The Washington herald., 1914-03-28
BY MARY b. MuLLErr.

Here are three interesting facts about
Olive Fremstad. the famous soprano, at
the Metropolitan Opera House. She was
born in Sweden. She began her musical
career before she came TO this country.
And-she came to this country when she
was a little child.
| She says that her first public appear
ance, musically. at least. was when her
parents took her to church social IN
Norway. She wasn't six years old then
Probably In response to requests to 3D.
lige." they stood her on a table and told
her to sing a song.
She did. As a -eward. some one gave
her a chocolate horse. Like any normal
child, she promptly bit of its alluring
tail. Whereupon. to her stricken amaze
ment, she was shaken and PITT in a cor
neT.
This tragedy of the chocolate horse is
worth emphasizing, for IL was the fore
runner Of many. many other disappoInt-
ments to come. For instance, when she
finally made her debut at the Me;ropou-
tan Opera House, in 1895. her experience
was much the same as II had been at
the church social years before
Figuratively speaking. she was shaken
good and hard by the critics the fol-
lowing morning. while nothing even re-
motely suggestive OF the sweetness Of a
chocolate horse was handed her by these
gentlemen. And IL words could have
made her stand in a corner. their
language would certainly have put her
there. Said one of them:
About II p. m. on Wednesday. Olive
Fremstad awoke from her dream that
she was a dramatic soprano"
Kept Right On.
The reading Of those words probably
save her some OF the bitterest moments
OF her caree-. But they did not con-
vince her that she had been dreaming
She set her teeth and she kept right on
with such invincible courage and such
infiexible purpose that six years later the
same critic wrote these lines:
Nine. Fremstad, as Isolde. last night
rose to new heights. She has never be-
fore sung with such freedom. such as
surance, such marvellous variety Of color.
She threw herself into the role with such
an outpourinG Of dramatic eloqUence that
she fairly lifted her associates above
themselves"
This isn't as ii may seem. a joke on the
critic. He happens-this particular one
&C be considered about the best in Amer
Tea. But IL simply shows that the per-
severance. plus genius. of this wonder
full woman was able to achieve what an
expert authority nad cOnsiuereu tne I'M
possible.
There is something heroic in the fibre
Of Olive Fremstad's nature. 1t is hard
to describe her without seeming to con-
tradict oneself For she is steel-and at
the same time she is fire. She obeys-
and yet she commands. She is a con-
scientious worker-yet she is a supreme
artist.
She learned to obey from her father. He
was a physician who was also a novelist.
The family came to this country when the
daughter was a little girl and settled in
Minnesota. The father used to AXE the
child with him on his evangelistic rounds.
Not in order to give her an outing; nor
because he couldn't bear to be separated
from her. But because he wanted her
to play the organ and lead the singing.
When she was eighteen she secured &
church choir position in Minneapolis.
But she had higher ambitions than that
and soon begged her parents to allow her
to go to New York to study. They op-
posed her. but she was not to be dis
couraged.
She told me one time that her mother
finally said to her father:
Let her goi When she finds herself
starving. she will be ready enough TO
come back"