Be in earnest; put your heart, your whole soul, your whole self into
your playing."
Among other pieces we studied together was the Schumann sonata in F
minor, the _Eusebius Sonata_--a glorious work! In the opening movement
the left hand should be very serious and ponderous, with the hand and
fingers held close to the keys; using arm weight. The melody in octaves
in right hand is beseeching, pleading, imploring. In many places the
touch is very elastic. The second movement begins very softly, as though
one heard something faintly in the distance, and did not quite know what
it was, but thought it might be music. The accents in this movement are
to be understood in a comparative degree, and are not as strong as the
marks seem to indicate. The Scherzo is extremely pompous and is to be
played with heavy accents and a great deal of vim and go; the chords
with the utmost freedom and dash. One must use the "letting-go"
principle, which Paderewski has to perfection.
We next took up the Grieg Concerto; the Peter's edition of this work has
been corrected by the composer. At the first lesson, Dr. Mason
accompanied on a second piano, and seemed pleased with the work I had
done, making no corrections, except to suggest a somewhat quicker tempo.
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