It must be obvious to all aspiring vocal students that splendid good
health is well nigh indispensable to the singer. There have been
singers, of course, who have had physical afflictions that have made
their public appearances extremely painful, but they have succeeded in
spite of these unfortunate drawbacks. In fact, if the young singer is
ambitious and has that wonderful gift of directing her efforts in the
way most likely to bring fortunate results, even physical weakness may
be overcome. By this I mean that the singer will work out some plan for
bringing her physical condition to the standard that fine singing
demands. I believe most emphatically that the right spirit will conquer
obstacles that often seem impassable. One might safely say that
nine-tenths of the successes in all branches of artistic work are due to
the inextinguishable fire that burns in the heart and mind of the art
worker and incites him to pass through any ordeal in order to deliver
his message to the world.