The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1915-03-15
KREISLER REVIEW.

The superlative merit of Fritz
| Kreisler was set forth Saturday nignt
at the Grand Opera house before an
audience whose enthusiasm was more
abundant and more DANGEROUSLY ex-
pressed than any other artist has been
| able to inspire in this town, when
proceeds with caution about oestoW-
ing unreSerVed approval An audi
| ence of somewhat more than the usual
size foregathered to hear the great
| Austrian violinist. but it was not ca
pacity house. Curiosity as to the per
sonality of a warrior back from the
| battlefield may have been mingled
with the foreknowledge of satisfy
| ing concert in drawing the crowd, but
it was nothing less worthy than an ap-
probation of the finished art OF the
performance that could keep the au-
dience after the close of the program
demanding three encore numbers
A noticeable feature of kreislers
playing is its simplicity which appears
in inverse proportion to it's subtlety.
He gives the best of his musicianship,
too lofty to need the artifice of the
actor for purposes of decoration as
questionable as it is unnecessary ana
foreign to the best traditions in his
field of art.
His reputation is founded on the
highest kind of achievement Depth
of feeling, poetic insight, repose and
largeneSs of view are his, and espe-
cially is his playing characterized by
virility. Health and strength are in 1t
ment. a contagious enthusiasm. ap-
parent, though restrained. Few V1o-
liniStS have so unerr1ng a technique
as his and few can trace with such
certainty the difficulties of some of
the compositions he presented at MS
Saturday night concert.
No period or style is a stranger to
him, but with the obviously modern
for the music of the old writers is no
ia BILE. His program began with CON
certo by Vivaldi, a composition of the
early eighteenth century The mum.
Der was given in three movements, or
which the andante was particularly
appealing. A Tartini number "DeVlis
Trill,' is a composition OF ABOUT the
same period, dazzling in technique, but
compared with the preceding NUMBER,
of minor musical significance The
second group of numbers were
French, German and Italian COMPOSE
lions of the older school. The Cou-
perrin number contained a dainty bit
of minuet music, so pleasing to the
audience that they demanded It's
-Four numbers of the last group
were of Kreisler's own composition
He is at home in the facile brlll1ancy
of the modern music, which he plays
and writes with a style quite MS own
In the older compositions ne manages
to avoid the monotony into when II
is so easily allowed to fall for mod
ern ears. His eclecticism is so broad
that he is at home in all ne UNDER
takes.
Kreisler is a man of about 40 years
of age. and he has been playing in
public since he was 6. He faces his |
audience, appearing almost uncon- |
scious that 1t is there, and with GER
tain air of authority in his face and |
bearing.
That he has been wounded in battle
and pillowed his head on his Cossack
enemy and that he has passed through
arCr, CT nf q
s the lot of the soldier in modern
warfare, adds it's share to the interest
hat people feel in him personally
little matters the niche given this
composer and performer by posterity
he is undoubtedly the violinistic en-
chapter of his own day. B. H.