The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-10-24
MUSIC PAST AND PRESENT.
TIE INTER ESIING CONCL UsToNs or
MISS EMMA TBURSBi.
Composers and American singers
Vocaiiata should Know the Art OF Brenthink
"A stsry OF Patti and jean de Restke-
Honton Girl with q NIRh Voice.

Aliss Emma hursby, ike some othCr lcSs us
tinguishcd women, can be two things at once.
she can be busy and cnlm at the sanr time.
The other morning she reached Now York after
an all.night trip from Boston. She went straight
to her new apartment. facing GIafuercy
Park. She assisted in that mysterious tcmi.
nine expcdiont known as settling" She gave
two or three lessons, was expecting another
pupil Mt any moment, and yet was rs fresh and
unrufled and smiling when II SCN reporter ap'
reared rs II the whole programme had ocen
mere play.
Probably there are few people more fitted
than Miss Thursby to give an Intelligent and
unbiased opinion about the future OF music in
America. She has withdrawn from that active
part which seems inevitably to cause jealousie5
and projudlces. Nevertheless, she is still
young enough to DO progressive, 20 admit the
value Of certain innovations, and to adopt them,
too. As q singer her greatest successes we're
gained abroad, and she has therefore none of
the personal spite which prompts some Ameri-
cans to bolittlo Europe and CNalt this country.
This being the case, II IS particularly crafty
ing that Miss Thursby is n stanch believer in
American musicians, whether composers, per-
formers, or singers.
American voices" she exclaimed. why.
the Amer lean voices arc lo finest in
the world. The European teachers adj
NIT that. 1t is America alone that Is skeptical.
Therefore the singers stay in Europe, whore
they are honored as they deserve. 1t is strange
that whenever q musical composition appears
bearing the namo Of an American 1t receives
comparatively little notice. But that will
change. II must. We have Chadwick and
Norris and Nevin and MacDowell and"
Miss Thursby named half a dozen others. you
will SEQ. We will have American composers as
well as singers"
But our voices; foreigners never tire of
criticising them."
'Our speaking voice, you mean. That Is not
because We have a bad speaking voice, but be-
cause we use 1t 30 badly. But there has been a
great improvement in that direction already.
some women have come to 40 to have the voice
trained simply for speaking. It's the same
thing, anyway, as to train 1t for singing. That
Is where there has been one great change in
singing methods. You know. when l first
studied the teachers told us we must not talk.
They thought that speaking wore out the voice.
because it was USED differently from in singing.
But now that notion is exploded. II the voice
IS used properly it is used the same way in sing
Ing and in speaking"
What do you consider the most important
thing for a singer to learnt"
The art Of breathing. And it is worth no.
ticing that Jean de Reszke has shown us O
great deal in that direction. Indeed, l think
his work and his influence have been largely in.
strumental in causing the great improvement
which is evident In the American musical taste
of to-day. He is a wonderful artist and a gen.
srous one. 1t is a great privilege and a valuable
training to sing with him.. But, speaking Of
breathing, you remember how Jean do Reszke
standsl Always with the high chest and with
his weight forward on the front part of The foot.
When l am teaching q girl l have to know where
her feet are. When 1 was studying teachers
were not so careful. Pupils would stand this
way" settling back into an awkward pose, "or
in any careless attitude"
What other changes are there between the
modern methods and the old onesi''
We'll, in opera, OF course, there have been
great Innovations. l like TINT story about the
revival Of Gounod's Romeo and Juliet in
Paris several years ago. 1t had failed al first,
you know, and had been shelved for some time.
Jean de Reszke was finally asked II he would
sing at its revival. He consented on condition
that they would get the finest possible Juliet to
sing with him. They secured Patti, and the re-
hearsals began. 1t was an interesting conjurc-
tion Of two stars. one OF the old school. the other
of the new. Well, at the first rehearsal Patti
sang her balcony song; sang 1t in her inimitable
way, with all those little. graceful. birdlike
gestures which used to no the Universal accom-
paniment Of any and every operate role. When
she had finished De Reszke was delighted with
the beauty OF her singing and praised 1t gencr-
pusly. Then his turn came, and ne sang with
that perfect art of his. fitting every gesture
perfectly 10 the feeling which the words of the
song indicated; When he had finished Patti
wait! she exclaimed. so that Is your
new school, Wen, / think I'd like to try that
The beginning OF her own song, And they said"
continued Miss Tnurshy. that the way she
sang it was j a s Fev SsnI IN .po,., ~ co,.
est artist we have, had. Whom do | like best
nowi oh, that is hard to say. | like Calve.
She has a beautiful voice. an excellent method,
derful. 1t is my ideal conception of the char.
Singing rarn as AND Sa a02, ni0p until fipt lb ney
Thought she could sing nothing else. Her Mar.
guer'te must have dlsabused them OF hat idea.
And | like Melba, OF course, and NOrdica. Nor
dica has worked and studied hard, and she has
accomplished great results. And Lehman,
year will linger i'll my memory as long as live
oD .My o. own Gos Sneees1es, ON, ! did LII, not 5ing in
ana / never did" with somewhat Of a sigh "Dt
still cherish those ideasi Oh, dear. no. Still
by singing in a church, and Maurice straIosci
beard OF me as receiving the highest salary cvcl
and 1t was arranged thai ! should make u con
cert t0gt WIN p him. lie had been seventeen
AAAA tNAD
until his death, and in that time / sang in al
most, every one Of the European countries and
1n all OF the American cities.
all those places, l most enjoyed singing
IN Paris. The audiences were cultivated anL
70 fui! OF enthusiasm that II was an inspirl
lion 10 sing before them. 1t was a ditfcrcn'
mater TO 1lng with an orchestra over thcr'
from what II is nov In this country. In Parii
you conlu not sing with IN orchestra until yol
hsd mao at least five rehearsels with IL. Here
pa! .iait an hour, perhaps. and let IL go at that
A. fari2 sanj with Colonne and with Pasde
70 toHp' VINO 10 dead and gone now; in Vienna
MIN jain, in Leipzig with Nikisch-oh, will
~ the great cond uctors. ] used to sing tn,
mozart arlas which he wrote Tor his sister.in
law, Aloysia Weber. They are extremely higi
and are not often sung, 20 that they won III,
some OF my greatest Successes.
i sang in thirteen different languages, b,
the way" said Miss Thursby laughing. "A
least they were practically different. For in
stance, when l went to Denmark | Learned
s sster \ sSaSs IN the Danish tongue. Norway
PEELED 70 adopt the Danish language, hut the
nave given II a pronunc.d tion quite their own
an example which the Swedes followed. Fo
bEnstanSe, hero is a Danish, phrase" Mi
I.1nursoy gave the equivalent for II love you.
linz same phrase becomes this in Norway,
'and this In Sweden"