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"Adelina Patti had a rare mixture of talents", H.Klein wrote in his book, The Reign of Patti (1920). "Nature taught her nearly everything that the average student has to strive to acquire". She would not however sing any part which called for an outburst of rage, even though she was a consummate actress and could convey the most subtle shades of emotion. The New York evening Post wrote of Adelina on November 19th 1886 "Of all living singers, she alone can execute the most difficult forms of music with the unerring precision of an instrument, and a beauty of tone which no instrument can rival". |
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| Reproduced by kind permission of Brecknock Museum. | |
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There is much anecdotal evidence to show that Adelina Patti was kind by nature and easy to get along with. She never lost touch with her modest roots and was held in genuine affection by her staff, who were devoted to her. She treated and paid them well, visiting them when they had illness in the family and always taking along something to cheer them up. If they needed accommodation she provided it at Craig-y-Nos and when one of her staff, Patrocino Castello, died in 1907 she paid all his funeral expenses and had him buried in a prominent grave at nearby Callwen Church. When it came to business however, she was tough and shrewd. In 1883 The New York Herald described the scene in which the impresario Colonel Mapleson was endeavouring to coax an extra performance from her—to be paid for, of course. He went down on bended knees, kissing her hand, calling her ‘my dear child’—although she was forty. ‘He has, you know,’ she once said of the Colonel, while fluttering her eyelashes, ‘quite a supplicating face and it is not easy to be firm with a man of such suavity of manner’. But being firm was her second-nature. Her contract stipulated that she be paid $5000 in gold for each performance, no later than twelve hours before curtain time! Such an amount was then a fortune and set a record which was unbroken for half a century. The Colonel only had $4000 to hand, for which she agreed to get dressed and ready to sing, apart from her shoes, which she said she would only put on as she walked onto the stage, after being handed the other thousand dollars. The Colonel had his staff collect the money as the audience arrived and deliver it to Adelina in her dressing room. After handing over the first instalment, he asked "Is Madame ready to sing". The reply came back "No, but she has put on one shoe !" |
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The local community held her in fond esteem. She would hang sachets of money, fruit and other gifts on her carriage for the poor, when she drove into Ystalyfera and other South Wales villages. She was also a great benefactor and supporter of local humanitarian charities. Adelina had always been an avid traveller and, in addition to Italian and Spanish, she was fluent in English and French. Surprisingly, although she often sang in Italian she rarely spoke it, having abandoned it, along with Spanish, as a conversational language whilst still a small child.
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The Original French Billiard Room |
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She loved to dance into the early hours of the morning and often amazed guests with her stamina and energy. Her whole life was crammed with work, travel and socialising, all of which centred on her love of music and the stage. If she had not had such a unique singing talent, she could easily have become a great actress, an ambassador or a successful business woman. Adelina had a wonderful jewellery collection that included many gifts and awards from royalty, state and artistic institutions, as well as rich and famous admirers. In a letter to her friend Mrs Edith Moore of Dyffryn, written in October 1900, she refers to a recent award she had received. "The Order of Literis et Artibus is a magnificent medallion surmounted with a crown of diamonds". Her jewels were in regular use and she often had them sewn into her costumes, sometimes singing with the stage surrounded by security guards. When entertaining important guests, she would send a box of jewels to their room and invite them to choose which ones they would like her to wear at dinner. She saw much of the civilised world at a time when overseas travel was a rare privilege, but in her later years she travelled much less. Her love for her music never diminished however and she would wander around, score in hand, humming or singing. As she got older her maids spent more and more time searching for the sheets of music which she regularly misplaced. |
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The first recordings of Adeline Patti's voice were made when she was sixty three years old and these were subject to the limitations of the technology of the time and betrayed a few signs of breathlessness. In spite of this, her unique vocal quality and range were confirmed beyond doubt. Fortunately, there are many critical reviews from her earlier years including one from Charles Dickens, who in his "All Year Round" editorial wrote "She (Patti) possessed not only great and welcome promise, but also that talent for success---Charm". Others described the unique tonal quality of her voice and the "vocal gymnastics" which she effortlessly performed. |
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A compilation of her recordings |
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