The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1899-10-25
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>IWHEN PAdANINI PLAYS (
< A New Translation Of Heinrich
Hoine'o Famous Description OF
the Performance OF tho 4
= Great Paganini. y
; Copyright. 1899. by Ervfn TTdrdman.
- -
Copyright. 1899. by Erutn wardman.
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believe that only one person has
succeeded in fixing the real face of
Paganini on paper. He Is deaf painter
named Lyser. who, in his brilliant
madness. drew the head OF Paganini SO
well with few strokes Of his crayon
that the beholder laughs and is fright
cned at once at the resemblance. "The
devil directed my hand" said the deaf
painter to me. glggling mysteriously
and nodding with good natured irony,
rs. he was used to do when lie INDUCED
in his harmless jests. This painter
ever had been q curious creature.
Despite his deafness be loved music en-
Enthusiastically, and it is said that If he
was near enough to the orchestra he
could read the music from the faces
Of the musicians and that he could
judge of the more or less successful
execution by their finger motions In
deed, he wrote the operate criticisms
for an important. newspaper of Ham
burg. After all, what is there wonder
full in this? The deaf painter could
see the tones n the visible signature
of the music. There are persons to
whom the tones themselves are only
invisible signatures. in which they hear
colors and forms.
! am sorry that own that little
drawing Of Lysers no longer. Only in
glaring black, hasty lines could there
be seized those fablelike features.
which seemed to belong more to the
sulphurous shadow realm than to the
sunny world Of life.
"Assuredly the devil guided my.
hand" insisted the deaf painter, rs
we stood before the Alstcr pavilion in
Hamburg oD Tie day when Paganini
gave his first concert there. Yes, my
friend" he continued. ''it is true what
the whole world is saying-that he has
sold himself to the devil. body and
soul, to become the best violin player,
to fiddle, millions into his pockets. and
first to get away from the slave gal
ley. where he had suffered so many
years. For see. friend. when lie was
orchestra leader in Lucca. he fell in
love with n theater princess, became
jealous Of priest. stabbed his faith
less Amata Iii good Italian style, was
sent to the galley in Genoa and, as
get away, to become the best violin
player and to lay each one Of us under
tribute tonight to the extent Of 50. But
see you! All good spirits praise God
See. there he comes himself. with his
suspicious familiar"
Indeed it was Paganini himself. lie
wore a dark gray overcoat. which
reached to his feet, making him look
very tall. The long. black hair fell to
his shoulders in torn curls aud formed
q dark frame around the pale, corpse
like face, On which sorrow, genius ani
hell had graved their imperishable
signs. Beside him danced a short.
comfortable figure, prosaically ornate,
rosy. wrinkled face, little light gray
coat with steel buttons, saiuting to all
sides with offensive frlendliness, but
always squinting upward full Of wor-
ried timidity at the gloomy form which
stalked, e nve and thoughtful, Mt his
side. One. imagined that he saw that
picture Of the place where Faust Is
walking with Wagner before the thea
ter in Lelpsic. The deaf painter made
comments on the two shapes in his
own fantastic way and called my at-
tention particularly to the measured,
broad steps of Paganini. "Is 1t not so,"
asked he, ms If he carried the iron bar
still between his ankles? He has ac-
quired fcr E0oG the habit OF walking
that way. See, too, how contemptuous-
iy ironical is the glance which he sends
down on his companion when he bur
dens him with his prosaic questions.
But he cannot rid himself Of that COM
panion. A bloody pfct binds him to
this servant, who is nobody else than
satan. The ignorant public, 1t is true,
thinks that this companion Is Harris,
the writer of comedies Sand anecdotes.
whom Faganini has taken along to
manage the finances. The public does
not know that the devil merely borrow
ed his body from Mr.. George Harris
and that the poor soul Of TINT poor
creature is locked up In chest In Han
over with other rubbish to wait till the
devil returns It's flesh envelope. Prob
ably he will accompany his master.
Paganini, In another form through the
world then-namely. as black poo
dle.".
If Paganini seemed fabielike, and
weird to me In the bright MONDAY,
under the green trees OF Hamburg's
Maiden lane. how did his frightfully
bizarre appearance amaze me In. the
evening at the concertl On the stage
there appeared dark form that seem
ed to- have risen from the under world,
That was Paganini In black gala dress,
the black coat and the black waistcoat
of q dreadful cut, as perhaps hellish
etiquette prescribes Mt the court of
Proserpine. the black trousers tim
Idly huttering around the thin legs.
The long arms seemed even lengthen-
ed as he held the violin In one hand
and in the other the bow. and nearly
touched the ground with them while
he displayed his nameless bows before
the public. In the angular distortions
of his body there was b dreadful wood.
enness. and also something gr0tesquely