Margaret Blake Alverson

“ Can any one conceive the devotion with which a singer nurses the beautiful gift which is above rubies—a priceless gem—only to be made more beautiful when it returns to the God who gave it, and made more beautiful by the knowledge that he has done what is possible with the talent entrusted to him, and unconsciously made the gift more suitable to join the Everlasting Choir, Eternal in the Heavens, to join in the congregation of saints who had found the harmony of the Lost Chord, and to make the heavens ring with the melody of the last strain, Only in heaven I shall hear that grand Amen? ”

“ A teacher who cannot produce a perfect tone has not the right to teach. Why should the proper training of the voice continue to be the least progressive of all professions, and why should there be less care and work used in the development of the most beautiful gift that has been given to mankind, the human voice? While this gift has not been equally bestowed on every one, yet there is not a being who could not sing if he were properly taught. It is not the great-voiced singer that gives the most beautiful song. ”

“ A singer's reliance depends upon the breath, as on the stability to economize the air during its emission from the lungs. Steadiness, strength, flexibility and sustaining power of the voice depend upon this knowledge and intelligent use of it. I hold the art of singing in such reverence that I feel I am walking upon sacred ground when I am employed in the teaching of the human voice. It is notoriously difficult to give rules for singing to every one alike. I have found out in my long experience of development of different voices under my guidance that no two persons can be taught alike. ”

“ This wonderful singer has fallen into the hands of an incompetent teacher and the beautiful voice has been damaged until the tremolo is unbearable and we listen with pity at the havoc made in a few months of force upon the beautiful voice by such teaching. There never was an age when so many singing pupils are being taught, and yet we have no singers. Pupils do not apply themselves seriously to the real study of the voice as they do to other studies. To sing a song is all they aspire to do. They consider it all useless nonsense to practice technic. ”

“ Thrice happy are those who are able to give to listening humanity the full comprehensive and soulful touch of song which the individual instrument is capable of producing. There is so much more in singing than the mere possession of a beautiful voice. The singer must be able to supplement the beauty of the voice with intelligence in the exposition of the song. But few realize how much skill this demands. No amount of intelligence will enable a person rightly to interpret a song if he has not learned the elements of singing or has not a complete command of the technique of his art. ”

“ My friends, from the very earliest period of American history the log cabin has been the cradle of our greatest men. Lincoln, Grant and a host of others began life in a log cabin. Our churches and our school houses, the bulwarks of our nation's strength and greatness, began to shoot out their branches of education from the 'little old log cabin.' The magnitude of this great country is like the rough gem in the hands of the lapidary. He takes no credit for its possession, but he does take credit for what skill he may exercise in making it beautiful and more valuable. ”

“ I was held in great affection by the people of San Francisco, who always gave me the most cordial welcome whenever I appeared in the churches or concert halls or took part in patriotic exercises.
I left San Francisco December 1, and had two days of travel. It seemed as though I was in another world, cut loose from all I ever cherished. The world never looked so vast to me before and it was as an open desert without one friendly face in sight, alone, adrift, knowing not the ultimate point of my travels. ”

“ If the interpretation of the song and the singer leave a memory of pleasant remembrance, then the singer has found the secret of success and earns the reputation that no one can deny or take away from him or her. Riches, influence, envy, jealousy can never buy that which the singer has not. It must rest with the individuality and musical temperament of the artist and the art of giving to the hearer what the writer intended he should give. ”

“ The eye could travel on forever through the boxes from east to west, from Mission street to Market, from the main floor to the roof, and every prospect was pleasing and man was utterly outvied. At half past two the tall and graceful conductor, Carl Zerrahn, arrayed in a black frock coat and a pair of lavender colored trousers, stepped lightly down the gorgeous hill of choristers to the front of the orchestra, made a profound bow to the audience, then turned and raised his baton to the chorus. ”

“ She and her husband have both been extremely popular in all undertakings of a musical nature. She was the highest salaried singer of her time and foremost in all musical advancement twenty-five years ago. Her musical career, which has been exceptionally well-balanced and harmonious, is like a statue of fine proportions that beckons the young to emulation. Mrs. Campbell confines herself entirely to teaching the young people of San Francisco and is acknowledged as a teacher par excellence. ”

“ Is it not a great happiness to the singer and the listener that the tones come pure and limpid from the long-cherished instrument that still answers to the beautiful strains of the Last Rose of Summer or Safe in the Arms of Jesus? ”

“ The hall was crowded to overflowing. Never had I beheld such beautifully gowned women and brilliant lights; the tremendous chorus and the full orchestra left a lasting impression upon me which cannot be erased by time. It is over fifty years since I saw such gorgeous splendor and heard the marvelous singing of these birds of song. The singing of Mlle. Carlotta Patti was a revelation almost beyond my conception. ”

“ Attack and management of the air column is an art in itself—a correct poise of the larynx. Upon the art of directing this column of air the quality of the tones depends. The greatest marvel is that those whom I have had to instruct do not know the first elements of breathing. To breathe to live and to breathe to be a singer are as far apart as the poles. Not one in twenty knows what lung capacity they have. The general rule is to breathe through the nose. That is all right if he is a gymnast or a ball player, but singing is just the opposite of this sort of breathing. ”

“ For in order to offer an interpretation to an audience, the singer must have a complete command of the technique of his art. The singers of today are not so skillful as they were in the eighteenth century, because they are not patient enough to study the essential tone production which must be produced to make tones that are satisfying to themselves and also to the sensitive and cultivated ears of the listeners. A singer must reject any unmusical sound and, above all things, rule out any departure from the pitch. Singing out of tune is not singing at all. ”

“ John W. Metcalf for the last twenty-one years has been among us as teacher of piano, harmony and a song writer of the highest order, and we are glad to claim him, even if he is not a native son. We love his music and appreciate the writer who is able to give to the singing world soulful compositions that compare with those of Schubert and Mendelssohn. They are superlatively correct and scholarly. I am not a song writer but a song singer, and when I find such compositions I am proud to interpret them to the best of my ability. ”

“ The unfortunate training of the voices in our time has given us many inferior singers who come and go and are forgotten. The great singers of before are engraved forever in the hearts of those who were fortunate enough to enjoy the exquisite rendering of their work. We call this an age of progress. We may be wiser in some directions, but as for the best music the past will have to chronicle the superior singer. Carlotta Patti was a more beautiful singer than her sister Adelina. On account of her lameness she could not travel as an opera singer. ”

“ Upon reaching Oakland she was appointed organist of the First Christian Scientist church, which position she held for seven years. Her untimely death in September, 1911, was a shock to her family and friends. Being of a quiet disposition one would not expect to find such a soulful and affectionate nature. To know her was to love her. My long association with her in church and studio gave me an opportunity to know her well and love her for her worth as a true friend, a musical nature and loyal to all her associates and friends and a most ardent student in her profession. ”

“ This great outpouring of tender solicitude, sympathy and charity toward me in my great calamity, shall always be an oasis in the wide desert of life that will make me return in my memory as long as life shall last, and rest and be refreshed, feeling it was God's way to find the bread that had been cast upon the waters through the years of my active life in every city where I have ever lived. ”

“ But I was not prepared for the sight of the white casket as it was wheeled into the church, with the solitary mourner, her promised husband, slowly following all that was left of his bride-to-be, robed as for the bridal and her shimmering veil tied in a large bow knot and the bridal wreath placed lightly upon the casket with lilies of the valley and maiden-hair ferns, trailing in graceful festoons around the casket. Truly all the heroes do not face the cannon's mouth. It requires bravery beyond conception to do this last mission for those we love and esteem. ”

“ The opportunity was granted me in 1908 and, engaging a box in the gallery, I took two pupils with me to hear the great singer and accord her justice if I had erred. I beheld a wholesome looking woman, but not beautiful. She was gowned in a stylish robe of rich material, and on her head a white lace hat with soft white plumes which lent a charm and softened her otherwise angular features. If I had received a shock at her first appearance, I certainly was the most surprised woman in the audience when she began her group of songs. ”

“ When I perceive that many of those assembled here to do honor to the day we celebrate (away up in this quiet and delightful mountain retreat—the Switzerland of America, free from the noise, turmoil and fog of the city) are prominent educators of the nation's children, I find my embarrassment increased lest a misapplied word, or misplaced verb might cause my everlasting disgrace; for above all people whom I honor and whose respect and esteem I appreciate, it is those devoted men and women who give their time and their talents to the education of the young ”

“ The grand march was one of the most beautiful spectacles ever seen. The rose-colored lights thrown on the French booth, the blue on the Homer, the green on the Lytton produced a most marvelous effect. On the grand stage four booths participated, the members of each having the advantage of thoroughly rehearsing their tableaux in their own booths before appearing. The result was a splendid triumph for them all. "The Child's Dream of Fairyland," by the Jacob Grimm booth, was a delicately conceived tableau. ”

“ Woe be to the poor prima donna who sang better or had more applause or favors than she did. She was the only queen of song as long as her reign lasted. Emma Nevada and Madam Etelka Gersta were her especial victims when they sang the same season with her. I am stating facts which will stand. To be a good singer and up to the standard one must be a good woman with a refined and educated mind, a sympathetic temperament, charitable nature towards others who are doing what they can to bring up a standard for generations to follow. ”

“ No matter what your audience is it is the singer's duty to please every listener as near as possible and leave an impression. My advice to the singer is: Make your song a part of yourself, understand the composer's meaning, have a picture before you of the situation, of the meaning of the sentiment. Never sing anything that is beyond your powers, select that which you are able to understand thoroughly yourself, and when you have mastered every difficulty and can give yourself pleasure in the rendering of it, you may be well assured you will make some one else happy. ”

“ Uncle William Trembly came from San Francisco to Benicia to meet me, and together we came up the San Joaquin slough, but unfortunately for us we had many things to keep us from arriving in time to see her alive. At last the steamer was fast on the hog's back, the tide was out and we could not proceed. The sailors worked with a will, but it was not until three o'clock in the morning that we were on our way once more. What a night of suspense! I loved my sister to devotion, and not to see her alive was more than I dared to contemplate, but so it was to be. ”