The Washington herald., 1914-06-21
Ladovitch, Hailed as Wunder-
kind and Friend Of Kube-
lik, Hidden in Washington
While He Composes Sym
phonic Poem.
by KATHRYN sEARLEs.

The complaint is made that In Wash
ington studio life is remote and obscure.
II it exists for musicians, it must be
sought one is told; but this restriction
exists throughout the land, TO except
only New York where, OF course, they
have the price-paid too freely-fOreign
critics tell US.
But Washington has a youthful musical
genius, who at a little past twenty has
written the full score, music and poem
of a most ambitious symphony, based not
on the wagnerian precedent, but with
Beethoven and Bach for models
Does this Washington prodigy. Lado-
vich. await only a mad king for patron
rather, possibly, our American multi
millionaire horse king patron, = to bring
us local studio fame for his generation?
Our youthful genius looks his part.
In an obscure downtown studio he teaches
a good many pupils on the violin. He is
lodged amid dust-covered and highly in
teresting evidence of his claims to the
press notices that heralded him as the
wunderkind of some five or ten years
ago, when even then his repertoire in
cluded tremendously fine Sarasate, Schu-
mann, Bach and Paganini numbers.
Began Poem at Fifteen.
At fifteen Ladovich began this SYM
phonic poem, TO which he has in part
sacrificed his professional career as
concertist, sedately settling into the rou-
tine of Washington studio life after hav-
ing played in every European capital
and enjoying the personal friendship and
appreciation of Kubelik and other stars
of the musical armament
1T was at fifteen that Richard Wag-
ner first outlined his Niebelungen Ring
series. ! have been fascinated by the
forward movements of Wagner's and of
Tchafkovsky's time and of my own; but
very happily for me chose the restraint
Of our special Russian training in the st.
Petersburg atmosphere, where Tchaikov-
sky himself was withheld from complete
allegiance TO the Nationalists, so-called-
the party at least. of revolt
Mr.. Ladovich tossed back an interest
ing name of pompadour, while he fingered
the scroll and unmistakable varnish Of a
wonderful Cremona violin and talked
with perfect English and undoubted cru
dition.
ITO art in general and especially music
we nowadays pay the respect of an intel
ligent attitude. which, we can only acquire
by mastering the processes, the technique
of Its working. Then, in music too often,
alas, is thrown over its classical past.
AT ledSt+ 10 De READY 70 uisCtIn lLle lTlCh
of the false prophets
THE new stream of worldly compost
tion is not generally ignored in ST. Peters
burg. l accept the charm of melodies with
artificial accelerandos. digressions Of rip
pling scales or tripping arpeggios, and
suddenly intruding, crashes of full chords.
But also to balance and contrast that
with what is found in the Church school,
with its precise, dignifed. and elaborate
structure of voices independent in melody
yet interdependent in harmony"
Genius at the Teapot.
Mr.. Ladovich poured us tea, and there
were women callers besides the pupils
present Some one asks, What, please,
Of the symphony
And again one signs to observe that
this Russians English is always more
perfect than our own American dialect.
well, why follow these modern wfli-o'-
the-wisps, too colorful. too impression
site, too affected? Ny own patience is
ended. Following Straus. who carried the
Wagnerian theories too far ! probably
revert TO what are called more classic
'orms OF compositin. AT ffteen. when
began and although outlined the form OF
my composition, certainly my ideaiisn,