The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-10-17
Heac One of the Most Remark
able Of Voices.
PEOPLEWEREPLE
Ease Of Madame Eames a Charac-
teristic Feature.
Her Supporting Company Was
Especially Noteworthy.

Madame Emma Eames, regarded, in
this country at least, as one of the
four greatest sopranos on the stage,
sang for the first time before a Topeka
audience at the Auditorium last night.
The concert was one Of the musical
events of the season. The audience
was appreciative and enthusiastic and
she concert conspicuous in a number
concert was conspicuous in number
OF respects.
OF course no concert programme
gives a great prima donna the Oppor-
tuntty to do full justice to her art. A
great singer should be heard in opera
with orchestral accompaniment to be
appreciated. Nevertheless there is an
intimacy between singer and audience
IN concert which an operate perform
auce can not approach. Madame
41ames' manner is so gracious ana
charming as to eXaggerate this i'm
preston so that one carries away from.
one OF her concerts almost as vivid an
erect OF her personality, muSicianly
and Womanly, is if enc had heard her
In her own drawing room 1t is, OF
course essential that &. singer have a
voice. but it is almost as imperative
that she have beauty individuality and
charm and Madame Eames has all OF
these She is q magnificent looking
woman and she has that fascination of
manner so irresistible and so fndescrib-
able which every great artistic has not,
tiste must have to win the hearts as
well as the admiration and wonder of
her subjects.
1t is impossible to imagine anything
more perfect than the ease with which
Madame Eames sings and this is one
of the strongest impressions which her
performance leaves. Her voice seems
to be absolutely perfectly placed and
the facility Of her vOcalizatiOn is moth
ing short Of marvellous. Flexible, clear
as e bell, Of enormous range, yet of
the same dmbre and intensity through
out Its register, it is only repeating
what the critics of this and foreign
countries have long since agreed to
say that this prima, donna is unques-
Giouably as regards taste, style and
voCalization the equal of any living
singer.
Madame Eames' numbers were all IA
mtliaF and therefore especially pleas
ing to the mixed audience which al
ways attends the big musical events
at the Auditorium She sang by re-
quest, the Jewel song from Faust,
which almost every ambitious amateur
soprano includes in her repertoire and
which is show piece from one of
Madame EameS' most popular roles
Marguerite in Faust. Her encore to
this was TOsus Iaadhyes Her second
appearance on the programme was in
group including who Is Sylvia.
Schubert, Ais die Alte Mutter, Dvorak
and Henschels Spring. After this she
gave two encOres, The Years At the
Thomas Avril. Her closing number
was a duet with the barytOne. Mr.
Emilio de GorgOza, La CT darem Ia
manO" from Don Giovanni In all
these the amateurs in the audience
and their kin, had the pleasure of
comparing her art with their own, Of
ten enough, no doubt, to the detriment
of Madame Eames.
But, seriously, while no one could
criticize hersinging the sopranos man
ner was SO quiet and restrained in
some OF her numbers last night that
it was hard to believe she has been
adjudged by competent critics a fin
ished actress as well as vocalist One
would hardly expect her having only
heard her at last nights concert to
sound the heights and depths of emo
tion histrionically. But the rich and
varied tone colors which she produces
at will and with such consunnate
ease and art are sufficient to express
IN themselves Lnougn you heard her
from behind a screen, all the power
and passion of an intense. romantic
and poetical nature.
1t has been said that the Fames
concert was conspicuous in number
OK ways. OF course the visit of the
prlma donna herself was one of the
events OF the year in Topeka But
aside from the interest which attached
70 her appearance the concert was of
unusual merit Madame Games has
an exceptionally good support in the
musicians who accompany her on this
tour and who supplemented her num-
bers last night on a programme of
uncommon worth. Mr.. Emilio de
Gorgoza, the barytone, shared with the
Pr1Lna DONNA the honOrs of the even
ing and his reception, after his first
number, was only a shade less cor
dial than hers. Mr.. de Gorgoza is one
of best singers Topeka has had an
opportunity to hear There have been
more remarkable voices. no doubt. al
though his is of delightful quality and
tremendous power, but a more fin
lshed performance one does not often
have the pleasure of hearing. In three
appearances last night, twice alone,
and once with Games in the Don
Giovanni duet, he gave supreme evil
dence of natural musical gifts of a
high order and a quite extra ordf nv
technique. His numbers were the
Pagliacci Prologue, in encore to which
he sang Largo al Factotum from the