"At his own lessons Joseffy was a great source of inspiration to his pupils. When he felt that he had a responsive intellect at his side, he spared himself no pains in the careful elucidation of his points. His ideas on fingering were illuminating and his methods of practise for overcoming specific technical difficulties in the study matter were quite invaluable. Although he laid great stress on matters of technical detail, he was not to be dazzled by a merely technically brilliant performance. When a new pupil came to him and tried to make an impression with some showy composition he would ask for a Bach Prelude or a Mendelssohn Song without Words. "You may be able to play that technically difficult composition," he would say, "and still not be able to play the piano. From a Bach Prelude or a Mendelssohn Song without Words I can tell right away just how much of a musician you are." Pupils who at the first interview tried to foist upon him an unripe performance of such works as the Appassionata or the E minor Concerto of Chopin as samples of their pianistic prowess did not usually succeed in earning anything better than his deep disgust."