My orchestral parts of the symphonies of Beethoven, Mozart, and Brahms are old and worn by many rehearsals and performances, and some of them have been patched up and pasted together by my librarian so many times that they have had to be replaced by new ones twice over. I have performed them for nearly forty years, and the grandchildren of my audiences of 1885 are now listening to them with equal happiness. A few years ago I discovered a lovely symphony by Mozart, which had never been played in New York, and I was as proud of this as if it had been the fourth dimension. The works of these masters are lifted above the fashion of the moment, and their creators smile upon us serenely and eternally from the heavens in which they dwell as gods among the gods. [Illustration: FRITZ KREISLER, HAROLD BAUER, PABLO CASALS, AND WALTER DAMROSCH] XXI POSTLUDE These reminiscences were begun in New York in April, 1922, and finished the following August in Bar Harbor, Maine. My friends had urged me for some time to write down my experiences because they thought that the many and varied events in a long musical life would prove interesting to American musicians and readers generally. I do not know. On re-reading the foregoing pages in the proof-sheets I feel that many happenings which seemed of great importance to me may prove but dull reading to others. But at least I have tried to tell a truthful tale and to give an honest account of my aspirations and struggles. I have climbed a few hills, but only to see the mountains beyond rising higher and higher, the path upward often indiscernible through the mists surrounding the peaks. I love the people among whom my father settled because he firmly believed that in America his children would have a greater opportunity for development than in old Europe. The musical field in America is certainly wonderful in its possibilities, and all my life I have reached out with both hands and have worked incessantly and enthusiastically in my calling. In part at least I have tried to repay what I owe to my compatriots for their confidence and help. But the power of the individual is comparatively small, and while our musicians have already accomplished miracles within the short period that music has played a part in our civilization, so much yet remains to be done that I long for at least one hundred more years of life, partly to continue my work but still more to satisfy my eager curiosity as to the musical future of our people. If this book serves to encourage my younger colleagues in their efforts to increase the love and appreciation of music in our country, it has not been written in vain. INDEX _ff._: and following pages