The San Francisco call., 1905-01-26
DE PACHMANN
RENDERS MUSIC
WORTH HEARING

Awful press reports had reached one
about De Pachmann. No longer, said
these, did the pianist pat his audience
on the back when good and say things
when they were not. No longer. they
said, did he wink at you not to miss
the shower of pearls he would be
throwing, or pull your ear down to g.
beloved phrase. No longer, in short,
did De Pachmann play Snowman to his
Chopin, and one was lamenting.
1t was q respectable not buoyant au-
dience in consequence that met him at
the Alhambra last night. Chopin we
were there for. the finest Chopin made,
and we were going to get it But the
comedian of the piano, the man that
is his own best audience and wants,
oh so hardi to help you there. we were
secretly regretting. We had heard,
oh yes! that De Pachmann no longer
played the farceur at the piano. How
nice that was going to be!-aside; how
stupid 1t was SO MUCH better that
he should leave US free to enjoy after
our own fashion. wasn't it?-not it!
We wondered if it were not too good
to be true?
II was, that is, it was not true. 1t
took only Nj. de Pachmann's three
friendly bows and expansive smile as
he came on to proclaim hlm the same
old DE Pach1nann as ever. True, ne
kent mis- eyebrows wnere they belong
through most of the Mozart Fantasia,
that Degan the programme. Three
times however, tempted by an ador-
able moGulatlOn, melting chord or
two, d fascinating change of rhythm,
he looked over at US TO ask II We had
noticed. Sure, Papa de Pachmann,
some of Us nodded back, Doth or US
at home and content lie gave next
the Beethoven tlUnQo CaprlccloSo in G.
with more enjoyment for himself and
us And then, as encore, came the
first taste OF the Chopin, the q fiat
major etude (the f1rSt).
1t seems a pity that De Pachmaun
should bother with anything outside of
Chopin. lie was III the Mozart Fanta-
sia, in comparison, as one speaking
foreign tongue. his phrase had for
eign air. his rhythm even a conscious.
posed sound, and lovely as the thing
was it was Mozart through the eyes
of a gifted, gracious alien.
But what change when comes
Chopin! 1t is then Siamese SYM
pathy. One does not know where to
begin on De Pachmauns perfections
here Possibly what win first strike
pianist about De Pachmaun is his tone.
Velvet" so often used, SO seldom de-
served, best describes it to me. There
is never a hint of harshneSs. hardness.
dryness, throughout it's whole length
and breadth. 1t is deep, soft, juicy;
mellow in its snappiest staccato. round
in it's tiniest pianissimo. That pianis-
simo! You have to listen for it with
the ears of your Soul-the gods only
know how NJ. de Pachmaun's portly
little hands evolve it. Herein lies his
distinguishing virtuosity.
But one thinks of nothing less than
the virtuoso when De Pachmann plays.
You think of him no more than the
pianist does. You think of Chopin and
De Pachmann and he thinks of Chopin
and you. To hear his Chopin is like
hearing Schumann-H -Heink sing Schu-
mann or Harold Bauer play him. 1t is
the acme of grace, distinction, poise,
authority 1t is poetry. and poetry ut
terly, intensely Polish at that. There
is nothing more suggestive here than
De Pachmanns individualizing of the
waltz and maZurka. Both have fabu-
lous measure of the dance spirit and
both are characteEisticized in an amaZ-
ing fashion. He played the Grande
Mazurka in B minor and the A fiat
waltz, op. 42-may you hear them. /
hope IL you do that the pianist will
shout over to you as he did to us In the
waltz, Different rhythms, listen!" You
might not otherwise notice.
1 His other numbers were the Bal
lade in A fiat major-an imperially
beautiful rendering; the d fat major
nocturne (Op. q, No. p; and four
studies, Op. 25 8, 4, 9. The Butterfly"
was, OF course. repeated, and the
house howled and shrieked for more.
Here Mr.. de Pachmann did not play
fair. He got up, laughing out loud at
the noise, then sat down as if to play
it again-but went on to the next num-
Der.
The audience, fairly large, was roy
ally friendly and wonderfully noisy
They laughed, listened and shouted
with the pianist and quite agreed with
him that they could not get anything
better than what he gave them of
Chopin. You cannot. 1t is not to be
had. In it, by the way, I am forget
ting to mention the Schumann sonata
lin G minor that completed the pro-
gramme.
There will be another concert to-mor-
row evening and another delightful
programme.