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Orpheus in Mayfair and Other Stories and Sketches By: Maurice Baring (1874-1945) |
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BY MAURICE BARING TO ETHEL SMYTH NOTE Most of the stories and sketches in this book have appeared in the
Morning Post . One of them was published in the Westminster Gazette .
I have to thank the editors and proprietors concerned for their kindness
in allowing me to republish them. CONTENTS Orpheus in Mayfair
The Cricket Match
The Shadow of a Midnight
Jean Francois
The Flute of Chang Liang
"What is Truth?"
A Luncheon Party
Fete Galante
The Garland
The Spider's Web
Edward II. At Berkeley Castle
The Island
The Man Who Gave Good Advice
Russalka
The Old Woman
Dr. Faust's Last Day
The Flute Player's Story
A Chinaman on Oxford
Venus
The Fire
The Conqueror
The Ikon
The Thief
The Star
Chun Wa
ORPHEUS IN MAYFAIR Heraclius Themistocles Margaritis was a professional musician. He was a
singer and a composer of songs; he wrote poetry in Romaic, and composed
tunes to suit rhymes. But it was not thus that he earned his daily
bread, and he was poor, very poor. To earn his livelihood he gave
lessons, music lessons during the day, and in the evening lessons in
Greek, ancient and modern, to such people (and these were rare) who
wished to learn these languages. He was a young man, only twenty four,
and he had married, before he came of age, an Italian girl called Tina.
They had come to England in order to make their fortune. They lived in
apartments in the Hereford Road, Bayswater. They had two children, a little girl and a little boy; they were very
much in love with each other, as happy as birds, and as poor as church
mice. For Heraclius Themistocles got but few pupils, and although he
had sung in public at one or two concerts, and had not been received
unfavourably, he failed to obtain engagements to sing in private houses,
which was his ambition. He hoped by this means to become well known, and
then to be able to give recitals of his own where he would reveal to the
world those tunes in which he knew the spirit of Hellas breathed. The
whole desire of his life was to bring back and to give to the world
the forgotten but undying Song of Greece. In spite of this, the modest
advertisement which was to be found at concert agencies announcing that
Mr. Heraclius Themistocles Margaritis was willing to attend evening
parties and to give an exhibition of Greek music, ancient and modern,
had as yet met with no response. After he had been a year in England
the only steps towards making a fortune were two public performances
at charity matinees, one or two pupils in pianoforte playing, and an
occasional but rare engagement for stray pupils at a school of modern
languages. It was in the middle of the second summer after his arrival that an
incident occurred which proved to be the turning point of his career. A
London hostess was giving a party in honour of a foreign Personage.
It had been intimated that some kind of music would be expected.
The hostess had neither the means nor the desire to secure for her
entertainment stars of the first magnitude, but she gathered together
some lesser lights a violinist, a pianist, and a singer of French
drawing room melodies. On the morning of the day on which her concert
was to be given, the hostess received a telegram from the singer of
French drawing room melodies to say that she had got a bad cold, and
could not possibly sing that night. The hostess was in despair, but a
musical friend of hers came to the rescue, and promised to obtain for
her an excellent substitute, a man who sang Greek songs. When Margaritis received the telegram from Arkwright's Agency that
he was to sing that night at A House, he was overjoyed, and could
scarcely believe his eyes. He at once communicated the news to Tina, and
they spent hours in discussing what songs he should sing, who the good
fairy could have been who recommended him, and in building castles in
the air with regard to the result of this engagement... Continue reading book >>
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Literature |
Short stories |
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