Show I VALUABLE ASSET TO CONCERT SINGER SAYS PATTERSON N i I fr r. r i tir i. i s J a ri 1 r h cv Y r- r e 0 I rI Mine Mme IDELLE PATTERSON Patterson I who appears here her cr i under the l local cat auspices I Music s' Arts Arts' Society ia is Is' Is Isone one I timing shining example added to the theis q is t list of fine fin young young American American a American Americ n trained Of French h e D parents parent born here bere this Inc ng and nd versatile soprano loprano erl i. i musical training icah of of an an American teamer So I alth although she spent a y year ar in studying operatic repertoire P Pl tl non considers herself aI a aj j I American product and is proud We JVe Weare arc are proud of it to too Is perhaps not generally known Mme Patterson started her care cara car car- car car- is e a violinist iN Not ot fr from m indi- indi preference she assured me because my father was very opposed to voice training f fear fear- ar- ar would lead to my going on the 6 And that And that was exactly where I go EO the first cha chance ce I I. I had ne e. e Pattersons Patterson's first stage appear appear- was with de Wolf Hoper Hope in his als aj of Gilbert and Sullivan op- op pIt p- p It was in th the difficult school Sic mic opera opera that she l learned arned many manye manyI I M e things which today distinguish Work fork as a concert concert artist artist I that training I Ire Ire- rei reed re- re rd ed i on the stage one of f the most able ble wl experiences of my life It been wn of inestimable aid to me in I have tried to do since lId aid a advise any young singer who the opportunity to acquire stage nence to do so EO by all means he first rat place and not t to be over- over d It H gives Elves one poise It seemed in inca incase ca aw case e to awaken all my powers of and interpretation learned learn learn- led ed ea to get under underneath eath the skin of a of Isop song of f words words words-of of emotions emotions down down downto to to the vital spark of meaning Dramatic Dramatic Dramatic Drama- Drama tic tic training furthermore forces you to feel deeply and intensely It brings to the surface all your latent co- co for lor feeling and for expressing what you feel feel Mic a always s' s called t o i ine me i so so poW pow- powerfully pow powerfully that no matter what else I had undertaken nor where else I had drifted I would always have come comeback comeback comeback back to It I did quite a little writing writing writ writ- ing when I was a v very ry young oung girl and andI I was advised to follow that up But Butin Butin in spite of the fact that my voice at that time was small and of limited scope I felt that therein lay my greatest possibilities of working out the to-the best advantage whatever I had hadin hadin hadin in me And I felt cert certain in that with persistent hard work and intelligent study I would be able to develop into either an operatic singer or an interpreter interpreter interpreter inter- inter I preter I Opera and recital singing are two distinct br branches of endeavor I think I concert singers realize this But opera opera opera op op- era singers I am afraid are inclined I Ito to feel that they can at any time step from froni the operatic stage onto the concert concert con con- con I I cert platform and with only a slight loss of caste comp compete te very favorably with singers who have devoted their lives to concert work This is a fali fal- fal lacy An opera singer is no more fitted fitted fitted fit fit- i ted ted to come out on the concert stage Land and give a 11 creditable recital than a good concert singer would be fitted to go directly into opera without the required training I believe I have i had bad enough experience in both Loth branches to say that each has its ita pe peculiar peculiar peculiar pe- pe culiar difficulties and while those of opera are are those of recital work are aree are none the less genuine For I instance in opera a good deal of your our atmosphere is created for you whereas in a straight concert program program program pro pro- gram you ou have only your personality personal personal- ity ity your your voice and your ability to interpret upon which to rely And every song has to have its individual I atmosphere which must be be created created b by the singer alone I am it goes without saying I strong trong for American music Of course it is a II great deal of work separating sep the wheat from the chaff but it is I well welt worth that work I have been I almost a year ear selecting the American songs for my next program songs program songs I which will measure up to the standard standard stand stand- ard ald set by the classical beginning of my program I think so many singers singel'S sing sing- er ers elS s even those who wish to do the right light thing for American composition composition tion Hon choose choos carelessly selecting light numbers more for effect than for their musical appeal The proper selection of the American group presents presents presents pre pre- a serious problem and one which it must be admitted is n not t always approached with the proper degree of earnestness And the songs once found deserve a great deal more study than they usually receive In Inthe Inthe Inthe the study of foreign compositions or 01 orthe orthe the classics the student will try con- con to arrive a meaning of ot the thing he is going t to interpret But with tl the e English or American numbers it seems sufficient merely to enunciate and rand vocalize them There is much more to the best of our American songs than most singers singer impart in their rendition of them themAs As for a great deal has been said of late but I do not think it can be stressed too much that English is a s beautiful language langua re for the singer who he will take the trouble to l learn arn to use ule it properly I am doing some translations translations trans lations of of- Brahms and Br an and personally it doesn't seem seem to to me thai tha the p poetry ry or the beauty of the son sonis SOUl song g is lost at all in the translation Needless to say the translations 1 have are the best obtainable Making an artist artist Mm Patterson is largely a question o 0 mentality Beautiful voice yes an ant the proper use of it it artistic artistic abUl- abUl ty ty talent But if there is not mental mental men men- I I tal capacity for grasping grasping for for doing for for creating there creating there will be found lacking individuality in the work and the appeal which must exi exist t in the work of every genuine artist In the final analysis success has always seemed to me a question of 01 talent and mentality evenly balanced The American artist doesn't doesn t spend enough I I time on the fundamentals fundamentals particularly in the training of the voice olce I II think many singers do not realize this I until they have haTe committed the mistake mistake mis mis- take of appearing publicly as an artist artist art art- too earl early I To sum sura it nil all up up whether one has 3 little tittle natural tal talent nt or much it is continual con- con conI I 1 nual plugging and hard work which tells tell Mme Idelle Patterson appears here hereon on the of October at tt the tabernacle tabernacle taber taber- n nacle under the auspices of the Music Arts Society |