The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1911-04-19
fEATS OF artists
Some Notable Achievements In
Eleventh Hour Work.
ONE OF LANDSEER'S SPURTS.

PRODUCED In Few Hours-Remar<.
able Records Made by Some Of the
Famous Masters of Music.
Some astounding feats in eleventh
hour work, especially in the musical
and artistic branches, have been
achieved by the great artists of the
world
Sir Edwin Landseer had promised
picture for the spring exhibition Of
the British institution in 1915. but on
the day before the exhibition was to
be opened all the hanging committee
had received was an empty frame,
which was duly hung in the position
Of honor.
AS the prospect Of receiving a pic
ture for the frame seemed to the com
mittee to be slight. member thereof
went to see the artist. He found
Landseer standing in front Of bare
canvas.
That's the picture promised" said
the great man. pointing to the canvas.
Il have not touched it yet, but will
And he was as good as his word A
few hours later the completely picture
was delivered and may be seen today
in the National gallery. This wonder
full work Of half q dozen hours was
none other than the universally ad.
mired Cavaliers Pets"
Leander the famous painter, is ca.
pable Of remarkably rapid work. Upon
seeing him leave his rooms early in
the morning with a canvas on his
back the neighbOrs of the great artist
used to exclaim. There goes Leander
Off to paint his daily picture" AL
though this may have been an eXag-
geraton, it is a wei! known fact that
on several occasions the academician
produced large picture within few
hours.
Leander has formidable rival in
the matter Of hasty work in Solomon
Solomon. This artist painted an ad-
mirable life size portrait of Israel
Zangwill within the period Of FIVE
hours.
In the realm Of music there may be
cited many instances Of extraordinarily
| quick work. Oscar Hammerstein's
record Of comic opera in one act.
words and music, composed in one
night. IS an example.
One Of the most remarkable bits of
orchestration ever written. the over
ture to "Otello." was scored by Rossini
III only t~entyfour hours.
81. Arthur Sullivan composed tho
brilliant epilogue Of the Golden Leg
end ia Jhe same space of time lie
sat down 0t 9 O'Clock one evening t.
/ compose the overture 10 "Ioldntue
and did not rise from his desk until
the last note was written at 7 Jn the
following morning. while the overture
to "The YeOman Of the Guard" occu.
pied him no more than twelve hours
both to compose and score
1t is told Of Donizetti that he wrote
the Instrumentation Of an entire opera
within thirty hours. On the morning
In which Rossini's "Gazza Ladra" was
to be produced not single note of the
overture had been written, and the
manager was In despair. He sought
out the indOlent composer. locked him
In one Of the rooms Of La Scala and
declared he 81 uld have neither food
nor freedom until the overture was
completed. ROssini set to work with a
will and to such purpose that the
music was written and rehearsed be-
fore the evening performance.
Mozart was another genius who fire.
quently needed the spur Of eleventh
hour work. Though at 1 in the morn
Ing not note Of the overture to Don
Giovanni" had been set down. yet Mo-
zart finished 1t before he went to the
breakfast table at his usual hour. Dur
Ing the long hours consumed by this
task 1t Is said that the musicians wife
kept him awake by reading fairy
stories to him.
One or the fastest composers that
ever lived was Trotere. the writer Of
songs. Some Of the composers feats
verge on the marvellous. It is said, for
example. thar he actually wrote the
score of I'm Old Madrid" and had
dropped 1T into the letter box within
eight minutes of the time he had taken
up his pen. This would be remarkable
merely as showing his dexterity and
agility, TO say nothing Of the labor OF
the composition itself.
One of Schuberts friends tells q
story indicating that composers RI.
pidity of workmanship. He had left
Schubert absorbed in GOethe's ballad
"Thc Erl King" On his return in few
minutes he found the musician swift
ly putting on paper the notes inspired
by the poem. and within an hour there
had been composed that great song the
world has admired ever since. Edwin
Tarrisse in Chicago Tribune.