When Jacqueline du Pré was four years old, she heard a pleasing sound on the radio. She later explained, “I liked it so much that I asked my mother to get me the thing that made that sound.” Without hesitation, Iris du Pré bought her daughter a full-size cello, one so large that Jackie had to stand and wrap her arms around the instrument’s body to play it. Most biographies of musical prodigies begin with such precocious anecdotes. These would be forgettable stories were they not, in hindsight, early evidence of artistic genius—if, for example, Jacqueline hadn’t become one of the greatest cellists in the world, . This story is from Kinfolk Issue Twenty-Four Buy Now Related Stories Music Issue 44 Sigrid Scandipop's fresh face on stagecraft and The Sims. Music Issue 43 Brendan Yates The Turnstile frontman on hardcore's sweet side. Music Issue 43 Cat Power Musician Chan Marshall opens the door to a different dimension. Arts & Culture Issue 43 Last Night What did Planningtorock do with their evening? Arts & Culture Issue 43 Signal Boost How status anxiety drives culture. Music Issue 42 Dev Hynes The boundless potential of being a master of none.
