But —next to the inimitable Mendelssohn— of all the pianists I listened to with more or less rapture and envy before completing my tenth year, Stemdale Bennett was the one who most thoroughly fulfilled my boyish ideal of what playing ought to be. For finish, delicacy of expression, accuracy of phrasing, and a certain gentle grace of style that imparted an indefinable charm to his interpretations of classical works, I have never listened to anybody quite his equal.