s of Chopin from his pupils. There, too, she played for Liszt,
who grew deeply interested in her, and wished her for a pupil. As her
father's affairs did not permit this, the great teacher left her with
the excellent advice to give her own individuality free play, and not
become a mere imitator of some other performer. This she certainly
followed, for her strong and fiery style of playing has carried away
countless audiences, and in later years her combination of poetic
feeling with impassioned power placed her in the front rank of the
world's pianists.

Soon after this meeting, she began to devote herself to singing, with
such rapid progress that she became able to appear with such an artist
as Tietjens. For many years she made this her chief work, but at last
her innate love for the piano brought her back to it. In 1885 she was
forced to exert her talents in still another direction,--that of
conducting. Being given the task of creating a national opera company in
Caracas, she engaged her artists in America and Italy, and took them to
her native city only to find the revolutionists in the most bitter and
active opposition against all government enterprises. Her undertaking
was no exception, and her leader, being terrorized by physical threats,
gave up his post with a feigned excuse of sickness. Rather than let the
matter drop, Carreno herself took the baton, and carried the season to a
successful close.

[Illustration: TERESA CARRENO]

Her compositions have given her high rank in still another field. The
best work is perhaps a string quartette, which met with a warm welcome
at the Leipsic Gewandhaus concerts. This, with an unpublished serenade
for strings, gives proof of her ability in fairly large forms. Her hymn
for the Bolivar centennial has become the national song of Venezuela.
Her set of little waltzes, written for her daughter, Teresita, show the
most delicious grace, while her Venezuelan Dances are full of interest.
Among her other works, all for piano, are waltzes, fantasies, caprices,
etudes, a ballade, a scherzo, a reverie and barcarolle, and a song
without words. Her long career as pianist has made her so familiar in
that light that few think of her as a composer, but her creative work as
well as her ability as a performer must win her respect throughout the
musical world.

CHAPTER XI.

CONCLUSION

The question of allowing women to compose, if they wish to do so, is
hardly one that needs any