The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1903-07-15
!; MUSICAL CORNER! !
Conducted e. a. Violin Maker 4
, by THOMPSON, and Teacher .
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land.
They look forward to their work as
Il dull preliminary to the glory of a pro-
fessional career. But in retrospect the
days of their study in nine cases out of
ten seem peaceful and satisfying in
comparison with the hardshps in begin
ming of public life. The experience of
these musicians is nearly always the
same.
In their own home their musical tai |
ents attract attention early. They be-
come juvenile prodigies for their own
! class if not for a larger community be-
fore they realize it. As they grow up
and continue to appear to experienced
people about them. really promising
and talented musicians. the talk of pro-
fessional life soon begins. They 90 to
the best teacher in their own town and
after that to some large city for the
advantages of the instruction to be had
there. After they have gone the rounds
played for this person and that, and
collected advice in every quarter, there
is talk of a period of European study
and if the money is available the stu
dent usually goes abroad. Sometimes
| the money is in the immediate family:
sometimes it is begged and borrowed
| from more fortunate relatives and mem
bers of the family, and in some cases
philantropic ladies of musical taste who
are never so happy as when they are
nourishing mediocsity, raise a subscrip-
ton for the aspirant and he or she goes
to Europe.
Here in nine cases out of ten is the
| first mistake in Il career that is more or
less likely to be in error. Nine out of
ten American musicians could learn Just
| as much in their own country as they
can abroad they could be just as well
| prepared to teach here as in any other
country, although it may be an advan-
tage to them and an attraction to pu-
pills to know that they have studied
even if he is so old a. to be in his dotage
| After two or three years of study in
Europe between which their friends hear.
| wonderful stories of their advancement
the pianist and the fiddler pass through
their allotted term of instruction
Usually they are eager to make an
|
much less in Germany than it does in
this country, they are generally sue
cessful. They play in a Berlin music
| hall before an audience of fellow stu
dents, dcadhcads all of them, and few
critics who will group this performer
along with half dozen others in a par
agraph next day and mention very lit
tie more than their names and their
teacher. Sometimes through conditions
which are not always easy to define.
| they may get several sentences of fiat
tering descriptions of themselves which
are promptly printed in neat little
pamphlet and brought back To this coun-
| try for the delight of their friends and
the enlightenment of those whose bus
mess it is to know what good piano
| playing should be. Most of them are
benighted enough to believe that on the
strength of that appearance combined
with letter OF recommendation from
their teacher and few untrustworthy
or trivial phrases of criticism they may
return to the United States and begin
here the accomplishment of their wishes
Disenchantmcnt comes So soon after
their return that it is lucky for them
that they have enjoyed Il few happy
hours of illusion. The young woman
arrives here with her hopes and her
criticisms The first thing she does is
to seek musical agent who regards
her the moment he lays eyes on her,
first n legitimate prey from whom he
is to squeeze every possible cent To
her surprise she soon discovers that there
is to be no compensation for her appear
ances and she is lucky ii she finds a
| place even i'm a concert hall without he
ing compelled to pay for it. The eX-
perience is likely to be profitable to him
but in despair the applicant goes to a
second one If her money holds out she
goes to another agent but if it does not
she manages by social influence or some
other to play gratuitously at a concert.
If someone would persuade all those am
bilious youngsters that there is de-
eida1 limit ~ THAR talent anI IN any