First there were 39. They were tense, hopeful young men and women who felt the strings at their fingertips and the music in their heads even as they played pingpong or chatted during brief recreation periods. As the Concours Musical International got under way in Brussels, the most promising violinists of 16 countries faced a grueling three-week series of tests that would separate the Menuhins from the mice.
The rewards of the competition, held in four-year cycles for violinists, pianists and composers, were impressive: the first prizewinner would get a medal, $3,000 in cash,...
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