Trumpeted to dinner by the horn blast from Aida, 232 guests marched into the dining room at the Birnam Wood Country Club in Santa Barbara, Calif., to raise hosannas to Soprano Lotte Lehmann on her 80th birthday. It was the sort of occasion that called forth a telegram of congratulations from West German Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger and commanded the presence of such votaries as Tenor Lauritz Melchior, Actress Judith Anderson and Conductor Zubin Mehta. "I am excited and overwhelmed," said Lehmann, who retired 17 years ago but still teaches master classes in...
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