David Bruce

The Funniest People in Music David Bruce

This book is one-half of my previous book "The Funniest People in Books and Music: 500 Anecdotes." It contains 250 anecdotes about music, including this one: Meredith Willson, author of "The Music Man," had a great respect for Arturo Toscanini, who was an invited guest at the symphony orchestra where Mr. Willson worked. While the orchestra was practicing a dissonant symphonic poem named "Feste Romane" by Ottorino Respighi, Maestro Toscanini stopped the orchestra and told Mr. Gerhardt, a clarinet player, "F sharp, F sharp, F sharp." This happened five or six times, with Mr. Gerhardt protesting to Mr. Willson (no one protests to Maestro Toscanini!), "I am playing F sharp. I've been playing it since the beginning." At this time, the clarinet player unconsciously-clarinet players do this occasionally by habit-held his instrument horizontally and blew some water out from under some of the very small keys. Once again, the orchestra launched into the piece and at its end, Maestro Toscanini said, "At last F sharp-grazie a Dio!" According to Mr. Willson, the water under the key had caused the note to sound F natural-and Maestro Toscanini heard the incorrect note through all the dissonance of the musical composition although the man who had actually played the note could not hear that it was incorrect!