Life and letters of Sir Charles Hallé; being an autobiography (1819-1860)

urn:iso:std:iso:639:ed-3:eng

21-22

text excerpt

Now and then he took me on a fine afternoon as far as Limburg, a small town with a beautifully situated castle on the top of a hill, the residence of the Prince of Hohen-Limburg...The whole company, prince included, sang in chorus a simple German ditty, ' Der La-la-la-la-Laudon rilckt an ' (Laudon advances), repeated innumerably ; the fun consisting in the manner in which the leader (my father) started each repeat, which, the whole company had to imitate, now giving it out in full stentorian voice, then in a whisper, now in sentimental adagio fashion, then in humorous dance rhythm, now standing, now sitting and turning their faces to the wall, every change being totally unexpected. In one variation my father jumped upon the chair, set one foot upon the table covered with bottles and glasses, a feat which the fat little prince had no slight trouble in imitating, and then the song had to be gone through without an audible sound, with motion of the lips only, the uplifted right hands marking the rhythm. At this moment one of the waiters entered with a fresh supply of bottles and glasses, and was so overcome by the extraordinary spectacle of so many guests having apparently gone suddenly mad that he let the bottles slip, and their crash and the stare on his astonished face changed the mute scene into one of boisterous laughter.

excerpt from 'Life and letters of Sir Charles Hallé; being an autobiography (1819-1860)' pp. 21-22 (234 words)

1427126402007:

1427126402007