The Value of the Violin in You
The story is told of the great Jewish-born violinist Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962).[1] Some critics had suggested that the only reason he made such beautiful music was because of the Stradivarius he played. So on one particular concert night, Kreisler enraptured the audience with his artistry. Suddenly, in the middle of the evening, he took the violin from beneath his chin and smashed it into tiny fragments. Everyone stood aghast, shaken and shocked.
The great violinist Fritz Kreisler
Kreisler then walked to the front of the platform and addressed the assembly. “Don’t be alarmed,” he calmed the crowd. “The violin I just broke was the one that I just purchased for a few dollars. I shall now take out my Stradivarius and play upon it for you.”
Kreisler unpacked the instrument, tuned it, and began to play. Again he played with dazzling virtuosity, but the performance was not demonstrably superior to the first half of the program.
When the artist concluded, he again spoke to the audience. “So much has been said about the value of this celebrated violin that I wanted to show you that the music is not in the instrument; it is in the hands and soul of the one who plays it.”
Everything depends upon the person. We call an individual sterling not because they have silver, but because they have character. The great British-born American labor leader Samuel Gompers (1850-1924) once stated that
The humblest of human beings possesses the mystery of personality that
infinitely transcends the material products of human skill.
You see, in the last analysis, our reputation and legacy is not made by the estate we have but by what we give away. Money and material things only matter when shared. What really matters is
- service
- talent, and
- human warmth.
Fritz Kreisler was known for the sweetness of his tone and his expressive phrasing that came from deep within his soul. He gave everyone who heard him a feeling of gemutlichkeit, a feeling of geniality, friendliness, and coziness.
Each of us, like Kreisler, is a walking violin.
May the music that emerges out of the violin of our lives be sweet, warm, kind, connected and generous.
Rabbi J.B. Sacks
[1] Kreisler was born in Vienna, and lived in France. Shortly after the outbreak of World War II he relocated to the United States. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time.