A Violin for Eighteen Pence

Giving credit where it’s due isn’t always a musician’s strong suit. But there’s a funny rule of thumb: the more real talent someone has, the faster they recognize it in others. Constantly cutting down colleagues usually says more about the critic than the music.

A neat example came at Niccolò Paganini’s first appearance in England. When the ‘violin wizard’ finished, the respected violinist Mori stood up and asked his neighbors, very solemnly, “Who’ll buy my fiddle? Who’ll buy a fiddle and bow for eighteen pence?”—as if even his own Stradivarius was suddenly worth pocket change.

Another great musician in the room, John Cramer, summed up his reaction even more simply: “Thank heaven, I am not a violinist!”