MADAME MELBA.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7636, 20 February 1903, Page 2

MADAME MELBA.

Tlie music-loving portion of the community is approaching to-night's concert with a good deal of eager anticipation, some curic*:'l y and perhaps a littis apprehension. Stars wane, so, and "way at the Antipodes we are so far out of their sphere of light that we cannot, lcolc to have them staining, for us at their best-. The artistic circle is so limited in our new lauds thafc we eanno't) hope to- take from the Old World its darlings of sc<ng wlrk'fc they are still in the enjoyment of -the fresh splendour ' cf ' their voice?. Besides, (i applied art- " has its commercial requirement.?, and in' its "mortal minutes " is apt to ccunt its. shekels quite as scrupulously as the trader in more earthly goodn. We have had several experiences of artists whose public-s.J}whedness has moved them to come to our shores amd give us a little educative music or a little educative mumming, but singularly enough they have not been seized with this attack of artistic altruism until their?- talents have grown so far into the " sere and yellow leaf" as to have lost much of their commercial value. It is only the selling-platers, in fact, that we have had. Bub we are moved to the belief that the star we have now in our midst is to bo the one brilliant exception. Melba is still a queen (of song in circles where to claim the title is evidence alone of the trident. The musical Old World is essentially a critical one ; it has pity for its faded aitists but no patronage. Fresum--1 ably we have to thank the accident of' her birth in this corner of the world for Melba's visit to it. It may be that she has displayed a somewhait commercial form of heimweh, but that is of no moment to. those who would otherwise never have had the opportunity of blearing one of the world's great vocalists in all the glory of her prime. So far her tour has been, nob unnaturally a triumphal progress, both artistically and socially, and Christchurch seems disposed to add its tribute to those of other cities, and: to lay still another Laurel at the singer's feet.