 Nellie Melba (1861–1931) travelled to Europe in 1886 to commence her international career as an opera singer.She became among the best known Australians of the period and participated in early gramophone recording and radio broadcasting.The establishment of choral societies (c. 1850) and symphony orchestras (c. 1890) led to increased compositional activity, although many Australian classical composers attempted to work entirely within European models.