THE VIRTUOSO
by Sonya Orchard
Reviewed by Amanda Meale
Brilliant Australian pianist Noël Mewton-Wood is these days only
remembered by musicians of a certain age. In his prime Mewton-Wood
was internationally feted and his immediate circle included such
luminaries as Benjamin Britten and Michael Tippett. Mewton-Wood
is the central character in this fictional story of love and music.
When World War I began, a group of London musicians decided to hold
free lunch hour concerts at the National Gallery. The concerts
continued throughout the war although bombing necessitated a few
changes of venue. During these performances the unnamed narrator
is awestruck by the virtuosity of Noël and develops a fascination
with his gift. "Forte octaves, both hands, three times up the
keyboard, arriving at the theme, those big, dark chords producing
an orchestra of sound. Then the most pleading, yearning song.
I'd never heard anything so beautiful...".
The narrator is a student pianist and he inevitably meets his idol.
After a brief sexual relationship he continues to see himself as
Mewton-Wood's one true love. Over several years the two men meet
intermittently at parties and recitals and the reader constantly
wonders whether they will be reunited.
When the narrator first meets Mewton-Wood the virtuoso is playing
Schumann's Fantasie Op.17, described by the narrator's father as
"a love letter written in musical notes." This is one of many
pieces which the composer wrote for his wife Clara Wieck. As the
novel progresses the narrator draws a parallel between the
Schumanns' relationship and that of Mewton-Wood and himself.
Mewton-Wood is Schumann and he is Clara. "None of us considered it
as anything more than a supernatural gift that had landed in his lap,
some astounding ability that he possessed – to be able to walk on
the stage and into the shoes of Schumann."
The narrator is obsessed with the notion of lovers torn apart, as
the Schumanns initially were. Later he comes to see the musical
personalities of Schumann — Florestan (the extrovert) and Eusebius
(the introvert) — as analogous to the two sides of Mewton-Wood.
Aficionados will find the musical references interesting and
evocative, while the musically uninitiated will find an enthralling
story. Orchard immerses the reader in the world of the musician:
practice, recitals, sessions of listening to recordings, and
discussions with friends. And even though the characters are a
stupendously talented group the reader discovers that they are
also simply human.
This is an excellent debut novel. Orchard's seemingly effortless
prose flows beautifully across each page of this rich and moving book.