Shortly after this the professor called on Mrs. MacDowell,
telling her he had shown the drawing to an eminent painter, also
an instructor at the Ecole des Beaux Arts. The painter had been so
greatly impressed with the boy's talent that he offered him a three
years' course of free instruction, under his own supervision. He also
promised to be responsible for Edward's support during that time.

This was a vital question to decide; the boy's whole future hung in
the balance. Mrs. MacDowell, in her perplexity, laid the whole matter
before Marmontel, who strongly advised against diverting her son from
a musical career. The decision was finally left to Edward himself, and
he chose to remain at the Conservatoire.

Conditions there, however, were not just to his liking, and after two
years he began to think the school was not the place for him. It was
the summer of 1878, the year of the Exposition. Edward and his mother
attended a festival concert and heard Nicholas Rubinstein play the
Tschaikowsky B flat minor piano Concerto. His performance was a
revelation. "I can never learn to play the piano like that if I stay
here," exclaimed Edward, as they left the hall.

They began to consider the merits of the different European schools
of music, and finally chose Stuttgart. Mrs. MacDowell and her son went
there in November hoping that in this famous Conservatory could be
found the right kind of instruction.

But alas, MacDowell soon found out his mistake. He discovered that
he would have to unlearn all he had acquired and begin from the
beginning. And even then the instruction was not very thorough.

They now thought of Frankfort, where the composer Joachim Raff was the
director and Carl Heymann, a very brilliant pianist, was one of the
instructors.

After months of delay, during which young MacDowell worked under the
guidance of Ehlert, he at last entered the Frankfort Conservatory,
studying composition with Raff, and piano with Heymann. Both proved
very inspiring teachers. For Heymann he had the greatest admiration,
calling him a marvel, whose technic was equal to anything. "In hearing
him practise and play, I learned more in a week than I ever knew
before."

Edward MacDowell remained in close study at the Frankfort Conservatory
for two years, his mother having in the meantime returned to America.
He had hoped to obtain a place as professor on the teaching staff of
the institution. Failing to do this he took private pupils