🎹鋼琴的大千世界/名家名言：「為何稱我為大師？主人在這裡（指著鋼琴），我只是他的奴才。」

— 李斯特著名的弟子，德國鋼琴家、作曲家、教育家 萊森奧爾(Alfred Reisenauer)

Why, there is the master (pointing to the piano), I am only the slave.”

— Alfred Reisenauer (1 November 1863 – 3 October 1907) German pianist, composer, and music educator.

📹 跟隨在李斯特學習長達十二年至李斯特過世(1874-1886)的萊森奧爾，演奏李斯特的第十號匈牙利狂想曲：
https://youtu.be/e12YwuHiQtY

📰 延伸閱讀 - 【李斯特學派 / the school of Liszt】♩.♪
https://www.facebook.com/notes/fan-chiang-yi-%E8%8C%83%E5%A7%9C%E6%AF%85/%E6%9D%8E%E6%96%AF%E7%89%B9%E5%AD%B8%E6%B4%BE-the-school-of-liszt/289155141104454/

———————————————————————1905-1906 鋼琴名家萊森奧爾（Alfred Reisenauer）在美國進行數月的巡迴演出，並接受美國著名音樂雜誌”Etude”的專訪。文章於1906年七月出版，隔年他在德國巡迴演出期間於下榻的飯店房間內過世。

📰 藝術家的養成 - 萊森奧爾的見解
The Making of an Artist - The Views of Alfred Reisenauer.

▪️With Liszt

“When I had reached a certain grade of advancement it was my great fortune to become associated with the immortal Franz Liszt. I consider Liszt the greatest man I have ever met. By this I mean that I have never met, in any other walk of life, a man with the mental grasp, splendid disposition and glorious genius. This may seem a somewhat extravagant statement. I have met many, many great men, rulers, jurists, authors, scientists, teachers, merchants and warriors, but never have I met a man in any position whom I have not thought would have proved the inferior of Franz Liszt, had Liszt chosen to follow the career of the man in question. Liszt’s personality can only be expressed by one word, ‘colossal.’ He had the most generous nature of any man I have ever met. He had aspirations to become a great composer, greater than his own measure of his work as a composer had revealed to him. The dire position of Wagner presented itself. He abandoned his own ambitions— ambitions higher than those he ever held toward piano virtuosity—abandoned them completely to champion the difficult cause of the great Wagner. What Liszt suffered to make this sacrifice, the world does not know. But no finer example of moral heroism can be imagined. His conversations with me upon the subject were so intimate that I do not care to reveal one word.

▪️Liszt’s Pedagogical Methods

“His generosity and personal force in his work with the young artists he assisted, are hard to describe. You ask me whether he had a certain method. I reply, he abhorred methods in the modern sense of the term. His work was eclectic in the highest sense. In one way he could not be considered a teacher at all. He charged no fees and had irregular and somewhat unsystematic classes. In another sense he was the greatest of teachers. Sit at the piano and I will indicate the general plan pursued by Liszt at a lesson.”

Reisenauer is a remarkable and witty mimic of people he desires to describe. The present writer sat at the piano and played at some length through several short compositions, eventually coming to the inevitable “Chopin Valse, Op. 69, No. 1, in A flat major.” In the meanwhile, Reisenauer had gone to another room and, after listening patiently, returned, imitating the walk, facial expression and the peculiar guttural snort characteristic of Liszt in his later years. Then followed a long “kindly sermon” upon the emotional possibilities of the composition. This was interrupted with snorts and went with kaleidoscopic rapidity from French to German and back again many, many times. Imitating Liszt he said, “First of all we must arrive at the very essence of the thing; the germ that Chopin chose to have grow and blossom in his soul. It is, roughly considered, this:（見譜例圖四）

Chopin’s next thought was, no doubt:（見譜例圖五）

But with his unerring good taste and sense of symmetry he writes it so:（見譜例圖六）

Now consider the thing in studying it and while playing it from the composer’s attitude. By this I mean that during the mental process of conception before the actual transference of the thought to paper, the thought itself is in a nebulous condition. The composer sees it in a thousand lights before he actually determines upon the exact form he desires to perpetuate. For instance, this theme might have gone through Chopin’s mind much after this fashion:（見譜例圖七）

The main idea being to reach the embryo of Chopin’s thought and by artistic insight divine the connotation of that thought, as nearly as possible in the light of the treatment Chopin has given it.

“It is not so much the performer’s duty to play mere notes and dynamic marks, as it is for him to make an artistic estimate of the composer’s intention and to feel that during the period of reproduction, he simulates the natural psychological conditions which affected the composer during the actual process of composition. In this way the composition becomes a living entity—a tangible resurrection of the soul of the great Chopin. Without such penetrative genius a pianist is no more than a mere machine and with it he may develop into an artist of the highest type.”

▪️A Unique Attitude.

Reisenauer’s attitude toward the piano is unique and interesting. Musicians are generally understood to have an affectionate regard for their instruments, almost paternal. Not so with Reisenauer. He even goes so far as to make this statement: “I have always been drawn to the piano by a peculiar charm I have never been able to explain to myself. I feel that I must play, play, play, play, play. It has become a second nature to me. I have played so much and so long that the piano has become a part of me. Yet I am never free from the feeling that it is a constant battle with the instrument, and even with my technical resources I am not able to express all the beauties I hear in the music. While music is my very life, I nevertheless hate the piano. I play because I can’t help playing and because there is no other instrument which can come as near imitating the melodies and the harmonies of the music I feel. People say wherever I go, ‘Ah, he is a master.’ What absurdity! I the master? Why, there is the master (pointing to the piano), I am only the slave.”

▪️The Future of Pianoforte Music.

An interesting question that frequently arises in musical circles relates to the future possibilities of the art of composition in its connection with the pianoforte. Not a few have some considerable apprehension regarding the possible dearth of new melodic material and the technical and artistic treatment of such material. “I do not think that there need be any fear of a lack of original melodic material or original methods of treating such material. The possibilities of the art of musical composition have by no means been exhausted. While I feel that in a certain sense, very difficult to illustrate with words, one great ‘school’ of composition for the pianoforte ended with Liszt and the other in Brahms, nevertheless I can but prophesy the arising of many new and wonderful schools in the future. I base my prophecy upon the premises of frequent similiar (sic) conditions during the history of musical art.” These are Reisenauer’s views upon this matter.

Continuing, he said: “It is my ambition to give a lengthy series of recitals, with programs arranged to give a chronological aspect of all the great masterpieces in music. I hope to be enabled to do this before I retire. It is part of a plan to circle the world in a manner that has not yet been done.” When asked whether these programs were to resemble Rubinstein’s famous historical recitals in London, years ago, he replied: “They will be more extensive than the Rubinstein recitals. The times make such a series posssible (sic) now, which Rubinstein would have hesitated to give.”

As to American composers, Reisenauer is so thoroughly and enthusiastically won over by MacDowell that he has not given the other composers sufficient attention to warrant a critical opinion. I found upon questioning, that he had made a genuinely sincere effort to find new material in America, but he said that outside of MacDowell, he found nothing but indifferently good salon-music. With the works of several American composers he was, however, unfamiliar. He has done little or nothing himself as a composer and declared that it was not his forte.

▪️American Musical Taste.

Reisenauer says: “American musical taste is in many ways astonishing. Many musicians who came to America prior to the time of Thomas and Damrosch returned to Europe with what were, no doubt, true stories of the musical conditions in America at that time. These stories were given wide circulation in Europe, and it is difficult for Europeans to understand the cultured condition of the American people at the present time. America can never thank Dr. Leopold Damrosch and Theodore Thomas enough for their unceasing labors. Thanks to the impetus that they gave the movement, it is now possible to play programs in almost any American city that are in no sense different from those one is expected to give in great European capitals. The status of musical education in the leading American cities is surprisingly high. Of course the commercial element necessarily affects it to a certain extent; but in many cases this is not as injurious as might be imagined. The future of music in America seems very roseate to me and I can look back to my American concert tours with great pleasure.

▪️Concert Conditions in America.

“One of the great difficulties, however, in concert touring in America is the matter of enormous distances. I often think that American audiences rarely hear great pianists at their best. Considering the large amounts of money involved in a successful American tour and the business enterprise which must be extremely forceful to make such a tour possible, it is not to be wondered that enormous journeys must be made in ridiculously short time. No one can imagine what this means to even a man of my build.” (Reisenauer is a wonderfully strong and powerful man.) “I have been obliged to play in one Western city one night and in an Eastern city the following night. Hundreds of miles lay between them. In the latter city I was obliged to go directly from the railroad depot to the stage of the concert hall, hungry, tired, travel worn and without practice opportunities. How can a man be at his best under such conditions—yet certain conditions make these things unavoidable in America, and the pianist must suffer occasional criticism for not playing uniformly well. In Europe such conditions do not exist owing to the closely populated districts. I am glad to have the opportunity to make this statement, as no doubt a very great many Americans fail to realize under what distressing conditions an artist is often obliged to play in America.”

Sometimes it takes a firm and decisive reality check to shake us out of deeply ingrained habits. Five years ago, Lily Miss Sunshine and I were asked to endorse Compassion Over Killing’s #VegWeek. At the time, I was still vegetarian, convinced that was enough of a stand against the violence and injustice I abhorred. I’m grateful that it was pointed out to me by friends and fans that I was actively promoting something I hadn't fully adopted myself. This much needed lesson in the importance of walking the talk was exactly what I needed to jolt myself out of my complacency.

From then on, I began to investigate the horrors of the dairy, egg, leather and wool industries and eventually determined that exploitation of any shade or color didn’t sit well with me. Lily and I have been vegan now for nearly 5 years and my only regret is not making the switch sooner. It’s never too late to adopt healthier, kinder habits. In fact, even though Veg Week is in full swing, it’s not too late to sign up for free now at https://vegweek.com/endorsers/.

Where are you on your journey now? Confused about how to get started? Struggling to stay on track? Even if you’re vegan already, sign up to reaffirm your convictions and stand in solidarity with our animal friends.

Leave me a comment below to tell me you’ve signed up so I can provide encouragement and advice. You’ve got this! 🌱💚

Photo by Wendy Loke Photography

#CompassionOverKilling #TryVeg #LilyMissSunshine #RichieKul #VegPledge #vegan #love #animalrights #veganactivist #veganfortheanimals #realmenloveanimals #crueltyfree #plantbased #vegetarian #vegangirl #veganguy #govegan

跳舞的梵谷可能還中了毒？
#本日冷知識1514

有一說認為大畫家梵谷會畫出<收割者The Reaper>跟<靜物：花瓶與15株向日葵 Still Life: Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers>等作品是因為毛地黃過量造成的視覺黃化症 (Xanthopsia)。視覺黃化症患者眼睛看出去的世界總是一片黃色光暈，彷彿所處正座落在陽光熱烈的西班牙。

‘噢，文森這傢伙、這個從荷蘭來的畫家，他當然喜歡黃色。日光的黃暈重新點燃了他那厭惡濃霧、企需溫潤的靈魂。’ -- 保羅 高更
‘Oh yes, he loved yellow, this good Vincent, this painter from Holland — those glimmers of sunlight rekindled his soul, that abhorred the fog, that needed the warmth.’ -- Paul Gauguin

毛地黃能夠增強心臟的收縮能力、控制心跳，是治療心臟衰竭的藥品。18世紀時毛地黃被順勢醫學家認為具有強化心智能力、治療憂鬱、情緒不佳、癲癇等效果。這項推論其中一個依據是梵谷幫他的醫師嘉舍 (Paul-Ferdinand Gachet) 繪製畫像時，醫師手上拿著的就是毛地黃。有些人認為梵谷對黃色近乎瘋狂的熱愛其實來自藥品過量：也就是毛地黃過量時發生的視覺黃化症。梵谷的主治醫師嘉舍是當時知名的順勢療法信徒，自然為這項推論增添了幾分可信色彩。

不過也有一些人認為梵谷對黃色的偏愛在罹患身心症、開始服用毛地黃前就有了；有人認為當毛地黃過量、出現視覺黃化症時，病人可能同時會出現心跳過慢、神智混亂、甚至心律不整。以畫作長期偏黃來看，長期過量的人根本無法作畫、甚至有致死可能。視覺黃化症患者也無法辨識藍色，因為在他們的眼裡藍色會呈現灰暗的綠色，但梵谷的畫作裡仍有不該出現的鮮艷藍色。

也有人認為梵谷之所以會對光影變化這麼敏感、能夠創作出<星夜咖啡The Night Café>與<星夜The Starry Night>，是因為隅角性青光眼而非視覺黃化症。爭論結果如何已未可知，但所謂藝術從來不是自己所見，而是展現在他人眼底的光景(Art is not what you see, but what you make others see)，對嗎？

Ref: Vincent van Gogh’s yellow vision. Br J Gen Pract. 2013 Jul; 63(612): 370–371.

[Mr. Thursday Jr.]

#毛地黃 #梵谷 #冷知識