To note two of our finest examples of greatness in this marvelous
profession, Lilli Lehmann and Jean de Reszke, neither of whom had
phenomenal vocal gifts, I would point out their remarkable mental
equipment, unceasing and passionate desire for perfection, paired with
an unerring instinct for the noble and distinguished such as has not
been found in other exponents of purely vocal virtuosity, with a few
rare exceptions, as Melba and Galli-Curci, for instance, to mention two
beautiful instruments of our generation.

The singing art is not a casual inspiration and it should never be
treated as such. The real artist will have an organized mental strategy
just as minute and reliable as any intricate machinery, and will under
all circumstances (save complete physical disability) be able to control
and dominate her gifts to their fullest extent. This is not learned in a
few years within the four walls of a studio, but is the result of a
lifetime of painstaking care and devotion.

There was a time when ambition and overwork so told upon me that
mistakenly I allowed myself to minimize my vocal practice. How wrong
that was I found out in short time and I have returned long since to my
earlier precepts as taught me by Lilli Lehmann.

KEEP THE VOICE STRONG AND FLEXIBLE

In her book, _How to Sing_, there is much for the student to digest with
profit, though possible reservations are advisable, dependent upon one's
individual health and vocal resistance. Her strong conviction was, and
is, that a voice requires daily and conscientious exercise to keep it
strong and flexible. Having successfully mastered the older Italian
roles as a young singer, her incursion into the later-day dramatic and
classic repertoire in no wise became an excuse to let languish the
fundamental idea of beautiful sound. How vitally important and admirably
_bel canto_ sustained by the breath support has served her is readily
understood when one remembers that she has outdistanced all the
colleagues of her earlier career and now well over sixty, she is as
indefatigable in her daily practice as we younger singers should be.

This brief extract about Patti (again quoting Lilli Lehmann) will
furnish an interesting comparison:

In Adelina Patti everything was united--the splendid voice paired with
great talent for singing, and the long oversight of her studies by her
distinguished teacher, Strakosch. She never sang roles that did not suit
her voice; in he