Marian Anderson writes her life story

From 5 dollars a concert to 10,000 dollars!

There is no disputing that Marian Anderson is one of the most famous singers of this age. Yet most people know very little indeed about her private life and the work she has done within her profession. She has lately lifted the curtain on the hidden side of her life in an absorbing book recently published under the title: 'Lord, What a Beautiful Morning.'

When Marian Anderson saw that the time had come for her to write her life story, she chose to dwell at length on the matters and things that hold love and rank in her heart. Instead of stuffing her book with the praises and tributes lavished upon her by admirers of her art and of her sweet, enchanting voice, she set about recounting for us incidents and expressions overflowing with gratitude, thankfulness, and admiration toward her mother and father, her husband, and everyone who supported and encouraged her in her profession and stood kindly by her. Many of those who attended her numerous concerts must surely have been captivated by her wide black eyes, radiating gentleness and serenity — and these very qualities are to be seen on every page of her new book.

One day she found that she was fit for singing. She recounts for us the stages through which she passed and lists the choirs she took part in in Philadelphia, where she first saw the light. Her voice was so flexible that she could sing equally well in ensembles and settings both modern and old; and often she was called on to take the place of singers who dropped out at the last moment for some emergency. Certain societies would invite her to sing and reward her with two dollars or thereabouts. When she was in high school she began receiving 5 dollars for taking part in each musical program, and one well-known musician said one day to her mother in Philadelphia: 'Mark my words: this girl will one day earn more than 50 dollars a night.' The girl and her mother thought him extravagant. But Marian Anderson today earns several thousand dollars for a single concert!

And the road that brought her from 5 dollars a concert to ten thousand dollars was never strewn