The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-01-31
GALlI.CuRCI
HAS GOTHAM
AT HER FEET
Gets 20-Minute Ovation
When She "Trills Like
Bird" in Debut There.


Madame Galli.Curci. the celebrated
Italian soprano. took New York by
storm Monday night when she made
her debut there with the Chicago
opera company as Dinorah in the
opera Of the same name.
She won q far greater ovation from
the musically-bIase Manhatten audi.
ence than she did from the audience
Of last spring. when she sang in the
Coliseum here In recital.
Richard p. Aldrich, the distinguish
ed music critic OF the New York Times
always conservative in his. estimates
Of new artists. pays the most glowing
tributes to Galli-Curci. He sees in her
new Patti. a greater than Melba or
SAmbrich. The head lines in The
Times and the body OF the criticism
follow:
Nine. Galli-C urci trills like bird"
Chicago opera soprano lifts vast
throng to its feet at her debut her in
Dinorah': ovation Of twenty minutes;
breaks the ice with Breton's Maiden's
little lullaby and brings outburst with
top note
Sets 1900 on Feet.
Galli.Curci, trilling like bird at
the Lexington last night, set 1000
New Workers on their feet in respon.
Sc. with an ovation this town has not
seen the like Of in good many years,
an ovation as fairly and honestly won
as II was frankly given. It carried
the Oldest inhabitant back, perhaps,
to another opera house. the old Acad'
envy. two miles south in direct line,
where Patti first sang in 1859, the
same year last nights opera. '"Din-
orah," also made its appearance in
Paris. In Manhattan Island yesterday
were already two Of the greatest col
orature sopranos who ever lived-Mel-
ba and Sembrich. It Is no disloyalty
10 say that the newcomer has some
qualities no other in the last genera
ton has possessed. Take the trill--a
juggling Of full tones. round" like
marbles, az they said Of the trill Of
Adelina as a girl. Even here there
was a differences: Patti had more
"diablerie," Gallo urci has more poe
try
She broke the ice-and it was
Knickerbocker ice. too--with a little
lullaby at the nervous start OF the
evening. She came romping back and
played echo to foolish piper's flute.
a little more confidently and brilliant
ly. She casually took the first-act cur
tain with topnote literally off roof
such Is the libretto story Of the
madcap goat-girl-and there were
twelve or fifteen hearty recalls when
abe came down after that first act.
The big scene IN the second act start
ed the twenty-minute ovation. Had
Pavlowa as the Dumb Girl Of Portici
forgot her toes and found a voice. 1t
would have been Galli-Curcfs, She
sings the old-time music as Heifetz
plays It. only she has not only dignity
but humor, a woman's wit and tntui-
ton for each sentiment, born ac-
tress's endless ways OF expressing
endless by-play.
A Voice That "Floats."
The voice that this shouting audi
ence heard for the first time is one Of
those voices that Floats" and one
that in Floating on the breath" seems
10 exist as thing apart from its phys
ical means, giving the listener the
charm of constantly varied illusion
and occasional miracle. At the end
of its principal demonstration last
night II wasn't a woman's voice, but
birds swelling throat. whether the
canary in his cage singing lost free
DOM or the lark that sings at heavens
gate and leaves the world hushed, still
listening. for more. In the limelight
of the Shadow Song" it was bottled
moonshine. An extraordinary feat it
was to repeat the air before tho drop
ped curtain. when the applause would
not let the opera 20 on. This had
none of the make-believe OF girl play
ing with her shadow: It showed in
stead how real was the skill behind
such singing and how truly. unfail-
ingly she could do 1t In sober earn
est twice over.
The Chicago Opera associations
zeal in showing New York. by series
Of performances now current at the
Lexington theatre, built by Oscar
Hammerstein, how the West fares for
grand opera since the METROPOLITAN
acquired the Eastern field exclusively
reached a climax last night, in the
Campaniui ORGANIZATIONS presentation
az an old opera. introducing for the
first time on a local stage that com.
pany's reieninR star. already widely
known in America. Between two win.
tiers OF opera in Chica go she had sung
concerts In upward Of sixty other cit
jcs. and the mere reproductions Of her
voice on American talking machines,
ut the present rate Of public demand,
we're due TO pass the million mark
some time next June.