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Show NORDICA'S WARNING TO GIRLS. Is Writing a Book Tor the Benefit of Ambitious Vocalists. (Chicago Record-Herald.) Lillian Nordica has attained the palm and taken the dust to get it. She finds thousands of American girls who would like the palm exceedingly, but she doubts whether they would heartily heart-ily encounter the attendant dust. For their instruction and for the edification of all with like yearnings she is writing writ-ing a book, shortly to come out, which she calls "Hints to Singers. The American diva in her private car just outside the Polk street station sta-tion last night told something about it. "I receive letters," she said with a sigh, "and the girls come to see me, poor things, and expect me to tell them whether they can't be great singers, sing-ers, too. How can I take the responsibility? responsi-bility? Am I - to order their lives? All I can do is to give them good advice ad-vice and answer their poor letters. "Girls are so romantic and they have such ideas. They are so ignorant of life and they just wish to jump into glory. Do they know what success means, what trouble, what work, what disappointment, what sheer physical endurance? Why, the first act of 'Lohengrin' requires one to stand on the stage one whole hour. Many opera acts require an hour and a half. How ! many women can go through just that? "So many girls tell- me their families fami-lies have lost their- money, and they want to know how soon they can begin be-gin earning salaries by singing. That would be ridiculous if it were not so j often pitiful. And then they say there J is no place for Americans in opera now; that Americans are crowded out; or else this manager must be pleased or compromises must be made with the man who controls things. All I know is that if one can sing one succeeds. suc-ceeds. The world wants singers, but has no place for anything less. "But we must keep our girls out of European cities. They must not be put where men look upon them as prey. They are used to the national chivalry of Americans toward women, and that they cannot expect on the continent. Anyhow, it is possible to study in America to become a singer here. I sang in a church first, and I didn't get to Europe for a long time. This furore about the necessity for Europe is based on a false notion, and it is dangerous besides, f a girl wants to sing, let her sing at home, at a church, whenever when-ever opportunity offers. If she can j really sing, people will go to church ' to hear her. j s s a "What makes a singer? Application and concentration they are the two requisites. I have sacrificed everyr j thing, my pleasures and caprices, as I well as my time and mylife. But I study, masters even a voice will not , suffice. The only infallible authority I is the public. It is never wrong, not in the long run. "Y'ou see, when people sing they put their souls and their all into it. When one does that one inevitably believes one must have done well. Then one refuses re-fuses to accept the judgment that it is bad and quite wrong. That is why j j so many must believe themselves born prima donnas. Is it not' pathetic?! I Quality is the main thing, the desirable 1 I thing, but to sing before thousands in a great auditorium quantity also is necessary. When the two are united you have the great singer. "Singers are all expected to sing in Wagner nowadays, to sing the tremendous tre-mendous roles like Isolde and Elsa. That is why it is said Wagner damages dam-ages so many voices. Wagner Is for the perfect artist, not for the tyro; but it is Wagner that is demanded, and what can be done? "Prejudice against Americans! What rubbish! Sing, and the Germans will welcome you as they did me in Munich this summer. The publics, all of them, : perpetually hunger and thirst for great singing." |