Young Barbirolli"When John Barbirolli was four, his grandfather Antonio began taking him to Empire ballet rehearsals. At home, wearing white gloves in the professional fashion of the day, he pretended to direct orchestras, beating time and singing at the top of his voice.
"His habit of borrowing a family violin and wandering all over the
flat while scraping it exasperated Antonio Barbirolli, who one day took a hansom cab to a fiddle shop in Wardour Street and came back with a half-sized cello. 'Play that instead,' he told the boy. 'You have to sit down to play the cello.'"
Barbirolli, Sir John (1899-1970) British conductor of French-Italian descent, principal conductor of the Halle Orchestra, Manchester (from 1943)
[Sources: Observer, Profile, July 6, 1947]More Sir Barbirolli anecdotesRelated Anecdote Keywords:
Classical Music Musical Instruments Chellos Violins Prodigies Children Sitting Solutions Before They Were Famous
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