Page:The story of the flute (IA storyofflute1914fitz).djvu/235

 those of a cornet or an organ. His double-tongueing was extremely effective, and a great feature in his performance was his whirlwind chromatic rush up the instrument from the lowest C to the very topmost notes in alt.; he himself compared it to the rush of a sky-rocket, whilst his descending scale has been likened to the torrent of a waterfall. He simply revelled in difficulties, using harmonics freely, and also the vibrato and the "glide." He adopted very large holes (Böhm, whose fingers were small and tapering could not cover them), and had various excavations made in the wood of his flutes to fit his fingers and joints. He frequently performed in public without any accompaniment, and is said to have excelled in an adagio, his playing abounding in contrast and variety. As a rule, he played his own compositionsmostly rubbishy airs with well-nigh impossible variations, embellishments, cadences, cadenzas, and shakes of inordinate length. His flute had at first six, and later seven keys. On one occasion a duel was arranged between him and Mr. James, the author of A Word or Two on the Flute, but it never came off. Nicholson's posing and tricks gave rise to many satires, in one of which he is called "Phunniwistl." After all his vast popularity, Nicholson, owing to his extravagant habits, died (of dropsy) in absolute penury. He was appointed professor of the flute at the Royal Academy of Music in 1822.

On Nicholson's death he was succeeded by his pupil Joseph Richardson (1814-62), popularly termed "The Ambidextrous," or "The English Drouet," in