Born in
Bangor, Maine on May 1, 1868, Robinson-Duff was the daughter of Henry K. Robinson and his wife Frances Robinson (née McClintock). She was a descendant of
John Robinson (1576–1625), the pastor of the "
Pilgrim Fathers" before they left on the
Mayflower. They also had two sons: Roden Robinson-Duff, a physician in Chicago, and Jay Robinson-Duff, a trader on the New York Stock exchange. In 1890 she performed in recital with her students at
Central Music Hall. In 1897 she relocated to Paris, and celebrated the
turn of the century at a party held by
Horace Porter,
United States Ambassador to France, and his wife. She taught singing in Paris for 22 years. Her other successful students included
contralto Jessie Bartlett Davis; sopranos
Frieda Hempel,
Mary McCormic,
Alice Nielsen, and
Marcia Van Dresser;
mezzo-sopranos
Olive Fremstad and Fanchon H. Thompson; and vaudeville star
Nora Bayes. ==References==