The San Francisco call., 1905-03-19

q Albert for deserting from an inter-
view TO revel in the surge and thunder
Of our ocean on Western beach,"
under the imperial Californian sun. NJ.
o'Albert' did desert last Tuesday. Last
Tuesday morning he was TO see me.
and last Tuesday morning I saw him
not. He had forgotten and wandered
of ocean,. ard, like the indefatigable
sightseer that he is. He and Madame
d'AIbert are travellers par excellence.
They arrived here on Sunday evening.
Mr.. VIII Greenbaum, TO whose love Of
the best things in music the city owes
so much, being NJ d'AlbeTt's manager,
was on the watch TO receive them But
the D'Alberts had forgotten all about
such small matters as managers and
concerts An untmportant dinner came
first. and then the famous pianist and
his wife-who is equally famous as an
opera-singer (shs was Mime. Fink)-
went voyaging up Chinatown way,
reveling with the true artists delight
in the bizarre. alien beauty OF the
place. On Monday their explorations
led them elsewhere, and on Tuesday
into the thick of other features accord
ing TO the gospel Of 'Baedeker. 1t was
probably only the rain on Wednesday
that Quenched their lust Of sightseeing
and allowed me my chat with the
virtuosol
But I was very ready % forgive NJ.
d'AIbert's detection. tjWas profound
y more interesting 70 see him after
than before his recital-a recital that
originated feuds TO which that Of the
MontagueS and Capulets was as moth
ing. Certainly NJ. d. dAlbert'looksd HARM
less enough as first saw him OF the
stage, running-sctually runningl-
along the corridor Of the Palace Hotel.
And gentle. hesitant. as he began to
talk TO me. out Of the depths Of the
huge, green davenport IN his room, the
little giant" looked even less the anar-
chic person Of the night before. Only
the small, brilliant, mischieVous, kindly
brown eyes, deeply glinting under the
big musicians brow. gave hint Of the
tremendous and wiIlful individuality
before me, an individuality responsible
for an 'appassionata" sonata the night
before, "appassionata" as one has
never before heard IT.
II svas OF course the "appassiouata"
that came up first, after NJ d'Albert's
almost Italienly profuse apologies for
setting the time Of the chat at the aw-
ful hour Of half past ten O'Clock I had
asked about the reading Of the slow
movement, through which the pianist
carries the suggestion Of the tortured
passion Of the allegro.
You find # quicker than usuaif' he
asked.
"No-yes, maybe; but more-appas-
sdCnaEa" " I hezarded
7 think" NJ d'AIbert hesitated.
looked toward the piano as though he
wished he could explain on that Il
think that the slow movement should
be not too. too
"CalmY" I ventured to supply.
"Ach, MOI" he exclaimed. we have
II in German. What is it? Oil Not
too meek. yes, meek" he repeated with
entire satisfaction. After the mad
ness Of the opening movement it is
not logical TO make the andante SO
meek as it is usually made. The pas
sion still troubles, wells up. ebbs and
flows through it,"
And the fnale"I began.
You find that slower" he queried,
"at the beginning7"
And like tremendously the climax it
gives YOU the chance at" 1 dared. 'T
said so this morning in the paper
You have already written?"
He did not know thenl But 1 hesi-
tated and was lost. I had to own here
that I was the impertinent person that
had written that I thought NJ. d'Albert
was out Of humor with his Schumann
"CarnevaI' the night before
The pianist looked puzzled, amused,
interested all at once.
What was it made you think that2'
he asked-I found on summing up aft
erward that N. d'Albert's queries were
at least as many as mine own.
The audacious Westerner told him
that she had felt his "CarnevaT
hasty, imperfectIy poised, breathless-
But it is a Carnival. the great
man advanced, with enchanting polite
ness. Should il not be impetuous,
restless, 'breathless'
hazarded that one needed to
breathe between joys; that his phrase
had frequently TO my ear not found
an end before the next one claimed
recognition, that the varying moods Of
the "Carnevar' had impinged one
upon the other. And / knew 1 was
right The Man Who Knows told me
that he had said the thing he should
not sll through the Schumann and 1
Rad thanked him. But he said also
that D'Alberts Schumann when il was
D'Albert was the thing supremeIy
glorious. 1 ventured therefore to sug-