CHAPTER 1
Concert
It was a cool, breezy evening in May 2010 when Eric Nederwalked by the marquee at Carnegie Hall. He stopped and staredup at the sign advertising Johan and Eric Neder, violinists playingwith the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Eric was still amazed hislife had turned out this way and that he could make a decent livingtraveling around the world playing the violin. His father, Johan, wasthe true master and one of the best violinists in the world. When heplayed, it was magical.
Eric thought, I'm good, but I can't seem to reach Dad's level. Oh well!Maybe someday?
He walked into the theater and asked where his dressing room was.His father was always a late arriver and would come in about a halfhour. Tonight the orchestra would play Beethoven's Second Symphony,and then Johan would perform the Violin Concerto in E Minor byMendelssohn. After intermission, the orchestra would open withMozart's overture to "The Impresario," and then Eric and his fatherwould play the violin duet, Vivaldi's Concerto for Two Violins in CMinor. This was always a popular piece, and orchestra crowds loved it.
Eric thought back to the first public concert he played with thePittsburgh Symphony. It was also the Vivaldi duet. They played thefast movements, but at a slower-than-normal speed. The middle slowmovement was played at the intended tempo.
At that time, Eric was only ten years old and not really ready to beplaying on a big public stage, but Johan wanted to expose him to theworld and let the public see what talent was developing. He rememberedwearing a little tuxedo with a tight collar and being scared to death.However, once they walked onto the stage, little Eric just stared at hisfather. He pretended they were just in his bedroom practicing.
He remembered noticing how animated and excited his father waswhen performing and how he really got into the music. By the thirdmovement, Eric was able to look at the audience, and he was playingwith more emotion and exhilaration. That movement really got thecrowd going. He assumed that was why his father had introduced himto public performance so young. In that way, Eric could get the thrillof performing and add more feeling to his playing.
They had played the duet perfectly, and Eric remembered bowing tothe audience and then running off the stage. Johan had to go backstageto get him to take another bow during the standing ovation.
Back at Carnegie Hall, Eric completed his warm-up and went overthe tricky parts of the duet by the time his father arrived. Eric thought,Dad never seems to warm up much. He just takes enough time to tune up hisStradivarius. My Guarnerius and I need more time to get ready.
"Late again," Eric joked as his father darted into his dressingroom.
"On time, as usual. Just hook on the bow tie and tune up the Strad,and I'm good to go," replied his father.
The orchestra started promptly at 7:30 p.m. this Friday as wastypical of the punctual Julio Rossini, the conductor. Eric sat just offthe stage to hear his father play the Concerto in E Minor again, eventhough he had heard it a thousand times. With the very first bow stroke,it was like a lightning strike. The sound sent a chill up Eric's back asthe master let go.
The sound, the tone, the music, the expression, the magic wasalways there. It didn't matter if it was a collection of ultrafast notes orthe slow, lyrical section. He wondered how his father got that muchsound and feeling out of two pounds of hollow wood and some strings.Eric and the whole audience knew they were witnessing somethingvery special.
Eric watched the way his father clasped the bow in his right handand the way his fingers gently gripped the wooden end. They werenot too tight, not too loose—just right to control the pressure, whileallowing the bow to rock in his fingers for speed on the fast notes.His father cradled the violin under his chin with what seemed like nopressure at all compared to other players, including himself.
Eric thought, Why doesn't the violin fall out? It is hardly held in there.The answer was obvious: the bow and violin were part of his father andattached in some almost magnetic way.
The applause finally subsided and intermission began. Eric againwarmed up a little and went through measure 101 in the duet, whichwas the hardest section.
Johan walked by Eric's dressing room. "What are you doing? Youcan play this flawlessly. What are you worried about?"
"I'm not as good as you are; I need to practice more. And I still geta little nervous," admitted Eric.
Johan had to bite his lip, and then he said, "You are one of the bestand hardest working players I have ever met."
Eric replied, "But my sound cannot touch what you do. By the way,the Mendelssohn was just fantastic."
"Thanks. But don't worry. Great playing just takes time."
As Johan finished a small shot of scotch, he said, "Let's go. Theoverture is about half done. Let's show them what this piece shouldreally sound like."
As Johan and Eric entered the stage, Johan shook the conductor'shand and said, "Let's take it a little faster than we rehearsed. I'm sureyour orchestra can keep up."
As the orchestra started at the faster speed, and Johan came in withhis part, Eric thought, Holy shit, what is he doing?
Eric came in furiously on his first entrance, and the excitement tookhold. They played it faster than they had ever played it with a brilliancethat was awe-inspiring for the crowd. Johan and Eric finished all threemovements almost flawlessly along with the orchestra. The standingovation was deafening and lasted six minutes.
Eric left the theater exhausted but exhilarated at the same time.Their reviews in the paper on Sunday were great. "Johan Neder is awizard with the violin.... His son, Eric, has made major strides forwardsince we last heard him two years ago. He doesn't have the magic of hisfather, but he is clean, musical, and exciting in his own way."
Eric thought, Not bad. That's a fair assessment.
Eric had attended Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh...
