The Washington herald., 1911-12-10
AMERICAN VOCALISM.

| America is the great voice producing
country OF the world. Only Austria is
| turning out singers of anything like
equal quality. and not nearly in such
quantity Putnam GrisWoId, the Ameri-
can basso, said when asked his opinion
| of Felice Lyme, the little American So
| prano, who has swept operatic-gOinG Lon
doneTS off their feet. He has been sing
| ing abroad for several years and made a
successful Metropolitan Opera House de-
! but as Hagan in ''GoetterDae
| last week.
Il do not know Miss Lyme" Mr.. Girls
void said. And l have not heard her
sing, but l see no reason to question the
judgment of Londoners. They have
heard, as New Workers have heard, the
greatest singers in the world. and the
English critics usually are sound musi-
, clans and conservative writers. Miss
Lyne's triumph is only one illustration
of my point. American singers are maxi
ing their way abroad, often in the face OF
great prejudice and jealo' sy.
Our need in america Is a national
conservatory of music. What are our
rich philanthropists thinking about that
they do not establish one? There Is
honor and glory and national apprecIa-
tlon for the man who will found one.
Why should our young men and women
students be driven to Europe TO study
singing?
Another thing We need in America is
opera in English. Why do not some
wealthy men combine to give first-class
grand opera in the vernacular?
DO l believe the climate responsible
for the superiority of the American voice?
Well. hardly, because our successful
singers come from all over the country.
from Maine to Texas and from New York
.
the climate is as varied as that of all
Europe.
We are weak in the line of tenors,
you say. Well, 1 don't know. Riccardo
Martin is singing most successfully at
the Metropolitan. George Hamlin and
Ellison Van Hoose are making good with
Mr.. Dippels company, and Francis Mac
Lehman is famous on the Continent for
his lovely voice. Remember that young
New Yorker, Lambert Murphy, who sang
at the Metropolitan in 'LobetanZ' the
other day? Hasn't he a beautiful voice.
Following are the names OF some of
the famous American singers recalled by
Mr.. Griswold:
In the Metropolitan Opera company,
Geraldine Farrar. Olive Fremstad, Marie
RaDpold. Alma Gluck, Bernice De Pas
quail, Alice Nielsen, Reita Fornia. Anna
Case. Louise Homer, Florence Wickham,
Wakefield, Helen Mapelson, Riccardo
Martin, Lambert Murphy. William Hin
shaw. Putnam Griswold. Basil Ruysdael,
and Herbert Witherspoon.
With the Philadelphia Chicago Opera
company, Mary Garden, Carolina White,
Jane Osborn Hannah. Marie Cayan, Ma
bel ReIgelman, Eleonora De Cisneros,
George Hamlin, Ellison Van Hoose, Clar-
ence Whitehall, and Henri Scott.
There are several who were connected
formerly with either the Metropolitan
Opera company or the Philadelphia Chi
cago Opera company, such as Lillian
Nordica, Emma Eames, Marguerite Syl-
va, David Bispham. Robert Blass, and
Edward Hinckley.
Among the American singers abroad,
besides Felice Ryne. Mr.. Griswold off,
hand recalled Edyth Walker, singing at
Hamburg; Mrs. Charles Cahier and Henry
Miller, in Vienna; Frances Rose, Flor
ence Easton, Francis MacLennan and
Barton Pursol, in Berlin; Maud Fay and
Marcella Kraft at Munich: Leon Rains
and Paul Petre at Dresden and George
Meader at Stuttgart.