A MUSICAL CAREER

"If one goes in for a musical career, one should realize at the start,
something of what it means, what is involved, and what must go with it.
Singing itself is only a part, perhaps even the smaller part, of one's
equipment. If opera be the goal, there are languages, acting, make up,
impersonation, interpretation, how to walk, how to carry oneself, all to
be added to the piano and harmony we have already spoken of. The art of
the singer is a profession--yes, and a business too. You prepare
yourself to fill a public demand; you must prove yourself worthy, you
must come up to the standard, or there will not be a demand for what you
have to offer. And it is right this should be so. We should be willing
to look the situation fairly in the eye, divesting it of all those rose
colored dreams and fancies; then we should get right down to work.

NOT MANY RULES

"If you get right down to the bottom, there are in reality not so many
singing rules to learn. You sing on the five vowels, and when you can
do them loudly, softly, and with mezzo voce, you have a foundation upon
which to build vocal mastery. And yet some people study eight, ten years
without really laying the foundation. Why should it take the singer such
a long time to master the material of his equipment? A lawyer or doctor,
after leaving college, devotes three or four years only to preparing
himself for his profession, receives his diploma, then sets up in
business. It ought not to be so much more difficult to learn to sing
than to learn these other professions.

THE EAR

"Of course the ear is the most important factor, our greatest ally. It
helps us imitate. Imitation forms a large part of our study. We hear a
beautiful tone; we try to imitate it; we try in various ways, with
various placements, until we succeed in producing the sound we have been
seeking. Then we endeavor to remember the sensations experienced in
order that we may repeat the tone at will. So you see Listening,
Imitation and Memory are very important factors in the student's
development.

BEL CANTO

"I have just spoken of a beautiful tone. The old Italian operas
cultivate the _bel canto_, that is--beautiful singing. Of course it is
well for the singer to cultivate this first of all, for it is excellent,
and necessary for the voice. But modern Italian opera portrays the real
men and women of to-day, who live, enjoy, suffer, are angry and
repentant. _Bel canto_ wi