Northlands, Englefield Green, Surrey. - Is writing in case Donald [Tovey] has not done so to say that he cannot now come to the Trevelyans; he is going to Wales today to see his 'delightful Aunt [Anna Walter Thomas], then will travel with Sophie Weisse to Germany where he will see [Fritz] Steinbach at Cologne and the Buschs [Adolf and Fritz] at Mainz before playing in Vienna on 8 Jan. Hopes to see him for Christmas at Marburg, where she will be with Henry (her brother) and his family for 'their sad holiday [after the death earlier in the year of Henry's daughter Peggie?]'. Thinks the travelling is good for Donald; he is 'already better', working on a concerto grosso for string orchestra with 'the opera ["The Bride of Dionysus"] in the background, and his playing is 'in perfect order; he played the [Beethoven] Waldstein Sonata 'superbly' last night. Hopes they will both return by 15 Jan; hopes the Trevelyans will then come and spend a night or two with them, when Lady Hely Hutchinson and her children Natalie and Victor will be staying. They have just had Molly and Desmond MacCarthy there, whom she 'love[s] very much'. Will send 'another music picture book' for Julian.
Northlands, Englefield Green, Surrey. - Donald [Tovey] has telegraphed to say there was a 'glaenzende Uraufführung [glittering premiere]' of his symphony last night, and [Adolf] Busch to say the work is 'most wonderful'. It seems that the Finale did not get rehearsed until yesterday morning, but Donald did it and she is very relieved; expects he 'sat days and nights copying parts' and that the performers were playing with the ink still wet. Is sorry to have criticised Borwick [see 8/92] to whom she is 'personally much attached'; it would be better for Donald if there were more good players, as he would be better understood.
Originally enclosing another letter to Julian. The [Adolf] Busch-[Rudolf] Serkin visit was 'a great success'; his German was 'not up to the occasion' but that did not matter. Thinks they are going to Paris in November or December, but Elizabeth will send concert dates. Had meant to write to Betty Chetwynd and get her to go, but saw in the evening papers that her brother Philip has 'killed himself in a tube station' so she will probably be too upset. Did not know Philip as well as her other brother [Wentworth]. Will probably not go to Italy until January. So Julian has now met Cyril Connolly: he is 'a queer fish, very intelligent but very lazy'; always got on well with him, but has never been an intimate friend.
Northlands, Englefield Green, Surrey. - Donald [Tovey] has returned, and she feels 'white faced and strained looking and estranged as he is' that he is glad to be home; however he is certainly an invalid, and must 'as Willy Strecker' urges be treated like one. Entreats Bessie not to let him refer to 'the horrible things of this last autumn' again; he will come to see 'he was blinded by arrogance and the feeling as he said himself... that he was teaching Casals that he, Donald, was the 'top dog'' so fell 'victim to Guilhermina's urgent need to wrench her husband's love back'. She will not refer to all this, or to Hugh Godley's conduct, again. Donald's reactions 'are not "passionate misunderstandings" - it is what is his heirloom'; only this 'explanation and excuse' makes it still possible for this to be his home; he will be 'ill like this again'. He is currently 'writing reams of letters', many she thinks to 'little [Adolf] Busch', which makes her nervous; but his interests in the opera ["The Bride of Dionysus"] have been roused again and she longs for it to be finished. Donald thinks his concerts will be his last in London, and she fears he may be right; he talks of going to Bessie around the 30th, but she herself 'longs' to see her and Julian before that.
Northlands, Englefield Green, Surrey. - In answer to Tovey's letters, states 'categorically' that she has never thought, nor 'led any other creature to think' she thought, nor feared anyone ever thought, that Tovey had said or done anything that anyone 'from Guilhermina Casals outwards could interpret' as being wrong 'from any man to any woman, let alone any woman who was the wife of his friend [Pablo Casals]'. Even the first 'angry frightened lines' she sent Donald, which he regards as 'so foul an insult', show this, and she would have written the same if the three of them had been men, as she does feel his 'host and friend had reason to feel himself neglected and ridiculous'. Is not afraid of 'gossip or even slander' either for him or for herself. Mr Strecker showed her Donald's letter to Casals written at Liverpool, from which she expected the reply, though not its 'gentle and dignified' tone. They will 'not allude to the matter' when they meet. Does not understand about [Adolf] Busch or what she has done, but since Donald says he has not told him about Casals, hopes there is no harm done. Tells him to come home or not as is best for him.
Montepulciano (Prov. di Siena). - Has had news from Elsa Dallolio of I Tatti, who paid her first visit there on B.B. [Berenson]'s seventieth birthday: Mary [Berenson] dined and seemed well; his own opinion is that she is getting better but also grows intolerant of everything going 'against either her hopes or her prejudices'. Elizabeth is amazed at her fluctuations in health. However there is something 'big' in her so that those with her must 'feel the benefit of her greatness' even when sharing her life has inconveniences. B.B. was very healthy, but a month of life at I Tatti at the height of the season in Florence has tired him. Mary is due to go to Vienna soon, then B.B. and Nicky [Mariano] leave for Venice; he is tempted to join them there but put off by the heat. The music at Florence has been mixed: began with hearing [Adolf] Busch's rehearsals of the Brandenburg concerto and was very taken buy the performance, though he regretted the choice of the 'modern' piano over the clavichord despite Serkin's beautiful performance). The Weingartner performance of [Beethoven's] ninth symphony was uneven. Was sorry not to hear "Norma"; found Serafin's conducting of some other Italian vocal pieces lacking delicacy; Bruno Walter gave a good performance of [Mozart's] "Seraglio", an uneven one of Mozart's "Requiem", and a difficult Mozart concerto at Palazzo Vecchio. Saw Gluck's "Alceste" on an immense scale in the Boboli gardens. [John] Walker is here again and settled in Rome: B.B. is worried that he will be distracted by 'too many girls and women'. Hopes he will see Trevelyan at the Consuma in August, where he will go to allow Nicky to take her holiday in Sorrento. Hopes Bessie Trevelyan is doing well after her operation.
Northlands, Englefield Green, Surrey. - Is very unhappy, as Donald [Tovey] did not keep his promise to send Willy Strecker his letter to [Pablo] Casals [about the quarrel over Guilhermina Suggia] before posting it; when he found that Casals was also in Liverpool he wrote him 'sheets and sheets of the most vain priggish arrogant stuff', in reply to which Casals wrote 'the sad little dignified note' she encloses a copy of [see 8/142]. Donald should have seen Casals, or at least have let him know they were in the same town. Donald sent Willy Strecker a rough copy of his letter after he had sent the original to Casals, and Strecker has sent it to her. The concerts will be ruined and she feels she can not show her face in London again. Knows Donald did not give 'so much as a breath of offence to Casals as a husband', but does not doubt 'he was very disloyal to him and made him very unhappy as a host and friend'. Is anxious in case Donald's 'too violent friendship with young [Adolf] Busch' ends sadly as well. All too like his father. Donald seemed very depressed so she has telegraphed to Professor Röntgen; his reply perhaps originally included. In a postscript, asks Bessie to send Willy Strecker's note on to Röntgen, and the copy of Casals' letter back to her.
Northlands, Englefield Green, Surrey. - Will be delightful to have Bessie to stay tomorrow; tells her to come as early as she can, as [Adolf] Busch is here, and the Arányis and Percy Such are coming early tomorrow afternoon. Donald [Tovey] will give her news of Holland;he fled there on Saturday to tell 'his strange tale of the Casals to the dear and kind Röntgens' and came back yesterday 'much comforted'.
Elton Hall, Peterborough. - Trevelyan could re-direct Tovey's postcard [to Julius Röntgen, see 7/36?] to Denmark, or it would be forwarded from Holland and 'all the less dangerous for the circumbendibus'; if Trevelyan thinks it better not to send it that is all right. The 20th suits him well. His position is 'entirely saved by the Edinburgh job': the postponement of his European concerts (though he still hopes the Dutch ones may take place) is a different matter when due to European war than as 'the result of any other fault or misfortune'; his income will now be 'indisputably the result of his own exertions' and his artistic career will gain through having to wait, as he will 'have hoarded up a stronger reserve of technique' than ever before by the time peace returns. Will not play in England except where invited 'with the most unmistakeable sincerity'. Will be 'implacable' towards those 'whose policy has been animated by jealousy of Miss Weisse'. His friends, including [F.S] Kelly and [Hugh] Godley have all known how much he longed for 'real independence'. 'Utopian' of him 'to leave the Classical Concert Society in the hands of a couple of Eton-boys who haven't outgrown the politics of prefects', but they must revive the Chelsea Concerts if they want to hear him play again.
Believes that the first thing to emerge from 'the shock to civilisation' will be 'a rather sentimental taste for humanity and sentimentality in art' - cites the success of [Beethoven's] "Fidelio" and [Cherubini's] "Les Deux Journées" after the French Revolution - and since he himself is 'built that way', he thinks that their "Bride of Dionysus" will do well. Can do without success, though, and will make it clear that 'irritation with Miss Weisse' was no excuse for 'wet-blanketing' Tovey', and that whatever his feelings at being dependent on her for so long, and whatever allowance he makes for some of the quarrels she got into, he will only have contempt for the way in which his 'concert-wire-pulling-friends' tried to get him out of his position without an idea of how he should earn a living instead. The economic problem of English music is 'grossly mis-handled by that class of art-patron'. Will be trouble in Edinburgh about the establishment of a conservatoire there; he will emphasise that the problem of British musical education is nothing compared with what to do with musicians once they are 'turned loose'.
Will only play where he has been hitherto paid properly: Edinburgh, Englefield Green, Liverpool and Oxford. After the war he will exert himself abroad and hopes the 'dear Busches' [Adolf and Fritz] will be there to help him; otherwise he 'must work for their memory'.
Lillywhites, Westburton, Pulborough, Sussex. - Replying to thank him for the 'lovely Christmas gift' ["From the Shiffolds"] does not mean it made 'no impression' on her: has read and reread the poems 'with great pleasure and thankfulness', especially the one to Goldie [Lowes Dickinson]. Thinks she gets continually worse at writing to people. Has only now finished with the 'wretched Busch Concerts (1948) and sends Bob the 'dire result' [no longer present]. Asks if she can come to see Bob about it: he said something 'very sympathetic & consoling' after the last Kingsway Hall concert. Feels 'responsible for the financial disaster', but George Booth has been 'overwhelmingly kind' and .offered to write off the whole debt if necessary'. Has also written to [Arthur?] Lister Harrison who originally promised some support. The 'great blow' was the American Federation of Musicians, led by Mr [James] Petrillo, banning recording anywhere outside America, which meant the recordings of 'those beautiful performances of the Cantatas', as well as the 'support and financial aid of the Columbia Gramophone Co.' were lost. Would not have suggested the Concerts without the promise of the support, but it was too late to cancel when news of the ban came. Adolf and Hedwig [Busch] have had a son, Nicholas, who is two months old.
Is hoping to come in September and finish the score of Ariadne ["The Bride of Dionysus"] now it is 'perfectly safe'. Fears it will have disappointed Trevelyan that he did not get the opera finished 'straight off', but he had to take advantage of the support given to his music by 'those angelic creatures Adolf & Fritz Busch' to get his 'smaller and more portable works launched'. Fritz Busch, after commissioning Tovey's symphony, offered him a choice between it and the opera for the winter; Tovey thought that the symphony would get a 'first-rate performance' but the Aachen opera singers he had heard would not do the same for the opera, so it would be best to take that to Vienna in January to see what [Franz] Schalk can do with it, until the British public can 'follow a sustained musical idea again'. Hopes to finish the score in Trevelyan's presence, instead of when he was 'at the other end of nowhere'. Will call at the Shiffolds on Monday the 8th and hopes to hear some new poetry.
6 Devonshire Place, W.1. - Asks Bob to forgive her for not thanking him before for his 'lovely poems at Christmas' [From the Shiffolds". He sees what she is now doing [organising the Busch concerts?]: a 'big task... with everything to arrange'. Adolf and Hedwig [Busch] came for two days last week en route to Switzerland, and will return with the Quartet in mid-April. All is going well. Postscript asking whether Bob had called in on her here one day: very sorry to have missed him if so. The 'Petrol ban is a curse' and she would have visited them at the Shiffolds long ago otherwise.
Casa Boccaccio, Settignano, Florence, Italy. - Can only send a few stamps as a birthday present, but they may be 'better than nothing, if only as swops; not sure if the Italian "Croce Rossa" stamp is a proper one, but will let him know. Is taking the tram to Florence today to see a concert by a German quartet; the first violin, [Adolf] Busch, is a 'great friend of uncle [Donald] Tovey and uncle Julius [Röntgen]', who think he is 'the best violinist of the time'. Hope Julian is better and back at school; Elizabeth says she will visit him there next Saturday before going to the Netherlands for a few weeks; Robert will return about the same time she does; sends love to the [Thomas Sturge] Moores.
Northlands, Englefield Green, Surrey. - Thanks Bessie: will come next Saturday afternoon from Windsor if he does not hear otherwise. Has lots to tell her about Aachen and Fritz Busch who is 'one of the greatest conductors' Tovey has heard, and 'as charming as his brother' [Adolf].