The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-05-08
YSAYE'S GREAT ABILITY.
Pen Picture of the Festivals Chief
Star-An Artistic Musical Success.

rem F1Cture OF the FeSt1VuPS Chief
Star-An Artistic Musical Success.
The chief star of the May festival of 1898
was Ysaye, the violinist, who had more peo-
pie for an audience than Tomlinson Hall
could seat. 1t was an ideal May festival
audience, great in numbers, unbounded in
enthusiasm and ready to give it's offerings
of appreciation to the man whose name is
worldwide and whose particular talent is
unsurpassed. His great ability is simply in
two things-unerring technique and richness
of tone. The latter is described as volup-
tuous, and the word seems very we'll to ex-
press it. Personally Ysaye Chas he another
part to his name?) is as individual as his
playing. He is like a great, overgrown
boy, without being ponderous or heavy. He
has an enormous head and a thick chin,
but he has not the thick lips so often ac-
companying this physique. He has sleepy
eyes. which he holds closed most of the
time as he plays and his long, black hair,
thrown back from his face, falls over his
coat collar. Stray locks intended to stay
behind the ears fall in front, often assisting
him with strongly accented note. He has
a face that looks like that of child in its
simplicity, and as he stood waiting for his
measure to begin he calmly surveyed the
audience. He met kindly, interested and
expectant gaze in return. With his invalu-
able violin lightly held under his chin, he
began. To describe his playing is like ex-
planning June day to blind person No
other man can play like Ysaye. His seems
more than human skill. His sustained tones
are absolutely true and his trills culver
with electric rapidity. To hear Ysaye play
one forgets that there are such things as
notes and bars, that each tone sounded
has had to be composed and then learned
by the interpreter. 1t seems as if there
were no such common trades that printed
music could be bought and sold, ana that
there ever time when Ysaye could not
do just what he did last night; and yet, out
of all the seeming there Is the knowledge
that there is a very commonplace be-
1 Il is not t CONCEDED us by other vio hiS
sjsts that Ysaye is the greatest the honor
of being the greatest rests with the one
place. and this, so far, rests. with Joachim.
Nor is his kind of playing like that of Will
helmj, who has held audiences in this city
SO spell-bound that they could not applaud
when he had finished. 1t was nothing OF
this style of playing that captivated the
audience last night. 1t was the combina-
ton of Ysaye's technical skill and the mag
nifcent tone which he drew from the in
strument. A tone that was round and rich
and so full of music that it satisfied every
lover of the violin, an instrument which
can be made to express the entire range of
feeling. Whether in the Concerto in
Minor by Saint-Saens, the ''Fantasie APP
passionate" by Vieuxtemps or the encore
number TO the latter, the 'Zigeunerweisen,
by Sarasate, he was equally great The re-
Spouse to the first was one of the violin
solo sonatas by Bach. The latter was with
out accompaniment. and showed to what
perfection such a simple selection could be
brought In itself it was lesson of en-
couragement TO every student of the violin
in the audience. Not little of the great
success of Ysaye's playing was due to the
careful and artistic accompaniment of the
orchestra. and at the close of ole number
Ysaye took Mr. Van der Stucken's hand
and thanked him for such assistance Mrs
S. l.. Kiser played the accompaniment for
the Sarasate. encore on the piano and TO
the evident satisfaction OF The violinist,