The Canary Trainer
Encyclopedia
The Canary Trainer: From the Memoirs of John H. Watson is a 1993 Sherlock Holmes
pastiche
by Nicholas Meyer
. Like The Seven Percent Solution and The West End Horror
, The Canary Trainer was published as a "lost manuscript" of the late Dr. John H. Watson. In "The Adventure of Black Peter
", an original Arthur Conan Doyle
Holmes story from 1904, Watson mentions that his companion recently arrested "Wilson, the notorious canary-trainer, which removed a plague-spot from the East-End of London"; this Wilson is not related to the titular character of Meyer's novel. Meyer's "trainer" is Erik, the principal figure of Gaston Leroux
's 1910 novel The Phantom of the Opera
. It is from this unchronicled tale that The Notorious Canary Trainers (a Sherlockian scion in Madison, Wisconsin, founded in 1969) take their name.
The Canary Trainer describes Holmes's adventures during the "Great Hiatus" of 1891-4, when (according to the Sherlockian Canon) he was traveling the world, trying to escape the minions of Professor Moriarty
; in Meyer's The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, however, a different impetus is given for this period, and this alternate scenario is maintained here. The bulk of the novel is a first-person narrative, in which Holmes recounts a visit to Paris
, where he played violin for the Palais Garnier
and became entangled with a mysterious "Phantom
". Although Dr. Watson appears only in the novel's 1912 bookend scenes, a significant sub-plot concerns Holmes' efforts to (temporarily) replace the former with a young Parisian, who, while useful, is not nearly as brave or devoted as Holmes' usual companion.
This novel was published after but takes place before Meyer's third Holmes pastiche, The West End Horror
.
The narration switches to Holmes. He describes how, following the events of The Seven Percent Solution, he traveled Europe and slowly realized that the entire world believed him dead. Wandering aimlessly, he finds himself in Paris
, where after a short-lived stint as a violin instructor, he obtains a position at the Paris Opéra
. From the very beginning, his job has ominous undertones. For example, the vacancy only appeared because the previous violinist ran into the street, swearing that he would never work in the place again. This does not daunt Holmes, who interviews with and favourably impresses the conductor, Maître Gaston Leroux
.
Holmes gradually becomes accustomed to the Opera's distinctive culture. He learns that all minor mishaps are attributed to the Ghost, a spectral personage who haunts the Opera's labyrinthine passageways, sometimes appearing to ballet dancers wearing an evening suit but without a head.
All goes well until the prima donna soprano, La Sorelli, falls ill and is replaced by Irene Adler
, a past adversary known for her ability to outwit Holmes. His admiration for her provokes uncertain emotions, largely foreign to his calculating nature—but he soon realizes that torment is secondary, when the opera rehearsals subject him to her incomparably beautiful singing. He suffers in silence until Adler sees his profile in a Degas
painting, whereupon she realizes that he is alive, and enlists his help. She has taken the young coloratura
Christine Daaé
"under her wing", and is fearful that the innocent singer may fall prey to intrigue once Adler has left.
Irene Adler blackmails Holmes into assisting her, promising that she will remain silent about his survival. While investigating the intrigues that surround Christine, Holmes appears to run afoul of the Opera Ghost.
" as having caused a resumption of interest in Holmes' life, and Meyer includes several allusions to Baring-Gould's works. At the end of the novel, Holmes implies that he and Irene finally consummated their relationship in Montenegro
; this seems to be a reference to Baring-Gould's theory that Nero Wolfe
was the love child of Holmes and Adler from an affair they had in Montenegro in 1892. Holmes' undercover name, Sigerson, is both a reference to Conan Doyle's story "The Adventure of the Empty House
" where Holmes uses that name, and Baring-Gould's Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street, where Holmes' father's name was Siger.
Raoul compares Holmes to Auguste Dupin, a comparison which causes Holmes some offense.
The Marquis de St.-Evremonde, the descendant of Charles Darnay
and Lucie Manette
from A Tale of Two Cities
, is among the guests of the Paris Opera.
In the novel's afterword, Meyer acknowledges the two most obvious influences, Conan Doyle's vast Sherlockian opus and Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera
, which Meyer terms an "absurdist masterpiece". Furthermore, the "facts" of the story shift about in a way reminiscent of Pynchon
: Holmes openly states that he was traveling Europe to escape Moriarty's henchmen, yet small clues indicate that he was in truth convalescing after his treatment by Sigmund Freud
(in The Seven Per Cent Solution). On one level, The Canary Trainer is a detective story with doses of action-adventure, but Holmes's thoughts about building a new identity bring in a much more contemplative, almost philosophical element, much like the mystery-story parodies Vladimir Nabokov
constructed (compare Lolita
, Pale Fire
or The Real Life of Sebastian Knight
). Meyer nods at these more "literary" concepts, inserting a tongue-in-cheek footnote (supposedly by the "editor" who is publishing Watson's manuscript). The priceless Degas in which Irene Adler saw Holmes's portrait, says the footnote, was purchased by the Marquis de Tour et Tassis—a clear allusion to the German family of Thurn and Taxis, which itself was featured prominently in The Crying of Lot 49
.
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
pastiche
Pastiche
A pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...
by Nicholas Meyer
Nicholas Meyer
Nicholas Meyer is an American screenwriter, producer, director and novelist, known best for his best-selling novel The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, and for directing the films Time After Time, two of the Star Trek feature film series, and the 1983 television movie The Day After.Meyer graduated from...
. Like The Seven Percent Solution and The West End Horror
The West End Horror
The West End Horror: A Posthumous Memoir of John H. Watson, M.D. is a Sherlock Holmes pastiche novel by Nicholas Meyer, published in 1976. It takes place after Meyer's other two Holmes pastiches, The Seven-Per-Cent Solution and The Canary Trainer, though it was published in between the two.The plot...
, The Canary Trainer was published as a "lost manuscript" of the late Dr. John H. Watson. In "The Adventure of Black Peter
The Adventure of Black Peter
"The Adventure of Black Peter" is a Sherlock Holmes story by Arthur Conan Doyle. This tale is in the collection The Return of Sherlock Holmes, but was published originally in 1904 in the Strand Magazine and Collier's.-Plot summary:...
", an original Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
Holmes story from 1904, Watson mentions that his companion recently arrested "Wilson, the notorious canary-trainer, which removed a plague-spot from the East-End of London"; this Wilson is not related to the titular character of Meyer's novel. Meyer's "trainer" is Erik, the principal figure of Gaston Leroux
Gaston Leroux
Gaston Louis Alfred Leroux was a French journalist and author of detective fiction.In the English-speaking world, he is best known for writing the novel The Phantom of the Opera , which has been made into several film and stage productions of the same name, notably the 1925 film starring Lon...
's 1910 novel The Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom of the Opera
Le Fantôme de l'Opéra is a novel by French writer Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serialisation in "Le Gaulois" from September 23, 1909 to January 8, 1910...
. It is from this unchronicled tale that The Notorious Canary Trainers (a Sherlockian scion in Madison, Wisconsin, founded in 1969) take their name.
The Canary Trainer describes Holmes's adventures during the "Great Hiatus" of 1891-4, when (according to the Sherlockian Canon) he was traveling the world, trying to escape the minions of Professor Moriarty
Professor Moriarty
Professor James Moriarty is a fictional character and the archenemy of the detective Sherlock Holmes in the fiction of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Moriarty is a criminal mastermind, described by Holmes as the "Napoleon of Crime". Doyle lifted the phrase from a real Scotland Yard inspector who was...
; in Meyer's The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, however, a different impetus is given for this period, and this alternate scenario is maintained here. The bulk of the novel is a first-person narrative, in which Holmes recounts a visit to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where he played violin for the Palais Garnier
Palais Garnier
The Palais Garnier, , is an elegant 1,979-seat opera house, which was built from 1861 to 1875 for the Paris Opera. It was originally called the Salle des Capucines because of its location on the Boulevard des Capucines in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, but soon became known as the Palais Garnier...
and became entangled with a mysterious "Phantom
The Phantom of the Opera
Le Fantôme de l'Opéra is a novel by French writer Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serialisation in "Le Gaulois" from September 23, 1909 to January 8, 1910...
". Although Dr. Watson appears only in the novel's 1912 bookend scenes, a significant sub-plot concerns Holmes' efforts to (temporarily) replace the former with a young Parisian, who, while useful, is not nearly as brave or devoted as Holmes' usual companion.
This novel was published after but takes place before Meyer's third Holmes pastiche, The West End Horror
The West End Horror
The West End Horror: A Posthumous Memoir of John H. Watson, M.D. is a Sherlock Holmes pastiche novel by Nicholas Meyer, published in 1976. It takes place after Meyer's other two Holmes pastiches, The Seven-Per-Cent Solution and The Canary Trainer, though it was published in between the two.The plot...
.
Plot summary
In 1912, Dr. Watson visits the retired Sherlock Holmes, who is happily cultivating bees on the Sussex Downs. Holmes seems mostly concerned about interesting Watson in his new hobby, but Watson prefers to interrogate Holmes and fill some of the gaps in previous Sherlockian history. For example, Watson says, Holmes's account of how he spent the "Lost Years" (1891 to 1895) was laden with contradictions. Finally, he persuades Holmes to retell one episode of his adventures.The narration switches to Holmes. He describes how, following the events of The Seven Percent Solution, he traveled Europe and slowly realized that the entire world believed him dead. Wandering aimlessly, he finds himself in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where after a short-lived stint as a violin instructor, he obtains a position at the Paris Opéra
Palais Garnier
The Palais Garnier, , is an elegant 1,979-seat opera house, which was built from 1861 to 1875 for the Paris Opera. It was originally called the Salle des Capucines because of its location on the Boulevard des Capucines in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, but soon became known as the Palais Garnier...
. From the very beginning, his job has ominous undertones. For example, the vacancy only appeared because the previous violinist ran into the street, swearing that he would never work in the place again. This does not daunt Holmes, who interviews with and favourably impresses the conductor, Maître Gaston Leroux
Gaston Leroux
Gaston Louis Alfred Leroux was a French journalist and author of detective fiction.In the English-speaking world, he is best known for writing the novel The Phantom of the Opera , which has been made into several film and stage productions of the same name, notably the 1925 film starring Lon...
.
Holmes gradually becomes accustomed to the Opera's distinctive culture. He learns that all minor mishaps are attributed to the Ghost, a spectral personage who haunts the Opera's labyrinthine passageways, sometimes appearing to ballet dancers wearing an evening suit but without a head.
Irene Adler
Irene Adler is a fictional character featured in the Sherlock Holmes story "A Scandal in Bohemia" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, published in July 1891...
, a past adversary known for her ability to outwit Holmes. His admiration for her provokes uncertain emotions, largely foreign to his calculating nature—but he soon realizes that torment is secondary, when the opera rehearsals subject him to her incomparably beautiful singing. He suffers in silence until Adler sees his profile in a Degas
Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas[p] , born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, was a French artist famous for his work in painting, sculpture, printmaking and drawing. He is regarded as one of the founders of Impressionism although he rejected the term, and preferred to be called a realist...
painting, whereupon she realizes that he is alive, and enlists his help. She has taken the young coloratura
Coloratura
Coloratura has several meanings. The word is originally from Italian, literally meaning "coloring", and derives from the Latin word colorare . When used in English, the term specifically refers to elaborate melody, particularly in vocal music and especially in operatic singing of the 18th and...
Christine Daaé
Christine Daaé
Christine Daaé is the main female character in Gaston Leroux's novel The Phantom of the Opera , the young singer with whom the main character Erik, the Phantom of the Opera falls in love.- Character history :...
"under her wing", and is fearful that the innocent singer may fall prey to intrigue once Adler has left.
Irene Adler blackmails Holmes into assisting her, promising that she will remain silent about his survival. While investigating the intrigues that surround Christine, Holmes appears to run afoul of the Opera Ghost.
Characters in "The Canary Trainer"
Note: Bolded characters are based upon characters from The Phantom of the Opera. Italicized characters are based on existing Sherlock Holmes stories.- Sherlock HolmesSherlock HolmesSherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
– the detective, protagonist - Dr. WatsonJohn Watson (Sherlock Holmes)John H. Watson, M.D. , known as Dr. Watson, is a character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Watson is Sherlock Holmes's friend, assistant and sometime flatmate, and is the first person narrator of all but four stories in the Sherlock Holmes canon.-Name:Doctor Watson's first...
– initial narrator - La Sorelli – the prima donnaPrima donnaOriginally used in opera or Commedia dell'arte companies, "prima donna" is Italian for "first lady." The term was used to designate the leading female singer in the opera company, the person to whom the prime roles would be given. The prima donna was normally, but not necessarily, a soprano...
soprano - Irene AdlerIrene AdlerIrene Adler is a fictional character featured in the Sherlock Holmes story "A Scandal in Bohemia" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, published in July 1891...
– also a singer (previously appeared in A Scandal in BohemiaA Scandal in Bohemia"A Scandal in Bohemia" was the first of Arthur Conan Doyle's 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories to be published in The Strand Magazine and the first Sherlock Holmes story illustrated by Sidney Paget....
) - Christine DaaéChristine DaaéChristine Daaé is the main female character in Gaston Leroux's novel The Phantom of the Opera , the young singer with whom the main character Erik, the Phantom of the Opera falls in love.- Character history :...
– the young coloratura - Maître Gaston LerouxGaston LerouxGaston Louis Alfred Leroux was a French journalist and author of detective fiction.In the English-speaking world, he is best known for writing the novel The Phantom of the Opera , which has been made into several film and stage productions of the same name, notably the 1925 film starring Lon...
– the conductor - Erik:The ghost
Allusions/references to other works
In the prologue, Meyer refers to the "Baring-Gould papersWilliam S. Baring-Gould
William Stuart Baring-Gould was a noted Sherlock Holmes scholar, best known as the author of the influential 1962 fictional biography, Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street: A life of the world's first consulting detective.-Biography:...
" as having caused a resumption of interest in Holmes' life, and Meyer includes several allusions to Baring-Gould's works. At the end of the novel, Holmes implies that he and Irene finally consummated their relationship in Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
; this seems to be a reference to Baring-Gould's theory that Nero Wolfe
Nero Wolfe
Nero Wolfe is a fictional detective, created in 1934 by the American mystery writer Rex Stout. Wolfe's confidential assistant Archie Goodwin narrates the cases of the detective genius. Stout wrote 33 novels and 39 short stories from 1934 to 1974, with most of them set in New York City. Wolfe's...
was the love child of Holmes and Adler from an affair they had in Montenegro in 1892. Holmes' undercover name, Sigerson, is both a reference to Conan Doyle's story "The Adventure of the Empty House
The Adventure of the Empty House
"The Adventure of the Empty House", one of the 56 Sherlock Holmes short stories written by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is one of 13 stories in the cycle collected as The Return of Sherlock Holmes. Public pressure forced Conan Doyle to bring the sleuth back to life, and explain his...
" where Holmes uses that name, and Baring-Gould's Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street, where Holmes' father's name was Siger.
Raoul compares Holmes to Auguste Dupin, a comparison which causes Holmes some offense.
The Marquis de St.-Evremonde, the descendant of Charles Darnay
Charles Darnay
Charles Darnay, or Charles St. Evrémonde, is a fictional character in A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.-Overview:A French aristocrat by birth, Darnay chooses to live in England because he cannot bear to be associated with the cruel injustices of the French social system...
and Lucie Manette
Lucie Manette
Lucie Manette is a character in Charles Dickens' novel, A Tale of Two Cities.-Overview:She is the daughter of Dr. Alexander Manette. She is wise beyond her years; unfailingly kind and forgiving of people's faults. Her compassion for her father is what first attracts Charles Darnay to her. She...
from A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. With well over 200 million copies sold, it ranks among the most famous works in the history of fictional literature....
, is among the guests of the Paris Opera.
In the novel's afterword, Meyer acknowledges the two most obvious influences, Conan Doyle's vast Sherlockian opus and Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera
The Phantom of the Opera
Le Fantôme de l'Opéra is a novel by French writer Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serialisation in "Le Gaulois" from September 23, 1909 to January 8, 1910...
, which Meyer terms an "absurdist masterpiece". Furthermore, the "facts" of the story shift about in a way reminiscent of Pynchon
Thomas Pynchon
Thomas Ruggles Pynchon, Jr. is an American novelist. For his most praised novel, Gravity's Rainbow, Pynchon received the National Book Award, and is regularly cited as a contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature...
: Holmes openly states that he was traveling Europe to escape Moriarty's henchmen, yet small clues indicate that he was in truth convalescing after his treatment by Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
(in The Seven Per Cent Solution). On one level, The Canary Trainer is a detective story with doses of action-adventure, but Holmes's thoughts about building a new identity bring in a much more contemplative, almost philosophical element, much like the mystery-story parodies Vladimir Nabokov
Vladimir Nabokov
Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov was a multilingual Russian novelist and short story writer. Nabokov wrote his first nine novels in Russian, then rose to international prominence as a master English prose stylist...
constructed (compare Lolita
Lolita
Lolita is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov, first written in English and published in 1955 in Paris and 1958 in New York, and later translated by the author into Russian...
, Pale Fire
Pale Fire
Pale Fire is a novel by Vladimir Nabokov. The novel is presented as a 999-line poem titled "Pale Fire", written by the fictional John Shade, with a foreword and lengthy commentary by a neighbor and academic colleague of the poet. Together these elements form a narrative in which both authors are...
or The Real Life of Sebastian Knight
The Real Life of Sebastian Knight
The Real Life of Sebastian Knight is the first English novel by Vladimir Nabokov, written from late 1938 to early 1939, and published in 1941 by New Directions Publishers.-Composition:...
). Meyer nods at these more "literary" concepts, inserting a tongue-in-cheek footnote (supposedly by the "editor" who is publishing Watson's manuscript). The priceless Degas in which Irene Adler saw Holmes's portrait, says the footnote, was purchased by the Marquis de Tour et Tassis—a clear allusion to the German family of Thurn and Taxis, which itself was featured prominently in The Crying of Lot 49
The Crying of Lot 49
The Crying of Lot 49 is a novel by Thomas Pynchon, first published in 1966. The shortest of Pynchon's novels, it is about a woman, Oedipa Maas, possibly unearthing the centuries-old conflict between two mail distribution companies, Thurn und Taxis and the Trystero...
.
Release details
- 1993, USA, W W Norton ISBN 0-393-03608-1, Pub date 20 September 1993, hardback (First edition)
- 1995, USA, W W Norton ISBN 0-393-31241-0, Pub date ? March 1995, paperback
See also
- The Adventure of the Deptford HorrorThe Adventure of the Deptford HorrorThe Adventure of the Deptford Horror is a Sherlock Holmes story by Adrian Conan Doyle. The story was published in the 1954 collection, The Exploits of Sherlock Holmes....