The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-12
THE ART OF THE CONDUCTOR.
THE AGED VIOLA PLAYER IN
STRUCTS THE BOY.

An Evening I'm the Orchestra La Mode
BeriiOz-Technic. Intellect and Emo.
lion In the Guidance or the Orchestra
1t was hot and humid evening in mid,
summer The city steamed and sweltered
under it, and from the flatiron point Of the
gray and green battery to the olive slopes
of Inwood men sought suroease Of sorrow
In cold beer. Beer, that pleasing delusion
Of the throat, which turns to fire in the
stomach and makes the inner man, like
the daughter of the horse leech, cry I'M
ceasingly, "Give, give" In the very pit
and citadel OF the town there stood tower
above which, poised on one toe, gilded
Artemis swung to the wooing Of the zephyrs
and aimed an arrow into empty space. The
edifice below the tower was ablaze with
garish electric lights, which told the pas
serby that within might be found some
sort of refreshment for the body and the
spirit,
Entering, the visitor saw a tinsel imlta-
ton of the famed city OF a hundred isles.
A jcrky stereoscopic continuance sent agi-
tated clouds across an expanse of calcium
lit canvas sky. Painted palaces Of thin
wood doomed beside a painted lagoon.
Around central congestion Of seats lay
anarrow canal Of dark and grewsome-look-
Ing water On this numbered two or three
extremely ungraceful gondolas. In one of
them a red-capped son Of Italy stood up
and twanged mandolin while he sang in
high, strident voice.
Around the outside rim of the canal men
and women sat at little tables and drank.
The men smoked, and many Of the women
looked az if they would have liked TO.
Bored almost unto death most Of them ap-
peared, even though it was plain to the
most inexperienced eye that few Of them
were residents of this weary town.
On a platform in front of the wooden
palaces was an orchestra. In front OF il
presently appeared tall, thin man with
a smooth face. He raised a small stick
and, waving it about, pretended to conduct
the orchestra in the performance Of music
though it was quite manifest that the mu-
scians were really following the lead Of
the first violinist, who contorted himself
Violently, and wore upon his face an anx-
ious look and much Precipitation. There
was not too much unanimity in the orches-
ira, but it mattered little, The result OF
much scraping and bowling and blowing
and pounding was but confusion OF sounds,
out Of which an expert might perhaps have
made some faint resemblance to we'll
known overture
The audience applauded briefly and
Politely, and at once the conductor raised
Ms little stick for an encore number. This
Tune the orchestra played a popular march,
one which is strummed upon every INSTALL
ment piano from Hoboken to East New
YORK. is hammered upon the street ma
chnes, is whistled by the wandering small
ooy and is danced into a two-step through
every degree Of latitude in the seacoast
summer resort district. Then tho audi
'nce applauded much more enthusiastic
any as people always do when they hear
music which they know.
Buried in the hidden rows of the viola
payers OF the orchestra sat an aged man.
IL" was musician, net merely saver
:" Strings, He had lived, that old man.
-'" hred mn inner life and had felt He