Elizabeth Dickerson Spencer (April 12, 1871 – April 22, 1930) was an American dramatic soprano, or mezzo-soprano during the later 19th century and early 20th century who is best known for the numerous early recordings she made for

Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February11, 1847October18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventions, ...

Biography

Elizabeth Dickerson was born in 1871 to Julia Armentine (Pratte) Dickerson and Col. John M. Dickerson. Her father died eight months later, and in 1874, her mother remarried, to Col. William Gilpin, who had served as the first governor of the Territory of Colorado in 1861. The family moved to Denver. Elizabeth was trained as a singer as well as a pianist and violinist. After graduating from St. Mary's Academy, she toured Europe. On her return, she married Otis Spencer, a lawyer. Spencer began her career singing in local churches, concerts, clubs, and amateur theatricals. By 1905, she had a successful solo show at the local Orpheum Theatre, a vaudeville venue. This and other engagements led to roles on Broadway, and by 1910 she had moved to New York. Spencer signed an exclusive contract to record for

, and she is today best known for these early recordings on which she sang solos, as well as taking part in duets, trios, quartets, and choruses. Her recordings for Edison Standard Records extended from around 1910 until 1916 and amounted to over 660 sessions, more than any other vocalist for the company.UCSB Cylinder Preservation Project
(accessed 8 February 2010). She recorded on both

phonograph cylinders Phonograph cylinders (also referred to as Edison cylinders after its creator Thomas Edison) are the earliest commercial medium for recording and reproducing sound. Commonly known simply as "records" in their heyday (c. 1896–1916), a name which ...

and a later Diamond Disc format, and her best recordings are on the latter, which more accurately reproduced her voice. Her most successful recordings were "In the Valley of the Moon" and "

Somewhere a Voice Is Calling Somewhere may refer to: Music Albums * ''Somewhere'' (Eva Cassidy album) or the title song, 2008 * ''Somewhere'' (Keith Jarrett album), 2013 * ''Somewhere – The Songs of Sondheim and Bernstein'', by Marina Prior, 1994 * ''Somewhere'', or ...

", both duets with Vernon Archibald. She also participated in demonstrations of recording fidelity arranged by Edison in which she sang along with a phonograph under dim lighting, and the audience had to guess when she stopped singing and the phonograph took over completely. After Spencer's contract with Edison ended in 1916, she moved to Victor, but had returned to Edison by 1920. Her recordings tail off in the 1920s. Spencer's voice is noted for its sterling

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

tic quality combined with ability to sing in the vernacular.See, ''e.g.'', the inset 1911 Edison recording of her singing "Just Awearyin' for You" (words by

Frank Lebby Stanton Frank Lebby Stanton (February 22, 1857 – January 7, 1927), frequently credited as Frank L. Stanton, Frank Stanton or F. L. Stanton, was an American lyricist. He was also the initial columnist for the ''Atlanta Constitution'' and became the ...

, music by

Carrie Jacobs-Bond Carrie Minetta Jacobs-Bond (August 11, 1862 – December 28, 1946) was an American singer, pianist, and songwriter who composed some 175 pieces of popular music from the 1890s through the early 1940s. She is perhaps best remembered for writing ...

). ''Cf''. Spencer's 1914 duet with

Walter Van Brunt Walter Van Brunt (22 April 1892 – 11 April 1971) was an American tenor known initially for his recordings on Thomas Alva Edison's Blue Amberol Records and later for his role in a scandal involving a stage name and case of adultery. Biograph ...

on (accessed 10 February 2010). Spencer died in Montclair, New Jersey, in 1930. She was inducted into the

Colorado Music Hall of Fame Colorado Music Hall of Fame (The Hall) is a nonprofit in Colorado, United States founded in 2011 with a mission to promote and support Colorado’s music community. Inductees ;2011 *John Denver *Red Rocks Amphitheatre ;2012 *Barry Fey * Flash Ca ...

in 2016.

References

External links

* *
Elizabeth Spencer recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database catalog of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The 78rpm era was the time period in which any flat disc records were being played at ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Spencer, Elizabeth 1871 births 1930 deaths American sopranos American vaudeville performers