A Piece of Good Fortune

Haydn had been two years with Frankh when an important piece of
good fortune befell him. At the time of which we are writing the
Court Capellmeister at Vienna was George Reutter, an
inexhaustible composer of church music, whose works, now
completely forgotten, once had a great vogue in all the choirs of
the Imperial States. Even in 1823 Beethoven, who was to write a
mass for the Emperor Francis, was recommended to adopt the style
of this frilled and periwigged pedant! Reutter's father had been
for many years Capellmeister at St Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna,
and on his death, in 1738, the son succeeded to the post. He had
not been long established in the office when he started on a tour
of search for choristers. Arriving at Hainburg, he heard from the
local pastor of Haydn's "weak but pleasing voice," and
immediately had the young singer before him.

A Musical Examination

The story of the examination is rather amusing. Reutter gave the
little fellow a canon to sing at first sight. The boy went though
the thing triumphantly, and the delighted Reutter cried "Bravo!"
as he flung a handful of cherries into Haydn's cap. But there was
one point on which Reutter was not quite satisfied. "How is it,
my little man," he said, "that you cannot shake?" "How can you
expect me to shake," replied the enfant terrible, "when Herr
Frankh himself cannot shake?" The great man was immensely tickled
by the ready retort, and, drawing the child towards him, he
taught him how to make the vibrations in his throat required to