By Celia R. Baker - Special to The Tribune - September 3, 2010

Blind violinist Daniel Jacobus is at it again — getting himself into and out of mortal peril while going behind the scenes of the classical-music world to solve a murder mystery.
And that means Utah Symphony associate concertmaster Gerald Elias has been at it again, too — tapping away on his computer to create another mystery novel.
Elias conjured up the curmudgeonly Jacobus for Devil’s Trill, which debuted last year, after he spent more than 10 years writing the mystery. Elias’ first encore in his Jacobus series, Danse Macabre was written in only 18 months. The new mystery was released by Minotaur Books (a division of St. Martin’s Press) on Aug. 31.
Elias said knowing how to construct a mystery, and who his central characters would be, sped up the writing process. He was also motivated by the success of Devil’s Trill, and he’s hungry for more of it. So are his publishers.
The first novel was a Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers pick last fall, and considered promising enough that Minotaur asked for a second installment before the first was released. Now, Devil’s Trill is being printed in paperback, and Minotaur has ordered two more installments in the Jacobus series.
Elias is working on Death and the Maiden and has an outline ready for Death and Transfiguration.
The fourth book is the one his musical colleagues have been asking for, Elias joked. Their question? “When are you going to kill the conductor?”
As music aficionados know, the books are named for famous works. Danse Macabre bears the title of a Camille Saint-Saëns tone poem featuring a virtuosic violin solo.
In the book, it’s the signature encore piece for violin superstar René Allard, whose horrific murder in a New York City apartment building sets the plot in motion. A rival violinist, the unconventional crossover artist BTower, is found at the scene with blood on his hands, then tried, convicted and sentenced to die.
Though Jacobus’ court testimony helps to convict BTower, the crotchety sleuth becomes convinced that the wrong person was convicted and goes hunting for the real killer.
The trail leads to a place Elias knows well — Utah, where Jacobus travels to attend the Antelope Island Music Festival. The festival is fictional, but Elias once thought about trying to start up a chamber-music festival on the Great Salt Lake’s largest island.
“I saw the potential for it, and the difficulties of ever accomplishing such a thing,” he said. “I decided just to make one up. That’s a lot easier than doing it in real life.”
Not surprisingly, Jacobus’ trip West includes some piquant glimpses into Utah culture — inscrutable liquor laws, a large family of blond violin students with a vacuous stage mother, and minor characters with names like L’Norma and Orin.
The New Yorkers of Elias’ tale are equally quirky, and Jacobus’ descriptions prove him an equal-opportunity ironist. “Utahns can enjoy making fun of the New Yorkers, and New Yorkers can make fun of the Utahns,” Elias said. While the characters of Elias’ sleuth and sidekicks, Nathaniel and Yumi, were developed in Devil’s Trill, still Elias found it challenging in the second book to bring readers new to the series up to date without slowing plot development for those returning to the story. That will be a continuing writing challenge throughout the series.
As in the first book, classical-music insiders might enjoy characters and situations that seem all too familiar. Jacobus is a sometimes-vulgar misanthrope who hides his more likable traits beneath a veneer of sarcasm. His world concerns big talents with big egos, nefarious dealing in priceless musical instruments, and backstage shenanigans.
The book also should also appeal to mystery fans who like delving into an unfamiliar milieu. The Jacobus stories are finding a niche among readers who like amateur sleuth mysteries and enjoy glimpsing the dedication and passion of classical musicians. Drawing upon that subject authority is one of Elias’ greatest strengths as a writer.
Minotaur Books doesn’t release sales figures, even to Elias. But press agent Bridget Hartzler said Devil’s Trill was well-received for a book by an unknown author. “We would love to push him up to the top and get him some more recognition,” Hartzler said. “He’s one of those great authors who really gets at the heart of what a classical mystery is supposed to be about, and that’s not necessarily gore and bloody murder. There is an elegance to solving the paradox within and answering the question of why people do what they do. That’s the ultimate reason to read and love mysteries.”
Success as a writer has turned Elias’ performing life into a complicated juggling act. He soloed at Oregon’s Sunriver Music festival a few weeks ago, preparing to play Saint-Saëns’ Third Violin Concertro while in the midst of editing his third book. Since then, he’s been wending his way across the United States for book-tour engagements that have him pulling out his violin to perform music mentioned in Danse Macabre before settling in to sign.
Elias will be in his accustomed seat on the Abravanel Hall stage when the Utah Symphony opens its season this weekend, and will continue teaching and performing in Utah. Another love, music composition, has taken a back seat lately, but he hopes to return to it.
Doing several things at once is nothing new for Elias, said his wife, Cecily Patton, who teaches sixth grade at Salt Lake City’s Canyon Rim Academy.
“If you need something done, ask Jerry,” she said. “Around here, he is the cook and does all the food shopping. He loves it.”
Patton is pleased that Elias has found an exciting auxiliary career to go along with his decades of violin-playing. So far, the demands of her husband’s dual career haven’t been difficult to accommodate, she said.
“If it ever comes to the point that his computer takes over and he is no longer willing to cook, there might be some issues then,” she said with a laugh. “So far, it’s gone pretty smoothly.”
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When internationally celebrated violin virtuoso Rene Allard is found grotesquely murdered, blind violin teacher and former concertmaster Daniel Jacobus finds himself reluctantly involved in what seems to be an open-and-shut case. For Allard’s rival, the sensational crossover violinist and former Allard student who calls himself BTower, has been observed at the scene of the crime with blood on his hands. Jacobus, the protagonist of Elias’ first novel, Devil’s Trill (2009), remains an irascible and not always likable amateur sleuth, but with the help of a formidable presence and, like a terrier, never lets go. Elias is no stylist, but the twists and turns of his plotting will keep readers guessing. The real hook here, however, is the insider’s view of the musical world; Elias is a well-known violinist and professor of music.
Michele Leber
Gerald Elias - Danse Macabre Sept. 2010. 304p. Minotaur $24.99 (9780312541897).

After playing his last concert at Carnegie Hall, violinist Rene Allard goes home for a grand reception but is murdered instead. Blind violin teacher Daniel Jacobus is one of the main witnesses at the murder trial of Allard’s former student and up-and-coming rival who is convicted of the crime and now resides on death row. Jacobus is asked to find the real killer and does so reluctantly.

VERDICT Elias, a former symphony violinist, concertmaster, and music professor, gives us a glimpse into the soul of a musician and the relationships among the artist, the music, and the instrument. And then there is one-of-a-kind virtuoso Jacobus, perhaps one of the most unique protagonists in mysteries. Elias’s debut, Devil’s Trill, was a great reading experience; his new book is outstanding. A musical feast for mystery and music lovers.
Elias, Gerald. Danse Macabre. Minotaur: St. Martin’s. Sept. 2010. c.278p. ISBN 978-0-312-5419-7. $24.99

The murder of a virtuoso violinist and a death sentence for a possibly innocent man launch Elias's deft follow-up to Devil's Trill (2009).
Blind and cranky Daniel Jacobus, a former concert violinist, reluctantly agrees to investigate the murder of maestro René Allard after flamboyant African-American musician BTower, who had a tumultuous relationship with Allard, is seen standing over the body literally with blood on his hands. As BTower sits on death row with the clock ticking down, Jacobus talks to the figures who formed the arrogant Allard's offstage world, and uncovers shady activities on Allard's part. Puzzling transactions involving violins, an attempt on Jacobus's life, and the suicide of an elevator operator indicate that Jacobus may be closing in on uncomfortable truths.
The refreshingly caustic Jacobus, a cast of superbly drawn supporting characters, an interesting classical music milieu accessible to aficionados and neophytes alike, an unexpected twist or two, and a unique murder method combine for an engrossing read.
Gerald Elias, Minotaur, $24.99 (304p) ISBN 978-0-312-54189-7

Two maestros, one dead and one about to be.
It’s been a year since flashy, unconventional violinist BTower was sentenced to death for the murder of beloved, classically oriented Rene Allard, his sometime mentor. Now BTower’s attorney, who has only one week to win a stay of execution, appeals to blind musical savant Daniel Jacobus (Devil’s Trill, 2009), who offered damning testimony at the trial. Can Jacobus find the murder weapon and uncover another suspect? Perhaps. With the help of his pal Nathaniel Williams, an insurance consultant specializing in stolen instruments, Jacobus returns to New York’s Bonderman Building, the scene of the crime, and discovers that Ziggy, the elevator operator, has retired to Utah; an Allard maid had been fired for stealing a valuable musical score; Allard’s accompanist has had difficulty finding work; and there’s apparently been a thriving business in smuggled violins. Off Jacobus goes to Utah to attend a recital of his former student Yumi Shinagawa and question Ziggy. It’s not a great trip: An attempt is made on his life, and Ziggy commits suicide. Back in New York, secrets about BTower’s parentage come to light, along with unpleasantries about Allard, including a rape. Finally Jacobus discovers a clue in a restaging of Allard’s murder that offers proof of whodunit and how.
A scrambled plot with far too many references to Jacobus’s debut, but there are riveting insights into violin bowing, maestros’ mannerisms and the interpretation of musical scores.