Canadian Performing Arts Bundle. Michelle Labrèche-Larouche

opinion that “Madame Albani remains one of the most brilliant musical figures of the nineteenth century.”

      Emma's nostalgic sadness that year was augmented by the unveiling of Victoria's great funeral monument. In his invitation to her to attend the ceremony, the King reminded Emma, “Her Majesty enjoyed your company very much, and loved your beautiful voice.”

      Although the occasional newspaper article would mention that the retired opera star “was living quietly in her house in Kensington, giving the odd public recital for the aid of charity,” the hidden reality was more difficult. The bare fact was that money was short in the Gye household. Emma acted to replenish the coffers by writing her memoirs in collaboration with a young journalist, Harold Simpson. Forty Years of Song, published in London and Toronto in 1911, relates the singer's struggle for perfection and recognition, her rise to prominence, and her glory days at the top of her profession, combined with sketches of many of the great singers, conductors, and composers she had known during her career. Although it is invaluable as a personal chronicle of Albani's life, it reveals a failing memory; inaccuracies in dates and places mar the total effect.