Evening star., 1939-04-27
BY ALICE EVERSMAN.

Oy IAA1N1 D1tSNkfAlNs
Among the many great composers
Of the world no more lovable. sanity
and serene character can be found
than that of Franz Joseph Haydn.
From his infancy to his old age.
his essential goodness Of heart won
him friends and admirers quite as
fervent in their devotion to the
man as to the artist. His life ran a
comparatively smooth course up to
its glorious finish without any of
the inner turbulence of spirit or
outward distressing circumstances
which most of the other great writ
ers of music experienced. Serenity
seems to have been his watchword
and its reward inevitable in the
fame that crowned his declining
years.
Haydn's life is remarkable for the
fact that he was in every sense a
self made man. He was not &C
claimed a prodigy in his youthful
days nor any flashing light as he
neared maturity nor did any of his
genius show itself independent of
his personal toll and study. He
worked for every bit of recognition
he received, almost single handed
for none of his teachers have come
down to posterity as of great as
sistance in the development of his
talent. From early morning to late
into the night, he studied and wrote
learning his craft in the hardest
way and being guided solely by the
correctness of the artistic ideal he
had set for himself.
Left Home at 6.
There was no kindly directing
father and mother for Haydn as in
Mozart's case for the little boy be-
gan his battle with the world at the
age Of 6 years when he left his hum
BILE home never to return to it again.
There was no reason to believe that
the child possessed unusual talent
except that he could keep perfect
time with his make-believe fiddle
when the family sat around the
hearth and sang, led by the father
! to his accompaniment on the harp
Some unseen power must have urged
the father to let his son 60 to study
with kinsman and so start forth
! the flood of music that was not to
stop until the name of Franz Joseph
Haydn was known throughout all
| time.
Whatever of piety and industry
was instilled into him in those first
six years of his life spent beneath
his parents roof could not have been
ample enough to last for a lifetime
for one exposed to the temptations of
the world. So that the strength of
character and kindliness of nature
which Haydn always showed must
have been an inheritance that pro-
tected him and determined the
course he was to pursue. He early
demonstrated his ability to take
care of himself in the right way.
when, at II years of age, he found
himself turned out of St. Stephan's s
Choir. where he had studied and
sung for 10 years, and left penniless
and friendless in Vienna.
/ Accepted Any Honest Work.
He never pitied himself, however,
nor felt that any work was too
menial Whatever came his way
so that he could earn honest money
he was willing to do. even serenading
in the streets to the accompaniment
of his violin to gain few pennies
This characteristic can be traced
through his whole life even after
! he was established at Esterhaz as
/ vice-capell-meister. There was never
! a complaint of the hard work or
the conditions under which he
worked. only thankfulness that op-
portunity was given him to progress
in his art.
His first recognition came through
his singing. which gained him en-
trance into the famous choir
although he worked assiduously at
! the violin and clavier. When forced
to provide for himself he was ener-
getic in seeking occasions to earn
money. A story is told of how. when
making the pilgrimage to the shrine
of the Madonna and Child in Maria
zell, he wished to sing for the choir
master. Being refused, he hid him
self in the choir loft as the services
began and when the soloist was
making ready to sing Haydn
snatched the music from his hano
and began the solo while the whole
congregation listened entranced
The choirmaster not only apologizec