Visitors from the Past

Having spent 35 years in the music industry, I have worked with many artists of prominence. Each time I would work with such a person, I would ask them to sign a photograph, my actual sheet music, or write a short note on either my business card or theirs. As the years passed, I realized that I had a good number of memories commemorated in my collection. While walking the streets of Vienna in 1995, I stumbled onto an Autograph Shoppe. The establishment was tucked away on one of the less busy Vienna streets, Dorotheergasse. Here, my short visit to Palais Dorotheum only intensified my interest in autograph collecting. I soon learned that Palais Dorotheum was celebrating 300-plus years since its founding in Vienna by Emperor Joseph I in 1707. Dorotheum is the largest auction house in German-speaking Europe, as well as a leader in Central Europe. It is also one of the oldest and largest auction houses in the world. I asked the proprietor where I could view their current selection of classical composer’s autographs. I was directed to the series of black binders that were sitting on the center counter. The spine of the first binder read “Composers A-F.” Sitting next to that binder was another which read “Composers G-L.” I understood the concept and picked up book one, composers A to F. As I opened the book, the first thing I saw was the listings of composers. Next to each name, there was an indication of the actual item for sale. There were acronyms such as ANS which meant, Autograph Note Signed, ALS, SP, or AMusQ representing Autograph Letter Signed, Signed Picture, and Autograph Musical Quote; the quotes were handwritten music quotes from selections that the composer chose to include in their signature. I was fascinated. After the A’s came the likes of Bartók and Brahms; my head began to ache. I asked the assistant to bring me the specified catalog number, which corresponded to the item I wished to view. A few short moments later, I would be holding in my hands the requested item: an actual letter that Johannes Brahms wrote in 1872. From that day forward, I was under the spell of collecting these treasures for my consumption. Music is a vast category to collect, considering composers, soloists, the opera world, and so on; I knew I needed to narrow my field of collecting to only one subcategory. The one that truly captivated me and my imagination was composers. Over the years, I have done my best to keep my interest focused on collecting documents, photographs, and calling cards of classical composers. If an occasional conductor, soloist, or other notable—someone of high profile—fell on my lap, I would feel compelled to add it to my growing collection. Some examples include Enrico Caruso, Arturo Toscanini, and Nicolo Paganini, to name a few. What am I collecting? Consider an autographed letter, something penned by one of the masters. That letter represents the only document of its kind, an original, as there are usually no copies. When a written letter refers to a specific topic, such as a visit with another composer, or references a particular composition, travel plans, new commissions, or family matters, the letter becomes more desirable. Signed photographs, especially those that the composer pens a few measures of music on become even more desirable, and usually, more valuable. As my interest in collecting grew, I began to understand that there might be some untrustworthy people and dealers in the world. As a result, I started studying forensic handwriting for signature comparison. I read books, and articles on variations and natural deviations, and analysis of unique qualities in penmanship, which includes letter spacing, word slant, size, the proportion of letters, as well as flourishes. Andrea McNichol published a fabulous book on this topic, one I highly recommend. As the years passed, I have become more adept at telling when a signature is live or a facsimile, an original or a forgery. I have been collecting autographs and ephemera on composers for the better part of 25 years, and my collection has grown exponentially. At the time of writing, my collection exceeds 700 pieces. In 2001 I came across a beautiful ensemble, which included a visiting card by one of my favorite Bohemian composers, Antonín Dvořák. Included with the autographed visiting card was an original 1893 concert program of Dvorak conducting his own 4th Symphony, op. 13; Slavonic Dances, op. 72; and the overture, Ma Vlast, op. 62. For Bohemian Day, 12 August 1893 at the Chicago World’s Fair. Also included was a superb antique Gesellschaft Berlin photogravure of Dvořák. The piece was far out of my financial reach; however, I placed a bookmark on the internet page, hoping that one day, the ensemble would sit on my home office wall. A few months passed, and as fate would have it, the owner lowered the price. Although it was still at an unrealistic price for my budget, my eagerness grew. The owner of the item was a well-known, most reputable dealer of fine arts and autographs. As a member of PADA (Professional Autograph Dealers Association), I knew the items were genuine, and not forgeries or reprints. Those facts, along with a strict savings plan, helped push me closer to ownership. I called the owner and asked him if he would be willing to place a hold on the Dvořák, at which he said, “Jim, I was just about to post a three-day reduction sale on all items on my website.” With that news, I committed to making the purchase (see page 8). Although the Dvořák ensemble is on the wall in my home office for all to see, it is there for me to enjoy daily. Since the purchase of the Dvořák, I was utterly taken in and spent the two next decades, focusing on collecting visiting cards. I loved the thought of a servant passing a visiting card, possibly on a silver platter that had just arrived via an unnamed visitor to their master. I hope you enjoy viewing and reading about the masters I have shared with you as much as I have enjoyed writing this book. As they say in the autograph business, Happy Hunting!