Saturday, December 8, 2012

Pre-chewed Peas

The late great humorist Milt Gross wrote an unforgettable version of the Ferry Tail from Keeng Midas in a splended collection called Nize Baby, available, I believe, in a Dover reprint.  This priceless compendium of grim tales includes a scene in which the hungry King Midas is unable to eat his peas: every time he tries to chew them they turn to solid gold and break his teeth.  So he has his vassal stand opposite him with the peas in a peashooter, wot he should swallow de pees witout chewing de pees.  Or something to that effect - I can imitate the dialect but the spelling is difficult.  Like music, these words are meant to be heard.

This peashooting is the perfect model of dutiful piano playing: we should play the music without its touching us.