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Devil’s Trill: A Mystery in Sonata Allegro Form

Name: Devil’s Trill: A Mystery in Sonata Allegro Form
Author: Gerald Elias
ISBN: 9780312653507

by Gerald Elias

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Overview

Daniel Jacobus lives in self-imposed exile in rural New England. He spends his time chain smoking and berating students in the hope that they will flee. Jacobus, however, is drawn back into the world he left behind when he decides to attend the Grimsley Competition at Carnegie Hall. The winner of this competition is granted the honor of playing the ‘Piccolino Stradivarius,’ a uniquely dazzling violin that has brought misfortune to all who possessed it over the centuries. Nine–year–old Kamryn Vander wins the competition, but before she can get an opportunity to play the priceless violin, it is stolen. Jacobus becomes the primary suspect and with the help of his friend and former musical partner Nathaniel Williams, and his new student, Yumi Shinagawa, sets out to prove his innocence.

Synopsis

Daniel Jacobus lives in self-imposed exile in rural New England. He spends his time chain smoking and berating students in the hope that they will flee. Jacobus, however, is drawn back into the world he left behind when he decides to attend the Grimsley Competition at Carnegie Hall. The winner of this competition is granted the honor of playing the ‘Piccolino Stradivarius,' a uniquely dazzling violin that has brought misfortune to all who possessed it over the centuries. Nine–year–old Kamryn Vander wins the competition, but before she can get an opportunity to play the priceless violin, it is stolen. Jacobus becomes the primary suspect and with the help of his friend and former musical partner Nathaniel Williams, and his new student, Yumi Shinagawa, sets out to prove his innocence.

About the Author, Gerald Elias

A graduate of Yale, Gerald Elias has been a Boston Symphony violinist, Associate Concertmaster of the Utah Symphony since 1988, Adjunct Professor of Music at the University of Utah, first violinist of the Abramyan String Quartet, and Music Director of the Vivaldi Candlelight concert series.

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Editorials

From Barnes & Noble

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A drop of blood. An aged Stradivarius. A garroting. And a shady cast of characters. Sound like the elite world of classical music, or a great game of Clue? The first mystery from Elias is a bit of both as he transports readers into the refined world of the most gifted musicians -- and their teachers, agents, and instrument dealers -- where we're surprised to learn that great musical talent can often flourish amid unseemly circumstances. How is it possible for brilliant music to exist in an atmosphere of crass consumerism? And how far will one man go to separate the two?

\ \ That question is at the crux of this mystery, focused on the fabled Piccolino Stradivarius, the venerable Grimsley Competition, and a cantankerous blind violin teacher named Daniel Jacobus. From Carnegie Hall to Japan, this mystery -- not unlike Clue -- abounds in potential villains. From a music conservatory to the plush home of a child prodigy to a sleazy Manhattan talent-booking office, Elias keeps readers guessing at the outcome until the final page is turned. Who stole the Strad and committed the murder, and why? Jacobus is a natural suspect. He even admits to the theft, but can he find the instrument and the real killer before he's locked up for life?

\ \ Rich in music detail and featuring a fabulously roguish cast, Devil's Trill will delight music lovers and mystery fans alike. \ (Holiday 2009 Selection)

Publishers Weekly

Elias, a violinist and music professor, puts a priceless violin at the center of his taut debut. The violin in question is part of the highly exclusive Grimsley Competition, open only to child prodigies under the age of 13, held every 13 years at New York's Carnegie Hall. The winner receives cash, symphonic appearances and, most coveted, the use of the world's only three-quarter-size Stradivarius, the legendary Piccolino, for a Carnegie Hall performance. Daniel Jacobus, a former Grimsley contestant who eschews the modern music world in his belief that it destroys gifted children, is accused, first, of the theft of the Piccolino and, second, of a rival violin teacher's murder. Blind, bitter and determined to destroy those who have turned classical music into a greed-saturated industry, Jacobus sets out to find the Piccolino and clear his reputation. This richly plotted mystery will thrill music lovers, while those not so musically inclined will find it equally enjoyable. (Aug.)

Library Journal

First the Piccolino Stradivarius, a tiny violin, is stolen before it can be played by the winner of the Grimsley Competition at Carnegie Hall. Then, the main rival of blind, cranky violin teacher Daniel Jacobus is murdered, and Daniel falls under police suspicion. With his friend and former musical partner, William, who represents the insurance company that must pay out $8 million if the violin is not found, Daniel searches for the instrument in an effort to prove his innocence. VERDICT This captivating and wholly originally debut by a former concert violinist is packed with insider tidbits on the classical music scene in New York City. The mystery, though a bit weak, still leads readers on a merry chase. Meeting the wily Jacobus only wets our appetite for more. A good choice for mystery fans wanting something new and music lovers who do not usually consider crime fiction.

Kirkus Reviews

Dueling violin aficionados disrupt Carnegie Hall. The Grimsley Competition, held once every 13 years, offers its preteen winner a chance to play the Piccolino Stradivarius, currently valued at $8 million. Child prodigy Kamryn Vander is about to be honored when the three-quarter-sized violin is stolen from a locked room in Carnegie Hall, to the horror of the Music Arts Project group (MAP) responsible for the gala. Also on hand, but more chagrined than horrified by the failure of his plan to smash the Piccolino to smithereens, is blind curmudgeon Daniel Jacobus, who since losing out in the competition years ago has tutored aspiring musicians of dubious skills. When his pal Nathaniel, an insurance investigator, asks his help in recovering the Piccolino, Daniel agrees and drags along his newest pupil: Yumi, a green-eyed Japanese girl with several family secrets. Combining the deductive reasoning of Sherlock Holmes with the rhetorical finesse of Don Rickles, Daniel tracks the 17th-century origins of the Piccolino and the motives and whereabouts of MAP and its competitors past and present. Falling under suspicion himself, he sidesteps the law and the killer by fleeing to Japan, where the author unfurls dandy plot twists. Fans of ratiocination will be pleased with Utah concertmaster Elias' witty and acerbic debut, which is critical of the classical-music industry and so passionate about the music that you'll run out to buy a recording of Beethoven's Ninth, or even take up the violin. Agent: Josh Getzler/Writers House