Emma Cecilia Thursby (February 21, 1845 – July 4, 1931) was an American singer popular in Europe and the United States.
Biography
Thursby was born to John Barnes Thursby, a rope manufacturer, and Jane Ann (Bennett) Thursby. She grew up in
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Williamsburg is a Neighborhoods in Brooklyn, neighborhood in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn, bordered by Greenpoint, Brooklyn, Greenpoint to the north; Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, Bedford–Stuyvesant to the s ...
, and first began to sing in the Old Bushwick (Dutch) Reformed Church. In 1857, she enrolled in the
Bethlehem Female Seminary The Bethlehem Female Seminary was established in 1742 in Germantown, Philadelphia and was the first Protestant boarding school for girls in what became the United States.Haller, Mabel. "Moravian Influence on Higher Education in Colonial America." '' ...
and trained with Sylvester and Francis Wolle.
She continued to sing in church choirs in Brooklyn and Boston.
In the late 1860s and early 1870s, Thursby sang with performers including
Ole Bull
Ole Bornemann Bull (; 5 February 181017 August 1880) was a Norwegian virtuoso violinist and composer. According to Robert Schumann, he was on a level with Niccolò Paganini for the speed and clarity of his playing.
Biography
Background
Bull was ...
and
Theodore Thomas. In 1874, she drew acclaim performing in concerts with
Patrick Gilmore
Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore (December 25, 1829 – September 24, 1892) was an Irish-born American composer and bandmaster who lived and worked in the United States after 1848. While serving in the Union Army during the U.S. Civil War, Gilmore ...
's 22nd Regiment Band at venues including the
Philadelphia Academy of Music
The Academy of Music, also known as American Academy of Music, is a concert hall and opera house located at 240 S. Broad Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Its location is between Locust and Manning Streets in the Avenue of the Arts area of ...
. She took voice lessons from
Hermine Küchenmeister-Rudersdorf Hermine Küchenmeister-Rudersdorf (December 12, 1822February 26, 1882) was a Ukrainian composer, teacher and writer. She toured throughout Europe, then settled in America and died in Boston.
Rudersdorf's father was the violinist Joseph Rudersdorff. ...
.
Her voice was notable for its clarity, power, and range (from middle C to E-flat above the staff).
She was clearly popular with the public both in America and Europe. For example, a reviewer for the
Cincinnati Commercial Tribune
The ''Cincinnati Commercial Tribune'' was a major daily newspaper in Cincinnati, Ohio formed in 1896, and folded in 1930.(3 December 1930)OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN CINCINNATI QUITS; Commercial Tribune Stopped by McLean Interests After Political Shift in ...
wrote in December 1880: "Thursby has a tremolo according to some critics, but it is the kind of a tremolo that is setting all musical people in Europe wild with admiration of the superior quality and sweetness of her voice, and the superbly artistic style of her execution of the silvery notes of her wonderful voice". Others were less forgiving. Alfred A. Wheeler in
The Overland Monthly
The ''Overland Monthly'' was a monthly literary and cultural magazine, based in California, United States. It was founded in 1868 and published between the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century.
History
The '' ...
(July 1883) compares her voice unfavourably to Mrs Cole's even-toned "contralto voice of uncommon strength, richness, and compass" noting that "It is the absence of this same power of sustaining the evenness of tone, and the substitution for it of a disagreeable vibrato, which is the most serious drawback to the sweetness and dexterity of Miss Thursby’s light soprano". A reviewer for
The Salt Lake Tribune
''The Salt Lake Tribune'' is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The ''Tribune'' is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871."
History
...
(June 1891) noted that her "hop-skip-and-jump, twittering, chirping, tremolo style, was disappointing".
In 1875, she performed in concert with
Hans von Bülow
Freiherr Hans Guido von Bülow (8 January 1830 – 12 February 1894) was a German conductor, virtuoso pianist, and composer of the Romantic era. As one of the most distinguished conductors of the 19th century, his activity was critical for es ...
at Chickering Hall, and in the following year, appeared with
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has p ...
in a series of programs for the Redpath Lyceum. She signed a $100,000 contract with
Maurice Strakosch
Maurice Strakosch (probably 15 January 1825 – 9 October 1887) was an American musician and impresario of Czech origin.
Biography
Strakosch was born in Gross-Seelowitz (today Židlochovice), Moravia. He made his debut as a pianist at the age of ...
to tour throughout North America, and later performed in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, France, and Germany. Thursby was the first American awarded the medal of the Société des Concerts of the
Paris Conservatory
The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...
in 1881.
After 1884, after the death of her mother and sister and as she wearied of traveling for concerts, she performed less frequently. She later became a teacher, and taught as professor of music at the Institute of Musical Art (now
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...
) in New York from 1905–11. Her pupils included
Geraldine Farrar
Alice Geraldine Farrar (February 28, 1882 – March 11, 1967) was an American lyric soprano who could also sing dramatic roles. She was noted for her beauty, acting ability, and "the intimate timbre of her voice." She had a large following a ...
.
Later in life, she traveled extensively and promoted the lectures of
Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda (; ; 12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902), born Narendranath Datta (), was an Indian Hindu monk, philosopher, author, religious teacher, and the chief disciple of the Indian mystic Ramakrishna. He was a key figure in the intro ...
, a Hindu monk.
Thursby died at her home in
Gramercy Park
Gramercy ParkSometimes misspelled as Grammercy () is the name of both a small, fenced-in private park and the surrounding neighborhood that is referred to also as Gramercy, in the New York City borough of Manhattan in New York, United States.
T ...
, New York City, in 1931. Her papers are held at the
New-York Historical Society
The New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library in New York City, along Central Park West between 76th and 77th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The society was founded in 1804 as New York's first museum. ...
.
Mynah bird
![Myna and Thursby](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Myna_and_Thursby.png)
Thursby also became well known for her
Myna
The myna (; also spelled mynah) is a bird of the starling family (Sturnidae). This is a group of passerine birds which are native to southern Asia, especially India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Several species have been introduced to areas like ...
h bird which was alleged to have sung in five languages
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
,
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
,
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
,
Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
, and
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
.
[ Rinn, Joseph. (1950). ''Sixty Years of Psychical Research: Houdini and I Among the Spiritualists''. Truth Seeker Company. pp. 171-172] Skeptical investigator
Joseph Rinn
Joseph Francis Rinn (1868–1952) was an American magician and skeptic of paranormal phenomena.
Career
Rinn grew up in New York City. He coached Harry Houdini as a teenager in running at the Pastime Athletic Club. He remained a friend to Houdin ...
investigated the bird and confirmed the claim was true "I was dumbfounded, for the bird sang and took suggestions just as a human being would. There could be no doubt that he understood what was said to him, and he replied in a tone that sounded like a mezzo-soprano."
According to Rinn the bird had also been taught to play the piano by Thursby. When Rinn was present in the room, the bird played
Home, Sweet Home successfully by walking on the correct keys.
After the bird died in 1899, medical societies from
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
requested permission to make an
autopsy
An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any di ...
on the bird, and Thursby agreed. The autopsy was conducted by physician Henry Holbrook Curtis and veterinarian Frank H. Miller. They discovered that the bird had an extraordinarily large
brain
A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a v ...
and this was responsible for the bird's great abilities.
References
Further reading
Emma Thursby Papers, 1706-1940 (Bulk 1880-1920) - MS 2530 held at the
New-York Historical Society
The New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library in New York City, along Central Park West between 76th and 77th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The society was founded in 1804 as New York's first museum. ...
* Geraldine Farrar, ''The Story of an American Singer'' (1916)
*J. A. Fowler.
''A Remarkable Singer and Her Talented Bird Mynah'' The Phrenological Journal. (1899)
* Richard McC. Gipson, ''The Life of Emma Thursby'' (1940)
* George C. D. Odell, ''Annals of the N.Y. Stage'', vols. VII-XV (1931–49)
* Walter Damrosch, ''My Musical Life'' (1926)
External links
Guide to the Emma Thursby Papers, 1706-1940, The New York Historical SocietyEmma ThursbyNorth American Theatre Online; AlexanderStreet.com)
portrait and short bioPeriod Paper)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thursby, Emma Cecilia
1845 births
1931 deaths
19th-century American women singers
American spiritualists
People from Williamsburg, Brooklyn
People from Gramercy Park