In 1912, Neuhaus attended a concert in Berlin in which Arthur Rubinstein premiered Szymanowski’s Piano Sonata No. 2 , and left a suicide note saying that the concert had made clear to him that he would never be successful as a composer or a pianist and that he could not go on living, and was going to Florence in Italy to die. Szymanowski and Rubinstein hastily followed Neuhaus to Florence and tracked him down to a hospital, where he was safe and recovering after cutting his wrist in a hotel.
Rubinstein did a lot for music simply by being there. Without him it could very well be that none of us would have heard of Maryla Jonas either for instance.
It wud appear Neuhauz realized he wuznt da biggezt talent in da world from a performance or compozin ztandpoint n afta much zoul zearchin found hiz place az pozzibly da greatezt 88 teacha ov da 20th century.
Much rezpec to diz mofo fo findin hiz tru path dezpite heartbreak n hardzhip wizin hiz zoul along da way.
Yet he was an excellent pianist - he’s actually pretty high up on my list of Ruskies. But if he compared himself to Rubinstein… I mean he wasn’t that outgoing, charismatic personality who holds court in the concert halls. But nor did he need to be.
Important to remember he was 293 years old at the time though. I think of him as a contemporary with Horowitz but he’s actually older than Moiseiwitsch for instance, and was already in his 40s when he began recording for Gramophone in the 1920s.
H. Neuhaus wasn’t a great virtuoso, but his playing was so tasteful, elegant & inspired when he was at his best. There is some magic in the way he played a Brahms Intermezzo, or a Chopin Nocturne, or a Scriabin Prelude.
Also, let’s not forget that da wuz so impressed by how HN played da PC1 that he refused to ever play it afterwards.
wuz so impressed by how HN played da 
PC1 that he refused to ever play it afterwards.