The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-07-22
STORIES or MANUEL GARCIA.
PUPILS OF THE FAMOUS SINGING
TEACHER HAS NO EASY TIME.

Himself q Great Worker. He Expected Work
From Them Early Experiences I'm
America Had Planned q History OF
HIS Family, but Lost the Documents.
= Connected with the administrative de-
partment Of the Metropolitan Opera House
Is an old gentleman who can remember the
first appearance in New York Of Manuel
Garcia, the noted sin ging teacher. who died
the other day in London. That perform
ance OF I'll Barbiere di Siviglia' was the
opening of the first Italian opera season
the city had ever known. This was on
November 90. 1926.
That there was a great deal OF interest
In the enterprise but that it was a rainy
and unpromising day is all that this old
gentleman can remember. He was only a
child at the time when the famous music
teacher was then q young man Of twenty.
He had been singing for three years.
His father, who was also named Manuel.
brought over here on the packet boat a
troupe largely composed Of his own family.
One of the sopranos was m Garcia and
the contralto to whom the role Of Rosina
was intrusted was Maria Garcia, afterward
known as Nine. Malibran. The orchestra.
which was gatAesed together here, CON-
0l9V0O VI CWSiAty-ioaA PAoy04o ohe "oo
q pianist to help 1t out. Manuel Garcia
sang Figaro, his mother Bertha. which has
been sung here for years by Miss Bauer
meister, While the senior Garcia appeared
as Almavipd. Seats in boxes cost %, the pit
one-half that amount and places In the gal
lery brought only a5 cents. The impresario
made his announcement In a modest fashion.
'Signor Garcia respectfully announces
read the preliminary. notice in a news
paper Of that time, Ito the American public
that he has lately arrived In this country
with an Italian troupe (among whom are
some OF the first artists in Europe) and has
made arrangements with the managers OF
the New York Theatre to have the house on
Tuesdays and Saturdays, on which nights
the choicest Italian operas will be per-
formed In a style which he fatters himself
will give general satisfaction"
Inc senior Garcia in addition to being
q composer Of considerable fertility had
been q famous tenor in Europe. With him
really began the so-called Garcia method,
of which his son was destined To be the
greatest exponent. He felt that his voice
was failing just at the height OF his career
and about. fourteen years before ne brought
his fan, ysto this country. He was in Paris
at that. time and went to an Italian teacher
named AnZODl VINO aQd6Q 70 MIS- own way
Of singing the principles he had learned In
Italy. 1t was in this we and through his
residence in Italy that q Spaniard-one Of
the few in the history of opera-became
associated with such a perfect method Of
singing.
The New York season was 80 successful
that the Garcia family and their associates
remained here until the last day of Sep
tember, 1925. Then they went to Mexico
and were robbed by brigands OF all the
proceeds of their year and a half in Mexico.
This 30 discouraged the senior Garcia that
he went back to Paris and decided to teach
singing. He was thun more THAI so.
He quarrelled with his son, who entered
the French army, which was at hat time
engaged In a campaign in Algiers. After
q few years he returned to Paris and began
to assist his father in teaching, having
studied medicine in the French military
hospitals that he might better understand
the physical principles Of the voice. In
later lie he abandoned his confidence in
any theories based on mechanical grounds.
He thought that the best way to learn to
sing was to copy somebody who knew how.
Two Of the most famous singing teachers
Of the present day were pupils Of Manuel
Garcia. One of them Is Mathilde Marchesi
Of Paris and the other LIS Julius Stock
hansen Of Frankfort, now nearly as old as
Mime. Marchesi. Both Of them have turned
out pore distinguished pupils than 1t Is
possible TO attribute to the famous CEN |
tehsriap, but Garcia had come very diq