His first big throw or: Mr.

Pompous & Lady Butterfly Ernesto Pompous, half a Greek and half an Englishman by birth, but born in Berlin and completely raised there, was a very reknown classical conductor of already more than seventy years. Best known he was for his more than excellent interpretations of the works by Wagner but also Bruckner. For this the people used to call him Mr. Pompous (of classical music) quite often. And so he more than loved the sound of some real trumpets and some gigantic kettle drums. The bigger they are the better he always used to think. A lot of people saw it in just the same way. At the beginning of the year his own interpretation of Wagner's Tannhuser and The Ring of the Nibelungs had sent some real shock waves of enthusiasm to the classical public not only in Berlin but simply all of the planet. Even the American ambassador, the honorable Buck Ferry, a former senator and longstanding governor of Lousiana had been present on that occasion sitting in the first row which normally was reserved only for the very rich and the upper class of Berlin. Those places were simply too expansive even for some people from the upper middle class. If I would ever have been sitting there - which will never happen anyway like I think whenever I throw a spontaneous look into my own little purse as an altogether still very small German composer coming only from the province - I guess it only would have made myself sweat some real tons of blood and sweat already very soon. Don't ask me why! Why, this Ernesto Pompous, upon the day before he would conduct his Tannhuser publicly again together with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Berlin, suddenly had received some kind of inner inspiration or true musical stroke of genius while he still had been standing in front of the mirror in his bath early that morning only clothed in his highly official trousers as a performing conductor and his white undershirt and was shaving himself. All in all it seemed to be a very light-hearted and relatively short string of melody he received first upon this way. Nothing you would find with some classical heavy weights or some through and through serious composers like Wagner or Bruckner. Much rather with a Mozart, Bernstein or Vivaldi. And yet somehow he really liked it. At the end of his first breakfast while he still was sitiing in his kitchen at the table he already had composed the complete first movement of it. Inclusively a very nice and very smooth introduction of only two or three minutes. He really thought it to be somehow more than impressing, too! Especially because he never had written something himself until then. All through his life he only had been the classical conductor for the big public. Nobody ever had heard a selfcomposed symphony or maybe some opera by him at all. Nevertheless he found the very idea that maybe he could do so altogether very attractive! And so it came that only a short time before he left his very own flat as a sworn-in old bachelor which he had been through all of his life he already had put an end to nearly all of it. Of course, everything only quasi before his inner eyes. He later could still write it down. And while he still was sitting upon the very backseat of the taxi that brought him to the opera house where the dress rehearsal with his orchestra would take place only half an hour later he already had come across the very last few bars or if you want the big final of his very first own fine work as a possible future classical writer! His orchestra already kept waiting for him. This very evening as soon as the clock would strike eight the big premiere with him as a conductor would finally take place! Yet before he even could climb up the very first steps in front of the opera house itself he suddenly got aware of two very poor street musicians or some older fiddlers clothed only in some rags who had been playing a medley by Richard Strauss while he had arrived and still was paying the taxi driver, but now had both put aside their instruments. For a short while he now paused himself and listened to their conversation. Ernesto Pompous himself is conducting his 'Ring of the Nibelungs' tonight! said one of them who seemed to be much young than the other one. Wished I could listen to it myself! I'm one of his biggest fans! Believe this or not, Richard W.! Whereupon the other answered: Better you forget it, Wolfgang-Amadeus! Highly

probable they even wouldn't let poor Mozart come in! I mean if you really would go up those stairs now and might ask them for it most surprisingly. No money no entry! It's as easy as this! They wouldn't make the slightest exception for you, believe me, my poor young friend! Remember that we're not in Salzburg or Vienna where your word still might have got a little more weight eventually! Only a little later Ernesto Pompous called up his personal agent from one of the phones inside of the opera. He asked him to take care that those two very poor street musicians of which at least one seemed to come either from Salzburtg or Vienna like he truly believed would receive two tickets for the evening. Completely for free and under all circumstances in the very first row like he said, and if possible directly aside of the American ambassador and the mayor of Berlin with their wifes. Further he asked him to buy each one a tailcoat by one of the best tailors of all of Berlin. So that both of them would be more than adequately dressed for the evening like he thought. ... That very evening the big event itself finally took place. The people had come from near and far to see it. But what a real big surprise it was for just everyone when suddenly there was announced a sudden change regarding the program of the evening and that instead of Wagner's tradtional Ring of the Nibelungs the maestro planned to exclusively perform his first own big classical work titled Mr. Pompous & Lady Butterfly for all of them if nobody would have any objections from his side! With maybe a few smaller faults at the beginning and the end because his orchestra only had got half a day or even less to get completely through it with him for this time. At once a big murmur went through simply all of the rows. Some people even seemed to feel slightly angry and to insist on Wagner like before! But in the very end their own curiosity proved to be much stronger than that! This way Mr. Pompous & Lady Butterfly, which by now is one of the most popular symphonies of the last ten years at all which daily is perfomed by many very reknown orchestras from simply all over the world finally made its way onto the big stage for the very first time time, my dear friends! The rest of it already is history! The new work by Ernesto Pompous was am overwhelming success. The final applause was never ending. And if you only make some smaller efforts from your side you even can hear it today! ... Maybe I shouldn't forget to mention here that Ernesto Pompous still has composed a lot of other really fine classical stuff as a composer until his death. Aside of fourteen bigger symphonies he also left us a lot of very fine piano sonatas and more than fifty classical arias. Even you might know some of them because many of them have become standards by now. In his own memories which he published already several years ago Ernesto wrote about this evening: More and more I won the impression that the loudest applause from all I received by Richard W. and his much younger companion with the name of Wolfgang-Amadeus. They both left before I even had a chance to talk to them and maybe learn a little more about them. But when I'm thinking back now and try to remember myself, then one thing deemed me really more than strange with regard to both of them. This was when I already was receiving the overwhelming reactions and never ending ovations by the public when I clearly could hear the much younger one of them say into the direction of the other: I swear I only played a very first few bars upon my own violin for him while I still was standing there upon the boardwalk directly below the open window of his bath only this morning! All the rest of it he must have somehow composed completely alone! Whereupon the other answered: I believe you, Wolfgang-Amadeus! Whereas this more than furious final part he built in as a composer, too, somehow seems to come directly by our friend Bruckner! I saw him steering the taxi which brought him to the opera! Really? Well, I knew at once it only could be him! As soon as I caught a glimpse of him! I bet he hammered the very rhythm of it upon the wheel of this taxi for him as a driver! He has successfully made use of this little trick already sometimes in the past in front of just a few other very promising contemporary composers like him. Most times he did so if nothing else seemed to work at all. I know it directly from himself. Because one day he told me!

- The end And so always keep open your own future concert halls also for the members of the poorer classes, my dear young friends! Mark-Anthony Reade