Section 27 of 37 - Table of Contents
CHAPTER XXVI.
1843-1847.
CHOPIN'S PECUNIARY CIRCUMSTANCES, AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCES WITH
PUBLISHERS.--LETTERS TO FRANCHOMME.--PUBLICATIONS FROM 1842-7.--
SOJOURNS AT NOHANT.--LISZT, MATTHEW ARNOLD, GEORGE SAND, CHARLES
ROLLINAT, AND EUGENE DELACROIX ON NOHANT AND LIFE AT NOHANT.--
CHOPIN'S MODE OF COMPOSITION.--CHOPIN AND GEORGE SAND TAKE UP
THEIR PARIS QUARTERS IN THE CITE D'ORLEANS.--THEIR WAY OF LIFE
THERE, PARTICULARLY CHOPIN'S, AS DESCRIBED BY HIS PUPILS LINDSAY
SLOPER, MATHIAS, AND MADAME DUBOIS, AND MORE ESPECIALLY BY LENZ,
MADAME SAND HERSELF, AND PROFESSOR ALEXANDER CHODZKO (DOMESTIC
RELATIONS, APARTMENTS, MANNERS, SYMPATHIES, HIS TALENT FOR
MIMICRY, GEORGE SAND'S FRIENDS, AND HER ESTIMATE OF CHOPIN'S
CHARACTER).
Chopin's life from 1843 to 1847 was too little eventful to lend
itself to a chronologically progressive narrative. I shall,
therefore, begin this chapter with a number of letters written by
the composer during this period to his friend Franchomme, and
then endeavour to describe Chopin's mode of life, friends,
character, &c.
The following fascicle of letters, although containing less about
the writer's thoughts, feelings, and doings than we could wish,
affords nevertheless matter of interest. At any rate, much
additional light is thrown on Chopin's pecuniary circumstances
and his dealings with his publishers.
Impecuniosity seems to have been a chronic state with the artist
and sometimes to have pressed hard upon him. On one occasion it
even made him write to the father of one of his pupils, and ask
for the payment of the fees for five lessons (100 francs). M.
Mathias tells me that the letter is still in his possession. One
would hardly have expected such a proceeding from a grand
seigneur like Chopin, and many will, no doubt, ask, how it was
that a teacher so much sought after, who got 20 francs a lesson,
and besides had an income from his compositions, was reduced to
such straits. The riddle is easily solved. Chopin was open-handed
and not much of an economist: he spent a good deal on pretty
trifles, assisted liberally his needy countrymen, made handsome
presents to his friends, and is said to have had occasionally to
pay bills of his likewise often impecunious lady-love. Moreover,
his total income was not so large as may be supposed, for
although he could have as many pupils as he wished, he never
taught more than five hours a day, and lived every year for
several months in the country. And then there is one other point
to be taken into consideration: he often gave his lessons gratis.
From Madame Rubio I learned that on one occasion when she had
placed the money for a series of lessons on the mantel-piece, the
master declined to take any of it, with the exception of a 20-
franc piece, for which sum he put her name down on a subscription
list for poor Poles. Lindsay Sloper, too, told me that Chopin
declined payment for the lessons he gave him.
Chopin's business experiences were not, for the most part, of a
pleasant nature; this is shown as much by the facts he mentions
in his letters as by the distrust with which he speaks of the
publishers. Here are some more particulars on the same subject.
Gutmann says that Chopin on his return from Majorca asked
Schlesinger for better terms. But the publisher, whilst
professing the highest opinion of the composer's merit, regretted
that the sale of the compositions was not such as to allow him to
pay more than he had hitherto done. [FOOTNOTE: Chopin's letters
show that Gutmann's statement is correct. Troupenas was Chopin's
publisher for some time after his return from Majorca.] Stephen
Heller remembered hearing that Breitkopf and Hartel, of Leipzig,
wrote to their Paris agent informing him that they would go on
publishing Chopin's compositions, although, considering their by
no means large sale, the terms at which they got them were too
high. Ed. Wolff related to me that one day he drove with his
countryman to the publisher Troupenas, to whom Chopin wished to
sell his Sonata (probably the one in B flat minor). When after
his negotiations with the publisher Chopin was seated again in
the carriage, he said in Polish: "The pig, he offered me 200
francs for my Sonata!" Chopin's relations with England were even
less satisfactory. At a concert at which Filtsch played, Chopin
introduced Stephen Heller to Wessel or to a representative ofthat
firm, but afterwards remarked: "You won't find them pleasant to
deal with." Chopin at any rate did not find them pleasant to deal
with. Hearing that Gutmann was going to London he asked his pupil
to call at Wessel's and try to renew the contract which had
expired. The publisher on being applied to answered that not only
would he not renew the contract, but that he would not even print
Chopin's compositions if he got them for nothing. Among the
pieces offered was the Berceuse. With regard to this story of
Gutmann's it has, however, to be stated that, though it may have
some foundation of fact, it is not true as he told it; for Wessel
certainly had published the Berceuse by June 26, 1845, and also
published in the course of time the five following works. Then,
however, the connection was broken off by Wessel. Chopin's
grumblings at his English publisher brings before us only one
side of the question. The other side comes in view in the
following piece of information with which Wessel's successor, Mr.
Edwin Ashdown, favoured me:--"In 1847 Mr. Wessel got tired of
buying Chopin's works, which at that time had scarcely any sale,
and discontinued the agreement, his last assignment from Chopin
(of Op. 60, 61, and 62) being dated July 17, 1847." Wessel
advertised these works on September 26, 1846.
Although in the first of the following letters the day, month,
and year when it was written are not mentioned, and the second
and third inform us only of the day and month, but not of the
year, internal evidence shows that the first four letters form
one group and belong to the year 1844. Chopin places the date
sometimes at the head, sometimes at the foot, and sometimes in
the middle of his letters; to give it prominence I shall place it
always at the head, but indicate where he places it in the
middle.
Chateau de Nohant, near La Chatre, Indre [August 1, 1844].
Dearest [Cherissime],--I send you [FOOTNOTE: In addressing
Franchomme Chopin makes use of the pronoun of the second
person singular.] the letter from Schlesinger and another for
him. Read them. He wishes to delay the publication, and I
cannot do so. If he says NO, give my manuscripts to Maho
[FOOTNOTE: See next letter.] so that he may get M. Meissonnier
[FOOTNOTE: A Paris music-publisher. He brought out in the
following year (1845) Chopin's Op. 57, Berceuse, and Op. 58,
Sonate (B minor). The compositions spoken of in this and the
next two letters are Op. 55, Deux Nocturnes, and Op. 56, Trois
Mazurkas.] to take them for the same price, 600 francs, I
believe that he (Schlesinger) will engrave them. They must be
published on the 20th. But you know it is only necessary to
register the title on that day. I ask your pardon for
troubling you with all these things. I love you, and apply to
you as I would to my brother. Embrace your children. My
regards to Madame Franchomme.--Your devoted friend,
F. Chopin.
A thousand compliments from Madame Sand.
Chateau de Nohant, Indre, August 2 [1844].
Dearest,--I was in great haste yesterday when I wrote to you
to apply at Meissonnier's through Maho IF SCHLESINGER REFUSES
my compositions. I forgot that Henri Lemoine [FOOTNOTE: A
Paris music-publisher.] paid Schlesinger a very high price for
my studies, and that I had rather have Lemoine engrave my
manuscripts than Meissonnier. I give you much trouble, dear
friend, but here is a letter for H. Lemoine, which I send to
you. Read it, and arrange with him. He must either publish the
compositions or register the titles on the 20th of this month
(August); ask from him only 300 francs for each, which makes
600 francs for the two. Tell him he need not pay me till my
return to Paris if he likes. Give him even the two for 500
francs if you think it necessary. I had rather do that than
give them to Meissonnier for 600 francs, as I wrote to you
yesterday without reflecting. If you have in the meantime
already arranged something with M., it is a different matter.
If not, do not let them go for less than 1,000 francs. For
Maho, who is the correspondent of Haertel (who pays me well)
might, knowing that I sell my compositions for so little in
Paris, make me lower my price in Germany. I torment you much
with my affairs. It is only in case Schlesinger persists in
his intention not to publish this month. If you think Lemoine
would give 800 francs for the two works, ask them. I do not
mention THE PRICE to him so as to leave you complete freedom.
I have no time to lose before the departure of the mail. I
embrace you, dear brother--write me a line.--Yours devotedly,
Chopin.
My regards to Madame. A thousand kisses to your children.
Nohant, Monday, August 4 [1844].
Dearest,--I relied indeed on your friendship--therefore the
celerity with which you have arranged the Schlesinger affair
for me does not surprise me at all. I thank you from the
bottom of my heart, and await the moment when I shall be able
to do as much for you. I imagine all is well in your home--
that Madame Franchomme and your dear children are well--and
that you love me as I love you.--Yours devotedly,
F. CH.
Madame Sand embraces your dear big darling [fanfan], and sends
you a hearty grasp of the hand.
Chateau de Nohant, September 20, 1844.
Dearest,--If I did not write you before, it was because I
thought I should see you again this week in Paris. My
departure being postponed, I send you a line for Schlesinger
so that he may remit to you the price of my last manuscripts,
that is to say, 600 francs (100 of which you will keep for
me). I hope he will do it without making any difficulty about
it--if not, ask him at once for a line in reply (without
getting angry), send it to me, and I shall write immediately
to M. Leo to have the 500 francs you had the kindness to lend
me remitted to you before the end of the month.
What shall I say? I often think of our last evening spent with
my dear sister. [FOOTNOTE: His sister Louise, who had been on
a visit to him.] How glad she was to hear you! She wrote to me
about it since from Strasburg, and asked me to remember her to
you and Madame Franchomme. I hope you are all well, and that I
shall find you so. Write to me, and love me as I love you.
Your old
[A scrawl.]
A thousand compliments to Madame. I embrace your dear
children. A thousand compliments from Madame Sand.
[Date.]
I send you also a receipt for Schlesinger which you will give
up to him for the money only. Once more, do not be vexed if he
makes any difficulties. I embrace you.
C.
August 30, 1845.
Very dear friend,--Here are three manuscripts for Brandus,
[FOOTNOTE: Brandus, whose name here appears for the first time
in Chopin's letters, was the successor of Schlesinger.] and
three for Maho, who will remit to you Haertel's price for them
(1,500 francs). Give the manuscripts only at the moment of
payment. Send a note for 500 francs in your next letter, and
keep the rest for me. I give you much trouble, I should like
to spare you it--but--but----.
Ask Maho not to change the manuscripts destined for Haertel,
because, as I shall not correct the Leipzig proofs, it is
important that my copy should be clear. Also ask Brandus to
send me two proofs, one of which I may keep.
Now, how are you? and Madame Franchomme and her dear children?
I know you are in the country--(if St. Germain may be called
country)--that ought to do you all infinite good in the fine
weather which we continue to have. Look at my erasures! I
should not end if I were to launch out into a chat with you,
and I have not time to resume my letter, for Eug. Delacroix,
who wishes much to take charge of my message for you, leaves
immediately. He is the most admirable artist possible--I have
spent delightful times with him. He adores Mozart--knows all
his operas by heart.
Decidedly I am only making blots to-day--pardon me for them.
Au revoir, dear friend, I love you always, and I think of you
every day.
Give my kind regards to Madame Franchomme, and embrace the
dear children.
September 22, 1845.
Very dear friend,--I thank you with all my heart for all your
journeys after Maho, and your letter which I have just
received with the money. The day of the publication seems to
me good, and I have only to ask you again not to let Brandus
fall asleep on my account or over my accounts.
Nohant, July 8, 1846.
Very dear friend,--It was not because I did not think of it
that I have not written to you sooner, but because I wished to
send you at the same time my poor manuscripts, which are not
yet finished. In the meantime here is a letter for M. Brandus.
When you deliver it to him, be so kind as to ask him for a
line in reply, which you will have the goodness to send to me;
because if any unforeseen event occurs, I shall have to apply
to Meissonnier, their offers being equal.
My good friend,--I am doing my utmost to work, but I do not
get on; and if this state of things continues, my new
productions will no longer remind people either of the
WARBLING OF LINNETS [gazouillement des fauvettes] [FOOTNOTE:
This is an allusion to a remark which somebody made on his
compositions.] or even of BROKEN CHINA [porcelaine cassee]. I
must resign myself.
Write to me. I love you as much as ever.
A thousand kind regards to Madame Franchomme, and many
compliments from my sister Louise. I embrace your dear
children.
[Date.]
Madame Sand begs to be remembered to you and Madame
Franchomme.
Chateau de Nohant, near La Chatre, September 17, 1846.
Very dear friend,--I am very sorry that Brandus is away, and
that Maho is not yet in a position to receive the manuscripts
that he has so often asked me for this winter. One must
therefore wait; meanwhile I beg you will be so kind as to go
back AS SOON as you judge it possible, for I should not now
like this to be a long business, having sent my copy to London
at the same time as to you. Do not tell them this--if they are
CLEVER tradesmen [marchands habiles] they may cheat me like
honest people [en honnetes gens]. As this is all my present
fortune I should prefer the affair to turn out differently.
Also have the kindness not to consign my manuscripts to them
without receiving the money agreed upon, and send me
immediately a note for 500 francs in your letter. You will
keep the rest for me till my arrival in Paris, which will take
place probably in the end of October. I thank you a thousand
times, dear friend, for your good heart and friendly offers.
Keep your millions for me till another time--is it not already
too much to dispose of your time as I do?
[Here follow compliments to and friendly enquiries after
Franchomme's family.]
Madame Sand sends you a thousand compliments and desires to be
remembered to Madame Franchomme.
[Date.]
I shall answer Madame Rubio. [FOOTNOTE: Nee Vera de
Kologriwof, a pupil of Chopin's and teacher of music in Paris;
she married Signor Rubio, an artist, and died in the summer of
1880 at Florence.] If Mdlle. Stirling [FOOTNOTE: A Scotch lady
and pupil of Chopin's; I shall have to say more about her by-
and-by. Madame Erskine was her elder sister.] is at St.
Germain, do not forget to remember me to her, also to Madame
Erskine.
This will be the proper place to mention the compositions of the
years 1842-47, about the publication of many of which we have
read so much in the above letters. There is no new publication to
be recorded in 1842. The publications of 1843 were: in February--
Op. 51, Allegro vivace, Troisieme Impromptu (G flat major),
dedicated to Madame la Comtesse Esterhazy; in December--Op. 52,
Quatrieme Ballade (F minor), dedicated to Madame la Baronne C. de
Rothschild; Op. 53, Huitieme Polonaise (A flat major), dedicated
to Mr. A. Leo; and Op. 54, Scherzo, No. 4 (E major), dedicated to
Mdlle. J. de Caraman. Those of 1844 were: in August--Op. 55, Deux
Nocturnes (F minor and E flat major), dedicated to Mdlle. J. H.
Stirling; and Op. 56, Trois Mazurkas (A minor, A flat major, and
F sharp minor), dedicated to Mdlle. C. Maberly. Those of 1845: in
May--Op. 57, Berceuse (D flat major), dedicated to Mdlle. Elise
Gavard; and in June--Op. 58, Sonate (B minor), dedicated to
Madame la Comtesse E. de Perthuis. Those of 1846: in April--Op.
59, Trois Mazurkas (A minor, A flat major, and F sharp minor);
and in September--Op. 60, Barcarole (F sharp major), dedicated to
Madame la Baronne de Stockhausen; Op. 61, Polonaise-Fantaisie (A
flat major), dedicated to Madame A. Veyret; and Op. 62, Deux
Nocturnes (B major and E major), dedicated to Mdlle. R. de
Konneritz. Those of 1847: in September--Op. 63, Trois Mazurkas (B
major, F minor, and C sharp minor), dedicated to Madame la
Comtesse L. Czosnowska, and Op. 64, Trois Valses (D flat major, C
sharp minor, and A flat major), respectively dedicated to Madame
la Comtesse Delphine Potocka, Madame la Baronne Nathaniel de
Rothschild, and Madame la Baronne Bronicka; and lastly, in
October--Op. 65, Sonate (G minor), pour piano et violoncelle,
dedicated to Mr. A. Franchomme.
From 1838 to 1846 Chopin passed regularly every year, with the
exception of 1840, three or four months at Nohant. The musical
papers announced Chopin's return to town sometimes at the
beginning of October, sometimes at the beginning of November. In
1844 he must either have made a longer stay at Nohant than usual
or paid it a visit during the winter, for in the "Gazette
musicale" of January 5, 1845, we read: "Chopin has returned to
Paris and brought with him a new grand Sonata and variantes.
These two important works will soon be published."
[FOOTNOTE: The new Sonata here mentioned is the one in B minor,
Op. 58, which was published in June, 1845. As to the other item
mentioned, I am somewhat puzzled. Has the word to be taken in its
literal sense of "various readings," i.e., new readings of works
already known (the context, however, does not favour this
supposition), or does it refer to the ever-varying evolutions of
the Berceuse, Op. 57. published in May, 1845, or, lastly, is it
simply a misprint?]
George Sand generally prolonged her stay at Nohant till pretty
far into the winter, much to the sorrow of her malade ordinaire
(thus Chopin used to style himself), who yearned for her return
to Paris.
According to Liszt, the country and the vie de chateau pleased
Chopin so much that for the sake of enjoying them he put up with
company that did not please him at all. George Sand has a
different story to tell. She declares that the retired life and
the solemnity of the country agreed neither with Chopin's
physical nor with his moral health; that he loved the country
only for a fortnight, after which he bore it only out of
attachment to her; and that he never felt regret on leaving it.
Whether Chopin loved country life or not, whether he liked George
Sand's Berry friends and her guests from elsewhere or not, we may
be sure that he missed Paris and his accustomed Paris society.
"Of all the troubles I had not to endure but to contend against,
the sufferings of my malade ordinaire were not the least," says
George Sand. "Chopin always wished for Nohant, and never could
bear it." And, speaking of the later years, when the havoc made
in Chopin's constitution by the inroads of his malady showed
itself more and more, she remarks: "Nohant had become repugnant
to him. His return in the spring still filled him with ecstatic
joy for a short time. But as soon as he began to work everything
round him assumed a gloomy aspect."
Before we peep into Chopin's room and watch him at work, let us
see what the chateau of Nohant and life there were like. "The
railway through the centre of France went in those days [August,
1846] no further than Vierzon," [FOOTNOTE: The opening of the
extension of the line to Chateauroux was daily expected at that
time.] writes Mr. Matthew Arnold in an account of a visit paid by
him to George Sand:--
From Vierzon to Chateauroux one travelled by an ordinary
diligence, from Chateauroux to La Chatre by a humbler
diligence, from La Chatre to Broussac by the humblest
diligence cf. all. At Broussac diligence ended, and PATACHE
began. Between Chateauroux and La Chatre, a mile or two before
reaching the latter place, the road passes by the village of
Nohant. The chateau of Nohant, in which Madame Sand lived, is
a plain house by the roadside, with a walled garden. Down in
the meadows not far off flows the Indre, bordered by trees.
The Chateau of Nohant is indeed, as Mr. Matthew Arnold says, a
plain house, only the roof with its irregularly distributed
dormars and chimney-stacks of various size giving to it a touch
of picturesqueness. On the other hand, the ground-floor, with its
central door flanked on each side by three windows, and the seven
windowed story above, impresses one with the sense of
spaciousness.
Liszt, speaking of a three months' stay at Nohant made by himself
and his friend the Comtesse d'Agoult in the summer of 1837--i.e.,
before the closer connection of George Sand and Chopin began--
relates that the hostess and her guests spent the days in reading
good books, receiving letters from absent friends, taking long
walks on the banks of the Indre, and in other equally simple
occupations and amusements. In the evenings they assembled on the
terrace. There, where the light of the lamps cast fantastic
shadows on the neighbouring trees, they sat listening to the
murmuring of the river and the warbling of the nightingales, and
breathing in the sweet perfume of the lime-trees and the stronger
scent of the larches till the Countess would exclaim: "There you
are again dreaming, you incorrigible artists! Do you not know
that the hour for working has come?" And then George Sand would
go and write at the book on which she was engaged, and Liszt
would betake himself to the old scores which he was studying with
a view to discover some of the great masters' secrets. [FOOTNOTE:
Liszt. "Essays and Reisebriefe eines Baccalaureus der Tonkunst."
Vol. II., pp. 146 and 147 of the collected works.]
Thus was Nohant in quiet days. But the days at Nohant were by no
means always quiet. For George Sand was most hospitable, kept
indeed literally open house for her friends, and did so
regardless of credit and debit. The following passage from a
letter written by her in 1840 from Paris to her half-brother
Hippolyte Chatiron gives us a good idea of the state of matters:-
-
If you will guarantee my being able to pass the summer at
Nohant for 4,000 francs, I will go. But I have never been
there without spending 1,500 francs per month, and as I do not
spend here the half of this, it is neither the love of work,
nor that of spending, nor that of GLORY, which makes me stay.
I do not know whether I have been pillaged; but I am at a loss
how to avoid it with my nonchalance, in so vast a house, and
so easy a kind of life as that of Nohant. Here I can see
clearly; everything is done under my eyes as I understand and
wish it. At Nohant--let this remain between us--you know that
before I am up a dozen people have often made themselves at
home in the house. What can I do? Were I to pose as a good
manager [econome] they would accuse me of stinginess; were I
to let things go on, I should not be able to provide for them.
Try if you can find a remedy for this.
In George Sand's letters many glimpses may be caught of the life
at Nohant. To some of them I have already drawn the reader's
attention in preceding chapters; now I shall point out a few
more.
George Sand to Madame Marliani; Nohant, August 13, 1841:--
I have had all my nights absorbed by work and fatigue. I have
passed all my days with Pauline [Viardot] in walking, playing
at billiards, and all this makes me so entirely go out of my
indolent character and lazy habits that, at night, instead of
working quickly, I fall stupidly asleep at every
line....Viardot [Louis Viardot, the husband of Pauline] passes
his days in poaching with my brother and Papet; for the
shooting season has not yet begun, and they brave the laws,
divine and human. Pauline reads with Chopin whole scores at
the piano. She is always good-natured and charming, as you
know her.
George Sand to Mdlle. Rozieres: Nohant, October 15, 1841:--
Papet is in the depths of the forests; in "Erymanthe" at
least, hunting the wild boar. Chopin is in Paris, and he has
relapsed, as he says, into his triples croches
[demisemiquavers].
George Sand to Mdlle. Rozieres; Nohant, May 9, 1842:--
Quick to work! Your master, the great Chopin, has forgotten
(that for which he nevertheless cares a great deal) to buy a
beautiful present for Francoise, my faithful servant, whom he
adores, and he is very right.
He begs of you therefore to send him, IMMEDIATELY, four yards
of lace, two fingers broad at least, within the price of ten
francs a yard; further, a shawl of whatever material you like,
within the price of forty francs....This, then, is the superb
present which your HONOURED MASTER asks you to get for him,
with an eagerness worthy of the ardour which he carries into
his gifts, and of the impatience which he puts into little
things.
Charles Rollinat, a friend of George Sand's, the brother of one
of George Sand's most intimate and valued friends, Francois
Rollinat, published in "Le Temps" (September 1, 1874) a charming
"Souvenir de Nohant," which shows us the the chateau astir with a
more numerous company:--
The hospitality there [he writes] was comfortable, and the
freedom absolute. There were guns and dogs for those who loved
hunting, boats and nets for those who loved fishing, a
splendid garden to walk in. Everyone did as he liked. Liszt
and Chopin composed; Pauline Garcia studied her role of the
"Prophete"; the mistress of the house wrote a romance or a
drama; and it was the same with the others. At six o'clock
they assembled again to dine, and did not part company till
two or three o'clock in the morning.
Chopin rarely played. He could only be prevailed upon to play
when he was sure of perfection. Nothing in the world would
have made him consent to play indifferently. Liszt, on the
contrary, played always, well or badly.
[FOOTNOTE: Charles Rollinat, a younger brother of Francois, went
afterwards to Russia, where, according to George Sand (see letter
to Edmond Plauchut, April 8, 1874), he was for twenty-five years
"professeur de musique et haut enseignement, avec une bonne place
du gouvernement." He made a fortune and lost it, retaining only
enough to live upon quietly in Italy. He tried then to supplement
his scanty income by literary work (translations from the
Russian). George Sand, recalling the days of long ago, says: "Il
chantait comme on ne chante plus, excepte Pauline [Viardot-
Garcia]!"]
Unfortunately, the greater portion of M. Rollinat's so-called
Souvenir consists of "poetry WITHOUT truth." Nevertheless, we
will not altogether ignore his pretty stories.
One evening when Liszt played a piece of Chopin's with
embellishments of his own, the composer became impatient and at
last, unable to restrain himself any longer, walked up to Liszt
and said with his ENGLISH PHLEGM:--
"I beg of you, my dear friend, if you do me the honour to play
a piece of mine, to play what is written, or to play something
else. It is only Chopin who has the right to alter Chopin."
"Well! play yourself!" said Liszt, rising from his seat a
little irritated,
"With pleasure," said Chopin.
At that moment a moth extinguished the lamp. Chopin would not
have it relighted, and played in the dark. When he had
finished his delighted auditors overwhelmed him with
compliments, and Liszt said:
"Ah, my friend, you were right! The works of a genius like you
are sacred; it is a profanation to meddle with them. You are a
true poet, and I am only a mountebank."
Whereupon Chopin replied: "We have each our genre."
M. Rollinat then proceeds to tell his readers that Chopin,
believing he had eclipsed Liszt that evening, boasted of it, and
said: "How vexed he was!" It seems that the author felt that this
part of the story put a dangerously severe strain on the
credulity of his readers, for he thinks it necessary to assure
them that these were the ipsissima verba of Chopin. Well, the
words in question came to the ears of Liszt, and he resolved at
once to have his revenge.
Five days afterwards the friends were again assembled in the same
place and at the same time. Liszt asked Chopin to play, and had
all the lights put out and all the curtains drawn; but when
Chopin was going to the piano, Liszt whispered something in his
ear and sat down in his stead. He played the same composition
which Chopin had played on the previous occasion, and the
audience was again enchanted. At the end of the piece Liszt
struck a match and lighted the candles which stood on the piano.
Of course general stupefaction ensued.
"What do you say to it?" said Liszt to his rival.
"I say what everyone says; I too believed it was Chopin."
"You see," said the virtuoso rising, "that Liszt can be Chopin
when he likes; but could Chopin be Liszt?"
Instead of commenting on the improbability of a generous artist
thus cruelly taunting his sensitive rival, I shall simply say
that Liszt had not the slightest recollection of ever having
imitated Chopin's playing in a darkened room. There may be some
minute grains of truth mixed up with all this chaff of fancy--
Chopin's displeasure at the liberties Liszt took with his
compositions was no doubt one of them--but it is impossible to
separate them.
M. Rollinat relates also how in 184-, when Chopin, Liszt, the
Comtesse d'Agoult, Pauline Garcia, Eugene Delacroix, the actor
Bocage, and other celebrities were at Nohant, the piano was one
moonlit night carried out to the terrace; how Liszt played the
hunting chorus from Weber's Euryanthe, Chopin some bars from an
impromptu he was then composing; how Pauline Garcia sang Nel cor
piu non mi sento, and a niece of George Sand a popular air; how
the echo answered the musicians; and how after the music the
company, which included also a number of friends from the
neighbouring town, had punch and remained together till dawn. But
here again M. Rollinat's veracity is impugned on all sides.
Madame Viardot-Garcia declares that she was never at Nohant when
Liszt was there; and Liszt did not remember having played on the
terrace of the chateau. Moreover, seeing that the first
performance of the Prophete took place on April 16, 1849, is it
likely that Madame Pauline Garcia was studying her part before or
in 1846? And unless she did so she could not meet Chopin at
Nohant when she was studying it.
M. Rollinat is more trustworthy when he tells us that there was a
pretty theatre and quite an assortment of costumes at the
chateau; that the dramas and comedies played there were
improvised by the actors, only the subject and the division into
scenes being given; and that on two pianos, concealed by
curtains, one on the right and one on the left of the stage,
Chopin and Liszt improvised the musical part of the
entertainment. All this is, however, so much better and so much
more fully told by George Sand (in Dernieres Pages: Le Theatre
des Marionnettes de Nohant) that we will take our information
from her. It was in the long nights of a winter that she
conceived the plan of these private theatricals in imitation of
the comedia dell' arte--namely, of "pieces the improvised
dialogue of which followed a written sketch posted up behind the
scenes."
They resembled the charades which are acted in society and
which are more or less developed according to the ensemble and
the talent of the performers. We had begun with these. By
degrees the word of the charade disappeared and we played
first mad saynetes, then comedies of intrigues and adventures,
and finally dramas of incidents and emotions. The whole thing
began by pantomime, and this was of Chopin's invention; he
occupied the place at the piano and improvised, while the
young people gesticulated scenes and danced comic ballets. I
leave you to imagine whether these now wonderful, now charming
improvisations quickened the brains and made supple the legs
of our performers. He led them as he pleased and made them
pass, according to his fancy, from the droll to the severe,
from the burlesque to the solemn, from the graceful to the
passionate. We improvised costumes in order to play
successively several roles. As soon as the artist saw them
appear, he adapted his theme and his accent in a marvellous
manner to their respective characters. This went on for three
evenings, and then the master, setting out for Paris, left us
thoroughly stirred up, enthusiastic, and determined not to
suffer the spark which had electrified us to be lost.
To get away from the quicksands of Souvenirs--for George Sand's
pages, too, were written more than thirty years after the
occurrences she describes, and not published till 1877--I shall
make some extracts from the contemporaneous correspondence of
George Sand's great friend, the celebrated painter Eugene
Delacroix. [FOOTNOTE: Lettres de Eugene Delacroix (1815 a 1863)
recucillies et publiees par M. Philippe Burty. Paris, 1878.] The
reader cannot fail to feel at once the fresh breeze of reality
that issues from these letters, which contain vivid sketches full
of natural beauties and free from affectation and striving after
effect:--
Nohant, June 7, 1842.
...The place is very pleasant, and the hosts do their utmost
to please me. When we are not assembled to dine, breakfast,
play at billiards, or walk, we are in our rooms, reading, or
resting on our sofas. Now and then there come to you through
the window opening on the garden, whiffs of the music of
Chopin, who is working in his room; this mingles with the song
of the nightingales and the odour of the roses. You see that
so far I am not much to be pitied, and, nevertheless, work
must come to give the grain of salt to all this. This life is
too easy, I must purchase it with a little racking of my
brains; and like the huntsman who eats with more appetite when
he has got his skin torn by bushes, one must strive a little
after ideas in order to feel the charm of doing nothing.
Nohant, June 14, 1842.
...Although I am in every respect most agreeably
circumstanced, both as regards body and mind, for I am in much
better health, I have not been able to prevent myself from
thinking of work. How strange! this work is fatiguing, and yet
the species of activity it gives to the mind is necessary to
the body itself. In vain did I try to get up a passion for
billiards, in which I receive a lesson every day, in vain have
I good conversations on all the subjects that please me, music
that I seize on the wing and by whiffs, I have felt the need
of doing something. I have begun a Sainte-Anne for the parish,
and I have already set it agoing.
Nohant, June 22, 1842.
...Pen and ink certainly become more and more repugnant to me.
I have no more than you any event to record. I lead a monastic
life, and as monotonous as it well can be. No event varies the
course of it. We expected Balzac, who has not come, and I am
not sorry. He is a babbler who would have destroyed this
harmony of NONCHALANCE which I am enjoying thoroughly; at
intervals a little painting, billiards, and walking, that is
more than is necessary to fill up the days. There is not even
the distraction of neighbours and friends from the environs;
in this part of the country everyone remains at home and
occupies him self with his oxen and his land. One would become
a fossil here in a very short time.
I have interminable private interviews with Chopin, whom I
love much, and who is a man of a rare distinction; he is the
most true artist I have met. He is one of the few one can
admire and esteem. Madame Sand suffers frequently from violent
headaches and pains in her eyes, which she tries to master as
much as possible and with much strength of will, so as not to
weary us with what she suffers.
The greatest event of my stay has been a peasants' ball on the
lawn of the chateau with the best bagpipers of the place. The
people of this part of the country present a remarkable type
of gentleness and good nature; ugliness is rare here, though
beauty is not often seen, but there is not that kind of fever
which is observable in the peasants of the environs of Paris.
All the women have the appearance of those sweet faces one
sees only in the pictures of the old masters. They are all
Saint Annes.
Amidst the affectations, insincerities, and superficialities of
Chopin's social intercourse, Delacroix's friendship--we have
already seen that the musician reciprocated the painter's
sentiments--stands out like a green oasis in a barren desert.
When, on October 28, 1849, a few days after Chopin's death,
Delacroix sent a friend a ticket for the funeral service of the
deceased, he speaks of him as "my poor and dear Chopin." But the
sincerity of Delacroix's esteem and the tenderness of his love
for Chopin are most fully revealed in some lines of a letter
which he wrote on January 7, 1861, to Count Czymala [Grzymala]:--
When I have finished [the labours that took up all his time],
I shall let you know, and shall see you again, with the
pleasure I have always had, and with the feelings your kind
letter has reanimated in me. With whom shall I speak of the
incomparable genius whom heaven has envied the earth, and of
whom I dream often, being no longer able to see him in this
world nor to hear his divine harmonies.
If you see sometimes the charming Princess Marcelline
[Czartoryska], another object of my respect, place at her feet
the homage of a poor man who has not ceased to be full of the
memory of her kindnesses and of admiration for her talent,
another bond of union with the seraph whom we have lost and
who, at this hour, charms the celestial spheres.
The first three of the above extracts from Delacroix's letters
enable us to form a clear idea of what the everyday life at
Nohant was like, and after reading them we can easily imagine
that its monotony must have had a depressing effect on the
company-loving Chopin. But the drawback was counterbalanced by an
advantage. At Paris most of Chopin's time was occupied with
teaching and the pleasures of society, at Nohant he could devote
himself undisturbed and undistracted to composition. And there is
more than sufficient evidence to prove that in this respect
Chopin utilised well the quiet and leisure of his rural
retirement.
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