The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-07-12
4 V|OL|N|ST AND
HIS AUDIENCE
Arthur Hartmann Has Some
Very Original and Unusual
Views.

/ Arthur Hartmann, the great Hunga-
rian violinist, for whose appearance in
Honolulu u Wal Adams has arranged, has
some decidedly original views on the
relation of an artist to his public, and
| he expressed them in frank and fear
| less fashion recently to London inter
viewer. Hartmann said:
/ You ask me to explain the reason
why one artist succeeds with the public
and another doesn t, granting that both
| play alike IN the essential technical
and musical detailss That is equiva-
lent to setting me the time honored
puzzle of calculating personality and
individual magnetism. Those are
terms banded about reeklessiy by
critics and laymen, and yet none of
them is able to define those qualities
! precisely, without resorting to further
generalities. What l have just said
is paradox, you point outs Well, SO
is personality and so is individual
magnetism.
"Some of the greatest players have
little personality; and some OF the
worst, have so much of it, that it inter
feres with their performance. man
may be handsome as Apollo and yet
have no magnetism; on the other
hand, he may be as ugly as Caliban,
and yet be able to set thrilling house
full of people with his mere glance, his
walk, his air. and a single tone of his
voice, violin or piano. Hypnotisms
All, perhapsi You must not ask me,
for remember that / started out by
telling you that the subtle effuvium
which enables an artist of personality
to east magical spell over his audi
ence cannot be brought down to analyt-
zeal dissection, or separated into seien-
tihc particles to be classified. through
chemical test or microseopical observa-
tion.
HWhile I believe personality to be
Unborn, I acknowledge that some OF its
extraneous aid may be acquired and
I was brought to that opinion by an
extremely humorous happening in my
own early career, in fact, in the earliest
part of my career.
81 had beer working assiduously at
my violin from the moment l first be-
gan it's serious study and, when my
sixth birthday came around, my father
himself a man of musical taste and
knowledge) and my teacher considered
me ripe for a public appearance IN my
native town. Ny debut occurred short
" afterward. and as far as my playing
went, must have been success, for
the large audience clapped its hands,
stamped its feet, and called out words
like bravo and tencore, whose sig
nifcanee I did not then understand. |
must confess that the elampr frightened
me considerably, and when it began,
after I had played my last: note,
started post haste for the wings. where
/ could detect the welcome figure of
my father.
s'My childish impulse was to fly to
him and throw myself into his arms for
protection from the crowd which was
making so much noise below. But,
horrors, my father 5 face twisted itself
into a perfect mask of fury as he saw
me rushing toward him, and he waved
his arms franetically toward me TO
signify that / should not leave the
stage. | stood stock still, bewildered,
for / feared and respected my father,
and was accustomed TO obey his slight
est command Bow, bow. he whisper
ed in voice that reached me because
of its penetrating anger; bow, yon
fool. bow. More confused than ever,
/ gazed at him. spedbound. Bow, s
he almost yelled; bow or I'll
aHis threatening motion was enough
for me, and turning my back full on
the audience. I bowed half a dozen
times to my father who was hidden in
the wings, and then / rushed sobbing
from the stage. OF course, the audi
ence applauded more than ever, but
imagine my modification when next
day my father explained to me the
nature of my offence. / have never
forgotten my bow to the audience since
that eyentful night.
t'The way an artist walks onto the
platform, the manner III which he bows
on entering and leaving, his demeanor
during the performance itself-all
those things combine to make up what
for want of a better definition we
term personality. Long hairg No,
that has nothing to do with it. / am
not of the opinion that an artist s
hair or nose, or shoes, or collar, should
be either praised or condemned along
with his manner of rendering the music
of the masters.
eff it be the players fancy or pride
TO wear his haH long or short, or POM |
padour or pomaded. that is his privi- /
lege. just as it would be the privilege |
of a merchant, doctor, brieklayer, or |
any other sort of person. Every artist /
does not wear long hair, nor is every |
one who wears long hair an artist. The /
main thing to be long on, if one
would be great musical performer, is |
tone, temperament and teehnie-the
three great rs of music, just as Bach,
Brahms and Beethoven are the three |
great B IS.
Some of our finest violinists and |
pianists, whisper it softly throughout |
the land, have been almost bald, and /
certain adipose, rotund, and red
featured masters of the various in
struments are living proofs of my con
tention that in order to play romantic
music with throbbing tenderness and !
soulfulness it Is not neees-
sary to appear on the platform with
emaeiated body. wan, hunted eyes, en-
eireled darklv. and furtive shrinking
air as though fearing an astral kick
from the shade of the composer being