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I'm almost finished with Alan Walker's bio of Hans von Bulow, one of the most important pianist/conductors of his time. I highly recommend the book and found it more enjoyable than Walker's Liszt triography(just too immense for me).

Walker gives a page of von Bulow aphorisms in the chapter on von Bulow's masterclasses during 1884-1887. Some may be very familiar...others not so.

1.Talent is industry.

2.Whoever cannot sing(whether the voice be beautiful or unbeautiful) should not play the piano.

3.In the beginning was rhythm.

4.Crescendo means piano. Diminuendo means forte. You must not begin by being at once what you are yet to become.

5.When you make music your permanent condition must be that you are highly dissatisfied with yourself. Then you must ask yourself, what is the reason that you are highly dissatisfied?

6. With Bach you must always be aware that whenever he composes keyboard music, it is the organ that strikes his imagination. With Beethoven it was the orchestra; with Brahms it is both.

7. With Beethoven one must place one's technique in the shadows, not bring it into the light.

8. There are three grades of musical performance. One can play correctly, beautifully, and interestingly. But one must not play so interestinly that it ceases to be beautiful; and not so beautifully that it ceases to be correct.

Comments on any of these welcome.

My life is over



I've been thinking about this one, and I'm not quite sure what it means. Does it mean that you aren't supposed to seem like you have good technique when playing Beethoven? But how do you not show that off? You DO have to have good technique to play Beethoven...hmm

It means that one shouldn't approach a Beethoven work as a technical display even if the technique required is very difficult.

Oh! It's MUSIC, not an exercise! Of course!

I very much like no 8. I should put it on the wall above my piano and return to aiming for the first of the three, hoping for future inspiration.

Personally I don't mind if Interesting slightly ecpipses beauty and correctness for a moment or two.

I think it means you must hear the music within and be able to sing within, regardless of what comes out...
I used to sing as a child, but I don't sing any more now...

Oh good. I can do that. I know how it's supposed to sound, that's how I know I can't sing...

I think that's enough, that's why the quote says "whether the voice be beautiful or unbeautiful"... Sometimes the reasons why someone cannot sing ("externally" so to speak) don't have anything to do with musicality. The reasons are simply physical sometimes. At least I think so, maybe those who professionally sing here can say more...

I think that one is somewhat related to the other one I quoted, except in general, not just about Beethoven. You can't just look at playing piano as pushing down keys in rhythm, you have to feel the music, and hear how it sounds in your head. Ahh, but it's so hard to make it sound how I want it to sound.

Bulow: The three greatest composers are Bach, Beethoven and Brahms. All the others are cretins. (Sometimes translated as 'idiots'.)

Moszkowski then commented: The three greatest composers are Mendelssohn, Meyerbeer and Moszkowski. All the others are Christians!

I think it means Von Bulow liked to pontificate.

No lie. I think it should eclipse them at all times, unless the interest actually lies in the beauty or in the correctness, which can happen.

These are great. Especially like #5. Thanks for posting them.

What does he mean "Talent is industry"?

Talent is a product of hard work.