irtuoso vehicle, recorded in the year ofrnhis American debut, puts I leifetz alongsidernsvich other pupils of Leopold Auerrnas Mischa Elnian, Efrem Zimbalist,rnNathan Milstein, Toscha Seidel, Eddy-rnBrown, Mischel Piastro, and CeciliarnHansen, hi such a comprehensive collection,rnLeopold Avier himself finds arnplace, as well as another Auer pupil whorndid not emigrate westward, MironrnPolyakin. Thus the Auer influence andrnthe Russian school—as well as otherrnRussian violinists—are represented inrndepth. That school and style seem todayrnto have become the internationalrnstandard, eclipsing the national traditionsrnthat are also surveyed in the Pearlrncollection.rnNineteenth-century musicianship isrnbest personified in Joseph Joachim,rnwho—born in 1831—was a friend ofrnSchumann and Brahms and an associaternof Mendelssohn and Liszt. ThernBruch Violin Concerto in C Minor, thernDorak Violin Concerto, and thernBrahms Violin and Double Concertosrnwere all written for Joachim, who vetrnlix’cd long enough to record. So didrnPablo de Sarasate, for whom Saint-Sacnsrnwrote his Rondo Capriccioso, Lalo hisrnSymphonie espagnole, and Bruch hisrnScottish Fantasy. Other masters to bernheard in their historical matrix are EugenernYsave, Jcno Hubay, Georges Enescu,rnAdolph Busch, Arnold Rose, CarlrnFlesch, Jan Kubelik, and Erans von Vccx.rnThese and others document the traditionsrnof Romantic virtuosity, of variousrnand varied national schools, and ofrncultures blasted awa b’ the P’irst WorldrnWar, The expressive portamento, andrnmuch of the violin repertory, was madernto seem quaint by the reductive processesrnof modernization; in that sense,rn’ihe Recorded Violin has a social as wellrnas a nrusieal aspect. The violin is, amongrnother things, a measure of historv.rn1 here can be no ciuestion that thesernsih’cr discs, conflating so nrany old shellacs,rncondense too the experience ofrngenerations. Their fascination, morernthan individual and musical, is also nationalrnand even international. Yet theirrnfirst call upon our attention is the mostrnimportant one—and that is immediaternpleasure. This discopaedia is no chorernto listen to—quite the opposite. It is arnsource of delight and of surprise. RenernBencdetti (1901-1975) seems as attractivernin tlic sketch prcnided in the notesrnas he does in Zoubok’s Deux Minutes dernjazz. Jean-Jacques Kantarow said ofrnhim,rnBencdetti was the most extraordinaryrnplayer, technically flawless,rnone of the best players of all time.rnHe didn’t make a big career becausernhe didn’t want to, althoughrnhe seems to have played everywherernat least once. He preferredrngiving lessons, had a fantastic triornwith Navarra and Benvcnuti, therntechnique of a f leifetz, the charmrnof I’hibaud, and nothing to provernin the world. In a sense, herncouldn’t really teach, since pla-rning was so easy for him. He usedrnto sit on the sofa and tell us torn”play just like I do,” as he effortlesslyrnplayed Paganini at any timernof day. He had an old timer’s approachrnto music; fantastic soundrnand no defined five-position technique;rninstead, something in betweenrnwith a lot of extensions andrncontractions with the left hand.rnNeed I add that Kantarow’s observationsrnseem quite audibh borne out?rnSimilarly, the “charming and stylishrnRenee Chemet,” who is heard inrnTchaikovsky’s Nocturne, really does playrnwith charm and style. And it is intriguingrnand chilling to read that “in 1932rnshe forsook Europe for the Ear East andrnthe rest of her career is shrouded in mystery.”rnBut in a more normal vein, GeorgesrnEnescu’s 1929 performance of Chausson’srnPoeme Op. 29 is a revelation ofrntempo flexibility and varied tone colors.rnMay Harrison, accompanied by SirrnArnold Bax, plays the First Sonata ofrnDelius with flair, imagination, and mastery.rnThese two performances alonernseem to me not only treasures but alsornchallenges. They are a rebuke to contemporaryrnpride and shallov’ musicianship.rnSuch shrewdness, saoir faire, andrnspirit are not to be found among thernslick effusions of contemporary violinists.rnThese rare recordings and others—rnglories of The Recorded Violin—arerncompelling reasons for its acquisitionrnand thoughtful audition. This toweringrnevidence of our 19th-ccnturv heritagernsuggests how much we hae expungedrnand exhausted in the 20th centur. “Hernthat hath ears to hear, let him hear.”rn/,(). ‘i’ate is a professor ofrnEnglish at Dowling College onrnLong Island.rnMake Way for thernHillbillyrnby Marshall FishwickrnGarth Brooks and the ‘New’rnCountry MusicrnHe looks into vour eyes, moves yournto tears, touches your heart. Yourncheer, raise vour hands to heaven, bringrnofferings of red roses and baby’s breath.rnGarth Brooks is conquering another audience,rnand countr^ music is conqueringrnAmerica.rnCheck the music charts. Brooks isrnpassing frenetic rap, snading rock, andrnslithering MTV. True, Garth Brooksrnrepresents the “new wave” of countryrnmusic singing, and he docs not pleasernthe old-time performers and fans. Eorrnthem electronic instruments, glitzv costumes,rnand sugar-sweet songs represent arnsellout to the entertainment industry”rnand a pandering to popularity. Thevrnmiss the whine, the nasal sound, the imprompturnchords and changes that usedrnto mark “countrw” For them genuinernhillbilly and mountain culture were destroyedrnby mass culture and contrivedrnsongs; for them, folklore has becomernfakclore. The debate rages, and bothrnsides hold firm.rnGarth Brooks may be a yokel fromrnYukon, Oklahoma, but he signals arnchange of heart in much of America andrneven in the world beyond. Wc all wantrnto touch something solid, hear somethingrnsweet. We want to center on people,rnplaces, and values held long beforernthe Age of Discs and Disinformation.rnPeople and places—populism and regionalism.rnThose are the isms that willrnwin our support and votes. “Brooks hasrnbecome,” notes James Hunter in thernNew York ‘Times, “the most influentialrnagent of something that country music,rnoccasionally to its advantage, loves to resist:rnchange.”rnGarth Brooks sings of old friends, highrnhopes, log fires, and rivers: “You knowrna dream is like a rixer, ever changin’ as itrnflows.” He thinks about people, notrncash flow: “When you see these people,rnit’s like there’s suddenly a bridge andrnyou can just walk out and touch them . .rn. and the touch ou.” A man for thisrnseason, he reaps a golden harvest andrnlinks emotion and memory. Make wavrnJANUARY 1993/49rnrnrn