He later adopted the name Ffrangcon, an early variant spelling of the nearby valley Nant Ffrancon, as part of his new surname (Ffrangcon-Davies).
In June 1880, it was recorded that he had failed his Schools (final examinations) for the second time, a summons had been taken out against him for 'furious driving' and a judgment for debt had been entered against him in the Chancellor's Court.
He was unable to secure the post of minor canon at Bangor cathedral, and so he decided to concentrate on a singing career.
He soon joined the Carl Rosa Opera Company and made his operatic debut in the part of the herald in Wagner's Lohengrin.
His greatest success was in the title role of Felix Mendelssohn's Elijah, which he sang for the first time in 1890 at the Horringham, Yorkshire, music festival.