The Daily Valdemar No. 2: March 14

Valdemar Andersen, Full-page cartoon in the satirical magazine  Klods-Hans, October 15, 1905.

Today's Valdemar Andersen is a tribute to musicians now as before, who continue to elevate the spirit of us all, making certain that music reaches us whatever the circumstances.

A cartoon is not live music, but the portrait of the violin virtuoso Willy Burmester is a play on a portrait and the violinist in unison. Burmester would insist the two cannot be separated. His body is composed of color blocking, while his face is defined with delicate strokes of the pen. Both of which come together in the violin, delineated by way of deep shadowing and the fine lines of the wood.

His whole being is as fine-tuned as his violin. His moustache takes a deep swirl to acknowledge the cheekbones pointing downwards to the center of his concentration. Yet the body is not transformed into the violin itself. We see his diligence in shaping strings of notes. His fingers strive to make the fluidity possible by which he was known by his contemporaries.

Valdemar may have seen and heard Burmester at concerts he gave in Copenhagen. As for the rest of us, we can hear Burmester play Rameau here.