Daniel Jacobus Sparknotes

The Daniel Jacobus series is a series of four mystery novels written by American author Gerald Elias. The chief protagonist in the series is Daniel Jacobus, a blind violin teacher that is as brilliant as he is irritable. A child prodigy Jacobus participated in the Grimsley Competition where he lost narrowly, missing the opportunity to play the single Stradivarius ¾ size violin ever made. A man dogged by misfortune, he gets invited to the Boston Symphony Orchestra to serve in the coveted position of concertmaster, only to lose it when he suddenly goes blind. Bitter, hot tempered, brilliant, and misanthropic all at once, he is on a quest to insult and infuriate any one that he meets. After losing his job as symphony concertmaster, he retreats

to a house in Berkshire where he is resigned to teach the violin to learners he believes are half as good as he fever was. He spends every waking moment trying to annoy them so much, so that they hate him and quit. With his vile temper and hate filled rhetoric it is only a matter of time before he is dragged into a series of intriguing and complex mysteries that make his head spin.

The Daniel Jacobus has won several recognitions and awards over the years that have cemented Gerald Elias’s status as one of the top mystery writers ever. In 2009, Devils Trill was featured on the Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers Catalogue. The description was just as flattering asserting the book to be full of roguish fantastic characters and rich musical detail that was sure to delight mystery and music fans alike. The 2010 published Danse Macabre that had many of the same roguish characters was on the Library Journal’s list of 2010’s top mystery novels. The Strad one of the world’s most prestigious international journals praised the scholarly background and attention to detail that had gone in the creation of highly authentic stories about forgeries and thefts of rare violins.

One of the aspects of the Daniel Jacobus series that makes it so brilliant is that Gerald Elias creates a character that is so vile yet so likable at the same time.

Jacobus is cantankerous, has poor hygiene, and is not above doing some shady things to achieve his goals. The duality of the Jacobus character is what makes the book so enjoyable. As a former child prodigy, he will not stand for any concert venues, record labels to take advantage of his students. His seemingly unexplained concern for his students is what makes his ruthless side so unexpected. While initially a volatile and quirky character, he mellows as over the course of the series. A recluse, he is often forced into complex mysteries with the help of his two friends, Yumi Shinagawa a former student of his and Nathaniel Williams an African American a fellow player. Being blind, his sense are more acute, enabling him to not only hear music better but also take in his world with enhanced clarity. According to the author Gerald Elias, they needed to make Jacobus more multidimensional yet develop over the series to ensure that the reader would not hate him yet not pity

him.

Devils Trill
The Devils Trill is the first book of the Daniel Jacobus series that introduces us to the Daniel Jacobus character. Daniel Jacobus is a bling, crotchety and reclusive violin teacher living in the rural town of Berkshire in rural New England. Most of his time is spent listening to old LPs, chain smoking and from time to time tutoring violin students that he constantly berates and belittles hoping that they will eventually quit.

When he leaves his self-imposed exile to attend the Grimsley Competition Hall, he is drawn back into a world that he thought he had left behind. A chance to play the dazzling ¾ size Piccolino Stradivarius violin that over the centuries has brought untold misery to whoever had it in his possession. However, before the young winner of the competition gets his chance to play the world famous violin, it is stolen, and Daniel Jacobus is the main suspect. He sets out to find the stolen violin and prove his innocence assisted by Yumi Shinagawa his new student, Nathaniel Williams a former musical partner and friends and several associates. His investigation has him traveling to different continents where he encounters different cultures and fabulous wealth, and most important of all he uncovers a murder.

Danse Macabre
The irascible, aging, and blind Daniel Jacobus returns to help absolve a man accused of murder in the second mystery of the Daniel Jacobus series by Gerald Elias.

BTower is a young but supremely talented violinist charged with killing Rene Allard his former mentor and teacher. After an epic performance at the Carnegie Hall before he goes back to his native France, Allard never makes it to the small party that his friends had prepared for his retirement. It was an open and shut case for the prosecution given that BTower was found standing over the body with bloody hands earning him a quick trial and conviction.
Daniel who was a prosecution witness told the court that BTower who used to go by his own name of Shelby Freeman tried to work with Allard but he was not a good fit due to disciplinary issues. He ultimately changed his name to BTower after George Bridgetower a famous violinist that used to perform with Beethoven. While he has been tried and found guilty for killing his mentor, the prosecution has yet to show any motive he would have for murdering Allard. BTowers attorney believes there may have been someone else with motive to kill Allard, and seeks Daniel’s help to prove

so.