"The Sunday-night concert at the Boston Theatre last evening
was made memorable by the introduction to the Boston public
of Senor Joseph White, the Cuban violinist.... The musical
fraternity, however, was very fully represented, the
musicians knowing something of what was in store for the
evening. But not even they were prepared for the wonderful
and delightful playing of Senor White.... The first of his
work last night was something of a disappointment. There
appeared to be a deficiency of tone, owing, as it seemed, to
the use of an instrument not loud enough for so large an
auditorium. But it was soon evident that the selection of
such an instrument was in accordance with the style and
taste of the artist. Possessing the most perfect ease and
freedom in his command of the resources of the violin, with
a fine breadth of style, and an evidently strong and quick
sensibility, yet he did not aim to produce his effects on a
large scale of tone. He seemed to desire to confine his
exhibition of the violin to the range where its fineness and
sweetness, rather than its power, may be illustrated, and to
check himself inside of the limit where a coarse, scratchy
body of tone is obtained at the expense of purity and
delicacy. His bow, though 'dividing the strings with fire,'
seemed never to touch them. The direction or the position of
its stroke, whether up or down, at the beginning or at the
end of it, could never be told from any changes in the
quality of the sound extracted. The tone flowed as though
after the keen incisions of a knife-blade, not as if scraped
out by the friction of horse-hair upon catgut. When to this
delicious quality of tone was added an exhibition of the
most perfect _technique_, the triumph of the virtuoso was
complete. The mysterious flowing softness and smoothness of
tone was carried with unflagging facility through the most
rapid and difficult chord and harmonic playing; and this,
with other wonderful feats of bowing, added new and
bewitching charms to the _diablerie_ of violin variations.
The reception of the artist was cordial at the outset; but
at the close of the first performance, a 'Ballade et
Polonaise' by Vieuxtemps, the enthusiasm was overwhelming.
In response to the encore, Senor White played a 'Styri