Voice of the Violin
Even without having read Proust, many people are aware that his writing appeals to the evocative powers of taste and smell; a famous passage in Swann’s Way describes M. Swann being flooded by a stream of childhood memories upon tasting once again the teacake known as a madeleine. We were struck to discover, upon reading the novel last summer, that Proust could be equally eloquent on the subject of sound—specifically, music. The full quote we found for this acrostic is worth sharing (for those who don’t solve on xwordinfo and get access to the full quotes as “completion rewards”):
There are in the violin — if one does not see the instrument itself, and so cannot relate what one hears to what one sees, which has the effect of modifying the tone — accents that are so closely akin to those of certain contralto voices, that one has the illusion that a singer has taken her place amid the orchestra. One raises one’s eyes; one sees only the wooden case, as delicate as a Chinese box; but, at moments, one is still tricked by the deceiving appeal of the Siren; at times, too, one believes that one is listening to a captive genie, struggling in the depths of the sapient box, a box enchanted and quivering, like a devil immersed in a stoup of holy water; sometimes, again, it is in the air, at large, like a pure and supernatural creature that passes while unfurling its invisible message.
Generally considered the “soprano” voice in an orchestra or string quartet, the image of the violin as contralto celebrates the deeper register many violinists love exploring. Jane, a professional violinist, cherishes the deep, rich timbre of her violin’s lower register. Her instrument, pictured above, was made in 1691 by the Venetian master Matteo Goffriller. String players often aspire to “sing” with their instruments, and because we do not need to take breaths, we can indeed “unfurl” our messages.
For those who may not be familiar with Hilary Hahn’s playing, here’s a lovely sample:
Let us know what you thought about this puzzle!
In a cosmic coincidence, Clue 4 Across in the Saturday NYT crossword is “Who said ‘I play the notes as they are written, but it is God who makes the music’.”
What a fantastic Acrostic (solved on paper) when augmented by the full text of the quote. Thanks so much.
One of your best! (And that’s saying a lot.)
Even the shortened quote from Proust was wonderful, but I’m so delighted you included the entire excerpt, in all of its brilliant, over-the-top richness.
Again, it’s so masterly that nearly half of your clues were musically related (I’m including the even more obscure definition of “stave”).
Great to learn that Jane is a professional violinist. Wow.
For me, the biggest gimme in the puzzle was Hilary Hahn. To my mind, she’s the greatest violinist currently performing (and she has a lot of very impressive competition). My wife and I heard her do a solo all-Bach performance at Lincoln Center a year or so ago, and it was spellbinding. We’re seeing her again on March 2, performing Brahms’s only violin Concerto.
Apart from her virtuosity, Hahn has a charismatic, fun-loving public persona. She’s performed Paganini’s 24 while rocking a hula hoop, and she’s appeared regularly on a YouTube channel, horsing around with two popular young violinists:
https://youtu.be/xwsnIoFXrt0?si=49vdUkO7gYoCcB62
Started slowly, but suspected a musical theme with “The Piano” and octave. Had my breakthrough remembering Eastman and getting In cahoots and Look-see which were fun. Thanks for the clip of Hilary Hahn, didn’t know her. I’m a big Perlman fan. Great puzzle.