302 
THE STRAND MAGAZINE . 
certs at which a symphony by Brahms was 
being played, a lady — not one of our regular 
supporters — went up to one or the attend- 
ants and said : — 
“ Is not Mr. Brahms conducting this 
afternoon ? ” 
“No, madam,’ 7 replied the attendant; 
“ he is not here this afternoon.” 
“ Oh/ 7 she said, “ how very disappointing ! 
I came specially to see him ! ” 
“ i am sorry, madam/’ further replied the 
attendant, quite gravely. “ I am afraid Mr. 
Brahms is a very long way off.” 
Brahms, of course, died in 1897. 
Mr. WALTER NUTT ALL, 
Bandmaster of Irwell Springs Band, which won the 
1 000 - Guinea Trophy at the Crystal Palace in 
1905, 1908, and 1910. 
One of the most remarkable incidents I 
remember occurred some years ago in the 
local theatre of a Lancashire town where we 
were giving two sacred concerts one afternoon 
and evening. 
During the evening performance, just as 
we were in the middle of a selection from 
Balfe’s works, the electric light throughout 
the theatre suddenly failed, plunging platform 
and auditorium into complete darkness. 
In many cases such an occurrence would 
prove disastrous to a musical performance, 
and for the moment I was utterly nonplussed, 
for conducting was, of course, quite out of 
the question. Fortunately the band knew 
the music by heart. The selection went on, 
therefore, without any pause, and, expecting 
each instant to see the lights reappear, 1 let 
them play on. But when, after a few 
minutes, the lights did not come on again, I 
began to think discretion would be the better 
part of valour, so, to avoid any fear of a 
breakdown, I allowed the band to finish the 
movement, and then shouted out directions 
to stop it and play a hymn instead. 
We at once struck up “ Lead, Kindly 
Light,” and, the whole of the vast audience 
joining in, I cannot describe the strange 
grandeur of the beautiful hymn as verse after 
verse went pealing through the darkened 
building, the effect being heightened, perhaps, 
when one of the attendants, having secured 
and lighted a solitary candle, stepped on to 
the platform and held it aloft until the hymn 
was almost concluded, when the lights came 
on again as suddenly as they had gone off. 
I can assure you that while it lasted the 
effect was weird and funereal in the extreme, 
and I have never forgotten the good-natured 
tolerance of the large audience. 
Many were the good-humoured comments'- 
afterwards levelled at us about the appearance? 
of the candle at so appropriate a moment I 
Mr. TOM KAY, 
Secretary of Wingate's Temperance Band, Lancs, 
holders of the World's Amateur Brass Band 
Champion hips. 1906 and 1907. 
If I begin with a story you have heard or 
read before you must forgive me. My excuse 
is a good one : it is true. 
Some years ago, about 1902, I think, we 
were playing at a garden-party given by a 
very well-known personage. During the per- 
formance of one of the items the soprano 
soloist played a top note which sounded very 
much out of place, and at the end of the piece 
the man next him asked what note he got— 
adding that whatever it was it was a wrong 
one. 
“ Well,” said the soloist, who was some- 
what annoyed, “ if you want to know, it was 
a top B and it was in my copy, and if you 
don’t believe me look for yourself. There 
it is ! ” 
And with that he went to lay his finger 
upon the note, which promptly flew away. 
It was a fly ! 
About ten years ago we had an engagement 
to play at a music-hall. The night before 
the engagement one of our two BB bass 
players fell ill suddenly and could not go. 
The next morning the other player missed 
his train, and we accordingly arrived at our 
destination minus any bass player at all ! Of 
course, we could not go on like that, and 
being unable to find a substitute w e borrowed 
a bass instrument from the local band and 
told our librarian that he must come on the 
stage and act as a dummy, putting the 
instrument to his lips and moving his fingers 
as though he were playing. 
The instrument having been carefully 
stopped up so as to avoid all danger of acci- 
dents — or accidentals ! — he duly appeared, 
and all went well until a piece was reached 
in the course of which the bass players’ music 
showed several bars of shakes, every fourth 
bar being a silent one for the whole band, 
This proved our dummy’s downfall. To 
the amusement of the band — whose eyes 
were upon him, as you may depend — and 
of those members of the audience who were 
in a position to see what happened, it was 
observed that in the silent bars this man 
was blowing and shaking his fingers until he 
was red in the face, without making a sound S 
One little story to conclude. 
Many years ago we attended a contest in 
