nos. 1 to 3 (F, E minor, C). The Rasonmoffsky. 1808. + Op. 74, in E-flat. The Harfen-quartet. 1810. + Op. 95, in F minor. 1816. + Op. 127, in E-flat. 1826. + Op. 130, in B-flat. } + Op. 131, in C-sharp minor. } The Posthumous Quartets. + Op. 132, in A minor. } 1827. + Op. 135, in F. } + Op. 133, Great Fugue in B-flat. 1827. +5 String Trios: + Op. 3, in E-flat. 1797. + Op. 9, Nos. 1 to 3 (G, D, C minor). 1798. + Op. 8, in D. The Serenade Trio. 1797. +Serenade in D, for flute, violin, and viola, Op. 25. 1802. +Concerto in D, for violin and orchestra, Op. 61. 1806. +2 Romances for violin and orchestra: + Op. 40, in G. 1803. + Op. 50, in F. 1805. +5 Concertos for pianoforte and orchestra: + No. 1 in C, Op. 15. 1801. + No. 2 in B-flat, Op. 19. 1801. + No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37. 1804. + No. 4 in G, Op. 58. 1808. + No. 5 in E-flat, Op. 73. The Emperor. 1811. +Choral Fantasia in C minor, Op. 80. 1811. +Quintet in E-flat, for pianoforte and wind, Op. 16. 1801. +6 Trios for pianoforte, violin, and violoncello: + Op. 1, Nos. 1 to 3 (E-flat, G, C minor). 1795 + Op. 70, Nos. 1 and 2 (D, E-flat). 1809. + Op. 97, Grand Trio in B-flat. 1816. +10 Sonatas for pianoforte and violin. + [We must mention the Kreutzer Sonata in A, Op. 47. 1805.] +5 Sonatas for pianoforte and violoncello. +32 Sonatas for pianoforte alone. + [We have only space to mention the Pathetic (in C minor, Op. 13, + 1799), the Moonlight (in C-sharp minor, Op. 27, No. 2, 1802), the + Waldstein (in C, Op. 53, 1805), and the Farewell (in E-flat, Op. + 81_a_, 1811).] +Andante Favori in F. 1806. +23 sets of Variations. +Scena and Aria, Ah! perfido, Op. 65. 1805. +Adelaide, Op. 46. 1797. +Mignon's Song, 'Kennst du das Land?' Op. 75, No. 1. 1810. +Liederkreis (six Songs), Op. 98. 1816. +60 other Songs. + + * * * * * + +For a fuller account of Beethoven's life the reader is advised to +consult-- + +SCHINDLER'S Life of Beethoven (translated by Moscheles). 2 +vols. Colburn. 1841. + +Beethoven's LETTERS (1790-1826) have been translated by Lady +Wallace. 2 vols. Longmans. 1866. + + + + +SCHUBERT + + + + +SCHUBERT + + +If you are ever in the city of Vienna, and bend your steps to the +district called the Lichtenthal, you will there find a thoroughfare, +running north and south, called the Nussdorfer Strasse. This is its +present name, but in former times it was known as 'Auf dem +Himmelpfortgrund'--meaning 'Off the Gate of Heaven'--the +'Himmelpfortgrund' itself being a small street branching off to the +west towards the fortifications. On the right-hand side of the +Nussdorfer Strasse, as you face the outskirts of the city, you will +come upon a house bearing the number 54 (it was formerly numbered 72), +and the curious sign of 'Zum rothen Krebsen' (the Red Crab). But your +attention will at once be drawn to another feature of the house--a +grey marble tablet fixed above the door, with the inscription 'Franz +Schubert's Geburthaus' (the house in which Franz Schubert was born), +in the centre, and on the right a lyre crowned with a star, and on the +left a laurel wreath encircling the date '31 January, 1797.' + +Nothing more than this inscribed tablet will be needed to bring home +to your mind the fact that you are actually face to face with the +house in which Schubert, the composer of those beautiful songs, 'The +Erl King,' 'Hark, hark, the Lark,' and 'Sylvia,' first saw the light. +And as you stand before the home of the great song-writer your +thoughts will revert in fancy to the time when, a century ago, there +issued from that doorway the figure of a boy of eleven years of age, +clad in a suit of grey so light as to be almost white, with chubby +face, bright dark eyes, with a sparkle in them that the spectacles +which he wore could not hide, and a head of thick, curly, black hair. +That boy was Franz Schubert, setting out for his examination to be +admitted as a scholar at the Imperial Convict, as the school for +educating the choristers of the Chapel Royal in Vienna was called. + +The son of Franz Schubert, a schoolmaster in the Lichtenthal district, +whose character for uprightness and honesty, in addition to his +abilities, had won him the respect and esteem of all who knew him, +little Franz had from the first shown a remarkable fondness for music. +The family were in poor circumstances, the father having sprung from a +peasant stock, and by his own industry and a natural gift for teaching +succeeded in raising himself to his present position, whilst his wife +Elizabeth, in every way a perfect helpmeet for a poor man, was +likewise of humble origin. Franz Schubert had nothing to depend upon +but his schoolmaster's pay, and the family included, besides little +Franz, three boys and a girl. Nevertheless, such encouragement as +could be given to Franz in his love for music was given heartily and +sympathetically, for there could not have been a more devoted family +than his. At the first, however, Franz showed his independence by +making friends with a joiner's apprentice, who used to take him to a +certain pianoforte warehouse in the town, where, to his joy, he was +permitted to play little tunes on one of the instruments. At home +there was only an old, worn-out piano to practise upon, but with the +aid of this and frequent visits to the warehouse the boy managed to +acquire unaided a certain groundwork in music, so that when, at the +age of seven, his father began to give him lessons on the violin he +found that Franz had already made some headway. His elder brothers, +Ignaz and Ferdinand, had been taken in hand by the father at the same +age, and Ignaz, who was twelve years older than Franz, gave his little +brother lessons on the pianoforte. + + [Illustration: SCHUBERT. + From photo RISCHGITZ.] + +It was soon clear, however, that neither Ignaz nor his father could +keep pace with Franz's abilities--the boy had himself told Ignaz that +he had no further need of his help, and could go on alone--and it was +decided to send him to the choirmaster of the parish, Michael Holzer, +to learn the violin and piano, as well as singing, the organ, and +thorough-bass. Holzer, in turn, was astonished at the boy's powers, +and assured the father that he had never had such a pupil before. 'If +I wish to teach him anything now,' he declared, 'I find that he knows +it already! I can only listen to him in amazement!' + +Franz, with all his devotion to music, was a merry-hearted boy, never +so happy as when, in the play-hour, he found himself surrounded by his +schoolfellows, with whom he was first favourite. By the time he had +reached his eleventh year his voice had acquired such power and beauty +of expression as to procure him the chief soprano's place in the choir +of the parish church, where he also played the violin solos as they +occurred in the service. At home he was even then writing little +songs and pieces for the pianoforte--an early promise of what was to +follow. The family, as we have seen, were poor and hardworking, Ignaz +and Ferdinand were helping their father in the school, and it was +evident, therefore, that the talent which Franz undoubtedly possessed +must be turned to good account as soon as possible. The necessary step +to this end was to obtain his admittance to the Convict, in order that +he might be trained for the Imperial Chapel, and in the meanwhile +receive his education free in return for his services. + +Accordingly, one morning in the month of October 1808, Franz, attired +in his suit of grey, presented himself for examination by the Court +Capellmeisters and singing-master. A number of boys were to be +examined at the same time, and whilst they were waiting they indulged +themselves in mirth and jokes at the expense of the short, +chubby-faced, spectacled boy clad in grey, 'Hullo, my friend,' cried +one, who towered a good foot above poor Franz's head, 'how did you +leave your father the miller?'--an allusion to Franz's appearance +which was greeted with a burst of laughter from the other boys. A +second preferred a sarcastic inquiry as to the price of flour, whilst +a third desired to know whether Franz expected to get through in such +a garb--sallies which the victim bore with open good humour, the more +so as he felt conscious of his own powers. And, indeed, the laugh was +soon turned against his mockers; for, when he came to be examined, his +singing of the trial-pieces, in addition to his skill in solving the +problems set him, so astonished his examiners that they passed him +through at once, and he was ordered to don the uniform of the imperial +choristers forthwith. With a glow of pride Franz arrayed himself in +his new dress, which, with its edgings of gold lace, he thought +dazzlingly beautiful after his despised suit of grey. + + [Illustration: '_They indulged in jokes at the expense of the + spectacled boy._'] + +Franz's entry into the Convict implied a long separation from home, +but he soon found plenty to occupy his mind and claim his interest. +The school orchestra was a great feature of the new life, in which our +hero, from his home studies, was enabled at once to take a prominent +place. Practice was held daily, and the musicians bent their energies +to mastering the overtures and symphonies of Haydn and Mozart, with +the works of many of the minor masters. Even Beethoven's works were +not considered to be beyond the scope of their powers as time went on. +The work of all others which made the deepest impression on Schubert's +mind at this stage, however, was Mozart's 'G minor Symphony.' 'One can +hear the angels singing in it,' he used to say. But he revelled also +in the overtures to 'Figaro' and the 'Zauberfloete,' and, indeed, the +orchestral music to which he was now introduced opened up to his mind +a vista of never-ending delight. + +On the very first day that he took his seat in the orchestra his +clever playing attracted the attention of the leader, a big fellow +named Spaun, who sat immediately in front of him. On turning round to +ascertain who it was that was bringing forth such excellent tone from +his fiddle, and, moreover, playing with such precision, Spaun +discovered it to be 'a small boy in spectacles, named Franz Schubert.' +From that moment big Spaun became little Franz's intimate friend and +counsellor. To him one day Franz, who was characteristically shy of +speaking about himself and his longings, made a blushing admission +that he had already composed a good deal. 'Indeed,' he added, as if in +extenuation, 'indeed, I cannot help it, and I should do it every day, +only I cannot afford to get music-paper.' Spaun grasped the situation +at once, and thenceforth Franz was kept supplied with all the +music-paper he required, a kindness for which he showed his gratitude +by devoting his spare time to composition. In his playing, too, he +made such rapid progress that before long he was taking the first +violin, and on occasions when Ruzicka, the conductor, was not present +he was appointed to lead the orchestra. It was observed by others +besides Ruzicka and Spaun how greatly Schubert's gifts and earnestness +influenced the rest of the players, and tended to increase and +strengthen their taste for good music. His deep sentiment for what was +greatest and best in his art had from the first separated him from his +schoolfellows, and now the magnetism of his genius and earnestness was +drawing them one after another to his side. Franz Schubert had already +become a power in the school. + +Visits to the home were only to be made on Sundays and holidays, and +they were events to which he looked forward with the keenest delight. +Performances in which each member could take a share formed the chief +occupation of the family on these occasions. Perhaps Franz had brought +home a quartet of his own writing, and then the father would bring +forth his 'cello, and Ignaz and Ferdinand take first and second +violins, while Franz chose the viola, in order that he might be better +able to judge of the effect, and the work would be played through, +with criticism or approval of its merits at the conclusion. The father +would sometimes play a wrong note; at first Franz would take no +notice, but if the error were repeated he would look up with a smile, +and say gently, 'Herr Vater, something must be wrong there,' and it is +a proof of the rapid progress which he had made in music since the +days of his father's teaching that his judgment in such matters was +never questioned. + + [Illustration: '_His clever playing attracted the attention of + the leader._'] + +By degrees a reverence for Beethoven's genius was making itself felt +in regard to Franz's musical studies. Not long before he joined the +school the orchestra had been invited to give a performance at +Schoenbrunn, when Beethoven was present, and Franz had listened with +the deepest interest to his schoolfellows' account of their reception +by the great master. One day, when some of his songs had been sung at +a school performance, Franz turned to his friend Spaun with the +inquiry whether the latter thought it possible that he (Franz) would +ever be able to accomplish anything in the shape of composition. To +which Spaun, in surprise, answered that there could be no doubt in the +matter, since he had already done a great deal. 'Perhaps,' replied +Franz thoughtfully; 'I sometimes have dreams of that sort, but who can +do anything after Beethoven?' + +With his passionate love for music dominating his thoughts and +energies, it is not surprising that Schubert should have fallen behind +in his ordinary studies. From the point of view of the authorities the +Convict represented a complete school with a strongly-developed +musical side; but for Schubert it existed merely as a means to an end, +and that end music. This fact was apparent in about a year after he +entered the school, nevertheless his popularity suffered no decrease +thereby, for his backwardness in most of the subjects in which other +boys excelled was overshadowed by his extraordinary progress in the +art which was absorbing him so entirely. And as time went on his +desire for composition increased to such an extent that his kind +friend Spaun must often have been taxed to keep pace with his demand +for music-paper. Franz had already begun with methodical care to place +the date of composition upon every piece which he wrote, and thus we +are enabled to ascertain precisely when he composed his first +pianoforte work of importance; it is a fantasia for four hands, +comprising more than twelve movements, and filling thirty-two +closely-written pages of music-paper, and it bears the date, 'April +8--May 1, 1810.' Following this came his first attempt at +song-writing, in the shape of a long piece for voice and pianoforte, +called 'Hagars Klage' (Hagar's Lament over her dying Son), which also +contains twelve movements, and is remarkable for its frequent +unconnected changes of key. Melancholy ideas were evidently uppermost +in Schubert's mind at this time in connection with music, for the +'Hagar' was followed by another piece of even more lugubrious +character, called 'Leichenfantasie' (Corpse-fantasia), a musical +setting of Schiller's grim poem beginning: + + 'With a deathlike glimmer + Stands the moon above the dying trees; + Sighing wails the Spirit through the night; + Mists are creeping; + Stars are peeping + Pale aloft like torches in a cave.' + +He was now fairly launched upon composition, and during the two +succeeding years his pen was not allowed to rest, songs and +instrumental pieces being produced in rapid succession. + +Despite the many acts of kindness which he received at the hands of +his friends Franz was made to feel in many ways the want of a little +pocket-money such as fell to the lot of his more fortunate +schoolfellows. He had to contend with numerous discomforts, more +especially in the winter months, when the supplies both of firing and +food were inadequate, and one dark November day we find him sitting +down, chilled and hungry, to pen the following appeal to his brother +Ferdinand: + +'You know from experience that one can often enjoy a roll and an apple +or two, especially when one must wait eight hours and a half after a +poor dinner for a meagre supper. The few groschen which my father +gives me are all spent the first day, and what is one to do the rest +of the time? "Those who hope will not be confounded," says the Bible, +and I firmly believe it. Suppose, for instance, you send me a few +kreutzers monthly. You would never miss them, whilst I should shut +myself up in my cell and be quite happy. St. Matthew also says: "Let +him that hath two coats give one to the poor," In the meantime I trust +you will lend your ear to the voice crying to you incessantly to +remember your poor brother Franz, who loves and confides in you.' + +But these long waits between dinner and supper, together with the +hardship of being compelled to sit for hours in a fireless +practice-room, were not destined to endure much longer for Franz. The +termination of his career at the Convict was decided upon in +consequence of his resolution to devote himself wholly to music. He +had a little circle of faithful friends in the school, every one of +whom regarded him as a genius, and who loved him also for his own +sake; they only waited for him to compose in order to perform under +his direction, and they would fain have kept him amongst them; but +they knew his longings, and they realised the impossibility of +retaining so gifted a composer within the compass of their ranks. +Schubert loved them too, and though he went out from their midst to +seek a wider field for his genius, he never forgot that he was one of +them, and as composition after composition flowed from his pen it was +brought to the Convict orchestra to be tried and approved by his +kindest and best of critics. + +Apart from this determination to give himself up to music there was no +pressing reason for his leaving the school, for it was reported that +the Emperor himself, having observed Schubert's beautiful voice and +wonderful power of expression, had evinced so much interest in his +progress as to offer him a foundation scholarship in the school, on +condition that he should qualify himself for examination during the +holidays. Schubert, however, had made up his mind, and towards the end +of the year 1813 he quitted the Convict, his farewell being signalised +by the composing of his first Symphony[22] in honour of the birthday +of Dr. Lang, the musical director. A year before this event took +place, the mother, who had worked unceasingly to keep the home +together on the slender means which her husband's calling provided, +had died. Her loss was keenly felt by the family, but by none more +than by Franz himself, who realised how much he owed to the love and +care bestowed upon him in his childhood by this excellent, +hard-working mother. + +Schubert was now entering upon his seventeenth year, and stood at the +entrance of a career in music which, judging from his compositions at +the Convict school, must have seemed to his friends to be full of +promise. He himself was full of fire and energy, and longing to follow +in the footsteps of the great masters whose works had inspired his +earliest efforts. But, though as yet perhaps he failed to realise it, +his genius, whatever may have been the source of its inspiration, was +surely leading him towards the path wherein his strength chiefly +lay--a path almost untrodden, and which he alone was destined to adorn +with the choicest flowers of his imagination, in order that others +might enjoy their perfume for evermore--the pathway of song. Already +those early songs to which the school musicians had accorded a +sympathetic hearing as they flowed fresh from his pen evinced to those +capable of judging far more power and individuality than did any of +his more ambitious instrumental compositions. + +But, as we have said, Schubert himself probably had not realised this +great truth as yet. He stood at the threshold of a future which gave +him no insight into its possibilities, which for him at that moment +conveyed no more than a hope of fulfilment of his one burning +desire--to write, write, write. It was the pure longing of the true +musician to make mankind at large partakers of his heavenly gift. Let +us remember this of Franz Schubert, because it is absolutely true of +him, and because it helps us to understand his true nature. + +Schubert's determination was put to a severe test on leaving the +Convict, for he had hardly returned home ere the dread summons for +enlistment was placed in his hands. The Continental law of +conscription admits of no distinction such as that which Nature +confers upon an individual by the gift of genius; and to escape the +danger which now threatened him, and which, by depriving him of his +liberty for several years to come, appeared to be wholly +insupportable, Schubert seized upon the only remedy which offered +itself. He at once qualified himself for becoming an assistant to his +father in the latter's school. The choice lay between two evils, and +Schubert chose the lesser; for though he cordially detested the +drudgery of teaching, it at least prevented his being called upon to +serve in the ranks, and at the same time secured to him a certain +amount of leisure for composition. Moreover, there was opportunity for +maintaining relations with his little circle of intimates at the +Convict--a privilege which Schubert could not have forgone without a +severe pang--as well as for making new friends. + +It is easy to imagine the reluctance with which Schubert went about +his daily task of teaching the infant class in his father's school. +Every minute thus spent must have seemed to him an hour, and probably +the little ones, no less than their impatient teacher himself, +breathed a deep sigh of relief when the play-hour arrived. To Schubert +it meant freedom for work--real work--when he could fly to his desk, +and write down the musical thoughts which he had been burning to +express the whole morning. Impatient as he felt under the constraint +put upon him he never complained; probably the dread of the +conscription was constantly haunting him, for no fewer than three +summonses to serve reached him at this time. There were, moreover, +bright intervals in the round of scholastic work, when he could forget +that he was a schoolmaster, and throw himself heart and soul into his +art. He had lately made the acquaintance of a musical family named +Grob, residing in the Lichtenthal, comprising a mother and her son and +daughter, in whose house he was received on terms of friendship, quite +as much for himself as for his music. Therese Grob possessed a fine +soprano voice, with which she did full justice to the songs which +Schubert brought to her to sing, whilst Heinrich Grob played both the +pianoforte and the 'cello, with the result that many evenings were +passed in musical enjoyment. His circle of admirers at the Convict, +too, were always eager to welcome every new piece that he found time +to compose. Nor had he forgotten his old friend and master Holzer, the +organist and choir-master at the Lichtenthal Church, who had been the +first to acknowledge his talents. Schubert regularly attended the +church, and this fact, combined with his affection for the old +organist, led to his writing his first Mass for performance by the +church choir. The performance, on October 16, 1814, excited so much +interest that it was repeated on the 26th of the same month at the +Augustine Church. The latter occasion was one not likely to be soon +forgotten by those who were present. Franz conducted, the choir being +led by Holzer, whilst Ferdinand presided at the organ, and Therese +Grob sang the part for first solo voices. Amongst the audience was +Antonio Salieri, Court Capellmeister at Vienna, whom Beethoven had +acknowledged as his master, and who now, having praised Schubert +warmly for his work, declared that the latter should henceforth be his +pupil. Every one was delighted, and the father felt so proud and happy +that he signalised the event by presenting Franz with a five-octave +piano. To be able to rank himself with Beethoven as 'scholar of +Salieri' was indeed a high reward for Schubert, and the old man was +as good as his word, for he gave his new pupil daily lessons for a +considerable time. + + [Illustration: '_Many evenings were passed in musical + enjoyment._'] + +The year 1814 did not close without witnessing a striking addition to +the pile of manuscript by which the young schoolmaster-composer was +surrounded. How variously his mind was swayed during this period we may +understand from the fact that he had hardly finished the third act of a +comic opera[23] ('Des Teufels Lustschloss'--The Devil's +Pleasure-Castle) before setting to work on his 'Mass in F' which we +have just mentioned. The compositions of this year also include +seventeen songs, and one at least of these, the beautiful 'Gretchen am +Spinnrade' (Gretchen at her Spinning-wheel), we may regard as a +forerunner of the immortal songs that were to follow. And now, too, the +special circumstance which was destined to influence Schubert in +choosing the path wherein his genius found its most fitting expression +was near at hand. One afternoon in December of this year a friend took +him to call upon a poet named Johann Mayrhofer, the words of a poem by +whom Schubert had set to music a few days before. They found the poet +at his lodgings, situated in one of the darkest and gloomiest streets +of the city. The apartment contained little furniture beyond a worn-out +piano and a worm-eaten bookcase filled with well-used books, and the +general air of neglect and dilapidation was heightened by the fact that +the window was overshadowed by a huge building on the opposite side of +the narrow street. Gloomy and cheerless as it was in appearance, the +room was in keeping with the character of the man who occupied it. +Johann Mayrhofer was regarded by his acquaintance as an hypochondriac, +whose general depression of spirits entered largely into his poetical +writings. But those who knew him intimately were aware of a gentle and +tender side to his ordinarily stern nature. He was, in fact, a 'lonely, +self-contained, self-taught man'--one whose gifts conveyed to him the +ability to discern and appreciate beauty, but at the same time left him +powerless to banish from his mind the thought of evil working its +destructive influence both upon himself and his surroundings. Upon the +impressionable mind of Schubert--already attuned to sadness--the +personality of Mayrhofer exercised a special charm, and the two at once +became fast friends. The attraction, however, was perfectly mutual, for +Schubert's friendship helped to mature Mayrhofer's powers, with the +result that the one wrote in order that the other might set to music +that which was written, and to this alliance we are indebted for some +of Schubert's finest songs. + +Every moment that could be snatched from the drudgery of the +schoolroom was now devoted to composition, and the year following that +in which the acquaintance with Mayrhofer began furnishes the most +remarkable testimony to Schubert's powers. In this year (1815) he +composed no fewer than a hundred and thirty-seven songs, and six +operas and melodramas, in addition to a great deal of Church and +chamber music and pieces for the pianoforte. Of the songs, twenty-nine +were written in August alone, eight of this number bearing one date, +August 15, and seven more being produced on the 19th of the same +month. A wonderful year, indeed, and our astonishment is increased +when we reflect that many of these songs, written as they were under +conditions which would seem to have precluded the possibility of their +having been matured and developed in his mind before being written +down, are deservedly placed amongst the most immortal of Schubert's +works. When, too, the extraordinary length of some of the songs is +taken into account--fifty-five pages of closely-written manuscript in +one case, twenty-two pages of print in another--one marvels how the +time could have been found for the mere mechanical process of writing +them down. + +To enumerate the songs included in this long list would take up too +much space, but the story of how one great song came to be written +must be told here. Mayrhofer could claim friendship with Goethe, and +it was doubtless through Mayrhofer that Schubert's attention was first +drawn to the writings of the great German poet. One afternoon in the +winter of this year 1815, the 'old Convicter' Spaun called upon +Schubert, and found him in his room intently writing music, with a +book of poems by his side. On inquiring what it was that absorbed his +attention, Schubert looked up with a face aglow with inspiration. 'Oh, +I have come across _such_ a poem!' he exclaimed. 'Have you ever read +it? It is Goethe's "Erl King."' Without giving his friend time to +reply he turned once more to his paper, and recommenced jotting down +the notes with astonishing rapidity. Spaun sat by, wondering, but not +daring to disturb him. At length Schubert threw down his pen with a +sigh. 'It is finished,' said he, 'and now let us look it through.' It +was the first sketch of the famous song of the 'Erl King,' and when +the accompaniment had been filled in, the two friends conveyed the +manuscript to the Convict. His old friends and admirers soon formed a +group around the piano, and Schubert, sitting down, sang the song +through, and then one of the school singers sang it after him. To +Schubert's surprise--and the fact comes to us with something like a +shock--the first hearing of the 'Erl King' was received by the Convict +orchestra with some coldness. The truth is the dramatic force +embodied in the music was too strong for them--it fairly took their +breath away; it was so unlike anything that Schubert had hitherto +produced, or that they had ever heard. And when he came to the +passage, 'Mein Vater, mein Vater, jetzt fasst er mich an!' in which an +apparent disharmony discovered itself, one or two of the listeners +ventured to express their dissent, and it was necessary for Herr +Ruzicka, the professor of harmony who was present, to explain to his +pupils that the conjunction was permissible. Of the 'Erl King' our +story will have more to relate later on; in the meantime we may remark +that the rapidity of its composition leaves no room for doubt that it +was in itself as pure a piece of inspiration as any other of +Schubert's works that could be named, and, furthermore, that it +affords a striking instance of the power which he possessed of +grasping, almost at a single glance, the musical significance of a +poem which appealed strongly to the emotions. + +Unquestionably, however, the monotony of his school work weighed +heavily upon his mind, and, in his own opinion, was cramping his +powers of production. The longing to be free to devote himself wholly +to his art was intensified day by day, and when, in the following +year, he learnt that a director was about to be appointed at a +newly-created Government school of music at Laibach, near Trieste, he +hastened to apply for the post. True, the salary was only L21 a year, +but the gaining of the position would mean instant freedom from his +present bondage, and to Schubert that implied almost everything. It is +evident, however, that those who recommended him for the post were by +no means convinced of his fitness for governing, for their letters +were but half-hearted, and the selection fell upon another man who, it +turned out, was also recommended by one of Schubert's supporters. + +The depression resulting from his disappointment was soon to be +relieved by the agency of a new friend. A young man, named Franz von +Schober, of good family and some private means, came to Vienna with +the object of entering the University. Some time before taking this +step Franz Schober had met with several of Schubert's songs, which at +that date were being circulated in manuscript, and, lover of music as +he was, the young student had revelled in the beauties of the unknown +composer, and longed to make his acquaintance. When, therefore, he +reached Vienna he lost no time in finding his way to the Schubert home +in the Himmelpfortgrund. He found Schubert seated at his desk busily +writing, for Schober had happened upon a favourable moment when school +was over for the day. Little did the composer dream, as he heard his +visitor announced, that his deliverance from the bondage which had +become wellnigh insupportable, was so close at hand. A few minutes' +intercourse sufficed to show the two young men that their sympathies +and interests lay on a common plane. Schubert, quick to detect the +sympathy which Schober was not loath to express, felt drawn towards +his new friend, whilst Schober, for his part, as he glanced at the +piles of manuscript which occupied every available space in the small +room, evinced so deep an astonishment at the evidence of such untiring +industry that Schubert was fain to tell him in a few words how he was +placed, and of his longings for freedom. Then Schober saw his +opportunity for rendering a service which he hoped might prove as +acceptable to Schubert as it would be congenial to himself--would not +Schubert consent to live with him, at any rate, for a time? Schober +had a claim on which to found this proffer--namely, that he was +already well known to Spaun, to whose medium, indeed, was due the fact +that Schubert's songs had been first brought under his notice. +Franz's heart leapt within him at the prospect of being able to give +his whole time to his beloved music; he could not refuse a request so +modestly and tactfully conveyed, and obviously so kindly meant, and +the tears started to the eyes of both as the young men grasped each +other by the hand. It was not difficult for Schubert to obtain his +father's consent to the arrangement, for there was more than a +suspicion that the latter was not altogether satisfied with the manner +in which Franz had of late fulfilled his scholastic duties--a fact +which need occasion no surprise when his strong musical temperament is +taken into consideration. + +Thus it came about that Schubert gained his release, and the two +friends took up residence together at Schober's lodgings. Schubert, +however, was not inclined to live entirely at his friend's expense, +and so, unwillingly enough, he gave a few music-lessons. But not for +long--the same unconquerable dislike to teaching in any shape or form +asserted itself, and the pupils vanished. He might easily have secured +more pupils had he so desired, for there were many friends, moving in +higher circles than his own, who were ready to assist him; but it is +just here that we get a glimpse of Schubert's true character. He had +no aspiration to mingle with those whom, in his modest, unaffected +way, he considered to be above him. He valued friendship, from +whomsoever it came, but his whole nature was opposed to turning the +advances of the rich or great to his own advantage. Unlike Beethoven, +he had no faculty for 'imposing' on the aristocracy (to borrow +Beethoven's favourite phrase for describing his own relations with +those of superior rank to himself); on the contrary, Schubert courted +no society beyond that of his own class--in which, indeed, his +affections wholly centred themselves, and in which alone his true +nature allowed itself to be revealed. It is a strong instance of this +feeling that he loved best of all the praise that came from the +members of his own family, and next that which emanated from his own +circle of friends. Nevertheless, whatever of class distinction may +have influenced Schubert in the distribution of his affections and in +the revelation of himself, no such barrier existed in the minds of +those who were drawn to his side; in a word, he was loved by all who +knew him without regard to rank, wealth, or age. + +The year 1821 found Schubert, at the age of twenty-four, a composer of +more than seven years' standing, and yet almost unknown outside the +circle of his friends and acquaintance. Since the date when he went to +reside with Schober he had continued to pour forth his compositions +without intermission, and yet so far not a single work had been +printed. True, many of his songs had been sung from manuscript before +large and appreciative audiences at the musical meetings organised by +the father of Leopold Sonnleithner, one of Schubert's old +schoolfellows, and the most faithful of friends; but when the leading +Vienna publishers were asked to undertake the publication of the song +which had evoked the greatest enthusiasm when rendered by the +well-known amateur Gymnich, they shook their heads. The composer was +unknown, and with so difficult an accompaniment as that of the 'Erl +King' the sale of the song could not be great. Such was the opinion of +the publishers; but, to their honour let it be recorded, Sonnleithner +and Gymnich refused to be influenced by this adverse verdict. They +instantly resolved to print the song at their own risk, and when the +next concert took place at the Sonnleithner mansion the resolution was +announced. One hundred copies were subscribed for on the spot, and +with this substantial encouragement the engraving of the 'Erl King' +and a second song, 'Gretchen am Spinnrade,' was at once proceeded +with, the sale of these songs being undertaken by the music publishers +on commission. The enterprise was attended by so much success that its +promoters were enabled to proceed with the publication of further +songs, until, when the seventh had been reached, the publishers deemed +themselves perfectly safe in assuming the entire risk of publication, +and the eighth work appeared on May 9, 1822, as 'the property of the +publishers.' + +A great step towards the establishment of Schubert's fame was thus +assured; but we must pause in our story to recount the means by which, +apart from the initiative taken in the matter by his faithful friends, +Schubert's recognition at the hands of the public was brought about. +On March 7, 1821, the 'Erl King' was sung by Johann Vogl, a famous +opera singer in Vienna at that time, at a public concert held under +royal patronage. The song was received with storms of applause, and +from this point the public demand for Schubert's writings commenced. +The attention of Vogl, whose intellectual gifts are said to have +outshone even his vocal attainments, had been drawn to Schubert's +songs some five years before the event just mentioned. Franz Schober, +who knew him well as a visitor at his father's house, had pressed the +singer to accompany him to his lodgings in order to be introduced to +Schubert, and Vogl had smilingly acquiesced. Schober's praises of his +newfound friend had sounded so often in Vogl's ears that the request +could not be refused. Schober was certain that the great man would be +enchanted with Schubert's writings, at which the actor-singer had only +smiled once more; he deemed it to be merely youthful enthusiasm +influenced by personal affection. On reaching the lodgings in the +Landkrongasse they had found Schubert hard at work as usual, and the +floor as well as the table strewn with sheets of music-paper. Vogl, +whose society was courted by all ranks, at once made himself at home, +and did his best by a few gay sallies to put the composer at his ease. +In this, however, he was quite unsuccessful. The fact that there was a +difference of twenty years between their respective ages, when added +to the singer's popularity, may have partly accounted for the failure; +at any rate, Schubert was overwhelmed by confusion, and had nothing to +say in his own behalf. Vogl thereupon took up several of the songs, +humming them to himself as he went along, and Schober, watching him +intently, saw his interest deepen, until at length, despite his great +experience as a singer, he was evidently impressed by what he read. +When he left he shook Schubert's hand warmly, and said: 'There is +stuff in you, but you squander your fine thoughts instead of making +the most of them.' + + [Illustration: '_They found Schubert hard at work._'] + +Nevertheless, Schober was right; Vogl had been deeply impressed, and +the visit marked the beginning of a close friendship. Schubert soon +learned to appreciate Vogl's sincerity and advice, and as time went on +the latter's visits became more and more frequent, until the picture +might often have been seen of Vogl singing Schubert's latest songs to +the latter's accompaniment. To the completeness of this union Schubert +himself testifies in a letter to his brother Ferdinand: 'When Vogl +sings and I accompany him we seem for the moment to be one.' Vogl, for +his part, afterwards wrote of Schubert's songs that they were 'truly +Divine inspirations, utterances of a musical _clairvoyance!_' and he +emphasised the fact, which had not hitherto been appreciated, that +'the finest poems of our greatest poets may be enhanced and even +transcended when translated into musical language'--an important +testimony to the great service which Schubert was rendering to vocal +music. + +The five years which had elapsed since the friendship with Vogl began +had been passed in the production, as we have seen, of an immense mass +of compositions covering almost every branch of the art; but as none +of these works had so far produced any money it is obvious that, for +the first two years after leaving his father's house, Schubert must +have been dependent upon the hospitality of his friends. His residence +with Schober lasted only six months, at the end of which time +Schober's brother came to reside with him, and Schubert had to give up +his room. Teaching was entirely distasteful to him, as we know; yet we +can well understand that the pressure of circumstances alone may have +compelled him to accept, in the summer of 1818, an engagement as +music-teacher in the family of Count Johann Esterhazy. The terms of +this engagement were that he should spend the summer months with the +family at their seat at Zelesz, in Hungary, returning with them to +Vienna for the winter. How difficult it must have been for Schubert to +sever himself, even for a time, from the circle of which he was the +life and centre, in order to enter a family belonging to those ranks +with which he avowedly had nothing in common, may be imagined. Within +his own circle he was adored--nay, worshipped--by one and all. The +life, too, was so entirely free and unrestrained; the members +addressed each other by nicknames. Schubert had several pet names, +amongst them the 'Tyrant,' from his affectionate persecution of young +Huettenbrenner, who in return lavished upon him the affection of a +slave for his idol. They were all boisterous, merry, life-loving +spirits, venting their feelings in howls, repartees, sham-fights, and +mock-concerts--there is even a story of their 'performing' the 'Erl +King,' with Schubert himself accompanying them on a tooth-comb! The +change from this unconventional life to the aristocratic surroundings +of Zelesz was therefore immense; yet Schubert was not unhappy. The +family were musical, the comforts were undeniable, and the duties not +so heavy as to preclude his enjoying a considerable amount of leisure +for composition. + +At Zelesz he heard for the first time many of the national Hungarian +melodies sung or played by the gypsies, or by the servants at the +castle, and their beauty seems to have been impressed upon his memory +by the beautiful country in which he took his rambles. Later on he was +to give these airs an artistic setting in the shape of his 'First +Waltzes.' Of one of his pieces--the 'Divertissement a la +hongroise'--it is told that returning late one afternoon from a walk, +he lingered beside the open window of the kitchen, in order to listen +to the air which was being sung by the kitchen-maid within as she +leaned against the fireplace. He wrote frequent letters to his +friends--his home circle--whom he addresses as his 'dearest, fondest +friends, Spaun, Schober, Mayrhofer, and Senn--you who are everything +to me.' He entreats them to write soon: 'Every syllable of yours is +dear to me.' Nobody is overlooked or forgotten, for his messages +include 'all possible acquaintances.' As for himself, he speaks of his +happiness and good health, and tells them that he 'is composing like a +god.' As regards his duties, he describes himself as 'composer, +manager, audience, everything in one.' 'No one here,' he says in +another letter, 'cares for true art, unless it be now and then the +Countess, so I am left alone with my beloved, and have to hide her in +my room, or my piano, or my own breast. If this often makes me sad, on +the other hand it often elevates me all the more. Several songs have +lately come into existence, and I hope very successful ones.' Of his +relations with the family he says: 'The Count is a little rough; the +Countess proud, but not without heart; the young ladies good children. +I need not tell you, who know me so well, that with my natural +frankness I am good friends with everybody.' + +A letter[24] of this time, written to his brother Ferdinand, affords a +pleasing insight into his frank, loving nature, as well as an instance +of his fondness for his old home. Ferdinand had sent him a Requiem of +his own composing to look over. + + + _August 24, 1818._ + 'DEAR BROTHER FERDINAND, + + 'It is half-past eleven at night, and your Requiem is ready. It + has made me sorrowful, as you may believe, for I sang it with + all my heart. What is wanting you can fill in, and put the + words under the music and the signs above. And if you want much + rehearsal you must do it yourself, without asking me in Zelesz. + Things are not going well with you; I wish you could change + with me, so that for once you might be happy. You should find + all your heavy burdens gone, dear brother; I heartily wish it + could be so. My foot is asleep, and I am mad with it. If the + fool could only write it wouldn't go to sleep! + + 'Good morning, my boy, I have been asleep with my foot, and now + go on with my letter at eight o'clock on the 25th. I have one + request to make in answer to yours. Give my love to my dear + parents, brothers, sisters, friends, and acquaintances, + especially not forgetting Carl.[25] Didn't he mention me in his + letter? As for my friends in the town, bully them, or get some + one to bully them well, till they write to me. Tell my + mother[26] that my linen is well looked after, and that I am + well off, thanks to her motherly care. [After asking for some + articles of clothing, for which he will send the money very + soon, he proceeds.] For July, with the journey-money, I got 200 + florins [about L8].... Though I am so well and happy, and every + one so good to me, yet I shall be immensely glad when the + moment arrives for going to Vienna. Beloved Vienna, all that is + dear and valuable to me is there, and nothing but the actual + sight of it will stop my longing! Again entreating you to + attend to all my requests, I remain, with much love to all, + your true and sincere. + + 'FRANZ MPIA.' + +The story of Schubert's life, from the time when by the powerful aid +of his friend Vogl the musical public of Vienna were awakened to the +fact that a composer of rare quality was working in their midst +unknown, unfolds itself to us as a record of continuous struggle, +relieved by occasional success. It is true that as he became better +known the appreciation of his works spread far beyond the confines of +his native city; at the same time it must be remembered that his +poverty was extreme. As yet his works had brought him little or +nothing; add to this his native bashfulness, together with the fact +that his marvellous productive powers were animated by no desire to +push himself where, as a composer, he had every right to be; that he +was always retiring, and always modestly undervaluing everything he +produced; that even when he had finished a fine composition it was +often put aside in some receptacle and forgotten; that, in a word, he +wrote, not for the public eye, not for praise, but simply and solely +because he was impelled by the spirit within him. When we consider all +this it need not surprise us to learn that Schubert's progress in a +worldly sense was slow and halting. Again, his physical strength was +by no means adapted to bear the immense strain which this continuous +labour involved; and when we learn that his mode of living was most +irregular (when he was not staying with friends he would be living +from hand to mouth in poor lodgings by himself), and that his +sensitive overstrung nature was denied the nourishment which it so +sorely needed--a result due in part to his distresses, but partly also +to his improvidence--we can form a tolerably clear picture of the +manner in which his days were passed. + +Yet if his distresses and anxieties were so many dense clouds shutting +out, for months together, the sunshine and warmth from his life, that +life itself, taken as a whole, was by no means destitute of +happiness. The musical temperament is one which cannot be cast down +for long; let the cloud-rift be ever so small, it suffices to let in a +flood of sunshine to such a nature as that which Schubert possessed. +But how much happier might his life have been if, in the absence of +the ability to manage his own affairs to better advantage, some one +had been at hand to take this responsibility off his shoulders. Alas! +not one of his friends seems to have assumed this important part, +notwithstanding the affection they professed for him. Left to himself, +no sooner had his songs attained a marketable value than, pressed by +hunger and the other necessaries of life, he consented to part with +the copyright of the first twelve of his published songs--including in +this number the 'Erl King' and the 'Wanderer'--for the sum of eight +hundred silver gulden (equal to eighty pounds sterling), and this in +face of the fact that more than eight hundred copies of the 'Erl King' +had already been sold![27] + +Of his improvidence there is much that could be told; his inherent +good nature was never proof against imposition, and he gave away as +freely as he earned. Moreover, he was regarded by a certain set of his +friends as a Croesus, or, rather, as a never-failing coiner of +money, and two of these so-called friends were not ashamed to live +openly upon his easy-going, careless ways, under the pretence of +sharing the expenses of a joint lodging. The partnership, if such it +could be called where one was called upon to find the money, extended +even to articles of clothing--boots, hats, coats, cravats, etc., being +regarded as common property--whilst if one of the trio found himself +unable to pay his reckoning, it fell to the lot of the 'man of wealth' +to discharge his obligation. Needless to say, this friendly office was +cheerfully filled by Schubert for either or both of his companions. +Great was the jubilation when the composer brought back the news that +he had sold a piece of music. For the time being he was regarded by +the others as literally swimming in money, and expected to spend right +and left so long as it lasted, and then they would all go short until +the next piece of luck came along. One day, when the trio were in very +low water, Schubert and one of the others met at a small coffee-house +and surprised each other in the act of ordering coffee and biscuits, +because neither could summon from his pockets the requisite +amount--namely, eightpence halfpenny--wherewith to pay for a dinner! + +But no amount of distress could check his capacity for work. Save +during the hours of sleep, his pen would seem never to have been idle; +even whilst talking to a friend who was waiting to take him for a +walk, he was jotting down at great speed one of his most beautiful +dramatic ballads, the 'Zwerg.' Another friend, Carl Umlauff, has +related how he used to go to Schubert's lodgings in the mornings, and +find him lying in bed jotting down musical ideas; at other times he +would be out of bed, clad in his dressing-gown, composing at his +standing-desk. Writing would go on till two o'clock. 'When I have done +one piece I begin the next,' was his own way of describing the +continuity of his work, and it is known that a single morning produced +no fewer than six songs. The afternoon would be devoted to +music-making at the house of a friend, or to a walk in the suburbs, +whilst the evening would be divided between a pipe at the Gasthaus +with his companions, and a visit to the theatre or the house of a +musical friend. The hours reserved for sleep were constantly being +curtailed by the encroachments of nightly pleasures, and yet he was +always ready to seize his pen and begin work directly he was awake. +The story even goes that he slept in his spectacles in order to save +the trouble and time of putting them on in the morning! + +His omnivorous appetite for setting to music every poem which struck +his fancy--whether it were suited for the purpose of a song, or, what +is far more important, in any way worthy of the setting which he +proposed to give to it--was one of Schubert's most marked +characteristics. Another was the rapidity with which, having once +grasped the sense of the words, he translated them into music, and +such music, let it be remembered, as was destined in many cases to +live for ever. Like the 'Erl King,' the beautiful song the 'Wanderer' +was composed in the space of a few hours; again, with respect to the +strikingly beautiful collection of songs known as the 'Schoene +Muellerin,' the poems were lighted upon quite by accident. Schubert was +visiting a friend, and when the latter was called away he picked up a +volume of Mueller's poems which was lying upon the table; he grew +interested in them, the friend delayed his return, and finally +Schubert put the book in his pocket and went home. The next morning, +when the friend called to apologise for his detention and to inquire +for the missing volume, he found that Schubert had already set several +of the poems to music. What Schumann the composer wrote of Schubert +was true: 'Everything that he touched he turned into music.' One day +in the month of July, 1826, he was returning with his friends from a +Sunday walk through the village of Waehring, and, passing by a +beer-garden, he espied an acquaintance seated at one of the tables. On +joining him Schubert found he was reading a volume of Shakespeare; he +seized the book, and began turning over the pages, and then, drawing +his friends' attention to the line, 'Hark, hark, the lark,' he +exclaimed: 'Such a lovely melody has come into my head, if I had but +some music-paper!' One of his companions seized a bill-of-fare, and on +the back of it scribbled a few staves, and then, upon the spot, 'amid +the hubbub of the beer-garden, that beautiful song, so perfectly +fitting the words, so skilful and so happy in its accompaniment, came +into perfect existence.' Later on in the evening of the same day he +added to this creation two more songs from Shakespeare--the +drinking-song from 'Antony and Cleopatra,' and the well-known 'Who is +Sylvia?' In the instances just given Schubert's choice could not have +been more happily made; but this does not render it less difficult for +us to understand why in so many cases he should have elected to +immortalise by his music poems devoid of merit both in feeling and +expression. + +We have seen something of Schubert's veneration for Beethoven as a +grand personality, even before the latter's music had begun to take +hold of him. At first there is no doubt that the music of Mozart had +the greatest fascination for him; there is evidence of this in +Schubert's early instrumental works, and in the following passage from +his diary, penned after he had heard one of Mozart's quintets played +in 1816: 'Gently, as if out of the distance, did the magic tones of +Mozart's music strike my ears. With what inconceivable, alternate +force and tenderness did Schlesinger's masterly playing impress it +deep, deep into my heart! Such lovely impressions remain on the soul, +there to work for good, past all power of time or circumstance. In the +darkness of this life they reveal a clear, bright, beautiful prospect, +inspiring confidence and hope. O Mozart, immortal Mozart! what +countless consolatory images of a bright better world hast thou +stamped on our souls,' Beethoven was a great personality then, but as +time went on the influence of his music grew ever stronger. So far, +however, Schubert had been content to worship his hero at a distance, +for which purpose he would haunt the restaurant at which Beethoven +usually dined. But in 1822 he published a set of Variations on a +French Air, which he dedicated to Beethoven 'as his admirer and +worshipper,' and his longing to present these in person to the +composer was so great as to overcome his natural timidity. +Accordingly, accompanied by the publisher, Diabelli, he called at +Beethoven's house; they found the composer at home, and a courteous +but somewhat formal welcome was accorded them. This in itself was bad +enough for poor Schubert, whose courage straightway forsook him; but +when Beethoven proceeded to hand to him the bundle of paper and the +carpenter's pencil which, owing to his deafness, he kept in readiness +for his visitors, Schubert's shyness prevented him writing a single +word. The production of the Variations afforded a welcome relief to +his confusion, and as Beethoven was in an uncommonly good humour the +dedication pleased him very much. The effect of the diversion, +however, was only momentary, for Beethoven, looking through the +composition, lighted upon something to which he took exception, and +forthwith proceeded to point it out to his visitor. This was the last +straw, and Schubert, losing his presence of mind altogether, fled from +the room. On reaching the street his courage returned, and too late he +thought of all that he might have said. Let us complete the anecdote +by relating that Schubert derived some consolation from the knowledge +that Beethoven not only retained the Variations, but was very pleased +with them, and often played them over with his nephew. + + [Illustration: '_Schubert fled from the room._'] + +It was not until five years after this event that Beethoven realised +how great a singer had been uttering his sweet notes within the span +of the city in which he lived, and then the master lay upon his +death-bed. Into his hands had been placed a collection of Schubert's +songs, some sixty in all, and as he turned them over his attention was +arrested by their beauty, and he uttered frequent expressions of +surprise and delight. But even greater was his astonishment when he +learned that there were more than five hundred of such songs extant. +'How can he have found time,' he asked, 'for the setting of such long +poems, many of them containing ten others?' (by which he meant to +convey that they were as long as ten ordinary poems). For several +days the collection occupied his attention. 'Ah, if I had had this +poem I would have set it myself!' he would exclaim. 'Truly, Schubert +has the Divine fire in him!' He made frequent references to Schubert, +expressing his regret that he had not sooner known him for the +composer he was, and prophesying a great future for him in the world +of music. Schubert himself longed to pay his respects to the master he +revered so highly, and one day, in company with his friends Anselm +Huettenbrenner and Schindler (both of whom were well known to +Beethoven), he presented himself at the door of the sick man's +chamber. Schindler informed Beethoven of their arrival, and asked who +he would like to see first. 'Schubert may come in first,' was the +reply. Before they left, Beethoven, regarding them with a smile, said: +'You, Anselm, have my mind, but Franz has my soul.' When for the +second time Schubert found his way to the bedside of the master death +was very near, and though as they stood around the bed he made signs +to them with his hand to show that he recognised their presence, he +could not speak, and, overcome with emotion, Schubert quitted the +room. + +A little more than three weeks after the second visit Schubert was +walking as one of the torch-bearers beside the coffin of his loved +master, as the latter was borne to his last resting-place in the +Waehringer cemetery. On the way back Schubert and his friends passed +through the Himmelpfortgrund, close to the old home, and, entering a +tavern, called for wine. Schubert, having filled his glass, raised it +aloft: 'I drink,' said he, 'to the memory of Beethoven.' Then once +more filling the glass, he drained it to the first of the three +friends then present, who was destined to follow the master to his +grave. + +Little did Schubert dream that he was emptying his glass to his own +memory! Nor in the eyes of his friends would there seem to have been +anything in his appearance at that moment which could be taken as +foreshadowing the early closing of that eager, active life. Gazing at +him then, as he sat drinking his grim toast, the picture presented to +his companions was that of a short, stout, thick-set man of about +thirty, with a head of thick, black hair, disposed in crisp curls, +bushy eyebrows, and a pair of bright black eyes which beamed through +his spectacles. The face was round with full cheeks, the complexion +pasty, the nose short and insignificant, the lips full and protruding, +the jaw broad and strong; the hands, like the rest of the body, were +plump, and the fingers thick and short. There was nothing striking +about his general expression; but when the conversation turned upon +music, and especially if Beethoven were the topic of discussion, his +eyes would brighten at once, and the whole face light up with +animation. + +As he sat in the dingy parlour of the little tavern, beaming upon his +friends, whilst the minds of all three were rapt by the solemn event +which they had just witnessed, the proximity of death within that +circle was not contemplated. Yet the story of his life shows us that +the period which had elapsed between the date of his presenting his +Variations to Beethoven and that of his first visit to the composer on +his death-bed had been full of anxieties and bitter disappointments; +and there is no doubt that the continuous struggle for existence, +coupled with the strain of unceasing work, had only too surely +undermined a constitution which could never have been robust. + +One of Schubert's greatest longings was to write for the stage. The +longing was evident almost at the first, and it grew with his strength +and the consciousness of his powers as a composer. As the finger of +fame beckoned him forward it had directed his steps to the theatre as +the goal of his aspirations, and it was upon the attainment of this +object that he lavished all the later powers of his genius--only, +alas! to reap the bitter fruit of disappointment. One after another of +his operas was rejected, even, as in the case of 'Fierabras,' when at +the very point of production--the reasons assigned in each case being +either the unsuitableness of the libretto or the difficulties +presented by the music, and the door which he hoped to enter was +closed against him during his lifetime. The score of 'Fierabras' +comprised no fewer than one thousand pages, and the mournful state +into which he was thrown by its rejection may be gathered by an +extract from a letter penned just after the fate of the opera had been +sealed. He refers to himself as 'the most unfortunate, most miserable +being on earth,' and proceeds: 'Think of a man whose health can never +be restored, and who from sheer despair makes matters worse instead of +better. Think, I say, of a man whose brightest hopes have come to +nothing, to whom love and friendship are but torture, and whose +enthusiasm for the beautiful is fast vanishing, and ask yourself if +such a man is not truly unhappy. + + 'My peace is gone, my heart is sore, + Gone for ever and evermore. + +This is my daily cry; for every night I go to sleep hoping never again +to wake, and every morning only brings back the torment of the day +before.... I have composed two operas for nothing.' + +Thus sadly he wrote in the hour of bitterness, but happily for +Schubert, and still more fortunately for us, there were brighter days +yet in store for him, and the enthusiasm for the beautiful, which he +speaks of as 'fast vanishing,' returned in all its accustomed force. +No disappointment, however great, seemed to have the power to check +the flow of production--that is the one great point which we notice +about Schubert's life; we find him at one moment despairing, but at +the next his troubles appear to be forgotten, and he is immersed in +the writing of another song, another symphony, or another sonata, as +the case may be; but it is always work, work in the face of every +obstacle that fortune can throw in his way. 'His life is all summed up +in his music.' 'Music and music alone was to him all in all. It was +not his _principal_ mode of expression, it was his _only_ one; it +swallowed up every other. His afternoon walks, his evening amusements, +were all so many preparations for the creations of the following +morning.'[28] And so it continued until the end. The very last year of +his busy life, far from exhibiting any diminution of his powers, is +marked by the production of some of his very finest works. + +It was not until the end of October, 1828, that the signs of serious +illness made themselves apparent in attacks of giddiness, accompanied +by a marked loss of strength. Schubert was at this time living with +his brother Ferdinand at the latter's house in the Neue Wieden +suburb--the house is now known as No. 6, Kettenbruecken Gasse--having +removed thither on the advice of his doctor for the sake of the fresh +air and the adjacent country. Although he rallied somewhat during the +first week of November, and was able to resume his walks and discuss +his plans for the future, the weakness increased, and on the 11th he +wrote to his friend Schober what was destined to be his last letter: + + 'DEAR SCHOBER, + + 'I am ill. I have eaten and drunk nothing for eleven days, and + I am so tired and shaky that I can only get from the bed to the + chair, and back. Rinna is attending me.... In this distressing + condition be so kind as to help me to some reading. Of Cooper's + I have read the "Last of the Mohicans," the "Spy," the "Pilot," + and the "Pioneers." If you have anything else of his I entreat + you to leave it with Frau von Bogner at the Coffee-house. My + brother, who is conscientiousness itself, will bring it to me + in the most conscientious way. Or anything else. Your friend, + + 'SCHUBERT.' + +On the 14th he took to his bed, but for two days more he was able to +sit up and correct the proofs of some of the songs in the +'Winterreise.' He grew rapidly weaker, however, and by the 17th he was +quite delirious. On the evening of the next day he called Ferdinand to +his side, and, bidding him put his ear close to his mouth, he +whispered: 'Brother, what are they doing with me?' 'Dear Franz,' was +the reply, 'they are doing all they can to get you well again, and the +doctor assures us you will soon be all right, only you must do your +best to stay in bed.' For a space the sick man lay quiet, then, as the +delirium increased, his mind reverted to the same idea: 'I implore you +to put me in my own room, and not to leave me in this corner under the +earth. Don't I deserve a place above ground?' 'Dear Franz,' cried his +brother, 'be calm--trust your brother Ferdinand, whom you have always +trusted, and who loves you so dearly. You are in the room which you +always had, and lying on your own bed.' 'Ah, no,' replied the dying +composer, 'that cannot be true, for Beethoven is not here!' Thus in +his last moments his poor, wandering mind was dwelling upon the master +whom he reverenced; to be near him, even in death, was the last wish, +the last hope to which he clung! + +When, later on, the doctor came, he tried to reassure the sufferer +with hopes of recovery; but Schubert gazed at him with earnestness +without speaking, and then, turning himself away, he beat the wall +with his hands, saying in slow, earnest tone: 'Here, here is my end,' +At three o'clock in the afternoon of the following day, November 19, +1828, he breathed his last. Thus passed away, in comparative youth, a +composer of whom it has been written: 'There never has been one like +him, and there never will be another.' + +The funeral took place on November 21, and a large number of friends +gathered to pay their last respects to the dead composer as he lay in +his coffin, dressed in accordance with the prevailing custom, like a +hermit, with a crown of laurel about his brows. The poor old father, +still drudging as schoolmaster in the Rossau district, where he had +been labouring ever since he had left the old home in the +Himmelpfortgrund, would have buried his dear son in the cemetery near +at hand; but Ferdinand told him of Franz's last wish, and, like the +noble brother that he was, gave a sum out of his own scanty earnings +in order to defray the extra cost of removing the body to the +Waehringer burial-place. Thither, accordingly, it was taken, and +committed to the ground in a grave close to that occupied by the +master he loved so well. The monument which was erected over the grave +in the following year, by the efforts of his friends and admirers, +bears the following inscription: + + MUSIC HAS HERE ENTOMBED A RICH TREASURE, + BUT MUCH FAIRER HOPES. + + FRANZ SCHUBERT LIES HERE. + + BORN JAN. 31, 1797; + DIED NOV. 19, 1828, + 31 YEARS OLD. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[22] The Symphony in D, performed from manuscript at the Crystal +Palace, on February 5, 1881. + +[23] The opera was never performed, and in 1848 the manuscript of the +second act was accidentally destroyed by a servant who used it for +lighting the fires. + +[24] For the following extract from this letter the author expresses +his acknowledgments to Sir G. Grove's 'Dictionary of Music and +Musicians' (article 'Schubert'), in which the letter was for the first +time published. + +[25] His brother Carl, the landscape painter. + +[26] His stepmother; the father had married again soon after the first +wife's death. + +[27] Of the 'Wanderer'--second only in popularity to the 'Erl +King'--the publishers are said to have realised, since the time of its +appearance up to the year 1861, the sum of 27,000 florins, or more than +L1,100. + +[28] Sir G. Grove, 'Dictionary of Music and Musicians.' + + + + +SCHUBERT'S PRINCIPAL COMPOSITIONS + + +OPERAS AND DRAMATIC WORKS: + Des Teufels Lustschloss. Comp. 1813-1814, pub. 1888. + Die Zwillingsbrueder. Comp. 1818-1819, pub. 1872. + Alfonso und Estrella. Op. 69. Comp. 1821-1822, pub. 1827. + Die Verschworenen, oder Der Haeusliche Krieg. Comp. 1823, pub. 1862. + Fierabras. Op. 76. Comp. 1823, pub. 1827. + Rosamunde (Overture and Incidental Music). Op. 26. Comp. 1823, + pub. 1824. +6 MASSES: + No. 1, in F, Comp. 1814, pub. 1856. + No. 2, in G, Comp. 1815, pub. 1846. + No. 3, in B-flat, Op. 141. Comp. 1815, pub. 1838. + No. 4, in C, Op. 48. Comp. 1818, pub. 1826. + No. 5, in E-flat, Comp. 1828, pub. 1865. + No. 6, in A-flat, Comp. 1819-1822, pub. 1876. +Deutsche Messe in F. Comp. 1826, pub. 1870. +Lazarus (cantata--unfinished). Comp. 1820, pub. 1866. +Psalm XXIII., for female voices, Op. 132. Comp. 1820, pub. 1831. +The Song of Miriam, Op. 136. Comp. 1828, pub. 1838. +8 SYMPHONIES: + No. 1, in D, Comp. 1813. + No. 2, in B-flat, Comp. 1814-1815. + No. 3, in D, Comp. 1815. + No. 4, in C minor, The Tragic. Comp. 1816, pub. 1870. + No. 5, in B-flat, Comp. 1816, pub. 1870. + No. 6, in C, Comp. 1818. + No. 8, in B minor, The Unfinished. Comp. 1822, pub. 1867. + No. 9, in C, Comp. 1828, pub. 1840. +Overture in the Italian Style in D. Comp. 1817, pub. 1872. +Overture in the Italian Style in C, Op. 170. Comp. 1817, pub. 1872. +Octet for strings and wind in F, Op. 166. Comp. 1824, pub. 1854. +Quintet for strings in C, Op. 163. Comp. 1828, pub. 1854. +Quintet for pianoforte and strings in A, Op. 114. Comp. 1819, pub. 1829. +8 Quartets for strings: + In D. Comp. 1814, pub. 1871. + In B-flat, Op. 168. Comp. 1814, pub. 1865. + In G minor, Comp. 1815, pub. 1871. + In E-flat, Op. 125, No. 1. Comp. 1824, pub. 1830. + In E, Op. 125, No. 2. Comp. 1824, pub. 1830. + In A minor, Op. 29. Comp. 1824, pub. 1825. + In D minor, Comp. 1826, pub. 1831. + In G, Op. 161. Comp. 1826, pub. 1852. +2 Trios for pianoforte and strings: + Op. 99, in B-flat, Comp. 1827, pub. 1828. + Op. 100, in E-flat, Comp. 1827, pub. 1828. +4 Sonatas. } For +Fantasia in C, Op. 159. Comp. 1827. } pianoforte +Rondeau Brilliant in B minor, Op. 70. Comp. 1826. } and violin. +2 Sonatas (in C minor and B-flat), Comp. 1814 and 1824. } +Fantasia in F minor, Op. 103 } +Marche Heroique in A minor, Op. 66. Comp. 1826. } +Marche Funebre in C minor, Op. 55. Comp. 1825. } For +25 Marches. } pianoforte +2 Divertissements. } duet. +Variations on a French Air in E minor, Op. 10. } + Comp. 1821, pub. 1822. } +2 Rondos. } +10 Polonaises. } +Grand Duo in C, Op. 140. Comp. 1824. } +Overture in F, Op. 34. Comp. 1824. } +10 Sonatas for pianoforte solo. + [We must mention the Sonata in A minor, Op. 42, and that in A + major, Op. 120, both composed in 1825.] +Fantasia in C, Op. 15. Comp. 1820. } +Fantasia Sonata in G, Op. 78. Comp. 1826. } +4 Impromptus, Op. 90. Comp. 1828. } For +4 Impromptus, Op. 142. Comp. 1827. } pianoforte +6 Moments Musicals, Op. 94. } solo. +2 sets of Variations. } +44 Part Songs for male voices. +6 Part Songs for female voices. +21 Part Songs for mixed voices. +457 Songs have been published. We may mention: + Die Schoene Muellerin (20 songs), Op. 25. Comp. 1823. + Die Winterreise (24 songs), Op. 89. Comp. 1827. + Der Schwanengesang (14 songs). Comp. 1828. +And the following single Songs: + An Sylvia, Op. 106, No. 4. Comp. 1826. + Ave Maria (Scott's words), Op. 52, No. 6. Comp. 1825 + Der Tod und das Maedchen, Op. 7, No. 3. + Der Wanderer, Op. 4, No. 1. Comp. 1816. + Der Zwerg, Op. 22, No. 1. Comp. 1823. + Die Forelle, Op. 32. Comp. 1818. + Geheimes, Op. 14, No. 2. Comp. 1821. + Gretchen am Spinnrade, Op. 2. Comp. 1814. + Staendchen (Hark, hark! the Lark!). Comp. 1826. + Erlkoenig, Op. 1. Comp. 1815. + +For a fuller account of Schubert's life the reader is advised to +consult: + +COLERIDGE (A.D.): Life of Schubert (translation of Kreissle +von Hellborn's _Franz Schubert_). 2 vols. Longmans, 1869. + + + + +MENDELSSOHN + + + + +MENDELSSOHN + + +The short winter afternoon was drawing to a close, and a grey mist had +already begun to blot out the canal and the trees which were studded +along its banks, accentuating the prevailing cheerlessness and +silence, and throwing into yet stronger relief the animated scene +presented within the comfortable, well-warmed dining-room of a house +standing on the further side of the broad street which ran parallel +with the canal. A large company was gathered in this room for the +enjoyment of music and conversation, and it was evident from the +whispered remarks which passed between the guests that something out +of the common was expected at the hands of the youthful player who, in +obedience to his father's request, now advanced to take his place at +the pianoforte. + +Peculiarly winning, both in manner and appearance, was the boy who +modestly seated himself at the instrument. He was about thirteen years +of age, of slight build, with a handsome face, in which strong traces +of Jewish descent were apparent. His black hair clustered thickly +above a high forehead, while the dark, lustrous eyes, with their +continuous play of expression, imparted to the face an indescribable +charm such as no degree of beauty in itself could have exercised. It +was, in a word, the sensitive face of an artist, reflecting the varying +imagery of a mind attuned to lofty and beautiful thoughts; and as such +its power and charm could be felt even by those to whom as yet his +thoughts were a sealed book. The temperament which we designate by the +term 'artistic' resembles the ocean in its varying moods, and in the +surprising swiftness with which one mood or aspect gives place to +another. Just before he was called upon to play, the boy's eyes had +been sparkling with merriment, and his spirits had so infected the rest +of the company as to cause the intervals separating the performances to +be filled with laughter and merry chatter. Yet no one watching his face +now, as his fingers swept over the keys, could have failed to be struck +by the change in its expression. Every trace of fun had vanished, and +to the sparkle of the eyes had succeeded an expression of deep +earnestness that showed how readily the mind had adapted itself to the +character of the music he was playing, and as the performance +progressed one could have read in his face every shade of feeling which +the music was intended to express. No self-consciousness marred the +spontaneity of the player's interpretation. Everything seemed to come +direct from his soul, as if that soul had found the voice by which +alone it could be heard and understood, and revelled in its freedom. +And as he played on, weaving fresh melodies out of the original theme, +ever and anon breaking through the web of harmony to recall the simple, +plaintive air with which he had begun--his face at one moment lighted +up with radiant happiness and at the next shaded with quiet +sadness--his listeners almost held their breath, fearful of losing +any portion of the music which was passing away from them, perhaps for +ever. And as he played, the shadows of the December afternoon crept +into the room, enveloping the slight figure seated at the instrument, +until his outline became lost to view, and the melody pouring forth +from beneath his fingers seemed to come from heaven itself. + + [Illustration: MENDELSSOHN. + From photo RISCHGITZ.] + + * * * * * + +To those who visited the home of Abraham Mendelssohn, the wealthy +Berlin banker, the fact that his son Felix had a remarkable genius for +music did not admit of a doubt. The capacity for learning music had +begun very early, but his wonderful gift of extemporisation, which +gave his genius wings as well as voice, had only lately revealed +itself at the time at which our story opens. Nevertheless, it had made +great strides, and opened up all sorts of possibilities with regard to +the future. And withal there was such an unaffected modesty and +simplicity about the boy, so complete an absence of anything like a +desire to show off his talents, as sufficed to disarm any tendency +towards captiousness on the part of his hearers. Felix's whole wish +was to satisfy himself as to his progress in music, and, young as he +was, he had the sense and determination to pursue his bent without +regard to the plaudits of his father's friends. Abraham Mendelssohn, +notwithstanding his business capacities, was himself a great lover of +the arts, and especially of music, in regard to which, indeed, he +showed considerable judgment. That his children should exhibit similar +tastes to his own was, therefore, to him a matter of delightful +satisfaction, for he shared with his wife Leah a deep interest in all +that affected his children's education. He watched Felix with peculiar +care, for it seemed to him that he inherited many of the traits as +well as the capacity for learning which had distinguished the +grandfather and philosopher, Moses Mendelssohn. Felix undoubtedly +possessed the bright dark eyes and the humorous temperament of his +grandfather, for he was one of the brightest and merriest of children. +The family was not a large one. Jakob Ludwig Felix (to give the +subject of our story his full names), who was born February 3, 1809, +ranked second in age, the eldest child being Fanny Caecilie; after +Felix came Rebekka, and, lastly, little Paul. The three elder children +were born in Hamburg, where the family continued to reside until the +occupation of the town by the French soldiers in 1811 made life there +so miserable for the German inhabitants that as many families as could +contrive to do so escaped to other towns of Germany which were free +from the presence of the invading army. Amongst those who successfully +eluded the watchfulness of the French guards by resorting to disguise +was the family of Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, the head of which had +followed the example of his wife's brother in adopting the latter name +as a means of distinguishing his own from other branches of the +Mendelssohn family. With his wife and children Abraham fled to Berlin +to make his home in the house of the grandmother, situated beside the +canal in the north-east quarter of the town, to which we have been +already introduced. + +No happier surroundings could have been imagined than those amidst +which Felix Mendelssohn's childhood was passed. The residence was in +the Neue Promenade, a broad, open street, bounded on one side only by +houses, and extending on the other side to the banks of the canal. +Here a wide stretch of grass-land, with a plentiful dotting of trees, +imparted a pleasant suggestion of the country, whilst the waters of +the canal reflected the blueness of the sky, or, when rippled by the +breeze, lapped the grassy banks with a murmuring sound that was half +sigh, half song. To this spot daily resorted the Mendelssohn children +in company with the occupants of other nurseries in the promenade, and +here amongst the rest might often have been seen little Felix, his +eyes sparkling with merriment, and his black curls tossed by the wind, +as, with surprising quickness of movement and ringing peals of +laughter, he joined with his sister Fanny in the excitement of the +game. + +Every encouragement was given to the development of Felix's musical +talent as soon as his fondness for the art made itself apparent. In +company with Fanny he began to receive little lessons on the +pianoforte from his mother when he was about four years old. Then came +a visit to Paris, when Abraham Mendelssohn, taking the two children +with him, placed them under the care of a teacher named Madame Bigot. +Their progress was so satisfactory--for the lady was an excellent +musician and quick to recognise the abilities of her pupils--that on +their return to Berlin it was decided to engage the services of +professional musicians to carry on the instruction in the pianoforte, +violin, and composition as a regular part of the children's education. +There was a continual round of lessons in the Mendelssohn home at this +time, for in addition to music the children were taught Greek, Latin, +drawing, and other subjects; and with so much to get through it was +necessary to begin the day's work at five o'clock. As a consequence of +this close application to study, the children used to long for Sunday +to come round, in order that they might indulge themselves a little +longer in bed. No amount of lessons, however, could detract from the +happiness of a home wherein love was the dominant note, and in which +each strove for the good of all; whilst as for Felix himself, no name +could have been more symbolical of his true nature than that by which +he was called. Nothing served to check the flow of his spirits. Both +in work and play he was thoroughly in earnest--indeed, he regarded +both in the same enjoyable light. He and Fanny were inseparables, and +very soon after he began to compose they were often to be found +laughing heartily together over Felix's attempts at improvisation upon +some incident of a comical nature which had occurred during their +play-hours. + +Such beginnings, though small in themselves, soon led to more +ambitious attempts being made to set to music short humorous +dialogues, so as to make little operas. To write an opera, however, +was not enough--it must be performed, in order to ascertain how it +would go. This was a serious matter, and one calling for the services +of several performers--a miniature orchestra, in fact--with singers to +undertake the various parts. But Felix, as we have seen, was +thoroughly in earnest about all that he undertook, and his earnestness +enabled him to surmount even so great a difficulty as was here +presented. The appearance in his character of this love of +completeness must be noted, as, later on, it became one of his most +strongly-marked characteristics. 'If a thing is worth doing at all, it +is worth doing well,' was the saying which, even as a child, +controlled all his actions; and so Felix would have his orchestra. + +Love and money combined can accomplish the apparently impossible, and +hence the orchestra was duly selected and engaged by the indulgent +father from the members of the Court Band. To his delight--yet nowise +to his embarrassment--Felix found himself in command of a company of +sedate and experienced musicians, ready to follow the lead of his +baton when it pleased him to take his place at the music-desk. +Everything was now furnished for the performance, but the sense of +completeness was not yet satisfied. There must be a better judge than +the composer himself present to pass judgment on the merits of the +piece, and so no less a person than Carl Zelter, the director of the +Berlin Singakademie, and Felix's professor for thorough-bass and +composition, was induced to undertake this delicate office, whilst a +large number of friends of the family were invited for the occasion. + +This was the beginning of a long and regular series of musical parties +at the Mendelssohn house--parties to which, as time went on, it became +a privilege to be invited, at which, indeed, hardly a musician of any +note who happened to be passing through Berlin failed to put in an +appearance. The picture is before us as we write--and as it must often +have been recalled by those who frequented the house beside the +canal--of the child-musician standing on a footstool before his +music-desk, baton in hand, gravely conducting his orchestra. 'A +wonder-child indeed,' as one has described him, 'in his boy's suit, +shaking back his long curls, and looking over the heads of the +musicians like a little general; then stoutly waving his baton, and +firmly and quietly conducting his piece to the end, meanwhile noting +and listening to every little detail as it passed.' + +The performance of these operettas was not accompanied by action, the +rule being for some one to read the dialogue at the piano, whilst the +chorus were seated round the dining-table. It must not be supposed +that Felix's compositions monopolised the entire time of the +orchestra; though it rarely happened that the weekly concert failed to +include one or more of his productions. At some of the performances +all four children took part--Fanny taking the pianoforte when Felix +conducted at the desk, Rebekka singing, and Paul playing the 'cello. +Zelter, who was generally averse to praising any of his pupils, and, +indeed, was regarded as a very grumpy personage, was a regular +attendant at these performances, and never failed at the finish to +speak a few words of praise or criticism. The old musician was +secretly very proud of his pupil, and despite his habitual roughness +of manner, Felix had a sincere affection for his master, as well as a +deep respect for his judgment. + +Felix was by this time composing a great deal, and, though little more +than twelve years old, work of a more serious kind than the writing of +operettas had been claiming his attention. To such a degree, in fact, +had the flow of ideas and the facility of giving them expression +developed, that within the space of a twelve-month from the completion +of his twelfth year he had composed between fifty and sixty pieces, +including a trio for pianoforte and strings, containing three +movements (an ambitious work for a child!), several sonatas for the +pianoforte, some little songs, and a comedy piece in three scenes for +pianoforte and voices. Now, too, he began to collect his writings into +volumes, each piece being written out with the greatest care and in +the neatest of hands, with the date at which it was written, and any +other note which might serve to identify the work or to show how it +came to be written. Nor was this care and neatness confined to his +compositions. It soon showed itself in regard to everything which he +undertook--his letters, memoranda, sketches, and so forth--and the +strangest part of it all is that the more he wrote and the harder he +worked, the more clearly this habit of orderliness and accuracy +exhibited itself. It would seem, indeed, as if for Felix Mendelssohn +time was as truly elastic as some other busy folk would fain have it +to be. + +Hand in hand with this thoroughness in regard to work went, as we have +intimated, a love of frolic and games and every species of fun that +the mind of a healthy and spirited boy could devise; and with all, +permeating all, was a lovability that won its way to every heart. +Rarely has such a perfect combination of light-heartedness and +seriousness--capacity for the hardest work and the keenest enjoyment +of life--been seen as that which burst upon the world in the person of +Felix Mendelssohn. The quickness with which he made friends, the +firmness with which he bound those friends to himself, the constancy +and affection which he lavished upon those nearest and dearest to him, +were alike extraordinary. + +One day a famous composer, named Carl von Weber, was walking in Berlin +in company with his young friend and pupil, Jules Benedict, when the +pair observed a slightly-built youth of about twelve years of age, +with long, dark curls and bright, dark eyes, advancing towards them. +Suddenly the boy's keen eyes sparkled with the joy of recognition, for +Carl Weber had lately visited his father's house, and he had taken a +great liking to him at first sight; and now, without giving the +composer time to realise the fact that they had met before, +Mendelssohn, with a run and a spring, had thrown his arms about +Weber's neck, and was entreating him to accompany him home. As soon as +the astonished musician could speak he turned to his friend, and with +a comical air, half apologetic and half proud, said, 'This is Felix +Mendelssohn.' The friend held out his hand with a smile. Felix gave +him a quick glance, then seized the hand in both of his own. The +glance and the action that followed it settled the matter--Jules +Benedict and he must be friends henceforth. Weber stood by, laughing +at his young friend's enthusiasm, and Felix turned to him sharply and +once more begged that he and Benedict would favour him with their +company. But Weber shook his head. He had to attend a rehearsal--he +had come to Berlin for that purpose. 'A rehearsal!' exclaimed Felix +disappointedly, and then the next moment his eyes flashed. 'Is it the +new opera?' he asked excitedly. Weber nodded. 'Oh,' said Felix +thoughtfully; then, indicating Mr. Benedict, 'Does _he_ know all about +it?' he inquired. 'To be sure he does,' assented the composer +laughingly--'at least, if he doesn't he ought to, for he has been +bored enough with it already.' Felix passed unnoticed the last part of +Weber's speech. It was enough for him that young Benedict was familiar +with what he himself was dying to know. He therefore seized Benedict +by the arm, exclaiming, 'You will come to my father's house with me, +will you not?' There was no refusing the appeal in those eyes, and the +young man acquiesced willingly. Then Felix dragged Weber down for a +parting embrace, and, taking his new friend by the hand, as if fearful +that he might change his mind, he pulled him away. + +The distance to the house was short, but Mendelssohn's impatience +could only be met by his companion's consenting to race him to the +door. On entering he retained Benedict's hand tightly in his grasp, +conducted him at once upstairs, and, bursting into the drawing-room, +where his mother was seated at her knitting, he exclaimed, 'Mamma, +mamma! Here is a gentleman, a pupil of Carl Weber's, who knows all +about the new opera, "Der Freischuetz!"' + +If Benedict had expected a more formal introduction to Madame +Mendelssohn he had reckoned without a knowledge of Felix's +enthusiasm. But the mother knew and understood, and the young musician +not only received a warm welcome, but found it impossible to take his +leave until he had complied with his new friend's request that he +would seat himself at the piano and play as many airs from the great +opera as he could remember at such short notice, Felix listening, +meanwhile, with rapt enjoyment. + + [Illustration: '"_Here is a gentleman who knows all about the + new opera._"'] + +The acquaintance thus begun awakened a mutual regard in Mendelssohn +and Benedict, for the latter shortly afterwards paid a second visit to +the house. On this occasion he found Felix engaged in writing out some +music, and inquired what it was. 'I am finishing my new quartet for +piano and stringed instruments,' was the reply, gravely spoken, and +without the least self-consciousness. Benedict glanced at the work in +surprise. He did not know Mendelssohn yet. It was the 'First Quartet +in C Minor,' which, later on, was published as 'Opus I.' 'And now,' +said Felix, laying aside his pen, 'I will play to you to convince you +how grateful I am for your kindness in playing to us last time.' He +thereupon sat down and played with precision several of the airs from +'Der Freischuetz' which Benedict had played on his previous visit. 'You +see, I have not forgotten the pleasure you gave me,' he said, with a +smile, as he rose from the piano. 'But now,' he added, as a new +thought entered his mind, 'I want you to see the garden, please.' Down +they went, and in a moment Mendelssohn had thrown off the musician's +cloak, and was a boy again. With a bound he leapt over a high hedge, +turned, and cleared it a second time, and then challenged his +companion to a race. Another moment he burst out with a song, as if +the open air had incited him to imitate the birds, and then, pointing +to a favourite tree, he ran to it and climbed it like a squirrel. + +These meetings took place in the summer of 1821, a year which brought +much happiness to Felix, for ere it had drawn to a close he had found +a new friend. When the autumn came round, Zelter announced that he was +going to pay a visit of respect to his old friend and master, Goethe, +the aged poet of Weimar, and he was willing to take Felix with him. +Needless to say, Felix and his parents were equally delighted with the +proposal. The boy had so often heard Zelter speak of Goethe, whose +works, moreover, he was always quoting, that he felt he already loved +the master almost as much as Zelter did himself. Goethe's house at +Weimar was regarded as a shrine at which his countless admirers were +wont to pay homage, even though their devotion often met with no +further gratification than was to be derived from gazing at its walls +or peeping into the grounds, which were sacred to the poet's +footsteps. Hence the promise of an introduction to one who was the +object of so much hero-worship stirred the heart of Felix to its +depths, and filled his mind with reverential emotions such as few +events could have had the power to awaken in one so sensible of what +was due to a great and lofty intellect. + +It was a bright November day when Zelter and his pupil set forth upon +their journey. Both were looking forward to the meeting, though with +somewhat different feelings. What Mendelssohn's feelings were we have +tried to imagine, but Zelter was nursing within himself a certain +pride and confidence in the prospect of introducing his favourite +pupil to so keen a judge as Goethe, which he would not have revealed +to that pupil for worlds. Felix's spirits, however, were so high on +this occasion that Zelter had enough to do to satisfy all his +questions without allowing his usually taciturn nature to relax under +the sunshine of the boy's enthusiasm. + +On arriving at Goethe's home they found the poet walking in his +grounds. The meeting was simple and affectionate. Goethe greeted Felix +with every show of kindness, and sent the boy to bed with an +overflowing heart and a mind resolved upon cherishing the minutest +details of this happy encounter. The next day he was to play to +Goethe, and at an early hour of the morning he was sauntering in the +grounds, awaiting the poet's arrival, and feasting his eyes upon the +scenes which were the accustomed haunts of the author of 'Faust'; and +then, selecting a sunny spot, he sat down to write a long letter home, +full of description of the events of the previous day. + +Nothing short of the severest of tests would satisfy Goethe of the +truth of what Zelter had privately conveyed to him regarding his +pupil's talents. Accordingly, sheet after sheet of manuscript music +was selected by the poet from his store and placed upon the +music-desk to be played by Felix at sight. The manner in which he +performed his task, the ease with which he overcame the difficulties +presented by penwork of various styles, and often far from clear, +astonished and delighted the assembled company. But their +manifestations of delight were far more pronounced when Felix, taking +one of the airs which he had just played as a theme for +extemporisation, exhibited in a most charming fashion, and with true +musicianly feeling, the capacities of the subject for varied +treatment. Still Goethe withheld his praise, and, interrupting the +applause, declared that he had a final test to propose which, he +jokingly warned Felix, would infallibly cause him to break down. Thus +speaking, the poet placed on the desk a sheet of manuscript which at +first sight was enough to strike terror and dismay into the stoutest +heart, for it seemed to consist of nothing else than scratches and +splotches of ink, interspersed with smudges. Mendelssohn glanced at +it, and then, bursting into a laugh, exclaimed: 'What writing! How can +it be possible to read such manuscript?' Suddenly he became serious, +and bent to examine the writing more closely, Goethe looked +triumphantly round at the company. 'Now, guess _who_ wrote that!' he +said. Zelter rose from his place beside the pianoforte, and, looking +over Felix's shoulder, cried out: 'Why, it is Beethoven's writing! One +can see that a mile off! He always writes as if he used a broomstick +for a pen, and then wiped his sleeve over the wet ink!' + +Mendelssohn could decipher the manuscript only by degrees, having to +search the sheet to find the successive notes; but when he reached the +end he exclaimed, 'Now I will play it to you,' and this time he played +it through without a mistake. Upon this Goethe let him off, and +rewarded him with some kind words of praise. Thenceforth, until the +visit came to an end, Felix was called upon to play to the poet every +day, and the two became fast friends. The old man treated the boy as +if he were a son, laughed and joked with him, and was never so happy +as when he was near. It was altogether a delightful visit, and Goethe +would only part with Felix on the understanding that they should meet +again very soon. + +The following summer brought a new happiness to Felix, for it had been +decided that the entire family should make a tour through Switzerland. +In those days a journey of such length was an undertaking of much +consequence, more especially when, as in this case, the family were +accompanied by the children's tutor and the doctor, in addition to +several servants. It was an essential part of the father's scheme of +education that his children's minds should be widened by travel, and +more particularly that they should make personal acquaintance with the +classic ground of history--advantages which wealth enabled him to +place at their command. It was with light spirits that the party set +out on their journey, Felix keenly alive to every fresh scene or +incident as it presented itself, and there were few of either that +failed to leave their stamp upon his impressionable mind. To his +insatiable curiosity must be attributed the adventure which befell him +on the very first day of their travel. They had to change carriages at +Potsdam, and when the horses had traversed three German miles of road +from that town Felix was suddenly missed, and a brief colloquy +elicited the melancholy fact that the boy had been left behind at +Potsdam. The tutor thereupon turned back in one of the carriages, +whilst the rest proceeded to the next stopping-place. In the course of +an hour he returned with the truant seated by his side, dusty and +footsore, but otherwise as fresh as when he had started. He had, it +appeared, strayed from the party at Potsdam, and returned to the +starting-place in time to see the carriages disappearing in the +distance enveloped in a cloud of dust. He began to run, but seeing +that he could not overtake them, he abated his speed, and determined +to perform the journey to Brandenburg on foot. A little peasant-girl +joined him. They broke stout walking-sticks from the trees at the +road-side, and together marched on cheerfully, conversing as they +went, until the tutor's carriage met them about a mile from the next +halting-place. + + [Illustration: '_The tutor's carriage met them._'] + +It was a most delightful tour, enjoyed by all concerned, and long to +be treasured by the young musician, to whom Interlaken, Vevey, and +Chamounix, with their mountains, lakes, glaciers, torrents, and +valleys, their sunrises and sunsets, presented a panorama of endless +enchantment. Amidst the constant demands upon the senses there was +little time for actual composition, but two songs and the beginning of +a pianoforte quartet were inspired by the sight of the Lake of Geneva +and its beautiful surroundings. Nor was the journey without the +pleasures afforded by meetings with many eminent people in the musical +world, such as the composer Spohr at Cassel, and Schelble, the +conductor of the famous Caecilien-Verein concerts, at Frankfort. To the +latter Felix exhibited his powers by an extemporisation on Bach's +motets, which called forth the musician's astonished praise. + +On the return journey a call was made at Weimar, in order that Abraham +Mendelssohn might pay his respects to the poet, and personally +acknowledge the old man's kindness to Felix. Goethe received them most +kindly, and talked much with the father on the subject of the boy's +future. Of Felix's playing he never seemed to get tired. There was a +charm about the boy's bright presence, and a soothing restfulness in +his playing which appealed to the old poet's kindlier nature in a way +that few things had the power to do. 'I am Saul, and you are my +David,' he said to Felix one day, when his temper had been ruffled by +something that had occurred. 'When I am sad and dreary, come to me and +cheer me with your music.' How much sunshine had been infused into the +old man's declining days by these brief visits Felix himself could +never have guessed, but he knew that he loved Goethe, and that his +love was returned. + +Felix's progress, not only in music, but in his other studies as well, +was by leaps and bounds. Knowledge to him seemed a food for which his +appetite was insatiable, difficulties to him were but spurs to +increased effort, and the effort itself appeared to be inappreciable. +It was impossible to regard any longer as a boy one who possessed +knowledge and powers that entitled him to take rank with performers +and composers of the day. Too soon for some of those who loved him had +Mendelssohn passed from his childhood stage, landing almost at a +single bound into that of advanced youth, if not, indeed, into manhood +itself. The Swiss tour had in a measure bridged over the interval; for +when he returned it was with a taller and robuster frame, more +strongly marked features, and a new and indefinable expression that +was the result of widened experience, and, last of all, without the +beautiful curls which had helped to make the child's face what it had +been. With these changes, however, his happy boyish nature remained as +strong and as irrepressible as ever. And so we pass on to the date +when the transformation of which we have spoken found a fitting +opportunity for recognition by his friends. + +It was the night of February 3, 1824, Felix's fifteenth birthday, and +the family and guests were gathered around the supper-table. Earlier +in the evening there had been a full rehearsal of his first full-grown +opera in three acts--'Die beiden Neffen, oder der Onkel aus Boston' +(The Two Nephews, or the Uncle from Boston), which had gone most +successfully, and now Zelter held up his hand as a signal that he had +something important to say. All eyes were turned to him, and the +clatter of tongues ceased in a moment. The old musician's face was +lighted up by a most unusual expression. His grumpiness had cleared +away, and a look of benevolence beamed from his eyes, in which there +was even a suspicion of moisture, as, lifting his glass on high, he +said: + +'I have a toast to propose which I make no doubt you will acquiesce +in most readily. I raise my glass to the health and happiness of my +_late_ pupil (no one failed to note the emphasis on the word 'late'), +'Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy!' + +The toast was honoured with enthusiasm, and then Zelter, rising from +his seat, took Felix by the hand and addressed him in these words: + +'From this day, dear boy, thou art no longer an apprentice, but an +independent member of the brotherhood of musicians. I proclaim you +"assistant" in the names of Mozart, Haydn, and old Father Bach!' + +He then embraced Felix with much tenderness, imprinting a hearty kiss +on both his cheeks; and, the little ceremony ended, the company +toasted the proclamation of independence with great merriment, +following it up with the singing of songs by Zelter and others. + +Notwithstanding that Mendelssohn had thus received his initiation into +the 'brotherhood,' and that Zelter had plainly shown that he had +nothing more to teach him, Abraham Mendelssohn still had some +lingering doubts as to the advisability of his son's choosing music as +a profession. This attitude arose quite as much from Felix's all-round +knowledge and attainments as from any particular misgivings regarding +the steadfastness of his love for music, or the continued development +of his genius in that direction. Abraham clearly perceived that Felix +had in him the makings of a man of business; he was methodical, quick, +and shrewd, and possessed that infinite capacity for taking pains +which is the accompaniment of true genius. These were qualities +pre-eminently fitting him for a successful business career, and hence +the doubtings as to whether such a rare combination of qualifications +ought to be expended in following up a branch of art that might in the +end prove fruitless of solid results. The father must be forgiven for +entertaining such doubts, unreasonable as they may seem, when regard +is paid to the absolute honesty of purpose by which his own life was +governed, and the sincerity of his affection for the members of his +family. + +There was one man who might be trusted to give an impartial opinion on +this pressing question. Cherubini, the eminent composer and musical +judge, was living in Paris, and to Cherubini it was decided to apply +forthwith for advice. Accordingly, Felix and his father journeyed to +Paris with this object, the former being fully as anxious as his +father to have the opportunity of making the acquaintance of so famous +a musician, as well as of receiving at his hands the support and +encouragement which would put an end, once and for all, to his +father's doubts. Cherubini was hardly ever known to praise, but +perhaps for this very reason his opinion was eagerly sought by young +performers and composers. Of those who went to him for advice, +however, by far the greater number were sent away with burning cheeks +and downcast eyes. This dismal fate was not reserved for Felix, for no +sooner had the great man listened to his playing of one of his own +compositions than he recognised Mendelssohn's power and genius, and, +turning to the father, he said with a smile; 'Sir, the boy is rich; he +will do well.' After some further tests Cherubini expressed himself as +perfectly satisfied with regard to Felix's future, and when father and +son returned to Berlin it was with the settled conviction on the part +of the former that thenceforward the boy's life must be devoted to +music. + +And now a great change came into the daily life of the family. The +house in the Neue Promenade was exchanged for a statelier and more +commodious mansion, No. 3, Leipziger Strasse, situated on the +outskirts of the city near the Potsdam Gate. The grounds of the new +house adjoined the old deer-park of Frederick the Great, and in +themselves were almost large enough to be styled a park. Stretches of +green turf, shaded by fine forest-trees, winding walks amidst +sweet-scented flowering shrubs, and arbours nestling in retired +corners, inviting retreats for study and meditation, comprised an +ideal spot for one who loved the surroundings of Nature. Nor was the +house itself behindhand in offering special attractions for the +purposes of study and recreation, in addition to the more solid +requirements of comfort and accommodation. The rooms were spacious and +elegant, and comprised one large apartment perfectly adapted for +musical or theatrical entertainments. But, just as there are not a few +of us who, in choosing a residence, are drawn towards the garden +before proceeding to investigate the dwelling itself, so Felix's +delight was first of all expressed with regard to the beautiful +surroundings of the new home. And there was one feature of the garden +which opened up to his mind splendid possibilities in connection with +his beloved pursuit. This was a garden-house, containing a central +hall capable of accommodating several hundred people, and furnished +with windows and glass doors opening and looking upon the lawns and +trees. The garden-house was as essentially a part of the garden as any +large summer-house could be, and yet comprised sufficient rooms to fit +it for occupation as a separate dwelling if such were necessary. + +No sooner had the family established itself in the new home than the +musical and artistic gatherings were resumed on an even larger scale +than heretofore. The Sunday concerts were held in the 'Gartenhaus,' +which, on most of the other evenings of the week, was the resort of +friends, both old and young, who came to listen to the music, or to +play or act, or in other ways amuse themselves. So famous did these +gatherings become, and so completely were the mansion and its +surroundings identified with the family which occupied it, and +dispensed its open-handed hospitality, that it was impossible to +mention the Leipziger Strasse without connecting it with information +respecting the Mendelssohns. The two things, indeed, were inseparable +in everybody's mind. Thither, amongst others, came Ferdinand Hiller, +the eminent performer, who had visited Beethoven while the latter lay +on his death-bed, and whose friendship with Felix had begun at +Frankfort a short time before. Moscheles, who had worked under +Beethoven, also became a regular visitor at the house, and one of +Felix's closest friends. Moscheles had already acquired fame as a +player, and during his stay in Berlin he was induced, though not +without reluctance, to give some lessons to Mendelssohn. 'He has no +need of lessons,' he remarked, with reference to Felix's ability. 'If +he wishes to take a hint from me as to anything new to him, he can +easily do so.' Felix, however, frankly acknowledged afterwards how +much he owed to these lessons at the hands of him whose graceful, +elegant touch could not be excelled. Speaking of Moscheles' playing on +one occasion, Mendelssohn said that 'the runs dropped from his fingers +like magic.' + +We must now speak of two works which were composed very soon after +Zelter's declaration of his pupil's independence. The first of these +was an Octet for stringed instruments, designed as a birthday present +for Edward Ritz, the young violinist, for whom Mendelssohn entertained +a deep affection, and whose premature death caused him much sorrow. +Felix had not completed his seventeenth year when the Octet was +written. He had already composed a great deal, but he had done nothing +so entirely fresh and original as this. Indeed, one might place one's +finger on the Octet, and, forgetting everything which he had written +before, say with emphasis and truth: 'This is Mendelssohn himself; +this is his very own.' No longer an 'apprentice,' swayed or, at least, +influenced by the masters who had gone before him, he has here given +us the first-fruits of his 'assistantship' in a work which expresses +his own musicianly feelings, and in which we get our first glimpse of +his true genius. The whole piece was intended to be played _staccato_ +and _pianissimo_. It has a fleeting, spiritual, and fairy-like effect, +with 'tremolos and trills passing away with the quickness of +lightning.' The Scherzo is especially beautiful, and Mendelssohn +admitted to his sister Fanny that he had taken as his motto for this +movement a stanza from Goethe's Walpurgis-night Dream in 'Faust': + + 'Floating cloud and trailing mist + Bright'ning o'er us hover; + Airs stir the brake, the rushes shake-- + And all their pomp is over.' + +We are reminded of this in the last part, where 'the first violin +takes a flight with a feather-like lightness, and all has vanished.' + +But if the Octet serves to mark a distinct stage in the development of +Mendelssohn's genius, what are we to say of the work which followed +it? Several things had paved the way for this new composition. To +begin with, Felix and Fanny made their first acquaintance with +Shakespeare in this year through the medium of a German translation, +and they fell completely under the spell of 'A Midsummer Night's +Dream.' Then the summer proved to be an exceptionally fine one, and +led to many hours being spent in the beautiful garden--in fact, there +is no doubt that the garden began it. It is not difficult to imagine +how the romantic mind of Felix was stirred by reading this delightful +fairy play amidst such charming surroundings. To read thus was to +picture in music, to give a musical setting to both scene and action, +at first indefinite, shadowy, suggestive, but as reading and thinking +progressed, growing ever stronger and more clearly defined. Thus, +stretched upon the turf, book in hand, the silence broken only by the +singing of the birds and the humming of the bees, the music of the +Overture to 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' gradually shaped itself in +Mendelssohn's mind, until what at the beginning had in itself been +little more than a dream, became a tangible creation. + +When the Overture had been written down, it was frequently played by +Felix and Fanny as a duet. In this simple form Moscheles heard it for +the first time, and he was struck by the force of its beauty. The work +was elaborated and perfected by degrees, until the day arrived when it +was performed by the garden-house orchestra before a crowded audience. +So great was the reception accorded to the overture on this occasion +that in the February following Felix journeyed to Stettin to conduct +the first public performance. + +When we listen to this beautiful work, we are constrained to admit +that no happier introduction to the play could have been devised; for +just as the play itself seems to demand for its environment some +lovely garden or woodland glade, so Mendelssohn's music conjures up +visions of the fairy scenes of enchantment with which the play +abounds. It is a work instinct with musicianly feeling, and its +strength is borne out by the soundness and skill displayed in its +construction. As a great musical judge[29] has said of it: 'No one +piece of music contains so many points of harmony and orchestration +that had never been written before, and yet none of them have the air +of experiment, but seem all to have been written with certainty of +their success.' + +But we must not linger over this portion of our story, though we are +tempted to do so; for there can be no doubt that these years spent in +the Leipziger Strasse house, when the members of the family were all +together, each contributing his or her share to the intellectual +intercourse that went on beneath its hospitable roof, afford the +happiest pictures of Mendelssohn's young life. It was so full and +many-sided a life, hard work alternating with gymnastics, dancing, +swimming, riding, and, of course, music, each occupation pursued with +such zest and heartiness as to convey the impression at the moment of +its being the most absorbing of all. + +Amidst these pleasures, however, a new project had taken hold of his +mind, one which, like many another great undertaking fraught with +far-reaching results, owed its inception to the feeling aroused by the +indifference and lack of sympathy shown by others towards what he +himself believed to be deserving of the highest praise. Two years +before, Felix's grandmother had presented him with a manuscript score +of Bach's 'Passion according to St. Matthew,' which Zelter had +permitted to be copied from the manuscript in the Singakademie. A more +devoted lover of Bach's music than Zelter could not have been found, +and the old man had infused some of this love into his pupil; +consequently, when the score of the 'Passion' was placed in +Mendelssohn's hands, he set to work to master it, and with such +earnestness had he applied himself to the study that at this point of +our story he knew the whole of it by heart. + +The more he studied this great work, the more was he impressed by its +beauty and the grandeur of its conception. Could it possibly be true, +he asked himself, that throughout the length and breadth of Germany +so stupendous a work as this remained unheard, unknown? that a +creation so deathless in itself could be permitted to sleep without +even the hope of an awakening? 'Alas!' replied Zelter, when the +question was put to him--'alas! it is nearly a hundred years since old +Father Bach died, and though his name lives, as all great names must +live, the majority of those who speak of him as a master are ignorant +of the works which made him great; they have forgotten, if, indeed, +they ever heard, the sound of the master's voice!' + +Here, then, in the apathy manifested in regard to Bach's greatest +works, Mendelssohn found the stimulus that was needed. If only this +state of things could be changed, if only he might be permitted to +show the way to an understanding and appreciation of these priceless +treasures! Towards this great end something, at least, might be +accomplished by the force of example. As we have seen, he knew the +'Passion' music by heart, and he now proceeded to enlist others in a +study of the work. In a short time he had got together sixteen +carefully selected voices, and had arranged for his little choir to +meet once a week at his house for practice. It was a small beginning, +but his own enthusiasm soon infected the rest, and they all grew +deeply earnest in their work--so earnest, indeed, that ere long the +yearning had seized them for a public performance. The Singakademie +maintained a splendid choir of between three hundred and four hundred +voices. If only the director could be induced to allow a trial +performance to be given under Mendelssohn's conducting! Much as he +personally desired such a consummation of their labours, however, +Felix felt convinced that he knew Zelter only too well to indulge any +hopes that he would sanction so great an undertaking. Zelter had no +faith in the idea that public support would be given to a revival of +the 'Passion,' and Felix well knew that nothing would shake him in +this opinion. But this conclusion was strongly opposed by a prominent +member of the Garden-house choir, a young actor-singer named Devrient, +who insisted that Zelter ought to be approached on the subject; and as +he himself had been a pupil of Zelter, and possessed the gift of +eloquence in no small degree, he succeeded in persuading Mendelssohn +to accompany him on a visit to the director's house. + +Accordingly, the pair set forth early one morning to brave the old +giant in his den, Mendelssohn haunted by a dread of the manner in +which their proposals would be received, and Devrient, who was to be +spokesman, keeping up a bold front, and assuring his friend that they +would ultimately succeed. + +They found Zelter seated at his instrument, with a sheet of +music-paper before him, a long pipe in his mouth, and enveloped in a +cloud of tobacco-smoke. In response to his gruff inquiry, what had +brought them at so early an hour, Devrient unfolded his plan by +degrees, beginning by enlarging upon their admiration for Bach's +music, with a gentle reminder to Zelter that this taste had been +acquired under his own guidance, and proceeding to dwell upon the +progress of their studies and the yearning which they all felt for a +public trial of the work, and concluding with an eloquent appeal for +assistance from the Academy itself. + +Zelter listened with an outward show of patience that was as +extraordinary as it had been unlooked for, but his eyes gleamed +through the clouds of smoke with a light that foreboded a speedy +outburst of his slumbering fires. Nevertheless, when he began to +speak, it was not to condemn the young men for their presumption, but +to point out that the difficulties in performing such a work at that +time were inconceivably greater than they had supposed. In Bach's +time it was different, the Thomas School could supply what was +necessary--the double orchestra, double chorus, and so forth; but now +such things were insuperable difficulties; nothing could overcome +them. + +As he spoke he laid aside his pipe, and rising from his chair, paced +excitedly to and fro, repeating again and again: 'No, no; it is not to +be thought of; it is mad, mad, mad!' To Felix he looked the picture of +a shaggy old lion stirred up by his keeper. Still Devrient persevered. +He even ventured to say that they had considered those difficulties; +that they did not believe them to be insuperable; that they had +implicit faith in their own enthusiasm having the power to kindle the +like in others; and, finally, that with the Academy's co-operation +success must ensue. + +Zelter grew more and more irritated as Devrient proceeded, and Felix, +observing the growing anger in his eye, plucked his companion by the +sleeve, and edged nearer to the door. At length the explosion came. +'That one should have the patience to listen to all this! I can tell +you that very different people have had to give up attempting this +very thing, and yet you imagine that a couple of young donkeys like +yourselves will be able to accomplish it!' + +Felix by this time was at the door, feverishly beckoning to Devrient +to come away, but his friend refused to budge; he even began afresh. +He pleaded in his most telling tones that, inasmuch as it was Zelter +himself who had awakened their love for the master, the honour would +be to him quite as much as to themselves if his pupils succeeded in +bringing about this grand result, and how well-deserved and fitting a +crown this would be to his long career, this honour and testimony to +the greatness of Father Bach. + +Felix opened his eyes wider in astonishment; but there could be no +mistake--the crisis had passed, and Zelter was visibly weakening; the +lion died out of his eyes, the pipe once more found its way to his +lips, and after many demurs, many arguments, much pacing up and down, +Zelter with a sigh of relief gave in. It was a noble surrender, for it +included a promise of all the help that he could give, and the young +enthusiasts quitted the lion's den triumphant. + +'You are a regular rascal, an arch-Jesuit!' said Felix to his friend +as they descended the stairs. + +'Anything you like for the honour of Sebastian Bach!' retorted the +other as they stepped out into the keen, wintry air. + +How Mendelssohn grappled with this great work; how he threw into it +all the energy he possessed; how he mastered its every detail, and +gave it life; how, with infinite tact and patience, he made it a +living, dramatic masterpiece in the eyes of those who were to perform +it; how the rehearsals at the Academy were thronged by professionals +and amateurs desirous of realising its true nature and power; how at +length the first public performance of the 'Passion according to St. +Matthew' since the composer's death took place at the Singakademie, +with Mendelssohn conducting, on March 11, 1829, and how every ticket +was sold, and fully a thousand disappointed ones were turned away from +the doors--all this must be read elsewhere. Suffice it here to say +that this performance marked the beginning of a great revival--the +awakening throughout Germany and England of a love and appreciation of +Bach which has never since faded or diminished. + +It was in connection with this work that Mendelssohn made the first +and only allusion to his Jewish descent. 'To think,' he remarked to +Devrient, with a look of triumph in his eyes as they were walking +together to the final rehearsal--'to think that it should have been +reserved for an actor and a Jew to restore this great Christian work +to the people!' + +The excitement attending the performance, with its repetition on March +21, the anniversary of Bach's birth, had not subsided ere Mendelssohn +was engaged in taking leave of his dear ones prior to embarking at +Hamburg on his first visit to England. Several circumstances had +combined to render the present a favourable moment for undertaking the +journey. The Moscheleses, and another friend named Klingemann, who had +been a constant visitor at the Berlin house until called away to +occupy a London post, had assured him of a warm welcome; it was his +father's wish, shared by Zelter also, that he should travel, and he +for his own part was desirous of showing that he could support himself +by music. Abraham Mendelssohn had, indeed, designed this visit as the +first portion of a lengthened tour which would enable Felix to see +more of various countries, and assist him in choosing that which +offered the best opportunities for his life-work. + +The London musical season was at its height when he arrived, but his +first letters home were chiefly occupied with descriptions of the city +itself, and how it had affected him. 'It is fearful! it is maddening!' +he writes to Fanny three days after he had settled into his Great +Portland Street lodgings.[30] 'London is the grandest and most +complicated monster on the face of the earth.... Things roll and carry +me along as in a vortex. Not in the last six months at Berlin have I +seen so many contrasts and such variety as in these three days.... +Could you see me at the exquisite grand-piano which Clementi has sent +me for the whole of my stay here, by the cheerful fireside' (the open +grate fire was a novelty to one who had come from the land of closed +stoves), 'in my own four walls ... and could you see the immense +four-post bed in the next room in which I might go to sleep in the +most literal sense of the word, the many-coloured curtains and quaint +furniture, my breakfast-tea with dry toast still before me, the +servant-girl in curl-papers, who has just brought me my newly-hemmed +black necktie, and asks what further orders I have ... and could you +but see the highly respectable, fog-enveloped street, and hear the +pitiable voice with which a beggar down there pours forth his ditty +(he will soon be outscreamed by the street-sellers), and could you +picture to yourselves that from here to the City is three-quarters of +an hour's drive, and that in all the cross streets of which one has +glimpses the noise, clamour, and bustle are the same, if not greater, +and that after that one has only traversed about a quarter of London, +then you might understand how it is that I am half distracted!' + +One needs to be something of an artist as well as of a poet to +appreciate London at her true worth, and Mendelssohn possessed both +qualities in no small degree; hence it is only natural that the +artistic and poetical aspects of our city should have appealed most +strongly to his sensitive nature. A few days later he writes: 'I think +the town and the streets are quite beautiful. Again I was struck with +awe when yesterday I drove in an open carriage to the City along a +different road and everywhere found the same flow of life ... +everywhere noise and smoke, everywhere the end of the streets lost in +fog. Every few moments I passed a church, or a market-place, or a +green square, or a theatre, or caught a glimpse of the Thames.... +Last, not least, to see the masts from the West India Docks +stretching their heads over the housetops, and to see a harbour as big +as the Hamburg one treated like a mere pond, with sluices, and the +ships arranged not singly, but in rows, like regiments--to see all +that makes one's heart rejoice at the greatness of the world.' + +The magnificence of a ball at Devonshire House reminds him of the +'Arabian Nights.' The Duke of Wellington and Sir Robert Peel were +present, and he describes the beauty of the girls dancing, the lights, +the music, the flowers, etc. 'To move among these beautiful pictures +and lovely living forms, and to wander about in all that flow of life +and universal excitement, perfectly quiet and unknown, and unnoticed +and unseen, to notice and to see--it was one of the most charming +nights I remember.' Again, of a fete held at the Marquis of +Lansdowne's, he says: 'That such magnificence could really exist in +our time I had not believed. These are not parties--they are festivals +and celebrations.' + +In the mind of Mendelssohn, therefore, London struck a sympathetic +chord, and the pleasure which he felt on entering the city was +heightened by the warmth of the welcome which he received at the hands +of the musical public. His first appearance was at the Argyll Rooms, +in Regent Street, at a concert of the Philharmonic Society on May 25, +when his 'Symphony in C minor' was performed. He gives a full +description of the rehearsal and performance in his letter to Fanny: + +'When I entered the Argyll Rooms for the rehearsal of my Symphony, and +found the whole orchestra assembled, and about two hundred listeners, +chiefly ladies, strangers to me, and when, first, Mozart's "Symphony +in E flat major" was rehearsed, after which my own was to follow, I +felt not exactly afraid, but nervous and excited. During the Mozart +pieces I took a little walk in Regent Street, and looked at the +people; when I returned, everything was ready and waiting for me. I +mounted the orchestra, and pulled out my white stick which I have had +made on purpose (the maker took me for an alderman, and would insist +on decorating it with a crown). The first violin, Francois Cramer, +showed me how the orchestra was placed--the furthest row had to get up +so that I could see them--and introduced me to them all, and we bowed +to each other; some, perhaps, laughed a little that this small fellow +with the stick should now take the place of their regular powdered and +bewigged conductor. Then it began. For the first time it went very +well and powerfully, and pleased the people much, even at rehearsal. +After each movement the whole audience and the whole orchestra +applauded (the musicians showing their approval by striking their +instruments with their bows and stamping their feet). After the finale +they made a great noise, and as I had to make them repeat it, because +it was badly played, they set up the same noise once more; the +directors came to me in the orchestra, and I had to go down and make a +great many bows. Cramer was overjoyed, and loaded me with praise and +compliments. I walked about in the orchestra, and had to shake at +least two hundred different hands. It was one of the happiest moments +within my recollection, for one half hour had transformed all those +strangers into friends and acquaintances. But the success at the +concert last night was beyond what I could ever have dreamed. It began +with the Symphony; old Francois Cramer led me to the piano like a +young lady, and I was received with immense applause. The Adagio was +encored; I preferred to bow my thanks and go on, for fear of tiring +the audience, but the Scherzo was so vigorously encored that I felt +obliged to repeat it, and after the finale they continued applauding, +while I was thanking the orchestra and shaking hands, and until I had +left the room.' + + [Illustration: '_The success was beyond what I could have + dreamed._'] + +On another occasion, when he was to perform at a concert, he describes +how he went to the room early in order to try the piano, which was a +new one. He found the instrument locked, and dispatched a messenger +for the key. In the meantime he seated himself at another piano of +ancient aspect, and beginning to extemporise soon became lost in +reverie. The empty room, the 'old grey instrument which the fingers +of several generations may have played,' and the silence affected him +so deeply that he forgot the passing time, until he was reminded of +the approach of the concert hour by the people coming in to take their +seats. When, having first put himself into _grande toilette_--very +long, white trousers, brown silk waistcoat, black necktie, and blue +dress coat--he mounted the orchestra he felt nervous; a panic seized +him, for the hall was crowded, ladies even sitting in the orchestra +who could not get places in the room. 'But as the gay bonnets gave me +a nice reception, and applauded when I came ... and as I found the +instrument very excellent and of a light touch, I lost all my +timidity, became quite comfortable, and was highly amused to see the +bonnets agitated at every little cadenza, which to me and many critics +brought to mind the simile of the wind and the tulip-bed.' + +A dinner-party followed the concert, and then he went to visit some +friends living out of town with whom he was to spend the night. +Finding no carriage to convey him, he set out to walk through the +fields in the cool of the evening. Can we not picture him crossing the +still meadows by a lonely path, meeting no one, the air redolent of +spring flowers, musical ideas floating through his mind--ideas which +there was nobody to hear, which nobody, perhaps, was ever destined to +hear, as he sang them aloud in the fading light, 'the whole sky grey, +with a purple streak on the horizon, and the thick cloud of smoke +behind him.' + +Amidst the round of work and the pressure of invitations which made up +the sum of his daily life in London, the love of boyish fun, which +formed a wholesome counteraction to his serious moods, broke out every +now and then with its old accustomed force, eclipsing for the moment +the memories of stately dinner-parties and receptions. One night when +in company with two friends he was returning from what he terms 'a +highly diplomatic dinner-party' at the Prussian Ambassador's, where +they had taken their 'fill of fashionable dishes, sayings, and +doings,' they passed a very enticing sausage-shop in which some German +sausages were exposed in the window. A wave of patriotism overcame +them; they entered, and each bought a long sausage, and then the trio +turned into a quiet street to devour them, accompanying the meal with +a three-part song and shouts of laughter. + +Mendelssohn's heart was easily touched by the distresses of others, +and when he learnt of the sufferings of those who had lost their all +in the floods in Silesia at this time, he set to work at once to +arrange a concert in their behalf. The 'Midsummer Night's Dream +Overture' formed one of the items of the programme--this being the +second occasion of its performance since his arrival. It was most +enthusiastically received, and, indeed, the whole concert was a great +success. The room was so besieged that no fewer than one hundred +persons were turned from the doors. Ladies who could not find seats in +the body of the hall crowded upon the orchestra, and Mendelssohn was +delighted at receiving a message from two elderly ladies, who had +strayed between the bassoons and the French horns, anxiously inquiring +'whether they were likely to hear well!' Another enthusiastic lady +esconsced herself contentedly upon a kettledrum. There could be little +doubt that the overture had secured a firm hold upon English hearts at +its first hearing. Jules Benedict, who was present on the occasion, +describes the effect upon the audience as electrical. At the end of +the first performance a friend who had taken charge of the precious +manuscript was so careless as to leave it in a hackney-coach on his +way home, and it was never recovered. 'Never mind,' said Mendelssohn, +when the loss was reported to him, 'I will write another.' And he sat +down at once and rewrote the score entirely from memory, and when the +copy was afterwards compared with the parts it was found that he had +not made a single variation. + +From London, when the season came to an end, he went in company with +his friend Klingemann to Scotland, his keen sense of perception +drinking in all the variety and charm which the tour presented, and +his genius supplying a musical setting to whatever struck him as +specially beautiful. The ruined chapel attached to the old Palace of +Holyrood, seen in the twilight, with its broken altar at which Mary +received the Scottish crown, overgrown with grass and ivy, and its +mouldering, roofless pillars, with patches of bright sky between, gave +him the first inspiration for his Scotch Symphony. But it was the +Hebrides which, in their lonely grandeur and bleakness, affected him +most of all. Of Iona, with its ruins of a once magnificent cathedral, +and its graves of ancient Scottish Kings, he writes that he shall +think when in the midst of crowded assemblies of music and dancing. Of +Staffa, again, with its strange, basaltic pillars and caverns, he +says: 'A greener roar of waves surely never rushed into a stranger +cavern--its many pillars making it look like the inside of an immense +organ, black and resounding, and absolutely without purpose, and quite +alone, the wide, grey sea within and without.' How deeply the Hebrides +impressed him he shows by a few lines of music added to his letter, +which he says were suggested to him by the sight of these lonely +sister isles. Later on this very piece of music formed the opening to +his 'Overture to Fingal's Cave.' + +How thoroughly music entered into his daily life and permeated his +thoughts, we may know from his habit of seating himself at the piano +in the evening, and improvising music to express what he had both +_seen_ and _felt_ throughout the day. To Mendelssohn music was a +natural language by which he could express, in the most perfect +manner, the emotions which had been aroused by reading or by the +contemplation of Nature. Thus, when he went from Scotland to North +Wales to stay with some friends named Taylor, he wrote for Susan +Taylor a piece called 'The Rivulet,' which was a representation of an +actual rivulet visited by them in their rambles. Again, Honora Taylor +had in her garden a creeping plant (the _Eccremocarpus_), bearing +little trumpet-shaped flowers, and Mendelssohn was taken with a fancy +for inventing the music which the fairies might have been supposed to +play on those tiny trumpets. The piece was called 'A Capriccio in E +minor,' and when he wrote it out he drew a branch of the plant all up +the margin of the paper. For another member of the family he wrote a +piece which was suggested by a bunch of carnations (his favourite +flower) and roses arranged in a bowl, and he put in some arpeggio +passages to remind the player of the sweet scent rising up from the +flowers. + +Felix had just returned to London, and was contemplating an early +departure for Berlin, when an injury to his knee, the result of a +carriage accident, compelled him to lie up for several weeks, and +hence to forego a pleasure to which he had been looking forward with +feelings of eager affection. Shortly before he left home Fanny's +engagement to William Hensel, a young painter of promise, had received +her parent's sanction, and it had been confidently expected that Felix +would return in time for the marriage. The disappointment caused by +the accident was therefore keenly felt both by himself and those at +home. Hensel was clever, and by no means a stranger to the gatherings +at the Gartenhaus; but his entry into the select and innermost circle +of the brotherhood, armed with the kind of right which his engagement +to Fanny had conferred upon him, caused him to be regarded in a new +light, and it was not until a little time had elapsed that he found +his way to their hearts by his gentle ways, assisted in no small +degree by his pencil. At first the exclusiveness of a set which had +received the title of 'The Wheel,' and which prided itself on the +freemasonry which obtained amongst its members, was somewhat chilling; +but Hensel was not easily discouraged; he took to drawing the members' +portraits as his contribution to the bonhomie of the circle, and with +such success that 'The Wheel' soon came to regard him as an +indispensable spoke, whilst the portraits multiplied until they formed +a huge collection. Fanny's marriage, moreover, did not imply any break +in the family circle, for when her brother returned to Berlin he found +that Hensel and his bride had taken up their residence in the +Gartenhaus. + +The grand tour had practically only begun, and was now to be resumed, +but the visit to England was exercising over Mendelssohn's mind a +strong influence which, though not unconnected with the success and +fame it had brought to him, might with more justice be ascribed to the +sympathetic appreciation and kindness which he had received at the +hands of the English. 'A prophet is not without honour, save in his +own country,' and Berlin had so far held back the encouragement that +strangers were so willing to accord him. Moreover, for one of his +artistically sensitive temperament London possessed a magnetic charm +that was lacking in Berlin. At home his very youth seemed to count +against him, but in London it was, if anything, in his favour. The +fame of his visit, however, had preceded him to Berlin, and shortly +after his return he was offered the Professorship of Music at the +University, an honour which he at once declined, feeling that its +acceptance would not only interfere with his freedom in composition, +but bind him down to an occupation which he confessed was not his +forte. This Chair had been specially created in the hope that he would +fill it, and it marks the first, though by no means the last, attempt +on the part of the Berliners to secure his services for their city. + +In the May following he set forth once more on his travels, bound for +Venice, Florence, and Rome. He could not pass through Weimar, however, +without paying a visit to Goethe; it proved to be the last meeting, +and it was filled with incidents that left a deep impression on his +mind. Never had the sympathy and friendship between the two been +closer or more confidential than on this occasion. 'There is much in +my spirit that you must light up for me,' said Goethe to Felix one day +when they had been conversing together. Goethe called upon him +continually for music, but showed an indifference towards Beethoven's +works; Felix, however, insisted that he must endure some of the +master, and played to him the first movement of the 'C minor +Symphony.' Goethe listened for a few moments, and then said: 'That +does not touch one at all; it only astonishes one.' But Felix played +on, and presently, after some murmuring to himself, the poet burst out +with: 'It is very great, it is wild! It seems as though the house were +falling! What must it be with the whole orchestra!' + +The tour was a long one, for several cities had to be visited before +he could cross the Swiss frontier. Each day brought its full measure +of incident and delightful sight-seeing. It was in Switzerland, +however, that Mendelssohn's passionate love for Nature was stirred to +its depths. His Alpine walks were a revelation of Nature in her most +decided moods, and one particular walk over the Wengern Alp was +destined to be long remembered. The mountain summits were glittering +in the morning air, every undulation and the face of every hill clear +and distinct. Formerly it was their height alone that had impressed +him, 'now it was their boundless extent that he particularly +felt--their huge, broad masses; the close connection of all those +enormous fortresses, which seemed to be crowding together and +stretching out their hands to each other.' + +He loved all beautiful things, but he loved the sea best of all; it +seemed to him to express in its varying moods every feeling which he +himself possessed. 'When there is a storm at Chiatamene,' he wrote to +Fanny when she was visiting Italy, 'and the grey sea is foaming, think +of me.' And now as he approached Naples, and saw the sea sparkling in +the sunlit bay, he exclaims: 'To me it is the finest object in Nature! +I love it almost more than the sky. I always feel happy when I see +before me the wide expanse of waters.' Again, the ancientness of +Nature herself conveyed far more to him than any legend of antiquity +connected with the works of man; he could not feel in 'crumbling mason +work' the interest and fascination that existed for him in the +unchanged outlines of the hills, or in the fact that the waves lapped +the island which formed the refuge of Brutus, and the lichen-covered +rocks bent over them then just as they did now. These were monuments +on which no names were scribbled, no inscriptions carved, and to such +he clung. + +Yet in Rome itself he found a centre of unending interest and +fascination. 'All its measureless delights lay as a free gift before +him; every day he picked out afresh some great historic object: one +day a ramble about the ruins of the ancient city, another day the +Borghese Gallery or the Capitol, or else St. Peter's or the Vatican. +So each day was one never to be forgotten, and this sort of dallying +left each impression firmer and stronger. If Venice seemed like the +gravestone of its own past, its ruinous, modern palaces and the +enduring remembrance of a bygone supremacy giving it a disquieting, +mournful impression, the past of Rome struck him as history itself; +its monuments ennobled, and made one at the same moment serious and +joyful, for there was joy in feeling how human creations may survive a +thousand years and yet possess their quickening restoring, influence. +Each day some new image of that past imprinted itself on his mind, and +then came the twilight, and the day was at an end.' + +The tour was not completed until the spring of the following year +(1832), and during that interval two sad notes had been struck--the +first being the death of Edward Ritz, the young violinist, Felix's +closest friend, from whom he admitted that he had taken the model of +his delicate, musical handwriting; and the second that of Goethe. In +connection with the latter loss Felix felt deeply for Zelter, for he +knew how the old man had worshipped and leant upon the master-poet. +'Mark my words,' said Mendelssohn, when he received the sad +intelligence, 'it will not be long now before Zelter dies!' The words +were but too prophetic, for in less than two months from the day on +which they were spoken Zelter had followed the master he loved so +well. + +Before the latter event happened, however, Mendelssohn had returned to +London. His affection for the City had now become a settled part of +his nature. Even amidst the sunshine of Naples, with the glittering +sea before his eyes, he had longed for London. 'That smoky nest is +fated to be now and ever my favourite residence,' he writes; 'my heart +swells when I think of it.' Even with the love he felt for those who +were awaiting his return to the Berlin home it must have been hard for +him to tear himself away from London, where his genius and his +attractive personality found recognition at every turn. Consequently +it is not surprising that he should have found his way back to his +'smoky nest' before very long--this time accompanied by his father. It +was Abraham Mendelssohn's first visit, and it served to bring out more +clearly than ever the closeness of the bond which united them. Felix +nursed his father through an illness of three weeks' duration with a +tenderness and solicitude that called forth a touching tribute from +the patient. 'I cannot express,' writes Abraham to Leah, 'what he has +been to me, what a treasure of love, patience, endurance, +thoughtfulness, and tender care he has lavished on me; and much as I +owe him indirectly for a thousand kindnesses and attentions from +others, I owe him far more for what he has done for me himself.' + +Two years later Mendelssohn was mourning the loss of this parent, +whose sudden death had cast a deep gloom over a time when everything +seemed to promise happily for the young composer. Only a month before +the sad event Felix had joined the home-party at Berlin, and the house +had once more assumed the full and complete life of its earlier days. +The merriment, the joyous laughter were as hearty and resounding as +they had been of yore, and there the father and mother had sat +watching the fun--Abraham by this time quite blind, but keenly +interested in all that was going on. Now the first definite break in +that happy circle had come, shutting out the past for ever! + +The extraordinary fullness which characterised Mendelssohn's life--'he +lived years whilst others would have lived only weeks,' was the true +remark of one who knew him well--reminds us of the impracticability of +giving anything like a complete description of even its chief +incidents. The stage at which our story has arrived does not, it is +true, show him at the pinnacle of his fame as a composer, but if we +entertained any doubts as to his greatness or his popularity at this +time, we have only to imagine ourselves present at the scene which was +being enacted on a certain afternoon in May, 1836, in the music-hall +at Duesseldorf to be assured on both of these points. The long, +low-pitched room is filled with an excited and enthusiastic audience +applauding with all their might and main, for the first performance of +Mendelssohn's oratorio 'St. Paul' has just come to an end. Amidst the +roars of applause the ladies of the chorus have risen from their +seats, and, advancing to the spot where Mendelssohn stands bowing his +acknowledgments to the audience and orchestra, they shower garlands +upon him, and then to complete the display they place a crown of +flowers upon the score itself. + +Some time before this event the town of Duesseldorf had claimed his +services as director of music, and a little later Leipzig had followed +suit--the latter event marking the beginning of a connection fraught +with results of the highest importance to the musical world, and of +much happiness to Mendelssohn himself. It was at this period that he +composed many of those charming part-songs, intended for performance +in the open air, that have since become such recognised favourites; of +these we need only recall 'The Hunter's Farewell' and 'The Lark' as +examples. But the time is marked for us in even clearer notes than +these, for to this era belong several of his 'Songs without +Words'--those melodies which have grown into our hearts never, we may +well believe, to be uprooted. Mendelssohn not only invented the title +'Lieder ohne Worte,' but also the style of composition itself. Sir +Julius Benedict remarks that 'at this period mechanical dexterity, +musical claptraps, skips from one part of the piano to another, +endless shakes and arpeggios, were the order of the day.' Mendelssohn, +however, would never sacrifice to the prevailing taste; his desire was +to 'restore dignity and rank to the instrument,' and he accordingly +wrote what Sir Julius aptly describes as these 'exquisite little +musical poems.' + +The year of which we are speaking was productive of the deepest +happiness to Mendelssohn, for it was that of his engagement to Cecile +Jeanrenaud, the beautiful daughter of a French Protestant clergyman, +whose acquaintance he had formed whilst on a visit to Frankfort. In +the following spring they were married, and thus began for both a new +life replete with happiness. In Cecile Felix found one who, out of her +loving, gentle nature, could give him the sympathy and support that he +needed, whilst she in turn received from her husband the fullest +return that a grateful and sensitive heart, obedient to the promptings +of a love that never wavered in its steadfastness and devotion, could +bestow. No home life could have been happier, none more simple in its +give and take of affection, than that of Mendelssohn and his wife; +nothing transpired to destroy or even to obscure for a moment the halo +of romance which surrounded it from the beginning, and which rendered +it from first to last a marriage of love. + +A picture of Mendelssohn at this period of his life shows us a short, +slightly-built figure, with the dark, Jewish type of face, high +forehead surmounted by thick, black, wavy hair, and dark brown eyes +full of fire and animation, which we have already described as +marking his appearance as a boy. The mouth was delicate and sensitive, +the corners frequently curved into a smile. The change of expression +in the eyes when playing, or stirred by any deep emotion, was most +striking; 'they would dilate and become nearly twice their ordinary +size, the brown pupil changing to a vivid black.' His lithe, muscular +frame showed expression in all its movements corresponding with the +actions of the mind; when he thoroughly agreed with a speaker he +nodded so vigorously as to bring the black curls down over his face; +his laughter was ringing and hearty, and merriment found added +expression in the doubling up of his body and the shaking of his hand. +His hands were small, with sensitive, tapering fingers, and when +playing the fingers acted as if endowed with separate life and +intelligence. There was no effeminacy connected with his lovable +nature; he was quick to resent meanness or deceit, or wrong-doing of +any kind. His anger was exceedingly sharp, and his manner of +expressing contempt an astonishing revelation to those who had failed +to grasp his character as a whole. + +Despite his love of hard work no one more thoroughly enjoyed being +lazy when there was nothing to do. Sleep was his never-failing +resource when overtaxed--the power of compelling sound, refreshing +sleep at the moment when it was most needed was one of the most +remarkable traits of a temperament distinguished by its astonishing +activity. Yet it may be taken perhaps as a part of his orderly nature, +which in everything was governed by method. The completeness with +which he carried out every detail connected with his work or his +amusements excites our wonderment; the sense of neatness pervades the +whole--nothing is wanting. He wrote numberless letters, many of them +containing descriptions of scenery and incident such as entitle them +to rank as literary productions--yet there is not the slightest +evidence of haste or carelessness; even the writing itself is artistic +in its delicacy and finish. He received countless letters, and he +preserved them all by pasting them into scrapbooks kept for the +purpose. The same scrupulous care is observable in the writing of his +musical manuscripts, and no fewer than forty-four volumes of these +works, constructed by his own hands, are preserved in the Imperial +Library at Berlin. His talent for drawing was considerable, and his +love for the pursuit enabled him to accumulate a large collection of +finished works, in every one of which is exhibited the same +painstaking care and accuracy with regard to detail. Finally, we must +mention his devotion to his family. No more loving father could have +been found than Mendelssohn was to his children; he entered into their +games and lessons with the same eager desire to add to their +enjoyment, or to ease their labours, as he displayed towards the +greater world outside his home. + +We must now hasten to record an event which was destined to stamp +Mendelssohn's career with undying fame--the completion of his oratorio +'Elijah.' This, his greatest work, owed its inspiration to a short +passage in the book he reverenced most of all. One day his friend +Hiller found him deep in the Bible. 'Listen,' he said, and then he +read in a gentle, agitated voice the passage from the First Book of +Kings, beginning with the words, 'And behold, the Lord passed by.' +'Would not that be splendid for an oratorio!' he exclaimed; and from +that moment the idea began to grow in his mind. And as it grew he saw +it in a clearer, brighter light, until, when the spring of 1846 +arrived, the work was all but completed. In a letter to Jenny Lind, +the famous singer and his intimate friend, he writes: 'I am jumping +about my room for joy! If it only turns out half as good as I fancy it +is how pleased I shall be!' + + [Illustration: '"_Would not that be splendid for an + oratorio!_"'] + +The years intervening between the inception of this great work and its +completion had brought no little anxiety and strain connected with his +arduous labours, and they had brought one deep sorrow, the loss of his +mother, whose death had been as sudden and unexpected as that of the +father. Honours had been bestowed upon him by royal hands--the King of +Prussia had personally conveyed to him his wishes that he should +assume the directorship of music in Berlin, and when Mendelssohn found +himself unable to retain the position he had begged him to reconsider +his decision; the King of Saxony had made him Capellmeister to his +Court; and last, but not least, he had received at the hands of Queen +Victoria and Prince Albert such marks of personal regard and esteem as +must have served to endear him more than ever to the country which had +been foremost in recognising the greatness of his genius. + +Those years, too, had witnessed the fruits of his unceasing labours +for the advancement of his art in those centres over which his +personal influence extended. Leipzig under him had become a musical +centre to which young students and composers flocked, in order to +obtain his opinion and guidance in respect to their work, or even, in +many cases, to place themselves for a time where his methods could be +studied and his personality enjoyed at the same time. Amongst others +came William Sterndale Bennett, filled with enthusiasm, to profit by +his advice, and to find in the master a kind and generous friend. Nor +should we omit to mention, amongst the numerous offshoots of his +labours, the foundation of the Conservatorium of Music at Leipzig, a +scheme entirely due to his initiative, and which under his fostering +care developed into one of the first academies of the day. Lastly, +amidst the whirl of work he found time to carry out a project which he +had for long cherished--the erection, at the threshold of the Thomas +School at Leipzig, of a monument to the memory of Sebastian Bach. + +On the morning of Wednesday, August 26, 1846, the Town Hall of +Birmingham presented a scene of unusual animation. A huge crowd was +entering its doors and taking possession of the phalanx of chairs +occupying the floor of the building. In the gallery every seat had +been taken an hour earlier, and very soon every eye was directed +towards the conductor's desk in expectation of Mendelssohn's +appearance. Eager anticipation was in the air, for this day was to +witness the first performance of 'Elijah' under the baton of the +composer, who had thus elected to submit his greatest work to the +judgment of an English audience. + +'At half-past eleven o'clock,' wrote one who was present on the +occasion, 'a deafening shout from the band and chorus announced the +approach of the great composer. The reception he met with on stepping +into his place from the assembled thousands was absolutely +overwhelming, whilst the sun, emerging at that moment, seemed to +illumine the vast edifice in honour of the bright and pure being who +stood there, the idol of all beholders.' The applause which broke +forth at the end of the first part gave a sufficient indication of the +impression which the audience had formed of the work, and at the +conclusion the enthusiasm was such that the entire assembly rose to +their feet, and shouted and waved for several minutes. + +It was over, and Mendelssohn's gratification at his reception was +expressed in the letter which he wrote to his brother Paul the same +evening: 'No work of mine ever went so admirably at the first +performance, or was received with such enthusiasm both by musicians +and the public as this.... I almost doubt if I can ever hear one like +it again.' + +In April of the following year four performances of the 'Elijah' took +place at Exeter Hall under his conductorship, the Queen and Prince +Albert gracing the second performance with their presence. This was +destined to be his last visit to these shores, and when he departed, +after fulfilling a round of engagements which tried his strength to +its uttermost limits, it was with the haunting shadow of coming +illness. Scarcely had he rejoined his family at Frankfort than a +messenger brought the sad intelligence that his sister Fanny had died +suddenly at Berlin; the news was broken to him all too suddenly, and +with a loud shriek he fell to the ground in a swoon. + +From that moment his spirits failed him; there was no rebound from the +deep depression into which he had fallen--only occasional flickerings +of his former self showed that the struggle to assert his will-power +over an ever-increasing loss of physical strength was still going on. +There were moments, indeed, when it seemed to himself, if not to those +who watched him with growing anxiety, that he was regaining his old +buoyancy--the old craving for work which nothing seemed to have the +power to destroy. But though compositions still came from his pen, +though he had not yet given up hope in himself--'You shall have plenty +of music from me; I will give you no cause to complain,' he had +remarked to an English publisher shortly before this time--it was +plain to those nearest to him that the inexorable finger of death was +pointing the way to the Valley of Shadows. + + * * * * * + +The streets of Leipzig were flooded with sunshine, though November had +just entered upon its course, and though the approach of winter was +apparent in the crispness of the air. Yet a cloud overhung the town +which no degree of atmospheric brightness could dispel--a cloud of +sorrow which took its birth from the placards affixed to the street +corners, and spread its shadow over street after street, from one knot +of inquirers to another, until the brief announcement which those +placards conveyed became the common news, the common sorrow, of all. +Mendelssohn was dead. On the evening of the previous day (November 4, +1847) the master whose bright, genial spirit had endeared him to so +many hearts beyond the confines of his own circle, had passed to his +rest. The blow had fallen with terrible swiftness, and we who love +his music can only faintly realise how keenly those who knew and loved +him, and who had come within the influence of his happy nature, must +have felt the sudden break in that continuous flow of harmony which +his life presented. Sweet as summer wind across the garden, wafting +scents of choicest flowers, his life had passed over like a breath of +heaven. + +Without doubt his was a beautiful life--one of which, as it has been +truly said, 'there is nothing to tell that is not honourable to his +memory, and profitable to all men.' We cannot separate--we can have no +wish to separate--such a life from the genius which enriched it, +because the noble ideals which governed it throughout were embodied +and expressed in the creations of that genius, as well as in his +private conduct; rather should we be content to accept his life as it +stands--in actions, deeds, and works--as a priceless gift, an +indivisible whole. + +Mendelssohn's funeral was a very imposing one. The first portion of +the ceremonies was performed at Leipzig, and was attended by crowds of +musicians and students--one of the latter bearing on a cushion the +silver crown presented to the composer by his pupils, side by side +with the Order 'Pour le Merite' conferred upon him by the King of +Prussia. As the long procession went on its way to the Pauliner Church +the band played the 'Song without Words' in E minor, and at the close +of the service the final chorus from Bach's 'Passion' was sung by the +choir. At night the body was conveyed to Berlin for interment in the +family burial-place in the Alte Dreifaltigkeits Kirch-hof. His +resting-place, marked by a cross, is beside that of his sister Fanny, +whilst on the other side of him rests his boy Felix, who died four +years later. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[29] Sir G. Macfarren. + +[30] No. 103, but since renumbered 79. + + + + +MENDELSSOHN'S PRINCIPAL COMPOSITIONS + +OPERAS, ETC.: + Die beiden Neffen. 1822. + The Wedding of Camacho, Op. 10. 1825. + The First Walpurgis Night, Op. 60. 1831-32. + Son and Stranger (Heimkehr), Op. 89. 1829. + Antigone, Op. 55. 1841. + Midsummer Night's Dream, Op. 61. 1843. + Athalie, Op. 74. 1843-45. + Oedipus in Colonos, Op. 93. 1845. + Loreley (unfinished), Op. 98. 1847. +ORATORIOS, ETC.: + St. Paul, Op. 36. 1836. + Hymn of Praise (Lobgesang), Op. 52. 1840. + Elijah, Op. 70. 1846. + Lauda Sion, Op. 73. 1846. + Christus (unfinished), Op. 97. 1847. +PSALMS, with orchestral accompaniment: + Ps. 115, Not unto us, Op. 31. 1830 + Ps. 42, As the Hart pants, Op. 42. 1837. + Ps. 95, O come, let us sing, Op. 46. 1839. + Ps. 114, When Israel out of Egypt came, Op. 51. 1839. + Ps. 13, Lord, how long? Op. 96. 1840-43. + Ps. 98, Sing to the Lord, Op. 91. 1843. +Hear my Prayer. 1844. +Hymns of Praise (Festgesang). 1840. +Festgesang: To the Sons of Art, Op. 68. 1846. +Te Deum in A. 1846. +Jubilate, Magnificat, and Nunc Dimittis, Op. 69. 1847. +3 Motets for female voices and organ, Op. 39. 1830. +3 Psalms, unaccompanied, Op. 78 (Pss. 2, 43, and 22), 1844. +6 short Anthems for 8-part chorus, Op. 79. +18 Part-songs for male voices. +28 Part-songs for mixed voices. +4 SYMPHONIES: + C minor, Op. 11. 1824. + D minor, The Reformation, Op. 107. 1830. + A, The Italian, Op. 90. 1833. + A minor, The Scotch, Op. 56. 1842. +7 OVERTURES: + Midsummer Night's Dream, in E, Op. 21. 1826. + Military Band (Harmonie-musik) in C, Op. 24. 1824. + Fingal's Cave, or Hebrides, in B minor, Op. 26. 1830 + Meerestille, in D, Op. 27. 1828. + Melusine, in F, Op. 32. 1833. + Ruy Blas, in C minor, Op. 95. 1839. + The Trumpet, in C, Op. 101. 1825. +2 MARCHES FOR ORCHESTRA: + Funeral March, in A minor, Op. 103. 1836. + Cornelius, in D, Op. 108. 1841. +Octet in E-flat, Op. 20. 1825. +2 QUINTETS FOR STRINGS: + Op. 18, in A. 1831. + Op. 87, in B-flat. 1845. +6 QUARTETS FOR STRINGS: + Op. 12, in E-flat. 1829. + Op. 13, in A. 1827. + Op. 44, Nos. 1, 2, and 3, in D, E minor, and E-flat 1837-38. + Op. 80, in F minor. 1847. +Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64. 1844. +2 PIANOFORTE CONCERTOS: + Op. 25, in G minor. 1832. + Op. 40, in D minor. 1837. +Sextet for pianoforte and strings, in D, Op. 110. 1824. +3 QUARTETS FOR PIANOFORTE AND STRINGS: + Op. 1, in C minor. 1822. + Op. 2, in F minor. 1823. + Op. 3, in B minor. 1824-25. +2 TRIOS FOR PIANOFORTE AND STRINGS: + Op. 49, in D minor, 1839. + Op. 66, in C minor, 1845. +Sonata for pianoforte and violin, in F minor, Op. 4. 1823. +2 SONATAS FOR PIANOFORTE AND VIOLONCELLO: + Op. 45, in B-flat. 1838. + Op. 58, in D. 1843. +3 SONATAS FOR PIANOFORTE SOLO: + Op. 6, in E. 1826. + Op. 105, in G minor. 1820-21. + Op. 106, in B-flat. 1827. +8 BOOKS OF SONGS WITHOUT WORDS (Lieder ohne Worte), (each + book containing 6 pieces): + Op. 19b. Pub. 1832. + Op. 30. " 1835. + Op. 38. " 1837. + Op. 53. " 1841. + Op. 62. " 1844. + Op. 67. " 1845. + Op. 85. " 1850. + Op. 102. " 1868. +3 Fantasias for pianoforte (Andante and Allegro, Capriccio, and + Rivulet), Op, 16. 1829. +17 Variations Serieuses, Op. 54. 1841. +3 Preludes and Fugues for organ, Op. 37. 1837. +6 Sonatas for organ, Op. 65. 1844-45. +Soprano Aria, Infelice, Op. 94. 1834. +76 Songs. + + + +THE END + + +WELLS GARDNER, DARTON AND CO., LTD., LONDON + + * * * * * + + +--------------------------------------------------------------+ + | Typographical errors corrected in text: | + | | + | Page 75: Handell replaced with Handel | + | Page 80: grandenr replaced with grandeur | + | Page 138: Buckinghad replaced with Buckingham | + | Page 263: roof sof replaced with roofs of | + | Page 299: 'Die Schone Muellerin' replaced with | + | 'Die Schoene Muellerin' + | | + +--------------------------------------------------------------+ + + * * * * * + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Story-Lives of Great Musicians, by +Francis Jameson Rowbotham + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK STORY-LIVES OF GREAT MUSICIANS *** + +***** This file should be named 19748.txt or 19748.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/1/9/7/4/19748/ + +Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Jeannie Howse and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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