Martinsburg statesman. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1869-1906, 1906-07-20
LUCK Of GREAT Singers
Fortunes Earned in America
Not Always Kept.
Nine. SEMBRICH'S WEALTH
operatic Favorites OF a Generation
Living at Their Ease--others
Obliged to Teach--Etelka Gerst
er's Case Unique and Pathetic
Divas With Brief Glory.

/ uluSN DaS thaue " A1SStblV AS' 49,
man singers, such as Herr knote and
Nine Ternina, to earn large sums In
New York, says the New York sur,
But the German opera houses do not
ay high prices ~ their own singers.
when the intendants Of these theatres
pay $1,000 performance. II Is to the
| Violettas and LUCAS, not to the
Brunnhildes and Elsas.
German audiences are satisfied with
their own singers In these Wagner
roles.
/ The singers of the last generation
made their fortunes here. Just as u se
OF the present day have done. '...a
noted sopranos, with the single ex-
ceptlon OF Nine. semhrich, who is re-
puted to be one Of the wealthiest OF
all singers. made their fortunes in the
United States. So did the tenors. like
Campainl. who esed poor, through his
own reeklessness aid Jean dc Reszke,
| who Is still riea man. Abbey &
Giau paid Nine. Sewsarich si2a.oo0 and
| her expenses during her first visit 70
this country, which was her seeoad
| year on the STAGE, but her fortuaa
WIS earned in Rugsla.
| The American p1lma dnnnas earned
| their money IN their own e0plstry.
Clara Louise kellogg. who sang som
| 1861 for about twenty-five years. has
an ample fortune, On which she iivea
now in great comfort. Her honaa At
| New Hartford, Conn, IN not lTetea-
| tious. but has every comfort and Mrs
| Carl Strakoah, as she Ia now, spends
| much OF her time in travel
| Nine Eames has large following
here, but she practically siaGs no.
where else. Size has APPEARED at MOI :
/ Carlo. ST. Petersburg, Paris and l.e y
| don. but she il now heard chiens IN
| New York.
Clara Louise Kellogg. on the cosi-
trary. enjoyed great success In hua-
STA. and for years sang regularly in
| Italian opera In London. Although
| her career was not long, she had plenty
OF opportunity to earn her fortune,
as she sang during the season OF
| 1S74-75 125 timeA Half as many APP
4
| triaus prima donna nowadays.
One of her most popular contempor-
aries was also her compatrlot. This
was Annie Louise Cary, about thu
most popular contraito that this eoun-
4 try has ever produced. She was born,
as Mrs. Strakosch was, In 1912. Miss
/ Kellogg as she was called, made her
debut In 1861. and Miss Cary sang for
| the first time few years later. at
Copenhagen
4 She was immensely popular In Hus-
/ sia and In Brussels, where she fire.
i quently sang. For seven seasons sfle
was engaged at the opera house In
1 Hamburg. She sang great deal IN
| concert and oratario One OF her
most popular operate representations
| was Amneris In Aida"
/ Etelka Gerster ID now teaching In
! New York, where. In 1878. she began
a career that made her one OF the most
popular singers ever heard there. II
| her voice had not failed before she had
sung less than ten years she would
not probably now be teaching.
/ She knew no failures while she kept
1 her voice, and she could have sung
there for years. such a reputation did
she make when she sang at the Acad-
envy. As beginner. EteIka Gerster
sang in Venice TN 1875. but before 1887
she had lost her voice and was COM
relied to leave the stage.
i Mime. Gerster began to teach In
1896. During the Intervening years she
i had given concerts In small towns but
i With little success. Her activity ~
| teacher may continue for years, how
/ ever, and that Is one advantage she
/ gains 10 having her career az a singer
cut short.
4 Nine. Gsrster sang only at the Acan-
envy. 1t was at the Metropolitan that
she attempted to appear In concert
after her voice failed. II was long
time before she could be persuaded
that II was really gone. She main
tanned for years. that It was in ~ good
condition as ever, and that she was
4 merely the victim OF cabal Her
case was unique In the history of OPP
era singers Never before was
woman 80 famous with . career OF
only seven years.
Christine Nilsson, who has not sung
in public for almost twenty years. not
only earned most OF her large fortune
In the United States. but invested II
/ here. 1t was only few years ago
i that she sold her investments In Bos-
ton real estate and reaped great
/ profit on her money she mad origin
4 ally paid out. Alfred Rothschild did
much to invest her earnings 1udicious-
up for her. just as he did In the case
| OF Adelina Patti.
When Nilsson made her first APP
pearance here. in 1872, 1t was In con-
/ cert at Steinway Hall The following
two years she sang in opera. and she
returned twice afterward to sing in
concert. She was able to sing four
| times a week without trouble. which
was the reason for the large profits
she made.