Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-03-01

Patti, SenE-ict, scaIchi, Cers.er, and
HOrke.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
PATTI,

| After her Vienna engagement in May. 1877
Adelina Patti in saying adieu to the famous
Vienna critic, Edward Hauslick. gave him an
interesting sketch of her life. Said she: II was
born on the 10Th of February. 1913. l ain
| Child of the stage. and Of course such children.
like those of soldiers have no settled home
My father was Sicilian, my mother Roman,
and during an operate season was born at
Madrid. Spain. OF the languages can speak.
learned English first Italian next, then French
| and Spanish. for the early days of my childhood
and youth were spent in New York. Ny father
! Salvatore Patti. was good tenor singer, and
my mother became famous artist as Sig
| nora Barili-the name OF her first husband. She
was a successful competitor of Grisi. The
whole family was unsteady inclined. NV
half-brOther. Barili, successful singer.
| gave me the first vocal instruction. and
/ very Systematically. Maurice Strakosch
was neither my first nor my only teacher. He
| was married to my sister, Amalia. and only
| taught me the role OF Rosino. in The Barber of
| Seville l received my first piano lessons from
Carl0tta Patti, my sister. was even as a child
passionately fond OF operate music. Each
night that my mother appeared was present at
| the opera. and when all had retired to bed
was wont by the Pickering Of the lamp to re-
hearse all had heard and seen before. made
myself both actor and audience. But now came
sad time for our family. The impresario to
whom my parents were engaged became bank
rupt. and in consequence we were obliged to
suffer want. In the emergency my mother con-
sidered that had extraordinary vocal talent.
and hit upon the idea of bringing ME out in
concert. although l was only seven years old
And so sang and soon won bread for the fam
lily. At my concerts always had my doll with
me, and sang such bravura arias as Una voce
POGO fai,' from the Barber In 1859, at the age
of fifteen, made my first public appearance in
opera in New York. taking the role of Lucia di
L0'anernacor. Next appeared as Rosind in
the Barber. and in ''Sonnambula.' During the
| following year / visited Boston, Philadelphia
and other large cities of the union. In Europe
began my career at COvent Garden, London"
sEMBKICH.
Marcelia Sem5rich was born on February IS.
1853. Her fathers name was Casimir Kockan-
ski, an humble teacher of the violin and after
wards of other instruments which he learned, by
force of genius and indefatigabie industry, to
both play and to teach. Being too poor to buy
a piano as an accompaniment for his beloved
violin and to teach his little Marccllina, he pro-
cceded to make rude one on which he began
teaching the latter this instrument at the early
age OF four years. From the tender age of
twelve the future prima donna was expected to
earn her own support as musician. About
| this time her precOcous talents paniste at
tracted the attention of one Jean Radman de
JanOwitcf, an Armenian musician, song writer
and composer Of some local note. He insisted
conservatory at Lemberg, at the head of which
wasapupil OF Chopin. While In this CITY, however
she attracted the attention of young professor of
thep piano named Wilhelm Stengel, who recognized
her inclpient genius, and consented at once to
| become her preceptOr, and who seven years
later married her. He conducted her to NJ
Epstein at Vienna. and likewise counselled
with List. The former told her that she had
voice capable of great things and advised her.
Notwithstanding her excellence as pianiste and
nopp hprSalf pl,oru of
teacher of the voice. and to go to Italy for this
purpose. Her friend and preceptOr, Stengel
conducted her there at once. and placed her at
work as pupil OF the younger Lamperti For
two years she remained here, making her debut
| at Athens in 1877, in the opera OF II Puritan,"
achieving most brilliant success.
In 1879 Nine. Sembrich accepted an engage
mcnt at the Royal opera house, Dresden, where
she appeared under the soubriquet of !sembrich
her mothers family name, which she has since
continued to bear From Dresden she went
back to italy to fill an engagement at Del
Verne. where her Lucia created furore that
she now regards as the cornerstone of her
future European career.
In 1880 Mr.. Gye engaged her for COyent
Garden, London, where she continued for five
seasons
SCALCHI.
Scalchi is born musician, so to speak, her
parents having both been musical and her
earliest years one long dream of melOdiOus
cadences From the CRADLE almost, the infant
Sofia gave evidence of a sweetly mOdulated
voice ana of the rare talents which in more
mature years became conspicuous. AS soon
as old enough to allow Of her voice being
. properly developed. she was placed in the
hands Of Nine. Boccabadati, who trained her
( precOciOus pupil so effectively that when only
sixteen years Of age she appeared as Uricd in
FerdTs opera ''Un BallO In Marchera." Her
success was extraordinary and. young as she
was. engagements were offered her not ONLY
tempting, but exceedingly fiatterng to one so
young. In 1869 when only Is years of age, she
made her debut at COvent Garden, London, as
l.. Azuce1ld in "Il TrOvatOre." From London she
went under the COvent Garden management,
/ land Ireland and Scotland. Following this
tour she went to st. Petersburg, where her
success was so prOnoun ID that she continued
In the Muscovite capit"l for nine consecutive
| seasons.
The operas in which her greatest triumphs
were scored were 'Il TrOvatOre," "I.ina de
! Chamouni." "Semiramide," and lie Prophetic ~
! She was the recipient. lille at st. Petersburg.
/ of distinguished attentions from the Russian
court. accompanied by many beautiful presents
/ subsequently she sur.t with equal success in
/ Warsaw, Vienna and Madrid, and finally in Bra
I'll Under arrangeme with Mr. Gye she ap-
peared at the Academ, Of Music, New York.
! where new hOnOrs aWai' d her from the music
puOlIc III Inau city.
GERSTER.
| Eteka Gerster is one of the latest of prime
| dome of this century. It the same time one of
the best and at present in the very prime of her
glory Patti is meZ2 soprano and her great
ness is largely owing to NATURALLY perfect vocal
organ. by means of W ch she sings as though
| she were in an elenen. peculiarly her own, and
! had not to contend against mechanical difficult
| ties. Gcrsters forte Is in the high soprano
| range, and her high is taken with beautiful
| distinctness. In Torture of the same range she
| appears to revel. Being so perfect in taking
| high notes, she is naturally more hap
! by in brilliant ef. cts than any other
| singer living. And no one can hear her
| sing without being ,nvinced that with
| her art and nature go ,,.her. "Etelka" is
| the feminine dimlnutve of "Attila," name
characteristic of Hungary where Gerster was
born at kassa (Kaschau,) the capital of upper
| Hungary. in 1855. Her father was merchant.
| and brought mp his family to refined tastes
Nobody in the family seemed to think of special
musical study until visiting friend of the family
| from vienna spoke of the promise which he
thought lay in Etekas voice He asked per-
mission to bring his friend Hellmesberger to
hear her, and some tin later the veteran NIL
stefan came. He endorsed his friends good
opinion Of the voice. but contended that there
was but one judge of such matters in Vienna
and that was Madame Marchesi The great
teacher expressed a readiness to accept her as a
pupil and Frau IIemesberger having kindly
To &hn