Devil's Trill (A Daniel Jacobus Mystery)

Paul Adam's PAGANINI'S GHOST, a wonderful book, is a mystery concerning a Guarnieri violin played every two years by a contest winner. THE DEVIL'S TRILL is a mystery concerning the disappearance of a Stradivarius violin played every thirteen years by a concert winner. Beyond this the books are completely different. Paul Adam peoples his story with warm, likeable characters, devoted to music for the sake of music. Gerald Elias peoples his story with dark, greedy, nasty characters, the chief of whom is Daniel Jacobus, the "hero" of the story. Jacobus was a child prodigy, a losing contestant in the Grimsley Competition, the winner of which gets to play the only 3/4 size Stradivarius known to have been made. It is considered perfect in form and in sound. Jacobus is a man dogged by a dark cloud; he wins the coveted role of concertmaster with the Boston Symphony Orchestra but loses it with the sudden onset of blindness. Angry, misanthropic, brilliant, and possessed of a vile temper, Jacobus does his best to infuriate and insult everyone with whom he comes in contact. He withdraws to a house in the Berkshires where he earns his living by teaching the violin to students who are nearly as good as he was and he spends every moment trying to get them to hate him so much they quit. THE DEVIL'S TRILL is set in 1983. Jacobus is drawn to the Carnegie Hall concert of the newest winner and, in his own style wearing a flannel shirt that is worn and none too clean, "Jake" mixes with the classical aristocracy, dressed to annoy. The one thing he hates more than the Grimsley Competition is the child-centered Musical Arts Program Group which sucks the life and the talent out of the children they agree to represent in the artificial and demeaning world of perfomance art. Jake is not shy about making his opinions known and when the Piccolino Stradivarius is stolen in the middle of the reception, Jake becomes the prime suspect. Jake, his newest student, Yumi Shinagawa, and his one, true friend, Nathanial Williams begin an investigation to find the violin and clear Jake's name. The search takes them to Japan and to the Grimsley Competition of 1931 and to a satisfying conclusion that reveals the soul-destroying depths of failure. Jacobus is unpleasant, has questionable hygiene, and isn't above using his lack of vision to get what he wants. Jacobus is why the book is so good. He hates the manipulation of the child prodigies who make money for record labels, concert venues, and managers and who often lose the gift that brought them so much attention because they are rushed to perform in a manner that their bodies are not yet able to manage. He hates the Piccolino Stradivarius because it is the competition to play the "perfect" instrument that pushes the children, and their parents, into the Grimsley Competition. Jacobus was one of those children and none who competed or won went on the fulfill the promise of their musical genius. A nice-guy hero couldn't be nearly so ruth

What a wonderfully balance, well-written book! Author Gerald Elias (who also happens to be a major orchestra conductor in his own right) has fashioned an interesting mystery involving the upper crust of the New York classical music community and the belligerence of Daniel Jacobus, a blind virtuoso with the common sense of Sherlock Holmes. Elias does a splendid job of creating his characters and presenting them with the virtues (and non-virtues) one envisions from the fabulously rich and inclusive. His use of tidbits of musical trivia helps to keep the tale on track while providing interesting information to the experienced and the novice music buff. He explains, for instance, that the Devil's Trill is a composition considered so difficult that to be able just to play it indicates you have given your soul to the devil. In Elias' book, many have given their soul to the devil. His coupe, however is the presentation of Jacobus as a rascal with a heart. Jacobus is first defined as an embittered, disliked teacher who neither seeks nor suffers idiots. He shows his distaste for the affluent, for instance, by wearing worn and frayed flannel shirts at black-tie events. His instructional skills and classical training, however, are envied by all as much as he is disdained for this direct and caustic manner. As the book progresses, however, we discover more about him and ultimately recognize him as a character destined for future mysteries. The Devil's Trill is a book to be read and savored. It has a smooth, lingering flavor...enough mystery to have you change your mind several times as to "who done it"... sufficient classical music background to satisfy those of a historical persuasion, and characters who will leave you wanting to go right on to the next tale. Whether you are a classical music aficionado or not, I think you will enjoy this mystery.

As a 30- year member of a major US orchestra, I was obviously drawn to the cover of this book! It didn't not disappoint. I loved every minute of it. I especially appreciated that the author REALLY knew what he was writing about. This is a must read for musicians and non-musicians alike. Couldn't put it down!

Whether you know a lot about classical music, or don't recognize anything other than the Lone Ranger theme, I think you will be fascinated by the way the author weaves the history and even the sound of classical music into this complex but page-turner of a whodunit. The misanthropic central character is a blind violin teacher, and all the 21st Century crime scene technology, real and imagined, can't match the way his heightened senses produce clues -- to crime and to human character. Not only did I enjoy the intricate plot, I had the self-inflated sense that along the way "Jake" had turned me into a classical music maven.

Every thirteen years the Grimsley Competition is held for prodigies under thirteen years of age at Carnegie Hall. The winner receives money, appearances with the New York Symphonic and use of the renowned seventeenth century Piccolino valued at $8 million for a Carnegie Hall performance. Blind Daniel Jacobus was once a losing participant, but since feels strongly that the competition and similar music venues destroy the gifted young. Child prodigy Kamryn Vander is this year's winner, but to the shock of the members if the Music Arts Project responsible for the gala, someone stole the revered Piccolino, the only known three-quarter-size Stradivarius. The police blame Daniel, who was at the scene of the crime when the locked door was opened and found empty and has voiced a loud motive to end the competition by breaking the violin. Encouraged by insurance investigator friend Nathanial, grumpy Daniel accompanied by his current student Yumi, whose green eyes are his vision, searches for the missing Piccolino. Murder has the almost maestro and his protégé fleeing to Japan before they become the second act of the killer. This is a super amateur sleuth tale with a musical twist as Daniel with the help of Yumi tries to track down the missing Piccolino. Fans will enjoy the blind teacher turned detective as the almost famous but now infamous Daniel understands the irony of his predicament; he wanted to end the competition that he feels harms children yet now must find the instrument that is the prize of the contest if he is to prove his innocence. Fans will enjoy his profound cantankerous view of the state of classical music in this engaging mystery. Harriet Klausner