The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-10-22


nunciation of Paderewski, also give
a short sketch of the great pianist
who bears that name.
Answer.-Paderewsk is pronounced
padaruffski Poland, the land that has
given us Chopin, Tausig. Josef HOf
mann, Scharwenl<a, Mos2kOwslli, Les-
chetitzki and Slivinski, all of them
great musicians, has the honor of be-
ing PadereWski's native country. He
was born on Nov 6, 1860, in Podolia, a
province of Russian Poland. Finck
says. that, as u boy, PadereWski used
to crawl on the piano stool, strike the
keys, listen to the vibrations that
make up a tone, and modify his touch
till he got the exact quality his deli
cate sense of tonal beauty craved. At
twelve years of age he went to War
saw to study in the conservatory where
later he held q profossorShiD. At the
age of nineteen he married a Polish
girl, who died a year afterWard, leaV-
ing him an invalid boy 70 whom he is
tenderly attached. Later, Paderewsli
went to Berlin where he made spe-
cialty of composition. At the age of
tWenty-threc he accepted a professor
ship at the conservatory of Strasburg.
While at Strasbulg he became init
mately acquainted with the famous
Polish actress, Nine. MOdjeska, so well
known in this country, and it was
probably through her sympathetic en-
| Couragement that he resigned his po-
sitiOn at Strasburg and went to Vienna
to study the piano under his great
Countryman, I,eschctitZki. His debut
as a concert pianist was made in Paris
at the Cirque d'Ete in the fall o. 1889
in connection with one of the Celobrat-
| ed LamOreuX orchestral concerts. Be-
| ing a student in Paris at the time, I
! attended this concert, and | we'll re-
| member the enthusiasm which Pader-
| ewski's playing evoked. Here was
man who had come to Paris urnerald-
| ed by any blast of trumpets: a man
! of whom the public had never even
| heard and in twenty-four hours he was
! famous. London and other English
| cities came shortly afterward under the
| spell of the great pianist 1t is said that
! now, when he gives concert in London
| his receipts rarely fall below $4,000. In
| 1894 when his manager arranged a tour
to the principal English cities, the
seats were sold in many places two
months ahead of the day arranged for
! the concert. PadereWskfs American
| debut was made on Nov. II, 1891, at
| Carnegie hall, New York. and was
! great success so far as the public was
| concerned. The musical critics, with a
| few exceptions, refused at first to ac-
! knowledge his greatness. one writer
| in musical journal remarked satir-
! ically as follows: "PadereWski, the
pianist, came and did not conquer at
g..
was a study. Praise was given, but
grudgingly, and the fatal comparison
of names was instituted. If Padcrew-
ski had only had Joseffy's hair, Rosen-
thaPs appetite, Rubirsteins powers Of
perspiration, Rummels laugh, Pach-
mann's grin. why then Paderewski
| would have been a great pianist etc.
Public enthusiasm grew, and at his re-
citals Carnegie hall, seating 200, with
| standing room for 1000 more, was
crowded. In less than six months Pad
erewsk gave one hundred and seven
teen concerts. In 1892, he returned to
the United States for a second concert
tour when he gave, in twenty-siX
cities, siXty-seVen concerts, and the
receipts amounted to S1S0,00O-a fnan-
cial success which had never before
|
former. The following are the official
| figures for fourteen consecutive con-
certs: Binghamton, S,5OO; New York,
5000; Boston, S2,36i New Haven,
81, ,926; New York, S5OG9; Rochester,
81, ,352 Albany, $3.50; Hartford $l,9l5;
Boston, $685.; New York, 1884; Buff
falo, $2,O5O; Philadelphia, 1924; Brook
lyn, $3162; Boston, 5000; one Chicago
concert in the great auditorium yield
ed $1,000. Genius has been defined as
capacity for hard work" and Pader-
ewski is a living example of it, He
practices, it is said, from ten to twelve
hours day when working up reper-
toire. Finck, the New York critic, says
that Paderewski once told him that he
often lies awake for hours at night,
going over his next programme mem
tally, note for note trying to get at
the very essence of every measure. AS
n means OF recreation he is pass.on-
ately fond OF billiards. OF his playing
Finck says; 1T is often said that a
trace OF charlatanism is essential to