debut in Brussels as
Gilda on October 12, 1887. She has used her voice carefully and well
and still sings in concert and opera at the age of 59. With the
advance of age, indeed, her voice began to take on colour. When she
sang here in opera at the Manhattan Opera House in 1906-7 she was in
her best vocal estate. Her voice, originally rather pale, had become
mellow and rich, although it is possible it had lost some of its old
remarkable agility. When last I listened to her in concert, a few
years ago at the Hippodrome, it seemed to me that I had never before
heard so beautiful a voice, and yet Mme. Melba sang in the first
performance of opera I ever attended (Chicago Auditorium; _Faust_,
February 22, 1899).

According to H. T. Finck, Caruso once said, "When you hear that an
artist is going to retire, don't you believe it, for as long as he
keeps his voice he will sing. You may depend upon that." Sometimes,
indeed, longer. Mme. Melba made a belated and unfortunate attempt to
sing Marguerite in _Faust_ with the Chicago Opera Company, Monday
evening, February 4, 1918, at the Lexington Theatre, New York. She
sang with some art and style; her tone was still pure and her
wonderful enunciation still remained a feature of her performance but
scarcely a shadow of the beautiful voice I can remember so well was
left. As if to atone for vocal deficiencies the singer made histrionic
efforts such as she had never deemed necessary during the height of
her career. Her meeting with Faust in the Kermesse scene was
accomplished with modesty that almost became fright. She nearly danced
the jewel song and embraced the tenor with passion in the love duet.
In the church scene, overcome with terror at the sight of
Mephistopheles, she flung her prayer book across the stage.... Her
appearance was almost shocking and the first lines of the part of
Marguerite, "_Non monsieur, je ne suis demoiselle, ni belle_" had a
merciless application. However, the audience received her with
kindness, more with a certain sort of enthusiasm. She reappeared again
in the same opera on Thursday evening, February 14, 1918, but on this
occasion I did not hear her.

Marcella Sembrich was born February 15, 1858. She made her debut in
Athens in _I Puritani_, June 8, 1877, and she made her New York debut
in _Lucia_ October 24, 1883, at the beginning of the first season of
the Metropolitan Opera House. After a long absence she returned to New
York in 1898 as Rosina in _