Blatchford Kavanagh was a noted American boy soprano. He was discovered by Adelina Patti singing in Chicago. Some have described him as the greatest boy soprano in American music history. Blatchford sang in the choir of the Grace Episcopal Church in Chicago under the supervision of Henry B. Roney.
By all accounts Blatchford had a beautiful soprano voice and under Roney received advanced training combined with regular practice. During the early 1890's, he toured the world and performed for the likes of Queen Victoria and other world leaders, including President Benjamin Harrison.
A contemporary observer writes, "Besides having this remarkable voice, under good cultivation, the lad had, withall, a musical nature of the highest order, and sang his selections which much expression and feeling".
Another observer writes, "His voices was of wonderful range, extending from low G to high C, and had the peculiar vibrant quality of the voice of a mature woman, with the purity of a child's. He swayed his audience at will, from smiles to tears, and from tears to amazement at his daring virtuosity". At his height of popularity, Blatchford Kavanagh was considered the best boy soprano in American music history.
In his teenage years, his voice changed and he stopped touring. Between 1900 and 1903, he received baritone voice training in Paris in an attempt to stage a comeback. He returned to Chicago and later worked in hotel management at the Greenbrier Hotel in West Virginia and later in Bermuda. In the 1930's, he worked as an insurance agent on the east coast.
By all accounts Blatchford had a beautiful soprano voice and under Roney received advanced training combined with regular practice. During the early 1890's, he toured the world and performed for the likes of Queen Victoria and other world leaders, including President Benjamin Harrison.
A contemporary observer writes, "Besides having this remarkable voice, under good cultivation, the lad had, withall, a musical nature of the highest order, and sang his selections which much expression and feeling".
Another observer writes, "His voices was of wonderful range, extending from low G to high C, and had the peculiar vibrant quality of the voice of a mature woman, with the purity of a child's. He swayed his audience at will, from smiles to tears, and from tears to amazement at his daring virtuosity". At his height of popularity, Blatchford Kavanagh was considered the best boy soprano in American music history.
In his teenage years, his voice changed and he stopped touring. Between 1900 and 1903, he received baritone voice training in Paris in an attempt to stage a comeback. He returned to Chicago and later worked in hotel management at the Greenbrier Hotel in West Virginia and later in Bermuda. In the 1930's, he worked as an insurance agent on the east coast.
Blatchford Kavanagh was a noted American boy soprano. He was discovered by Adelina Patti singing in Chicago. Some have described him as the greatest boy soprano in American music history. Blatchford sang in the choir of the Grace Episcopal Church in Chicago under the supervision of Henry B. Roney.
By all accounts Blatchford had a beautiful soprano voice and under Roney received advanced training combined with regular practice. During the early 1890's, he toured the world and performed for the likes of Queen Victoria and other world leaders, including President Benjamin Harrison.
A contemporary observer writes, "Besides having this remarkable voice, under good cultivation, the lad had, withall, a musical nature of the highest order, and sang his selections which much expression and feeling".
Another observer writes, "His voices was of wonderful range, extending from low G to high C, and had the peculiar vibrant quality of the voice of a mature woman, with the purity of a child's. He swayed his audience at will, from smiles to tears, and from tears to amazement at his daring virtuosity". At his height of popularity, Blatchford Kavanagh was considered the best boy soprano in American music history.
In his teenage years, his voice changed and he stopped touring. Between 1900 and 1903, he received baritone voice training in Paris in an attempt to stage a comeback. He returned to Chicago and later worked in hotel management at the Greenbrier Hotel in West Virginia and later in Bermuda. In the 1930's, he worked as an insurance agent on the east coast.
By all accounts Blatchford had a beautiful soprano voice and under Roney received advanced training combined with regular practice. During the early 1890's, he toured the world and performed for the likes of Queen Victoria and other world leaders, including President Benjamin Harrison.
A contemporary observer writes, "Besides having this remarkable voice, under good cultivation, the lad had, withall, a musical nature of the highest order, and sang his selections which much expression and feeling".
Another observer writes, "His voices was of wonderful range, extending from low G to high C, and had the peculiar vibrant quality of the voice of a mature woman, with the purity of a child's. He swayed his audience at will, from smiles to tears, and from tears to amazement at his daring virtuosity". At his height of popularity, Blatchford Kavanagh was considered the best boy soprano in American music history.
In his teenage years, his voice changed and he stopped touring. Between 1900 and 1903, he received baritone voice training in Paris in an attempt to stage a comeback. He returned to Chicago and later worked in hotel management at the Greenbrier Hotel in West Virginia and later in Bermuda. In the 1930's, he worked as an insurance agent on the east coast.
Gravesite Details
Buried in an unmarked grave near his sisters and parents.
Family Members
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