Los Angeles herald., 1910-12-11
De Swirsky's Dancing Is an
Offspring of Musical Triumph
COUNTESS TELLS
HOW ART CLAIMED HER
Girl Won Prize as Pianist, and
Composer Suggested Terp-
siChorean Career

Russian women are ambitious, and
when they are talented their friends
encourage them in the development of
the art or science toward which their
interest turns" said Thamara de
Swirskv the young Russian dancer
and musician, who is still a guest in
Los Angeles.
I'm my country women are very ad-
vanced. They desire to do something
creative, and from my earliest child
hood I was surrounded with men and
women who rejoiced in every success
ATTAINED by the other. In such an
atmosphere 1 grew to believe that l,
too might win some place in the world
of art, and since 1 had early shown
talent for music 1 began to give seri-
Gus attention to this study"
The countess paused here to adjust
her automobile veil which the after
noon breeze had disarranged. and
smiled appreciation of the balmy air,
scented with the perfume of Holly
woods loveliest flowers, yet fresh with
the salty tang of the ocean.
1T was not until after several
years study in Paris and later in
Munich that received the first prize
for piano playing, awarded by Felix
Mottl at the conservatory. The night
1 played for that prize I gave
Beethoven sonata, some Chopin and
Liszt numbers and Greig's Peer Gynt
suite and Greig himself was is the
audience and asked to see me. He
spok first of the sense Of rhythm he
observed in my playing and then asked
Have you ever danced?' I was sur
prised for the idea had not occurred
to me before. 1 had been content with
the tonal Interpretation L could give
but the great Nor. egian composer
spoke of folk dancing Of his country,
of the emotional scenes which had in
spired him for the writing of this
great suite, and when he had finished I
felt that my meter had not yet been
found and that I must try to dance.
"For two years danced three hours
each day with the corps du ballet of
the Opera Comique. Not before the
public, you understand, only just in
rehearsals that I might learn every
step and ever, exercise which Is
| taught in that school,"
| Here the speaker paused and turned
| to her vis-a-vis, a professional musi-
| clan, saying:
"You know there is technic Of
dancing just as there is of plano or
violin playing. One must learn the
rudiments before one becomes an
artist. AS you learn the scales and the
finger exercises before playing your
instrument, just so one must learn to
poise and bend before one dances"
The young musician left Munich and
the pianistic success which she. had
won and went to Paris, and there with
the ballet drill in the morning and
lessons from a private teacher in the
afternoon she worked at the new art
she had adopted. Her piano was not
neglected, nor will it be- Dancing and
music are allied so closely in her in
terest that she will not give up one
for the other.
"Mottl thought me slightly-not
right-here," and she pointed to her
| forehead significantly as she con-
tinued, that I should leave my plano
playing for dancing, but last summer
I wrote him and sent him an account
of the money 1 had made with the
! dancing and playing together, and it
was much greater than l could have
earned by playing alone.
Each dance makes different require
ments," she said, land I find that 1
can meet these pest when returning
from some inspirational musical even
ing, from seeing great pictures or wit
Messing some marvellous soul-stirring
play. Anything which intensifies the
emotions and sharpens the senstbilities
awakens in me the desire to construct
a new dance Frequently 1 work until
daylight before my mirror in this Gre
ative mood, celebrating the pantomime
which is to tell the story and trying
the effect of different steps and poses"
The family to Which this young Wo-
man belongs is of much talent. An
older brother is a prominent pianist in
Europe and a sistor, Julie de Swirsky,
the sculptor, has returned recently to
St Petersburg, where she has a large
atelier and is making some splendid
pieces, while the mother of this group
| of talented persons holds a degree of
doctor of medicine from the Academy
of Medicine of ST. Petersburg.
Countess De Thamara finds 1t diff
cult to express her delight in Cali
fornia.
Here it is like Italia. find it hard
to remember L am in America. The
color of the mountains, the soft air
and sunshine all seem like the south
of Europe. 1t brings out all the
warmth in the people, too, and they
are more cordial. Here it is warm
and the mountains have the color of
Italia Always other mountains are
hard and cold-looldng, but yours here
in California they have the warm blue
that makes me know 1 am again in
the south"
When asked concerning the climatic
influence upon her audiences and spec
tators the automobile veil was raised
and the big brown eyes looked out
from under the bronze gold hair as
she said:
"But of course where it is warm and
soft in the air the people are kind and
tender and artistic They are appre-
ciative and understand, and I like
best to work in such countries"
From Los Angeles it is probable that |
Countess De Swirsky and her mother !
will go to Honolulu, thence to Aus |
tralia and on around the world; to |
London, where the pretty dancer and /
musician has already appeared and
where she has hosts of friends to ,