attends
encore." We always spoke French together, in spite of his great fondness
for the German language and poetry. It is for this reason that I give
his sayings in the French language, as I heard them from him. In Paris
people had made me afraid, and told me how Chopin caused Clementi,
Hummel, Cramer, Moscheles, Beethoven, and Bach to be studied, but not
his own compositions. This was not the case. To be sure, I had to study
with him the works of the above-mentioned masters, but he also required
me to play to him the new and newest compositions of Hiller, Thalberg,
and Liszt, &c. And already in the first lesson he placed before me
his wondrously--beautiful Preludes and Studies. Indeed, he made me
acquainted with many a composition before it had appeared in print.

I heard him often preluding in a wonderfully-beautiful manner. On
one occasion when he was entirely absorbed in his playing, completely
detached from the world, his servant entered softly and laid a letter
on the music-desk. With a cry Chopin left off playing, his hair stood
on end--what I had hitherto regarded as impossible I now saw with my own
eyes. But this lasted only for a moment.

His playing was always noble and beautiful, his tones always sang,
whether in full forte, or in the softest piano. He took infinite pains
to teach the pupil this legato, cantabile way of playing. "Il [ou elle]
ne sait pas lier deux notes" was his severest censure. He also required
adherence to the strictest rhythm, hated all lingering and dragging,
misplaced rubatos, as well as exaggerated ritardandos. "Je vous prie de
vous asseoir," he said on such an occasion with gentle mockery. And it
is just in this respect that people make such terrible mistakes in the
execution of his works. In the use of the pedal he had likewise attained
the greatest mastery, was uncommonly strict regarding the misuse of it,
and said repeatedly to the pupil: "The correct employment of it remains
a study for life."

When I played with him the study in C major, the first of those he
dedicated to Liszt, he bade me practise it in the mornings very slowly.
"Cette etude vous fera du bien," he said. "Si vous l'etudiez comme
je l'entends, cela elargit la main, et cela vous donne des gammes
d'accords, comme les coups d'archet. Mais souvent malheureusement au
lieu d'apprendre tout cela, elle fait desapprendre." I am quite aware
that it is a generally-prevalent error, even in our day, that one can
only play