Dame Nellie Melba correspondence

One letter, addressed to 'My dear Signor Cecchi' and signed 'Your Affectionate Pupil, Nellie Mitchell". This letter was written from Port Mackay on 15 September 1882. In the letter, Nellie requests that Signor Cecchi send her some music in English to perform to local audiences. 

One letter, addressed to 'My dear Signor Cecchi' and signed 'Your Affectionate Pupil, Nellie Mitchell". The letter was written from Port Mackay on 15 October 1882, and in it Nellie thanks Signor Cecchi for sending a selection of songs in English. 

One letter, addressed to 'My dear Signor Cecchi' and signed 'Always Your Affectionate Pupil, Nellie Armstrong". This letter was written from Rushcutters Bay in Sydney on 12 April 1883, where Nellie was staying after leaving Melbourne on the way home to Mackay. In the letter, she laments the fact she could have stayed in Melbourne a little longer for singing lessons since her husband was delayed in meeting her in Sydney. 

One letter, addressed to 'My dear Signor Cecchi' and signed 'Your Affectionate Pupil, Nellie Armstrong". This letter was written from Port Mackay on 11 May 1883. In this letter Nellie mentions the return voyage from Sydney, during which she was ill with sea sickness. In an addition to the original letter, Nellie mentions that she travelled to Mackay with a Mrs Parker whose daughter also studies with Signor Cecchi. 

One letter, addressed to 'My dear Signor Cecchi' and signed 'Your Affectionate Pupil, Nellie Armstrong". This letter was written from Port Mackay on 4 July 1883. She thanks Signor Cecchi for sending her more music, comments how glad she is that her younger sister Annie is studying singing with Signor Cecchi. 

One letter, addressed to 'My dear Signor Cecchi' and signed 'Your Affectionate Pupil, Nellie Armstrong". This letter was written from "The Hollow" (home of the Rawson family) at Port Mackay and is undated, but was written between late 1883 and early 1884. In the letter she tells her teacher that her husband has agreed to let her make a career in music, and asks him to form a musical company so she can return to Melbourne straight away to earn some money, which the family desperately needed. 

Nellie's son George was born in 1883. Sometime after, she took her son to stay with the Rawson family. This is an indication of the difficulties she was having with her marriage. In January 1884 she and her son left Mackay, never to return. Also with this letter is a hand written note stating that Signor Cecchi sent a telegram in response to this letter asking Nellie to come to Melbourne immediately. This note is believed to have been written by Thea Phillips. 

One letter, addressed to 'My dear Signor Cecchi' and signed 'Your Affectionate Pupil, Nellie Armstrong". This letter was written from the Metropolitan Hotel in Sydney on 7 June 1885. In the letter, Nellie expresses her disgust with the reaction of Sydney audiences to her performance. 
 

Telegram from Nellie Armstrong in Edgecliffe to Signor Cecchi in Melbourne dated 23 January 1886 and sent at 9.15am. In the telegram Nellie says that the benefit was a success and that she will send Cecchi the papers, presumably meaning the newspaper reports. 

One letter, addressed to 'My dear Signor Cecchi' and signed 'Your old pupil, Nellie Armstrong". This letter was written from Burley House, Belgrave, Leicester, London on 27 June 1886. In the letter, Nellie talks about the London music scene. According to a note, probably by Thea Phillips, Nellie and Signor Cecchi parted on bad terms, after Nellie refused to pay for lessons she had been given by Cecchi for 7 years. According to the note, Signor Cecchi never replied to this letter. 
 

This article, entitled 'Who taught Melba to sing?' was published in 'The Catholic Press" on 20 September 1902. The author of the article is only identified in the byline which reads 'By One Who Knows". The article relates the start of Melba's singing career under the tutelage of Signor Cecchi. 

This series of articles by Melba appeared in 'The Herald" between 30 March 22 April 1922. In each of the articles, Nellie talks about a specific technique required to become a singer. The first article in the series is missing from this collection, the remaining articles are titled: Breathing; Enunciation and Pronunciation; Interpretation; and Voice and Resonance. At the bottom of each article, Nellie Melba's signature is reproduced. 

This is a series of 18 articles, published in 'The Daily Telegraph', reproducing sections of Nellie's autobiography 'Melodies and Memories'. 

This is a series of articles published in 'The Herald' in August 1962. The articles are written by Joseph Wechsberg, an Austrian born musician who at the time of writing was living in the United States and was a regular contributor to the 'New Yorker'. 

This article appeared in 'The Herald" on March 4 1972. The journalist, Ian Marshall, tells in the article of a visit he made to Coombe Cottage, Melba's home near Lilydale in Victoria. 
 

This article was published in 'The Sun Weekend' on 16 August 1986. In the article, the journalist, Neil McMahon talks about the book 'Melba - the Voice of Australia' by Therese Radic. 
 

This item is a black and white photograph, signed 'Nellie Melba, 1921'. It shows Nellie side on, with her head, arms and torso in the picture. Her hair is in two long plaits down her back, and her hands are clasped as if praying. An inscription on the back reads 'This will look nice in a frame. Now a letter." 

This photograph of Pietro Cecchi was taken by Growrelle studios in Swanston Street, Melbourne. From information on the back of the photo, it would appear that the photograph may have been taken on behalf of, and for publication in, Allan's "Musical News", now know as Australian Musical News, a journal published from 1911 to 1963 in Melbourne. 

This is a black and white photograph showing the house in which Dame Nellie Melba was born at Lilydale in Victoria. The photograph is undated and the photographer unidentified. Like the photograph of Pietro Cecchi, information on the back of the photograph indicates it may have been taken for inclusion in the 'Australian Musical News'. 

This cartes-de-visite shows a head and shoulders portrait of 'Firoudl'. The photograph was taken by 'Elliott & Fry', a photographic firm located in London. The name and address of the firm appears below the photo, and the name, address and logo appear on the back of the card. Information on the firm indicates that they were located at 55 Baker Street from 1863 to 1886, so the photograph would have been taken during this period. 

This cartes-de-visite shows Thomas Carlyle, the British historian and essayist. The photograph was taken by 'Elliott & Fry', a photographic firm located in London. The name and address of the firm appears below the photo, and the name, address and logo appear on the back of the card. Information on the firm indicates that they were located at 55 Baker Street from 1863 to 1886, so the photograph would have been taken during this period. Similar photographs taken of Carlyle by the same firm are held by the National Portrait Gallery in London and have been dated ca. 1865. 

This cartes-de-visite is a photograph of Guiseppe Garibaldi. The photograph was taken by the firm 'Furne Fils & H Tournier' in Paris. 

This cartes-de-visite is a photograph of a caricature of a man holding a piece of sheet music believed to be that of Pietro Cecchi. The firm who took the photograph is identified as 'Foster & Martin', of Collins Street Melbourne.

This cartes-de-visite shows a head and shoulders portrait photograph of The Right Honourable William Ewart Gladstone MP. The photographic firm who produced the photograph were 'The London Stereoscopic & Photographic Company', with premises in Regent Street and Cheapside.