DICTIONARY OF MUSIC - El Atril

364 HAYDN HAYDN
(1803), the Conservatoire (1805), the ' Enfans
d'ApoUon' (1807), all of Paris; and the Philharmonic
Society of St. Petersburg (180S). He was
also nominated honorary citizen of Vienna ( 1 80 4).
Poems without end were written in liis praise ;
and equally numerous were the portraits, in
chalk or oils, engraved, and modelled in wax.
[A portrait by T. Hardy is in the British Museum
(g. 271, g. (2)).] Of the many busts the best
is that by his friend Grassy. The silhouette
here reproduced, which appeared for the first
time in the first edition of this Dictionary, hirng
for long at the head of Haydn's bed, and was
authenticated by Elssler as strikingly like.
Among his pupils we may mention—Robert
Kimmerling and Abund Mykisch, both priests,
Countess
who learnt from hira as early as 1753 ;
Thun ; the Erdndy family ; Ignaz Pleyel ; Niemecz,
a monk Krumpholz, Ant. Kraft, and Ro-
;
Distler,
composer
Kranz of Stuttgart; Franz
setti, members of the Esterhazy Chapel ;
violinist ; Fernandi, organist ; Demar,
Hoffmann of Livonia ;
Toraisch ; Ed. von Weber ; Ant. Wranitzky ;
Haigh, Graetr, and Callcott, of London ; Nisle ;
Franz de Paula Roser ; the Polzellis ; J. G. Fuchs,
afterwards vice-capellmeister of the chapel, and
Haydn's successor Struck Bartsch Lessel ; ; ; ;
Neukomm ; Hansel Seyfried, and Destouches.
;
Haydn used to call Pleyel, Neukomm, and Lessel
his favourite and most grateful pupils. Most of
those named dedicated to him their first published
work— generally a piece of chamljermusic.
A few remarks on Haydn's personal and
mental characteristics, and on his position in
the history of art, will conclude our task. We
learn from his contemporaries that he was below
the middle height, with legs disproportionately
short ; his build substantial, but deficient in
muscle. His features were tolerably regular ; his
expression, slightly stern in repose, invariably
softened in conversation. His aquiline nose
was latterly much disfigured by a polyjms ; and
his face deeply pitted by small-pox. His complexion
was very dark. His dark -grey eyes
and he used to say
beamed with benevolence ;
himself, ' Any one can see by the look of me
that 1 am a good-natured sort of fellow.' The
impression given by his countenance and bearing
was that of an earnest, dignified man, perhajjs a
little over-precise. Though fond of a joke, he
never indulged in immoderate laughter. His
broad and well-formed forehead was partly concealed
by awig with side curls and apigtail, which
he wore to the end of his days. A prominent
and slightly coarse under-lip, with a massive jaw,
completed this singular union of so much that
was attractive and repellent, intellectual and
vulgar. 1 He always considered himself an ugly
man, and could not understand how so many
handsome women fell in love with hira '
; At
any rate,' he used to say, ' they were not tempted
by my beauty, ' though he admitted that he liked
looking at a p)retty woman, and was never at a
loss for a compliment. Hehabituallyspoke in the
broad Austrian dialect, but could express him-
self fluently in Italian, and with some difficulty
in French, He studied English when in London,
and in the country would often take his grammar
into the woods. He was also fond of introducing
English phrases into his diary. He knew
enough Latin to read Fux's Gradus, and to set
the Church services. Though he lived so long
in Hungary he never learned the vernacular,
which was only used by the servants among
themselves, the Esterhazy family always spieaking
German. His love of fun sometimes carried
' him away ; as he remarked to Dies, A mischievous
fit comes over one sometimes that is
perfectly beyond control. ' At the same time he
was sensitive, and when provoked by a bad return
for his kindness could be very sarcastic. With
all his modesty he was aw'are of his own merits,
and liked to be appreciated, but flattery he never
permitted. Like a true man of genius he enjoyed
honour and fame, but carefully avoided
ambition. He has often been reproached with
cringing to his superiors, but it should not be
forgotten that a man who was in daily intercourse
with people of the highest rank would have no
difficulty in drawing the line between respect
and subservience. That he was quite captable
of defending his dignity as an artist is proved
by the following occurrence. Prince Nicolaus
(the second of the name) being present at a
rehearsal, and expressing disapprobation, Haydn
at once interposed—
' Your Highness, all that is
my business.' He was very fond of children,
and they in return loved ' ' Papa Haydn with all
their hearts. He never forgot a benefit, though
his kindness to his many needy relations often
' Lavater made some of his most characteristic remarks on
receiving a silhouette of Haydn.