Wilson Pereira wrote:

>"It was in Rio de Janeiro that Tita Ruffo revealed his art to the
>audience.  Also Toscanini.  Great times!  Great times when there were
>real lyric companies and the audience was competent and demanding
>(...) Toscanini came [to Brazil] as a violoncelist of the orchestra,
>because at that time the companies used to bring their orchestras.
>By the way, a fine violoncelist!  The maestro felt ill suddenly -
>the yelow fever, my children, the terrible yellow fever!  And the
>theatre was already packed, impatient, waiting.  Aida was on the
>programme.  The manager was desperate, without knowing what to do,
>when Toscanini - he was only 19 years old - offered to replace the
>maestro, pushed by his colleagues that knew that he was able to
>conduct.  He took the baton and conducted the score by heart.  It
>was a triumph!  The audience got crazy!  He left the instrument and
>nowadays he is the best conductor of the world!"

The version I heard was a little different.  It portrayed the Italian
orchestra as very restless and angry with the Brazilian conductor.
Eventually they ran the conductor out of the pit, and someone in the
company knew that AT would make a capable replacement.  Since he was
jeered when he stepped up to the podium (either the orchestra of the
audience didn't think anyone his age could conduct) he was so furious
that he slammed the score shut and conducted "Aida" from memory.

Aaron J. Rabushka
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