New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-05-17
NINE. NORDICA AND
THE METROPOLITAN
The Dead Artists New York De-
but and Her First Triumph
Recalled to Memory.

| The TrIbunes obituary notice or inc
late Nine Nordca left out of her artistic
record all mention of the first time that
sh. sang in opera in New York. 1t was
on November %. 1885. at the Academy OF
Music. in the midst of the memoraoie
season OF rivalry between the Old nome
of opera I'm 18th st. and the new Metro
noIltan Opera House. Nine. Nordica, VINO
was not long married and VINO had gwen
I'D her stage name for that of Mrs NOR
ton-Gower, was not regular memper
of Colonel Maplesons company, which
was headed by Nine. Patti and Nine.
Gerster. and neither the memory nor the
records Of this writer bear witness 20
more than one appearance The opera
was Faust" and the prima donna as
soclates in the cast were Miss Josephine
Yorke dixie Nine Nordlcs. a native Amer
team, Slgnor Vicini Signor Gaassi ana
Signor Cherubni. Concerning the new
singers performance. the writer said IN
The Tribune the next day:
or Mrs. Norton-Gower the first state.
ment must he that she, gives apunoant
evidence of having been admirably
trained In ;he spirit Of Gounods must
ard the tragedy Nearly every number
In the score which falls to the patt on
Margherita she sang with commendapie
intelligence and taste. The most oDVi-
oug criticism was that the spirit so
excellently conceived by her put a
severe strain upon the matter III het
control II cost her MANIFEST eHoi
to do what she well knew how To do
for she Is not phenomenal vocalist
She has a voice OF fine texture. and ner
tones are generally sympathetic. She
sings with feeling, but acts with more.
Her performance was merltOrlouS De-
yond the performances Of any of MI
Mapleson's women singers, Mines. Pattl
and Gerster excepted
As Nine Nordica she first came to the
Metropolitan Opera House with an Italian
company, which. under the management
OF Abbey e. Grau, gave a series or
twenty-one performances after the close
of the German season OF 1859 80 TINS
company had previously in the season
given performances in the city OF Mexico
and In the middle west of the states. At
its head were Nine. Patti, Nine. Albani
and Sgnor Tamagno. The rivalry between
the Italian opera companies six years be-
fore had been disastrous TO both Abbey
and Mapleson. and the new experiment OF
Mr.. Abbey was only half success. Mime.
Nordica sang in I'll Trovatore," Aida
and "I;Afrlcaine." She was member or
the company with which Abbey re-estao-
lished Italian opera at the Metropolitan
OIera house in iS0l-'02. having been en-
gagged for the express purpose of singing
the part Of Selika in "LAfricaine"; but
when the time came Nine. lehman had
to be brought in to make the performance
possible. Thereafter she was familiar
figure at the Metropolitan until she
Joined Mr.. Hammersteins forces for
brief period in the second eeason at the
Manhattan Opera House; but her finest
success was achieved in 1895, when she
sang Isolde to Jean de Reszke's Tristan.
Then, for the first time, IT was possible
for the reviewer TO indulge in something
ore than praise of her beauty and per-
functory compliments on her voice and
her use OF II. Under Mr.. Seidls direction
Wagner's drama was a revelation in
N any respects. It may almost be said to
have opened a new era in dramatic sing