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reputation precedes you, young man.
Matt let out a nervous laugh, his gaze bouncing from Tonio to
me and back again. I have a reputation?
I heard your radio broadcast the other night. Quite
impressive. He straightened up. Well, come on up, then. Let s
get to work. With that, he strode to the piano and sat down.
I d expected Matt to charge up onstage, but instead he
hesitated, shooting me a wary glance. Is he&
You re in excellent hands. Tonio s one of the finest
accompanists in Europe. It was only the truth, after all. My first
recital here would ve been a disaster if not for him. My bow had
broken halfway through the performance. Tonio ran downstairs
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and sweet-talked one of the opera house violinists into loaning him
a spare. Saved the whole damn evening.
If you say so. He gave me a quick kiss and headed for the
stairs at stage right.
I sat at the rear of the hall, so Matt wouldn t be tempted to look
at me. But this time I needn t have worried. Tonio kept him on his
toes all afternoon, running through the entire program. Haydn.
Mozart. Beethoven. The recital hall was a near-ideal venue for
showing off Matt s interpretive gifts with the baroque and classical
repertoire. However, it also left the soloist incredibly exposed, with
no huge orchestra to help disguise flubbed notes.
It was a challenge, but, of course, Matt rose to it admirably,
every note ringing out strong and true. He and Tonio worked well
together, complementing each other with an ease that made me
downright envious. They were sharing something that, thanks to
my bum hand, Matt and I could never share a collaboration of
equals.
Then the piano faded away, and there was just Matt, playing
one of Bach s solo violin sonatas. He worked his way through
selections from all three sonatas, finally segueing into the first
movement of the partita he d played at his conservatory audition
last January. Bold chords. Sweet, throbbing arpeggios. A bravura
piece, but he made it sound like a love song.
My eyes stung. I blinked hard, rose and made my way back to
the stage, where Matt was wiping down the Strad before laying it
back in its case.
I didn t know you d decided to play the partita, I said.
Matt grinned. You liked it? I thought I d play it as an encore.
If I actually get one.
You should prepare more than one, Tonio interjected.
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SONATA APPASSIONATA
Now Matt snorted. Yeah, right.
I m serious. Tonio cocked his head at me. You tell him.
Tonio s right. Besides, wouldn t you rather have the encores
prepared and not need them, instead of the other way around?
And I m supposed to learn these new pieces in two days? I
don t even know what to play.
Why don t we discuss it over supper? All three of us, of
course, Tonio added, with a wink in my direction. I know a little
place not far from here.
I wasn t as ravenous as last night, but I could certainly eat.
Matt didn t seem terribly enthused or opposed to the idea. Finally I
shrugged. Fine with us.
It was one of those hole-in-the-wall places the locals
frequented where everybody knows your name, and bellows it at
the top of their lungs. The shabby décor left something to be
desired and made me grateful for the small lamp casting shaky,
anemic light over the table. Tonio assured us the food was worth it,
and proceeded to order for all of us. At least they brought the wine
promptly.
We had to lean across the table to carry on a conversation over
the din. Tonio s eyes widened when he asked Matt where he d
studied, and he mentioned Juilliard. I went there as well. What did
you think of it?
Matt shrugged. I liked their violin program just fine. It s New
York I m not too fond of.
Why not?
I m a West Coast kind of guy. Manhattan s too intense for me.
Plus& Well, my mom was having some health issues. He reached
for my hand. Besides, if I hadn t moved home, I never would ve
met Aaron.
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SONATA APPASSIONATA
Tonio smiled. The best reason of all.
We clinked our glasses together and drank.
They brought us prosciutto with melon first, then angel hair
pasta with mussels in a light, creamy Alfredo sauce. Then came the
main course sea bass alla Fiorentina, golden and flaky, with a
dash of marinara sauce and wedge of lemon. Not the fanciest meal
I d ever had, but definitely one of the most satisfying, and even
worth putting up with the noise.
The place had cleared out a bit by the time they took our plates
away, so we could enjoy our coffee in relative peace. Somewhat
the worse for wine, Tonio and I started to reminisce. Matt leaned
his chin on his palm and listened, giving us his full, rapt attention.
This one was quite a wolf in his day, Tonio announced,
poking a finger at my chest. He left a trail of broken hearts from
London to Rome.
Oh, terrific. I could feel the hot flush creeping up my neck, into
my cheeks and all the way to my hairline. He s exaggerating.
Ah, well& perhaps. But not by much.
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