FAMOUS VIOLINIST ALFREDO CAMPOLI NO MEAN SPORTSMAN

Wanganui Chronicle, 7 September 1950, Page 8

FAMOUS VIOLINIST ALFREDO CAMPOLI NO MEAN SPORTSMAN

In addition to being a world famous violinist, Mr. Alfredo Campoli, who appeared in the Wanganui Opera House last night, is a noted sportsman. He has made breaks of 100 at billiards, broke a leg at soccer and once took sets from a Davis Cup tennis player and he has beaten international tennis stars in England. Mr. Campoli, who practices for six hours a day, recently finished a tour of Australia in which his 177-year-old violin won the acclaim of 48 audiences. His experience in Australia and New Zealand was that persons today were prepared to listen to more difficult and thoughtful music from a listener’s viewpoint than he had been led to believe, and he was gratified at the reception of unaccompanied Bach at his Auckland concerts. Mr. Campoli has had enough of the "genuine Strads” that everyone seems to possess. In Australia his telephone was never silent. Persons plagued him to look at their violins. “It has a label marked Stradivarious,” they all said. And often it had but was not genuine. He had had to make a plea for no further letters, as he was becoming worn out looking at violins, and really he could not spare the time.