The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-05-06
COR GIRL STUDENTS IN PARIS
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Hiay after ihfee " four reHrs 10 admitted
~ sing In nnn ~ tho irai fufnf-an oters
houses N she 10 Tho posaasaot " an es-
traofdiaafy voic~ that wiil makr Tho rsth
easisf.
liow ~ many American Girls 81 over
herr IA q mystery until ohc accidentally
heara ~ the mans employed ~ Hivr them
n Europ~sn trimming ~ finish Very often
" IA 40 the extrnee N relatives, who con-
slider that tia Investment, even though II
cauera the stfirtes' conomv and sscrihca
~ hoine. may we'll repay In after years when
sister or daughter IA high on the ladder ~
eucceaa A fcw girls have Rnined scholarships
In tho colleges ~ their city. Sometimes
q small inheritance PAYS for tho tuition
There ara In Paris girls sent by business
men through n spirit ~ philanthropy NOT
unmiHcd with selfish pride, when IL may
eventually become known that Mr.. Y,
has been the protector ~ the coming prina
donna. Miss --.
This year there arr something like 900
girls In Paris studying for the opera. This
n about the average number Of American
voice students who come year after year,
Other large cities In Europe have their own
per cent. the number In London running
about a third less than that In Paris. Vienna
Dresden, Florence. Milan, Rome, Berlin,
Munich. Ieipsic and Brussels entertain
many, in all bringing the total to perhaps
1000.
II relatives and friends knew Of half tho
hardships that await the enthusiastic young
singers they would think twice before adj
vising them TO come such a distance from
home, often alone and unprotected, to live
in one Of the most immoral cities in oil the
universe. They come TO Paris with mis-
information regarding the life and living
expenses, for II one lives in a comfortable
way the cost is bound to exceed ex-
pectations. They have little or no knowl-
edge of the language, they enter high priced
pensions, the associations Of which convey
neither the ease Of home nor tho indepen-
dence Of hotel life.
For six months out Of the year life In
Paris Ia a serious problem. The short,
dark days, the rain, the too mild air have
their OWE effect upon the highstrung Amer
lean temperament, which is sooner or later
depressed from var of oxygenic atmos-
phere n bright, warm sunshine. The
majority Of French houses are seemingly
built without any aim to health and ventila-
ton, and often a cold contracted from the
damp walls In the beginning Of the mdu-
pdise saison bears one company till spring.
Maybe the climatic conditions are in q great
measure responsible for the failure OF girls
who undertake operatio careers with
natural gifts in their favor.
One has only to visit the opera houses
and concert halls abroad to appreciate the
qualities Of the American voice, for the
fact is now generally recognized through
u Europe that the American singing voice
is the coming medium Of song. However,
In no department Of life do we find the
good things Of this world equally divided,
and the American vocal student has her
limitations. Critics cay that she Is lacking
In temperament-call. it explosiveness, pas
sion, emotion, II you will; that she is am
bilious, but that ambition may reach such
a pinnacle that 1t absolutely ceases to be o
virtue. In other words, that the American
girl (generalizing) scorns to do the drudgery
work Of the profession and would reach the
top Of the ladder In a single day.
When she enters a class it Is rather as
the pupil than the student. The third Of the
characteristics mentioned above may be
cultivated and the others treated but
it taos the giving up Of self on one hand
and humiliations on the ~other-either or
both Of which would be impossible feats
with some natures.
There are many advantages for the singer
who can spend some time in Europe. One
reason is that the opera season lasts eleven
months out OF the year, and another that
operas may be heard in the best houses at
about half the price demanded in America.
" " INV boSNt WV w I'M ~ SoiiltCu
with the Latin races, for the friction has a
tendency to thaw out the phlegmatic tom
permanent Of the Anglo-Saxon. Then there
are good acting schools and a systematio-
IL observation-disclosures in stage training.
There have been great old world masters,
but they have passed away or else rave
outlived their utility. There are fully as
many opponents OF their methods across
the Atlantic as there are in European CAPT.
tails. ONLY a few teachers nave ANYTHING
OF a reputation and these demand extrava-
CANT prices Of Americans and in the end
do not accomplish as much toward adj
vancing a career as a progressive American
teacher who has the interest Of his pupil
at heart.
A large majority OF the most promising
voices is sent over to Europe for ~instruc-
ton. In every case where C singer has
ARRIVED" she has done so through her
own efforts, altogether unaided bv the
influence OF a teacher: Some OF these in
structors are indeed far better known in
America than in the cities In which thsy
give lessons. Certainly their names have
no effect on a manager, for what the i'm
presario seeks is the voice that will sing