Bartók Béla, ifj.: Chronicles of Béla Bartók's Life (Budapest, 2021)

School Years (1890–1903)

SCHOOL YEARS (1 890-1 903)

1902

one of them: “No news for a card, so God be with you! B”

29 October

- Visit at Mrs Gruber s, who lends him Dohnányi

’

s Symphony

in which he is really interested. - He writes a letter to his mother.

1 November

- Adolf Schiffer gives him Dohnányis

Cello

Sonata for studying, which they will then play on 2 November.

2 November

- He sends a picture postcard with no text to his sister.

4 November

- Visit at Thomán

’s, who

roped Bartok into a gratis concert again, about which he is not happy at all.

5 November

- Concert of the Philharmonics. Tenor Ernst Kraus from Berlin sings one number from Meistersinger and one from Walkyrie, badly; Webers Jubel-Ouvertüre,

Svendsens

Norwegian Rhapsody, and Goldmarks Symphony Village Wedding are conducted by István

Kerner; the Svendsen “isn’t worth much”, the Goldmark piece is “really beautiful lovely composition”. He writes his mother that he has got 3 Dohnányi

pieces

at disposition at the same time, of which the symphony is superb, magnificent. About his own symphony he writes that it might be ready by Christmas, he will then orchestrate it. (This got accomplished only in part.)

7 November

- Visit at Hotel ‘Queen of England’, where he undertakes teaching the piano and music theory to the 16-year-old daughter of Drakulics, lawyer from Szabadka,

and

promptly gives a lesson.

8 November

- He plays Dohnányis

symphony

in Mrs Gruber’s salon for a big company, getting mixed reactions from the mostly nonprofessional audience, which he feels sorry about because he likes the whole piece.

9 November

- Lunch at the Gárdonys

’.

10 November

- Evening of the Hubay-Popper Quartet. “Nothing outstanding.”

12 November

- He presents the Adagio movement of his symphony to János Koessler

who, although not liking it, says : if nothing better comes to his mind, this movement can stay. In the evening at the

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