Arriving at Paris, and believing probably that the classical style of
Robrechts, from whom he had had instruction in Brussels, did not lead
him swiftly forward enough in the path he would travel, he sought
Viotti, as we have related above, and by his advice entered himself in
the violin class of the Conservatoire, which was directed by Baillot, an
eminent player of the Viotti school, though never a direct pupil of the
latter master. De Bériot, however, did not remain long in the class, but
applied himself most assiduously to the study of the violin in his own
way. This is what Paganini had done, and through this course had been
able to form a style so peculiarly his own. It is not probable that De
Bériot at this time knew much about Paganini; certainly he had
never heard him. Paganini was at first looked on as a mere comet of
extraordinary brilliancy, without much soundness or true genius, and
many who afterward became his most ardent admirers began with sneering
at his pretensions. De Bériot was in later years undoubtedly powerfully
influenced by Paganini, but at the time of which we speak the young
violinist appears to have been determined to evolve a style and
character in art out of his own resources purely. He was carrying out
Viot-ti's advice.
At this time our young artist was the possessor of a very fine
instrument by Giovanni Magini, a celebrated maker of the Brescian
school, and a pupil of Gaspar de Salo. Many of the violins of this make
are of an excellence hardly inferior to the Strads of the best period,
and De Bériot seems to have preferred this violin during the whole of
his career, though he afterward owned instruments of the most celebrated
makers.
Very soon De Bériot made his public appearance in concerts, and was
brilliantly successful from the outset. The range of his ambition may be
seen from the fact that he had enough confidence in his own genius from
the very first to play his own music, and it was conceded to possess
great freshness and originality. These early "Airs Varié" consisted of
an introduction, a theme, followed by three or four variations, and a
brilliant finale.
The young artist preceded Paganini in London several years, as he
made his first appearance before an English audience in 1826. It was
fortunate, perhaps, for De Bériot that such was the case, as it is more
than probable that, after the dazzling and electric displays of
the Geneose player, the more sedate and simple style which then
characterized De Bériot would have failed to please. As it was, he
was most cordially admired, and was generally recognized by English
connoisseurs, as well as by the general public, as one of the most
accomplished players who had ever visited England. The pecuniary results
of these concerts were large, and sufficient to relieve De Bériot, who
had formerly been rather straitened in his means, from the friction and
embarrassment which poverty so often imposes on struggling talent.
There was a peculiar charm in De Bériot's style which was permanently
characteristic of him, though his technical method did not always remain
the same. In addition to very facile execution and a rich, mellow tone,
he possessed the most refined taste. His playing impressed people less
as that of a great professional violinist than that of the marvelously
accomplished amateur, the gentleman of leisure and culture, who
performed with the easy, sparkling grace of one who took no thought of
whether he played well or not, but did great feats on his instrument
because he could not help it. Such was also the characteristic of Mario
as a singer, and there seems to have been many features of resemblance
between these two fine artists, though moving in different fields of
art.
After traveling through Europe for several years, giving concerts with
great success, he was presented to King Wilhelm of the then united
kingdom of the Netherlands. This monarch, though quite ignorant of
music, was an enthusiastic patron of art, and, believing that De Bériot
was destined to be a great ornament of his native country (for he was
born in Belgium, though his parents were from France), bestowed on the
artist a pension of two thousand florins a year, and the title of first
violin solo to his majesty. But this honor was soon rudely snatched
from De Bériot's grasp. The revolution of 1830, which began with
the excitement inflamed in Brussels by the performance of Auber's
revolutionary opera, "La Muette di Portici," better known as
"Masaniello," dissolved the kingdom, and Belgium parted permanently
from Holland. It was, perhaps, owing to this apparent misfortune that
De Bériot made an acquaintance which culminated in the most interesting
episode of his life. He lost his official position at Brussels, but he
met Mme. Malibran.