Of the few in all the world who know the inmost secrets of the art of breathing, Edward Lankow, the talented author of this course, is perhaps the greatest.
The Editor of Physical Culture Magazine says of him:
“Mr. Edward Lankow is rated by many critics as the greatest basso in America. The richness, resonance, depth, power, flexibility and cello-like beauty of his voice has not been duplicated in America for years. Mr. Lankow is thirty-five years old; weight, 205 pounds stripped; height 6 feet, 1-1/2 inches; chest 44-1/2 inches; waist, 38 inches. He is Russian-American, born in Tarrytown, N. Y.”
In 1902, at the age of nineteen, Lankow was offered the principle Bass engagement with the “Bostonians” by Barnabee and MacDonald, which he declined on account of a desire for further study. The same year he was offered a Tour with Adelina Patti, which he declined for the same reason. In 1906 he started his career in Europe, where he sang at all the principle opera houses, and in concerts. In 1911 he returned to America and made his debut on the opening evening of the season with the Boston Opera Company. Before going to Boston, he studied Pelleas et Mellisande in Paris, at the first rehearsal at which the famous composer Debussy was present, he received the superlative compliment from the composer, who said to him “In your voice, I hear for the first the mystic timbre of voice I thought of when I composed the part fifteen years ago.” Mr. Lankow sang all the nine performances of this opera in Boston with Mme. Leblanc and Mary Garden.
In 1912-1913 at the first performance of the Magic Flute at the Metropolitan Opera House, the management brought Mr. Lankow over from Boston for the first half dozen performances, where three of the New York newspaper critics pronounced him the greatest basso in America—one critic saying “A voice of amazing beauty, he is by long odds the greatest basso in America.”
In April, 1917, while attending a garden party at Governor’s Island, Mr. Lankow noticed that the speaking voice of Colonel Hartman was naturally exceedingly well placed (or resonant) and asked the Colonel if he had studied to produce it that way. To which the Colonel answered, “No, I always spoke that way, and always wanted to find out how I did it so as to show it to younger officers—but I couldn’t.”
Mr. Lankow then showed the Colonel by pressing his hand on the Colonel’s abdomen how by Nature he used that organ in support—a support which most of us had to learn but which came quite natural to him. The quick mind of Colonel Hartman absorbed the value of the idea at once, and he asked Mr. Lankow to teach this subject at Camp Gorden, Ga., the largest development camp in the country.
Here official instructors of various subjects from all the other camps in the country from Maine to San Francisco were gathered for special instructions—from 6.45 A. M. Mr. Lankow would have classes ranging from 25 to 1100, and gradually developed 41 officer assistant instructors, so that several thousand men were doing the work at the same time. The Commanding General, Brigadier General William Sage and all of his staff were in his morning class.
After the third week, Mr. Lankow was asked to mess at Headquarters, and live at the former home of Brigadier General Shaw. The results of his work were more than astounding.
Men who had apparently no voices at all, and who had pain in the throat while giving commands, suddenly found that it was a pleasure to use the voice. On the other hand, men whose health was run down so that they were on their way to forced retirement, were so changed in appearance that their civilian friends asked them what they were doing.