Scan 209
Voice and violin : sketches, anecdotes, and reminiscences, 1898
10 lines. Read by computer on 3 September 2026. Printed page 189. See the scan on archive.org.
1men as the enthusiastic Abbé Sibire, in France, and Otto, the luthist, in Germany, had in their hands, and under their chins, instruments which were genuine Stainer violins.
3The history of mine may be very briefly told.
5One hot day in June I met at a railway station in London a gentleman who had a delicious tenor voice, and was probably one of the finest English tenors ever born. He had sung with great success the previous night at a concert in which I had played, and on coming off the little stage I had found him at the wings, where he had been listening—which I considered a very great compliment. He told me that he had an old Stainer violin which had lain by among members of his family for many long years; it had finally become his property, and he wished to make me a present of it!
7I implored him to seek among his other friends for some one who really wanted a good violin, as I was already well provided for in that respect. But nothing would prevail upon him to change his mind; he insisted upon giving the instrument to me, saying I might do what I liked with it.
9It was certainly an excellent violin; very old, but in good condition, with rather a bright yellow varnish, mostly covered with one almost black with age. It had a somewhat thin quality of tone, but a tone that was exceedingly brilliant and sweet, especially so on the first string—a characteristic of
The computer misreads some letters and numbers. Where a name matters to you, read the scan.