THE CHERNIAVSKYS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2119, 9 April 1914, Page 10

THE CHERNIAVSKYS.

S?3ACKIH K m FROM^A t LtiTH Iff | isig is"'nn uricrcstingJ person, .t<n inter- ■ vio\sv':= ■■:Hc- : loves^i'o:itiilk;: , of'.:iiwsio,'' of. : his ■own' particular work';' and paint hia chateaux. D'EspaghoV in"//tho ■' golden' future;;: .Ho-slav.es'Tat.'-tlio keyboard as many hours a. "day a's'a.walersidoworker, and .■expends a" Ydcal'.. ; ';inoro..-nervous force.in-doing- is seldom too tired ,to = talk—it ebm-es as-a recreation after his'/..loving' communion. with ■ tho pianoforte, if...Krery !. musician of any note lias.bis own ideas, his own outlook on. an expression of'thought, and it. ir that variation in mental mood suggested by,the music .that ntfords rc.lirf from the. snore-; or ■■ less ■ monstrous ■automatics, represented'.'in -the mechanical.' piano.; ■-'■■.Having, mastered : tho I technique of an instrument,, awl studied thoroughly.fallUliat"j.,is' best in niusic, personality b'ocomes...;:,tho.:.factor that counts. '~- "■ _'.'Jt%&i'>-'y' .-.■.'":' Such thoughts were, suggested by a talk with tho Cherniavsky. trio—Leo, Jan, and Mischel—yesterday. These | hoys—they are still delightful ■ boys— I visited Now Zealand five years. Slid tt half ago, and their temperamental playing had a distinction and refinement that augured well. Five years is quite a long tirao, and tho Cherniavskys, who arrived from Sydney by tho Moeraki yesterday ■in company with Miss Maud Allan, tho famous dancer, have done much, since We ■ saw them last.. Mr. Leo Chcrniavsky, who will bo'-re-membered as a very able violimss, stated that, after leaving New Zealand, they toured South Africa very i successfully. Returning to Eh rope they settled down to sis months' bard practice. After that they toured tho United Kingdom and fturopo for over a- year, and then accepted an offer to give another 200 concerts in South Africa. Tho tour was most successful, Back-again to London they went, to find that they had not been forgotten, for London journals stated that they were the only prodigies in which steady inrprovemeut was easily discernible. ' "You know," said Loo, "we were only youngsters when wo first appeared in London. Mischel was not as tall as liis 'cello, ami wo were treated as prodigies. 13ut wo have not rested there; wo never neglect bur practice: wo like to nmko a step forward every year. Then we met Mis 3 Allan, who was going to India, and a, combination was suggested. Wo were so charmed, and sho was so charmed,, with tho idea J and wo ail thought it should interest tho public very muehl In Europe it would bo an absolute, novelty, and .we intend to try it after our'oriental i tour. So far, it has proved a success musically and financially. Wo arc going [ to give -you a new repertoire, and I ' think —but you wilt sen soon."' "We have a good offer, to .go to America next year. We havo not. been ; there yet, and it is a great country for artists. They have pjers jvor ilieir rag= timo eraae, and' havo now got a strong tasto for good music, Very fortunate, '■ too!" . " ■ • Prodigies and Reincarnation. Mr. Loo was asked; if ho knew any-: : thing of Hrielr iiorfigofd, the newest ] Viennese composer promgy. Ho had not; even heard of him—thoy had been cut off a good deal from the world of niusic whilst iti tho Bast, and were hungry for news. "Tho news about Komgold does not surprise me," he said. "It is tho trend of tho ago for the young to bo allowed to display their talent. ' And why not ? A few years ago it was considered wrong to allow prodigies to perform—they should bo kept back or they would wear out. All nonsense! Then they wero permitted to como out when they wore V 3 or 24 years of age, and took another IS years to win a position for themselves—whe» they wore middle-aged people. -1 am a little bit of a Theosophist, and believe in reincarnation. I cannot believe thai a boy of sis or seven years can pifiy divinely, or a kd composes magnificently at fifteen (as in the. case of Koriigold) unless they aro invested with tho spirit of sonio great musician. It is impossible to beiie'vo that their minds are of the same jtge as their little bodies. Where there is genius in a lad I cannot but think that he has tho spirit of ono of tho .great onfes who has passed on. "Another thing, too, I havo noticed— that musical genta is ..invariably given to those who can tako care of it. It is usually given, to tlto poor. Poverty is the greatest asset that an artist can.' have. Oiio knows of so many fi.no artists who have lost their capacity to do their best as soon, as they havo rotindei the corner of Easy Street. Nowadays prodigios «ro thrust forward instead of being kept back, and ovary advantage is given to educate them nhd push thc-m ] on. That is the rational idea." I MEMORIES OF THE EAST, Leo was becoming quite interesting when his brothers Jan and Mischel' burst into tho room. And with Mr. Frank St. Lcger, the aocona* i panist (a confrere of Mr. Walter Murdoch), tho quartet kept up a hot crossfire of reminiscence on their recent tour of tho East. It was truo that tlis Bishop of Bombay and tho Y.M.C.A. I of Bangalore had protested against. tho coming of Miss Maud Allan, and that tho Homo Office had whispered to tho dancer that a visit from her might not bo discreet, but Miss Allan—fighting a world of misunderstanding—merely stated that sho had made her arrangements, and was going to carry them out It was also true that tho first day's booking in Bombay—the opening of tho tour —reached tho vicinity oi £900, and that Parse* and Brahmin joined in adulating tho art of Miss Allan. Tho tour of tho East had been delightful and profitable. . Filipinos and Music, Manila they found most interesting. To their amazomeniv they I'ouud four permanent orchestras in tho city, an« the Filipinos to be wonderfully*gitted peoplo where music was "concerned. ! There was ono orchestra there of SO pci> I formers, conducted by Capt. Loving, an American negro, which was simply amazing. This negro had a few years ago gathered a crowd of Filipinos together, and after examining their hands had selected what instruments they should play. Then ho taught them the instruments, and new they have a band that was almost equal to Sir ■ Henry Woods's Queen Hall Orchestra. This orchestra read 'the. Saint-Sachs's Concerto at sight, and Mr. St. 'Lcger describes its interpretation of Liszt's Second Rhapsody as something magnificent. Ho declares that tho Filipinos are all natural musicians. Even the gharry-bays and tho trades-peoplo'worc. all abk to play some instrument, even if it were only the guitar or mandolin, IJo also heard a young Filipino girl play tho Greig Concerto splendidly. Their season in M'Siils. was most successful, and socially was a ia'io delight,