The Baritone Voice

A Manualfor Training the Voice
The
ARITONE
ICE
Anthony FriseU
The
Baritone Voice
ANTHONY FRISELL
THE
BARITONE VOICE
A Personal Guide to
Acquiring a Superior Singing Technique
An expanded and updated edition
Branden Publishing Company

IPL Series
www/bramdenbooks.com
Boston
© Copyright 2007
By S. Anthony Frisella
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Frisell, Anthony.
The Baritone voice : a personal guide to acquiring a superior singing technique / Anthony Frisell. --
Expanded and updated ed.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-8283-2181-5 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Singing--Instruction and study.
2. Baritones (Singers)--Training of.
I. Title.
MT820.F86 2007
783.8'8143--dc22
2007010504
IPL (International Pocket Library)

Division of Branden Books.
PO Box 812094
Wellesley MA 02482--USA
This book was written in appreciation
of the pleasure and personal fulfillment
I have experienced
during a lifetime of involvement
with the art of singing and teaching singers
CONTENTS
Chapter One………………………………………………………………………………………………. 9
●The Mental Image Approach, ● Fixed Rules, ●Pure Vowels, ● Control, ●Musicianship, ● The “Science
of Voice” Advocates.
ChapterTwo…………………………………………………………………………………………………………13
● Identifying the Vocal Registers, ● Defining the Vocal Registers, ●A permanent antagonism exists
between the two registers, ● The permanent location of the "registers' break". ● The vocal "passaggio" , ●
Some basic characteristics and terms that are often applied to the two vocal registers, ● The Lower
Register, ● The Upper Register, ● A ruling principle, The metamorphoses of the two registers, ● The basic
tools used for vocal exercises, ● Breath tension (motor force), ●The three methods of applying breath
tension dynamics to the singing instrument, ● The five vocal vowels—The Mechanical functions of the
five singing vowels: u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah), ● I. The u (oo) vowel, ● II. The i (ee) vowel, ●
III. The e (eh) vowel, ● IV The o (oh) vowel, ● V. The a (ah) vowel, ● Locating the Registers' Break, ●
Never force the lower register upward.
Chapter Three……………………………………………………………………………………...............38
● Breathing, ● A comparison of breathing needs, ● The diaphragm is a motor force, ●
● Inhalation, ● Exhalation, ● "Breath Control", ● The critical moment of transferring the breath tension, ●
Should one breathe through the mouth or nose, while singing?, ● The most undesirable method of
breathing, ● Breathing exercises?
Chapter Four………………………………………………………………………………………………44
●The Building Process, ● A series of descending scales, practiced with the tones of the upper register.
● Exercise No. 1: The single, sustained falsetto tone, ● Selecting an appropriate vowel for a given exercise,
●Exercise No. 2: Descending falsetto scales that include vocal movement, ●More descending falsetto tone
exercises, ● Legato: The meaning of the term, ● The unusual lower octave of all correctly structured
singing voices, ● The resonance channel, or the Colonna Sonora, ● Decreases and increases of vibratory
mass, ● The nature and important function of the impingement, or "hookup" points that line the vocal tract,
● The phenomenal "adjustability" of the pharyngeal-tract, from which the sound waves passageway is
created.
Chapter Five……………………………………………………………………………………………….60
●The messa di voce exercise: A brief review of its history, ● Factors to be aware of when applying the
messa di voce, or swelled-tone exercise,
●Exercise No. 3: Contemporary applications of the messa di voce exercise, ● Two hypothetical scenarios
involving the "swelled-tone" exercise, ● 1st example: A successful performance,
● 2nd example: A compromised performance, ●Aspects of the imperfect swelled-tone exercise, ●
Success with the swelled-tone exercise on the e (eh) vowel indicates an important turning point,
● An oscillating pattern of exercise is required to maintain the function of both registers,
● Shifting the structural focus from the head voice muscles and toward the chest voice muscles,
● The "upward pulling action" of the advanced falsetto voice, ● Ascending vocal movement,
● The nature and important function of the "hookup" points that line the vocal tract, ● The middle-falsetto,
or "mixed voice" , ● The "Witch's Voice', or "voce di strega",
●Another, less ideal approach to blending the action of the full voice and falsetto, ● The esclamazio viva
exercises, ● The "inverted" tone, ● The "Vocal Platform", ● Getting ready to sing after vocalization, ● The
classic songs and arias of the Seventeen and Eighteen centuries, ● The "hollow u (oo) vowel", and
perfecting the "passaggio" or "registers' break", ● Standard u (oo) vowel ascending scales,● Giorgio
Roncone’s amazing discovery concerning the u (oo) vowel.
The Baritone Voice—7

● The "gathered voice”, ● More about the “gathered voice”, ● La voce di gola, or "the voice of the throat",
● The tongue, ● The consonants, ● The lips and facial muscles.
Chapter Six………………………………………………………………………………………………………….107
●Low larynx position versus High larynx position, ● The Detached Falsetto i (ee) vowel’s structuring tool,
● The three separate muscular mechanisms that control the advanced developed voice, ● The "puffy" throat
sensations of the advanced falsetto tones, ● The ascending scales that prepare the singing voice for
performance, ● The technical nature of the ascending vocal movement, ● The narrow "beams" of sound of
the upper range, ● The first major ascending scale exercises and the critically important "vertical ascent", ●
The esclamazio languida, ● Protecting the Singing Voice after it has been completely structured,
●In closing, ● A true desire for success, ● Decision and persistence, ● Inspiration,
● A recent article by Anthony Frisell: Is there an “American School” of classical voice training? If
so—has it failed American singers?...........................................................................................122
●About Anthony Frisell……………………………………………………………………… 133
●Master Classes given by .…………………………………………………………………………… 134
Anthony Frisell—8
Are you in earnest? Seize this very minute, what you can do, or dream you can—begin it! Boldness has genius,
power, and magic in it. Only engage and then the mind grows heated, begin and then the work will be completed.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe—
Born August 28, 1749 in Frankfurt (am main), Germany
CHAPTER ONE
The Mental Image Approach
To train the singing voice one must establish a system of vocal exercises. However, because of
the difficulties involved in accessing the singing instrument, these exercises cannot be applied in a direct
manner such as one would do to exercise the arms or legs. Therefore, vocal exercises must be applied
indirectly, through mental concepts. We call this method the mental image approach.
The beginner's mental image of his voice has such a great influence upon what he produces
vocally that establishing correct mental concepts is paramount. For example, if a beginner's voice is
incorrectly classified as a bass he will often make a conscious effort to produce vocal qualities and
characteristics which he associates with the bass voice, thereby denying the true qualities and muscular
needs of his own appropriate vocal category. The first step in correcting the student's erroneous concept
of his voice is to change his mental concepts of it.
By correctly applying the rules that will soon presented, as the mental image control theory, a
formula can be had for properly developing the vocal organ. The formula will contain all the basic
rudiments that are required to do so, on a basic level, and will include the ideals of perfection which
represent the finished art of superior singing. This method allows for all changes necessary for improving
the voice throughout the entire course of training. It also gives the student guiding rules, so that he can
compare each stage of his vocal development, with the ideal.
Although it is hoped that the text is explicit, the nature of signing requires that the student attempt
to hear live performances of the best singer of his times, so that a more complete understanding of the
standards of the art may be gained by listening and observing. There are many who feel that present-day
singers are below par, and unworthy of emulation, therefore students should seek out the best singers.
Technical criticism should be directed at the way these singers use their voices, and not at the voice itself,
since singers are not equally endowed with great voices.
By approaching training with a predetermined plan and mental image, the beginner has an outline
of what is expected of him in order to attain professional status. Present-day singers are expected to be
more vocally polished at their initial professional debut than singers of the past. To add to their
difficulties in establishing a professional career, there are practically no smaller theaters in which the
beginner may gain experience. Singers of the past had the advantage of testing themselves in small
theaters, thereby smoothing out their technical problems, long before submitting themselves to the
judgment of audiences in the major theaters. The availability of inexpensive CD recordings is another
thorn in the side of the beginner, since he is always being compared to the way "So-and-so sang it on
records." Very few laymen realize that the high standards of many recordings are often the results of
mechanical engineering skills, and not superior singing.
Many present-day vocal students think that a few months of study will prepare them for a
professional career. Nothing could be less true; maintaining high vocal standards is a lifetime study. Even
though the technique be correct, it should be explicitly understood that the singing voice is always in a
process of growing change. To assure that the correct direction is taken when these changes occur, the
technique must possess certain fixed rules of guidance which allow for these changes, but still permit the
singer to continue performing.

The rules of the vocal image theory must be very tangible! The highest standard attainable will
depend completely upon what the singer technically conceives of as correct. With continual use, some
vocal experiences prove beneficial and others undesirable. By comparing the good and bad functions, and
selecting those which the correct mental image indicates are preferable, the singer progresses from one
state of vocal efficiency to a better one.
Fixed Rules
Certain fixed rules form the basis for the correct mental image approach.
Pure vowels
The formation of pure vowels takes precedence over all other matters. The vowels are the most
basic of vocal functions and the singer's only reliable method of checking himself against bad singing
habits. Distorted vowels blur the words of a musical piece and deny the singer communication with his
listeners. Even if the language in which he is singing is foreign to his listeners, the lack of vowel clarity
soon become apparent in a monotony of tonal colors. From the very beginning the singer must be
determined not to sacrifice the purity of the vowel to attain the pitch, or tonal effect, or he will always be
limited by those compromises. Each of the five vowels u, i, e, o and a, must be mastered in their purest
form throughout the entire vocal range.1
Control
Control cannot be over emphasized because no matter what amount of quality or range is
achieved, without control it is unreliable. Until complete control is established the singer can never pass
to a state of proficiency where the technique becomes second-nature. Mastery over the dynamics, range,
flexibility, and shading of all tones permits artistic interpretation. All are the results of control.
Musicianship
Musicianship, which is of major importance, is often neglected or passed over too lightly. A
singer must become familiar with the rudiments of music and acquire some ability to play a musical
instrument, preferably the piano. Also, the nature of what is musical in vocal production should be
carefully studied and cultivated. The baritone must be particularly alert to musical theory because in
ensemble singing he will be expected to harmonize with the higher voices of the tenor and the soprano.
The goal of all singers should be the attainment of pure intonation, a precise sense of pitch and legato, and
all patterns necessary for a musical vocal production.
A singer must understand that what is necessary for vocal improvement is change, and that this
change is the result of what he technically perceives to be better. Without change he can only expect to
perpetuate his vocal faults. In the search for vocal improvement there is always varied opinion of what is
right and wrong and the student can become confused. It is always wise to pay attention to criticism,
1 The Italian pronunciation of the vowels, u (oo) i (ee) e (eh) and a (ah) is best for exercising the voice because it is
pure and free from diphthongs. The Italian pronunciation should be used for all exercises in this manual.
Anthony Frisell—10
consider the sources of opinions, then permit the passing of time for testing the suggested theories.
Remember that correct progress is always reflected in ease of vocal production, the overcoming of
difficulties, and a positive response from your listeners.
The "Science of Voice" Advocates
A matter which deserves mention, even though it is opposed to the simplicity of the mental image
control theory, is the growing popularity with beginners to submit their voices to individuals who claimed
to be experts at the science of voice. These so-called scientists of voice directly manipulate parts of the
vocal apparatus itself, in the hope of strengthening and extending the vocal range, and showing the
student how to get "control of the voice". For example, some of them attempt to control the actions of the
tongue with an instrument called a "tongue depressor". The only correct way to control the tongue is to
develop pure vowels, which correctly and musically control most of the proper functions of the tongue.
Other advocates of the science of voice method depress the larynx with their thumb and forefingers.
Those teachers who practice this method of voice training attract their students by promising them a
supposed faster method of voice development. However, the scientific, speed-method always fails.
Medically speaking, vocal science has made much progress in treating the victims of speech
defects. However, as a method of training the singing voice, it is useless.
Any student who submits himself to this method of training should be made aware that he is
risking permanent damage of his vocal organ. Few of the great singers of the past even knew the names
given to the parts of the throat, much less employed them in a method of instruction. The less known in
this direction, the sooner the singer will learn to depend upon, and utilize mental concepts which stimulate
musical feelings and simplify, not complicate his task.
These aforementioned rules, which represent a correct mental image, when applied to any well
used voice, will serve to confirm what is already in proper function. For the beginner, they will guide him
to attaining a reliable vocal technique. For the advanced and professional singer, they may serve as a
reminder of the standard to maintain. They are, however, only a partial guide for developing a singing
voice, and must be extended into a more specific direction; this being the complete understanding of the
two vocal registers.

Blank page
CHAPTER TWO
Identifying the Vocal Registers
To acquire a reliable vocal technique a student must have a clear concepts to guide him. The
functions of the vocal registers serve that purpose. The vocal registers allow for definite rules of vocal
control which are based on the consistent muscular patterns of the vocal organ itself. They are very
specific. Any other means of obtaining a correct vocal production, when based solely on the quality and
range of a beginner's voice, generally ends in failure.
The human voice is capable of producing many varieties of sound which have contrasting
characteristics. To base the vocal technique on any particular sound quality is too vague a method because
the tonal qualities used by the average beginner are generally imitated, and chosen to compensate for his
vocal limitations and to please his temperament. The singer who knows what the fully developed vocal
registers are capable of, possesses a definite image of the ideal vocal state toward which he must strive.
Defining the Vocal Registers
A vocal register is a group of tones with harmonious qualities produced by one muscular
mechanism, and it differs from another contrasting muscular mechanism of equally harmonious qualities,
timbers and strength. To master the art of refined singing one must know the function of the two vocal
registers and develop them to their fullest so they function together as a single unit of quality and
muscular strength throughout the entire vocal range. There are other factors to consider, however, they
are mainly matters of vocal purity/or distortion, throat constriction, and other irregularities of tone
production which will be corrected along with the development and understanding of usage of the vocal
registers themselves.
There are but two vocal registers. Within the range of the baritone voice, minor mechanical
variations have been observed, and it has often been incorrectly theorized that there are three, or four
registers. This is false, and the fallacy of the three, or four registers theory can be understood when the
two registers are properly developed and united.
A permanent antagonism exists between the two vocal registers
One of the most important and generally overlooked aspects concerning the two vocal registers is
that they are antagonistic toward each other. This antagonism remains in operation from the beginning
phase of vocal training (when the voice is largely unstructured) until the final phase of development. It is,
therefore, difficult and time-consuming to subjugate the registers to a training program of muscular
structuring. The accomplishment is generally known as the “blending of the registers”. It is this same
antagonism which, when properly understood and used to advantage, gives the superior singing
instrument its remarkable controls and qualities. These two major muscular systems, in their unblended
state, strongly resist the singer’s efforts to maintain control over their separate, dynamic actions, denying
the singer his wish to harmoniously unify all pitches of the total singing range. Correct structuring
imposes rules upon these two antagonistic muscular systems, so they will come to function as a single,
harmonious unit throughout the complete vocal range, thereby granting the singer the necessary muscular
controls over his instrument. In this way, the singing instrument functions as a synergism.
Before presenting additional ideas on how and what the two registers' muscular systems
contribute to the structuring process, it is necessary to establish exactly where, in the singer’s complete
range of vocal tones, the critical point of division that separates the registers is permanently located.

The permanent location of the “registers’ break”
The Cololratura Soprano's vocal range
The Soprano's vocal range
The Mezzo Soprano's vocal range
The precise location of the

Registers' Break,
located between E & F, above
Middle C.
The Tenors vocal range
The Baritone's vocal range
The Bass's vocal range
The point of division between the two vocal registers is most frequently referred to as the
“registers’ break”. It is a natural, permanent factor of all singing voices, of all vocal categories. It has
been termed a “breaking point” because when the untrained singer attempts to sing vocal phrases or
execute vocal scales that cross the critical "break" area, the muscles of the registers, which meet between
En and Fn above middle C, most frequently “break” apart and refuse to cooperate in the production of
satisfactory tone.
The inherent antagonism which exists between the two vocal registers can be permanently altered
through selected exercises, causing the registers to interact with each other in a cooperative team effort
that allows for superior singing. However, the point of division remains forever located at its original
place in the singer’s vocal scale. What changes is the behavior of the muscles that lie on either side of
"the break point." In this new, cooperative state, they allow the singer to sing in the “break area” with
complete control of the breath dynamics from soft to loud and back again to soft, and to “pronounce” the
five vowels u, i, e, o, and a, purely.
The vocal “passaggio”
Several tones located below the register’s break and several above it represent an area of all
singers’ vocal range which presents great difficulties in singing with precise intonation, a full range of
breath dynamics, and pure vowels. This area is frequently referred to as the vocal “passaggio”, an Italian
word which means passageway. It is critical for all singers to structure the passaggio tones to a state of
perfection in order to achieve a superior standard of vocal production. It takes many years of hard work to
bring the passaggio tones to a state of perfection. Throughout this manual many references will be made
to the problems which the passaggio presents to all singers, and the various exercises to overcome them.
Some basic characteristics and terms that are often applied to the two vocal registers
Both vocal registers contribute correct and inherent muscular actions and tonal qualities to the
singing instrument. These actions provoke description based upon subjective impressions.
The Lower Register
The vocal sounds of the lower register’s range of tones (the “chest voice”), are often referred to
as “resonance” or “vocal solidity”. The lower register contributes the basic power factor (“vocal
projection” in the theater), to the singing instrument. Some familiar terms that attempt to describe the
variety of tonal qualities contributed by the lower register are: “ring”, “bite”, “core”, “solidity”, and
“resonance”. The term “resonance” is incorrectly applied, as it correctly describes the presence of the
vibrato action of the vocal cords. The vocal sounds of singing are the result of the vibrating action of the
vocal cords set into a vibratory motion by “breath pressure” being applied to them. These vibrations then
travel upward, along the "resonance tract", "riding" on the breath flow, toward the various "resonance
cavities" where they are amplified and enhanced in quality, by the resonance chambers size and shape.
The prolongation of these pulsing vibrations, once they have reached their appropriate resonance cavity,
depends upon the singer's ability to continuously supply the tone being presently sung with an even
supply of breath flow. The vibrato action of the vocal cords is correct, and it is a desired function of the
vocal instrument. The lower or chest register tends to block the breath stream from reaching a selected
tone and the desired resonance chamber which the singer wishes to send it to.
The Upper Register
The vocal sounds of the upper register’s range of tones (the “head voice”), or “falsetto” register
are most often referred to as “sweet”, "fluty" or “ethereal”, and its muscular actions contribute beauty of
vocal tone, flexibility of control, and vocal shading. Some of the terms applied to upper register’s range of
tonal qualities
“overtone” andare:
the“the
“thinwhistle
register”.
voice”, upper
The“the youthful greatly“tonal
registervoice”, encourages
freshness”,
the stinger's of tone”,
“purityattempt to evoke
and control the breath stream and to apply it to any selected tone (s).
Paradoxically, one set of the five basic vowels can be produced in the lower register, maintaining
the sounds and muscular characteristics indigenous to that register, while another set of the five vowels
can be produced in the upper register, maintaining the sounds and muscular characteristics indigenous to
that register. Yet, when the singer attempts to combine the basic sounds and muscular actions of the lower
register’s vowels with those of the upper register's vowels on any given tone or groups of tones, it is
extremely difficult to achieve a match or “blend” of the two registers’ sounds and muscular actions. Only
when the two registers have been completely restructured will they allow the mutual exchange of qualities
and muscular actions of each registers' individual vowels.
This refusal by the two registers to exchange their basic muscular actions and tonal qualities is a
tangible and graphic demonstration of the undeniable division between the two major muscular systems.
This conflict is acknowledged by the international community of vocal musicologists. Many technique
books have been written that discuss the subject of the vocal registers, the mystifying registers’ break that
separates them, and the difficulty the registers’ break presents, when the singer executes an extended
vocal scale, either while ascending or descending, with the intention of unifying all the tonal qualities and
muscular actions of each and every tone throughout his vocal range. However, it has seldom been stated
that the antagonistic problems caused by the registers’ break are the same factors which, when
understood, can be used advantageously as the appropriate tools for overcoming the problems of the

registers' break, and therefore, correctly structuring a superior vocal instrument with a full and complete
range of muscularly harmonious tones.
The purpose of this manual is to explain and clarify the antagonisms of the two registers, and
further, to outline the precise methods of using them in a reliable and consistent vocal structuring
program, to grant the student a complete and harmonic range of superior tones.
When a baritone attempts to sing phrases that ascend toward, and into the area of the registers’
break (which is located between the En and Fn above middle C), using the a (ah) vowel, and a
reasonably strong volume, unless that area has been correctly structured, he is denied the attainment of
correctly-functioning, beautiful tones in that area, and he is forced to compromise their quality and
control. This compromise results in impure vowels, and harsh, unmusical tones. This unsatisfactory vocal
condition may be referred to as a state of “antagonistic vocal registers”, meaning that the singer has not
managed to circumvent the basic antagonism that exists between the two registers.
The singer with this vocal condition usually possesses a voice with strong, thick lower and middle
range tones, a few faulty, barely accessible tones in the registers’ break area, and above the registers’
break, only forced, unmusical tones that are “weak”, and do not match tonal qualities of the lower part of
his range. This is so because, this singer’s upper tones are incorrectly and disadvantageously being
dominated by the negative muscular controls of the chest voice, and are in need of the help of the
muscular controls of the head voice muscles.
In order to overcome the unavoidable vocal limitations that exist between the two registers, it is
necessary for the singer to retrain these antagonistic registers toward a state of harmony toward each
other. Expressed in other words, the muscular controls of the two separate vocal registers must be
blended, or “muscularly restructured” so that they function as a team, both in muscular actions and tonal
qualities, throughout the singer’s complete range.
Because there exist so many conflicting muscular actions, tonal varieties, and variations of
physical sensations between these two major muscular systems, which cause them to permanently react
antagonistically toward each other, the controversial question always arises as to what, precisely, about
these two registers is “accurate”, where superior singing is concerned. Therefore, we must establish a
ruling principle as a foundation for correctly structuring a muscular harmonious voice.
A ruling principle
The conflicting muscular responses that occur between the two vocal registers, when attempting
to produce pure, superior vocal tone, represent the natural responses to the energy of the motor force
(breath tension), which the singer is obliged to direct against the vocal cords, to achieve the task of basic
tone.
We can begin to understand the antagonistic nature of these two muscular systems by thinking of
their inherent response to each other as a form of tug-of-war, with each register struggling for dominance
over the other, when the singer attempts to evoke a selected tone. The lower register, however, has many
advantages over the weaker upper register in this tug-of-war because it is generally the stronger of the
two registers at the onset of vocal training. But this can be reversed, and must be.
There are several factors that contribute to the dominance of the lower register over the upper
register.
l. The muscles that control the lower register’s complete range of tones are inherently larger, and
they occupy a larger physiological “space” (mouth-pharynx cavity, and neck), than do the muscles that
control the upper register’s range of tones (physiologically located in mouth-pharynx, nasal sinuses, and
head cavities). Applying this principle to male voices is straightforward, since, by nature, their vocal
range contains more “chest tones” than “head tones”.
2. Most training programs apply their basic exercises to the bottom of the singer’s vocal range,
where the lower register is most powerful. This is a mistake which gives the lower register yet another
advantage over the inherently weaker, upper register in winning the tug-of-war between the two registers.
3. Singers or singer-and-teacher working together are often volume-conscious, impatiently
seeking the quick attainment of “resonant, powerful, professional-sounding tones”. They generally fail to
consider the developmental attributes of the upper register’s muscular controls, which are more subtle
than those of the chest voice, and can only be invoked and strengthened by the use of softer tonal
dynamics, and a masterful application of the breath stream. The upper register's detached, falsetto tones
take much longer to develop, and longer to reveal their true tonal qualities and muscular maneuvers than
do the readily-available chest tones. The valuable, long-range benefits derived from cultivating the softer
and subtler (but in no way weaker, when properly developed) muscular controls of the upper register are
frequently neglected by the “volume-conscious singer”. This is because, in their earlier phase of
development, the falsetto muscles produce only “thin”, “non-resonant” tonal qualities that are easily
misunderstood as being unrelated to the advanced, full-volume, “legitimate” performing voice.
The true worth of the first falsetto sounds produced by the beginner are misleading. It should be
noted that, at the beginning of training, interpreting the true value of these detached falsetto tones as they
progress in strength and yield their benefits, and rendering sound judgments, regarding quality of these
tone should be reserved for expert ears.
Despite the inherent dominance of the lower register, the singer or voice teacher, armed with
accurate, specialized knowledge, can play a major role in deciding which of the two vocal registers will
emerge as the dominant register.
Resolving the conflicts between the two vocal registers can be accomplished, in part, by favoring
the upper register. In the past, training programs utilized specialized exercises that gave preference to the
upper register’s growth and development, with the intention of making it dominate most of the muscular
controls of the singer’s complete range. This dominance of the upper register over the singer’s complete
range of tones in no way excludes the brilliance and power of the lower "chest" register, but rather assures
that its power is applied safely, since the chest voice, when operating without the collaboration of the
upper register, can be damaging to the singing voice. During early training, the muscular activities of the
lower register must be relegated to a temporarily passive and subordinate role. Many singers and teachers
avoid a program of “head voice”, or “falsetto” training because the falsetto sounds produced during the
building process are unfamiliar, when compared to the sounds of the chest voice, and to most individuals,
they appear remote and confusing. This occurs because the various “sound aspects” of the developing
falsetto voice, and the positive results they may produce have not been heard in most training studios for
several decades, and consequently they have not been passed down to present-day vocal teachers. This
has set in motion an unfortunate downward spiral in the quality of singing.
At the beginning of this head voice training program, the singer is generally dealing with
underdeveloped muscular conditions in both the upper and lower registers, in this state they are incapable
of producing the beautiful, highly-controlled tones of an advanced vocal state. This advanced vocal state
can only be attained over a long period of time, and only through precise technical knowledge and
discipline. One of the most blatant faults of contemporary training occurs when teachers fail to make
allowances for the “raw”, “crude”, uncontrollable vocal sounds that most beginners must produce during
the early phases of training. Most teachers instead immediately attempt to draw “polished”, “beautiful”,
and highly-controlled vocal sounds from their beginner-students, which can only be produced by
advanced professionals.
In order for an untrained voice to progress from the crude vocal sounds of an amateur to the
beautiful and highly-controlled vocal sounds of a professional is a matter of correct muscular
development of the vocal instrument, which takes a great deal of time and correct knowledge to
accomplish. It is not a matter of the singer comprehending the “esthetics, beauty and subtleties of refined

singing”, as so many incompetent teachers wrongly assume, or by imitating a famous artist of the day.
Professional singers, too, are guilty of hindering beginners, in their failure to give testimonies of the
earlier, less ideal stages of their voices, when they could not produce controlled, beautiful tones.
Therefore, they must be considered silent partners in the conspiracy of ruinous vocal training methods
being practiced today, which do not allow the beginning singer his share of mistakes and his individual
pace of vocal development
With the untrained voice, the undeveloped muscular condition of the two vocal registers will not
allow them to function harmoniously with each other. In this state, the singer frequently possesses a
limited vocal range, unclear “muddy” vowels, muscular conflicts and tonal inconsistencies. The pitches
of the lower register produces thick and unmusical sounds. When ascending scales and vocal phrases are
tried, the voice responds in a cumbersome manner. When the ascending scale arrives at the point of the
registers' break, the singer is denied further ascent in the range, beyond En natural above middle C.
Baritones, in an understandable attempt to extend the “solidity factor” of their lower vocal range upward,
beyond that point, frequently force the action of the lower register past the natural division of the
registers, which is located between En and Fn above middle C. This mistake immediately halts the
process of correct structuring of the singing voice, and in some cases it causes vocal damage.
The first major step in the long process of properly structuring the singing voice is for the singer
to begin performing a series of exercises that will permanently reduce the undesirable bulk and thickness
of the lower register. This must be done in a way that does not deny the lower register’s power factor,
although it must be restricted in use for some time, but eventually it must be added to all tones of the
singer’s complete “head voice” range. With baritone voices, the “strong and resonant” sounds of the
chest register are usually readily understood and easily evoked, because they are produced by the
inherently dominant lower register muscles. The chest register willingly grants the male singer an ample
number of “chest tones” which are generally comfortable to produce, but are also incorrectly produced.
The difficulty, however, where making the entire range muscularly harmonious is concerned, is
for the singer to transport the strong, vibrant sounds of the vibrato
action (chestvoice,) up to the tones above the registers’ break,
which, in their initial, underdeveloped state, are unrelated in
quality and muscular action to those tones produced by the lower
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passageway of the upper head voice tract, by developing all the
tones from Gn above middle C, downward in the range to the Bf below middle C, with the head voice
muscles, them slowly making these head voice muscles stronger than the chest voice's muscles, which in
the beginning of training inherently dominate all the pitches of the lower range— (see the illustration
above).
The task for all male singers is to strengthen the underdeveloped tones at the registers' break and
also below it, to the point when they appear (sound, and sensation wise), to have adopted the resonant,
vibrant quality of the lower register, without losing the beauty and flexible muscular control of the upper
register’s controls. Avoidance of this critical issue is a guarantee for vocal failure, usually sooner than
later.
The process of developing the muscular controls of the inherently underdeveloped detached
falsetto tones is slow and difficult to achieve, but, when successfully accomplished, it gives to the singer’s
listeners the impression that all tones of his vocal range are produced with a single muscular system, and
it also accomplishes for the singer the much admired "seamless vocal scale." The reality of this seamless
vocal scale is quite different, from the perception of the singer’s listeners. The listener is led to believe
that all the tones of the singer’s range are produced with a single muscular system, when, in truth,
advanced vocal structuring employs separate teams of muscular controls, over which the singer, during a
long and tedious training period, has become the master.
The master-singer develops a method of muscular coordination which allows him to transfer the
control of a selected tone from one “team of muscles” (which control a particular section of the vocal
range), over to another team of muscular controls, witch each pitch of the above mentioned tones, and
with all five classic Italian vowel, u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah), to ensure the consistent.
uninterrupted production of superior tone and pure vowels, while singing upward or downward in the
registers' break area, or remaining with the central tones of the registers' break. The selection of a
particular muscular team to handle the “work load” is always relative to the part of the vocal range which
the musical piece demands. The most important of the master-singer’s skills is to accomplish the transfer
of muscular control from one pitch to the next, in such a smooth, imperceptible manner that to his
listeners, the vocal range appears to be but one seamless scale. More information on this complex aspect
of the vocal instrument, and the discrepancies between what the listener hears and what the singer is
“actually doing”, will be presented later. The subject has been touched upon at this early part of the
manual to start the reader thinking about the complexities of “playing” the singing instrument. Singing is
too often thought of in passive terms, as if, after the voice has been fully developed, it could “sing itself”.
The metamorphoses of the two vocal registers
The reason that most vocal training methods fail to develop superior vocal instruments with a
complete range or tones, is because the muscles of the registers are generally accepted in their original,
undeveloped state. At the beginning of training, the student is assigned a series of rote, meaningless
ascending scales to perform in the blind hope of meeting the rigorous demands of superior singing.
Seldom is it considered that the vocal instrument is generally found in a totally unstructured state. The
beginner must understand that his vocal instrument is not complete and perfectly assembled, waiting for
him to learn how to play it. On the contrary, all superior voices are “created” by muscular structuring,
achieved by transforming the undeveloped muscles of the two vocal registers (from whatever starting
condition in which they present themselves), to a “new” and "different" state of structural existence, one
that conforms to, and fulfills the muscular and esthetic needs of the vocal literature. This transformation is
accomplished by executing a series of selected exercises that favor the development of the upper register,
so that it becomes the dominant muscular system, and the lower register the subordinate register.
What becomes evident during this slow building process is that the muscles controlling the tones
of the upper register gradually grow in strength, first within their original boundaries, at the top of the
range, then the upper register’s muscular controls must be transported downward in the vocal range to
overlap and control all the tones of the lower register. This is accomplished by exercises which gradually
accomplish the downward “stretching” of the upper register’s muscular controls, until they overlap and
envelop all the tones of the lower register. It will help to know that when attempting to overlap the entire
chest range with the upper range's controls, in order to make the chest voice's muscles surrender
themselves over to the head voice’s influence, which, for the beginner, by comparison, seem like no
influence at all.
Once this "overlapping process" has been accomplished, the restructured tones of the upper
register's muscular controls will join with the lower register's transformed muscular controls, and together
the both registers share control all the tones of the complete range in a synergistic manner. Although we
speak of the desired dominance of the upper registers' controls, over the lower registers' control, it should
be understood that the upper register’s controls are not sufficient in and of themselves to accomplish all

the vocal tasks of the singing instrument, nor can they, alone, grant the singer the beauty and control of
his tones. They require the full and quite unusual participation of the lower register’s muscles to do so.
(More of this later, in detail)
The above principle must be well noted, since many singers who embark upon a “falsetto” voice
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During the transformation of the upper register’s muscles into a state of dominance over the lower
register's tones, the process automatically imposes a corresponding transformation on all the tones of the
lower register. In proportion to the ongoing development of all upper register tones, the corresponding
tones of the chest voice automatically and undeniably begin shrinking, and reducing their “weight” and/or
“thickness”. As a result, the tones of the chest voice become "hollow" due to being infused with the
breath flow and they subjugate themselves to the advancing falsetto's muscular controls and begin to
participate in a “team effort” to accomplish the task of singing. In this way, when all the chest tones are
saturated with the breath flow, eventually the “power” factor of the lower register, with its bulk and
solidity now removed, is permitted to pass beyond the point of registers' break, situated between En and
Fn above middle C, but without any of its negative characteristics, such as rigidity, and excessive
weight. With the transformation of the registers' break, the vibrato action of the vocal cords "blend" with
the breath flow, as it travels along the resonance tract, and enters into the various resonance chambers,
resulting in tones with “ring”, "core brilliance". The reader may want to read my 2005 vocal manual The
Art of Singing on the Breath Flow, soon to be available on Branden's web site —www.brandenbooks.com
In this new, metamorphosed state, the two vocal registers, once antagonistic to each other, start to
“collaborate” with each other in all tone production. This is often called a state of “harmonic registers”.
Now the singer can “thread” the "power factor" into each and every tone along the ascending “sound
column” or "sound waves passageway, from the very bottom of the singer's range upward to the his
topmost tones.
While this process of reducing the bulk and weight of the lower register is occurring, a related
phenomenon occurs with all the tones of the upper register. The muscular influence of the upper register
begins to extend beyond their borders, at both ends, and begins to dominate a larger percentage of the
complete vocal range.
When this advanced state of development is reached, the "thinner" muscular contours of the
transformed upper register, which have been calculatingly brought downward to overlap all the tones of
the lower register, hold the “raw” action of the lower register in check, so that it is forced to join and
conform to (shape-wise), the muscular controls of the upper register. Then, together, the two registers
produce beautiful, highly-controllable vocal tones. This process of overlapping the tones of the lower
register with the muscular controls of the upper register is highly relevant to correct vocal structuring, and
consistently produces extraordinary results. This difficult, time-consuming procedure is one of the first
major steps in the transference of the “dominant muscular control" of any given tone away from the lower
register, and toward the upper register.
With the continued strengthening of all the tones of the upper register, the basic sound of each of
its tones begins to change. New, improved, more musical vocal sounds appear and begin to match the
sounds of the transformed lower register. The lower register’s tones begin to sound and feel “lighter” in
weight, and “buoyant and heady”; in time, they become “puffy” and “falsetto-like”. They communicate
to the singer (and to the knowledgeable listener), their capacity to achieve appropriate, “projecting
power”. At the same time, all the developing tones of the upper register begin to take on a more solid
sensations which are “like” the those of the lower register.
All these changes are natural and to be expected, when structuring gives the upper register
preferred treatment and development, with the intention of making the upper register’s muscular controls
dominant the complete range .
All these altered "mixed sounds" are the result of the developing upper register, and they precede
the arrival of the mezzo-falso, a mechanism of muscular control that results when the registers begin to
approach harmony with each other. In the past, this mezzo-falso voice was often refereed to as "the third
register". Singers and teachers of the Bel Canto period termed these sounds of the advanced developed
falsetto voice the voce difinta, or the “feigned voice”. The mezzo-falso, a modern version of the earlier
term voce difinta , suggests that this mechanism is an outgrowth of combining the muscular actions of
both registers, and it is capable of feigning or “pretending to be like” the original qualities (and muscular
actions) of either or both registers, on any given, individual tone of the singer’s complete vocal range.
When this mezzo-falso mechanism finally appears, it allows the singer to initiate a soft tone in the
upper register’s domain, which is, to the listener, detached falsetto-sounding, but is actually the mezzo-
falso mechanism. The mezzo-falso immediately attaches itself properly to the power of the chest registers
and allows the singer to press together both the chest and head voice registers’ muscular actions for the
duration of the tone being presently sung, by the constant application of breath-tension to it. When the
two registers are tightly “clamped” together in this manner, the singer can add to any small, soft mezzo-
falso note the “bright” full power of the lower register, and also withdraw it, at will. With some voices,
this skill takes years to acquire; with others, it is a more natural possession. However, even with a so-
called “natural” singing voice, the activity of the mezzo-falso usually exists in but a limited area of the
complete vocal range. Therefore, these “natural” singers should strive to develop the mezzo-falso
mechanism to its fullest control, until it functions with all the tones of their entire vocal range.
The development of the mezzo-falso mechanism is a requirement for all singers, and it must
operate throughout the entire range, so that passing back and forth from one register’s muscular control to
the other’s subjugates both registers to a “team effort”. Accomplishing this unique muscular control
advantageously utilizes the antagonism which inherently exists between both registers.
If the mezzo-falso is referred to in present-day training procedures, it is generally called voix
mixte, or “mixed voice”, a French term that was adapted from the Italian term la voce difinta. The term
“mixed voice”, however, is inappropriately used to describe the mezzo-falso, because “mixed” implies
that the separateness of the two registers can be blended into one single unit, thereby becoming something
new and separate. In reality, this is not what actually takes place. When the mezzo-falso appears, the
muscular actions of each register never merge into one, new and different single unit. They remain
separate entities, but function together, in close approximation to each other, as a “team”. Their individual
muscular actions lineup “side-by-side” and collaboratively work together in the production of superior
tone, while retaining their inherent individuality as separate, individual entities (p.108).
At the precise point (in the throat),with any selected pitch, where the two registers are brought
together, there comes to exist a neutral point of encounter of the muscular controls of both registers which
has been created by the singer through the perfection of the messa di voce. The messa di voce is an
exercise which starts by establishing a soft tone in with the “detached falsetto” mechanism then
increasing its volume until the full power of the chest voice is added to the starter-tone. This can only be
accomplished when the inherent power and bulk of the chest voice have been reduced to a minimal throat
space, and the strength of the inherently weak falsetto voice has been brought to its maximum potential,
and with each individual chest tone. This creates a physiological point of contact between the muscular
controls of the chest and head registers wherein neither's power dominates the other, or, said another way,
a precise point where the negative and uncooperative aspects of both registers have been neutralized.
This neutral point of encounter is controlled by the singer through understanding how the muscles
of both registers can be “pinched” or “clamped” together in the upper posterior area of the throat and
remain poised in that neutral state (where power is concerned), ready for the singer to instigate the vocal

need of the moment, whether to perform a fortissimo or piano tone. The mezzo-falso mechanism permits
the singer selectivity over the full range of breath dynamics, from soft to loud and back to soft again.
The mezzo-falso mechanism allows the singer to regulate or “incrementally graduate" the volume
of a tone without either register’s muscular controls challenging the muscular controls of the other
register, and without a need for the singer to abandon the muscular controls of either register.
It is only when the both registers’ volume can be suspended at this neutral point of breath
dynamic collaboration that the singer can begin to execute a true pianissimo. A true pianissimo should
display the qualities of both registers, but with the dynamic level of each register reduced to its minimum.
A “faked
results “wooly” tone,
in apianissimo” utilizes the upper
without core substance or "projection".
register exclusively Thischest
(without kindvoice
of “vocal forgery” is in
participation),and
common usage among professional singers today, especially female singers.
The basic tools used for vocal exercises
In order for the singer to properly develop the muscles of the singing instrument, it is necessary
for those muscles to be stressed. This is done by performing a series of exercises, while progressively
increasing the amount of stress applied to them until the desired result is achieved. The process is not
unlike progressive weight training. Note that the mezza di voce is an advanced exercise, and must not to
be utilized in the beginning of training.
The tools that permit the application of this desired breath-intensity stress to the vocal muscles
are:
1. Breath tension (motor force). 2. Variations of breath tension (dynamics).
3. The application of the five vocal vowels.
1. Breath tension, (motor force)
The basic tools that are used to exercise the singing voice consist of a variety of applications of
the breath stream. These various application create the basic motor force necessary to produce all tones.
Breath tension is achieved by inhaling, then compressing varying amounts of air within the lungs, by
withholding the inspired air within the lungs for a certain time, then directing it, in the form of an
intensified stream, against the vocal cords. It is the holding back of the air within the lungs that generates
the breath pressure or motor force for the singing voice, since nature wants the singer to quickly expel the
air from the lungs, in order to continue supplying the blood stream with fresh amounts of oxygen,
necessary to sustain life. So, beginners should always inhale an exaggerated amount of air, and they
shouldn't be concerned if a loud, sucking, inhalation-sound is heard, while doing so.
There are two cycles in the breathing process:
1. Intake: inhalation — 2. Output: exhalation.
The inhalation cycle must be executed very slowly. The muscles involved with inhalation, are
located below the singer’s lowest ribs, all around the waist area, and they are to be activated first. While
the group of muscles above the lower ribs are to be kept as passive as possible. For study purposes, this
should be done before a mirror. This is often referred to as “low breathing”, and it allows the fullest
amount of air to be inspired into the lungs. Even so, the amount of air (breath tension) to be used by the
singer varies, depending on the pitch and phrase, and this will be discussed later, in detail.
At the end of the intake cycle, when the lungs have become completely filled with air, “breath
tension” can be created by withholding the air within the lungs for a few moments, longer than normal.
During those moments of breath suspension, the singer has the opportunity to generate the motor force
energy for the production of the selected pitch to be sung. This breath tension is accomplished by resisting
the body’s natural instinct to expel the breath from the inflated lungs, and instead “withholding it, within
the lungs”, then quickly transferring the “held back breath”, to the "outgoing" cycle, accomplishing what
is called exhalation. During the output cycle of exhalation (which simultaneously activates the vibrations
of the vocal cords), it is critical that the singer to not allow the built-up breath, being restrained within the
lungs, to “gush” out, all at once, but instead to focus the breath, in the form of a narrow, intense stream of
compressed air, and direct it upward through the wind pipe, directly against the vocal cords, then, after
passing through the glottis (the opening between the vocal cords), the singer must direct the energized
breath stream into one of the resonance chambers that line the complete resonance tract,; either into the
mouth-pharynx, or the nasal sinus, or the head cavities.
The vocal cords react to this stream of intensified air (the continuation of which is sustained and
regulated by the diaphragm and various muscles of the breathing apparatus) by elastically yielding to it,
in a series of rapid openings and closings. This causes a slight rise and fall in the pitch of the tone, as the
vocal cords yield to the stream of breath pressure being “firmly” exerted against them. This response of
the vocal cords is known as vibrato, and it is essential to correct singing. The upper registers' muscles,
known as the pharyngeal muscles, reacting in conjunction with and in response to the application of the
breath stream to the vocal cords, which "by nature" inherently tend to pull upward, and the laryngeal
muscles of the lower register, which inherently tend to pull downward, are both simultaneously brought
into play, to help the singer. Acting as a “team” the muscles of both the head and chest registers hold the
entire vocal mechanism taut, while they act as counter-resistants to the energy of the breath stream
rapidly passing though the glottis (the opening between vocal cords). The glottis is the only "door or
entrance/or exit" for the breath force, in to, or out of the lungs.
The vibrato and the co-participation of the upper and lower register muscles cannot be directly
controlled. Correctly utilizing their function is dependent upon a precise application of breath tension to
the muscles of both registers, which can only be evoked, then muscularly set into action, through proper
mental concepts and images.
The singing tone is not produced by allowing the air to gush out of the lungs One of the most
misleading concepts taught to students is for them to "effortlessly float the tone”. This implies that the
singer is free from any work load in producing basic tone. However, the superior tone is never free from a
work load, because it is produced by the energy derived from compressed air, being withheld within the
lungs, which the singer is obliged to skillfully “feed" to his vocal cords. As the singing voice ascends the
range to higher pitches, the amount of pressure against the vocal cords must increase proportionately, and
an equally increased amount of energy is demanded of the singer. Conversely, when the singer descends
the range from a higher pitch level to a lower one, this breath pressure is gradually withheld and reduced
by the singer, but it is never entirely eliminated, for there must always remain some amount of breath
pressure being directed against the vocal cords, otherwise they will stop vibrating. While the breath
stream is being applied to a selected tone, it is necessary for the singer to “hold” or “clamp” the two
registers firmly to each other, so they may serve as a counter-resisting force to the breath pressure of the
breath force.
The least efficient way of breathing, where singing is concerned, is the shallow intercostal
method. Rather than the diaphragm being free to expand downward and outward (in the fashion of a
“circle” that surrounds the waistline), it is incorrectly inverted upward, while the entire chest cavity is
raised. This incorrect method of breathing allows only a partial inhalation of breath and it interferes with
the attainment of a full breath which is so vitally necessary to create the required breath pressure that acts
as the motor force for the production of the presently sung tone. Singers who employ this incorrect
shallow, intercostals method of breathing (women, more frequently than men), tend to gulp for air, in-
between phrases, while incorrectly raising their upper ribs and clavicles. This method produces
undesirable tensions with certain muscles that should remain passive, while singing, and it forbids
thoracic expansion, so that the lungs may inflate, and the freedom of the diaphragm.
Correct breathing depends on coordinating the muscular staying power of inhalation and

exhalation. When breathing is correctly executed there is no deficiency of breath at the end of a phrase
but rather some excess, and this excess breath must be expelled before taking a new breath.
In order for the breathing system to grow progressively stronger and meet the demands of the
singing instrument, the “breathing muscles” must be developed to their fullest potentials. However, these
muscles can not be strengthened in an independent manner—separate from the production of tone. Their
strengthening is conditioned upon and regulated by the strengthening of the muscles of both the upper and
lower registers, while actually exercising the voice, or when singing. As the muscular controls of the two
registers, particularly the upper register, grow in strength, so does the singer’s capacity for correct and
superior breathing.
To produce the wide range of vocal pitches contained in a musical piece, varying amounts of
compressed air are required; a lesser, or moderate amount is required for the low and medium pitches, and
a greater amount for the higher pitches. While a selected vocal tone is being sung, the vocal cords allow
the breath to escape through the glottis in short, “puffy” blasts, thereby dissipating the compressed air
which the singer is holding back, within the lungs To maintain control of the duration of the pitch, the
gradual dissipation of the breath force, leaving the lungs, must be regulated by the muscles of the two
vocal registers, which resist the rapid dissipation of breath tension, by acting together as a counter-
resistance force. Reacting from polarity positions (from throat positions, above and below the vocal
cords), the registers perform in a drawstring manner. As the breath pressure exerted against the vocal
cords tends to move the entire vocal apparatus “forward”, the counter-resistance of the two vocal
registers tends to move it “backward”. Despite the vocal apparatus’ need for maintaining “flexibility of
movement” during the act of singing, these above mentioned forces, acting in unison, maintain the proper
position of the vocal apparatus, relative to the necessary amount of breath force required to produce the
various pitches.
The potential growth of the breathing system is conditional upon how long the singer can
maintain the compressed air within the lungs, while producing a steady, prolonged, superior tone that
accompanied by a pure vowel. The longer the duration of a selected tone or phrase (particularly where the
higher pitches are concerned), the greater the stress which the muscles of the breathing system must
sustain, and therefore the greater is the selected tone’s development, when that stress can be successfully
tolerated. However, the muscles of the breathing system cannot accommodate these increases of stress
unless the muscles of the two registers are capable of producing equal amounts of counter-resistance.
It is imperative that the singer develops a skillful ability to apply varying amounts of breath
tension to the various muscles that line the complete resonance tract. The breath tension that is made
available to the singer, from air retained in the lungs, becomes the motor force for his singing voice. That
force is applied through a variety of breath-tension dynamics. They permit the singer to apply a precisely
measured amount of breath tension to a selected pitch, but only in accordance to the level of development
of the particular muscles that are utilized to produce the selected pitch. The ability to progressively
increase the amount of breath tension can be developed through the utilization of a series of dynamic
applications of breath-force, which vary from minimum to maximum. This system of varying the dynamic
applications of breath force is the only way the singer has to increase and/or decrease the amount of
breath pressure required by a selected pitch. A greater tolerance for progressively increased amounts of
breath tension determines the nature and the pace of a vocal muscular group’s development. The options
for applying these dynamic variation of the breath force, as outlined by the Bel Canto School, are three:
The three methods of applying breath tension

dynamics to the singing instrument (vocal cords)
Figure 1
The messa di voce
The messa di voce: a tone is started pp and gradually increased to aff.
Figure 2
The esclamazio viva
Above, the esclamazio viva: a tone is started with ffintensity, gradually reduced to p intensity,
then returned to its original intensity.
Figure 3
The esclamazio languida
The esclamazio languida: a tone is started with p intensity, gradually increased to fintensity,
reduced again to p , and finally increased to ff intensity.
The messa di voce, the esclamazio viva, and the esclamazio languida were the three most
important "breath force" exercises practiced during the Bel Canto era. For practical reasons, based on the
needs of various voices during critical stages of development, I have created a group of new exercises
based upon these three classic exercises which update their method of application to accommodate
contemporary vocal repertory.
The five vocal vowels
To perform the various vocal exercises that are necessary for developing the singing instrument,
the singer must have a complete understanding of the functions of the five classic Italian vowels—u (oo),
i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah)—in their purest forms.
The Mechanical functions of the five classic Italian singing vowels:

u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah)
With every musical instrument, other than the singing voice, the performer can touch the
instrument directly with the hands in order to exercise or play it. The singer’s instrument, on the other
hand, is inaccessible, and can be evoked and controlled only through the use of mental concepts and
images that relate to the function of the five basic vowels, which serve to set the physical mechanism in
motion.
The vocal repertory involves a marriage of text and musical tones, and within any given syllable
there is a dominating vowel that will correctly activate pure tone. Each vowel’s functions must be clearly
understood so that it may be utilized as a mentally-conceived factor permitting the singer reliable and
accurate control of the singing instrument.
It should be realized from the start that there is a vast difference between the technical
requirements of the singing voice and those of the speaking voice. It is often erroneously suggested that
the two function exactly alike. If this were so, the singer could easily sing any given word clearly and on
any pitch, with the same facility and minimal energy as when speaking. As the singing voice rises in
pitch, there is an unavoidable increase in volume, making it increasingly difficult for the singer to
maintain pure vowels. To some degree, it is accepted that a compromise in vowel purity is inevitable in
which the vowel’s pronunciation is “modified”. Due to the lack of understanding of the vocal
instrument’s structural nature and the critical part vowels play in developing a superior vocal instrument,
vowel modification has become an excuse for "sloppy" and unclear vowels, without presenting specific
information to the singer as to why a selected vowel must be modified. However, here is one explanation:
vowel modification allows for an adjustment the posterior throat position of a selected vowel so that the
breath flow, the "power" generator of all tone, to arrive at the presently sung pitch and fulfill the tone’s
potentials. Accomplishing this is a daunting task since directing the breath flow into individual resonance
chambers, either the mouth-pharynx, sinus and skull cavities, requires, adjustments of the posterior area
of the throat, as well as other adjustments of the movements and positions of the tongue and soft palate.
Skillful modified accomplish all that.
The singer must learn how to bring the five classic Italian vowels to their purest level, while still
allowing for the singing instrument’s physiological limitations for obtaining ideal vowels.
Pure vowels help the beginner establish a primary condition of upper register dominance
throughout his voice’s complete range. With each individual vocal exercise, it is critical that a preferred
vowel be selected. Details of all this will be revealed and clarified later. However, it must be established
that only the muscles of the head voice allow the singer a "lose tongue and lower jaw", mandatory for
evoking pure vowels, whereas, the chest voice's muscles create a "rigid lower jaw and stiff tongue",
which produces "coarse and muddy vowels.”
It is best to start with the u (oo) vowel, as it represents the purest manifestation of the upper
register’s muscular controls and functions and it is fundamental to the Head Voice/Falsetto System of
training. In all examples, the classic, Italian pronunciation of each vowel, as spoken by native Italians, is
to be used.
I. The u (oo) vowel
The u (oo) vowel readily serves to both purify and identify the two registers. The purification
process, when a pure and breathy u (oo) vowel is applied to any injured section of the complete range,
eliminates radical muscular conflicts and "jam-ups". The u (oo) vowel is the “headiest” of all the
vowels—whereas a (ah) is the most “chesty” vowel—and understanding both the u (oo) and a (ah) vowels
permits a clear comparison of the two registers. This is due to the polarity in quality and muscular
function that exists between the two registers, at each extreme of the singer's range. Initially the quality of
the undeveloped tones at the bottom of the singer’s range is “solid” and “resonant” and the muscular
actions there are “thick” and “weighty”, all of which is highly undesirable, while at the top of the singer’s
range the quality of the undeveloped tones is “soft” and “sweet" and the muscular actions feel “thin” and
“light” and sound "fluty" all the factors about the to range gives the beginner much help in overcoming all
the negative potential that the lower register often presents to all singers.
However the precise role which these undeveloped "head tones" play in the vocal structuring
process is often confusing and remote. During the course of this manual, we will try to explain their
muscular functions to the reader. When exercising the voice, the use of the u (oo) vowel permits the
singer to readily distinguish the "purest" sound qualities and muscular actions produced by the upper
register's muscles, from the purest sound qualities and muscular actions produced by the vastly different,
though equally important lower register. In the case of the successfully-trained singing voice, neither
register’s muscular contributions should ever denied, as the two registers are permanently interdependent.
More significantly, they are synergistic; when coupled together, the registers make possible a singing
voice that could not otherwise exist, if only one of the registers is applied exclusively. One of the most
reliable methods of distinguishing the chest register from the head registers is by the following principles:
1. Only the head voice muscles allow the singer to appropriately apply a free, full breath flow to
pitches of his singing voice.
2. On the other hand, the chest voice’s pitches totally denies the singer all uses of the breath flow.
The u (oo) vowel can serve as a continuous guide for placing the other four vowels in their proper
(throat) position, during the extended process of registers blending. Whenever any of the other four
vowels, i (ee), e (eh), o (oh) and a (ah), becomes distorted and disconnected from the u (oo), thereby
causing vocal disruption, it is the u (oo) vowel exercises, exclusively, to which the singer must return, to
first restore vowel purity, then to allow all the remaining four vowels, the i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah),
to be properly reconnected to the u (oo) vowel, in order to reestablish their proper throat-positions.
Simply placing the a purest form of u (oo) vowel before any of the other vowels permits the singer to
attain the best “singing pronunciation”, or “throat positioning" of a selected tone. Especially in the
beginning of vocal training. Later or, other combinations of the vowels serve the singer well, and they
will be discussed later on.
The ideal order of the five classic vowels
An excellent exercise for understanding the correct sequence of vowels (the smooth muscular
adjustment when passing from one vowel to another) is to start a selected tone with an u (oo) vowel, the
most important “tuning” vowel, and on the same pitch and without taking a new breath, change the u (oo)
vowel (without releasing the breath tension), slowly to an i (ee) vowel, then to an e (eh) vowel, then to an
o (oh) vowel, and finally to an a (ah) vowel. This process is most effective in the lower range. This is the
ideal, permanent order of the vowels, and results in the maximum harmony of muscular response which
can be felt, while passing through a complete sequence of the five vowels. If any vowel is removed from
this superior order and placed in another position during the passage from one vowel to the other,
muscular accuracy and harmony are temporarily denied and disruptive muscular movements will result
that cause undesirable sounds.
Understandably, when the singer departs from vocal exercises and sings a musical piece, the
vowels must be necessarily "scrambled" out of their ideal order, and that must be understood and
accepted. Nevertheless, in the beginning of training, while exercising to perfect the vowels, it is essential
to maintain this specific order as a standard of reference for each vowel’s purity. Because the u (oo)

possesses an inherent ability to engage the purest and greatest percentage of upper register muscle action,
the singer can be sure that all vowels subjected to and transformed by the correct u (oo) vowel’s tuning
are in proper register alignment, especially in terms of “weight” (thickness /thinness) evaluations. From
the beginning of training, the u (oo) must be considered to be a "hollow" vowel that devoid of power and
vibrations. More of this later, and how the u (oo) vowel changes, with advanced development.
Should a “breathy” quality appear when using the u (oo) vowel, the singer could easily
misunderstand and believe this to be a faulty action. Rather, it is a temporary manifestation of the
developing u (oo) vowel (and to a lesser degree all other vowels), until increased falsetto strength is
obtained, following a lengthy period of study, which gradually alters the nature of the "breath stream"
relative to the production of the u (oo) vowel. The singer must remember that it is the u (oo) more than
any other vowel that most resists strengthening throughout the vocal range, especially in the Registers’
Break area, and at the lower area of the singer’s range, where the Lower Register’s power originates.
During the earlier, progressive phases of training, the u (oo) vowel often seems to be a most
improbable solution to many problems of correctly structuring the singing instrument, which this manual
presents to the singer. This is so because early applications of the u (oo) vowel appear to “smother” or
“choke off” the voice, rather than make a selected tone "brilliant sounding" and "projecting". In the
beginning of training, "brilliance of tone”, and "projecting volume" must be withheld. This will be
explained in detail later on.
The above, erroneous impressions certain tones are being "smothered", and/or "chocked off" by
the u (oo) vowel, will be changed and totally eradicated with the passing of much time, and with specific
applications the u (oo) vowel. As the training period advances to a near state of professionalism, the u
(oo) vowel will prove to be the most effective tool for maintaining vocal harmony, accessibility, and
superior vocal function. With proper usage, the u (oo) vowel permits the singer to first subjugate the
inherent muscular antagonism between the two registers, then reorder the antagonistic forces of the two
registers into a cooperative “team” effort. Much later, when vocal “graduation” draws near, the u (oo)
vowel serves to polish the voice to a professional level, because it alone can guide the singing voice away
from the accumulated, excessive buildup of “thick and cumbersome tonal power” produced by the
advanced muscular development of the other four other vowels, and away from throat and lower jaw
rigidity. It is a tragic fact that, with most present-day teaching methods, the u (oo) vowel is the least
utilized, most misunderstood, and most wrongly applied of all the five vowels.
II. The i (ee) vowel
The i (ee ) vowel is the second of the five basic vowels that favors the muscular actions of the
upper register. In this respect, it is permanently related to the u (oo) vowel. The beginner must be warned
that the chest register's version of the i (ee) vowel is very hazardous to the singing instrument. This is
because it engages the worse of the chest register's negative factors, especially so when the singer
performs ascending scales with it, because the incorrect i (ee) vowel invariably travels a wrong path
forward along the resonance tract and into the mouth cavity, instead of the proper path, which is
backward and upward direction, behind both the soft and hard palates. The beginner can only use the
detached falsetto version of the i (ee) vowel, accompanied by a strong flow of the breath stream, for quite
some time. When the detached falsetto version of the i (ee) vowel has been established and strengthened,
it will teach the singer the proper use of the i (ee) vowel in the lower register, by way of reflection and
imitation of how the i (ee) has learned to function correctly in the top range.
When there is confusion about how to exercise or sing either the u (oo) or the i (ee) vowel, the
singer should relate the one that is causing confusion to the other. This may be practiced by selecting a
pitch and changing back and forth from a breathy u (oo) vowel to the i (ee) vowel, then back again to the
u (oo) vowel, always on the same pitch, and without taking a new breath. When muscular harmony
between these vowels has been attained, a superior tone quality appears, and the purity of the “singing
pronunciation” or correct “throat positioning” of the selected tone and the vowel has been revealed.
The i (ee) vowel (along with the u (oo) vowel), is one of the invaluable “tuning vowels”, as they
were justifiably called during the Bel Canto era. Because both vowels favor the muscular activities of the
upper register, they act as a powerful counter-force against the negative influences of the lower register.
Both the i (ee) and e (eh) vowel inherently obey a rising motion, towards the very top of the singer’s
range, which is beneficially helpful to the ascending scale. With its inherent rising action, the i (ee) vowel
pulls the tone (or exercise scale), upward, and away from the lower registers, in the manner of a rising
escalator, rather than downward, and it focuses the tone (s) upward, toward the highest tone of the
singer’s vocal range. This automatic “upward pulling and positioning" of the correct detached head voice
i (ee) vowel can be used advantageously to engage only the desired actions and qualities of the lower
register, as the singer ascends the scale. The i (ee) vowel's inherent upward pulling action, counteracts the
lower register's tendency to make the voice “thick” and “weighty”, causing it to break away from proper
register alignment, particularly while ascending the vocal scale. A correctly evoked i (ee) vowel can best
be evoked and understood in the top, head range, because the breath flow operates most effectively up
there, and a strong flow of breath can help the beginner discover an ideal i (ee) vowel, which can then be
applied throughout his entire range, that is (an i (ee) that is modeled on one from the top range), that will
help him avoid attached the damaging i (ee) vowel of the chest voice, which immediately causes a rigid
lower jaw.
While attempting to unite the two registers, the tones of the upper register tend to resist coupling
with the tones of the lower register, especially at the point where the registers meet, between En and Fn
above middle C. This is so because, as the voice rises upward toward the top of range, the negative
thickness of the chestvoice mounts towards the registers' break area and causes a "deal halt' of the
ascending scale there. Applying several breathy, falsetto i (ee) scales which are started above the registers'
break, then carrying them downward in the range, into the registers' break, then below it, to the very
bottom of the lower range area enormously helps the singer removed overcoming the “blockage” of any
rising scale in the registers' break area.
For a tone to be superior it must display beauty of sound, accuracy of pitch, and grant the singer
full control of all breath force intensities. To achieve a correct tone’s basic “tilt” or “angle of focus” on
all ascending scales, the singer must aim the tone upward and backward (definitely not “forward” or
“into the mask”), within the mouth-pharynx cavity, then upward toward the top of the range. A breathy,
detached falsetto i (ee) vowel guides the singer to accomplishment this correctly.
"The mask" is the "triangular area of the face” formed by the eyes, nose and mouth, behind
which are located the mouth-pharynx and just above it, the sinus cavities. Students are incorrectly
instructed to "direct a selected tone into the mask", supported by the false theory that superior tone can be
created directly inside "the mask" itself. However, this is impossible since these cavities cannot generate
tone. They are only capable of amplifying and resonating any particular tone which has first been
generated by the vocal cords, located far below these resonance cavities. The difference between the
incorrect method of directing a selected tone "into the mask", and the correct method of directing the
breath flow which creates basic tone, backward and upward in the throat, behind the soft and hard palates,
then into its proper resonance chamber, is that the latter method guides the singer to discovering the
terminal "hookup points” of all tone (s), generated by the vocal cords vibrations and traveling along the
resonance channel on the breath flow.
These "hookup points” are located at various points along the posterior "walls" of the mouth-
pharynx and head cavities. The way this operates is that the singer starts a tone by energizing the vocal
cords with breath tension, the cords start vibrating, then the singer directs these vibration, traveling on the
energized breath flow, upward and backward toward the posterior part of the throat, behind the soft and
hard palates, toward its particular terminal hookup point pitch, located in either the mouth-pharynx or

head/sinus cavities, depending on the specific pitch being presently sung. Therefore, the production of all
correct tones must be thought of as a dual-phase operation: Phase l, the generation of the tone by the
vocal cords, and, Phase 2, the act of directing both the breath and vocal cords' vibrations backward and
upward toward its corresponding "hookup" point located within either the mouth-pharynx or head/sinus
cavities. Once there, the selected tone (manifested as an energized stream of breath tension), arrives at its
specific terminal point of impingement. These "hookup" points will be discussed in detail later.
Placing an u (oo) or an i (ee) vowel in front of any of the other three vowels, when executing an
ascending scale, starting from the upper middle range, and traveling further upward, creates an infallible
“pointer/tuner” vowel which guides the other vowels correctly upward and backward in the throat along
the correct pathway of the ascending vocal scale. The end result of this achievement is traditionally
termed “correct vocal placement”. However, when the singer initiates an ascending scale at the bottom of
the range, he must first sing an open throated a (ah) vowel, then change it to an open i (ee) vowel, while
slightly moving the point of the tongue forward into the mouth cavity, towards the front lower teeth, and
only then may he start the rising upward scale.
The i (ee) vowel, when being produced with a free flow of the breath stream, and the point of the
tongue being moved into the mouth cavity, then forward towards the lower front teeth, will reveal to the
singer the desired tilt or angle of focus of all tones that originate in the registers’ break area.
Place the u (oo) or i (ee) vowel before one of the remaining three vowels, e (eh), o (oh) and a (ah)
when one is having difficulty in finding the entrance to the resonance pathway from the bottom of the
range, upward toward the mouth-pharynx cavity, or sinus or head resonance cavities.
One constantly potentially hazard when applying the i (ee) vowel in the lower range is that it may
unavoidably "grab hold of " the incorrect chest voice's i (ee) vowel, thicken the tone, and lead the singer
to incorrectly focus the tone “forward” and incorrectly into the mouth cavity. When correctly sung, the i
(ee) vowel should be accompanied by a generous flow of the breath, bypass the mouth cavity, and ascend
a pathway at the upper posterior portion of the throat, passing behind the soft palate, which responds by
moving downward and forward to clear a passageway behind it, leading further upward toward the top of
the range. If the i (ee) vowel is incorrectly placed, it tends to break away from its requisite
interrelationship with the other four vowels, thus debilitating the legato passage from one vowel to
another. This causes register imbalances throughout the entire resonance channel, resulting in disruptive
muscular responses between various sections of the range, rather than allowing for the desired harmony.
The “runaway” i (ee) vowel must constantly be checked by first starting with an open a (ah) vowel, then
passing to the i (ee) vowel, without taking a new breath, which places the i (ee) vowel onto the correct
posterior throat pathway, upward and backward in the throat, and behind the soft palate.
The i (ee) vowel is most effectively used when executing ascending scales to establish the correct
singing pathway for the other vowels, particularly those scales that ascend from the area of Fn above
middle C, and further upward in the range. Establish a bright a (ah) vowel, (or sometimes an AW vowel),
with medium volume, change it slowly to the open-throated i (ee) vowel, maintaining the a (ah) vowel's
open throat position, moving the point of the tone towards the posterior area of the mouth cavity, then
start the ascent of the selected scale. This tuning of the i (ee) vowel thinnens down the tones, when
passing through all areas of the complete vocal range, and helps the singer avoid dragging the thick action
of the lower register upward into the middle range, then further upward in the range beyond the point of
the registers’ break.
The i (ee) vowel is also helpful in discovering the much-desired "Middle Falsetto” or mixed voice
action, which is a mechanism of vocal control derived from the advanced developed detached falsetto
muscles. When performing the messa di voce exercise (an advanced vocal exercise), the singer begins a
tone in the pure upper register (detached falsetto), then gradually increases its volume, adding to the
starter-tone the solid quality of the lower register, thus arriving at a state of complete registers'
coordination or "The Performing Voice". The soft start of the tone, with a generous flow of breath, is
particularly beneficial with the i (ee) vowel, as it favors the desired vocal tilts and upward angle of focus
of all tones. The reader may read more about this process in my 2005 vocal manual, The Art of Singing on
the Breath Flow, see Branden Books’ web site, on the second title page of this book.
III. The e (eh) vowel
The e (eh) vowel is neither a “closed” nor an “open” vowel, as it does not favor the muscular
actions of either the lower register, the singing instrument's initial, open throat position register, nor the
that of the upper register, the singing instruments' initial, closed throat position register, as they are found
at the beginning of vocal training. The e (eh) vowel inherently brings into play fifty percent of each of the
two registers' muscular influences upon all tones of the range, thus making it the “midway” vowel. The
terms "closed" and "open" throat positions refer to the various positions of the posterior area of the throat,
and the positions of lips, when each of the five vowels is pronounced purely, and when the registers are in
their initial stage of structuring. With each of the five vowels, the singer is obliged to adjust the throat,
cheeks and lips positions, according to the particular vowel being presently sung. The various positions of
the throat and the lips range from a fully closed position, while singing the u (oo) and the i (ee) “closed”
vowels, to a fuller opened position of the throat and lips, when singing the o (oh) vowel, and finally, the
fullest open throat position with the a (ah) vowel. The term midway is used to describe the midway
opening that the singer’s throat and lips assume, in order to produce the e (eh) vowel purely.
As a visual aid, the singer may stand before a mirror and sing a comfortable pitch using the u (oo)
vowel, changing it slowly to an i (ee) vowel (on the same pitch and without taking a new breath), taking
notice in the mirror how the lips must be placed in a “closed” position to achieve a proper u (oo) vowel.
After stopping the tone, the singer should take a new breath and repeat the same process, starting with the
u (oo) vowel, then changing it to an i (ee) vowel, but this second time continue on to the “midway" e (eh)
vowel, using the mirror to note his lips’ position, then passing on to the two open vowels, o (oh) and a
(ah), taking note of his lips’ fully opened position. As to the various positions of the posterior area of the
throat, where each individual vowel is concerned, it is not possible for the singer to visualize the
differences between the open and closed positions. Therefore, the throat positions must be mentally
perceived, through physically sensations. All these factors are learned gradually, with the progressive
development of the two registers, since both registers must be made to participate equally in the
pronunciation of each vowel. More of this later.
The above exercise (s) will provide some illustrations of the complete sequence of throat and lips’
positions for all vowels, and demonstrate to the student the midway position of the e (eh) vowel, situated
between the “closed vowels” of u (oo) and i (ee) and the “open vowels” of o (oh) and a (ah). At top of the
range, where the throat's vowel positions are the smallest, the singer's cheeks will tend to rise upward
toward his eyes. This is appropriate. And, the movements and positions of the lips become greatly
reduced.
Similarly, the singer should make mental notes of the varying posterior throat-positions that are
engaged, while singing the five vowels, sequentially. The two “closed” vowels u (oo) and i (ee) produce a
space toward the rear of the throat that feels “closed” and with less depth of tone and “throat space”
available to the singer. When the o (oh) and a (ah) vowels are sung, the singer feels that the space at the
posterior of the throat is ,"open” and with more depth of tone and more "throat-space" available. These
sensations are a direct result of the varying percentages of the two registers’ proportions automatically
and undeniably evoked by each individual vowel’s muscular actions, when purely sung.
Although the e (eh) vowel incorporates equal proportions of the muscular actions of the upper
register and the lower register, it also allows the singer to select, with some facility, a desired percentage
of either of the two registers' qualities and muscular actions. The e (eh) vowel could be compared to the
fulcrum point of the lever. When it seems to the singer that a tone is too “thick” and “weighty”, he may

tilt the e (eh) vowel tone toward the upper register’s influence. This is done by muscularly adding more i
(ee) vowel influence to the tone, while mentally directing the tone backward and upward in the throat.
Conversely, when there is a feeling that the tone is too “thin” and “brittle”, the singer may direct the e
(eh) vowel more toward the muscular influences of the o (oh) vowel.
The e (eh) vowel is often favored by singers with large voices because, more than any of the other
vowels, the e (eh) keeps the voice’s muscular behavior and qualities from too much thinning or
thickening. Meaning that, the e (eh) vowel most readily allows the singer with a large voice a choice of
register proportion, according to the vocal need of the moment.
With the advanced singer who has brought his registers to their fullest development, all correct
lips, cheeks and throat positions are more available than to the singer with underdeveloped registers.
Therefore, such advanced singers are capable of producing purer vowels than singers with
underdeveloped registers. Furthermore, while an advanced singer is singing a particular vowel, the purest
throat, cheeks and lips positions of the four remaining vowels (though not active at the moment), are
readily available, to allow the singer either a slow or rapid change of vowels.
IV. The o (oh) vowel
The o (oh) vowel possesses a dualistic nature in that it can favor, at one moment, (while actually
singing), the muscular actions and qualities of the lower register, when the singer relates or modifies the o
(oh) vowel's throat position toward the a (ah) vowel, and at another time, it favor the muscular actions of
the upper, head register when the singer relates or modifies the o (oh) vowel's throat position toward the u
(oo) vowel. Should there be any confusion regarding the o (oh) vowel's dualistic, but separate, modes of
operation, a better understanding of this dualistic nature of the o (oh) can be understood by first
modifying the o (oh)vowel toward an u (oo) vowel, then return the selected tone back to a pure o (oh)
vowel, then stopping the tone. Then establish another tone with a pure o (oh) vowel and gradually modify
it toward the throat position of the a (ah) vowel, then return it to the pure form of the o (oh) vowel.
The o (oh) vowel should be modified toward the u (oo) vowel, when exercising the singing voice,
then modifying the o (oh) toward the a (ah) vowel when using the performing voice, a physical state
wherein the two vocal registers are fully participating in all tone production.
North Americans tend to consistently permit the pronunciation of the o (oh) vowel to relate to the
a (ah) vowel. However, this is only correct when employing the singing or performing voice. But when
exercising the voice, the o (oh) vowel should relate to the u (oo) vowel. However, when actually singing
pitches that require the use of an o (oh) vowel, with pitches located in the upper middle range from Ef
above middle C and upward, to the highest tone of the singer's Top Range, the o (oh) vowel’s throat-
position should be modified towards the fully open a (ah) vowel.
The o (oh) vowel may also be utilized to “preset” muscular conditions in the throat to achieve a
“rounded” muscularly harmonic a (ah) vowel, which is only possible when there is a smooth and
complete collaboration between the head voice and chest voice's muscular controls. To accomplish this,
establish a selected pitch with a pure o (oh) vowel, then, without taking a new breath, gradually change
the o (oh) vowel's throat-position into a fully open (ah) vowel. This “presetting” technique utilizing the o
(oh) vowel to tune the a (ah) vowel, is essential for understanding the performance version of the a (ah)
vowel because the a (ah) vowel, being the most difficult of the five vowels to perfect, involuntarily pulls
into play the maximum, negative activity of the lower register, and greatly resisting collaboration with the
vitally important mixed falsetto voice, which grants the singer the only safe and correctly produced a (ah)
vowel possible.
By utilizing the o (oh) vowel to guide the a (ah) vowel into its proper throat-position, and upward
and backward into the throat-socket of an o (oh) vowel, which has been first tuned by the u (oo) vowel,
and
the difficult thereby
"supple",a (ah) helping
vowel may be singer avoid
thecorrectly a rigid by
influenced the jaw,
lower o (oh)
which causes
vowel "rough"
and made and unmusical
muscularly "loose"
singing, and is generally the negative condition which an improperly produced a (ah) vowel unavoidably
generates for the singer.
One of the most significant ways in which the o (oh) vowel differs from the a (ah) vowel is that
the undeveloped o (oh) vowel tends to have a “muted” or “hollow” texture, and this is appropriate. The
singer may try to compensate for this "muted" and/or "hollow" texture, by reaching toward the a (ah)
vowel of the lower register, in an attempt to add the core-brilliance to the selected tone which seems to be
missing. This is only advisable when the voice has reached an advanced stage of development. The singer
must patiently allow the o (oh) vowel to retain its “muted, hollow” qualities until the upper register has
been cultivated to an advanced muscular state wherein the mixed voice’s mechanism appears. This
mechanism grants the singer the proper way to add “core brilliance” to the o (oh) vowel, and for that
matter, to all the other vowels. The singer should wait until an almost perfect set of o (oh) vowel tones
and scales have been mastered before proceeding to the more difficult a (ah) vowel.
V. The a (ah) vowel
The a (ah) is the most difficult of all the vowels to master. It is the purest chest register vowel
because it favors the muscular actions of the lower register, more than any of the other four vowels. In
many cases, the a (ah) favors the lower register excessively so that it tends to exclude any of the important
muscular actions and qualities and help of the upper register. Learning to evoke a proper a (ah) vowel, in
the lower range of the voice can be understood by selecting a particular pitch in the bottom range, using
the fully open a (ah) vowel, then, after sustaining it a while and without stopping to take a new breath,
gradually changing the a (ah) throat position to an i (ee) vowel, infusing a generous amount of breath flow
into tone, while moving the tongue slightly upward and forward and into the mouth, then lifting the tone
further upward and backward (achieved by slightly raising the cheek muscles upward toward the eyes),
then gradually returning to tone to the original fully open a (ah) vowel position. Then do the same
exercise again, but this second time, substitute the e (eh) vowel, for the i (ee) vowel.
These two tuning vowels, the i (ee) and the e (eh), are indispensable as aids for preventing the
potentially negative activities of the lower register (bulk and thickness), from destroying the correct
function, beauty, and posterior throat pathway of all ascending scales and phrases.
The a (ah) vowel is the particular one, of all five vowels, that most quickly deceives the novice
into believing that he has achieved strong, superior, “professional” tones. However, they are often
incorrect “chesty” tones that will not let the singer pass through the registers’ break area correctly.
Generally, this is due to the harmful “Chest Voice” method of voice production, a system of training that
so many present-day teachers practice, involving ascending scales, and relating singing tone to the
speaking voice.
In the Fourth Century, the revered Scuola Cantorum (a musical conservatory in Italy, established
by Pope Sylvester, to instruct members of the clergy and the choir on the principles of vocal production
and musical theory concluded, after much time and careful investigation, that a singer should be warned
against forcing the lower portion of the vocal range upward past the point of the registers' break (located
between En and Fn above middle C), without bringing in the requisite amount of falsetto or upper
register activity to aid in the addition of tonal solidity. Essentially, this concept has remained entirely
valid to this day.
When a brilliant “Italianate” a (ah) vowel is correctly produced, the sound, especially with the
voices of advanced singers, can deceive the listener into believing that it has a great deal of lower register
action in it. In fact, the opposite is true; a correct and superior a (ah) vowel has more upper register
domination. If the singer believes that a near-perfect a (ah) vowel has been achieved, it can be tested by

singing a tone with his a (ah) vowel. After noting its quality and muscular actions, the singer should start
a new tone with an u (oo) vowel, slowly changing it to an o (oh) vowel, then passing finally to an a (ah)
vowel. If the original a (ah) vowel matches the high standards of the new a (ah) vowel that was achieved
by passing through the throat-sockets of the u (oo) and o (oh) vowels, then and only then can the singer
say that a near-perfect a (ah) vowel has been achieved.
The five basic vowels in their purest form are capable of considerable (and sometimes
unconscious) modification, so that the muscular activities and vocal textures of one vowel may be merged
with those of the other four vowels. While this adds a rich variety of tonal colors to the singer’s vocal
palette, it must be kept in mind that these modifications are deviations from each vowel’s ideal or pure
form, and as such, they could easily degenerate further from purity. It is therefore imperative that the
purity of each vowel be periodically reviewed. The motor force necessary to energize the singing
instrument is obtained through the proper application of breath tension, which can be regulated from
minimum to maximum, through the use of the messa di voce, the esclamazio viva, and the esclamazio
languida.
Locating the area of the "Registers' Break"
Baritones may locate the exact position of their "Registers' Break" by executing a chromatic,
eight-tone scale, in an ascending direction. Start the scale on Af below middle C, and with medium
volume, ascend the scale to the Af above.
Area of adjustment
a (ah) - - - - - - -
Above is an ascending scale for locating the position of the Register's area. The a (ah) vowel
should be used since it is the most challenging and most revelatory. One or two more scales may be tried
raising the scale a halftone, then lowering it a halftone. The register's break is located between En and
Fn, above middle C.
While proceeding upward with the ascending scale, and before reaching the top A f, the singer
will have to make either a major mechanical adjustment, or fail to complete the scale without forcing.
This adjustment may occur anywhere between middle C and the Fn above. Those singers who can
produce an ascending scale as if all its tones were a single unit, and without making an audible, major
mechanical adjustment, but still keeping a vibrant quality and musical tone, have blended their two
registers, to some degree; both in muscular action and tonal quality. Generally, most beginners possess a
vocal condition of "divided registers" or "antagonistic registers", which forces them to make major
mechanical, and vowel adjustments in order to execute the complete scale with a solid, musical quality. In
most cases, the singer is unable to complete the scale. The singer with completely blended or "muscular
harmonic" registers is capable of executing this ascending scale rather easily and without any changes of
quality, or mechanical adjustments. Read again the paragraph: "The permanent location of the "registers
break".
The well developed baritone voice functions best within a range of fifteen whole notes. This
means that, within that small range his singing voice produces its most consistent and effective qualities.
The baritone, like his colleague the tenor, has a relatively short range when compared to female voices.
Even though many vocal compositions are scored to include a range of two octaves, from Af above
middle C, to the Af—two octaves below—the baritone's most comfortable range of singing is from Fn
above middle C, to the Cn downward in the range, an octave below middle C. Those who can negotiate
the extremes of high, up to Af, and the low, downward to the Af below the Cn below middle C, possess
exceptionally well developed, and completely blended registers, and they use them skillfully. They are the
exception, however.
There have been many stories passed down through the years describing the extreme range of
baritones of the early bel canto era, and their great feats of vocal agility and flexibility. The earlier works
of Rossini, Bellini, and Donizetti, which these baritones sang, abound in high notes, with a great deal of
fioratura singing ("flowery ornamentation"), however, the style of singing upper notes then was much
different than what we hear in our concert halls and opera houses today. Present-day singers are expected
to sing their upper tones with a great amount of "chest resonance" drawn from the lower register, added to
them, which limits their upper extension and vocal flexibility. If our present-day baritones were to sing
their upper tones in a "falsetto manner" as was done by some baritones in the past, their vocal production
would be criticized as being "false" and “unrelated” to the "natural" or traditional "performing voice.”
Since the advent of the verismo school of vocal composition, singers are required to produce
more volume with their voice, in order to cope with the expanded orchestrations of Verdi, Puccini, Bizet,
Gounod, Wagner, and other composers of the verismo school who place the accent of their compositions
upon the truth of "the drama"; quite contrary to the sentiments of the earlier, florid style of Donizetti,
Bellini, and Rossini, and others, such as Pergolesi, and Cimarosa, who placed more importance on the
purity of the voice and its "vocal line". A study of the phonograph recordings of a few recent great
baritones, Stracciari, Basttianini, Granforte, Warren, Tibbett, DeLuca, and Ruffo, reveals that none
displayed any more than an Af top, and at the lower end of their range, their voices seem, in most cases,
to lose vibrancy and volume at Cn , an octave below middle C. This is not to find fault with these artists.
All deserve the title, great. It is merely stated as a technical observations.
Never force the Lower Register upward
Most present-day methods of teaching use vocal exercises which utilize the "raw" a (ah) vowel, a
tone that is not combined with the necessary muscles of the head voice, which improperly forces the
lower register upward toward the registers' break. These exercises generally consist of a series of rote,
meaningless ascending scales which slur over the much required, detailed analysis and structural
application that is necessary in order to create a correct, superior tone, with each individual pitch of the
singer’s complete range. This upward forcing of the lower register is both damaging and highly
unmusical, and does not permit the singer to extend his range any further than the En above middle C.
This method can only end in failure, and when the range will not be extended upward, other rash systems
are tried, such as reducing the volume of all tones, exercising solely with one vowel (usually the i (ee)
vowel), and/or "covering" all the tones, a method of holding back the intensity and brilliance of the tone
which results in a hollow, muffled tonal quality.
None of these methods will extend the range properly upward. After repeated failures have
proven that the lower register cannot be "forced" beyond En above middle C, the solution to the problem
can be found with the falsetto. As stated before, unlike the lower register, the upper register has the
capacity to be extended in two directions, upward and downward. The falsetto's muscular controls must
be brought downward, from the top range, to overlap the entire lower register. Only then will it be

possible to extend the singer's range upward, beyond En above middle C, correctly, with an acceptable
quality, and without forcing.
The most essential element for singing high tones correctly is the deliberate cultivation of the
head tone, or the muscles of the advanced developed falsetto voice, which we refer to as the mixed voice
or the advanced falsetto voice, (please read the section "The Metamorphoses of the two vocal registers",
p. 10). The use of this training method has long since disappeared from the vocal studios of the world.
Perhaps it was first lost and/or deliberately denied when the falsetto, itself, was no longer considered
useful in training the male singing voice. (The reader will find an article at the end of this manual, which I
have recently written, entitled—Is there an “American School” of classical voice training? If so—has it
failed American singers?
Baritones can hear an actual example of the way in which the mixed voice is skillfully employed
in tone production by listening to CD recordings of the baritone Lawrence Tibbett, a past master at
mezza-voce (half-voice) singing, singing the aria, O DuMein Holder Abendstern from Wagner's
Tannhauser, reissued on Camden record # Cal-171. This aria makes a tremendous demand on the singer's
legato style and mixed voice control. If the listener will pay careful attention to how Mr. Tibbett executes
the soft passages of the aria, he will note that Mr. Tibbett relies heavily on the controls of the mixed voice,
which does not exclude the proper participation of the chest voice's muscular controls.
Another fine example found on the same Camden disc (Cal-171) is the aria: Eri tu?, from Verdi's
Ballo In Maschera. Here again, Mr. Tibbett displays his mastery of vocal dynamics control. After the
opening declamatory recitative passages which demand great vocal power, the singer must soften the tone
production and bring into play the action of the mixed voice, otherwise he will fail to carry out Verdi's
interpretive directions, Cantabile Expressivo. The student-listener should pay special attention to how Mr.
Tibbett utilized the mixed voice to execute the high soft passages, at the close of the aria.
Unfortunately, most baritones can quickly accumulate an extensive range of "loudly barked"
tones that are negatively dominated by the chest voice muscles, and which exclude the proper
participation of the muscular controls of the head voice. Therefore, it is hoped that the singer will give
proper attention to the fullest possible development of the falsetto’s muscular controls, and to overlap all
the tones of his chestvoice with them. Baritones, with more than 95% of the tones of their vocal range
located within the borders of the chest voice’s muscular influence, rush to take advantage of these
incorrect, though readily available qualities and muscular actions—“vibrant” power and “fullness of
tone”— of the chest voice. To the average beginner, these deception, incorrectly produced chest tones
seem to be an easy upward extension of their range. However, these incorrect tones and their “blurred,
compromised vowels” are merely extensions of the speaking voice vowels and do not incorporate the
muscular actions of the advanced Falsetto Voice, as do the instrumental vowels, mentioned earlier in this
manual. These incorrectly produced chest voices tones cause a rigid lower jaw which only allows the
singer to produce highly unmusical, unprofessional sounding tones.
Inexperienced, beginner-baritones are well advised to put these seemingly "large". “natural” and
“readily available” tones aside, and cultivate the subtler, small falsetto sounds of their Top Range.
Because these falsetto tones represent less than 5% of the baritone's range (before being developed), they
seem false and unrelated to the remaining 95% of the Baritone’s complete range, therefore, most student
baritones usually pay little attention to this sound advice. However, unless this seemingly unimportant 5%
falsetto pitches, of the their complete range of pitches, is cultivated to it fullest potentials, the singer is
inviting a short-lived period of seemingly rapid vocal development, followed by a short period of second-
rate singing, ending in complete vocal failure.
The great American baritone, Lawrence Tibbett, when interviewed about his theories of vocal
technique, had a great deal to say that supports the importance of the head voice’s development:
“It is sometimes very difficult to convince a student that he is on the right road and that he is
progressing as rapidly as could be expected; and it is usually just as difficult to convince another that he
is all wrong and cannot expect to get anywhere unless he makes a drastic change in his vocal method.
What to do?
“It is impossible to lay any hard and fast rules about the matter, for the simple reason that no two
voices respond to cultivation in quite the same way, or in the same space of time. Some voices develop
with amazing rapidity, while others seem to require an interminable length of time to show any progress.
Most of the singers who are on the wrong road only discover that fact, by the difficulty they begin to have
with the tones at the extremes (top and bottom), of their compass. Tenors and sopranos find their top C’s
and Bfs are not so clear as before. Basses begin to lose their lower tones without any increase in the
number of upper tones. Sometimes they quiet their fears with the thought that their voice is changing; but
that is rarely the case. They find they must sing everything at the same degree of full power; crescendo or
decrescendo becomes first difficult and presently impossible. These things are danger signals of the
utmost importance and must not be ignored if the voice is to be saved.
“There is one way that every student can test his voice, and it is as infallible as it is simple. When
in doubt, repeat the note or phrase just sung, but very softly. With the lightest pianissimo—not just a thin,
pinched tone, but a true pianissimo—sing that note or phrase at the pitch at which you had been singing it,
and then work up and down the scale, throughout the entire compass of the voice. If this is found to be
impossible and it is discovered that there must be an entirely different [muscular] adjustment, going into
half or full voice at certain points, then you may be sure that your tones are being produced incorrectly. A
voice that can sing only in full voice is not being correctly produced; and, unless this tension or muscular
interference is eliminated, it is actually dangerous, as well as useless, to continue practicing. A good tone
never will be obtained by merely strengthening a bad one!
“Another acid test for the voice is the messa di voce. This exercise consists of taking a single
sustained tone, beginning very softly, and then, without any apparent change in the vocal mechanism,
gradually increasing to full voice, and then again diminishing, very gradually, and letting the tone fade out
into a finely spun pianissimo. A singer who cannot do this cannot be said to have control of his voice. Of
course, no one can do it beautifully at first; that is not to be expected. Nevertheless, one should be able to
do it well enough to rest assured that it lies within his possibilities. Careful practice will eventually bring
it to perfection.” 2
Another baritone who equals Mr. Tibbett's skill in mezza voce (half voice) singing is the great
Leonard Warren. In his recording of the aria: "Eri Tu?", from Verdi's Ballo In Maschera, the student will
find another superb example of how to utilize the mixed voice, and he may then compare Mr. Warren's
skill with Mr. Tibbett's.
After the two vocal registers are correctly blended (both registers being muscular harmonic with
each other), each register will still retain a considerable amount of its original quality. For example, as the
voice ascends to the upper part of the range the basic quality of the lower register (and it's muscular
participation in tone), will automatically lessen by following a natural contour pattern, to allow the action
of the middle-falsetto, so predominant in the upper register, to come into play. The basic lower register’s
quality (and muscular participation in tone production), is graduated and lessened with each successive
ascending tone. The same rules applies when descending toward the lower end of the range; the basic
quality (and muscular participation in tone production) of the upper register is lessened by graduation
with each descending tone. When the registers are correctly, muscularly blended this is an automatic
process and does not effect the clarity and resonant action of the tones at either extreme of the range. See
the illustration below.
LessVolume
2 From The Etude, Lower53,
Register quality
458-9, August is active
1935
when ascending the scale
Less Upper Register
quality is active when descending the scale
An abstract illustration of the baritone's vocal range showing how the original quality of each
register is proportionately distributed as the singer ascends or descends the his vocal range
CHAPTER THREE
Breathing
Throughout this manual the words breath intensity will be frequently used to indicate the
loudness or softness of a given vocal tone. The physiological factors necessary for producing these
various vocal dynamics should be related to the various ways the singer uses to apply the "breath" or
motor force to the various muscles of the two registers; to first develop them, then bring them into a
collaborative state of unification, in order to sing properly. However, the part played by the breathing
apparatus has been present to most vocal students in a manner that contributes more confusion than
enlightenment.!
Almost any layman can quote such typical, vague training phrases as, "sing from the
diaphragm", and "support the voice from below", or the most confusing, "produce the tone with the
diaphragm". All contain a certain relevance, however one would assume from them that the singing voice
is not produced by the vocal organs themselves, but by the breathing apparatus, exclusively. In the
beginning, the limited development of the muscles of the vocal registers will not allow the student to use
the complete range of dynamics of his breath power. An example of the interdependency between correct
breathing and the present state of the muscles of the registers can be understood when certain professional
singers, after a period of successful professional singing, show obvious breathing difficulty in sustaining
long vocal phrases. Surely they have not forgotten how to breathe? Logically then, the problem must be
attributed to other factors. Frequently, the cause is some irregular dysfunction of the muscles of the vocal
registers, which does not allow them to “connect to” and utilize their breathing technique correctly.
A comparison of breathing needs
A helpful way to help a student understand the proper use of his breathing technique is to clarity
the difference between ordinary breathing needs, and those necessary for singing. Besides the necessary
physiological function for sustaining life, the breath supplies the motor power for speech, and in our case,
for singing. With a voice, free from impediments, as a result of proper structuring, breathing functions in
a semiautomatic manner, and rather unconsciously. Consciousness of any need to control the breath
usually starts with the first attempt to sing. Some students grasp the correct technique instinctively, while
others fail to respond correctly without much help. Normal speech patters do not require the power and
sustaining factors of "breath" necessary for singing. Since ordinary conversation is held at a close range,
individuals involved in a conversation with each other may pause at will, if shortness of breath is
experienced. When singing, however, it is necessary to “control” and “project” the volume level of the
singing voice, and conform to certain precise rhythmic patterns. If the physiological aspects of breathing
for singing remain obscure, the student is in danger of becoming too mechanical and confused. The
technical data give here is presented with hesitation and solely for those who consider detailed analysis
absolutely necessary; however, there has also been an attempt made to include simple, practical
explanations.
The diaphragm helps to create a motor force
Because the singing voice is a sound-producing instrument it must have a motor force for its
operation. The production of vocal sound requires a steady stream of expired air. Breathing is generally
thought of as a simple process of allowing the lungs to draw in air, and then using that air to generate
tone. But the lungs are not the motor agent in the process. Due to their quality of elasticity, they may be
drawn outward, with expansion of the thoracic cage, therefore acting as a passive force in expelling air.
The diaphragm is the motive force for controlling the exhalation of the breath and its action should be

considered dominant. Certain accessory forces, such as the expansion of the costal cage in a lateral
direction also plays an effective part in meeting the shifting demands of vocal intensity. This is especially
true when a quick "catch breath" is necessary. This system of using the diaphragm, and expanding the
costal cage and lower floating ribs, is generally referred to as low breathing. It is the only correct method
of meeting all motor requirements of breath force, necessary for singing. Since the discussion of breathing
is that of respiration, it may be discussed in two basic steps: one—inhalation, which is the intake of air,
and two— exhalation, which completes the cycle of expelling the breath.
Inhalation
Under singing circumstances, the double-domed diaphragm descends. This allows the thoracic
space to enlarge in a vertical direction. The reduced pressure created in the thoracic cavity causes an
inrush of air, into the lungs, in order to equalize the pressure. The air distends the lungs, filling the thorax
completely, and the process of inhalation has been accomplished.
To obtain the fullest, most relaxed inhalation that the lungs are capable of, try the following
experiment. While lying down (without a pillow) open the mouth in a yawning position and inhale deeply
and slowly. Try to avoid moving the chest unnecessarily. Place your clasped hands over your diaphragm
and observe the natural rising and falling action which occurs, with the respiratory cycle. Now, in a
standing position, normal for singing, to repeat, as close a possible, the experience observed when you
were in the reclining position, while trying to achieve the maximum inhalation of air possible, while
observing the vertical descent of the diaphragm, as the air is slowly drawn into the lungs.
The inhalation supplies the lungs with air which, when 'held back, or “retained” within the lungs
builds up breath pressure. This built-up breath pressure must not be lost or dissipated since it is critical in
producing a vibratory action of the vocal cords, which occurs simultaneously with the outgoing cycle of
exhalation, which must be sufficient to travel the full length of the entire resonance channel. The
exhalation cycle must occur slowly, and the built up pressure within the lungs must be maintained, up to
the last moment, while producing a given tone, until all the air is the lungs has “run out”.
The inhalation should also be accomplished smoothly and without exaggeration. The diaphragm
should never be quickly forced downward, but should act out of a natural response to the slow process of
drawing a large amount of air into the lungs. Inhalation also represents the rest period in the respiration
cycle since there is no need to maintain pressure in the lungs, as with the exhalation cycle, when the built-
up breath pressure within the lung must act as the motor force for generating tone. At the onset of the
exhalation cycle begins, and the rest period ends and the "work phase" begins.
Exhalation
The act of exhalation, under normal conditions, is automatic and unconscious. When singing, the
exhalation must be regulated so that simultaneously it produces a vibratory action of the vocal cords,
which is known as vibrato. This vibrato is correct and it is indigenous to singing. The vibrato must not be
confused with a tremolo or a wobble, both of which are incorrect and undesirable, however these negative
terms are frequently inappropriately used to describe the correct vibrato action of the vocal cords. The
vibratory action of the vocal cords occurs when the breath pressure built up in the lungs, by the inhalation
and the retention of the air within the lungs, when the detained air is transferred to the exhalation cycle.
and the singer is obliged to direct the energized breath stream, upward from the lungs, and directly at the
vocal cords, and at the glottis, the opening between the vocal cords. The vocal cords response to the
breath pressure being applied to them and they adjust themselves, so that their edges are parallel to one
another. The built up, and applied breath pressure blows the vocal cords open and closed in a rapid,
repetitive movement resulting in a vibratory motion known as vibrato. During this process the vocal cords
do not remain in a rigidly-fixed position, but yield to the intensified stream of breath being exerted against
them. Nor, does the air departing from the lungs gush out all at once, but is released in a series of "quick,
short puffs", automatically completing the cycle of exhalation, and simultaneously producing a vibratory
action. This action is frequently, though erroneously, called "resonance". The frequency at which the
vocal cords vibrate established the desired pitches. This, added to tone amplification, through adjusting
the muscles of the "head voice" and muscles into any of the five vowels, u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), or a
(ah), plus the singer directing the breath flow into one of the resonance cavities, the mouth-pharynx, the
sinus cavities, or head cavities, results in a singing tone.
Try the following experiment. Take a toy balloon and fill it with air. Then, with the thumbs and
forefingers of both hands, pull the balloon's opening taut in a purse-string fashion. Now, manipulate the
balloon's taut opening so as to allow the air contained within the balloon to gradually escape, while
simultaneously producing a hissing or whistling sound. This illustrates how the escaping air which
produces the whistling sound with the balloon, operates similarly to, the procedure which occurs with the
vocal cords, as the breath pressure is applied to them, passes through them in quick, short puffs, and
produces a vibratory action.
"Breath Control"
While singing, the exhalation cycle which creates the vibrato action of the vocal cords must be
controlled in order to maintain precise musical timing. This is done indirectly with the aid of the breath
stream and the diaphragm. Once more assuming the prone position for an experiment, clasp your hands
together and place them over your diaphragm, then slowly inhale as much air as you can, with your mouth
open in a yawning position. Now, as you exhale the breath, resist the tendency of the diaphragm's muscles
to collapse, as the air leaves your lungs.
During the process of tone production this same outward diaphragmatic resistance ("outward
extension"), creates a balance of tension between the established breath pressure being withheld within
the lungs, and the outgoing stream of air pressure being directed against the vocal cords’ glottis opening
through which it escapes in short, repetitive blasts, creating vibratory motion vibrato. Once the vibrato
action has started it then becomes a reflex action and is beyond further voluntary control. The indirectness
of control must be emphasized.
During various training phases, the correct amount of breath pressure for basic tone production
varies with the progressive development of the muscles of the particular vocal register presently being
exercised (chest or head register), and the precise pitch being exercised. Each of these individual factors
requires different amounts of breath pressure, to produce the same note, in accordance to the vocal
category of the singer presently performing the selected exercise. For example, a "light, lyric voice" may
produce a high tone with a lesser effort, while a "heavy, dramatic voice” may require twice the amount of
breath pressure energy, to produce the same note.
The critical moment of transferring the breath tension
At the end of an inhalation cycle, and just before starting a selected tone, there exists a moment of
"breath suspension" when the singer must transfer the breath tension that has built up in the lungs to the
“out-going breath cycle before discomfort occurs and the singer is obliged to lose the breath tension
completely. Since the processes which govern the inhalation and the exhalation cycles cannot function
simultaneously, the critical moment of transferring the breath tension from the incoming-cycle to the
outgoing cycle occurs just at the end of the inhalation cycle, when the singer urgently feels discomfort
and the need for oxygen. At the moment of transferring the breath from the incoming cycle to the
outgoing cycle, the vocal tone begins to operate, and the breath pressure, within the lungs, simultaneously

begins to dissipate. The important thing is to catch the exact moment of transfer, before the breath tension
becomes dissipated and lost. Faulty timing of this maneuver affects the smoothness of exhalation, the
purity of the tone, and it weakens the control factor. After a certain amount facility is gained, the process
becomes automatic and easy. A quick, outward protrusion occurs in the abdominal area, and it is
graphically felt with each new intake of breath. In the beginning, all techniques may be consciously
studied to perfect them, but they must eventually become spontaneous and rather "unconscious" while
performing.
The forthcoming falsetto exercises do not require as much breath pressure as later on, when one is
in the process of developing the mixed voice and full voice (to be explained in detail later). This means
that in the beginning, the diaphragm, with its motor force capacity, is not fully utilized until the
development of the registers slowly advances; then the demands are gradually increased. The shoulders
and chest should remain relaxed and passive when breathing. All breathing activity must be confined to
the abdominal area downward. The lowest ribs will act as the diving line, above which, there must be
little or no movement. When adding intensity to any given falsetto tone, which does not demand the full
application of breath pressure," low breathing" must be constantly sought after until the correct habit of
"supporting" has become ingrained.
Should one breathe through the mouth or nose, while singing?
While singing one should breathe through the mouth. The reason that one must breathe through
the mouth is primarily to quickly and fully refill the lungs. An equally important reason is that by
breathing exclusively through the mouth, and avoiding nasal inhalation completely, the adjustments of
selected vowel and pitch, can then be quickly accomplished, in the upper posterior area of the mouth-
pharynx cavity, then the singer can quickly initiate the tone, by directing the energized breath stream
correctly and precisely to the selected pitch. On the other hand, if one breathes through the nose,
exclusively, these posterior adjustment of the vowel, tongue and the soft palate, will be immediately and
unavoidably denied, and the singer's efforts to sing a correct tone will be undeniably and improperly
rerouted toward the mouth, lips, and lower jar, and the muscles of the speaking voice, which will all
completely deny the singer his intentions of producing any kind of singing tone, much less a superior one.
The most undesirable method of breathing
The faultiest way of breathing, and one which forbids correct tone production is the shallow
intercostal method. When that be the case, instead of the diaphragm being expanded downward and
outward, all around the waistline, it is incorrectly inverted upward, while the entire chest cavity and
shoulders are raised instead. This method allows for only a partial-filling of the lungs and it interferes
completely with the correct function of the vocal apparatus. The singer, gulping for air, raises his upper
ribs, clavicle and shoulders which produces tensions that forbid correct thoracic expansion and the proper
lowering and outward extension of the diaphragm. Superior breathing depends on coordinating the
muscular staying power of exhalation. When breathing is correctly executed there is never a deficiency of
breath but rather some to spare, left in the lungs. It is important that before a new breath is taken any air
left in the lungs must first be expelled.
Breathing exercises
Students of singing who have difficulty in sustaining long vocal phrases are often instructed to
practice breathing exercises while not actually singing. This is a futile practice since no breathing exercise
can be of true benefit unless the entire vocal instrument is actively engaged in the production of tone.
There is a popular misconception that by filling the lungs to their fullest capacity with air, then slowly
blowing the breath outward the singer will achieve greater breath capacity and sustaining power, while
singing. However, it is not by expelling the air built up within lungs and "blowing it out" that one
achieves a superior breathing technique. The breath is not being "blown out" of the lungs during tone
production; instead, it is instead being rigidly detained within the lungs, and judiciously released and
directed by the singer toward the glottis, through which it passes in short, puffy blasts, in order to produce
and prolong the pitch being presently sung pitch, up until all of the breath within the lungs has been
completely dissipated.
To improve the breathing technique the singer must strengthen the muscles of the vocal registers
so that they can tolerate progressively increased amounts of breath tension. The more the both registers,
acting together in a synergistic manner, accept these increased amounts of breath pressure, the stronger
the singer's breathing system grows and becomes more efficient. The difficulty of increasing the muscular
strength of the upper register is more easily understood by the deficiency of breath energy, while singing
high tones, or conversely, and positively, the proficiency of signing and sustained the high tones, with
pure vowels.
The most beneficial way to gain diaphragmatic strength and increase the lungs' capacity, is by
singing songs (and operatic arias) whose rhythm is slow and sustained. While singing such "slow vocal
pieces", the singer must pay strict attention to the evenness of his intonation and the purity of his vowels,
which can only be controlled by a proper application of the breath stream to the selected pitch and vowel.
Bodily exercises (aerobics), are a great help in developing the singer's breath capacity because
they help him maintain proper blood circulation and increase the singer’s energy. Proper diet plus
sufficient sleep is also of paramount importance. Remember, the breathing technique must always appear
natural. It must not detract from the singer's appearance, or the dramatic meaning of the music being
presently performed.

CHAPTER FOUR
The “Voice Building” Process
A series of descending scales, practiced with tones of the upper register
It is important to clarify why the first exercise scales must be executed in a descending direction,
exclusively. The descending scale pattern makes possible the purification of the upper register, so that all
its tones become muscularly harmonious with one another, and totally free from all negative
interrelationships with the lower register. The upper register can then be said to be “detached” from the
solid, vibrant action, and power of the lower register. In this state of “detachment”, these descending
upper register, detached falsetto scales can be made to descend the range and encompass all the tones of
complete chest register. While descending from the very top of the range with these forthcoming scales,
the singer will arrive at the registers’ break (situated between En and Fn above Middle C, see page 11).
At that point, the singer must continue past the registers’ break without changing from the upper register’s
muscular control, over to the lower register’s muscular control. Instead, the upper, detached falsetto
register’s muscular control must be maintained and “stretched” downward over the passaggio tones in an
overlapping manner.
At the approach to the passaggio tones, the singer with antagonistic vocal registers generally
experiences a tendency of the voice to “break away” from the muscles of the upper register’s control and
fall downward, into the lower register. This breaking away is due to the fact that, at the point of the
registers’ break the lower register’s muscular controls are strongest, while the upper register’s muscular
controls are weakest there. The singer must not surrender to this “breaking apart” of the registers. By
being insistent, while passing over the registers’ break, upon maintaining the muscular controls of the
upper register (even if the sound of the tones is less than ideal, and the muscular sensations seemingly
“unnatural” and “cramped”), the first major step towards “register blending” is being taken. The best
way to avoid losing control of the lower register muscles, at the point of the registers’ break, is to reduce
the volume of the scale and to use the u (oo) and/or the i (ee) vowels.
Unlike the lower register, which is inherently rigid and inflexible, the upper register is highly
flexible. It possesses a phenomenal capacity to be “stretched” downward, and made to cover all the lower
register’s tones. Then the singer may start the long process of transforming all of the chest tones’
muscular responses and tonal qualities. This takes a long time to properly accomplish.
The muscular controls of the upper register can also be extended upward to the highest attainable
pitch which musical standards permit. On the other hand, the lower register is inherently restricted and
can only be made to ascend the range to En above middle C, where it reaches a blockage point. Beyond
that point, without restructuring the entire passaggio are, “power” and “resonance” can only be
extended further upward by force, but with detrimental consequences for the vocal instrument.
All ascending scales undeniably urge the singer to join the action of the lower register to the
upper register, albeit not ideally. This is so because, with each rising pitch of the scale, the vocal
instrument demands a proportionate amount of breath tension, and the upper register, acting alone, cannot
sustain these incremental increases of breath tension. Therefore, the lower register is automatically pulled
into action, and the two registers then operate together to achieve the ascending scale. It is for this reason
that, during the first phase of training, we use the descending direction exclusively, to reduce the lower
register's activity to a minimum. This principle is the opposite of what is presently been taught to
students, when they attempt to execute their ascending scales.
EXERCISE NO. 1
The single, sustained falsetto tone
The first vocal exercise is the single sustained tone, perfomred with an upper register, detached
falsetto pitch. The best place for baritones to perform the exercise is with an Af or An above middle C,
but certainly, a pitch which is devoid of weight and bulk, and is not a “performing tone.”
1.
u (oo) - - - - - - - -
i (ee) - - - - - - - -
2.
u (oo) - - - - - - - -
i(ee) - - - - - - - -
3.
u (oo) - - - - - - - -
i(ee) - - - - - - - -
These three sets of single tone, detached falsetto exercises are first to be sung with the u (oo) and
i (ee) vowels, then later with e (eh), o (oh), and finally with an a (ah) vowel. These tones must be sung
exclusively in the descending direction. The singer may also perform the above exercises and those on
page 46, over an extended period of two, or three hours per day, provided that he intermittently takes
quarter or half hour rest-breaks.
The goal for these first exercises is to start the long process of “stretching” the muscular controls
of the upper register downward in the range. And, to make as many muscular discoveries as possible,
from the physical sensations experienced, as the singer passes from the upper register and descends
downward into the registers’ break, then further downward in the range, below it. It is critical for success

that the singer maintain the upper register’s muscular controls as far downward into the lower range as is
possible.
At first, the vowels u (oo) and i (ee) must be used exclusively, because they favor the muscular
controls of the upper register. These “tuning and purification” vowels eliminate muscular conflicts
between individual pitches. The beginner is expected to produce the vowel as purely as possible,
remembering to diminish the volume of the tone (s) at the approach to the registers’ break. The singer
may observe that, as he enters into the registers’ break area, these falsetto tones seems to “shrink” in
volume and “throat-space”, and to a greater degree, once he passes below the break area and descends
into the lower chest register. These “shrinking” or “closing” sensations are natural responses, prior to
advanced vocal structuring changes these tones “throat-shapes” and “ vowel formations”. These
compromises to the vowels and throat-spaces also reveal to the singer the muscular contours of the two
registers, at the point of the registers’ break. Later we will discuss how to alter all these muscular contours
within the register’s break area, to conform to a different, superior structure that enables the singer to
“enter into, and “sing through” the registers’ break area with superior tone quality, control of all breath
dynamics, and vowel purity.
These descending scales also serve to reduce the “weight” and “bulk” of the lower register, by
holding back the volume of all its tones, allowing the “falsetto” quality, which is breath-force oriented,
and to gradually dominate them.
Because of the variety of original conditions in which singing voices are generally found, the
singer should experiment with all the vowels, when performing these first exercises. By referring back to
the section of this manual entitled “The Mechanical Function of the Five Singing Vowels” (p. 23), and
observing how each vowel reacts to these descending scales, the singer becomes familiar with the
muscular sensations and tonal attributes of the tones of this critical area, at his present state of
development. In this way, he will be able to compare how these factors change, when each new structural
principle is applied.
At the beginning of training, many individuals erroneously believe that a singer’s vocal category
is based solely upon his voice’s initial “color” and/or “timbre”, plus the initial size of the singing voice.
However, the true basis upon which a singing voice may be correctly categorized is by the inherent size
and strength of the muscles of both vocal registers. Baritones inherently possess larger-sized, stronger
lower register muscles, compared to the inherent size and muscular strength of their upper register’s
muscles. While tenor voices possess inherently larger, stronger upper register muscles, than their lower
register muscles.
While structuring the baritone voice, it is beneficial to understand that the lower register, during
its initial phase of training, contains a greater number of “unusable” singing tones than does its upper
register. Because of this “imbalance”, it is logical to give the fewer “head voice tones” preferential
developmental treatment, so that they may reveal how the head voice’s progressive muscular
development influences the developing lower register. This preferential treatment of the upper register is
the only reliable way for a singer to understand his true vocal category, because categorizing a voice is
not a “straightforward task”, when the upper register’s tones have been neglected. It is only after the
upper register’s tones have been given developmental priority that the singing voice reveals its correct
“weight”, and “tonal color”, and its permanently, “usable” number of lower register tones. This
approach simultaneously reveals the condition of such critical factors as evenness of the vocal line, purity
of vowels, beauty of tone, and control of all the breath-force dynamics.
With all the above in mind, it can be understood that most of the structural problems which
beginning baritones encounter can be solved by first correctly structuring the upper middle and top
ranges; specifically, the passaggio tones from Middle C to the En above it, and all tones from Fn above
middle C—upward.
The first structural exercises deal with “falsetto” tones which possess no vibrato action. The
vibrato action is produced by the vocal cords, and the singer will be dealing with tones that do not
possess any strong, “resonant”, or “projecting” characteristics that are generally associated with a fully
developed, professional voice. During the early period of training, suspension of many judgments, about
important vocal functions yet to be resolved, is one of the most important factors necessary for a singer to
eventually attain a superior singing instrument. It is also a test of the singer’s patience and his logic.
The determinants for correct and final vocal categorization of an individual's voice are based
upon the “weight” of the individual's voice, and the number of notes that can be drawn from the lower
register’s “power system” and then added to the singer's permanent low range, while still maintaining
muscular evenness of the complete vocal range, pure vowels, beauty of tone, and control of all the breath-
force dynamics. And most importantly, control of all the two most important tones of the registers' break,
En and Fn above middle C.
Selecting an appropriate vowel for a given exercise
Each of the five vowels automatically and undeniably increases or decreases the lower register’s
percentage of muscular influence upon a tone. This can be muscularly experienced if one selects a
comfortable pitch, then with it, performs the permanent sequence of vowels, without stopping to take a
new breath. This exercise starts with the u (oo) vowel then passes on to the i (ee) vowel, then to the e (eh)
vowel, then to the o (oh) vowel, and finally arrives at the a (ah) vowel. During this sequence of vowel
changes, there occurs an incremental increase of lower register muscular participation, with each new
vowel.
This rule applies to all the vocal states in which the vocal instrument may be found, whether it be
one of upper register dominance, lower register dominance, or one of harmoniously-structured vocal
registers. Once the singer leaves the first vowel u (oo) vowel and changes to the i (ee) vowel, there occurs
an automatic and undeniable increase of lower register muscular participation, with the selected pitch. A
further increase occurs with the e (eh) vowel, and still more with the o (oh) vowel, until the a (ah) vowel
is reached, where upon the maximum participation of the lower register occurs.
For theoretical purposes, let’s assign each vowel (after departing from the u (oo) vowel, the
purest, and most “detached” of the five vowels), a 25% value, so that the total of these four vowels makes
up 100% of the lower register’s activity.
The u (oo) vowel = 0% of lower register muscular participation.
The i (ee) vowel = 25% of lower register muscular participation.
The e (eh) vowel = 50% of lower register muscular participation.
The o (oh) vowel = 75% of lower register muscular participation.
The a (ah) vowel = l00% of lower register muscular participation.
The above reference chart is more theoretical than actual, since no single part of the singing
instrument can ever be totally “detached” from any or all other parts. Although these percentages may
not be precise, undeniably, there does occur a considerable increase of lower register muscular
participation with each vowel change, and also, a change of the selected pitch’s "throat space", which is
created by the particular vowel that is presently being sung.

The reverse is true when singing a tone that is started with the a (ah) vowel, when the fullest
connection of the lower register to the upper register is already operative, and the work load, necessary to
produce the tone, is at its highest level. When the singer changes the a (ah) vowel to an o (oh) vowel, then
to an e (eh) vowel, then to an i (ee) vowel, arriving finally at the u (oo) vowel, and he may note how each
individual vowels has altered his "throat spaces", and graphically understand the incremental decreases of
the lower register’s muscular participation, with each lower pitch being sung.
The beginning singer should not become anxious if all the above this seems complex and overly
mechanical. With repeated references to, and subsequent applications of these important rules, regarding
the vowels and how they activate varying percentages of the upper or lower register participation, these
concepts will become easier to understand.
EXERCISE NO. 2
Descending falsetto scales that include vocal movement
After a certain period of experimentation with the first exercise, The Single Sustained Tones, the
singer should perform some exercises that include vocal movement. This leads to the second basic
exercise: Descending Detached Falsetto Scales that include vocal movement.
The purpose of the new exercises is twofold: 1) to gain experience with the use of the upper
register’s muscular controls, while incorporating vocal movement; and 2) to overlap the muscular controls
of the detached falsetto downward over all the tones of the lower register, while denying the lower
register’s vibrato action, or “core brilliance.”
After a while, carrying out these instructions may cause the singer a great deal of confusion and
insecurity. This urges many frustrated singers to permanently stop the use of these detached falsetto
exercises, because they temporarily deny the singer the resonant elements of the lower register ,which are
more readily identifiable (even if incorrect), than are the vague nature of the transitory, developing
detached falsetto tones. This also clarifies why many singers feel insecure, when using the falsetto voice.
When they singer is denied the solidity and vibrancy of the lower register, he feels discouraged and
vocally dysfunctional. However, this “vagueness” is only temporary but necessary, in order to allow the
lower register to be transformation from its initial “thickness”, and “weight” and “dominance” of the
entire range, to a new state of subordination, wherein it abandons it antagonism toward the upper register
and fully cooperates with it, with all tone production.
The singer must trust that, with the passing of time, and the advanced development of the
detached falsetto voice, superior and tangible vocal controls will present themselves. For a long period of
time, the detached falsetto exercises may create an impression, for the singer, that his voice is being
muffled, or described more traditionally, “covered.” With the continued use of the detached falsetto, this
greatly misunderstood “covered” quality spreads throughout the singer’s vocal range, but it becomes
especially apparent with the tones located just above the registers’ break, Fn, Fs, Gn and Gs,
above middle C.
This "veiled quality", which is only temporary, is perceived more by the singer than by his
listeners. It must not be sacrificed in order to prematurely apply the core brilliance and projecting volume
of the lower register to any of these developing, detached-falsetto controlled tones. This would be a great
mistake, one that is made repeatedly, in almost every vocal studio throughout the world. With great
patience, and repeated applications of the messa di voce, the esclamazio viva, and the esclamazio
languida exercises, these frustrating, confusing falsetto tones will reach a more advanced state of
development. Then all the missing core brilliance and desired projecting power will emerge, but in a new,
correct, and permanent form. The advanced developed falsetto tones will then grant the singer full control
of all breath-force dynamics, pure vowels, and a superior, professional tonal quality throughout his
complete range.
The singer must be open-minded during the long process of the transition through this “closed”
or "covered" phase of vocal training. He must understand that his earlier, readily available seemingly
correct chest register tones were incorrect and misleading. And that, if they had been maintained, they
would have denied the singer the attainment of a permanent and superior vocal instrument.
The singer who has first submitted his voice to the readily available, but damaging, “raw” chest
voice volume, but discovers that it was wrong and submits his developing voice to the muscular controls
of the advancing detached falsetto, will eventually learn the falsetto’s high value and ultimate worth.
Developing the falsetto muscles to their maximum potential is the only reliable way to eliminate the
permanent antagonism that exists between the two registers, and to transform the registers into a state of
cooperative harmony with each other.
Where proper vocal structuring procedures are concerned, a little knowledge of the falsetto voice
is not only dangerous, but baffling and destructive. One must possess total knowledge, regarding the
various phases of development through which the falsetto voice passes through. Most misconceptions,
and consequent rejections of the use of the falsetto voice in vocal training programs, are due to partial
knowledge of the falsetto’s complex role in the scheme of voice training procedures, plus the fact that the
falsetto can appear to be harmful when misused. To gain its full benefits in a vocal training program, the
singer (and teacher), must have complete understanding of the falsetto and all its uses.
More descending falsetto, upper register tones,

but these include vocal movement
l.
u (oo) - - - - - - - -
i(ee) - - - - - - - -
2.
u (oo) - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
i(ee) - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
3.
u (oo) - - - - - - - -
i (ee) - - - - - - - -

The main objective of these exercises is for the singer to become familiar with the throat
sensations experienced when approaching the registers’ break, passing downward, through it, then
descending further downward in the range, to encompass all the tones of the lower chest register, with the
detached falsetto's muscular controls. These exercises should always be performed in a descending
direction to give the singer an advantage over the chest register’s strongly negative influence, and to keep
each tone of the descending scale from “breaking” and/or “departing” from the muscular controls of the
detached falsetto.
As the singer approaches the first tone of the lower register En above middle C, the focus of the
breath stream (against the vocal cords), demands to be transferred away from the muscular controls of the
detached falsetto and over to the muscular controls of the chest register. The tone suddenly and
uncontrollably shifts away from the softer muscular controls of the detached falsetto with a “breaking”
action, and indicates that it will “fall” downward to a lower pitch. The tone “in peril” may involuntarily
reassign itself to the muscular controls of the lower register, possibly to some new pitch, near the pitch
which it broke away from, or, to a much lower pitch, well below the registers’ break. Of course, this is not
desirable and the singer must try to avoid this happening. If necessary, a new descending scale must be
started.
The singer must circumvent this undesirable “breaking apart” of the two registers, by not
allowing the focus of the breath stream to shift away from the muscular controls of the detached falsetto.
Initially, the muscular controls of the lower register tend to dominate all the tones of the registers’ break.
But, by continuously overlapping all these “break tones” —middle C, Cs, Dn,Ef and En—with the
descending, detached falsetto scales’ muscular controls, all of these “registers’ break tones” will
gradually be released from the muscular controls of the lower register, and reassigned to the muscular
controls of the upper register. Eventually, the remaining tones of the lower register, lying below the
registers’ break, will also be reassigned, one by one, to the controls of the upper register. After this has
been accomplished, the original raw and unwieldy power of the chest register will have been repressed
and all the chest tones will temporarily take on a rather “muffled” or “covered” sound, for quite some
time. This quality is appropriate to them, until the muscular control of the developing detached falsetto
advances further and “invites” the core brilliance of the lower register to once again attached itself to
these "covered tones” and enable the core brilliance to shine through them. However, this core brilliance
factor must forever “mix” with, and remain dominated by the muscular controls of the advanced
developed falsetto voice, which at that stage of development, they are called the mixed voice.
In this restructured state, the once bulky and difficult to manage lower register’s muscular
responses, and its new, superior qualities, become harmonious with the advanced, developed muscular
controls of the upper register, and in a “team effort”, they readily respond to the production of all superior
tone.
Legato: The meaning of the term, where the singing instrument is concerned
With the introduction of movement into the vocal exercises, the term legato must be explained.
Traditionally, legato is considered to be a method of closely connecting two or more tones, while singing,
so as not to allow any audible gaps in sound between them. Without denying that this is the desired goal
of legato singing, there exist many more critical facets to understand about the attainment and
performance of a correct legato maneuver.
Most singers concentrate their efforts mainly upon the results of a superior legato, while failing to
consider the causative agents, or muscular maneuvers that achieve a correct legato. In other words, their
“mental imagery” is only partially reliable, and they have no understanding of the muscular requirements
of legato. The primary need for superior legato maneuvering is for the singer to have complete control of
the breath-force, and know precisely how to apply it. Exercise scales generally employ but a single
vowel; therefore, when singing a scale with but one single vowel, maintaining a smooth legato is not
terribly difficult to accomplish, providing that the singer is producing that vowel and all the tones of the
exercise scale entirely “on the breath flow.” Conversely, a vocal phrase contains many vowels
“scrambled” into the text, and out of their ideal order—u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah). Achieving
legato, when singing a vocal exercise, is therefore a different matter than when singing a musical phrase,
which presents to the singer with a much greater challenge.
During the execution of a vocal phrase, containing all five vowels, the energy force that creates
vocal tone must not become dissipated, while passing from one pitch and its individual vowel, to another
pitch and its individual vowel. While attempting to accomplish that maneuver with each new pitch and its
accompanying vowel, plus a different throat-position for each new vowel that is encountered, the breath
tension, which created the first pitch of the phrase, must now be adjusted to a new level of intensity and
applied to the second, higher pitch. But, when the second, higher pitch contains a different vowel than the
first pitch, the singer is also obliged to change the first pitch’s throat socket to a new throat socket, before
directing the adjusted breath force to the second pitch, in order to fulfill it in a smooth manner. This is the
basic task demanded by superior legato, and it is the hallmark of a superior singer, when the task is
properly accomplished.
If the singer is unaware of these above factors, he will unwittingly pass from the first note of a
selected phrase to the second note, unaware that he must precisely adjust the dynamics of the breath force
and the throat socket of the first note, to the second note, then quickly adjust the throat-socket of second
note, according its particular vowel. Singers who attempt to sing a musical piece, but have no awareness
of these critical factors, are greatly disadvantaged, and they can only sing as assigned phrase with
unpleasant, unprofessional sounds, and are also slightly “sharp” or “flat”, and with vowels that are,
unclear, if not "muddy", and which are erroneously modeled upon the limited muscular controls of the
speaking voice, all of which must sadly be characterized as a futile effort, that produces amateurish
results.
Legato is only possible when each tone in the singer’s range has been strengthened to a state of
muscular perfection and the singer can start any tone of his range with a smooth, pianissimo dynamic,
swell the tone to a forte dynamic, then return the same tone it to its original pianissimo dynamic, and all
on one single breath. All vowels accompanying these pitches must be purely produced, and readily
available. And each individual pitch, of a particular vocal phrase, must be fully infused with a full flow of
the breath stream. In such an ideal state, no tone of the singer’s entire range is weak or incapable of
receiving the transfer of breath tension from one pitch another pitch, in a smooth and superior legato
fashion.
To more clearly understand the foregoing, we must further examine several critical elements of
correct legato execution:
1) While developing the voice, every tone must be strengthened individually and separately from
all other tones of the complete singing range, by various applications of the breath flow.
When first developing a selected pitch, it is generally weak and underdeveloped, and it can only
sustain a minimal application of the breath-force. With the passing of time, and repeated applications of
the messa di voce exercise, which is an advanced exercise, and demands gradual, incremental increases of
breath pressure, applied to the same pitch, over a long period of time, it will develop the selected pitch to
its fullest potentials. When the singer can finally apply the maximum force of the breath-force to that
same tone, and then diminish its volume back to the softest dynamic of ppp, that accomplishment
precisely and clearly informs the singer that, that particular tone has become a "performing tone",

therefore, he may move on the next underdeveloped tone and gradually develop it in a similar manner,
until it, too, becomes fully developed to the standards of a "performance tone".
2) There exists a difference in legato applications and their responses when performing an
ascending scale, which undeniably increases the breath-force that is being applied to the vocal cords, than
when performing a descending scale, where there occurs a gradual decrease of the breath-force being
applied to the vocal cords.
3) The vowels which are being employed on the adjacent tones of a selected exercise of vocal
phrase, have a critical influence upon how one approaches the transfer of the breath force from one tone
of a phrase to the next tone, while achieving superior legato. And also, whether movement from one pitch
to the next pitch occurs in a descending or ascending direction. There is also is greater challenge to
achieving superior legato when one of the pitches of a given vocal phrase is operating with an “open
vowel"— an a (ah) or (oh) or a(ah) vowel— and the next pitch, to which the singer must switch to, is one
of the “closed vowels”—an u (oo) or an i (ee) vowel!
Note: In the situation described above, the “portamento ” is frequently used. The portamento is a
vocal maneuver, by which the singer carries the vowel of the first tone of a selected vocal phrase upward
to the second tone of the same phrase, pauses briefly on the second pitch, then slowly changes the carried
up vowel, to the original vowel of the higher tone. This same principles are valid, in a similar manner,
when singing in a descending direction.
4) The length, or distance between two tones of a selected vocal phrase critically affects the
manner in which correct legato can be accomplished. It is more difficult to maintain smooth legato when
singing wide-spaced intervals than it is when singing closely-spaced intervals. Success involves such
critical factors as properly managing all breath intensity adjustments, and each accurately adjusting each
new pitch’s throat-space and its accompanying vowel.
The unusual lower octave of all correctly structured singing voices

and the "head voice ramp"
Most singers are unaware of the unusual functions of the lower octave of all singers’ voices, after
they have been correctly structured, or more precisely, restructured to match the upper octave. More
critically, they are unaware of the objectives for properly structuring the lower octave. Traditionally,
when training the singing voice, ascending scales are applied to the lower tones of the singer’s range (no
matter how incorrect or vague their purpose), with the intention of building “solid tone”, and
“extending” the range upward. Although, at first, some voices appear to respond rather well to these
ascending scales, they are actually inappropriate, and they add undesirable chest register weight and
thickness to the lower octave, which sooner than latter, severely damages the voice and causes it to fail.
What is seldom understood is that, all the tones of the lower octave require the combined
muscular controls of both the chest register and the head register to function correctly. Performing an
ascending scale that does not take this critical factor into account forces the muscular controls of the chest
register upward in the range, to accomplish all the tasks of singing, but without the help of the upper
register. However, without upper register participation, the voice will rise only to the registers’ break area
at En and Fn above middle C. Above that area, the range can not be extended further upward without
forcing. With all male voices, this completely “cuts off” access to the high notes.
The way to avoid the above, negative factors is for the singer to bring into play the muscular
contributions of the upper register, by extending the upward register’s muscular controls downward in the
range, from their original top-range location, and making them overlap and eventually dominate all of the
lower register’s tones. These “overlapped head tones” , when fully developed in the overlapped region, at
the upper middle of the chest voice’s range, will serve the singer, as sort of “ramp”, upon which all
ascending vocal movement will travel, when the singer performs all ascending vocal movement. This
“ramp” is accomplished when the advanced muscular controls of the upper register form a “blockage
point” at Bf below middle C, and extend upward to the top note of the singer’s range. This structured
“ramp” will then not allow the thickness and bulk of the chest voice to rise upward in the range. This
blockage point” must eventually be lower in the range, tone by tone, until it reaches the lowest tone of the
singer’s chest voice range. This “ramp” is physiologically positioned vertically along the length of the
resonance channel, with its lower section located in the singer’s lower throat, its middle section located at
the upper, posterior area of the mouth-pharynx cavity. This vertically positioned tract is shaped like the
inner curve of the letter C. When the controls of the upper register are not carried downward to cover and
dominate all the tones of the lower octave, this curved ramp will consequently be missing. The only
recourse the singer will then have, is for him to “push upward” the negative power of the lower register,
into his registers’ break area.
When the entire head register’s “tract” has been structured to perfection, all vocal movements, in
both ascending and descending directions, are always performed with the muscular controls of both
registers and never with the single register of the chest voice. This is the only way that all the tones of the
singer's lower octave will function in permanent harmony with the tones of the upper octave. There are
other important reasons why the upper register’s muscular controls must overlap the entire lower
register. Some of the reasons are: the harmonious matching of all the vowel/throat spaces, and the
lips/mouth positions of the lower octave, to those same factors, with all the tones of the upper octave.
However, these factors can only be accomplished, until after structuring of the “vocal tract” has been
accomplished, by performing detached falsetto, descending scales that extend the muscular controls of the
upper register downward to the very bottom of the singer’s range, where they must remain permanently
influential. Therefore, until the long-term, slow and tedious process of “extending” downward and
strengthening the action of the upper register’s muscular controls has been accomplished, there is no hope
for the singer to successfully perform any proper and safe ascending movements in his range.
Generally, when beginners or professional singers, whose voices are in trouble, are presented with
the aforementioned information, they react with surprise and disbelief. The reality of what must be
structurally accomplished before dysfunctional singers can sing with superior standards is usually beyond
their capacity for patience and hard work. For them, all these aforementioned principles are too “
time-consuming, and complex.” Unfortunately, this is an art form in which anything less than near-perfect
will not suffice. The path of past vocal history is strewn with singers who possess seemingly superior
voices and who advance to great heights in the profession, then suddenly they fall back downward and
into oblivion, due to faulty, incomplete vocal structuring. Singers must understand, from the beginning of
their vocal studies that, the singing voice, unlike all other musical instruments, has a capricious, unstable
aspect to its behavior. But, sound structuring makes allowances for most of the unexpected, whimsical
changes that the singing voice undergoes, throughout a professional career.
Employing the “team effort” of both registers (particularly in the singer’s lower octave), when
performing an ascending scale, enables the singer to correctly manage the “workload” of the ascending
scale, which is created by the incremental increases of the breath-force, with each successive higher pitch,
which can be challenging, when there is no help from the head voice’s muscles. When the muscular
controls of both registers are being utilized, the singer can successfully ascend from the bottom of his
vocal range and arrive at the top of his range, without the cumbersome, negative weight which the lower
register tends to impose upon his voice, when there is no help from the upper register muscles.
“Power” and “core brilliance", which, in part, are contributed by the muscular actions of the
lower register, must never be allowed to function independently, in any part of the vocal range, but

instead, it must be “rationed” and “managed” by the controls of the upper register. Prior to proper
structuring, these upper register, falsetto controls are inoperative in the lower octave of all singers’ voices.
Therefore, they must be calculatingly created, brought there, and installed. This is done by first using a
series of descending, detached falsetto scales, then, swelling each individual, detached falsetto tone to
strengthen it, with the intention, at some future time, of connecting the power-factor of the lower register.
Once this has been accomplished, the advanced, developed falsetto register ‘s upward pulls, created by
the detached falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel and the messa di voce exercise, assist the singer to
accomplish all his ascending vocal maneuvers. The lower register’s muscular controls, themselves,
possesses an inherent tendency to pull downward, and away from the upward rising pulls of the upper
register. This lower register behavior is also correct, and the singer must utilize it to counter the upward
pull of the upper register. These upward and downward pulls of both registers are the only manner by
which the singer can properly control the ascending and descending movement of his singing voice, and
accomplish precise intonation.
The “colonna sonora”, or the resonating passageway,

as it was termed by the old Italian Teachers
When it is stated that “the singing instrument must be built or structured”, what is meant is that the
singer must explore all the physiological components of the untrained voice with intentions of converting
them into a functional, superior singing instrument. When that has been correctly accomplished, what and
primarily, is a vocal tract or "colonna sonora", as the earlier teachers named it, or the resonance channel,
from the bottom of the range, to its very top. It is along the full length of this resonance channel that the
sound-waves vibrations, produced by the vocal cords, must travel upward and backward toward the
upper, posterior area of the mouth-pharynx-cavity, traveling on the highly energized breath stream. Along
the full length of this resonance channel are located the various resonance cavities of the mouth-pharynx,
the sinus cavities, and the cavities of the skull. Within each of these individual resonance cavities are
located specific “hook up point” or “target points”, toward which the singer is obligated to direct the
breath-force, to the center of a selected tone (s), to satisfy the needs of precise-pitch and vowel, and
thereafter, then prolong the force of the breath within the selected resonance cavity, and allow its positive
influences to enhance and amplify the selected tone.
This resonance channel must be created from top-to-bottom, instead of from bottom-to-top, using
the structuring experiences gained at the top of the range, as a model for structuring its lower sections.
This is the only way to insure a permanently, harmoniously structured singing instrument that can meet
all the demands of ideal singing and which can withstand the "wear and tear” of frequent use.
The successful playing of all musical instruments evokes a mandatory dual-coupling system. This
is a scientific law in which the originator of the pitch, factor #1, must be coupled with a corresponding
resonator, factor #2. The violin, whose strings and bow generate the original vibrations of its tones, with
the player’s participation, factor #1, must couple with the terminal resonator points, located within the
wooden resonance chamber of the instrument, factor #2. The trumpet, whose mouth-piece, along with the
trumpeter’s lips and breath force, serve as the generator of the originating pitches, factor #1, must be
coupled with their terminal resonating points within, and along the passageway of the main body of the
instrument, factor #2.
This “dual-coupling system law” is also applicable to the singing instrument. However, unlike all
other instruments, the chest register’s lower tones, factor #1 (which are very influential in aiding the
vocal cords to the produce their solid, projecting vibrato action, essential to all basic tone). must
mandatorily collaborate or “couple” with the muscles of the head voice, factor #2, at their individual
focal-points. These “target points” are located in various, precise places, within resonance cavities,
which intrinsically line the full-length or the resonance channel. The breath-force and the vibrations of the
vocal cords must travel along the resonance channel, toward, and into these various resonance cavities,
according to the presently sung pitch, in order to satisfy all the players musical intentions.
The barrier between the two registers which prohibits the solid, brilliant power of the chest voice,
factor # 1, from coupling with the sweetness and supple musculature of the head voice, factor # 2, can be
permanently removed. This is accomplished through many successful performance of the messa di voce
exercise, using the detached falsetto, head voice version of the i (ee) vowel. (This can be more thoroughly
understood by reading my 2005 vocal manual: The Art of Singing on the Breath Flow, soon to be
available on Braden Book's web site, see the second title page of this book).
The sound-waves produced by the vocal cords and the breath-force “mix together”, then travel
upward freely along the length of the resonance channel, on the energized breath stream, and arrive at
their appropriate terminal specific “hook up” points, located within is appropriate resonance cavity. Once
there, the vocal cords’ vibration resonate in precise harmony with the muscular actions of the vibrating
vocal cords, located at the bottom end of the range, which are being enhanced in sound and amplified, by
the “nature and space” of the resonance chamber itself, at the middle and/or top area of the range.
The anatomical chambers of the pharynx-mouth, the sinus cavities, and head cavities are,
themselves, intrinsic physiological sections of the resonance channel. They exist as a gift of nature.
However, this does not mean that understanding the nature and function of the resonance channel and its,
intrinsic resonance cavities are, for the singer, a matter of casual discovery, made by simply executing a
series of vocal scales, especially “ascending scales”, which can be detrimental. It is instead a complex
and time consuming procedure that requires patience, and the commitment of much time. The singer must
first study these important factors, and become thoroughly familiar with certain vocal exercises, used to
strengthen the muscular contours of these the various resonance cavities. For more information on this
subject, you may want to read my most extensive vocal manual— A Singer's Notebook.
Precise vocal pitch is the product of a vibrator having an exact length, an exact thickness, and an
exact tension (breath tension). Every tone of the singer’s complete range is produced by a slightly
different laryngeal-pharyngeal adjustment. There are many gradations in the vibrator mass; in other
words, different effective lengths and thicknesses of vocal cords are engaged to satisfy the conditions of
each individual pitch. When ascending the range, the vocal cords become gradually shorter and thinner,
and more tensed together. Conversely, when descending the scale, they lengthen and thicken, and loosen
from each other, but never do they lose touch with each other, since, with the lowest and softest pitch, the
vocal cords are obliged to “slap” together, in order to produce basic pitch. “Exact tension” must be
understood to be “breath-force tension”, which, after passing through the glottis assumes the form of a
focused stream of concentrated, energized breath, that must be applied by the singer, directly to the vocal
cords.
A strong driving force is created by the buildup of pressure within the lungs. This breath pressure
must be applied directly to the vocal cords, to generate basic tone. In response to this breath tension,
being focused against the vocal cords, they yield to it, in a bowing action. The vocal cords first open in a
rapid-fire movement, allowing a puff of breath to escape, then rapidly close again, whereupon a new
cycle of the same behavior is initiated. In other words, they come together, separate, come together again,
then separate again. This cycle continues, as long as a vocal tone is being produced, by the energy of
breath-force, which the singer is obliged to continuously supply to the selected tone. For the singer to
raise the pitch to a higher pitch, the amount of breath-tension being applied to the vocal cords must be
proportionately increased. When descending the scale, the breath tension being applied to the vocal cords
must be proportionately decreased, but never totally stopped. Even a beginning has relatively easy access
to the varying amounts of breath tension that must be applied to the vocal cords. But, he has no direct
control over the adjustments of the vocal cords, where their precise length and thickness must be

A correctly structured soun
waves passageway, created
by "stretching" the head vo
muscles from the top of the
range downward, to influen
all the tones of the bottom
range area. Thus, the sound
waves created by the vocal
cords are automatically gui
in the correct direction
upwardandbehind the arc o
the palatewhere they attach
corresponding "hook-up"
points in the resonator cavi
of the pharynx-mouth and
head cavities . This tract is,
vocal cords n reality, a thin passageway.
smoothly and accurately enter into the passaggio area, then continue ascending the range, to the Top
Range. If this head voice ramp is missing, the ascending exercise scale or vocal phrase will unavoidably
go off course, away from its intended pathway, toward one of the resonance chambers, and instead, sends
the exercise scale or vocal phrase unavoidably into the mouth cavity, where it fails to produce a superior
quality scale or vocal phrase.
In the illustration on the previous page, the figure on the right shows a correct vocal condition,
wherein the pre-structured head voice "ramp" has been structured and properly place, which allows the
singer to guide the rising scale, traveling on the energized breath, properly upward, and backward, into
the mouth-pharynx cavity, and/or further upward, behind the arc of the soft palate, and into its appropriate
resonance cavity, appropriate to the tone (s) being presently sung. Understand that this "tract" follows an
extremely thin passageway, vertically-curved route toward its destinations. It is a scientifically-proven
fact that, singers have no sense of feeling whatsoever in their vocal cords. Almost every hopeful singer
who enters into a vocal training program quickly realizes that, whenever he is assigned an ascending
scale, the only way his has to produce the scale is by gradually increasing the “breath tension”, or making
each successive rising tone louder, but not more precise and beautiful. When there has been no proper
structuring of the vocal column, or resonance channel (at the bottom of the range), the singer can only
produce a raw, unwieldy ascending scale that becomes louder and uglier as it rises, and exhibits no vowel
purity. When there has been no instruction given the singer, as to how to direct the breath-force along the
length of the resonance channel, vocal training proves to be ridiculous.
Relative to the above illustrations and principles, the specific areas of the human anatomy where
the head voice muscles are located (the upper, posterior mouth cavity and head cavities), are inherently
“thinner” than the areas where the chest voice muscles are located (in the lower tract of the pharynx and
lower neck). Hence, the chest voice muscles are inherently thicker than the head voice muscles. However,
when the head voice muscles have taken possession of these singer's complete range, forming a solid
muscular tract, and the singer sings of exercises, up and down this solid, head voice dominated muscular
tract, and especially in the passaggio area, the thicker chest voice muscles become immediately
transformed upon encountering upon vocal ramp, and are forced to "fit into" the thinner contours of the
head voice tract.
The nature and important functions of the “hookup points”

that line the vocal tract
When we consider the various levels of the breath-pressure stress being applied to any given tone,
in order to develop its strength, that stress must have a focal point towards which the singer must direct it.
These important breath-force "target points" which line the resonance channel, from its bottom, to its
middle, to its top, must first be discovered, then developed to their maximum. Essentially, this is
accomplish by various applications of the swelled-tone exercise or messa di voce, and the detached
falsetto i (ee) vowel, and applying incremental amounts of great breath pressure to a selected tone.
However, the process requires the singer to evoke the starter-tone of a particular exercise’s center
point with the tiniest of detached falsetto voice, involving pitches selected from middle C upward in the
range, to its highest quality tone. These “hookup points” give the singer the impression that they occupy
the smallest amount of space in the mouth-pharynx and sinus and head cavities, and all starter-tones for
these exercise must be judged, by the singer, to be perfectly pure, meaning that, these starter-tones have
no involvement with the lower register's power whatsoever.
For the singer to understand the precise location of any hookup point, the tone selected for
exercise must be evoke with an exaggerated amount of breath, and with the softest possible volume, and
the purest vowel. Briefly explained, the development of these "target-spaces" involves the singer in

adding increased amounts of breath pressure to them, in order to developed their strength. However, when
such increased amounts breath pressure are being applied to a selected tone, to strengthen it, there is a
tendency for the tone to stray from its precise “target-space, and for its accompanying vowel to distort
from purity. Whenever this happens, the singer must return the note to its softest possible volume. This
will allow the purity of the vowel to be restored, and also permit the precise focal-spot of the selected tone
to once again reveal itself. The singer may once again try to swell the tone's volume, using the messa di
voce exercise. The initial state of weakness and tiny target-spaces of the starter-tones convey little of what
they are capable of accomplishing for the singer. With full development, they become beautiful, powerful
and highly controllable tones. When they are completely developed, they automatically proportion precise
percentages of both the chest and head voice registers on all their tones, and place them precisely on their
exact focal points. Thereafter, the singer will be able to develop his lower register's tones, in a similar
manner, so that when the singer succeeds with the messa di voce exercise all his chest voice and all his
head voice tones can be joined together in a team effort, and permit him superior, beautiful singing.
Each one of these individual hook up points has its own unique character and it reacts differently
to each of the five classic Italian vowels, u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh) and a (ah), as they are pronounced by
a native Italian. However, the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel is the best to reveal to the precise "hook up"
point of any given tone and to developed it. Any starter-tone’s target point, of a selected pitch, to which
the detached falsetto i (ee) is applied and swelled, with the force of an exaggerated breath -stream, is
referred to as the "focal point" of that particular tone. This has been explained in great detail in my most
recent vocal manual The Art of Singing on the Breath Flow, which will soon be available on
www.brandenbooks.com
The phenomenal “adjust ability” of the pharyngeal-tract,

from which the resonance channel is created
It is interesting to note that, of all living creatures, only human beings can adjust both the
laryngeal sound and any of the resonating cavities, simultaneously, when producing their voices. This
means that the muscles of the pharyngeal-tract possess an inherently malleable nature. The muscular
contours of the pharyngeal tract can be "stretched" and “stressed by exercises” and made to conform to
various shapes, which the singer determines are necessary for singing purposes. More specifically, these
pharyngeal muscles (many of them distant from the muscles that produce the various patterns of speech),
can be exercised so they produce the “instrumental vowels” which give the singer’s listeners the illusion
they are hearing the same vowel patterns of normal speech.
The greatest illusion arises from the discrepancy between what the singer must do, muscularly, to
produce vocal tones, and what he must do, muscularly, to add the elements of speech to those tones, since
each task is accomplished by separate groups of muscles which are frequently incompatible.
When altering a poor vocal condition, to a superior one, the changes and adjustments that
accomplish that are being made mainly made to the pharyngeal-tract muscles, or the head voice. These
pharyngeal muscles are located within the resonating cavities of the mouth-pharynx, the sinus cavities,
and head cavities of the human anatomy. They can, with proper development, effect a permanent change
to the muscular responses of the singer’s laryngeal notes, or the singer’s chest voice tones.
Proper development of the pharyngeal tract (which is also the resonance channel), can be
compared to the developmental methods employed by body builders who hold that, the only way to
develop muscles is by stressing them, by lifting weights, then allowing these stressed muscles to rest.
Then, with each successive exercise session, the same muscles are stressed more strenuously than before,
and with heavier and heavier weights. Singers can apply progressively increasing, breath-pressure stress
to the vocal muscles, but they must understand that it is the head voice muscle group that should be
stressed, and not the chestvoice muscles. Singers can use the inherent, excessive “weight” of the chest
voice, to stress and therefore develop the falsetto muscles.
Now, relative to developing the singing voice's muscles with various techniques of lifting the
weight of the chest voice, with the falsetto muscles, accomplished by the swelled-tone exercise. It is
critical that the singer apply only as much breath- pressure as the weak and undeveloped, detached
falsetto tone can tolerate. Then, he must gradually diminish the breath-pressure stress being applied to a
selected pitch, by reducing the selected pitch’s volume, back towards its softest breath dynamic. Of major
importance, while these factors are being accomplished, is that there must be always be a continuous,
free, strongly exaggerated flow of the breath stream.
The ultimate goal of the swelled-tone exercise is to gradually and incrementally increase the
swelling process so that greater amounts of the chest voice power can be pulled completely up from the
bottom range, by the singer’s falsetto voice’s muscles, then added to a selected tone, so that the detached
falsetto, starter tone will gradually grown in strength, until it has reached its maximum potential strength.
When this has been accomplished, the singer should be able to swell the detached falsetto tone to the
maximum dynamic, or fortissimo, and lift the brilliant “core” sound of the chest voice upward, from the
bottom of the range, and join it to the developed falsetto, starter-tone.
This ability is not available doable until the original state of the chest voice muscles has been
permanently transformed, by first "diminishing its volume, thickness” of all its tones, then to reduce and
compress each chest tone’s throat space, to enable the singer to attached each individual chest tone to its
appropriate, detached falsetto starter-tone. Understand that, only the fullest, complete development of the
entire pharyngeal tract can grant this awesome accomplishment to the singer, of, permanently altering the
chest voice. So changed, the chest voice muscles appropriately adjust their "weight and mass", to new,
thinner forms imposed upon them by the developed falsetto tones, and be facilely fitted into the minuscule
vowel throat-sockets of the entire resonance channel, or “head voice tract.”
When the separate vowel-shapes of both registers finally match each other in "weight and
thinness", (which in no way affects the potentials for projecting volume), the altered muscles of both
registers can “hook up to each other”, on every tone of the singer’s complete vocal range. With the two
registers in this harmonious “clamped together” state of interaction, the singer can then apply, greater or
lesser amounts of breath-tension to his vocal cords, according to dynamic needs of the individual phrase,
“hookup
or single tone,
points”,
being presently
“clamps” sung. The
“locks”, “target-spots”, shapes”, “resonator
terms “vowel“starter-tone”, etc., allshapes
come down
and cavities”,
to us from the
great historical past of vocal training, which produced the art of glorious singing. Here, they have been
given updated names and new twists of applications, but later on, references will be made to some of their
original names. All of them play critical roles in this manual’s training program, for the cultivation of a
superior singing instrument.
Most untrained singers refer to, and understand the five vowels as those which are produced when
speaking. In some ways, spoken vowels are similar to the vocal sounds, made when singing, but in many
other ways, these spoken sounds are vastly different from those of the singing instrument. It is critical that
these differences be clearly understood. The “instrumental vowels” are controlled by various muscles of
the head voice, and the vocal cords, while the speaking vowel, are controlled by various muscles of the
chest voice. As those head voice muscles are undeveloped, with an untrained voice, it must be concluded
that a beginner’s knowledge of his future, instrumental vowels, is limited and incomplete, at best. This
knowledge can be greatly increased, as the vocal muscles are developed, and the instrumental vowels
gradually emerge.

CHAPTER FIVE
The messa di voce exercise
A brief review of the exercise’s history
The messa di voce exercise is one of the oldest and most useful tools available to contemporary
singers for structuring and maintaining a superior singing instrument. It was created by the master singer-
teachers of the Scuola Cantorum, a musical conservatory assigned by Pope Sylvester (314-336 A.D.) to
fully investigate all technical matters regarding singing, and the singing instrument. This investigation
ultimately fostered the age of the castrati (castrated male singers). During this period, female voices were
not considered (as in 1856 Pope Urban had issued a Papal Declaration in that no female voices be used
in the services of the church); also, not considered, were male singer who had not been castrated. All
castrated males singers were refereed to as either "castrati", or simply, sopranos. Non castrated male
singers were later classified as tenors, baritones and basses. These vocal categories emerged much later,
during the time of the Garcias, father and son, and onward, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
The great value of the messa di voce exercise was generally recognized from the time of the
Scuola Cantorum, and the exercise continued to find favor throughout many subsequent important vocal
eras. It was greatly relied upon by most teachers of the Bel Canto era, and the “Golden Age of Song”,
which flourished in Italy during the post-Renaissance period. During the former period, the art of singing
is acknowledged to have achieved its highest degree of perfection.
The exercise remained vitally important through the late 17th and early 18th centuries, into the
time of such prodigious singer-teachers as Manual Garcia I (Père), and his son Manual Garcia II (Patricio
Rodriguez).
The exercise was also very heavily relied upon during the colorful Paris vocal period of the late
18th and early 19th centuries; a “glamorous” and “colorful” period dominated by the flamboyant tenor,
Jean de Reszke. Then the exercise’s popularity began to wane, and it was almost totally discarded in or
about the 1950’s. Recently, its principles are not in use at all, except by Callas, Sutherland, and Caballè
through their exceptional ability to start a selected tone with a soft fil di voce tone (a mere thread of
voice), expand its volume to a fff intensity, then return to tone to its original soft volume. The
disappearance of this vocal skill seems absurd, since a serious scholar of the vocal art may go to any
reliable library and find documentation confirming that the messa di voce exercise, and the high level of
vocal control which it granted to a singer, was considered an invaluable training tool by most teachers of
the “great vocal past”. Why, then, has this exercise been discarded by modern singers and teachers?
Before offering possible explanations it should be understood that, by its basic nature, all superior
vocal production must utilize the basic muscular principle of the messa di voce. The first and most
significant reason that the messa di voce exercise has fallen into disuse is that even the most patient and
diligent application of its principles, by contemporary singers, meets with predictable failure. The
mandate of the exercise is that the singer start an assigned tone with the softest volume, then swell it to
the intensity of a forte, then return it once again to the pianissimo dynamic. This feat can hardly be
accomplished by most of today’s professional singers, with the exception, of course, of the lightest and
highest coloratura sopranos and leggero tenors, much less by present-day, beginner-students. The
question then arises: In what ways were the great teachers of the historical past able to successfully use
the messa di voce exercise? Well first, it must first be understood that, these bel canto voice teachers were
applying the exercise exclusively to the voices of the castrati singers, or more plainly said, castrated men.
Because of castration, these male-sopranos’ or castrati singers’ vocal mechanisms became permanently
altered, resulting in denial of the full “natural” muscular growth of their lower register muscles.
It is critical to understand that, up to this point in this manual, the singer has nowhere been
instructed to apply any stress or increased breath pressure, to any particular tone. Rules have been set
down, but no commands to act on all of them. However, with the presentation of Exercise # 3, the messa
di voce exercise, the time has arrived to apply stress, or an increased amount of breath pressure, to the
assigned tone (s) to develop their muscular strength.
In the illustration above we present several messa di voce exercises which deal with the falsetto
tones of the baritone’s range, where the purest “starting tone” may be more readily found. Note that the
above exercises tones are presented in a descending direction. They should be performed in this
descending order, to preserve as much upper register muscular dominance, and purity of tone and vowel,
as possible.
The singer should first apply the messa di voce exercise to the top range area of his voice. Even
though the top of his future “performing voice” may only extend to Af, (with exceptional baritones),
nevertheless, he must apply the swelled-tone exercise and its principles to such extreme high falsetto
tones as high Af, Bf, Bn, and possibly high C. Even though total success with these extreme tones is not
to be expected, whatever is accomplished will help guide the correct structuring of the entire, remaining
range.
Selections of vowels, for performing the swelled-tone exercise, are related to the structural need
of the moment, and each vowel achieves a separate muscular maneuver for the singer. All the vowels are
indispensable; however, each reacts to these messa di voce exercises in its own individual way, according
to its inherent nature. After using the u (oo) and i (ee) vowels for some time, the singer is advised to apply
all five vowels to the detached falsetto tone, and make personal observations with each one. Some
possible observations of all five vowels are:
Therefore,1. The u (oo) vowel
its usefulness the“hollow”,
for is and “wooly”,
achievement of a superior
and voice to have vague.
seemsremains no power or “substance”.
2. The i (ee) vowel is “thin” and “steely”, has a “squat” throat-space, and seems one
dimensional. It demands that the tone be focused to a specific place or "focal point".
3. The e (eh) vowel is “thicker” than the i (ee) vowel, yet it is still related to the i (ee) in some
way, and the e (eh) vowel’s proper throat-position (“high”, “low”, “backward”, “forward”), has a
greater range of possibilities.
4. The o (oh) vowel immediately seems to demand more throat-space and has more “substance”
and “weight” than the u (oo), the i (ee), and the e (eh) vowels. However, the o (oh) seems “hollow”, and it
tends to “slip” out of focus. The question may arise, should that focus be “upward” or “downward”?
And, should the o (oh) vowel’s “hollowness” be filled-in with solidity, taken from the a (ah) vowel?
5. The a (ah) vowel seems to immediately give the singer control of its throat “placement”, but
only when the falsetto tones remain detached from any involvement with the “chest voice”. The falsetto a
(ah) vowel can also seem “bulky” and/or “stiff”, when compared to the other vowels, and its throat-space
very “impacted” and “restricted”.
Of course, these observations are merely mental-imagery conjectures of what a singer could
experience. They may “spark” helpful ideas, for the beginner, or seem too general, and vague. When
performing the swelled-tone exercise, all singers are forced to cope with an unavoidable physical reality,
involved with it. Somewhere, during the swelling process, the singer is unavoidably forced to switch from
the muscular controls which he started out with, over to vastly different muscular controls, in order to
arrive at the “loudness” factor, of the swelling process. Doing so makes him highly aware that, this
“switching from one muscular system, to another on” is extremely difficult, and that these two separate
systems of muscular control (the chestvoice and the head voice), are highly antagonistic toward each
other, and that makes his task, practically impossible.
These above experiences demonstrate to the singer some, of the many, unavoidable physical
realities involved with the messa di voce exercise, and with singing, in general.
For example, in order to apply incremental increases of breath-tension to any given tone, there
must exist a counter-resisting force to help the singer control the tone, and direct its energy toward a
specific "target point." These target-points are called “focal points”, and they are located at various
places along the full length of the resonance channel, and they reveal to the singer the “exact spot” of the
starter-tone, to which he is obliged to connect the power of the chest voice to.
Another physical reality, for the beginning-singer, is the need for him to “clamp” together the
muscular controls of both the chest voice’s power to the falsetto tone's, then guide the bonded-registers to
its specific “focal point”, located in a specific spot, along the full length of vocal tract. This "clamping
technique" is necessary, so that the power factor and the developed falsetto's tone does not “crack apart”
as the singer gradually increases the “breath tension”, to the selected pitch, in order to develop its
strength. This "clamping together” of the two registers together, was called fiato fermo, by the great voice
teachers of the past. The term fiato fermo means that the singer must firmly lock the breath pressure to
the, joined-together, chest and head voice registers, in order to accomplish stabilize their throat position,
to the tone’s precise focal point, so that they will not slip away from the intensified beam of breath-force.
The singer must also learn about the various percentages of chest voice power, that each vowel
automatically calls into play, when performing the swelled tone exercise. As stated previously, very few
professional singers today could perform this messa di voce exercise correctly, with the majority of tones
of their complete vocal range. The old master-teachers knew how difficult it was for any singer, even a
castrato singer with muscular advantages, to achieve a perfect messa di voce, with all tones of his range.
So, they made allowances for possible failure, by creating another exercise which is a “compromised”
version of the “ideal” messa di voce. This compromised exercises was called the note filate exercise.
When a singer had reached the midway-point of the swelling process, of the messa di voce, and was
heading towards the ff dynamic, and he suddenly realized that it wasn’t possible for him to increased the
tone’s dynamic any further, nor for him to diminish the tone back to the soft pp intensity, he was allowed
to suddenly “cut off” the tone. He would rest for a moment, take a new breath, then quickly “re-attack”
the tone with the ff dynamic, and make a new effort to gradually increase its volume, or conversely
diminish the tone’s volume back to the soft pp intensity, thereby completing the exercise, albeit with a
compromise. When the note filate exercise became nearly perfect, it was eliminated. The singer could
then perform an ideal rendition of the messa di voce exercise..
Common sense should be applied, when performing these first swelled-tone exercises, and
extremes avoided. The singer is urged to take brief periods of rest, between exercises. However, he is at
liberty to perform the exercises over an extended period of time, perhaps two hours per day, provided
there are many quarter or half hour rest-breaks. There must be no rush to fully accomplish the messa di
voce. Be patient and let it slowly become fulfilled. Remember that the messa di voce is an advanced
exercise.
Often, with the messa di voce exercise, a common misconception is formed, that the undesirable
breaking apart of the two registers, which frequently happens, occurs only at a single, specific point in
the singer’s range, usually, between En and Fn above middle C, the passaggio tones. While most

breaking apart of the registers do occur in that area, the potential for "cracking a tone" exists with any
tone of the complete range. Understand that, it is only when the singer attempts to join the two registers
together, that this undesirable “breaking” factor occurs. Difficult as it is to control the separate,
antagonistic muscular behavior of both registers, that feat is highly possible, with time, patience and
proper applications.
Where most singers fail, with all their singing efforts, is in erroneously assigning the task of
controlling basic tone production to only one, single register’s muscular controls, usually, the muscular
controls of the chest voice. Instead of endeavoring to utilize the muscular controls of both the chestvoice
and head voice, interacting with each other, synergistically.
The “intensity controls” of the breath force, when collaborating with the muscular controls of the
head voice’s muscular system, then, including the muscular controls of the chest voice, “care capable of
producing a wonderful and varied array of beautiful and exciting tonal colors. These fascinating
“timbres”, as the old master teachers called them, are all evoked and controlled by the both registers’
separate muscular systems interacting with each; but such fascinating timbres can never be produced by
one, single register’s muscular system, operating alone.
The chest voice contributes “bite”, “volume”, “brilliance”, “projection”, etc., to all tones of the
complete range. The head voice contributes “sweetness”, “softness”, “purity of vowel”, “intimacy of
expression”, etc., to all the tones of the complete range. It must be remembered that these muscular
systems are in constant conflict with each other, and can only be subjugated, then brought into a state of
harmony with each other, by means of the messa di voce exercise. Unless a singer bases the process of
structuring his singing voice upon this reality, from the outset of training, his efforts are sadly doomed to
fail. All other approaches to voice building are merely futile compromises, and they will only grant
inferior results, and fleeting moments of success.
Another reason why so many contemporary attempts at applying the messa di voce fail is
because, the starting-tone of the exercise does not possess a specific, pure quality of the pianissimo
dynamic. This critically important, ideal pianissimo, starter-tone can only be correctly accessed, then
understood, from the top of the singer's range, above Fn above middle C. This ideal starter-tone must
possess maximum muscular purity and be generated exclusively by an exaggerated flow of breath-force,
constantly swirling about in the head voice cavities of the Top Range, for as long as the singer intends to
sustain and develop the selected starter-tone. In the case of the messa di voce exercise, this means that it is
imperative that the singer establish a start-tone which has no involvement with the muscular controls of
the lower register. Throughout this manual, the term “detached falsetto, starter-tone" will be used to
indicate the optimum muscular purity necessary, for a singer to correctly execute the messa di voce
exercise.
Do not expect quick results with your performances of the messa di voce. The ultimate goal of the
exercise is to eliminate the “separateness of muscular actions” that inherently exist between the two vocal
registers. It takes many years to accomplish the messa di voce exercise, to a standard of perfection.
Presently, only the lightest voices, usually—coloratura sopranos and leggero tenors—are able to
perform the exercise to the exacting standards of “the ideal”, and even then, only with a very few tones of
their ranges. Most present-day baritones cannot perform even one correct version of the messa di voce
exercise. Some tones in their vocal range may take many years to perfect, particularly those in the area of
the registers’ break. One should not be discouraged by this, since performing “compromised versions” of
the messa di voce, the note filate exercise, over an extended period of time, grants many unexpected vocal
benefits to the singer. The most important such benefit is that these “compromised versions”, is to initiate
the slow, difficult, critically important process of restructuring the physical state of the entire chest voice,
by slowly eroding its undesirable bulk and weight. It is seldom understood that the gradual strengthening
of the upper register muscles, permanently alters all the lower register’s tones, eliminating all their
negative factors, which enables the singer to eventually accomplish a perfect execution of the messa di
voce.
Below are two hypothetical scenarios involving the messa di voc. They bring into clear focus all
the aforementioned factors, pertinent to a successful performance of the messa di voce. In each individual
scenario, we will follow the events that generally take place, from start to finish. The first example will be
that of a successful, or ideal performance of the swelled-tone exercise, wherein all the proper rules and
physical requirements, necessary to achieve success, are presented. The second example involves an
unsuccessful or "compromised" performance of the exercise. The second example fails because it lacks all
the precise rules of application, and the physical requirements for success.
A: First example:
A successful performance of the swelled-tone exercise
Phase One: By selecting Gn above middle C, and a detached falsetto i (ee) vowel, accompanied
by an exaggerated flow of the breath stream, we can begin the first swelled-tone exercise. The Gn has
been selected because it is located at an advantageous place in the range, above the registers' break, which
is located between En and Fn above middle C. This Gn pitch, when it has been finally structured,
becomes the characteristic note of the baritone's complete range, and immediately places him, when
successfully sung, as a "first rate" singer.
The detached falsetto i (ee) vowel has been selected because it is most likely vowel to grant the
singer success with the messa di voce. The singer starts the exercise with a detached falsetto tone, and the
i (ee) vowel, with an exaggerated flow of breath. He then gradually swells the tone's volume, with the
intention of gradually pulling up the chest voice power, upward, from the bottom range, then join the
power-factor to it. (This is the opposite of what repeatedly occurs when present-day vocal students start
an exercise scale, employing the raw, chest voice a (ah) vowel, then forcefully drives the scale upward in
the range.) When the scale arrives at the registers’ break (located between En and Fn above middle C), it
encounters an impasse, which does not permit the singer to ascend any further, unless he decides to “force
the scale” beyond the registers’ break, which of course, would be damaging to his singing instrument.
With Phase Two: the singer applies breath pressure to the falsetto, starter-tone to develop it. At a
certain point in the swelling process, the singer attempts to add or “attach” the muscular action of the
chest voice to the detached, falsetto starter-tone. To succeed, certain structural conditions of the two
registers must preexist:
First, the starter, falsetto-tone must have already been developed to a point of sufficient strength,
in order for it to sustain the appropriate amount of breath tension that is necessary, for the singer to pull
the chest voice’s power completely "upward" from the bottom of the range and “attach” it to the focal

point of the starter-tone. If this advanced, falsetto exists, the two registers can be firmly and harmoniously
clamped together, and attached to the starter-tone, which then may be easily sustained. This facile
prolongation of the starter-tone (now successfully supporting the increased “work load” of the chest
voice’s power) confirms to the singer that his messa di voce exercise has succeeded. If the singer fails to
achieve all the aforementioned, then probably, some muscular antagonism, between the two registers, still
exists, and it must be eliminated.
Conversely, at some point in the swelling process, if the singer succeeded in binding the two
registers together, he may easily add the “bite” or “core” brilliance of the chest voice to the detached
falsetto, starter-tone, with the help of the mixed voice. This important mixed voice is a mechanical
function that combines the muscular controls of both registers. It can only come into existence as a result
of developing each and every one of the upper register’s tones, individually, for a long period of time,
then coaxing both registers toward a cooperative team effort with each other, by applying the messa di
voce exercise, many times over, passing through a long , “testy” period of trials and errors, trying to
succeed with it.
During the swelling of the starter-tone, after the muscular actions of the two registers have been
brought into close approximation with each other, then clamped firmly together (so they do not separate
and “crack” apart), the force of the breath seeks to find a specific “point” to focus upon. And, that
specific, central, focal point can only be located, then fully developed, by the detached-falsetto version of
the i (ee) vowel, while an exaggerated flow of the breath is being supplied to it.
The “clamping together” of both two registers is even more challenging to the singer, when he
wishes to change the presently sung pitch, to another one, that is situated either above or below it. Raising
a selected lower pitch, to a higher pitch requires the singer to increase in the amount of breath force being
applied to the vocal cords, which challenges the “clamped-together” of the two registers’ process. Success
with departing from a certain lower pitch, to a distantly positioned higher pitch, the “breath-tension
clamp” which binds the two registers to each other, to be must be momentarily slackened, but in a limited
manner, then the singer must quickly send the breath stream “sailing” toward the intended, distant, higher
pitch. When that has been accomplished, the singer must quickly increase the breath tension that is being
applied to it, in order to secure the firm bonding, of the higher pitch, in order to stabilize and control it.
This can only be accomplished when the “clamp” which holds the two registers together, can withstand
the energy of the breath force, and not allow the two registers to separate and “fly apart”.
The "clamping process" is accomplished by applying the force of the breath pressure directly to
the vocal cord, operating in the lower throat channel, while repositioning the larynx up closely to the
starter-tone (with the help and precise guidance of the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel), being presently
exercised, operating high above the vocal cords. The singer must completely succeed in fastening the
larynx and the starter-tone together, on the same pitch. Eventually, both registers grow accustomed to
being firmly clamped to each other, and held fast, while the singer gradually applies breath force to the
selected tone. completely succeeds in lifting the power of the chest voice up to the starter tone, and in a
sense, that tone has been proper developed. The singer may then move on to developing another tone of
his complete range, in a similar manner. But in time, and as the voice grows, it will be necessary to return
to this particular tone and strengthen it further, with the messa di voce, and then do like–wise, with all the
other tones of his range, since the singing voice is always in a state of progressive muscular development.
When the swelled tone exercise has been accomplished to ideal standards, the vocal cords
vibrations of each individual pitch, traveling on the energized breath flow, can be projected upward, in a
posterior direction, along the resonance channel, and “soar” toward their appropriate terminal “focal
points”, within their appropriate resonance cavity. Consequently, a state of harmony comes to exist
between the vibrations of the vocal cords, operating at the bottom of the resonance channel, and their
sympathetic vibrations, operating in the upper range, within their corresponding resonator cavity, either
the pharynx-mouth-head, or nasal and/or skull cavities. That is—if no blockage of the breath-force exists,
somewhere along the length of the resonance channel, during the swelling process, and attempting to add
the power factor to the starter-tone. Only then can the “ideal tone” be produced with that particular pitch.
Then the singer must win over the remaining tones of his complete range. Anything other than these
physical accomplishments is a compromise, leaving the singer no alternative but to produce forced, thick,
difficult to manage tone, dull-down tone.
Merely succeeding in transporting the chest power upward in the range and joining it to the
starter-tone is not sufficient to call the messa di voce exercise a total success. The singer must also
completely "invert" the tone, assuring that the selected tone is completely detached from all “bonds”
and/or “anchors”, and operate as if it were “floating”, and "bobbing about”, “totally unfettered” upon
the surging currents of the breath flow. This “floating”, and “bobbing about” of the tone’s behavior, plus
its facile prolongation, is completely dependent upon the singer continuously supplying the tone with an
energized supply of the breath. This “floating” concept has been compared to a situation wherein a ping-
pong ball is placed on top of a water fountain's spray where it will remain balanced there, as long as the
energy of fountain's water spray maintains it up there. If the energy of spray is applied too strongly, it will
toss the ping-pong ball off the top of the surging spray; conversely, if the water spray is applied too
weakly, the ping-pong ball will roll off of the spray’s top and fall downward.
The combination of vowels and consonants which accompany a selected tone (which the singer’s
listeners recognize as words), are produced by different groups of muscles, other than the muscles that
produce basic tone. The singer to produce the vowel sounds that accompany all pitches, with the head
voice muscles predominating the accomplishment. The consonants are produced separately from the
selected tone by the lips (mainly the top lip), the facial muscles surrounding the lips, including the cheeks,
plus help from the tongue and the soft palate. These separate groups of muscles act independently of each
other, yet in conjunction with each other. For this to be possible, the singer must possess perfectly
“blended” registers, managed by the mixed voice mechanism, controlled by perfect management of the
breath flow. The singer establishes the tone’s vowel throat-position, reduces the power of the tone, then
activates the muscles that produce the consonant (s), then rapidly bring the tone to fulfillment. When this
is done correctly, the singer’s listener (s) cannot detect that the vowels and consonants, and the tone,
itself, are produced by a separate muscular systems.
For the energized sound-waves of a selected pitch, traveling on the breath flow, to be accurately
directed along the resonance channel, they must ascend a vertical, curved-line upward, in a posterior
direction. The sound-waves must completely bypass the mouth cavity, pass behind the soft palate and the
arc of the hard palate, then continue traveling further upward, toward the sinuses and head cavities. After
each individual tone’s sound-waves reach their appropriate terminal “hookup” point, within one of the
various resonance cavities and fulfill all their potentials there, the sound-waves then rapidly travel back
down the resonance channel and exit through the mouth, sailing outward toward the audience. All this
happens very rapidly. The sympathetic vibrations, occurring inside the various resonance cavities are
controlled by the advanced developed falsetto muscles which intrinsically line the full length of the
resonance channel.
B:) Second example:
The imperfect or “compromised” performance of the swelled-tone exercise
With this scenario, the singer is unable to carry the process of swelling the starter-tone from its
original soft, “detached falsetto” phase, to the point where he can harmoniously join the vibrant chest
voice power to the detached falsetto starter-tone. Consequently he is not able to fully employ both
registers, with the selected pitch, which is highly necessary, in order for him to produce a superior tone,
nor can he "invert" the tone.

There may be many minor reasons why the singer is unable to successfully achieve the swelled-
tone exercise, but the most frequent reason is that the falsetto starter-tone has not been sufficiently
purified, then strengthened sufficiently, to enable him to pull the power of the chest voice up to its proper
“hookup point” of the starter-tone, and then to firmly connect power of the chest voice to it. Also, the
singer may not yet have achieved sufficient restructuring of chest voice’s range of tones, meaning that
there still remains, with some of them, negative bulk and weight which thwarts the singer’s intentions.
Aspects of the imperfect swelled-tone exercise
Now let’s pass through the critical phases of an imperfect swelled-tone exercise, and comment on
some of the physical responses that are frequently experienced by the singer. Once again, the Gn pitch,
above middle C, should be selected, as in the example of a successful messa di voce, above.
With the Gn pitch above middle C, and the purest detached falsetto starter-tone possible
established, and accompanied by a "breathy" i (ee) vowel selected, the singer starts swelling the tone from
a pp dynamic, heading toward an ff dynamic. During the swelling process, two, of many possible
responses frequently occur:
1) The detached falsetto starter-tone resists being pressured any further, by the increasing
amount breath tension, and it “breaks” away from the singer’s control, thwarting his intentions.
of
Consequently, the singer is denied the ability to complete the messa di voce and to “clamp” both
registers’ muscular controls together. Just before this undesirable “breaking apart” of the two registers
occurs, the singer generally experiences a sensation of breath, unavoidably gushing through his vocal
cords, instead of it remaining in a steady stream of focused pressure, fixed firmly against the vocal point
where he intends to bind the two registers together, upon it Generally, this gushing air, gushing through
the slack vocal cords, is wrongly interpreted by the singer, as a failure of the vocal cords to produce the
desired tone . More accurately, it is the lack of staying-power strength between the muscular controls of
the two registers, against the focal point of the selected tone that has failed, since, when a successful
version of the messa di voce is accomplished, both registers, remain clamped firmly together and rigidly
focused against the focal point of the tone, where they are highly capable of tolerating all the pressure of
the breath force being applied them, that is necessary for the singer to succeed with the messa di voce
exercise.
When attempting a new messa di voce exercise, if this gushing of air persists, it usually indicates
that the muscular controls of the chest voice are still “too weighty and thick weighty” to first be lifted
upward in the range to the falsetto, stated tone, and even that had been possible, they would have still
been to thick to fit properly to the thinner “throat-socket” the starter-tone. Since there is no proper fit,
between the chest voice power and the starter-tone, the two registers are unable to act as the counter-
resistants to the breath pressure being applied to them, and they break apart and disconnected from each
other. Also, the thin edges of the glottis, the opening between the vocal cords have probably and rapidly
separate from each, causing the breath to gush upward along the resonance channel, they out of the
singer’s mouth. Of course, this frightens the singer and leads him to believe that some damage to his
“precious” vocal cords has occurred. The singer should feel reassured that this is not the case, and that
with vocal rest, then repeated efforts with the messa di voce exercise, success will eventually be enjoyed.
With this failed attempt of the messa di voce, had the lower register and upper registers remained
"clamped and locked together”, the energy of the breath flow would have remained in an intensely
focused form, leaned forcefully against the vocal cords, then “jetted” through them in regular, spurting
intervals, thereby producing the desired “vibrato” action, which creates tone. Then, the vocal cords’
vibrations would have mixed with the intensified breath stream and traveled rapidly upward along the
resonance channel towards the starter-tone, connected with it, and allowed the singer a successfully
execution of the messa di voce exercise. Frequently, with all failed attempts at the messa di voce exercise,
the singer has not yet developed the detached falsetto, starter-tone to the required advanced level wherein
it grants to the singer the mixed voice mechanism of control.
Discovery of the “mixed voice”
The following information may guide the singer to discovering the mixed voice. To explore this
possibility, the singer should accomplish all the preparatory steps, as given above, for the 1st example of
the messa di voce, on p. 62. With that accomplished, the singer starts the swelling process, with the
detached falsetto, Gf above middle C, starter-tone. During the swelling process of the tone, the singer
will feel the first activity of the chest voice manifest itself by small, faint, vibrating, sound-waves,
emanating from the vocal cords, far below. The energized breath-stream which is transporting these
vibrations represent the first activities of the mixed voice, helping him to accomplish his task. The mixed
voice mechanism manifest itself to singer by making him feel that the muscular controls of the chest voice
and the head voice have become one control, operating on one single pitch. Whereas, formerly, he always
felt the muscular controls of the head voice, as a separate entity, from the muscular controls of the chest
voice, while, at the same time, he could make neither of their muscular controls operate together. Either
the chest voice broke away from the falsetto, starter-tone, or the starter, falsetto tone was “not strong
enough”, or “shaped properly, throat-wise”, but it would not allow the power of the chest to be joined to
it, or whatever else was wrong before, he could not exactly tell, but with all his previous experiences with
the messa di voce exercise, success was denied him.
But now, since the arrival of the mixed voice, the situation has changed drastically. For the first
time, this new, “seemingly” single tone “control”, with both head and chest voice muscles operating
together in perfect harmony, as if they had been transformed into a single “control button”, has given the
singer a clear, precise mental image, and total confidence, and that that now, finally he can intensified the
force of the breath stream to its maximum “leaning-capacity”, and successfully merge the vibrant power
of the chest voice with the starter-tone, and in the same throat space, and totally fulfill all the potentials of
the pitch being presently sung. So, with this new mental image, clearly in his mind, and a new, elevated
confidence, he intensifies the force of the breath, “leaning” against the presently sung pitch, more so, than
ever before. As a consequence, suddenly he senses a new reality taking place. It is that, the formerly “dull
and dark” quality of the start-tone, which formerly “lacked projecting power”, has taken on a new,
“brilliant, sparkling, clarity”, which it had never manifested before. And he now knows that he could
project this sort of tone, over the most powerful orchestra in the world, and with it, reach the back row of
the theater, where it would be heard clearly and distinctly.
After the mixed voice becomes always available to the singer, the Reponses of all the tones of his
complete range, become permanently changes. For example, starting a tone with the detached falsetto
mechanism will immediately urge the tone to pass on to the new, mixed voice’s controls. This means that
the passage from the detached falsetto to the mixed voice is immediate, and in many cases the singer is
urged to quick proceed further, and covert it to a “full voice” tone, an advanced state wherein all
important aspects of both registers are fully operating with the selected tone, and produced a superior tone
of performance level. During earlier periods of vocal structuring, the singer had to urge the selected tone
to respond in the manner described above.
Of course, this is precisely what is required, in order for the singer to start performing publicly—
a full, immediately and positive response between the three mechanisms of vocal control, the detached
falsetto, the mixed voice, and the “Full voice” or the performing voice. When this be the situation, it
marks the end of “casual singing”, meaning, more precisely, when the singer has not taken all necessary
steps in warming of his vocal instrument, by starting with the detached falsetto’s mechanism of control,

passing to the “mixed voice” mechanism of control, then to the “full voice” mechanism of control, and
instead start singing without having slowly and thoroughly “warmed up” his entire vocal range. From
then on, all “safe” singing can only be done, after a full and through “warm up”, otherwise, the singer
risks “throwing him voice, into a temporary dysfunctional state.
Due to the singer’s inability to hear his own voice with the same reality as others do, it is difficult
for the singers to make sound evaluations of his voice. It is therefore understandable that many beginning
singers make poor judgments about their voices, and, in particular, their voice’s readiness for professional
status.
What qualified judges of superior singing hear, when a singer has not utilized head voice training,
and auditions prematurely for a professional engagement is that, this particular singer’s voce still
possesses many raw, covered, wrongly produced chest tones, that lack professional polish, and that he has
not yet gained secure control of his complete vocal range.
When qualified judges of superior singing listen to a singer who has utilized the head voice
system of training, and who also auditions prematurely, is that practically all of his tones are “covered”
and “lack core brilliance”, yet they are still functional and can be fairly well controlled, and somehow
allow the singer to sing rather well, and in many case he sparks these judges interest, and even when they
presently reject him, they often add that they alike to hear him sing again, sometime in the future, because
he presently shows a potential promise.
All the above, shouts out to beginner-singers that they are auditioning prematurely! And that they
are ignoring what they have been told, over and over, that “it takes quite a long time and a secure
technique to develop a voice that merits professional recognition!”
The singer who has utilized head voice training principles and the swelled-tone exercise for
structuring his voice will eventually arrive at a state of vocal development that is both superior and
professional, but it will take him much longer than he originally imagined it would.
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It is understandable that singers want an impartial and reliable method of making judgments
about their own singing voices. Therefore, the singer must accept the fact that, all personal evaluations of
his singing voice begin and end with evaluating the physical sensations that accompany the correct
production of vocal tone. Realistic evaluations cannot be made from unreliable methods of attempting to
actually hear how his own vocal sounds.
Of course, the most invaluable indicator of the true condition of all singer’s voice is the success
or failure of the messa di voce exercise. This is because, the messa di voce exercise deals with specific,
muscular accomplishments which, the singer himself, is capable of evaluating for himself. When the
singer can perform a successful messa di voce exercise, with all five vowels, and with every individual
pitch of his complete range, he becomes capable of objectively and precisely judging the standards of his
own singing, because he has changed his methods of judgments from attempting to hear his own voice,
(which he can never perceive as other can), to performing particular muscular maneuvers which control
the produce of high standards of singing, which he will not be able to deceive himself as to where they are
right or wrong, since they are based upon empirical rulings, that will immediately notify him whether he
has succeeded or failed to accomplish any of them. Sound judgments and validations of a singer’s voice,
and his singing skills, come when he auditions for a professional engagement and he is then offered a
professional contract, to sing a difficult role, in a highly popular opera. But the ultimately supreme
validation takes place when he’s on stage and has just finished signing a difficult operatic aria, and the
audience enthusiastically burst into applause for him, to the point of their exhaustion.
The singer who wishes to gain a reliable and independent method of judging his own singing
voice must come to understand an important basic principle: that it is only when he has achieve his first
uncompromised, successful swelled-tone exercise will he finally begin to understand what a what
superior, consistently reliable vocal technique truly means.
And he must keep all of the following in mind:
Whenever the muscles of the singing voice are being correctly exercised, they communicate their
correctness, or lack of it, to the singer in these essential ways:
1) Mentally, with each and every vocal exercise he performs— through various personal
impressions and judgments of how a particular muscle is being altered, negatively or positively.
2) Physically, by his improved ability to accomplish difficult exercise scales, vocal phrases, and
especially the high notes.
Since the muscles of the progressively developing singing instrument cannot be seen and can only
be felt, there are two ways that the singer can judge their growth:
A) By improved singing (by the singer’s own standards of judgment), but more importantly, by
the standards of qualified others, who, unsolicited, give him “complements” and
“encouragement”.
B) By harmonious and comfortable physical sensations while singing.
Success with the swelled-tone exercise on the e (eh) vowel

indicates an important turning point in structural development
The ultimate goal of the swelled-tone exercise is to accomplish a complete collaboration of the
separate muscular actions of both vocal registers, on all tones of the complete vocal range, and with the
five basic vowels u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah). A detached, falsetto i (ee) vowel, that is
produced with an exaggerated breath flow, is best for accomplishing the swelled-tone exercise. The head
voice muscles possess an inherently “plastic and malleable” nature which allows the singer to adjust
them to various throat-shapes, and thereby create throat-shapes of the five (5) instrumental vowels, as
opposed to the five vowels of the speaking voice, which, where singing is concerned, negatively uses the
muscles of the chest voice. To create the five classic, Italian singing vowels, the singer must first correctly
conceive of each individual vowel, in its purest form, and disassociate it completely from his speaking
voice’s vowels. Only by using the softest possible volume starter-tone can the singer correctly form
accurate mental concepts of each individual vowel’s and its maximum purity, which must be preserved,
during it’s on-going, progressive development.
When developing the muscles of the head voice so and the five (5) basic singing vowels’ sounds,
it is helpful to know that the u (oo) and i (ee) vowels are generally the first to yield to the demands of the
messa di voce exercise. The e (eh) vowel is more difficult to succeed with, but the o (oh) and a (ah)
vowels greatly resist success. Therefore, the singer should understand that, success with the e (eh) vowel
marks an important turning point in his singing voice’s development.
When the singer can sing all five vowels with the muscles of the head voice purely and strongly,
it means these same five vowels, with all the chest voice’s tones, are ready to be totally transformed away
from their original “bulk”, “weight” and excessively wide “throat sockets”. After their transformation,
the chest voice’s tones are rendered “empty”, or “vuoto”, meaning that no negative, muscular force had
been driven upward from the bottom of the range into them. Therefore, they may be evoked and facilely
sustained, solely by the force of breath, which makes them muscular harmonious with the “narrower”
throat spaces of the head voice’s tone, since the messa di voce exercise, along with the detached falsetto i
(ee) vowel, have imposed the same narrow throat spaces upon all these chest voice tones, which then
match the inherently narrow throat-sockets of all the head voice’s tones.
The e (eh) vowel is neither a “closed” nor an “open” vowel, therefore, when the singer first
achieves a successful swelled-tone exercise with it, the e (eh) vowel’s new “throat position” reveals to the

singer the precise method and direction which he must now guide the more open o (oo) and the fully open
a (ah) vowels, in order for him to eventually develop them to fully, “open throated” vowels. If the throat-
opening of the e (eh) vowel is compromised and produced in a “squat” or “pinched manner" manner, its
main benefit, of permitting the singer to further advance an o (oh) or a (ah) vowel, with the messa di voce
exercise, to their maximum potential, open-throated sockets will be denied to the singer. This also means
that the singer will not be able to bring throat-sockets of the u (oo) and i (ee) vowels to their fullest
potential development, since that advanced level is dependant upon both the o (oh) and a (ah), vowel
having arrived at their maximum advanced developed, fully open throat-sockets.
A rigid standard of each vowel’s purity must be established and maintained, when the use of the
swelled-tone exercise is in its earliest phase of development. Otherwise, it is likely that bad habits of
distorting the “pure sound” of each vowel will be formed, deceiving the singer into believing that he has
progressed with the messa di voce.
At some point, to advanced stage of vocal development, the singer is urged to perform a great
many swelled-tone exercises, employing detached falsetto the i (ee) vowel, with his Top Range tones..
However, after exercising a great deal with the i (ee) vowel the singer must put the i (ee) vowel aside, and
allow his voice a long rest period. Upon return to exercising the voice, employ only the u (oo), o (oh), a
(ah) and AW vowels, since they will allow the maximum flow of the breath stream to return to his singing
voice. Always remember that, the detached falsetto i (ee) and e (eh) vowels inhibit the flow of the breath
stream, but despite this, they both help the singer accomplish many critically important structural tasks
which the u (oo), o (oh) and a (ah) vowels can never accomplish for him. One such, important task, only
the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel can create, is that of locating the focal point of each individual pitch of
the complete range.
On pages 71 & 72 are some exercises from the Post Bel Canto period, which employ the
esclamazio viva fff dynamic approach, to evoking a selected tone. These exercises may provide some new
insight to the singer, “dramatic” singing.
An oscillating pattern of exercise is required

to maintain the function of both registers
The synergistic nature of the two registers sends structural messages to the singer through vocal
conflicts which must be given full respect and resolved. Singers with partially structured voices, whose
singing is dominated by the muscular controls of but one single register (usually the chest voice), are
seldom aware of these synergistic needs of the two registers. This is because their excluded register offers
no major conflicts. However, when attempting to improve a voice of inferior structure, the functional
contributions of both registers must be considered.
Thus far, we have been mainly concerned with exercising the frequently neglected upper register.
If the exercises given up to this point have been applied correctly, they will have advanced the inherently
weak head voice muscles to the point where they are able to challenge the dominance of stronger chest
voice’s muscular system.
As the singer continues to exercise the head voice muscles, with the swelled-tone exercise, a
confrontation between the two registers approaches. When that happens, the advanced developed falsetto
system may completely "shut down" the entire chest register’s range. This clearly demonstrates the chest
voice’s rebellion against its long term neglect, by the singer, and his preferential treatment of his head
voice muscles. At this point, the singer can no longer neglect the structural needs of his chest voice. He
must now apply an oscillating pattern of developing his entire singing voice which includes satisfying the
structural needs of both registers.
To accomplish the above, the singer is now obliged to follow a “pendulum swing” pattern of
exercise, progressively “updating and advancing” each register’s individual developmental needs,
separately from the other register. If the singer has accomplished a high level of development of his head
voice muscles, through the use of Exercises #1, #2, and #3, it is likely that his swelled-tone exercises have
become ineffective, without any apparent cause. This would be another indication that he should give his
structural attention to the neglected chest register.
Shifting the structural focus away from the head voice muscles
and toward the chest voice muscles
The exercises below, which help the singer shift his attention away from the development of his
head voice and refocus it upon the developmental needs of the chest tones are to be performed with the
detached, falsetto u (oo) and i (ee) vowels.
The detached falsetto, hollow u (oo) vowel continues the purification of the baritone’s lower
range, by advancing the head voice’s dominance of these chest voice tones. There after, the i (ee) vowel
connects the chest voice to the head voice’s muscular controls. The exercises below should be performed
before performing the exercises on pgs. 71 & 72.
With regard to the exercises on pages 71& 72:

1) Because the i (ee) vowel is essentially a “head voice” vowels, it helps preserve the head
voice’s muscular controls, since with they will now be challenged by these forthcoming exercises.
2) The i (ee) vowel evokes only 25% of the chest voice’s full power potential, and will
advantageously limit the width of the exercise-tones throat-spaces.
3) The detached falsetto i (ee) vowel’s greatest contribution, is that it automatically “tilts” and
“focuses” all tones in an upward direction, away from the bottom range, and precisely places itself in the
center of the selected tone’s throat-position.
It should always be remembered that the i (ee) tends to be a “renegade” vowel, and often breaks

away from with falsetto’s beneficial controls, and with the four remaining vowels. When the i (ee) vowel
responds in this negative manner, it immediately assumes a negative, thick form of itself, and incorrectly
“drives” the selected tone into the mouth-cavity, then towards the singer’s lower front teeth. Whereas, a
correctly produced i (ee) vowel stays muscularly in harmony with the head voice’s muscular controls, and
the remaining four vowels. It also enables the singer to direct the breath-force vertically backward,
towards the upper rear area of the mouth cavity, enabling the breath-stream to travel the curved,
ascending pathway to the tone’s appropriate resonance cavity.
While accessing a correct i (ee) vowel with a lower pitch (from middle C, downward in the
range), place an o (oh) or a (ah) vowel in front of it, in order to properly connect it to the head voice’s
muscular controls, then change your posterior, throat-socket from the o (oh) or the a (ah) vowel’s throat-
socket, to the i (ee) vowel’s throat-socket. Assure that this vowel-changing maneuver is accompanied by a
generous flow of the breath stream.
Here are some mental-images that may guide the singer toward the proper execution of all these
new, i (ee) vowel, ascending scales:
1) The singer should start the scale with the smallest possible focal point (throat space) in mind;
of all five vowels, the i (ee) vowel is the most helpful to accomplish that end.
2) The singer must think that he is threading the i (ee) vowel into the space of a soft, “puffy” u
(oo) vowel.
3) As the singer initiates the ascending movement, he energizes the tone with the breath flow,
channeling the inherently thick throat space of the chest voice muscles into the narrower passageway of
the head voice tract. This thinner, head voice tract’s muscular contours may seem initially hollow and
weak, but with increased intensification of the breath stream, against their contours, and their tolerance of
it’s force, they will grow very strong, but without widening their contours away from away from their
inherent thin form.
After full development, the mental image of upper head voice tract’s contours will become
precisely felt and clearly understood by the singer. This thinner tract guides the singer to performing a
superior and "safe" ascending scale. These thin muscular contours deny the thicker throat spaces of the
chest voice tones, and forces them to adjust away from their original thickness, and toward narrower
versions of their original selves. When performing ascending movement, the singer must cooperate and
yield to the incrementally thinning-influence of the head voice’s thinner contours by yielding to it, pitch
by pitch. The singer must understand that. that this thinning-process is not merely a mental adjustment,
as so many people wrongly surmise, but an actual physiological one. The failure of the singer to yield to
the “thinning-process” and instead, to erroneously attempt to widen the rising pathway of the resonance
channel, with his ascending vocal exercise or vocal phrase, will result in his blocking-off the ascending
scale, or even his being denied all ascending movement.
Figure 1
i(ee) -- -- i(ee) -- -- i(ee) -- --

e(eh) - - e(eh) - - e(eh) - -
Figure 2
i(ee) -- -- i (ee) - --
e(eh) - - e(eh) - -
Figure 3
i (ee) - - - - - - - - i (ee) - - - - - - - - i (ee) - - - - - - - -
The permanently narrow, vowel throat-sockets of the head voice’s passageway do not become
widen, as its contours advance in development, as so many singers erroneously believe. They merely
grow strong enough to withstand the incremental increases of the breath force, which the messa di voce
exercises imposes upon them, until each vowel-throat socket can withstand maximum breath-force. When
the chest voice’s muscular contributions are properly added to the head voice’s passageway, in order to
fulfill the synergistic singing needs of both registers, their vowel throat-sockets are in no way damaged,
nor compromised by the above exercises. Instead, the passageway’s muscular contours of the upper head
voice’s tract gain maximum tolerance for the breath-stress which all ascending vocal movement places
upon them.
But be aware that, all ascending vocal movement will automatically urge the singer to merger of
the muscular actions of both registers. When acting in unison, the two registers, enable the singer to sing
many interesting tonal-quality mixture, and with every tone of his range. A velvety suave, mellow quality
is contributed by the head voice, and a sparkling, core brilliance is contributed by the chest voice. When
these initially antagonistic registers finally function together in muscular harmony, as is necessary for the
success of all ascending vocal movement, they also grant the singer complete control of all the breath-
force dynamics. This muscular harmony also grants smoothness and accuracy of legato movement, in
both ascending and descending directions.
The passageway of the resonance channel is actually the advanced structured pharyngeal
muscles, brought to their maximum fulfillment by the swelled-tone exercises, which enables the singer to
transfer the strength accomplish in his top range, downward in the range, over the registers’ break area, in
order to create a strong muscular “head voice ramp.”
should nowThe be
manner
considered. Theallunwieldy,
in which ascending“solid travel upward
scalesaction” uponvoice,
of the chest this created
which“head voice ramp”
accompanies all
ascending vocal movement, must be nullified, by mixing all ascending tones with the breath flow, which
makes them mobile and capable of traveling with the breath-flow, upon the created vocal ramp, into the
passaggio and through it, to the top range. All the muscles that operate this tract can only be located with
the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel and the force of the breath stream, them strengthened by the swelled
tone exercise, known as the messa di voce. And, the singer, alone, is responsible for learning how to

direct the breath flow along this created vocal ramp. The breath force, after passing through the glottis,
must not be allowed to “go forward” and into the mouth cavity, but instead, it must be fade to travel the
posterior, vertically ascending, curving-ramp, first behind the soft palate, then behind the arc of the hard
palate, heading toward the resonance cavities of the sinuses and head cavities, and be made to enter into
the appropriate resonance cavity, for the presently sung pitch.
All ascending scales automatically utilize the dynamics of breath tension defined by the
esclamazio languida, breath-force application. Unlike the descending scales of the developing detached
falsetto exercises, all ascending scales demand incremental increases of breath pressure to satisfy the
change in pitch, with each new, higher pitch of the scale. Conversely, while descending the same scale,
incremental decreases of breath pressure occurs with each new, lower pitch.
The throat-space of a selected tone and its accompanying vowel must be consciously “gathered”,
by the singer, and then focused to its smallest potential, so that the energy of the thinly focused breath-
force may enter into its proper resonance cavity, appropriate for the presently sung pitch, then attach itself
to the pitch’s narrow focal point, or, its precise center. This is accomplished, in part, with each successive
higher pitch of the ascending scale of vocal phrase, when the singer’s cheek muscles, cooperating with
him to accomplish the task of the ascending scale, rise slightly toward his eyes, while his lips, at both
ends, extend horizontally, and his top lip reveals a small section of his upper, front teeth, and a slither of
his upper, front gums. All of this is necessary in order for the singer to adjust his throat to the tone’s
appropriate vowel aperture, located at the upper posterior area of the mouth-pharynx cavity, though which
the breath then flows, into its appropriate resonance cavity, relative to the presently sung pitch.
The “thickness and weight” of the chest voice must also be reduced with each successive higher
pitch of an ascending scale, through a series of alternating “lifts” and “rests” maneuvers, while the singer
adjusts the precise amount of breath pressure needed for each next, higher pitch, with quick, alternating
applications of pianissimo to forte, then back to pianissimo ,then again to forte variations of the breath
flow. When the messa di voce exercise, using the detached, falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel, has been
perfected throughout the complete vocal range (from the top of the range downward), its success
permanently alters the entire resonance channel, bringing each and every pitch to state of individual and
precise calibration, so that throat-socket of each succeeding higher pitch of an ascending scale, then , than
the previous lower pitch, with eliminates the bulk and weight of each successive higher pitch to be
“crunches” and “gathers” it into a thinner form, again and again, and each successive higher pitch is
forced to undergo the same “thinning process.”
With these new exercises, structural goal is to attach the action of the chest voice, which has
been purposefully withheld until now, to all the tones of all these ascending scales. However, it is still
desirable to engage a lesser amount of chest voice activity, at this phase of development, than may be
applied at more advanced levels of development. This precaution assures that all beneficial muscular
influences already gained, up to this point, through the use of the swelled-tone exercises, will not be
challenged nor undone. If the falsetto’s muscular controls now dominate all pitches throughout the
singer’s range, as is desired, the singer will not encounter excessive resistance, when coupling the “solid”
muscular controls of the chest voice, to the soft and puffy falsetto “starter-tone”. If there is still
resistance, or even failure, the problem at hand may manifest itself to the singer, by the falsetto starter-
tone pulling away from the singer desire to connect it to the chest power, then to fly upward and away,
toward the top of the range. Don’t be overly alarmed, since, even though success was not attained, this
"upward pulling" action is a positive sign.
The "upward pulling action" of the advanced falsetto voice
One of the benefits granted to the singer, by the advanced development of the falsetto, through
many applications of messa di voce, and the detached falsetto’s i (ee) vowel, is the tendency of the entire
upper register's to strongly resist the singer’s efforts to attach the power of the chest voice to the starter-
tone, by pulling away from it and "flying" upward and backward. towards the top of the singer's range, in
a gliding manner. This upward pulling action can be compared to the wound-spring of a clock. When the
singer has successfully attached the power of the chest voice to the detached-falsetto, starter-tone, he can
take advantage of this upward sliding action of the head voice muscles. By directing a strong puff of
breath to the starter-tone, it will immediately release it from all restrictive connections of the chest voice
and allow the scale to start glide smoothly upward along the resonance channel, along with the upward
pulling head voice muscles.
When the singer “blows” a strong puff of breath against a tone that’s being restricted by the
downward pulling, chest voice muscles, the tone will immediately become movable and transportable,
enabling the singer to attach it to the upward pulling muscles of the of the head voice, creating an illusion
for the singer's listeners, that his scale is effortless produced, and extremely musical. This
accomplishment, and the illusion of how it operates, is the direct opposite of the strained, “pushed up”
effect and “mediocre results” which the ascending scale and vocal phrases of most present-day students
convey to their listeners. Attaching an ascending scale or vocal phrases to the upward pulls of the head
voice is one of the superior singer’s great skills, and it’s very difficult to learn, how it is precisely done. If
the singer has not understood how to make every tone he endeavors to sing “ride on the breath flow”, he
can never remotely understand this singing phenomenon.
These “upward pulls” tug along with them only the “adjustable”, “transportable power” of the
chest voice, while simultaneously, they exclude the raw, weighty, negative, anchored chest voice’s
contributions. What is meant by the "transportable" and/or "adjustable" power factor of the chest voice,
is that the vibrations of the vocal cords, which can be mixed with strong currents of the breath-force, can
be directed, by the singer, upward along the resonance channel, and into any of the resonance cavities,
either into the mouth-pharynx, the nasal cavities, or the resonance cavities of the skull.
Understand that, from the En above middle C, to the very top of the baritone’s range, all
available tones or totally “cut off from and prohibited from using” any and all the throat’s muscular
controls. Therefore, all the baritone’s tones En above middle C, upward, can only be evoked, then
sustained by strong, soaring currents of the breath force, blowing into a particular vowel-socket, which
makes these tones resonate, or “resound with a brilliance of timbre”, which deceives most students into
believe they are using a great deal of “chest voice brilliance” with them. However, the brilliance of timber
which a “mixture of the vocal cords vibrations and breath flow” create are Aeolian in nature, and are
composed merely of vocal cords vibrations and breath energy. Accomplished by what the great Italian
tenor, Beniamino Gigli proposed: “…primarily with “the mind” and “the will” of the singer (cervella e
volontà).”
The undesirable, “upward pushing” of ascending scales, so prevalent with present-day students
can
is employed
be eliminated.
in conjunction can only
But, that with the upward-pulling
be accomplished head
when
voice
the muscles,
“transportable power of the
and a particular vowel,
chest
allvoice”
collaborating with the strong, upward traveling breath force.

The phrase “transportable muscular activity of the chest voice” can first be understood with a
pitch that is selected from the Top Range, Fn above middle C, and upward to the Bf, just below high
C.
The singer should select a pitch in that region, with a detached, open-throated falsetto i (ee)
vowel, (see p. 62), then infuse the tone with an exaggerated flow of breath. He then pauses momentarily
to judge whether or not the i (ee) vowel tone is totally free from all muscular involvements with the chest
register. He quickly “lifts’ and “clamps” his larynx to the focal point of the falsetto i (ee) vowel tone, then
starts applying the breath-force to the tone, by swelling it. As he does so, the detached falsetto i (ee)
vowel lifts his tongue upward from its resting place, in the lower-throat channel, then makes its central
section form a mound, positioned just below the arch of the hard palate, situated above it. Simultaneously,

the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel has also repositioned his soft palate downward and forward, facing his
front teeth. Then the singer quickly intensifies the breath force and connects all the positive muscular
contributions of both the chestvoice and the head voice firmly to each other, thereby fulfilling the tone to
the high standards of a superior, performance tone. However, only when the total brilliance of the chest
voice’s contribution has been made to shine through, and dominate the “darker timbers” of the head
voice’s contributions, can the particular pitch be considered to be an “upward pulling” tone. From then
forward, that particular tone, when it is employed by the singer in an exercise scale or vocal phrase, in an
ascending direction is capable of generating the upward pulls, attributed to muscles of the head voice i
(ee) vowel, as described above. When all the tones of the singer’s complete range have been subjected to
the sane above process, they too will be converted to upward-pulling tones. Of course, the above is only a
brief, condensed version of what is actually entailed, in order to covert an ordinary tone into an upward-
pulling tone.
Understand that, none of the above could be physically accomplished without the hyoid bone (to
which the base of the tongue is firmly attached ), allowing the detached falsetto head voice’s i (ee) vowel
to pull the larynx upward from its resting place, in the lower throat channel, to the starter-tone. And for
the detached falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel to also move and reposition the soft palate downward
and forward, facing the front of the mouth cavity. Even so, while in that position, the larynx must remain
extremely flexible, and not be held in a rigid manner, so that it can be quickly be adjusted and readjusted,
over and over again, to accommodate every new and different, rise and fall of pitch. This adjusting and
tuning of the larynx’s position and the soft palate is consciously controlled by the singer. It can not be
accomplish by any other vowel, other than the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel, as described above.
Ascending vocal movement
All ascending vocal movement has a potential for being injurious to the singing instrument,
before the advanced developed head voice muscles have been connected to the chest voice. When the
singing instrument is utilizing the muscular controls of both chest and head voice registers, all the tones
of the singer's complete range function as one single unit. It is important to understand that, all the tones
produced by the falsetto voice, even in their most advanced state of development, feel “dulled down” to
the singer, and “opaque” to his listeners, and they do not possess vibrations. This these elements are
appropriate, until the brilliance of the vocal cords, often erroneously refereed to as “resonance”, has been
added to every tone of the singer’s complete range. This factor explains why so many vocal students,
without proper guidance, prefer and select the vocal sounds of the chest voice. The “raw chest voice
tones”, without the muscular help of the head voice, feel, and sound inherently “bright”, factors which
and “opaque”
deceives the singer
sounds
intoand
believe they are
sensations of the developingsounding”,
“professional falsetto voice.
whenHowever,
compared
only
to the
after
“dulled
both registers
down”
have been fully connected to each other, does the proper, permanent, safe “brilliance factor” become
available to the singer, and “sparkles and shines” with every pitch of his complete range, and especially
so with the most brilliant sounding vowel, the i (ee).
It is confusion, concerning which register produces the “brilliant sounds,” and which register
produces “somber, covered, dull sound” which has greatly confused the international community of
students and teachers. In order to once more clarify this issue—it is the head voice, before it has been
fully developed then connected to the chest voice, that produces the “somber, dull sounds.” And, the
chest voice that produces the “brilliant sounds.”
When the chest voice has been connected to the head voice, the dull sounds merge with the
brilliant sounds, but the brilliant sounds dominate, with all “connected” tones. A “connected tone” is one
in which both registers’ total contributions, all their sounds and muscular contributions, to the selected
tone.
Where superior vocal development is concerned, by the singer (and voice teacher), simply
reordering present-day, training practices, and placing the “brilliance factor” of the chest register, into
the secondary order of development, and the “somber factor” of the head register into the primary order
of development, a very longtime confusion, about which register produces brilliance of tone, and which
register produces dullness of tone, may finally be resolved.
All ascending scales automatically and undeniably attempt to engage the “connected mode” of
the two vocal registers. This mode is appropriate for performing, and when doing so, it is critical for the
singer observe several important factors:
1) The “upward pulls”, created by the muscular development of the “detached falsetto”,
must be operative with each and every successive, ascending tone, of all ascending scales and
vocal phrases.
2) The inherent “bulk” and “weight” of the chestvoice’s influence must be continuously reduced
by the singer, as the scale rises. This desirable “reduction process”, regardless of pre-structuring,
can only be employed if the singer makes a conscious effort to “thread” each successive higher
tone of an ascending scale, into the thinner muscular contours of the advanced developed falsetto
tone.
3) As the ascending scale approach the passaggio and enter it, the singer must transfer the “work
load” of each successive ascending passaggio tone completely away from the chest voice’s
muscular controls, over to the muscular controls of the head voice.
For the muscles of the head voice to achieve these “switch-over” maneuvers, they require many
years of development, separately from the chestvoice. During that long, slow period of their
development, the singer must patiently increase the strength of his falsetto muscles, with all his passaggio
tones, and his Top Range tones, until they become stronger than his chest voice muscles. This is done by
performing detached falsetto, descending scales, and swelled-tone exercises with each and every pitch of
his complete range for a period of time, then rests his voice for a while. At another exercise session, he
should connect both registers together and do some simple singing.
When the “work load” involved in accomplishing ascending scales and phrases has been reduced
to minimum, it will be as a result of the singer having developed the mixed voice to its maximum strength.
The mixed voice grants the singer “tonal buoyancy”, “flexibility of vocal movement”, and an ideal tonal
color, with each tone of the his complete range. The master-teachers of the past labeled this “ideal tonal
color” chiaroscuro. Literally translated, chiaroscuro means clear and dark. In muscular terms, when a
singer’s voice possesses chiaroscuro, all the tones of his complete range possess a perfectly-proportioned
percentage of each both the chestvoice and the head voice’s tonal qualities and muscular contributions—
the inherent “darkness” of the head voice, and the clear “brightness” of the chest voice.
The First Ascending Scales
Figure 1
i(ee) -- -- i(ee) -- -- i(ee) -- --

e(eh) - - e(eh) - - e(eh) - -

Figure 2
i(ee) -- -- i (ee) - --
e(eh) - - e(eh) - -
With Figures 1 and 2 (above) the widely-spaced intervals between the notes of each exercise,
force the singer to utilize the principles of the messa di voce, in order to perform these exercises correctly.
When ascending from the bottom note of the pattern, to the next top note, the singer starts the first note
softly, swells it, then softens it again to facilitate the ascent to the next, top note. By applying breath
tension in this manner, it helps the singer avoid dragging the negative aspects of the chest voice upward
from the first note. to the higher second note. It is impossible for the singer to perform a widely-spaced
interval (in a smooth, musical fashion,) without calling into play the principles of the messa di voce. The
widely-spaced intervals of each exercise help the singer discover two important factors about ascending
the vocal range.
1) The correct method of “shifting” from the throat sockets of first notes, of all of these
exercises. to the upper throat sockets of the seconds notes, plus—
2) The correct method of withholding power or core brilliance, so it is only brought into
play at the singer’s discretion, through the swelling of the tone.
Many American students have great difficulty in producing a correct Italian detached falsetto i
(ee) vowel. When that be the case, the singer should establish an open throated a (ah) vowel tone, then
slowly change it to an open i (ee) vowel, while a strong current of the breath stream is flowing. During the
transition from the a (ah) vowel to the i (ee) vowel, the singer must raise his tongue upward, out of his
lower throat channel, and place it into his mouth cavity. Then he must make the center area of his tongue
form a mound, with its top section imitating the curve of his hard palate, located just above it. Then he
must move the tip of the tongue forward, toward his lower front teeth.
The singer should allow himself some temporary “slipping about” with these tones, as he moves
from the lower tone to the upper tone of each exercise.
The exercises of Figure 3 (below),employ the open-throated i (ee) vowel which serves to connect
all the tones to each other in a "tightly-fitted" fashion, with no "gaps" between them. While ascending the
pattern, it is critically important for the singer to guide all the tones of the scale along the vertical,
posterior, backward curving ascent of the vocal tract. The singer may raise and lower the keys of these
three exercises and make personal observations.
Figure 3
i (ee) - - - - - - - - i (ee) - - - - - - - - i (ee) - - - - - - - -
These three exercises require a great deal of "breath energy". Unless these scales are correctly
directed along the backward, curving, ascending vocal tract, there is a likelihood that the open i (ee)
vowel could “break away” from the desired posterior, vertical ascending line, and instead, incorrectly
stray forward toward the mouth cavity and toward the front teeth. When approaching the second and third
tones of these exercises, if the singer senses that this is going to happen, he can avoid it by mentally
placing a hollow u (oo) vowel in front of each successive, higher pitch. This will keep both the open i (ee)
vowel, and the scale itself, heading in the proper, ascending direction. The keys of these exercises should
be raised and lowered according to the singer's judgments.
The nature and important functions of the

“focal points” that intrinsically line the vocal tract
When we consider the varying intensities of breath pressure, being applied to any given tone, in order to
develop its strength, that stress must be directed to the pitch’s “hookup point”. These important “hookup
points”, must first be discovered by the singer, The development of a particular hookup point begins with
the tiniest of detached— (from the chestvoice)— falsetto starter-tones, utilizing a detached falsetto's i
(ee) vowel. The detached, falsetto i (ee) vowel first locates the undeveloped hookup point for the singer,
and precise where, along the full length of resonance channel, it is located. No two focal points occupy
the same space, otherwise, there would not exist individual pitches of the singer’s complete range. Each
focal point, in turn occupies a different position within any of the resonance cavities that intrinsically
lines the full length of the resonance channel. If you own a grand piano, (not an upright one), lift the
cover of its sounding-board, and take note of the many in which its wire strings are positioned. At the
bottom of the piano’s range are located the longer thicker wire string, then progressing to the piano’s
higher range of pitches the string incrementally grow shorter and thinning. This same length with width,
thickness/thinness factors occurs with the singing voice, and they are represented by these focal points.
For the singer to understand the precise location of any particular hookup point, the tone selected
for exercise must be sung with the softest possible volume and the purest detached falsetto i (ee) vowel.
When breath pressure is applied to the falsetto i (ee) vowel tone to strengthen it, there is a tendency for
the tone to stray from its precise focal point, and for its vowel to distort. If this happens, the singer must
immediately return to the softest possible volume. This will allow the purity of the vowel to be restored,
and to permit the lost, precise focal point to once again reveal itself. The initial state of each individual
weakness and undeveloped focal-point tone conveys little of what it will be capable of accomplishing for
the singer, after it has been fully developed. The singer may have to perform many applications of the
messa di voce exercise, with the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel before it’s “needle-like” point establishes a
solid, precise, fixed center, embedded into the sinus tissue of the presently selected pitch. Once that
precise, fixed center has been establish, it is easily refound, over and over, whenever a new messa di voice
exercise is being applied to that specific pitch, in order to fully develop it.
All developed focal-points enable the tones that are attached to them to evolve into beautiful,
powerful, and highly controllable singing tones, which possess all the precisely proportioned needs of
both the head voice and the chest voices’ positive muscular contributions.
When fully developed, each individual falsetto i (ee) vowel focal-point invites the contributions
of the chest voice—“solid, core brilliance” and “projecting power”, totally on its own, without the
singer’s urgings. Each of these individual hookup-points (of the complete range), possesses its own
unique character, and each hook-pup point reacts differently to each of the five vowels, u (oo), i (ee), e
(eh), o (oh) and a (ah).

In the post Bel Canto period, a specific focal-point, to which the singer was attempting to connect
the chest voice power to, was called un gancio, in Italian, or a hook. As the student was nearing
completion of creating a certain hook-up, “focal point”, the old master-teacher would instruct him to
direct the breath force to the center of the hook-up point, intensify it, and then thread the chest voice
power through it, by swelling the tone's volume, guiding the force of the breath which accomplishes that
factor, with the help of the mixed voice mechanism. “Guide point of the thread through the eye of the
needle?”
The "mixed voice" or the middle-falsetto
As the muscles of the falsetto increase in strength, through repeated performances of the swelled-
tone exercise, they eventually enable the singer to thread all of the power of the chest voice through the
falsetto starter-tone, resulting in the singer coming to possess a muscular mechanism called the “ mixed
voice”, for controlling and uniting the actions of both the registers, with every tone of his complete range.
However, the mixed voice is not available to the singer until after the antagonistic responses of each
register to the other register, has been completely eliminated.
The swelled-tone exercise, while in the process of mollifying the “raw” energy of the chest voice,
also strengthens the muscles of the detached falsetto voice, it also gradually changes in its sound quality,
and in its basic muscular actions. All the detached falsetto tones begin to lose their "false" or "unnatural"
sounds, which at the beginning of training kept them from revealing to the singer, and his listeners, the
future sounds they would eventually come to possess. The falsetto tones begin to sound like miniature
versions of the chest voice's tones, with hints of “chestvoice” solidity swirling about, within them. Yet,
they still retain their original falsetto muscular controls integrity, now advanced greatly, and they add
“sweetness” and “youthfulness” to the selected tone.
The advancing, detached falsetto tones change so that, while their strength increases significantly,
their volume, on the other hand, shrinks to almost a whisper. This is because, in their advanced state, all
of their former weak throat sockets have been brought into closer approximation with the throat-sockets
of all the chest voice tones, far below them. This means that, whenever the singer desires to transport the
muscular actions of the chest voice upward in his range, the use of the messa di voce exercise, to attach it
to an advanced, falsetto, starter-tone, on a single pitch, he may smoothly and spontaneously join both
registers together. This spontaneous “bonding together” of the two registers, at the singer's command, is
generally referred to as “quick tonal response”.
The mixed voice should not be confused with mezza-voce singing, which means singing with
diminished volume. The mixed voice has been given many other names, many of which will be mentioned
later in this manual. Whatever the singer wishes to call it, is of no major importance. What is important,
however, is that its structural creation and functional importance must be recognized, mastered, and
skillfully applied, by all singers who aspire to becoming "great." No singer can quickly come to possess
of the mixed voice, since it does not appear until the swelled-tone exercises have been applied repeatedly,
over a long period of time. When the mixed voice mechanism does become available with every tone of
the singer’s entire range, he may observe that it automatically alters the participation of the chest voice’s
action, most positively, especially when performing all ascending scales.
The mixed voice mechanism, by nature of its thinly structured form (pointed and needle-shaped),
allows the singer to negate the bulk and weight of all tones, then transport them smoothly along the full
length of the resonance channel, in both ascending and descending directions. Each tone of a rising scale
must be started with the mixed voice mechanism, and the throat-socket of the starter-tone must be
exceptionally small in size and limited in its power, since, only then may the singer bring the selected
starter-falsetto-tone to a quick fulfillment, by adding the vibrant power of the chest voice to the starter-
tone.
Another important thing to note about the mixed voice is that, although it controls the joining and
separating of the both registers, both the head voice and the chest voice remain forever two different and
separate entities, which individually function separately, yet simultaneously with each other, with the help
of the mixed voice. The detached falsetto, too, always remains a separate, individual entity. All three
mechanisms of control, the detached, falsetto voice, the mixed voice, and the connected voice can be
employed separately by the singer, or in unison with each other. Of course such superior singers, who
posses superior skill with these three separate mechanism of control, are but few, these days. But the
glorious voices of such operatic superstars, such as, sopranos Zinka Milanov, Renata Tebaldi, baritone
Leonard Warren, tenors Beniamino Gigli, Jussi Bjöerling, mezzo-soprano Giuletta Siminiato, and many
other greats, which limited space prohibits them being mentioned, are readily available to present-day
students on CD recordings.
When the detached falsetto grows in strength to the point that it “invites” the actions of the mixed
voice to manifest itself to the singer, from then onward, there remains a subtle difference between the
detached falsetto and the mixed voice. When there is confusion, as to how to make a distinction between
the detached falsetto and the mixed voice, the singer should note the different percentages of breath-
support energy required by each, in order to produce it. The detached falsetto requires a very modest
amount of breath-support energy to produce it. On the other hand, the mixed voice requires a greater
amount of breath-energy support to produce it, almost as much as when the full chest power has been
added to a selected tone, since one of mixed voice’s benefits is for it to immediately connect itself to the
full voice mechanism, in a soft, “standby mode”, ready and waiting for the singer to bring the selected
tone to total fulfillment. Only an advanced singer, or a truly qualified voice teacher, can easily distinguish
the differences between the detached falsetto and the mixed voice’s mechanisms of control. Or another
great singer, who himself, possess both mechanisms of control. This is because, in their advanced stage of
development, both mechanisms sound rather alike, and both mechanisms, when first evoked, are capable
of remaining extremely soft, while occupying the smallest of possible throat-space, until the singer is
ready to brings them to fulfillment.
The “Witch’s Voice”, or “la voce stregata”
One peculiar, but interesting transitory phases which the falsetto voice goes through, on its way to
becoming the mixed voice mechanism, is called the witch’s voice, so named because of its harsh, strident,
unmusical sounds. The witch’s voice should be welcomed by the singer, as it marks the beginning of the
end of his “closed phase” of vocal training. The beginning of the "open phase" allows him to produce
some of the witch voice’s sounds which, even though they are loud, harsh, and edgy, and of an
unprofessional standard, are nevertheless precursors of the great squillo tones of a first-rate singer. The
term squillo means to “blare” or “ring out”, and squillo tones “skyrocket” over the orchestra, outward
into the theater. Only those singers who have subjugated the power of the chest voice’s force and
transformed all its tones, with regard to their precise weights and shapes that can fit perfectly into the
narrow contours of the upper head voice tract are privileged to sing squillo tones.
These squillo tones are most compatible with the i (ee) and e (eh) vowels. But with advanced vocal
structuring, tones employing the o (oh) and a (ah) vowels also come to possess the “ringing and
projecting” qualities and attributes of the i (ee) and e (eh) vowels’ squillo tones. The a (ah) vowel's
version of the witch voice can be heard when the singer sings a pitch utilizing the sound of the word at.
Very few American voice teachers realize that all their students may be easily able produce’
"dark”, “soft”, “mellow” tones produced by the a sound of the word “father”. While these tones may
seem to be mixed with the head voice, they are, in reality incorrect and muscularly incompatible with the
head voice range. When this be the case, the only antidote for these dark, incorrect lower register sounds
which have been modeled on the word father, is for the teacher to apply the a (ah) vowel's version of the

witch voice sounds to the singer lower octave. This witch voice version of the a (ah) vowel is slightly
shrill and bright, and can be found in the word at. This at sound may be applied over and over to the
singer’s lower range tones, for a brief period of time. Then after, all these same lower range tones, must
be “rounded-off” and “mellowed” away from all shrillness, by applying the sound found the o (oh)
vowel to them, and the sound found in the in the word hot.
During the last century's 30s, many foreign born voice teachers, teaching American singers, here
in America, fully realized the above, concerning most American singer’s lower range tones. And, one
important American teacher, Herbert Witherspoon, was acutely aware of the above principle. Herbert
Witherspoon was a very successful Metropolitan Opera basso, for many years. And, like William
Shakespeare—the singer, not the writer—he was also a pupil of the famous Italian voice teacher
Lamperti, and he stated:
"...the a (ah) vowel of the words father and law cause incorrect, low-larynx positioned tones in
the lower register, which are incorrect, with regard to their proper relationship to the upper middle, and
top ranges. The lower register's tones will benefit more by using the sounds contained in the words found
at and hot."
Herbert Witherspoon
The sounds of the witch’s voice, parented by the advanced success of the swelled-tone exercise,
are a sure sign that the mixed voice mechanism of muscular controls will soon appear. The master
teachers of the past labeled these transitory vocal sounds the voce di strega, or witch’s voice, or the
“witch’s cackle.” This witch’s cackle has great affinity with the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel, when it is
created by an exaggerate breath stream, to assure and maintain its total detachment from the chest voice’s
muscular controls. Baritones can produce these witch’s voice’s falsetto i (ee) vowel sounds on several
tones of his range, from Fn above middle C, and upward to the high C, above it, using some “Hee-hee-
hee!” sounds. It is interesting to note that when both male and female singers, who cannot be seen by
their listeners, produce the witch’s cackle, their voices sound so alike that it is hard to tell which sounds
are produced by the male or the female voice. This demonstrates how, in certain “overlapping” sections
of the complete vocal ranges of both female and male singers, when certain muscular maneuvers of the
vowels and the vocal registers are employed, they produce almost identical sounds, with both male and
female voices.
As the “witch’s voice” develops further and its sounds mellow, their transition from undesirable
qualities to a superior qualities—the mixed voice—it instructs the singer as to the nature of the various
muscular maneuvers that may employ a variety of interesting and superior vocal sounds. For example, the
soft, muted sound of a tone started with a pianissimo dynamics, opens up with brilliant resonance, as the
power of the chest is added to it, with the aid of the mixed voice. Or, a dark u (oo) vowel, produced at the
lower end of the range, suddenly becomes a bright sound when it is changed to a properly produced i (ee)
vowel or an a (ah) vowel, with the aid of the mixed voice. When the singer has learned all the potential
muscular maneuvers and its various rich and interesting timbres, which the skillful use of the mixed voice
is capable of producing, it enables him to express a wide range of varied tonal colors, reflecting the
varying emotions of the musical text at hand.
Only the muscles of the head voice (or pharyngeal-tract), can be permanently altered in shape.
then stretched downward in the range, and made to encompass all the tones of the lower register. The
messa di voce exercise permanently transforms the muscles of the chest voice, away from their original
“thickness” and excessive weight. As the muscles of the head voice are changed, with regard to their
throat-spaces, they automatically exert a significant physical change upon the muscles of the chest voice,
shrinking their throat-spaces, without having to call them into play. Thereby, their negative, thick
vibratory mass and undesirable weight factors become automatically altered and reduced.
Accomplishing the above factors means that, the singer is no longer unconsciously prohibiting the
“shortening-or-lengthening” or “thickening-or-thinning” of his vocal cords, while actually singing, and
especially while ascending his range. These factors will then be automatically adjusted, as an ascending
vocal exercise, or vocal phrase encounter the “thinner shaped” muscular contours of the vocal tract, and
are gathered and transformed into thinner versions of their former selves. Only then may the sound
waves, created by the vocal cords, travel freely along the full length of the resonance channel. The singer
is then free to turn his attention to other critical technical factors, vitally important, for superior singing,
other than dealing with the thickness/thinness factors.
A less ideal approach to connecting the action

of the chest voice to the developed falsetto Two swelled-tone exercises to be used in preparation
for the esclamazio viva exercises that follow.
Another, “less deal approach” to connecting the

full chest voice power to the developed, falsetto voice is
one which utilizes the breath-dynamics of the esclamzio
viva exercise. This approach is only preferable for those
u (oo) - i (ee) -e (eh) u - (oo)- i (ee) -e (eh)
students (usually large-voiced singers), who, after having
performed a great many falsetto exercises, still find it
rather difficult to accomplish the messa di voce.
The esclamazio viva exercises
Before performing any of the forthcoming exclamazio viva exercises, it is recommended that the
singer to do some preparatory exercises. With the preparatory exercise #1, above, the singer establishes a
single pitch with the detached falsetto u (oo) vowel. Then slowly, and without taking a new breath, he
changes the u (oo) vowel to an i (ee) vowel, then to an e (eh) vowel. Then he gradually swells the e (eh)
vowel tone to an ff dynamic. Then, he abruptly terminates the tone (rather than softening it again, as
preferred). If success was had, the singer must endeavor to recall all the physical sensations, experienced
in his throat, and used them, when performing the exercises below.
Figure 1
e (eh) - - - - - e (eh) - - - - e (eh) - - - -

(ee) -- -- -- -- -- i (ee) -- -- -- -- i (ee) -- -- -- --
Figure 2
e (eh) -- -- -- -- e (eh) -- -- -- -- e (eh) -- -- -- --

i (ee) -- -- -- -- i (ee) -- -- -- -- i (ee) -- -- -- --

The keys of these above exercises may be raised and lower, and observations and judgments
The “inverted” tone
When any particular falsetto tone reaches an advanced stage of development, the singer gains
sufficient muscular control of it to add to or subtract from it, various percentages of the chest voice’s
vibrant power. However, when the greatest percentage of chest voice power has been correctly added to
any tone, it automatically demands an increased amount of breath-energy output, from the singer. This
means guiding the tone toward a specific throat position or “focal point”, then to inverted tone.
Frequently, an inverted tone is described as being “round”, “effortless”, “floating” and “professional
sounding.” Achieving an inverted tone requires: 1) maximum muscular development of all the falsetto
tones of the Top Range; 2) carrying that falsetto, Top Range strength downward in the range, and making
it overlap and influences all the tones of the chest voice. At a critical point in the development of a
particular detached falsetto tone, its advancing muscular controls inform the singer that he is now obliged,
to stop using the chest voice’s muscular controls completely and to transfer the tone in question’s
muscular controls completely over to the muscular control of the head voice. At this point, and forever
thereafter, all five vowels must also be produced in a new muscular way, they must all be “inverted”.
From now on, he must establish any new vowel “throat-socket” for all this lower tone, from
middle C, downward to the bottom of his range. To accomplish that, he must by loop the new tone’s
accompanying vowel, whether it be an i (ee), e (eh), o (oh) or a (ah), vowel through the throat-socket an u
(oo) vowel’s , and/or in some cases, through the throat socket of the o (oh) vowel. By the singer doing
that, it will automatically convert the tone, and its accompanying vowel, into an inverted tone. The singer
must take special note that, this is not merely an abstract mental concept, but rather a tangible, physical
accomplishment. This new “pronouncement method” is a radical departure from ordinary speech and it in
now way employs the muscles of ordinary speech. All the above requires ultimate mastery of the
energized breath stream.
The singer will only know for sure if he has actually converted any selected pitch into an
“inverted tone”, when he understands that and “inverted tone” can only be evoked, then facilely and
steadily sustained, for quite a long time, by the breath stream’s energy, otherwise the tone will fall
downward in the range, and into the negative controls of the chest voice. If the breath stream is suddenly
cut-off from the presently sung tone, even momentarily, it should not be judged to be a “floating,
inverted”. With any and all inverted tones, when the amount of breath within the singer’s lungs runs out,
the tone’s prolongation is automatically terminated.
After the singer has mastered the technique of inverting a tone, he must then perform some
exercises with it, involving the u (oo), the o (oh), and the AW vowels. See the illustration on the previous
page.
The singer selects a tone, with the u (oo) then passes on to the o (oh) vowel, then to the AW
vowel. Once this has been accomplished, the singer may clearly observe the correctly inverted throat
positions which these three breath-flow-enabling vowels physical accomplish. Then the singer may
perform another set of exercises using the i (ee), and e (eh ) vowels, in the following manner: He selects a
tone with the u (oo) vowel, passes on to the o (oh), then the AW, and finally to the i (ee) vowel. Then, with
yet another exercise, the singer passes from the u (oo) vowel, to the o (oh) vowel, then the AW vowel,
and finally the e (eh) vowel. Then he stops to consider the experience, and its results.
When a singer has achieved maximum muscular development of the u (oo) vowel with any given
tone, it grants him high potential to perfect the messa di voce exercise with it. And, he can “thread” the
chest voice’s power through the u (oo) vowel's throat position, with the i (ee), e (eh) and o (oh) and a (ah)
vowels, on all tones of his complete range. For the singer, this creates many new physical sensations and
mental concepts, regarding superior singing.
For a superior singer, the Vocal Platform tones (soon to be discussed), create the “rest area” of
his complete range for him, while he is actually singing. But, if the Vocal Platform has not been
structurally realized, it will represent, for the inferior singer, “hardest work area” of his complete range, in
which to sing. The Vocal Platform's tones possess a facile, highly mobile ability to “slide” upward and
downward, along the vocal tract. And when ascending the range, to pass smoothly through the register's
break area, then easily ascend above it, to his Top Range. This smoothly-sliding behavior of the correctly
structured Vocal Platform’s tones, is indigenous of superior singing. Just as surely as “pushing” a tone or
group of tones upward in the range, is a surely a sign of inferior singing.
The platform's tones are able to slip freely about because they are “not attached”, nor “anchored”
to any particular area of the resonance channel, by the negative muscular influence of the chest voice.
Physically, they are sort of “free-floating”, since they are primarily created by the breath force, and
therefore, they can be easily directed, by the singer, along the full length of the resonance trace, by the
mixed voice mechanism, especially so, when using a breathy i (ee) vowel. And, by modeling the
movements of the remaining four vowels, the u (oo), the o (oh) and the e (eh) vowels, upon the same
unfettered, “sliding” manner which a “breathy, sliding” detached falsetto i (ee) vowel” has instructed the
singer.
When the inversion of all tones of the complete vocal range has been fully accomplished, an
illusion is created by the singer, for his audience, that the “pronunciation” of all the inverted tones’
vowels are the same as the vowels of his speaking voice, but with a highly musical quality added to them.
Of course, his listeners’ aural perceptions are incorrect. Unlike the limited range and often unclear
pronunciation of the speaking voice's vowels, the inverted, instrumental vowels can be clearly
“pronounced” and readily understood with all tones, throughout the singer’s entire vocal range, and even
in the registers' break area, and Top Range, provided the singer is a master at applying the breath force to
them.
Some individuals believe that inverted tones can be created by “dropped jaw” and/or “open-
throated” maneuvers. Both of these proposals are inaccurate methods of creating inverted tones. Since
neither of these “open throat” nor the “dropped jaw” maneuvers and positions are generative of
“inverted tones”; they are solely responsive and symptomatic. Inverted tones can only be created by
correct registers’ development. which in turn, causes correct throat and lower jaw responses.
The “Vocal Platform”
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register, and they automatically group themselves closely together. In that state, they create a horizontal
dividing line, Below this dividing line, from Bf below middle C, downward to the very bottom of the
singer’s range are situated the singer’s lower tones. And, from Bf below middle C, upward to the very
top of the singer's range, are situation the singer’s top tones.
The Vocal Platform’s tones can only be evoked and maneuvered by three important muscular
mechanisms: 1, the detached falsetto, 2, the mixed voice, powered by the force of breath. All the Vocal
Platform’ tones must be capable of being expanded from minimum volume to maximum volume, then
returned to minimum volume, on the same pitch, without stopping to take a new breath. And they must be
capable of produce the five classic Italians vowels u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah), with perfect
clarity and individual distinction with each and every Platform tone. Notice, I stated that these pure
vowels were “produced”, not pronounced, since they are generated by arrangements of the upper
posterior area of the throat, and currents of breath, exclusively. Essentially, the Vocal Platform is created
by perfecting the messa di voce with the detached falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel.
The singer should first begin to developed his Platform’s pitches, with the u (oo) vowel and the
hollow o (oh) vowels, then proceed to the i (ee) vowel, then the e (eh) vowel.
All of the vocal platform's five halftones will have reached their maximum muscular development
when the correct a (ah) has been accomplished, with all of them. But this particular “platform” a (ah)
vowel must be periodically checked by the singer, against becoming shrill and spread, causing a “rigid
lower jaw”, by attaching itself to the muscular activities of the chest voice. In that happens, the singer
should set the a (ah) vowel aside for a while, “round off” all the platform’s tones by performing many
single, sustained, detached falsetto tone exercises, with all of the platform’s five half-pitches, starting
with a hollow u (oo) vowel, then, without taking a new breath passing on to the detached falsetto, hollow
o (oh) vowel. Then singer then stops the exercise at that point, and evokes any of the platform’s five half
tones, with the hollow u (oo) and/or o (oh), gradually changes which every of the two has been chose,
then he passes on the detached falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel, then swells the pitch toward an ff
dynamic, then diminishes it back to a pp dynamic. Then he should rest his voice for a day or two.
Upon returning to his singing voice, to check it out, he should not exercise is voice. Instead, he
should sing one or two classical Italian songs.
A correctly produced a (ah) vowel (wherever in the range it is being sung),automatically and
undeniably brings into play the maximum percentage of chest voice’s positive contributions to the tone.
However, many successes with these Vocal Platform tones, on the a (ah) vowel, grants the singer the
much desired “open-throated” vocal production, associated with superior, professional singers. The
accuracy of the a (ah) vowel can be judged, by whether or not, it is being produced exclusively with the
breath flow, and that it can be started with a ppp dynamic, gradually swelled toafff dynamic, then facilely
returned to the original the ppp dynamic, on the same pitch, without stopping to take a new breath.
It is only when all these platform tones reach maximum development and they are completely
dominated by the muscular controls of the head, and are all “inverted tones”, produced exclusively by
strong currents of the breath, mixed with the brilliant vibrations of the vocal cords, that they are
completely free from all anchors or attachments to particular section of the complete range, that they are
truly ready to serve the singer, in his endeavors to sing in a superior manner.
By utilizing the vocal platform’s tones advantageously, the singer can smoothly start an
ascending exercise scale, or vocal phrase with one of the platform’s half-tones, and ascend the vocal
range upward, above the Vocal Platform, to any and all Top Range tones, without any restrictions
“pulling them negatively back downward, in the range.
The singer should think of all his lower tones, below middle C, as the softer area of his complete
range, and evoke them softly and gently, with the manner of a sigh. He should think of all the tones of his
Vocal Platform (his “middle range”), as the slightly louder area of his complete vocal range, and evoke
any and all of them gently, but in a slightly louder manner, than the way he evokes his lower range. And
finally, he must understand that the tones of his Top Range, are the loudest tones of his complete range.
This does not mean that the his Lower Range should not be sung with a loud volume, when that is
required. Nor does it mean that, his middle, or Platform tones, should not be sung loudly, when that’s
desired. Nor that his Top Range tones should always be sung loudly, but they may be sung softly, when
that is required. But it does mean that, for the greater portion of a singing endeavor, whether it be a simple
song, an operatic aria, or entire operatic scenes, the singer must continuously subdue the volume of the
middle and lower areas of his complete range, and only sing his Top Range tones loudly. When singing a
soft Top Range tone, the loud volume factor is merely held back, while the sing displays the softer,
falsetto controls of the tone, to his listeners.
There is a understandable reason why we have such “one dynamic” singing today, with only loud
to louder applications of the breath-dynamics being offered. It is because most contemporary singers have
not had the lower octaves of their vocal singing voices restructured in a way that subjugates the raw
volume of the chest voice to the controls of the head voice muscles, which when properly accomplished,
grants the singer both soft and loud, breath dynamics. Now, with his with his Middle and Top Range,
when the raw energy of his chest voice tones, has been properly transformed, and is being determined by
the controls of the head voice, singing loudly in the Middle and Top Range, can be properly managed,
when that “loudness” can be reduced, via the decrescendo”, back to a ppp dynamic.
Besides greatly reducing and regulating the “work load” of all the dynamics, necessary for
superior singing, the vocal platform reduces the muscular movements involved in “pronouncing” all the
vowels and consonants. But, when the raw and unwieldy energy of the chest voice has not been
subjugated to the restraining controls of the head voice, the muscular movements that produce the vowels

and consonants make clumsy, exaggerated movements, resulting in unattractive, unmusical sounds.
The existence of the vocal platform allows the singer to “gather” and “reduce” all the muscular
movements of all the components, responsible for true and clear vocal pronunciation, into a “compressed
unit”, reducing their muscular movements to a minimum, and their energy needs, as well. The singer is
then able to focus his concentration and efforts almost exclusively upon produce the selected tone, which
is the greater challenge.
One of the major technical skills which the Vocal Platform grants to the singer, is that he is
always able to pre-judge the needs of both the chest voice and head voice' participation, with any and all
tones, then and regulate and adjust them with precision. With this advantage, all vocal tones and phrases
that original from within the vocal platform’s borders, then ascend further upward in the range, toward a
particular higher tone, or downward toward any lower tone, can be quickly “fine tuned”, thereby avoiding
any undesirable overloading of the chest voice’s weight, or faulty formation of the selected tone’s
particular vowel.
Frequently, when the developing Vocal Platform’s tones first make themselves known to the
singer, he may develop an exaggerated sense of their size, and erroneously think of them as being too
small and too thin, and without carrying power, in the same erroneously way that a small cavity in a tooth
can seem much larger than it actually is, when its filling falls out of it, and its owner probes into the
tooth’s cavity, with his tongue. These exaggerated, erroneous perceptions of the Vocal Platform’s tones
will pass, with further vocal development, and some experience in singing with them.
When the vocal platform has been correctly established, the singer will come to understand that
all the other tones of his complete vocal range, other than those of the vocal platform, are divided into
two main groups: the tones located above the platform represent one group, and all the tones situated just
below the vocal platform represent another group. And, that all his platform tones are the most
comfortable to produce, and they offer him his most comfortable base of operation, while actually
singing.
To facilitate superior singing, the singer must endeavor to direct and focus the tones of the
platform, and all the tones situated above it, upward and backward in his throat, and toward the top of the
vocal range. And that, he must constantly make a great effort, while actually singing, to prevent any
platform or Top Range tone to “sink downward”, towards his lower octave. At the same time, he must
endeavor to suppress the volume of all tones located below the vocal platform, maintaining them at a
lesser volume level than, all the tones of the vocal platform, itself, and all the tones situated above it.
When ascending the range from below the platform, the singer must make sure not to forcefully
push up any negative, excessive force of the chest voice, into the first tone of the vocal platform, which is
middle C. But this first Platform tone, middle C, must not be "under sung", either.
All superior singers never dispense with the inherent power of the chest voice. However, they
understand that chest voice power can only be used in its transformed state, that is, when it is operating in
a collaborative manner, with the muscular controls of the advanced developed muscles of the head voice.
But even in its “transformed” state, chest voice power creates a work load, while actually singing, that
can never be totally eliminated. Whatever percentage of the “work load” remains with one’s singing, after
correct and complete vocal structure has been accomplished, should be considered to be “positive
energy”, which with skill, can be realistically well managed, since it gives all superior voices their
vitality, an indispensable factor for bringing the music to life, that lifts his singing standards to a high,
thrilling pitch, which commands the full attentions and admiration of his audience.
Getting ready to sing, after vocalization
During the lengthy process of training his singing voice, the singer should frequently do some
singing, in order to check the progressive state of his developing voice, after he has subjected it to the
various exercises that have been presented thus far. However, before singing, he should do the following
exercises which prepare his voice for actual singing, as opposed to when he is exercising it. These
exercises involve tones selected from several critical areas of the baritone range, which will benefit from
performing the ideal passage through the five vowels—u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah).
Figure 1
Fig. #1 (above) tones are to be executed in the "detached falsetto" voice.

u-i-e-o-a u - i - e -o - a u -i -e -o - a u - i -e - o- a
Figure 2
u - i -e -o - a u-i-e-o-a u-i-e-o-a u-i-e-o-a
The tones of Figs. #1 & 2, (above), may be sung with the detached falsetto voice or the mixed
voice, and the same choice applies, with the exercises of Figure. #3.
Figure 3
u-i-e-o-a u-i-e-o-a u-i-e-o-a u-i-e-o-a
The exercises of Figure 4 deal with the lowest tones of the baritone’s range which frequently
suffer abuse, when the singer erroneously strives to produce excessively “dark”, “powerful”, and
“dramatic” qualities. Most lower-voice male singers often exaggerate the inherently “thicker” and
“darker” qualities and must maneuvers of his chest voice, which they assume gives their voices an
admirable “masculine quality.” This is folly, and show lack of artistic integrity. By practicing the ideal
passage of the five (5) vowels exercise, very softly, in the manner of a sigh, it will help the singer reduce
any abuse which these lower tones have suffered, and set the singer on the correct vocal path for correctly
producing them.
Figure 4
u-i-e-o-a u-i-e-o-a u-i-e--o-a u-i-e-o-a

The classic songs and arias of the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries
Some of the most vocally beneficial performance pieces are the 24 Italian Songs and Arias of the
Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century. They may be found in a single collection, at any reputable music
store. Here is a list of those I recommend. I have divided the list into two categories; those with slow
sustained movement, and those with fast vocal movement. Singers, whose voices are trained in a manner
that includes the muscular actions and qualities of both vocal registers, find these songs highly beneficial
to the development and discovery of their singing voices, and a delight to perform. Singers who rely
exclusively on the chest voice, ascending scales method of voice training, which almost exclusively
produces thick tones and limited control of dynamics, generally find these songs “difficult”, “boring”,
and “useless”. Of course, their negative attitudes toward these masterpieces is understandable, since a
faulty vocal technique forbids one to perform them properly.
The composers of these wonderful songs and arias were, in most cases, master singers and master
vocal-teachers, themselves. The dynamic markings and interpretative expressions inscribed throughout
these vocal masterpieces are usually in perfect harmony with the correct physiological laws of the singing
instrument. When observed, they give the singer a most helpful guide for achieving a healthy, consistently
well-functioning, superior vocal instrument.
Group 1: The Sustained Pieces:
1. Amarilli, mia bella G. Caccini

2. Comme raggio di sol A. Caldara
3. Sebben, crudele A. Caldara
4. Vergin, tutto amor F. Durante
5. Caro mio ben G. Giordani
6. O del mio dolce ardor C. W. Von Gluck
7. O cessate di piagarmi A. Scarlatti
8.Tulo sai G. Torelli
Group 2: The Flexible Pieces:
9. Per la gloria d’adorarvi G. Bononcini

10. Che fiero costume G. Legrenzi
11. Pur dicesti, o bocca bella A. Lotti
I2. Il mio bel foco B. Marcello
13. Nel cor più non mi sento G. Paisiello
14. Se tu m’ami, se sospiri G. Pergolesi
15. Già il sole dal Gange A. Scarlatti
16. Le Violette A. Scarlatti
17. Se Florindo è fedele A. Scarlatti
Understand that the songs from Group 1, with their sustained phrases, inherently add a greater,
positive percentage of chest voice participation to the singing voice, than do the fast-moving songs of
Group 2, with their flexibility of vocal movements. The sustained songs also beneficially “gather” all the
tones of a particular song into a close interrelationship with each other, while revealing to the singer how
advanced is his legato movement.
The fast moving songs of Group 2 enable the mixed voice to dominate every phrase. And, Group
2’s songs create a benign separation between tones, that slightly hampers the legato controls. This is so
because it is difficult to apply the appropriate amount of breath tension to any tone or phrase, when it is
"flying by" at a rapid tempo. It is desirable for the average beginner to make a careful study of the manner
in which all his tones are being produced. It is therefore more practical for the first songs, of any “singing
session”, to be chosen from the slow, sustained pieces of Group 1. These allow the beginner to more
closely scrutinize all technical matters.
Singers cannot hear the quality of their voices with the same reality as others do. And, the
physical act of singing often seduces the singer into an euphoric state of self-satisfaction, in which his
judgments of his vocal standards may become distorted. Therefore, it is wise for the singer to periodically
ask his teacher, vocal coach, or someone whose judgment he trusts, to tell him if the tones which he is
producing possess beauty, and/or if they are of a potentially professional standard. It is possible for a
singer to produce tones that seem correct and beautiful but are, in reality, unpleasant to listen to. It is up to
those individuals who are asked to judge the singer’s vocal tones to tell the singer the truth, as they
perceive it.
The “hollow u (oo) vowel”, and perfecting the "registers' break"
Applying many applications of the hollow u (oo) vowel to the registers’ break tones, is the most
productive way to resolve their problems.
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3
Hollow u (oo) u-i (ee)

- - - - i (ee) - - - - - - - -
u-i-e (eh)
Hollow u (oo) - - - - e (eh) - - - - - - - -
Hollow u (oo) - - - - u-i-e-o (oh) o (oh) - - - - - - - -
Hollow u (oo) - - - - u-i-e-o-a (ah) a (ah) - - - - - - - -
The main problem of the registers’ break tones, where the baritone voice is concerned, is that they
easily succumb to the negative rigidity of the chest voice. Most baritones are unaware that when they
perform ascending vocal exercises or vocal phrases, the tones from Bf below middle C, to the En above
middle C, must not be thought of as an extension of the lower register. Instead, it must be understood to
be the lower section of the “vocal ramp”. Or, stated another way, it must be thought of as the lower
section of the head voice’s muscular controls, that were overlapped downward from the Top Range, and
made to dominate all of tones from Gn above middle C, to the Bf below middle C. This purpose of this
overlapping the muscular controls of the head voice, over the muscular controls of the chest voice, is to
block the bulk and weight of the chest voice, when ascending from the bottom of the range, from entering
in passaggio’s pitches. The hollow u (oo) vowel exercises can help the singer to strengthen all the tones
of the “vocal ramp”, from Gn above middle C, to the Bf below middle C, so that they grown stronger
than the rising chest voice’s strength, and protect all the passaggio’s tones. The illustration above shows
several exercises which deal with the pitches of this “vocal ramp”. Some of the them are situated just
below the registers’ break, and others are situated just above it.
The standard u (oo) vowel starts off as the weakest, least revelatory, and seemingly the most
inconsequential vowel, of the five singing vowels. But with advanced development, all u (oo) vowel tones

may grow very strong, and in their individual way. However all u (oo) vowel tones must retain their
individual, velvety softness. But the advanced u (oo) possesses the unique ability to remain "hollow",
while granting to the singer a tone whose “throat socket” can be developed to a state of solidity and
strength, without compromising the u (oo) vowel’s purity of pronunciation. Therefore, it is this advanced
u (oo) vowel’s form, which, for convenience, we have called the “hollow u (oo) vowel.
As the standard u (oo) vowel grows in strength, its individual strength differences from the
strength of the remaining four vowels. The differences is that, the advanced u (oo) vowel’s strength never
manifests itself with a fully open throat-position, nor does it ever take on the same brilliance, as any of the
other four vowels. When power and strength is demanded of the standard u (oo) vowel, to responds to that
breath intensity demand, the standard u (oo) vowel must be maintained as a very narrowly focused beam
and making its throat-socket relate to the i (ee) vowel.
On the other hand, the hollow u (o) vowel throat-socket can be brought to the same advanced
strength as the other four vowels, provided that the singer does not attempt to fill in the hollow throat-
socket with cored brilliance, since, while growing to advanced strength, while maintaining its hollow
throat-sockets are the characteristic factors which are indigenous to it, and which distinguishes it from the
standard u (oo) vowel. The reason that the hollow u (oo) vowel is of great advantage to the singer, in his
attempt to bring all of his passaggio tones— Bf below middle C, to the En above middle C— to their
maximum potential development, is that the hollow u (oo) can progressively strengthen any of the
passaggio tone’s throat-socket, while it remains in a separate and detached state, from the chest voice’s
core vibrato.
The illustration on page 90 shows the tones of the passaggio (or registers' break area), which
must be subjected to the beneficial structural influences of the hollow u (oo) vowel exercises, in order to
bring them to the highest level purity and development. Of this group, the En above middle C must be
performed first, followed by the Ef, Dn, Df, and finally the middle Cn. All these same pitches, an octave
lower, reflect their own individual, present state of development, or lack of development, when they are
compared to these same pitches of the passaggio, situated an octave above them. Baritones must also
cultivate all these lower tones to their fullest potential, in a similar manner, use to advanced the
development of the same pitches, an octave above. But note that, after these lower range pitches have
been fully developed, they be sung more softly than the upper tones, and in the manner of a sigh.
The singer is obliged to create the proper “throat-position” in order to correctly “set-up” the
hollow u (oo) vowel. The singer should now to consider the correct “throat positions” of the middle C,
Df, Dn, Ef and En pitches should be. Here is some imagery factors that may help them: The "roof"
of the mouth-pharynx cavity, in which all these passaggio pitches are located, is the hard palate, which is
shaped like an arc. Therefore, the singer should think of his mouth-pharynx cavity, as a large, empty,
domed-shaped chamber, which he must fill to maximum capacity, with a breathy hollow u (oo) vowel. It
is the muscles that created this hollow, domed-shaped mouth-cavity, that the singer must direct the force
of the breath-stream, in order to strengthen them to their maximum potential. The singer may feel
confused about where, precisely that focal point is located, within his since the mouth-cavity, since those
muscles are seldom considered. The singer may understand how and where to apply the pressure of the
breath force, as he begins to apply it to the hollow u (oo) throat-socket, since the muscles of this lips and
cheeks may start to quiver, and indicate to him that, the “dome” of the mouth-cavity, which the singer has
been instructed to rigidly maintain, throughout this exercise, it is going to suddenly close, and in response
to that, he should quickly shut his mouth.
Now, with the exercises: Beginning with En above middle C, the singer starts the tone with a
soft, detached-falsetto tone, using the standard u (oo) vowel. Note that, the hollow u (oo) vowel produces
a “hollow”, “dull”, “non resonant”, “disembodied” sound, while taking on the identical shape of the
mouth cavity. The singer must not attempt to solidify nor focus the hollow u (oo) vowel. He must tolerate
this “lack of focus”, and despite it, endeavor to sustain the tone for as long as possible, by continuously
supplying it with a large amount of breath energy. This assures him that he has made proper contact with
the elusive muscles of the posterior area of mouth cavity. It is these same, elusive muscles that will
benefit from the hollow u (oo) vowel exercise.
For the duration of time that the hollow u (oo) vowel tone is being sustained, the singer’s lips
must be made to protrude outward, away from his teeth, adopting and maintaining an extremely rounded,
“fish-mouth” position. Because so much breath energy must be expended, and it seems to quickly
dissipate, performing the hollow u (oo) vowel exercise can be tiring. If the singer feels he is unable to
prolong any of these hollow u (oo) vowel exercises, to the exact rules prescribed, he must immediately
stop it. With subsequent attempts of the exercise, his capacity to maintain and sustain the hollow u (oo)
vowel’s throat- position, while adding greater amounts of the breath force, in order to continue
developing the tone.
Over an extended period of time, the singer must perform the hollow u (oo) vowel exercise with
all the remaining tones of the Vocal Platform, the Ef, Dn, Df and middle C, but always in a descending
direction. After gaining some experience with the first phase of the hollow u (oo) vowel exercise, the
second phase involves the gradual swelling of the tone. Remember that the singer has been instructed not
to focus or solidify tone, which to him, may seem counterproductive to the singer, to the effectiveness of
the exercise.
Here are some guidelines for coping with some of the conflict that generally arises, while
performing the hollow u (oo) exercises.
Select a tone located between middle C and the En above it. Quickly establish a hollow u (oo)
vowel, with a very soft dynamic. Start swelling the tone, while maintaining the hootiness, hollowness, and
lack of focus of the tone, which the “hollow u (oo) imposes upon it. At the first sign of chest voice
sensations, coming into play, the singer should momentarily think of the “throat-space of the o (oh)
vowel, which is slightly different from the u (oo) vowel, and seems “more solid”, and gives the singer a
clearly picture of how he will be able to maintain the hollow u (oo) vowels’ throat-socket, while at the
same time, apply the breath force to it.
During future periods of exercising the hollow u (oo) vowel, with the intention of adding
incremental increases of breath pressure to it, these increases must not cause the domed-shaped, throat-
socket of hollow u (oo) vowel to alter, even slightly, nor to collapse.
With the above experience fresh in the singer’s thoughts, he should now stop the tone, take a new
breath, then quickly establish a similar hollow u (oo) tone and its throat-space. That done, the singer must
change the hollow u (oo) vowel's throat-space to an i (ee) vowel’s throat-space. To accomplish the change
from the hollow, open u (oo) throat space to the open i (ee) vowel’s throat-space, the singer is obliged to
raise his tongue upward and out of his lower throat channel and place it into his mouth cavity. Once the
tongue is there, he must move its tip forward, towards his lower front teeth. Then he must make his
tongue central area hunch upward and form a mound, which imitates the shape of his hard palate, situated
just above his tongue.
Now, going backward a bit, with this exercise, and to the point when the singer starts to change
his throat-position from the hollow u (oo) vowel, to the new open-throated i (ee) vowel, he must release
the voice from the u (oo) vowel, by blowing a gush a breath into his mouth-cavity, and only afterward,
quickly move his tongue into his mouth cavity, in order to switch to the new open i (ee) vowel’s throat

position. Unlike the old “closed” i (ee) vowel, new i (ee) vowel must be updated to a fully open throat-
throated i (ee) vowel. This new, open-throated i (ee) vowel can only be created by connecting it to the
open throat-space of the hollow u (oo) vowel, then threading the chest voice’s power into it.
Later on, after the passaggio’s tones have grown strong, the same exercise must be performed,
but starting them with a fully open-throated a (ah) vowel, then changing the a (ah) vowel’s open- throat
socket to the open-throated i (ee) vowel, in a similar manner as was set forth above. Of course, when the
new “open” i (ee) vowel’s throat socket has been correctly established, then the vowel, the singer must
then gradually swell the tone to its maximum potential volume, then diminish it to its softest potential
volume. This is, of course, the main purpose of the second phase of the hollow u (oo) vowel exercise.
Standard u (oo) vowel ascending scales
If the critical tones of the passaggio, middle C and upward to the En above it, plus all the
halftones that are located between them, do not respond positively to the application of the hollow u (oo)
vowel, then the singer should perform a series of ascending scales with the standard u (oo) vowel, with
several tones below middle C. The purpose of these ascending, standard u (oo) vowel scales (see the
illustration
of the remaining
below),four
is vowel.
return the (oo) vowel
Byu“singing form”
to its
it is
“singing
meant that
form”,
theone
standard
that matches the “singing
u (oo) vowel is not being
forms”
forced away from all its inherent qualities and behavioral traits, such as it being “the softest vowel”, the
“least vibrant vowel” and possesses the “smallest throat-spaces”, relative to all tones of the complete
range.
Standard u (oo) vowel ascending scale
u (oo) -- -- -- -- u (oo) -- -- -- -- u (oo)-- -- -- -- u oo) -- -- -- --
Experiencing success with the hollow u (oo) vowel exercise usually creates a temporary darkness
of tonal color throughout the lower octave of the vocal range, and a feeling of exaggerated throat-space.
which often alarms the singer. The technical reason for this temporary darkness is that, they have become
extremely, head-voice dominated, which is appropriate to the standard and hollow u (oo) vowel’s exercise
purpose, in order to bring these tones to their maximum potential development. These extremely “dark
and dull” symptoms often last for days, and in some cases longer. However, when the singer puts the
hollow u (oo) vowels aside, rest his voice for a good period of time, then reinstates the core brilliance of
the chest voice to the same tones, by performing a few simple, ascending scales with the new “open” i
(ee) vowel, these symptoms quickly vanish. When the core brilliance of the chest voice has been
completely restored to all these tones, the benefits which the standard and hollow u (oo) vowel exercises
have given to them, readily reveal themselves, and to the singer’s satisfaction. Now all these tones
muscular controls’ have reached their maximal development potential, and they possess a superior tonal
quality, with increased brilliance and power than the singer had expected.
Giorgio Roncone’s amazing discovery,

concerning the hollow u (oo) vowel
The hollow u (oo) vowel’s main contribution to vocal structuring is that it can remove or “erase”
long termed, improper muscular activities from any selected tone. The hollow u (oo) vowel’s benefits
were first discovered by Giorgio Roncone (1810-1890), the famous baritone of Rossini’s time. It is
reported that Roncone was the first person to unravel the idiosyncrasies of the baritone voice, as well.
Before the appearance of Giorgio Roncone upon the operatic scene, the baritone voice, as we are familiar
with it today, was unclassified as such. Roncone named and inaugurated this new "Baritone" vocal
category. In Rossini’s time, such a voice was called a tenore di forte, or a “strong tenor”. In fact, Rossini
wrote the role of Figaro in The Barber of Seville for such a tenore di forte.
Roncone originally named these “hollow u (oo) tones” vuoto tones, meaning in Italian, “empty
tones”. This vuoto term helps to describe the temporary darkness and exaggerated “empty” throat-spaces
of these developing tones. While the hollow u (oo) is in the process of taking the muscular controls away
from the chest voice, it simultaneously reveals to the singer the shape and contours of the pharynx-mouth
resonance cavity. When it is time to add chest power back to a selected tone, it is toward the mouth-
pharynx cavity’s center, that that the chest voice’s power must be directed, and toward the detached
falsetto i (ee) which should be used to accomplish that task. The selected tone’s new, transformed form is
now that of a "movable chest power tone”. Understanding the nature of the “movable chest power
factor” is important, and it will soon be discussed. But, when returning the power factor to a particular
tone, the singer needs first to locate the tone’s precise focal point. The correct focal point of any selected
tone can be precisely discovered by gradually changing a hollow u (oo) vowel tone’s throat-socket to an
open-throated i (ee) vowel’s throat socket. The opened-throated, detached falsetto i (ee) vowel, if it is
being produced properly, with a strong force of the breath stream, will position itself precisely in the
center of the tone’s throat-space.
After Giorgio Roncone discovered the vuoto or hollow u (oo) vowel, and explained its benefits,
another great singer-teacher, Giovanni Sbriglia 3, discovered what he called his piccolo u (oo), or “tiny"
falsetto u (oo) vowel. Sbriglia achieved great results with his “tiny” falsetto u (oo) vowel, applying it to
the upper middle and top range of his female students voices. This helped them discover the precise
locations of the hookup points of all their Top Range’s tones, which are essential , when they perform the
messa di voce exercise. Sbriglia’s “tiny" detached falsetto i (ee) vowel also helped the singer to find the
precise center of a selected falsetto tone (the center of the "bull's eye”, so to speak), at which the singer
should direct the necessary breath force, in order to develop the selected tone.
Without the benefits of the hollow u (oo) vowel, the critical pitches of Bf and Bn, just below
middle C, plus middle C, and the C#, just above it, which have invariably had the negative force of the
chest voice “pushed upward” into them, would remain permanently “blocked, and undeveloped.” The
major reason why so many present-day singing teachers can not correctly train "Verdi Baritones" is
because they lack accurate structural knowledge for the—Bf, Bn below middle C, plus the middle C
and middle Cs!
Most present-day voice teaches erroneously treat these critical four pitches as if they were an
upward extension of the chest voice, which is a gravely mistaken concept. To correctly structure these
four pitch, they must be restructured to become the lower part of the head register's downward
overlapping, vocal “ramp” upon which all vocal exercises scales and ascending vocal exercise phrase, to
“ride” so as not to destroy the head voice’s dominance of the passaggio’s tones.
This created “ramp” factor was explained earlier.
3Giovanni Sbriglia (1832-1916), An outstanding Neapolitan tenor. His debut, San Carlo Theater—1853, New York
debut, Academy of Music—1860, with Adelina Patti in Bellini's La Sonambula. He taught in Paris in 1875. He
taught Jean de Reszke, Eduoard de Reszke, Pol Plaçon, Lillian Nordica, and Sybil Sanderson.

Select a pitch from the Top Range, Fn above middle C, upward, using an open-throated,
detached falsetto i (ee) vowel, produced mainly by the breath flow. Descend the range, tone-by-tone,
passing through the passaggio, until you reach the Bf, below middle C. Then apply the swelled tone
exercise to each of these individual tones, in a descending direction, until you can thread the full brilliant,
sparking i (ee) vowel’s the chest voice power, through the center of each of them. Accomplishing this
creates a “protective ramp” from Bf below middle C, then upward, into the passaggio tones, then past it,
and ascending to the singer’s the Top Range. Once this “ramp” has been structurally accomplished, (and,
it takes a long time to do so,) it will transfer the muscular controls of the Bf, Bn, middle C, and Cs
pitches away from the chest voice’s muscular controls, and give them over to the head voice’s muscular
controls.
Until vocal students change their thinking away from their old, incorrectly concepts, where the
above pitches are concerned, an over to this concept, they will continue to produce these above mentioned
“rigidly
pitches inforced”
a faulty,
“monochromatic”
chest-voice-dominated with "compromised,
tones, manner. Doing so results
ambiguous
in the singer producing
vowels", which lack proper
“thin”,
"core brilliance", and which can not be smoothly sung in an ascending direction with harming forced
passaggio tones.
Giuseppe Verdi, the great Italian operatic composer, often favored composing many measures of
vocal music, to be sung within the borders of the baritone’s vocal passaggio. When the passaggio’s
pitches remain "wrongly assigned to the muscular controls of the chestvoice," there remains no
alternative, than to repeatedly force the damaging raw power of the chest upward in the range.
The “gathered voice"
When the power of the chest voice has been correctly united to all the pitches of the advanced
falsetto voice through the use of the swelled-tone exercise, the mixed voice mechanism is eventually
created. The mixed voice mechanism controls the movements of all the muscles of the vocal instrument
and it is responsible for regulating various percentages of the both registers contributions, the various
dynamic levels of the breath force, the precise intonation of all pitches, and the “pronunciation” of pure
vowels. The mixed voice also helps the singer to properly manage the muscular controls of his tongue,
soft palate, lips, and cheeks; all critically important factors for clearly “pronouncing” the five classical
Italian vowels, and all consonants. The mixed voice gathers the entire singing voice into its narrowest
possible operating-form. When operating in that “closely-gathered” form, it greatly reduces all
cumbersome movements.
The great singer-teachers of the past called all these “advantageously compressed and restricted”
muscular movements of the passaggio tones, la voce racolta, meaning “the gathered” voice. When the
singer’s passaggio tones have all been developed to a very advanced stage, they automatically became
“racolta”, or gathered extremely close to each other. In that compressed state the singer can "pronounce"
(something vastly different than when using the muscles of the speaking voice), the vowels and
consonants with such minimal muscular movements, that these tones appear to the listener to be a single,
muscular unit. When a vocal phrase passes through the passaggio area, the gathered voice allows the
singer to edit the percentages of chest voice power, thereby limiting the possibility of the singer
producing awkward, clumsy, impure tones and vowels.
The dotted lines
represent the
manner in
which the thick
tones of the
chest voice are
forced to
conform, with
each rising tone,
to the
narrowing
contours of the
vocal tract.
vocal cords
The chest tone vibrations of an ascending vocal

scale, which generally have an undesirably thick and
bulky throat space, are automatically edited and
channelled into a thinner, less bulky throat space as
they are threaded into the vocal tract.
Above is an illustration of the way the voce racolta or "gathered" principle, while singing, operates.
When gathered, the passaggio’s tones help the singer to facilitate all the various breath-pressure
requirements, of a particular tone or vocal phrase, with precise accuracy. This allows the singer to facilely
sustain the selected tone, for its appropriate length of time. This ability is critically important, since the
breath pressure need, for various tones and vocal maneuvers, varies greatly, and shits rapidly.
For example: the singer’s successfully management of such difficult tasks as—varying the
amounts of breath tension, swelling or diminishing a tone, singing loudly or softly, coloring a tone’s
timbre darkly or brightly, alternating the breath tension, from full force to reduced force, vocal
movements, in any direction—upward and/or downward— especially when a widely-spaced interval is
involved. All these difficult vocal maneuvers can only be properly managed when the singer possesses the
mixed voice, and when all the tones of his complete range have become racolta, or "gathered.”
More about the "gathered voice" and “the voice of the throat”
As stated previously, when all the tones of the passaggio have reached an advanced state of
development they “gather” closely together. In that state, the old master-teachers of the past referred to
them as la voce racolta, “the gathered voice”, or the “voice of the throat” This macular mechanism was
so named because, after all the “organs” of the singing voice had been developed to their maximum
potential, they related muscularly to each other in perfect harmony. This gave singer's listeners a false
impression that they were all produced by one, single muscular system, which was the speaking voice.
These factors are probably what makes unqualified voice teachers insist that their students
produce all the tones of there complete range in a single, same exact place. This is not only ridiculous, but
it has evoked havoc upon the singing voices of most American vocal students, for more than sixty years
now.
In reality, each individual pitch of a superior singer's vocal range is positioned in a relatively

different spot, than all the other pitches of the singer's complete range. Furthermore, to first build a
superior vocal instrument, then sing with it, in a superior manner, the singer-student must become highly
aware of how to utilize the motor force of breath, in order to access each individual pitch, and then to
direct into its appropriate resonance cavity.
All the pitches of all singer's complete ranges are subdivided into smaller sections or “zones.”
Each of these separate “zones” is located within the borders of one of the resonance cavities. Each
individual resonance cavity is arranged, or “stacked above each other”, like a “Greek column”, and all
together, they make up the total length of the singer’s complete vocal range. At the bottom of the range is
situated the lower-throat’s resonance cavity, which is the least effect of all the resonance cavities. But it
is the resonance channel most favored by present-day American voice teachers, for some odd and difficult
to understand reason. Situated just above the lower-throat’s resonance’s chamber, is the mouth-pharynx
resonance cavity, which is frequently referred to as the “ the middle range” or “the passaggio”. The
precise functions of the mouth-pharynx cavity’s pitches are acknowledged to be the most difficult to
clearly understand, correctly structure, and to effectively employ.
Situated just above the mouth-pharynx resonance cavity, are the tiny resonance chambers of the
sinus cavities. Understanding the location of these sinus cavities can be partially understood by the singer,
when he produce the French nasal-sounds of in or en, while aiming the selected tone toward the area,
situated behind the bridge of his nose. And finally, situated at the very top of the singer’s range, are the
resonance cavities of the skull. They form the most effective resonance cavities, where the singer’s
listeners are concerned, since they produce the singer's most thrilling and most effective high notes.
When a singer becomes skillful in using his “gathered voice” to access a given tone which is
located within any of the above mentioned resonance cavities, that desired tone can only be evoked by the
force of the breath stream—and no other substitute method will accomplish that task. Of course, with
present-day singers, generally, these principle are totally unknown to them. But when these individuals
are informed about them, they quickly deem the knowledge of them remote and absurd, and they totally
dismiss them.
When most individuals, who are intensely involved with the principles and practices of vocal
pedagogy, discuss the resonance channel, their mental image-concept of it usually takes the form of an
architected column, such as one of the famous Greek columns. However that concept can be misleading,
when compared to resonance channel’s actual shape. It is not necessary for singers to know the precise
shape of resonance channel, but they must be made aware that it is not structured in a straight, vertically
ascending line, similar to a “Greek column!” It’s actual form follows a curved, vertically ascending line.
It is of great importance for the singer to understand why the above information is so important.
While actually singing, the singer’s task is to direct the breath-force along the full length of the ascending,
vertically-curved resonance channel, and into one of the various resonance cavities, in order to first evoke
a selected tone, then fulfill all its potentials. To successfully accomplish that task, the singer should
become thoroughly familiar with the precise shape of the resonance channel’s ascending pathway, in
order to properly navigate it, and direct the breath-force, which creates and sustains a selected tone,
towards its appropriate resonance cavity.
Considering the above, the singer who is not totally familiar with the resonance channel’s precise
shape and its curved, vertically–ascending pathway is greatly disadvantaged, when he is presented with
the task of directing the breath force along the resonance channel’s full length, in order to first evoke a
desired tone, then to properly direct it toward its appropriate resonance cavity.
It must be understood that, before proper restructuring, the full, free length of the entire
resonance is not available to the singer. This is so, because somewhere along the full length of the
resonance channel, all singers encounter a point of impasse, or a blockage of the breath force. This
blockage is due to inherent behavioral patterns of the singer’s tongue and his soft palate by blocking the
breath force from flowing through a specific area of the resonance channel, between the Bf below
middle C, and the Gn, situated above it. The tongue unknowingly collaborates with the soft palate, in
creating this undesirable impasse. Therefore, the tongue’s proper behavior and its positions, when singing
properly, must be learned and mastered.
The soft palate’s movements are basically upward and/or downward, and these movement operate
within a critically narrow section of the resonance tract, at the upper, posterior area of the mouth-pharynx
cavity. When the singer is singing within the borders of his Lower Range, below middle C, his soft palate
assumes an upward, raised position. That is well and good, but only when the singer is singing in his
bottom range. However, when he sing an ascending vocal phrase, into the register’s break area, the soft
palate’s position must be lowered and moved forward, facing the front of the mouth cavity. This
important for the singer to accomplish, in order for him to free the space behind the soft palate, so that the
full force of the breath-stream may pass easily behind it, then ascending further upward along the
resonance channel, and enter into the upper resonance cavities of his Top Range.
For the beginner-singer to become totally familiar with the methods use for controlling the proper
movement and placement of his soft palate and his tongue, he may want to read my 2005 vocal manual:
The Art of Singing on the Breath Flow.
In part, the singer utilizes the muscular controls of the gathered voice and the mixed voice, in
combination with various maneuvers of the detached falsetto’s version of the i (ee) vowels, to properly
arrange and maneuver the positions and movements of the tongue and soft palate, in order to allow him to
direct the breath force along the complete length of the resonance channel, and into the resonance various
cavities which intrinsically line it.
The “voce of the throat”
When a singer arrived at an advanced state of vocal development, and he reflects back upon his
earliermore
much phases of his vocalenergy
breath-force training,
washedemanded
comes toof
realize
him, than
that during
is presently
those needed. Only when all the
earlier, “voice-building phases”,
muscles of the vocal instrument have reached their maximum development, and they function in total
harmony with each other, does actual singing become much less effortful. Advanced muscular
development eliminates the inherent division and antagonism that existed between the two registers, plus
the negative weight and thickness of the chest voice, that existed, at the beginning of training, all of which
were the negative factors that caused him so much wasteful expenditure of energy, in order to produce
any and all pitches.
It has often been said that a superior singer “listens for” and can precisely “pre-hear” the tone
that he soon intends to produce, “split-seconds” before he actually sings it. In a way, that is true. But this
technique of pre-hearing and judging tones and phrases is only available to those singers who possess the
voce di gola, or the “voice of the throat”. And, the “voice of the throat” mechanism is only available to a
singer who has eliminated the antagonism of the registers, and can sing all five vowels purely.
When the singer assembles the muscles of his singing instrument, with the intention of
performing, this “voice of the throat” factor allows him to make critical judgments about the correctness
or incorrectness of his intended vocal maneuvers—split-seconds before the tone is actually launched. If
the singer judges that he has assembled the muscles of the vocal instrument in a less than desirable
manner, the “voice of the throat” allows him a "split-second", for muscular realignments and/or
modifications. These new alignments and/or modifications may manifest themselves, by the singer adding
or subtracting various percentages of the chest voice’s power, or by vowel modifications, or by his
reducing and/or increasing the dynamics of the breath stream, of a selected tone.

Only the singer who possesses the “gathered voice” and the invaluable “voice of the throat” can
achieve the advanced, “professional” levels of ease and poise of superior singing, which in turn, grant him
vocal artistry. At that advanced level, while preparing himself for a performance, the singer is almost free
from vocal anxiety. This is because he can partially predict the standard of his forthcoming performance.
Total, absolute prediction of any given performance is impossible, because of the very nature of the
singing instrument, itself, with its many movable components. Singing is a process of complex, muscles
maneuvers and thoughts, requiring the singer to satisfy many technical demands in a sequential, rapid-fire
manner. The superior singer accomplishes these astounding and complicated feats, with his vocal
muscles, similarly to those feats which a superior gymnast accomplishes, with the muscles of his entire
body.
All advanced students who possess the Vocal Platform and understand its positive potentials, and
utilize it as their “base of operation” are candidates for becoming superior singers. This is because the
Vocal Platform, when correctly structured, has become the particular area of his vocal range where he
feels most comfortable, and where he may “rest” his voice, and to refurbish his energy. When the vocal
platform functions as the singer’s base of operation, he tends think of it as the preferred area of his
complete range, from which he initiates all vocal maneuvers. When he is required to sing tones located in
the Top Range, the singer easily launches upward from the vocal platform, by limiting the platform tone's
bulk and weight, which assures him that none of the platform’s tones are in any way anchored. But after
these top range notes have been sung, he quickly feels an urge to return to the security and ease his Vocal
Platform tones.
If a particular section where the singer feels at easy is not the tones of the Vocal Platform, then
he must consider the possibility that his vocal development is et incomplete, and needs further, corrective
structuring. This applies to singers of all vocal categories, whose voices still possess excessive amounts of
chest voice weight and thickness in the lower range, which needs to be eliminated.
The tongue
We have dealt earlier with some of the problems which the tongue presents to the singer. And
now we will discuss a few more of them:
While singing, the positions and movements of the tongue, as well as those of the soft palate play
critically important roles in the structuring of a superior singing voice. It is of critical importance that the
needs of the tongue and soft palate should be addressed, at the very beginning of training. The problems
of the tongue and soft palate, when not properly resolved at the beginning of training, results in the
student erroneously utilizing the muscular controls of the chest register to manage his tongue and soft
palate, instead of appropriately using the muscular controls of the head voice. When this be the case, and
the singer later learns that he has not learned how to appropriately deal with the problems of his tongue
soft palate, his old, bad habits, in dealing with them in the past, may have become mentally ingrained,
making his present desire to change from the wrong muscles, to the appropriate muscles, an almost
insurmountable task. But if the singer makes a colossal effort to do so, his learning about his tongue and
soft palate’s proper needs can be definitely be accomplished.
The tongue, while singing, operating under negative influences of the speaking voice's muscles,
wrongly positions itself in the lower throat channel and blocks the breath stream from passing upward, in
order to reach one of the resonance cavities, to fulfill the presently sung tone. Where the soft palate is
concerned, when the singer performs an ascending exercise scale that start at the bottom of the range, and
it arrives at Bf below middle C, in order for him so ascend further upward, to the top of his range, his
soft palate must be lowered and moved forward, facing the front teeth. It should not be raised, and arched
upward, imitating the shape a gothic, church window, as is generally believed. The correct, lower and
forward position of the soft palate allows the breath stream to flow freely behind it, and enter into the
register's break area. Then, if the singer desires, he may direct the breath stream further upward, into the
his Top Range.
The exercises which properly deals with both the tongue and soft palate's positions and
movements utilize a breathy, open-throated, detached falsetto i (ee) vowel, applied to a selected pitch,
located above the registers' break. The Gn above middle C, is an ideal starting tone for these exercises.
Phase One of exercise instructs the singer to establish the Gn pitch above middle C, then
descend his range, tone by tone, to the Fn, then the En, then the Ef, then the Dn, then the Df, then
the middle C, then the Bn, and finally the Bf, situated below middle C, with this breathy, detached
falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel. While doing that, he must infuse each individual tone with an
exaggerated amount of breath flow, and a new breath for each individual pitch, The goal is to remove all
negative influences of the chest voice's muscular controls, from all these pitches. The detached falsetto i
(ee) vowel’s throat position must be based upon a silent, open-throated a (ah) vowel. While in that
position the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel automatically adjusts both the soft palate and the tongue, as to
their proper positions and movements, while actually singing. Doing all the above represents the first
phase of the exercise, which must be repeated, over and over, for a very long time.
The Second Phase of the exercise starts out in a similar manner as the first phase, still using the
open-throated, detached falsetto i (ee) vowel, positioned as described in the previous paragraph. However,
with phase 2, each individual pitch's volume is to be swelled, then diminished. Over a period of time, the
swelling process should be applied with incremental increases of the breath pressure. After both phases of
the exercise have been performed for a long period of time, the entire vocal range will feel a bit strange
and unfamiliar to the signer. The singer should not panic. These unusual feelings result, as a consequence
of repeatedly apply this extreme use of the open-throated, detached falsetto i (ee) vowel, over a long
period of time, which greatly limits, if not totally stops the flow of the breath-stream’s flow to all the
tones to which these exercise have been applied.
The singer must then rest his fatigued voice for a few days. When he returns to exercising his
refreshed voice, he must put the falsetto, open throated i (ee) vowel exercises completely aside. Then he
must return to exercising his singing voice, employing the u (oo), o (oh), a (ah), and AW vowels
exclusively, which will gradually restore the free flow of the breath stream to all of the tones of his
complete range. This will take a day or two to accomplish, depending upon how intensely the singer has
applied the power of the breath-force, with the detached falsetto, open throated i (ee) vowel, to all these
tones, during the first phase of these exercises.
It should be noted that the AW vowel is made up of a combination of the u (oo), o (oh) and a (ah)
vowels. During the 20s, 30s, and 40s years, of the last century, the AW vowel was very popular, both in
Italy, and throughout western European vocal training studios, for structuring the singing voices of
singers, of all vocal categories. But since it was a reparatory vowel, used to preset the throat positions of
certain pitches, before applying the bright, fully open-throated a (ah) vowel, the AW became somehow
lost to the teachers of the 50s, and 60s, then dismissed, and eventually forgotten about.
Of course, all of the above is a but brief and partial representation of an expanded, full program of
exercises that may be used for retraining the positions and movements of the tongue and soft palate. They
are to be applied to the singer's voice throughout his lifetime. With regard to the beginner, by his
employing these exercises for a period of three or four years, these open-throated, detached falsetto i (ee)
vowel exercises will grant him a reasonably well-structured singing voice with which to properly start
learning his basic repertory, and to do a limited amount of public performing. Continuing to correctly
apply these same exercises for another two years will perhaps grant him profession status. It will be
helpful for singer to read my 2005 vocal manual, The Art of Singing on the Breath Flow, soon to be
available on my publisher's web site— www.brandenbooks.com
During the above, long-time, vocal-structuring process, most of the muscles that control the

tongue’s actions are being stressed, in an appropriate way, as they learn new behavioral patterns.
Eventually the muscles that control the tongue’s movements become reduced to a limited space; and, the
soft palate's position, while singing, automatically learns to assume its correct, downward and forward
position, facing the front of the mouth-pharynx cavity, with the pitches of Bf below middle C, to the top
of the baritone’s range. Eventually both the tongue and the soft palate’s new muscular behavioral
patterns, while actually singing, become subordinate to, but no less important, than the major muscular
maneuvers of the chest and head voice registers, which produce basic tone. By then, both registers have
been appropriately instructed, by the singer, as to how they must synergistically accomplish the task of
superior singing, which neither of them could accomplish separately and individually.
Always remember that, the duties of the tongue and soft palate, while singing, are vastly different
from the duties of the speaking voice. While actually singing, they behave in a manner similar to the
manner used by ventriloquists.
The consonants
One dictionary definition of a consonant...“A consonant is formed by completely or partially

stopping the stream of breath with the tongue, teeth, or lips." When the singer "pronounces" a certain
vowel of a particular word, while also attempting to "pronounce" its consonant, the consonant will tend to
interrupt the flow of breath stream. This creates a great disadvantage for the singer, since the breath
stream's energy is vital to the production of any selected tone, and it must not be inhibited nor blocked by
the consonant, in any manner.
To produce the best vocal tone possible, without allowing the consonant to interrupt the breath
flow that creates the tone, the singer must consciously “mute” and “shorten” the pronunciation of the
consonant to a minimum, then quickly pass on to forming the vowel. All singers must strive to
accomplish this “muting, and shorting on the time”, necessary for producing the consonants. However,
those singers whose vocal registers are underdeveloped will find this to be a very difficult task. This is
so, because in order for the singer to shorten the time spent on producing the consonant, the muscular
maneuvers that produce the vowel must be completely independent from the muscular controls that
produce the consonant. The singer must be able to start a tone with a pp volume (controlled by the mixed
voice), to facilitate a split-second production of the consonant (mainly accomplished with the upper lip,
while the lower lip remains passive), then rapidly transfer the singer’s attention over to creating the pitch,
and its accompanying vowel, all while remaining in the pp dynamic intensity mode. Immediately after
accomplishing the above, the singer must rapidly swell the tone's volume, in order to bring the muscular
actions of both registers into play, thereby fulfilling the pitch, vowel and consonant of the selected tone.
When accomplishing accurate pitch, pure vowel, and distinctly-pronounced consonants, 99% of
the effort must be dedicated to accomplishing the pitch and its particular vowel, while only 1% of the
time should be dedicated to accomplishing the consonant.
Those singers who can not apply and control the pp dynamic intensity, with all the tones of their
complete range, will not be able to accomplish a perfect pitch and “clearly pronounced" consonants.
Without possessing the pp intensity control of his voice, the singer can only produce a pitch with a fairly
pure vowel, with an indistinct consonant; or, a distinctly produced consonant, with a inaccurate pitch,
accompanied by a "muddy" indistinct vowel. Generally, the difficult “closed” consonants b, d, f, m, n, p,
r, s, v, y, which require "closed lips adjustments”, compete with the singer's intention to form the vowel’s
throat socket. The only way the singer can attain total mastery over both the pitch and consonant is for
him to perfect the swelled and diminished tone exercise with every pitch of his complete range, and with
all five vowels, which grants him absolute control of all breath dynamic.
Those singers who lack clearly pronounced consonants and pure vowels generally possess a chest
register that has retained a great deal of negative chest voice weight and bulk, which causes the singer’s
tongue and lips to respond and move sluggishly. To fully facilitate the correct accomplishment of the
tone, the vowel, and consonants, the negative influences of the chest voice and the antagonism of the two
registers must be completely eliminated.
This is only possible when the muscular controls of both registers reach an advanced state of
development,
reduces both the
and“work
the singer
load"possesses
and the broad
the voce racolta, of
movements or the
“gathered of tongue,
musclesvoice”. “gathered
The lips, and cheeks
voice”which
are all responsible for accomplishing a simultaneous, superior production of precise pitch/pure vowels/
and clearly understood consonants. The “gathered voice” assures the singer that the amount of breath
tension applied to any given tone is the exact amount needed, no more, or no less. In this way, there will
be no “overloading” of the breath tension, or under loading of it, nor “incorrect focusing” of the selected
tone, nor “wasting” of energy, since these negative factors make the accomplishment of precise pitch,
pure vowel, and clearly understood consonants almost impossible to achieve.
It is of particular importance, for the production of superior tone/vowels/ and consonants, that the
singer bring all the tones of the vocal passaggio to maximum development. Only after this has been
accomplished will the tongue, lips and facial muscles have learned how to help the singer produce
superior tone, with pure vowels and precisely pronounced consonants. However, all of the above
possibilities may never be realized, if the singer has not accomplished the training of his tongue and soft
palate, as to their proper positions and movements, relevant to singing.
The lips and facial muscles
The lips and facial muscles also participate in the production of consonants and vowels. With the
progressive development of the two vocal registers, the lips and facial muscles, like the muscles of the
tongue and soft palate, undergo a great deal of change in their behavior, and their gradual strengthening.
They are reassigned new ways of functioning that are vastly different from the ways they function, when
the singer uses his speaking voice. As the singer succeeds with the swelled-tone exercises, using the
detached falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel to train the tongue and soft palate, as described above, his
lips and facial muscles movements gradually perform exaggerated versions of all their so-called
“normal”, "old speaking voice” functions. For example, when the singer is strengthening the detached
falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel, particularly with the passaggio tones, his lips tend to expand at both
ends and curl slightly upward, in a faint smile, while his cheek muscles rise upward toward his eyes, all of
which simultaneously helps the singer to adjust the posterior, upward area of his throat, and to open up
the passageway of the resonance channel, so he can allow the breath stream, which produces all basic
tone, to enter into his Middle (or passaggio) Range, and then ascend further upward along the resonance
cavities of his Top Range.
To the unknowing singer, these lips and facial muscles responses may seems strange and
extreme, but after the singer practices them, and benefits from the positive results they render him, that of
helping him ascend the range from its bottom, through the passaggio, then further upward to the top of
his range, he will be pleased that he has been informed of these seldom mentioned, but critical factors,
about the art of actually singing.
As the singer attempts to sing a proper, open-throated i (ee) vowel, with a middle range's tone,
the i (ee) vowel must assume the same position as an open-throated a (ah) vowel. Properly accomplishing
this commands the singer's cheeks to rise even further upward toward his eyes, assuming a position which
the great tenor Jean de Reszke called "la grimace du chanteur" ("the singer's grimace"). As the singer
endeavors to ascend further upward along the resonance channel, and into his Top Range, he will be
urged to accomplish more unusual facial and lips sensations and movements. This is so because, above

Ef above middle C, the i (ee) and e (eh) instrumental, or “singing vowels”, must assume more fully
open-throated positions, which are based upon the fully open- throated a (ah) vowel. Understandably,
when the singer descends the range again, moving downward towards his bottom range, these “unusual”
eyes, raised cheeks, and horizontally-stretched lips positions are gradually relaxed, and their "normal”
positions and behavioral patterns are then resumed.
Each of the five vowels creates its own individual “abnormal” lips, tongue and facial-muscles
responses, in all sections of the complete range, and confused singer should be assured that gradually, all
of them will seem less exaggerated. When the singer attempts to sing any of his extreme top tones, his
lips must assume a broader opening, one similar to an open-throat a (ah) vowel. But this particular a (ah)
vowel’s throat-position must still be rounded-offby adding a “touch” of the o (oh) vowel to its throat-
position, while the lips be made to assume positions that result from combining both the a (ah) and o (oh)
vowels, which subsequently reveals a small section of the singer’s front, upper teeth, and slither of his
upper gums.
Some singers may want to observe themselves in a mirror, while exercising their voices, to make
visual evaluations of these “unusual movements” being made by their lips, tongue and cheeks. If so, the
singer should feel free do to so.
Most contemporary singers are not even remotely aware that they are obliged to utilize these
various lips, cheeks and eyes movements, in order to produce superior, beautiful tones. Instead, they
readily “opt” for a single "dead pan" facial expression, which restricts their singing to the lowest
resonance cavity area. However, they should be informed that their lower throat’s resonance cavity is the
most ineffective of all the resonance cavities, and it only allows the singer to produce dull, unvarying,
monochromatic, amateurish-sounding tones that never generate excitement, wonder, and admiration!
CHAPTER SIX
Low larynx position—versus—High larynx position
There exists a long standing debate as to whether the singer should maintain a “low larynx”
position or a “high larynx” position while singing. The answer is that the larynx should never be made to
remain in any one fixed position and it must be allowed full flexibility of movement.
There are two major modes of using the singing instrument and the larynx behaves differently
when in each. The first is the exercise mode, and the second is the singing mode. When the voice is in its
exercise mode, the position of the larynx should be given full, free range of movement. It can then
respond appropriately to the progressive structuring of each of the five instrumental vowels, (in all the
different section of the complete resonance channel), since each vowel exerts its individual influence
upon the larynx’s position, and also differently, in each resonance cavity’s section of the complete vocal
range.
When in the exercise mode, and attempting to correctly place the larynx on various pitches of the
lower range, it is best to use a detached falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel, that has been threaded
through the throat-socket of an open-throated u (oo) vowel. But, with the middle and top range’s tones, its
best to use a detached falsetto i (ee) vowel which has been threaded through the open-throated socket of
open a (ah) vowel.
Upon connecting any of the remaining four vowels—i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah)—to the
hollow u (oo) vowel to an open-throated a (ah) vowel, the singer is undeniably obliged to switch to the
connect mode of the larynx' participation, and to "clamp" the power of the chest voice to the starter-tone,
being presently sung. Accomplishing this will demand of the singer, a lifting-upward movement of the
larynx.
Each individual vowel, respectively, effects the positioning of the larynx, in its own particular
manner. While ascending the range, this lifting-upward movement of the larynx continues until the singer
reaches the pitch of Ef where it the larynx must be made to rise no higher. To produce tones situated
above the Ef above middle C, the larynx momentarily dips downward below Ef, to enable the singer to
allow the mixed voice mechanism to attach his larynx to the throat-entrance of the selected Top Range
tone. Then he must clamp his head and chest voice registers firmly together, directs the force towards the
selected tone, then allow the breath stream’s powerful currents to mix with the vibrations of the vocal
cords, then .with all of these factors operating together, he enables the selected tone be fulfilled.
But there exist two separate perceptions of this process, and from two different, opposing
perspectives.
From the perspective thee singer, who is sending those "strong, wildly swirling currents of breath,
towards the selected tone, he is highly aware that me employ only the force of the breath, and the muscles
of the resonance cavity itself, and no other muscular force, activated from below Fn above middle C.
Understand that, none of the tone's solidity factors are in any way involved with the singer throat muscles,
located below Fn above middle C. Of course, there does exist a "solidity factor" involved with this
difficult accomplishment, and it involves the singer's obligation to hold the contours of the resonance
chamber fully open and steadfast, while the force of the breath currents gush into it, fulfils the selected
tone..
If the muscular “contours” of each individual resonance chamber were not highly adjustable,
they could not be altered by the singer and made to assume various different shapes, necessary to
accommodate the five, classic Italian vowels.

Now, about this same, above tone—from the prospective of the singer's listeners:
The singer’s listeners hear this same tone with relaxed pleasure, seldom giving a thought about
the technical manner in which it has been accomplished. Meanwhile, the singer has produced a superior
vocal phrase that that soars upward in his range, above Ef below middle C, with little effort. The tone
possesses brilliance, power and beauty. The singer’s listeners make many assumptions about what the
singer is doing. Many of them assume the singer has been gifted with an extraordinary talent, which he
did little or nothing, to earn it. They seldom think that, the singer had to study for many long years, in
order to first transform certain parts of his anatomy into a superior musical instrument, and only
afterwards, was he able to start learning how to play it properly. When the singer’s technique has been
developed to it highest level, he understandably tries to make his extremely difficult task, while singing,
appear simple and “perfectly natural.”
His listeners' cannot begin to comprehend the vast amount of breath energy the singer must
summon up, to achieve this amazing artistic feat, nor the amount of physical stamina that he must possess
to sustain it. Nor the amazing transformation that he and his teacher, working together, for many years,
had to accomplish with all the various, unseen, physiological components that are employed to create a
superior singing voice. But that doesn't matter, since their role, as his audience, is merely to fully enjoy
the singer's art and its dream-accomplishment, for them. But on the other hand, it is a critical for all vocal
their students to fully understand all the technical information given in this manual, in order for them to
become professional singers.
The detached falsetto's i (ee) vowel is a critically important structural tool,

where the precise positioning of the larynx is concerned.
Of all the five vowels, the detached falsetto, open i (ee) is the special one which allows the singer
to precisely position his larynx, and with each and every individual tone of his complete singing range.
Each successive higher tone of a rising scale requires of the singer a precise and different percentage of
each registers muscular contributions. To accomplish that requires a precise, and only a precise
positioning of both the larynx and the throat-socket of each selected tone. And, only the detached falsetto,
open-throated i (ee) vowel exercise can achieve all these critically important factors. Those exercises. and
their vocal structuring principles, have been lost and obscured from the present-day. international
teaching community, and for more than fifty-five years, or more.
After these special i (ee) vowel exercises have been successful applied to each and every tone of
the singer's complete range, they accomplish a permanent physical transformation of all these tones, and
their basic behavioral responses, when utilized properly. The most important benefit which each selected
tone may gain from the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel’s benefit help, is that an appropriate i (ee) vowel is
capable of precisely placing the position of the larynx, relative to each individual pitch, into a perfect
alignment with each other, which then enables precise percentage of the chest voice and head voice’s
muscular control that are necessary to precisely evoke a selected tone, and thereby enable the singer to
produce a precisely accurate and superior vocal tone. The reason for this precise positioning of the larynx,
with each individual pitch of the singer complete range, is because each individual pitch must obligatorily
utilize an exact combination of laryngeal and pharyngeal proportions, no more of no less, to satisfy that
particular pitch’s intonation accuracy. And also, in order to make distinct each individual pitch’s different
laryngeal and pharyngeal proportional needs, from all the remaining pitches of the singer’s complete
range.
After each individual pitch of the singer's complete range has been successfully and completely
transformed by the exercises of the detached falsetto, open i (ee) vowel, all the remaining four vowels, the
u (oo), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah)—and the precise laryngeal positionings, with each selected tone of the
singer’s complete range, will automatically tune themselves precisely to each other, and allow the singer
to sing superior tones.
When utilizing these larynx-positioning i (ee) vowel exercises, there are many times when they
lift the larynx to an abnormally high position than is expected, by the neophyte student, all of which may
alarm him. However, these abnormally high positions of the larynx are only temporary, and they must be
allowed and tolerated. When the selected tones have been totally transformed, and become available to
the singer for his use, they permit the singer to locate the precise focal point of all, or any particular pitch
positioned, along the full length of the resonance channel, where the detached falsetto i (ee) vowel has
first placed that particular pitch’s focal point, strengthened it, and made it, from then on, permanently and
readily available to the singer, for his use.
The most critical movement which the larynx makes is one that the singer, himself, must
consciously instigate, while being guided by the appropriate form and usage of the detached falsetto i (ee)
vowel. Otherwise, proper function of the singing instrument will never be accessible to him. The singer’s
task if to consciously move the larynx from its resting position, which is usually downward in the range,
in the lower throat channel, and to reposition it against each individual tone, at its precise center.
Thereafter, the singer must swelled the open-throated i (ee) vowel, in order to gradually create the
selected pitch’s precise focal point. It is best to start these detached falsetto i (ee) vowel exercises at the
top of the range, working your way downward in the range, tone by tone, to the very bottom of the range.
Now, here is the method for accomplishing this:
The singer establishes a tone, preferably the Gn above middle C (refer to the illustration below),
then with a lose movement, he positions his larynx up against the Gn pitch’s throat-position (precisely,
the spot where one gargles, to cleanse the throat), then binds the muscles of the larynx and the Gn pitch
tightly to each other, by the force of the breath stream, then he swells the tone to a mf dynamic, in order to
add the action of the chest voice to the starter-tone, while reserving enough breath energy to return the
tone to a ppp dynamic. Now, pass on to the next pitch, Gf, and repeat the exercise.
When this has been properly accomplished, the larynx will have been moved from its resting
place in the lower throat channel, to its proper singing position, relative to the pitch being presently sung.
This correct repositioning of the larynx is only possible for a singer who has removed all the negative
bulk and weight from the chest voice, and then brought to a state of "hollowness" , so that from then on,
only the strong currents of the breath, combined with the vibrations of the vocal cords, may select and
generate a particular tone. The repositioning of the larynx movement may seem odd to the singer, and
also a great distance from the larynx's usual resting place. In reality it is a very short distance, and
repositioning the larynx is the only possible way for him to connect the his larynx to the selected tone,
within its appropriate resonance cavity.
When this is accomplish by a successful performance of the swelled tone exercise, using the
detached falsetto open i (ee) vowel, and the selected is generated by a full breath stream, it clarifies for

the singer the precise focal point of the selected pitch, which is located in a particular place along the
length complete range, where the tone and the larynx must rendezvous with each other and be clamped
together, by the singer, using the force of the breath stream, to do so. Many successful singers have
described this accomplishment as "...attaching their larynx to their soft palate".
Once some successful experience has been had with correctly moving the larynx from its lower
resting place and properly moving it, with several pitches of the range, especially those of the passaggio,
or with the tones of sinus and skull resonance cavities, the singer may start to accomplish the same with
the tones of his lower range, since we have repeated urge the singer to do these experiments at the top of
his range, first.
William Shakespeare, a famous concert and oratorio tenor, teacher of singing, and one of
Francesco Lamperti’s most eminent students, wrote a well-known treatise on singing in 1921 entitled The
Art of Singing.4 In it he states, "... in order to produce any note in fullness and purity of tone, it is
necessary to place or balance the larynx over the breath (force), and retain its appropriate position there,
while singing. This involves the upward, forward or backward pulling muscles upon the tongue-bone, the
hyoid bone, balanced by those muscles pulling the vocal instrument downwards towards the chest bone ."
Palatal resonance
At one time in the past, the resonance factor of the upper middle range’s tones was referred to as
"palatal resonance”, which, when successfully done, added and "extra special" quality to all the
passaggio tones. While palatal resonance is occurring, with the soft palate, fluttering so to speak, under
the strong currents of the breath stream blowing against it, the singer feels these vibrations in the region
of his throat, as it must be positioned when gargling with mouthwash, to cleanse his mouth and throat.
There are practically no present-day singers who produce palatal resonance tones.
In the beginning of training, when the singer could only sing the passaggio tones with the
underdeveloped falsetto voice, the earlier quality of these passaggio tones was often referred to as
"opaque" and/or "covered". This was so because limitation developed of the passaggio’s tones would not
allow the singer to add the core brilliance of the chest voice to any of them, especially the fully open-
throated a (ah) vowel. When the core brilliance of the chest voice finally became available to the singer,
the qualities of the passaggio tones’ were change to "brilliant sounding" and throat-wise “fully open". In
the past, the old master-teachers described this accomplishment as "...piercing the soft palate" with the
“brilliance” of the chest voice, which was generally accomplished by succeeding with the messa di voce
exercise, employing the detached falsetto, open-throated i (ee) vowel.
With most beginners, the initial task of repositioning the larynx, with the help of the swelled-tone
exercise and the open i (ee) detached falsetto vowel, takes a long time to understand and succeed with, (in
some cases, many years). This is because larynx is often found to be rigidly mired in an inflexible
position, somewhere in the lower throat channel. And because the singer has not met mastered singing on
the breath flow.
While repositioning the larynx, during a vocal warm-up, the singer must not allow the larynx to
first position itself on any of the tones below the vocal platform, with any pitch below middle C.
Otherwise, the "entrance" into the thin resonance passageway of the Middle Range, leading through the
registers' break, then further upward to the Top Range’s tones would be closed-off to the singer. To avoid
closing-off this critical entrance, the singer must carefully guide his larynx toward middle C pitch, and n
some cases, to the second or third tone of the vocal platform (or passaggio) the Cs, Dn, or the En
4 The Art of Singing, William Shakespeare, Ditson, New York, 1921.
above middle C (with all these pitches, when operating in the detached-falsetto mode), then firmly clamp
the larynx to one of them, with the force of the breath stream, then slowly swell the tone, in order to add
the chest voice power to it.
The singer will quickly learn that this critical "first" tone of the vocal platform, middle C, or in
some instances, the second of third tones, do not readily submit to his intentions of first positioning his
larynx upon the selected tone, then "clamping" his larynx to it. When the singer experiences problems in
connecting his larynx to the first tone of the passaggio, the reason may be that that particular tone it still
underdeveloped, where head voice dominance is concerned, and therefore, it resists being transferred
away from the negative controls of the chest voice, over to the controls of the head voice muscles. When
that be the case, the singer may select a tone above the platform, or even below it, and observe what
happens with the clamping process.
5
Francesco Lamperti , one of the most eminent singing teachers of the post-Bel Canto period,
identified middle C, the first pitch of the vocal platform, to be "... the most difficult tone in the entire
vocal range with which to perfect the messa di voce exercise, and to clamp the two registers together, and
with all five vowels".
The reason that the larynx must be moved from its lower, throat-channel resting place, and
repositioned upon one of the tones of the middle range first, is so the negative factors of the bottom range
will be prohibited from rising upward in the range, into the passaggio and thereby overweight, thicken,
and negatively widen all the passaggio’s throat-spaces, which would deny the singer an easy ascent from
his middle range to his Top Range.
With singers who have not correctly restructured their lower range's tones away from "bulk" and
"width", the proper repositioning the larynx is most difficult to accomplish, if not impossible. The
opposite is true for singers who have correctly structured their entire resonance channel. For these singers,
all the negative factors of the chest voice have been removed, allowing them to properly place their larynx
upon any or all tones of the passaggio and to add or subtract the “core brilliance” of the chest voice to and
from them.
Frequently, contemporary teachers erroneously instruct their students to place their larynx in a
“low position”, at the bottom of the throat channel, and to rigidly maintain that same low position, while
singing and exercising the voice. This results in the student singing stiff, thick, one-dimensional,
monochromatic tones. This mistaken principle of "anchoring" the larynx in the lower throat channel and
maintaining it there, while actually singing, is erroneously applied to achieve quick results in producing
"loud tones" that are falsely deemed to be "resonant, professional quality tones", but which are, in reality
unusable, "forced resonance" tones. Most singers who use the “low-larynx position" method quickly
learn that it is short-lived, because it excludes the important participation of the upper register’s upward
pulls, with all tone production. These abnormally dark, thick sounding, non-resonant tones produced by a
rigid, “low larynx position" is the cause of many singers’ voices being incorrectly classified, and placed
into lower vocal categories than is appropriate for their actual vocal category. Another symptom of the
lowered, fixed larynx position’s incorrectness is revealed when the singer employing it cannot sing a pure
u (oo) or pure i (ee) vowel, above middle C. Their impure u (oo) vowel quickly distorts toward the sound
of "uh" or "oh", and their impure i (ee) vowel quickly distorts and widens toward the e (eh) vowel.
5 Francesco Lamperti (1813-1891), one of the hallowed names in the teaching of bel canto principles. One of his
most important precepts was that..."a correctly trained voice can crescendo and diminuendo a selected tone, and that
all voices that can crescendo and diminuendo are “well-placed voices." Some of Lamperti’s famous students are
Marietta Alboni, Teresa Stolz, Maria Waldmann, Italo Campanini, and William Shakespeare, and Herbert
Witherspoon.

The three separate muscular mechanisms that control the advanced developed voice:
1. The detached falsetto

2. The “mixed voice”
3. The full voice, or “performing voice.”
After the singer’s voice has reached an advanced state of development, there comes into existence
three distinct, separate muscular mechanisms for controlling all the tones of the complete vocal range.
These three separate muscular mechanisms are physically located in very close, parallel proximity to
each other, in an ascending, curved, vertical line. They do not exist at the beginning of the singer’s vocal
training, but gradually come into existence, simultaneously with the creation of the complete resonance
channel, through the use of the messa di voce exercise, with each individual pitch of the complete range.
Each of these three mechanisms has its own distinct muscular actions and tonal qualities, and each relates
to any given tone in proportion to the depth or percentage of the vocal cords’ participation, which the
presently sung pitch demands, and the particular vowel accompanying the tone, in order to be ideally
fulfilled.
Figure 1
An abstract representation of the three
vocal mechanisms of control when they
are separated into layers.
p
detached falsetto layer
mezzo-falso, or "mixed voice" layer
chest voice layer

ff f
Figure 2
An abstract representation of the three
vocal mechanisms of control when they are
"gathered" and brought closely together.
detached falsetto layer

mezzo-falso, or "mixed-voice" layer
chest voice layer
When these three mechanisms are used in unison they give the
singer the full voice or "performing voice"
1) The detached falsetto serves as the “starter” of all tones;

2) The mixed voice, when subjected to an increase of breath pressure, brings into play an
increased depth of the vocal cords’ participation. This mixed voice mechanism controls the addition or
subtraction of the chest voice‘s power, which is accomplished by swelling and diminishing the volume of
a particular, detached-falsetto “starter-tone.”
3) The joined-together state of the two registers is called the “full voice” a translation of the
Italian term la voce piena. When the “full voice” is operative, there exists a maximum connection of the
chest voice’s muscular controls, to the muscular controls of the advanced developed falsetto, with every
tone of the complete vocal range. These factors automatically give any particular tone its “real sound”
(as opposed to the “false” sound, which all phases of detached falsetto usage gives to any tone), or the
readily recognizable “performing voice.” When we say that the full voice requires a maximum connection
of the chest voice’s power to the selected tone, we do not imply that the singer must produce the
maximum volume, which the selected tone is capable of producing. We mean merely that, all the
potential uses of the singing voice, potentially available to the singer, have been assembled, and are ready
for the singer to start performing.
Structurally speaking, it must be remembered that all three of these precious mechanical controls,
are structurally brought into existence over a long time period, and in the precise order presented below,
and that order must always be rigidly respected:
1) All primary vocal exercises must be aimed at first developing the detached falsetto
mechanism, which in time, reaches an advanced stage of development, and brings into
existence—
2) The mixed voice which, when achieved, automatically grants the singer control over—
3) The addition or subtraction of the chest voice power, to all the tones of the complete range,
which is the only state of the two vocal registers that will allow the singer to perform.
No other order of progressive training, other than the above, will achieve these muscular controls
of the singing instrument. Those singers, whose training methods do not follow this precise
developmental order, can only attain partial, incomplete aspects of these three muscular controls. This is
because some or many of the tones of their singing range, have not have been developed from the proper
starting point of the detached falsetto.
However, most contemporary singers eagerly seek out alternative ways of bringing the muscular
actions of the two vocal registers into a compromised relationship with each other, one which repeatedly
falls short the ideal, and always fails the singer. The most significant factor that is lacking, with their
faulty structuring methods, results in the inability of these singers, when singing, to pass from a ppp
dynamic to a fff dynamic, and then to return to the original ppp dynamic, all accomplished on the same
tone and without stopping to take a new breath. The general, overall quality of these partially-developed
voices remains forever “muffled” and they lack projection. There is little variety of tonal color. And,
there is never a tone heard (especially in the high range), that starts with a “thread of voice” (fil di voce),
then swelled to its fullest volume, then returned to its softest volume, a vocal maneuver that is thrilling to
the listener.
The only way a singer can completely understand the basic nature of these three mechanisms of
control is for him to have accomplished a perfect messa di voce with each and every tone of his entire
vocal range, and with all five classic Italian vowels, as pronounced by native Italians.
Here are some precise guidelines for performing a correct messa di voce:
1) The exercise must begin with a very soft, detached falsetto, on any selected tone, so that the
start of the tone has no involvement with the power of the chest voice.
2) The singer then gradually swells the volume of the tone, by increasing the amount of breath
pressure being applied to it, which gradually increases the percentage, or “depth” of participation” of the
vocal cords, to the tone. At the same time, the swelling process brings the tone to the point where the
mixed voice mechanism of control becomes available to the singer.
3) The singer continues swelling the volume of the selected tone, which demands a still greater
percentage of breath pressure be applied to it, which further increases the vocal cords “depth of

participation”, with the selected tone. Simultaneously with the increased amount of breath pressure to the
selected tone, the solidity of the chest voice is gradually pulled from below, upward to the detached-
falsetto starter tone, guiding its "solidity factor" to the proper throat socket, or "focal point" of the
selected tone. The tone can then be said to be in a state of “full voice connection”.
Once the singer has arrived at Phase 3 of the swelled-tone exercise, the singer then possesses the
option to remain at a medium volume dynamic, or to bring the tone to its fullest projecting volume, and
projecting power. Varying the volume of any tone also affects its “vowel color”. This gives the singing
voice a variety of interesting sounds that hold his listeners’ interest.
When considering a tone’s full range of potential dynamics, each dynamic level can be related to
one of these three phases of the swelling-process.
With Phase 1, the singer should produce a tone of the softest texture, but one that is still falsetto
oriented. After the singer has brought the tone to Phase 2, he can clamp the power of the chest voice to it
(with the force of the breath stream), by using the mixed voice's mechanism of control, and he may also
sing a true pianissimo, of ethereal beauty. The soft tone of Phase 1 differs from the tone of Phase 2 in
that, the bright vibrations of the vocal cords add “core brilliance” to the tone, even at a pianissimo
dynamic, which the selected starter-tone would not otherwise possess. Between Phases 1 and 2, the singer
must “clamp” the muscular controls of the detached falsetto to the muscular controls of the chest voice,
but he has still not attached it to the fullest percentage of the chest voice’s power. At Phase 2, the singer
possesses the option to pass beyond the pianissimo dynamic level and rapidly add the fullest volume to
the tone.
Once the singer is in Phase 2, the singer becomes aware that there is an immediate need for more
breath tension (“breath support”), than was required in Phase 1. This increase of breath tension is
necessary because the tone is now supporting more of the chest voice’s “positive power.”
When the singer has arrived at Phase 3, the addition of still a greater amount of breath tension is
required, in order to maintain the vitality and precise intonation of the tone. Phase 3 allows the singer to
use the full power of the chest voice. But employing full chest voice power could have a negative effect
upon the tone, if the singer is not able to diminish the volume of the tone, and return it to the softest
possible volume intensity of Phase 2. The singer must also be able to reduce the volume of the tone to a
still softer dynamic, bringing the tone back to Phase 1, the original starting-point of the exercise. Swelling
the volume of a given tone must occur in an “oil smooth” manner which is imperceptible to the singer’s
listeners. The same is true when the singer reverses the process and diminishes the tone back to its softest
volume.
Ideally, the singer should possess a fully developed “falsetto throat socket” for a selected tone,
at the start of the swelled-tone exercise. This is so the throat socket of the starter-tone to be further
developed can sustain the “work load” of passing from Phase 1, to Phases 2, and finally to Phase 3.
When all the throat-sockets of the entire range possess this level of advanced strength, it grants to the
singer the ability to reduce any positive, harmonious amount of chest voice power that has been added to
the all the singer’s tones, back again to the softest possible dynamic.
While swelling a selected tone, the singer may unintentionally and incorrectly allow the tone to
“lean” and/or "tilt" downward in the throat, toward the undesirable “thicker” texture of the chest voice,
rather than correctly “tilting” and directing it upward toward the posterior area of the throat, toward the
preferred “slimmer” muscular contours of the upper, head voice channel. Of course, achieving the latter
is more difficult than the former. It is more natural (though undesirable), for the muscles of the singing
voice to want to sink downward, toward the lower end of the vocal range, as it is normal, for the purposes
of the speaking voice.
When passing through these three mechanisms of control, the necessary, incremental increases of
breath tension tend to physically disrupt and/or deny the singer the ability to first “fit” then “clamp” the
power of the chest voice to the smaller throat-socket of the falsetto controlled starter-tone. The addition of
the power of the chest voice must never be forced, if it is not "invited" by the falsetto starter-tone, to
smoothly join its “throat socket”. If the movement between the two separate mechanisms of control, from
the detached falsetto’s control to the mixed voice’s control, is not completely smooth, it means that the
throat-socket of the starter-falsetto-tone is not sufficiently developed in muscular strength, to accomplish
the task.
Many individuals wrongly believe that the mixed voice mechanism is only available with a few
tones of his registers’ break area. This is because the mixed voice mechanism initially manifests itself
there. Thereafter, it is up to the singer, utilizing the swelled-tone exercise, to create the mixed voice with
all the remaining tones of his complete range. However, it is acknowledged that, it is more difficult and
challenging for larger, darker, heavier voices to do accomplish this, than it is for lighter voices.
Because most baritones are not properly trained with the falsetto voice system, we presently have
a surplus of “thick” voices, in this particular category, that produce tones of inferior, monochromatic
quality. Most of these voices eventually are wrongly reassigned to the Bass Voice category. Through
historic recordings, the superb, advanced mixed voice tones of Giuseppe De Luca, Ezio Pinza, Leonard
Warren, and the young Lawrence Tibbett can be studied by contemporary baritones. When making such a
study, they may come to understand what is being denied their voices, when they neglect the full
development of the falsetto voice.
The “puffy” throat sensations of the advanced falsetto tones
After the falsetto muscles have passed through all the aforementioned developmental phases and
the singer can perform a successful swelled-tone exercise, the detached falsetto voice itself undergoes
many radical, positive changes in sound, action, and throat sensations. Each advanced detached falsetto
tone becomes so greatly reduced in volume that the singer can only evoke its important detachment
status, from the chest voice, by singing with minimal volume, almost a whisper. These new, soft detached
falsetto tones are accompanied by “pulsing”, “puffy”, "airy" throat sensations which are positive
indications that both registers are finally willing to cooperate with each other.
After this "puffiness" is imposed upon all these advanced developed tones, their earlier, loud
dynamic is no longer available. This is a positive factor, and the singer’s current performance of the
swelled-tone exercise has become easy and “second natured”. The three separate mechanisms of control
the detached voice, the mixed voice, and the connected, or performing voice have now closely gathered
closely together, with each other, and all the singer’s tones become “impacted”, but feel buoyant to the
singer. Each tone of the singer’s complete range possesses a full spectrum of superior qualities and
muscular actions—softness, loudness, sweetness, power, darkness, brightness, and a core brilliance that
helps the singer project them over the orchestra and into the audience.
However, this advanced state of la voce racolta or the “gathered voice” may present difficulties
to the singer, for preserving the detached status of the falsetto. However all the tones of his complete
range, when in their “connected mode” (when both registers are operating together), must also be
capable of being disconnected from the chest voice’s power. This is so the singer can always evoked a
new starter-tone that is detached from the chest power, at his discretion, then add the power of the chest
voice to it, in gradual percentages.
Sometimes, it becomes difficult and confusing for the singer to evoke the detached falsetto
mechanism, after all his tones have reached the advanced state development, meaning the “gathered
voice”. This is so because, when all three mechanisms of control reach that advanced level of muscular
harmony with each other, they prefer to gather closely to each other, rather than be separated into
individual, distant “layers”. But separated they must be, so that the singer may evoke a detached falsetto
tones, in order to properly start "his warm up session" for each day’s singing.
This is especially critical when the singer has to sing demanding, “full voice” rehearsals, day

after day, without proper rest periods. If the singer insists that any selected starter-tone of his “warm up
session” be initiated with softest possible volume and a great deal of breath flow, using the hollow u (oo)
or hollow o (oh) vowel, and the tone also possess “puffy throat sensations” then he may be assured that he
has established proper “fresh start” for the day’s warm-up session.
For many baritones, these “puffy” sensations, often first appear with one or more tones above Fn
above middle C, and the singer generally feels them most acutely, in the mouth-pharynx cavity first, then
in both the bottom and top ranges. These “puffy sensations” are manifestations of the many tiny,
shimmering vibrations of the vocal cords’ thin edges, pulsing in one or more of the resonator cavities, as
the strong currents of the breath-force swirl through them. And, these tones’ resonance-cavity vibrations
(whichever resonance cavity is being presently used by the singer), are also vibrating in maximum
harmony with the complimentary vibrations of the vocal cords, situated far below them, at the bottom of
the range. Through their pleasant, harmonious throat sensations, the puffy sensations permit the singer to
“feel-see” (envisioning through physical sensations), the entire resonator cavity’s precise throat space,
and the corresponding shape of the vowel presently being sung, within it. This mental image occurs with
such accuracy that no doubt remains in the singer’s mind, as to the tone’s accuracy and superiority.
The great Italian, master-teacher Antonio Sbriglia (1832-1916), the teacher of Jean de Reszke,
utilized these tiny “puffy”, advanced falsetto tones frequently. He called them his “little u (oo) tones” and
he used them to identify and develop the purest form of the head voice's tones for his pupils. Sbriglia also
used his breathy “falsettini” tones to develop the upper range of his students. He probably used the
“small” i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah) vowels as well, but there is no written or verbal account to verify
that. He likely made a distinction between the benefits derived from the “small u (oo)” vowel and the
remaining four vowels. However, the advanced developed falsetto tones of male voices, and their
accompanying “puffy sensations” respond readily to all five vowels, and each vowel possesses a very
distinct, individual qualities and muscular responses. But unlike Sbriglia, we apply these “puffy” falsetto
tones equally, with all vowels, according to the structural need of the moment.
It should be noted that our advanced falsetto tones, with their accompanying “puffy throat
sensations”, are more readily available after the singer has sung for an hour or more, with the "full power
of voice" then stops singing, and attempts to establish the “disconnected mode” of his singing voice, in
order to observe the status of his "puffy, detached, falsetto tones." He may then discover that the
"detached falsetto" tones now retain a touch of lingering solidity of the chest voice, which indicates to the
singer how the falsetto voice's progress can be accurately monitored. These new "puffy" versions of the
detached falsetto voice, with their lingering touch of the chest voice's solidity, must forever after become
the model for all future detached falsetto's starter-tones, used for all swelled-tone exercises.
Note: While the singing voice is in its performance mode, the singer must speak very softly.
Otherwise, there is a possibility of inviting an undesirable amount of the chest voice’s power to
negatively affect the freedom of the middle and top ranges. Even when not actually singing, all singers
must endeavor to speak softly, and not project their speaking voices for any great distance.
The technical nature of all ascending vocal movement
All ascending scales automatically and undeniably attempt to engage the “connected mode” of
the two vocal registers, making the singing instrument ready to “perform”. At the same time, they allow
the singer to evaluate the beneficial influences which an ascending scale could possibly have, good or
bad, upon the entire vocal range.
When performing ascending scales, it is critical that the singer observe several factors:
1) The “Upward pulls”, created by the muscular development of the “detached falsetto”, must be
operative on each and every successive ascending higher, pitch of the ascending scale.
2) The inherent “bulk” or “mass” of the chestvoice’s negative influence must be continuously
reduced by the singer, as the scale rises. This desirable “reduction process” can only take place if
the singer makes a conscious effort to “lift upward and thread” each tone of the ascending scale
into the thinner muscular contours of the head voice tract, and into the tone, situated above it.
3) As an ascending scale approaches the passaggio, the singer must transfer the
“work load” of each successive ascending pitch completely away from the chest voice’s
muscular controls, upon reaching the Bf above middle C, away from the chest voice, and
completely over to the muscular controls of the head voice.
For the muscles of the head voice tract to achieve these controls, they require many years of
development, during which time, the singer must patiently endeavor to increase the muscular strength of
the falsetto muscles in the upper part of his vocal range. During this long period of development, the
singer must switch his attention back and forth between the development of the detached, upper range's
falsetto muscular system, and the chest voice’s muscular system. This is accomplished by performing
detached falsetto, descending scales and swelled-tone exercises for a period of time, with all the pitches
of his complete range, then establishing the “connected mode” of the vocal instrument by performing
some ascending scales.
When the “work load” involved in accomplishing ascending scales and phrases has been finally
reduced to its minimum, it is because the singer has successfully developed his mixed voice mechanism to
its maximum strength. The mixed voice grants the singer “tonal buoyancy”, “flexibility of movement”
and an ideal tonal color on each tone of the singing range. The master-teachers of the past labeled this
ideal tonal color chiaroscuro. Literally translated, chiaroscuro means clear and dark. In muscular terms,
when a singer’s voice possesses chiaroscuro, all the tones of his complete range have a perfectly-
proportioned percentage of each register’s tonal qualities and muscular actions, the inherent “darkness”
of the chest voice, and the clear “brightness” of the head voice.
The narrow “beams” of sound of the upper range
When a singer with a correctly trained voice sings a vocal phrase that rises to the top of his vocal
range, there occurs an appropriate, graduated increase of projecting volume accompanying it. However,
the singer perceives this increase in volume very differently than do his listeners. Unlike the wide
increasing spray of voluminous tone that his listeners hear, the singer, as he ascends to the top of his
range, is not privileged to hear his voice with the same external reality as others do. The singer is instead
obliged to “feel-hear” his singing voice, through throat sensations, which communicate to him what the
tone probably sounds like. As a well sung vocal phrase mounts to the top of the range, it "feels-hears" to
the singer as though it were growing smaller in volume and “width”. It also feels as though the scale is
less powerful at the top of his range, than operating in the middle and lower ranges. This discrepancy of
perception, between what the singer feels and hears, and what his listeners perceive and hear, has a very
logical explanation. As the singer attempts to bring the "power and ring" of the chest voice upward to the
top of his range, its inherent thickness and bulk, operating at the bottom of the range, must be greatly
reduced and narrowed, in order for the ascending scale to conform to the narrow physical shape of the
upper area of the resonance channel, toward which the singer is directing it. If this reduction and
narrowing process is not accomplished by the singer, the precise intonation of all the pitches of the
ascending, plus their potentials for pure vowels, and complete control of all necessary breath-force
dynamics would be denied to the singer.
The singer is not able to directly control this necessary “narrowing” of the ascending scale’s bulk,
and its weight. Those factors can only be dealt with by the thin muscular contours, of the upper section of

the resonance channel.
When most contemporary singers sing a phrase that mounts to the top of their ranges, their top
tones also tend to narrow, as did the voices of the great singers of the past. However, with contemporary
singers, their top tones do not increase in ringing, projecting power. Without the perfection of the
swelled-tone exercise, the maximum chest "ring and projection factor" can not been added to their top
most tones. Instead, they produce top tones that are small in size, dark in colors, limited in volume, and
consistently lack the ringing, core brilliance and the focus of the positive chest voice contributions.
Therefore, these top tones usually become overpowered by the orchestra.
The most critical factors missing from contemporary singing voices are: 1), in the upper range, the
full addition of the correct chest voice power; and 2), in the lower range, the use of cantilena singing
which creates a large variety of tonal colors, and lends an ability to the singer to clearly pronounce the
words being sung with authenticity, which gives the drama vitality.
The first major ascending scale exercises

and the critically important “vertical ascent”
Ascending scales serve to collect and gather all the tones of the singer’s complete vocal range
closely together, in preparation for actually singing. They are not the major factor for developing a
superior singing instrument, as so many students and voice teachers erroneously. They are more of a
testing tool, for revealing to the singer, the precision or lack of precision and evenness of the his complete
vocal range, from its bottom to its top. Note that the singing voice must be built from its top range
downward, not from its bottom range, upward. The messa di voce, along with understanding the various
ways in which the five classic vowels involuntarily call various muscles into play, then gradually
develops them is the major tool for building a superior singing instrument. Understandably, the singer
must tailor these various exercises to his individual vocal needs. However, he must not be satisfied with
readily available lower notes, when the higher notes of his range are not easy to produce. As the voice
progresses, don’t perform excessive numbers of ascending scales—instead, sing certain selected,
ascending phrases from the classic Italian Songs and operatic arias, that accomplish what is expected of a
rising scale.
It is important that all the forthcoming ascending scale exercises, first employ the u (oo) and i (ee)
vowels, and only after employing them, should the singer employ the fully open-throated o (oh) and a
(ah) vowels to them. Note that, with continued and sometimes excessive use of the closed u (oo) and i
(ee) vowels, the singer's voice could readily become "sluggish" and "unresponsive", and communicate to
him that it will eventually, completely "closed down". When that be the case, employing the open-
throated o (oh) and open a (ah) vowels (if not applied to extreme,) will return the vital core brilliance and
“quick response” of the chest voice, and the important sense of "open throat".
The esclamazio languida
With Figures 1 and 2 (below), the widely-spaced intervals between the three notes of each exercise
Figure 1
hollow u (oo) -- -- hollow u (oo) -- -- hollow u (oo) -- --
force the singer to utilize the principles of the swell and diminish exercise, in order to perform them
correctly. Meaning that—when ascending from one note to the next, the singer is obliged to start the first
tone softly, swell it, then soften if for a moment, then quickly swell it again, to facilitate the ascent to the
upper note. Applying the motor force of the breath tension, as prescribed by the esclamazio languida,
helps the singer to avoid dragging up the negative aspects of the chest voice, from note to note. It is
impossible for the singer to perform a widely-spaced interval, in a smooth, musical fashion, without
calling upon the help of the mixed voice.
Figure 2
hollow u (oo) -- -- hollow u (oo) - --
The exercises of Figures 1 and 2 utilize the hollow u (oo) vowel. The singer should not expect the
hollow u (oo) vowel to render him complete control of the tone, nor add solidity to it. Those control and
solidity factors are added when any of the other four vowels are being employed, with these same
exercises. The widely-spaced intervals of each exercise, and the hollow u (oo) vowel both help the singer
to discover two important factors about ascending the vocal range:
1) The correct method of “shifting” from the throat-sockets of the lower tone to the throat-socket of
the upper tone, and also instructs the singer as to—
2) The correct method of withholding power and core brilliance, so it may only brought into play at
the singer’s discretion, by swelling the tone.
The singer should allow for some “slipping about”, as he moves from the lower tone to the upper
tone. The singer must also tolerate the “insecure” sensations which the hollow u (oo) vowel renders to
these tones. When one desires to add solidity to the u (oo) vowel, the tone must relate to the open-throated
i (ee) vowel.

Figure 3
hollow u (oo) -- -- hollow u (oo) -- -- hollow u (oo) - --
The exercises of Figure 3 are to be performed in a similar manner to those of Figures 1 and 2.
However, all the negative factors of Figures 1 and 2 become even more difficult to avoid. This is due to
the fact that the exercises are located higher up in the vocal range, and the singer must transport the power
of the chest voice a greater distance, than with the exercises of Figures 1 and 2. To help the singer get a
“better hold” of the first tone of each measure, he is permitted to apply a mf dynamic to the first pitch,
unlike the mp dynamic of the first tones of Figures 1 and 2.
After performing these ascending scale exercises with the hollow u (oo) vowel, the singer should
rest his voice, then perform them again. But with this second time, he should employ the remaining four
vowels, i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah), in their "open-throated" positions. The singer should rest his
voice, and evaluate the various responses of his voice, when employing the falsetto, hollow u (oo) vowel,
as compared to those responses had, when employing the remaining four vowels.
Figure 4
i (ee) - - - - - - - - i (ee) - - - - - - - - i(ee)- - - - - - - -
The exercises of Figure 4 employ the open-throated i (ee) vowel, which immediately gathers all
the exercise’s tones closely together, while also focusing each individual tone toward a specific throat-
position. It is important that each first i (ee) vowel note of the scale be tuned from the hollow u (oo)
vowel’s throat-socket position, and sometimes from the open a (ah), then the singer should make
evaluation of each vowel's different responses. Since the tones of Figure 4 are closely positioned, it
becomes critically important while ascending the scale, that the singer remembers to guide the scale along
the vertical, posterior, curving-ascent of the vocal tract. He may think of this pathway as being shaped
like the inner-curve of the letter "C".
With Figure 5 we have a more extensive ascending scale, than with all previous exercises. The
singer should take note that, the first tone of each exercise should employ the hollow u (oo) vowel, as a
tuning vowel for the i (ee) vowel, and that same tuning is used for the remaining notes of the scale.
Figure 5
hollow u (oo) to the

open i (ee) -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Figure 6
Wi
hollow u (oo) to the
open i (ee) --
th
---- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Figure 6
(below), we have an extensive ascending scale in which the notes are closely positioned. The open i (ee)
vowel is best for revealing to the singer the interrelationship between each tone and its neighboring tone
(s), while the scale is ascending. The open i (ee) vowel is the perfect tool for finding the appropriate
direction (throat-wise) of the ascending scale, since it guides each successive higher tone precisely, along
the passageway of the vertical, curved-ascent.
As indicated in Figure 7, it is critical for a baritone to understand the importance of achieving muscular
harmony between all the tones situated from middle C upward, before deciding how many tones below
middle C, that he may add and retain, in his lower range.
Figure 7
The area where "undesriable"

chest voice "weight" can The harmony from middle C, up to the
occur, and consequently "comfortable top" of the baritone range,
disturb the harmony from dictates how many lower tones, below
middle C, to the top of the middle C, the singer may add to his
baritone's range. permenant singing range.
Registers' Break
This upper range harmony takes priority over all lower areas of the vocal range. If any new low

note, tones by
loweradded must
thebesinger
eliminated. Young,
to his lower range, appears tobaritones
inexperienced must
disturb the ofjudge
learn to
harmony his upper tones, the “new”
the correctness and
permanency of their lower notes by the harmony or lack of harmony which they grant or deny to the
passaggio tones. If baritones cannot sing well in the passaggio, and still believe they can sing strong
lower note (s), with self-pleasing qualities, such as “loud, dark, and weighty”, while perfect muscular
harmony, between upper and lower range is lacking, that lack of harmony indicates that the lower tones
are incorrectly structured and employed.
All of these exercises require a great deal of breath-energy to perform them correctly. Unless all
these above exercises tones are correctly directed along the curving, vertically ascending vocal tract,
there is a likelihood that the open i (ee) vowel could “break away” from the posterior, vertical ascending
line and incorrectly stray forward, toward the mouth-cavity and the front, lower teeth. If the singer senses
that is going to happen, when approaching the second and third tones of these exercises, with the i (ee)
vowel, he can avoid it by mentally placing a hollow u (oo) vowel in front of each successive higher pitch,
and sometimes, a hollow a (ah). This will keep both the open-throated i (ee) vowel, and the scale itself,
heading in the proper ,ascending direction.
The singer should raise and lower the keys of the exercises in Figures 6 and 7 so that they
encompass as much of the complete range as is comfortably possible. The singer may then use the
remaining vowels—open e (eh), open o (oh), and especially, the fully open-throated a (ah). It is only at
the most advanced level of vocal development that the fully open-throated (ah) vowel suggests to the
singer that it should be now employed for the major ascending scales which prepare his singing voice for
performing.
Two of the most vulnerable tones, for all baritone voices, where the negative influences of the
chest voice is concerned, are the tones of En and Fn below middle C. To protect these vulnerable tones,
baritones should occasionally apply the swelled-tone exercises to them, using the hollow u (oo) vowel.
The hollow u (oo) vowel, placed before an open i (ee), serves as a tuner, to help the i (ee) vowel
find its correct throat-position, with the tones of the lower range. But, from the Ef above middle, upward
to the top of the range, while attempting to locate each tones correct throat-position, use the open-throated
i (ee) vowel, but first pass the i (ee) vowel through the open-throated space of the a (ah) vowel.
Figure 8
u-i-e-o-a u-i-e-o-a u-i-e-o-a
Figure 8. To prepare the voice for singing, after having exercised the entire vocal range with these
above, ascending scales, the singer should rest his voice for a half hour, then perform the exercises of
Figure 8. This involves the ideal passage of the five (5) classic Italian vowels, as they are pronounced by
native Italian. The singer should also perform these exercise with several other pitches, higher and lower
in his range, than as they are represented above, in Fig 8.
Protecting the Singing Voice, after it has been completely structured
Once the antagonistic forces of the two registers has been eliminated and the two registers
respond to each other in a harmonious team effort, they still remain forever vulnerable to misuse and
abuse. Therefore, the completely structured vocal range must be continually protected and preserved in its
ideal state. The most vulnerable area of the complete range is in the registers’ break area, between
middle C and the En above it. Here below are some rules which will help the singer to protect these
highly vulnerable tones, as well as the rest of his vocal range:
1) The “mixed voice” is always responsible for the greater percentage of the “work load” with
all the tones of the singing voice, but in particular, more so, with the tones of the registers' break area.
With the passing of time and correct use of the singing voice, these tones grow in strength and become
capable of producing a great deal of volume used for “dramatic” singing. However, it is to the singer’s
advantage to sing more “lyrically” than “dramatically” during the earlier years of his career. “Lyric”
singing requires of the singer a more restrained use of volume than does “dramatic singing”. When
“dramatic singing” is called for, the singer must test the safety of his singing, after having applied
“dramatic” volume, by observing if each individual registers’ break tone can still be reduced in volume,
then returned to full volume again, then reduced to minimal volume again. It is also advisable for the
singer to periodically review all the rules which originally brought the tones of the registers' break area to
their advanced state of correct development and function.
2) All the tones of the registers' break’s "throat sockets" must be permanently tuned or “tilted”
upward, toward the top of the vocal range, and submit to the falsetto’s influence, as opposed to
downward, toward the bottom of the range, toward the chest voice’s negative influences. The quality and
muscular actions of all these passaggio tones must be permanently “matched” to the advanced developed
falsetto voice, not to the chest voice. The dominant muscular controls of the advanced falsetto voice, or
“mixed voice”, must be continually brought downward in the range, during each warm-up session, and
made to overlap all the tones of the singer’s entire chest voice.
3) All ascending scales and vocal phrases must be executed in a guarded manner which
acknowledges and incorporates the action of the advanced developed falsetto voice, which is the mixed
voice. The mixed voice mechanism of control must forever subjugate, then dominate the negative
tendencies of all the chest voice's tones, since they are forever ready to break away from the advanced
falsetto’s muscular “protective controls”, especially when exercise scales and vocal phrases are
performed in an ascending direction, and may cause damage to the curved, vertically ascending pathway
of the resonance channel.
4) The critical transitional tones of the registers' break area—En and Fn above middle C—must
both be matched in quality and strength to the qualities and muscular actions of the mixed voice, in order
for the singer to accomplish a smooth transition from one register to the other. These two critical tones,
for all baritones, must be forever sung with their “hookup points” (the precise spot of the tone), where the
singer should direct the breath force, positioned upward toward the upper register’s muscular controls,
rather than downward toward the lower register’s muscular controls. Maintaining this critically important,
precautionary, upward positioning will help the singer to avoid deterioration of the correctly structured
division point, between the two vocal registers. Should any deterioration occur, it will accelerate and
eventually cause the two registers to break apart, if they are not immediately repaired. From that point on,
the
and tendency
its earlierofantagonism
each register
toward
will be
thetoother
rapidly return to its original, “separated, uncoordinated state”,
register.
In closing
Many young people fail to make a place for themselves in the singing profession, not from lack of
talent, but through disorganization. The requirements for success are many, and each individual has his
own particular problems to overcome.

A true desire for success
A major requisite for any achievement is to truly desire the fulfillment of that ambition; the vocal
studios of the world are crowded with dilettantes, or "professional students", who seem to enjoy the
routine of preparation for a career rather than the actual attainment of it—but, there is no room for
wishful dreaming, for those who truly desire success.
Many are attracted by the glamour of a singing career, but fail to consider the many years of hard
work and financial expense that are required. The “glamour period” of a singing career cannot be
enjoyed until many years of serious training have passed, and even then, there is always more work
ahead. The desire for success must be accompanied by a practical, down-to-earth evaluation of one's
abilities. To reach the very top of the profession, one must possess specialized knowledge and abilities,
such as mastery of foreign languages, musical training, acting, personal grooming, and business
management skills, and above all—a consistently reliable vocal technique! The beginner should
understand that it will take him a long time to reach his goal, much longer than he had ever thought; there
are no short cuts. However, if the desire and ability are truly there, each adversity and heartache will
carry with it the promise of greater success. Every individual goes through a major personality
transformation before reaching his ultimate goal. With each small success, the transformation gets nearer
completion. The most powerful aid in reaching that goal will be constructive criticism. The aspiring
beginner must subject himself to the evaluation of professionals, because family and friends often spare
the truth, and are overly protective.
Assuming the full responsibility for a vocal career is an enormous challenge. Every beginner
needs help. Friends, relative, teachers, may all play a part, but the big test comes when the singer is ready
to perform; then others are left behind and the singer stands alone. Unwavering confidence must become
a part of the singer's philosophy, based upon objective knowledge of self, and his true abilities.
Decision and persistence
It has been said that “success requires no explanation and failure permits no alibis.” Making the
“right decisions” and being courageous and persistent in carrying them out is a great asset. Many
indecisive beginners ask their friends and family, over and over, "Do you think I can become a
professional singes?" Until the beginner himself is confident that he can attain professional status, their
answers will have little meaning. With certain reservations, if you know what you want you can generally
get it; in fact, others will be happy to join your cause by helping.
The habit of indecision goes with you into professional life and limits your growth and scope.
Indecision often denies the individual the chance of new and unexpected experiences. Being persistent is
accepting defeat as only temporary, a state which your next success will change. When we read of some
baritone achieving success, it is safe to say that his triumph was gained through persistence. Fame will
recognize talent and pay off both in self-gratification and monetary rewards, but only after one has shown
that he refuses to quit.
Inspiration
After all has been said and done, advice given, technique mastered, there still remains an element
of power so indescribable that its meaning can only be hinted at. Some call it inspiration, but it cannot be
explained to any person unless he already has some inborn sense of its nature. It is sometimes referred to
as "a calling", and as a sixth sense, it calls into play the spiritual mysteries of the mind which have baffled
man since his beginning—it defines description!
It is impossible to describe what goes into the making of a great artist. What seems impossible to
the average person is merely difficult for “the great.” Many singers have been told by the so-called
experts at their initial singing efforts that they did not have what it takes for success; the experts have
more than often been proven wrong. If you really desire to sing professionally and are prepared to make
the necessary sacrifices to do so, then somehow you will; but remember, nothing is free—there is a price
for everything. Good luck! I wish each and every one of my readers success in attaining a superior vocal
instrument. The journey toward that goal is long and hard, but—have faith, and never stop trying.
Thank you for your attention and patience
Anthony Frisell
A recent Article by Anthony Frisell
Is there an “American School” of classic voice training?

If so—has it failed American singers?
f
Hundreds of years after the creation of Grand Opera by the Italians—beginning with an early era
of virtuoso singers such as Pistocchi, Senesino, Carestini, Farinelli, Guadagni, then broad-jumping
forward to more familiar names, Maurel, Tamagno, De Reszke, Nordica, Melba, Sembrich, Eames, Calvé,
Shumann-Heink, then arriving at the afterglow of a more recent “golden age of song,” we were thrilled
by such great artists as Ruffo, Tetrazzini, Galli-Curci, Caruso, Ponselle, Gigli, Lauri-Volpi, Pinza,
Rethberg, Tibett, Flagstad, Melchior, then taking another broad jump in time, we marveled at the glorious
singing of Bjöerling, Warren, Simionato, Stevens, Milanov, Tebaldi, Tucker, Merill, Peerce, Del Monaco,
Treigle, London, Sutherland, Pavarotti,and Horne to mention but a few—finally we arrive at 2006 and
sadly, we have to concede that presently, it is almost unanimously acknowledged that there are no singers
trained by the “American School” capable of successfully singing the main-stream repertory of Italian
Grand Opera, especially the operas of Verdi and Puccini.
After retiring, many famous singers from the above great periods created their own vocal
teaching studios and passed down the superior vocal training methods of the old “Italian School,” which
they themselves had learned. Some of them came to America and taught many outstanding American
singers. Then, about the end of the 50s in America, the traditions of the old “Italian School” vanished.
Was this due to a communication break between the voice teachers of the past and those of the present?

Or a revolutionary attitude of arrogance and superiority on the part of a new breed of American voice
teachers who emerged after the Second World War? Long after this critical disconnect had occurred,
echoes of the old Italian School’s teaching terms and applications still lingered about in many American
voice training studios. The “new” teachers were superficially aware of such “old school” principles as
vocal registers, resonance cavities, positions and movements of the tongue and soft palate, low breathing
and diaphragmatic support. And some of them bantered them about, to establish their own authority. But
they simply didn’t believe in their validity and worth, so they swiftly went about creating a new approach
to voice training which they believed was “simpler” and “faster.” The new school of teachers eventually
came to believe that the only sources of the singing voice are the larynx and the vocal cords and that the
contributions of the so-called registers, the various resonance cavities, and the positions and movements
of the tongue and soft palate were of no importance.
After so many years have passed, we can’t say for sure that those post World War II teachers did
indeed create a new “American School” of voice training. However, when so many American singers
auditioning for roles of the mainstream Italian operatic repertory fail technically to qualify to sing them
and consistently present similar vocal flaws and mannerisms, we must assume that they were all trained in
a manner using similar based principles.
The manner in which the “new school” transformed their teaching principles and practices away
from the old Italian School was to immediately do away with five of the old School’s major principles:
1. There exist two distinct and separate vocal registers within the complete range of tones of all
singers, male and female, of all vocal categories and more importantly, these two registers are inherently
antagonistic toward each other. In order to “produce” a successful singer, these two registers’ muscular
actions and vocal sounds must be made musically and muscularly compatible.
2. A critically important section of all singers’ complete range, known as the passaggio—the
tones between Bf below middle C to the Gn above it—functions radically differently from all other
tones of the complete range, and while singing them, the breath’s “motor force,” necessary to evoke and
control these passaggio tones, has to be applied in a “different manner” than when singing anywhere else
in the range.
3. The singer’s tongue and soft palate play critically important roles with the passaggio tones,
and their positions and movements determine the success or failure of the singer to control the passaggio
tones. For example, when the tongue’s position is correct, it rises upward and out of the lower throat
channel and into the mouth-pharynx cavity, where it arches and imitates the shape of the hard palate,
situated just above it. The soft palate, which serves as a damper, allows the singer to properly regulate the
amount of air flow of the tones from Bf below middle C, upward to the top of the range and must be
made to position itself forward and downward—not upward—as is generally and erroneously believed.
4. With every individual tone of the singer’s complete range, there exist progressive, muscular
adjustments required of the singer in order to accomplish the tone’s total fulfillment. These adjustments
are implemented as follows:
A) The singer starts a tone which is controlled by the “detached falsetto” voice, and which, if
properly evoked, only evokes the first layer of vocal cords’ participation of the selected tone. This means
that the tone is without any of the vocal cords’ vibrato action.
B) The singer then further intensifies the breath force, and that calls into play the second layer of
the vocal cords’ participation, once known as the “mixed voice,” wherein tiny, puffy pulses of the vocal
cords’ vibratory actions are added to the “starter tone.”
C) Finally, the fullest force of breath pressure is added to the tone, and that adds a third, final
layer of the vocal cords’ vibratory action to the tone, which brings the tone to total fulfillment, a condition
known technically as the “connected voice, or the performing voice.” The terms “detached,” “mixed
voice” and “full” or “performing voice” were standard teaching, directional terms of the old Italian
School, and some of them are still used today by a few voice teachers but without them having the same
meaning as in the past. This is so because the new school of teaching did away with the critically
important detached falsetto voice, which is the first layer of vocal cords’ participation with any tone;
which, when further developed, creates the “mixed voice,” or second layer of vocal cords’ participation,
leading to the development of the “third layer of the vocal cords’ participation” or the “full voice” or
“performing voice”.
5. The classic Italian vowels, as pronounced and modified by native Italians, play a major role in
correctly accomplishing the above critical factors of superior vocal structuring and singing, and no other
language, other than Italian, accomplishes the same superior results. The passaggio tones are the most
difficult to understand and even more difficult for the singer to solve their physiological, structural needs.
These needs can only be structured and properly “placed” into the singer’s complete range by
strengthening the muscles of the head voice register. Briefly stated, this is accomplished by evoking the
muscular controls of the top range’s tones while avoiding all contact with chestvoice power, then slowly
imposing the head voice’s muscular controls upon all the tones of the singer’s complete range by carrying
those controls downward, tone by tone, from the top range downward to the lowest note of the chest
voice.
The aw vowel, which has completely vanished from present-day teaching, is the best for
accomplishing the above. The aw is a combination of the u (oo), o (oh) and a (ah) vowels, and it is better
than all of the five other vowels, u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh) and a (ah), because it allows for the greatest,
free flow of the breath stream, which is the motor power that generates all vocal tones.
Male singers should note that the tones shown in the illustration below represent the upper middle
range of their voices, while these same tones represent the bottom of all female singers’ range.
The tedious process of completely resolving the problems of the passaggio’s tones takes a very
long time to accomplish, perhaps four or five years, when one knows the proper exercises. In some cases,
where the “raw” chest register’s power has been forced upward in the range to its top limit at En above
middle C, it takes longer, since the wrong chest voice power must first be “undone.” This is accomplished
by applying seemingly endless, descending, detached falsetto scales to them, with the falsetto form of the
u (oo) and i (ee) vowels, then gradually imposing the strengthened head voice muscles’ control upon all
the tones of the chest voice. The passaggio’s tones do not exist as a separate, muscular, harmonic group
until they have been transformed away from their original state, into a new arrangement wherein some of
their muscular controls are drawn from the bottom range and others from the top range. It is comforting
to know that structuring the passaggio’s tones has always been confusing and problematic since the very
beginning of man’s attempts to understand the nature of and train the singing voice hundreds of years ago.
During all past, great periods of vocal training, an experienced teacher knew, from the outset of vocal
training, that he/she must never “drive” the power of the chest voice upward in the range as far as the En

above middle C. By doing so, it will deny the student the possibility of “making harmonic” the inherent
antagonism that exists between the two registers—especially between Bf below middle C to the Gn
natural situated above it—which is the only way the singer will ever possess a full, smooth and even,
complete range of tones from bottom to top.
In direct opposition to the above principle, the new school’s dictum was—do indeed extend the
chest register’s range upward past middle C to the En above it! This was not only incorrect, but it was
blatantly contrary to historical pedagogic practices. For example, Manuel Garcia’s table of registration
events demonstrates a considerable overlap between the chest and head registers. All correctly structured
tones of the passaggio are a creation of mind, determination, specific knowledge and will, and lots of
time. The superior singing voice is not created from the speaking voice, nor is it an extension of it. It is
slowly created from an entirely different set of muscles, the head voice group. The singing voice’s
muscles are located far above the speaking voice. They are frequently referred to as the falsetto voice for
all males and the flute voice or whistle voice for all females. The purest form and applications of these
muscles (free from any and all chest voice) can only be accessed from the very top range of every
singer’s voice where they perpetually allow the fullest, free-flow of the breath stream. Great skill is
necessary in arranging the throat position of the presently sung vowel of any tone, high upward, in the
posterior area of the mouth-pharynx cavity, behind the soft and hard palates, which is necessary to enable
a full, strong flow of breath, speeding upward from the bottom of the resonance tract, to reach these tones
and grant the singer absolute muscular control of them. At the beginning of training, these “hollow,”
“breathy” falsetto or whistle-voice, top-range-tones, convey very little of their true worth, nor what finally
emerges at advanced levels of training.
William Shakespeare, the famous singer and one of Lamperti, perè’s best vocal students (not the
famous English playwright), stated the following in his masterfully written vocal manual The Art of
Singing (Oliver Ditson Company): “If, while singing a high note, as softly as possible, (a detached
falsetto tone; author’s note), and the note is accompanied by a sensation of sound and a full flow of the
breath stream reverberating and ringing towards the back of the head, beyond the last upper teeth, we
shall have discovered the so-called head voice.”
Throughout the international singing community, past and present, the five classic Italian vowels,
u (oo), i (ee), e (eh), o (oh), and a (ah), as pronounced by native Italians, have been considered best for
training the singing instrument. This is so because the Italian language is essentially free from
diphthongs; whereas the most disadvantageous language for training the singing voice is English, as it is
presently spoken by native Americans, since it abounds in diphthongs. A pure vowel allows for a specific,
single throat position for any selected tone. To the contrary, a tone that employs a diphthong, which
toggles between one of its vowels to its other, does not quickly “settle down” in the throat to allow the
singer to establish a single, specific vowel throat position. This is because the diphthong-factor, being
imposed upon a selected tone, confuses the singer as to which of the diphthong’s two vowels should be
made the dominant vowel of the two, in order to steady the tone’s proper throat position so that pitch
accuracy and vowel purity can be resolved.
A frequently overlooked factor about the classic Italian vowels is that, when they are being taught
to English speaking students, they are invariably filtered through the sieve of the teacher’s American
pronunciation of them. Doing this unavoidably alters and misshapen the pure Italian vowels away from
their original pure forms, thereby denying the student their Italian benefits. Not only is there a vast
difference in the basic sound of each “misshapen” Italian vowel, wrongly pronounced in a flat, dull,
strident manner, but there are also vast physical movements of the tongue, lips, and cheeks that
accompany the proper production of each of the five classic Italian vowels. And, most American
repertory coaches are also filtering the Italian language through the English language when they endeavor
to “correct a student’s Italian pronunciation.” When that be the case, it stands to reason that the Italian
vowels are no longer remotely able to help the singer correctly perform the various vocal exercises
necessary to build a superior singing voice, nor to create the same superior “tonal sounds” that result, as
when the Italian vowels are being properly produced. It will prove most beneficial for all vocal students if
they will apply the classic Italian vowels to their singing voices, exclusively, for at least the first seven
years of their training.
Here’s what William Shakespeare had to say about the movements of the lips, tongue and facial
muscles: While singing: “The command over the expression of the eyes depends upon the freedom of
action of the muscles around them; but as these muscles work in sympathy with the muscles which
control the face, and which raise the upper lip (while the vowel being sung properly places the tongue and
palate), all will act free, if the face is free, and all will act rigidly, if the face is rigid.”
The detached falsetto versions of the i (ee) and e (eh) vowels help the singer to understand the
“lift up” principle. The “lift up” involves certain movements of the lips, cheeks and tongue which elevate
the entire upper section of the range (for all singers) away from the entire bottom section of the range,
starting at Cs above middle C upward, for all male singers, and Cs2 and upward, for all female singers,
to the very top of the range.
Accomplishing the “lift up” while exercising the voice or while singing enables the singer to
maintain muscular harmony and balance between the upper dominant area of the complete vocal range
and the lower subordinate area of the complete range by subordinating, as the singer ascends the range,
all negative aspects of the lower range, such as inappropriate bulk and weight, upon arriving at the critical
Cs for male singers, and Cs2 for all female singers. The “lift up” principle is a very important factor for
achieving superior singing. Present-day training principles do not consider the “lift up” but oppose its
critically important principles by applying exercises that create a rigid jaw and restrictive movements of
the lips, cheeks, and tongue. These inappropriate vocal exercises quickly and undeniably create a
permanent antagonism between the upper and lower areas of the singer’s complete range. This forces all
singers, whose training excludes the important “lift up” principle, to almost totally negate the bottom area
from their complete range.
When advanced American vocal students begin to audition for their first operatic roles, they are
frequently required to present several vocal selections in various foreign languages, usually Italian,
French, German, Russian, and sometimes English. Nothing shows more ignorance, on the part of those
individuals holding these auditions, of the true nature of a superior singing instrument, nor its structural
requirements, where “language-influence” is concerned. By them requiring this damaging audition-
policy, it also shows a lack of consideration for the singers’ voices.
Italian operas were composed in Italian, to be sung by Italian speaking singers—essentially, all
Italian operas are dramatic. These Italian opera composers sought out “dramatic” stories that presented
them with a full range of human experiences: sorrow, joy, happiness, success, tragedy, betrayal, and
almost always, in the end, they ended with death. The music which these Italians composed for these
dramatic operas had to fulfill the high peaks and low valleys of human emotions. These dramatic operas
required exceptional singers who can sing with a full range of dynamics and a large variety of vocal
timbres: sad, happy, angry, surprised, joyful, betrayed, disappointed, passionate and loving. Those singers
who could bring the Italian composer’s scores to life possessed superior vocal techniques. To make a
point, how could any soprano, when singing Puccini’s Tosca, in the second act, after Tosca has murdered
Scarpia, fulfill the dramatic moment that Puccini intended if she does not possess a mixed chest register
for Tosca’s declamation: “E avanti a lui tremava tutta Roma!”, like the thrilling mixed chest voice of
Zinka Milanov, Claudia Muzio, or Renata Tebaldi?
Surely you have your own favorite moment in one of the great Italian operas, when a certain
famous singer sang a phrase in a particular manner that thrilled you to the core of your being and which
no other singer thereafter ever accomplished for you in the same way. All superior Italian singers of the
past, and some more recently, could sing a full range of tones, all of which possessed brilliance in their
centers and velvety roundness around their center; what the early Italian teachers called chiaroscuro,
“brightness and darkness” combined. A tone with a bright, diamond center with a rim of darkness
surrounding it could be sung very softly and sweetly, when that was appropriate, then loudly and

“blaring” when that was necessary—tones which were called squillo, meaning tones that “blared out”
like a trumpet without either extreme of dynamic, loud and/or soft being threatened or eliminated by the
other.
It should be noted that, during the student’s early period of training, where applications of the
five, classic Italian vowels are concerned, there exists a potential for students to produce overly bright or
“shrill” tones. Manuel Garcia addressed this issue in his 1840 Paris manual, Hints on Singing. He
advised one of his pupils “. . . don’t be concerned about shrillness of tone in the beginning of training, for
it is easily converted away from shrillness, by rounding the vowels.” Meaning that, a voice need not be
polished until it arrives at an advanced stage of development. “Rounding the voice” evolves certain
exercises that utilize the u (oo), o (oh), and aw vowels.
The best American singers, of the past forty years or more, often achieved a certain “roundness”
with many of their tones, but in most cases, these tones still lacked brilliance, especially in the bottom
range, with female singers and in the top range with male singers. The cause of this “timbre-deficient
imbalance” can be traced to the fact that the new school teachers lacked the knowledge as to how to
correctly structure the passaggio, or passageway’s, tones. The dictionary defines a passageway as a
corridor; a narrow track of space, forming a hallway, through which an individual may transit through,
in either direction; or a path through which an object, a chair or piano, or what have you, may be
transported through.
If the singer will envision the passaggio as being a narrow corridor that connects one part of the
range to another and which the singer is obliged to send the breath stream into and then through, in both
ascending and descending directions, the singer will have established a clear cut image of the passaggio.
Then the singer may proceed to the problems which cause such difficulties with the passaggio’s tones.
Rather than to go into all the numerous details necessary to do this (they can be easily had by
reading my manual A Singer’s Notebook), it will prove quicker and more enlightening to explain the two
major differences between a singer who possesses a superiorly structured passaggio and one who
possesses a poorly, incompletely structured passaggio.
Scenario # 1: When a singer possesses a properly structured passaggio, he/she can easily sing all
its tones with superior tonal quality, pure vowels, and control of all ranges of dynamics because there are
no obstacles along the pathway of the complete passaggio which block the air flow. The following facts
are critically important. Other than negative effects upon the vocal organs due to illness, which may cause
infection and consequential swelling of the vocal organs the two main “blockers” of the passaggio tones’
proper function are: the incorrect positions and movements of the tongue and the soft palate.
When the tongue and soft palate's movements and positions are correct, they grant the singer free
entry for the energized breath stream (which is the generator of all the passaggio’s tones) into each and
every tone of the passaggio, then further upward, along the resonance tract, to the very top notes of the
range. To the beginner, desperately trying to solve the problems of his/her passaggio, this may seem
naive and too simple and radical an explanation of the passaggio’s main problems,, but to any advanced
singer, these tongue and soft palate factors represent indisputable truth.
Scenario #2: Conversely, when the singer is denied a facile entry into his/her passaggio tones
(which negatively affect his/her top tones), and is told that the problems of his/her passaggio are the
incorrect movements and positioning of his/her tongue and soft palate, he/she seldom believes these
factors and instead places the blame on other remote, unrealistic and non-related factors for the
“blockage” they experience with their passaggio tones.
The critical structural needs of the passaggio of most American male singers—tenors, baritones,
and basses—are generally unknown, and are seldom properly addressed, while the student changes from
one voice teacher to another in a futile attempt to gain a functional singing voice. No teacher seems to
offer them any alternatives to their problems, other than vocal compromises such as: “covering the tone”
[a method of holding off the chest voice’s brilliance which dulls down the tone(s), and/or “shrinking the
volume of the tone(s)],” “humming before singing,” “vocalizing with one particular vowel, exclusively,”
or the most damaging of all, by merely “shouting” the passaggio tones with the promise that they will
eventually become musically polished, highly controllable tones.
You may personally experience and thereby understand some of these above negative factors, by
going to the back of the auditorium when the male singers are singing and focusing your attention upon
the variety of inaccurate, unmusical vocal maneuvers and unpleasant tonal timbres which repeatedly
occur, with certain tones, along the path of the singer’s complete range. The singer’s vocal timbres will
vary from “dark,” “dull,” “inaudible,” “inferior,” “radically open,” or “restrictively closed,” with
“projecting”
severe distortions
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the“hint” of professional
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far-below-standard condition with little promise.

Unfailingly, the male singer’s bottom range is barely audible, and most of his tones possess a
covered, “smothered” quality. The voice sounds “tired” and “worn.” As the singer ascends toward his
middle range, the voice grows uncontrollably louder but not better in quality. Control over the dynamics
produces “coarse, unmusical shouting.” Some lyric tenors avoid these undesirable factors by almost
completely negating the brilliance of the chest voice’s vibrato with all their tones, from Fn above middle
C downward to the very bottom of their range, and by singing excessively softly and sweetly with a
soprano-like quality. The Italians derogatorily call these singers “tenorinos.” They appear to successfully
sing the “bel canto” lyric repertory for a brief period of time, then suddenly vanish, suggesting that
something was missing from their voices from the start. Indeed, it was the full collaboration of the chest
voice with their exaggeratedly developed head voice muscles!
Every serious singer who places high hopes on someday enjoying a successful, professional
singing career should make this infallible, highly revelatory test of his/her voice. Make a recording of one
of your best sung arias, one that you feel best demonstrates and justifies why you should be hired by a
major operatic theater manager to sing an operatic role for a two or three-thousand member audience of
opera lovers. Then make a second recording, placing your best sung vocal selection next to (either before
or after) a recording of one of great singers of the past, singing the same vocal selection as your own.
Listen carefully to it, over and over, before reaching your conclusions. Admittedly, doing this would be
frightening, maybe devastating, but it will definitely inform you of your true worth as a singer. During a
live performance of an operatic role, if you’ve “really got it”, the audience will burst into enthusiastic
applause. If you don’t have it, they’ll applaud politely and sparingly. In some Italian cities, when a singer
falls short of the audience’s standards, they are “booed” off the stage! Go ahead, find the courage to be
your own critically judging audience! This is practically the only occasion when I would recommend to a
singer to make a recording of his/her voice, since I believe that doing so, during the long period of
training necessary to acquire a great singing technique, is counterproductive.
As far as the purity of the five Italian classic vowels and the manner in which they effect the basic
sound of most American male singers’ voices are concerned, American singers generally sound less like
the great Italian singers of the past than do female American singers. This is because, almost unfailingly,
most American male singers rely almost exclusively on the speaking voice’s vowel sounds and muscular
controls to structure their bottom notes, which are the easiest notes of their complete ranges, and to
accomplish these “forgeries.” For more than five decades now, this mistaken concept—“model your
singing voice on your speaking voice”—has lured the average American student into falsely believing
that the above approach is the only solution to attaining a superior singing voice.
Admittedly, it is much more difficult for a male student to achieve a superior singing voice than
for a female student. This is because the male singer’s total range of tones possess more chestvoice tones
than head voice tones, through which most vocal problems find their solutions. Most American male
singers’ voices lack brilliance and are “hollow” and “foggy” sounding. They sound like an “older singer,”
who has been singing “heavy repertory” for far too long, even when the singer is young and at the
beginning of his training. There also exists a tragically erroneous concept that the singing voices of all

singers, as they grow older, thickens and darkens in sound. Huh! That’s only the case when the technique
is incorrect.
When Garcia, perè, during his later years, came to America to sing the role of the barber, in
Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia, the American impresario who had hired Garcia, along with his talented
children, because of their “world famous name,” knowing well it would draw crowds, was astounded
upon first hearing that the “old man’s voice” had retained the youthful freshness and beauty of tone of a
superior singer, which indeed Garcia was. After completing an extensive tour of many major American
cities, Garcia perè and his talented kids returned to Europe, smiling with satisfaction and with their
pockets full of American dollars.
Most American female singers structure their voices in quite the opposite way than do their
American male counterparts. They generally focus their attention on their top octave's tones and neglect
their bottom octave’s tones. This is so because all female singers’ “true” passaggio is located at the
bottom of their range, which is so difficult to understand and “fix” and which can be temporarily ignored.
Even when a female singer can sing with reasonably good sounding tones at the upper middle and top of
her range and convinces herself that she has “escaped” all the negative influences of her chest register’s
“unattractive” and “unladylike,” difficult-to-control tones, in reality she has made the same fatal mistake
that most American male singers have made when they neglected the use of their head voice’s falsetto
tones. Most female singers hold a belief that their voices possess “two passaggios,” an upper and lower.
That’s OK. That theory has been treated in great detail, in my vocal manual, A Singer’s Notebook.
Going once again to the back of the auditorium and listening to a female singer sing, one
immediately observes that their bottom range is weak and almost inaudible, but as the singer ascends
toward her upper middle range, the basic quality and “pronunciation” of her vowels improve. Then
suddenly, the top range “blooms,” and the singer takes advantage of her best-of-all singing tones.
However, these top tones never possess the true brilliance of “squillo” tones, which blare out over the
orchestra and into the audience. Unfortunately, the early promise of a future successful career eventually
wanes, and the voice suddenly and unexplainably fails.
Most American female singers generally sound as if they are singing in some foreign language.
However, upon closer scrutiny, one realizes they are attempting to sing in English but instead produce
some otherworldly form of Italian or French with a “choked throat” in the lower octave of their range.
Once again, a neglected, under-developed passaggio is the culprit causing these gross and inhibiting vocal
limitations.
The absence of brilliance of most of the American female singers’ lower range is caused by the
tongue and soft palate's faulty positions and movements; both act like bathtub plugs at the lower and
upper entrances to the true “bottom” passaggio—at Bf below middle C up to the Gn above it—and
block the motor force of the breath stream from surging upward from the lungs into the passaggio, then
further upward in the range toward the middle and top ranges. Once these “plugs” have been removed
(this takes quite a long time), the passaggio’s tones and all the remaining top tones of the complete range
will gain the much needed, but formerly missing, vocal timbres of brilliance and grant the singer complete
control of the breath dynamics and correct formations of the five classic Italian vowels. At their best,
most American female singers sound forever juvenile. They seldom achieve the “full,” “round,” “warm,”
“womanly” vocal timbres and dynamics necessary to sing the great heroines of the mainstream, dramatic,
Italian, operatic repertory.
For nearly forty-five years now, since right after the Second World War, most American singers
have never been presented with the proper methods of utilizing the motor force of breath. That’s why so
many American singers, male and female, present little or no timbre variations with their singing and
instead sing in a dull, monochromatic, juvenile fashion.
The inherent but wrong pathway of the breath stream, when English is the singer’s primary
language, directs the breath stream into the mouth-pharynx cavity, then forward toward the lower front
teeth; then it exits the mouth cavity, accomplishing none of what is necessary to sing superior tones. The
correct pathway is backward and upward, in the mouth-pharynx cavity, then behind both the hard and soft
palates, and into either the resonance cavities of the sinuses or those of the skull. All the above is the
reason why most American voice students are consistent users of the incorrect and unproductive shallow
breathing method, as opposed to employing correct, “low, diaphragmatic breathing.”
Admittedly, English-speaking students cannot quickly nor easily reroute their “breath stream”
onto the correct pathway. This is because the muscular patterns of their tongue, lips, and cheeks, while
attempting to sing, do not operate in the same manner as when the five classic Italian vowels are
operating correctly. A major talent of all superior singers is their skill in directing the breath stream into a
specific resonance cavity where the assigned pitch is located. This skill can only be perfected when each
of the five classical Italian vowels is being properly sung. Each correctly sung Italian vowel positions the
upper posterior area of the mouth-pharynx cavity in a precise manner, one which enables the breath
stream to flow freely into the desired resonance cavity, appropriate to the assigned pitch; upon arriving
within the appropriate resonance cavity, the tone’s quality is automatically enhanced and its volume
amplified due to the size and shape of the resonance cavity itself, all of which produces a superior tone.
After the singer takes in an exaggerated amount of breath, holds it back, momentarily, within the
lungs (a factor which builds up breath pressure necessary to create a motor force), then “gradually
releases the breath stream,” allowing it to whiz toward the vocal cords where it passes through the glottis
(the opening between the vocal cords, the only “door” into and out of the lungs), then, at that point, the
singer must adjust his/her tongue, lips and cheeks in order to adjust the posterior throat position of the
assigned vowel and in order to succeed in directing the breath stream into the appropriate resonance
cavity. Managing the proper “pronunciation” of the selected Italian vowel (something radically different
than when speaking) greatly helps the singer to accomplish this task in a smooth and musical manner,
employing superior mental imagery in an indirect and somewhat unconscious manner.
If all the above is not properly accomplished, there is still a possibility of the inferior singer
producing the intended pitch(es) with a reasonably pure vowel and an acceptable quality; however,
without the fullest potential amount of the breath flow having been properly directed into the appropriate
resonance cavity and then“ focusing the tone” into the center of the cavity, or the “bull’s eye,” the effort
results in inferior tone. In the old days, the “bull’s eye” was called the point d’apui by the French, and
the punto d’appogiare by the Italians. Setting up this “bull’s eye”, towards which the singer must aim the
breath stream, into its precise place, with any selected tone, and within its appropriate resonance cavity,
may be accomplished by applying various structural exercises using the head voice’s i (ee) vowel.
The above situation describes the best of what could occur when the breath stream is correctly
managed; conversely, the worst results will definitely occur when the breath stream is improperly
managed. When that happens, the singer, despite good intentions, is obliged to “reach away” from the
proper controls of the breath stream and instead “grab hold” of the wrong sets of muscles, which produces
“forced resonance,” as the old Italian teachers described it. Doing so causes the lower jaw to stiffen and
evokes the negative power of the chest voice’s muscular controls which, immediately causes rigidity of all
the passaggio’s tones, resulting in inferior tonal qualities, compromised vowels, and faulty intonations.
Each correctly produced Italian vowel exerts a strong, individual, positive muscular influence on
any and all tones of the singer’s complete range. The u (oo), o (oh) and a (ah) vowels group themselves
together, and they perform as the “open throated” vowels but to varying degrees of openness. This means
that the open or closed manner in which the vowels position the upper posterior area of the throat is
progressive. Starting from a partially open throat position with the u (oo) vowel, then moving toward a
slightly more open throat position with the o (oh) vowel, then finally with the bright, fully open a (ah)
vowel, the singer arrives at a fully open throat position.
The first group of vowels, u (oo), o (oh) and a (ah), enables the singer to emit and properly direct
the maximum flow of the breath, critically essential to producing all superior tone. Especially useful is the
aw vowel which is a combination of the u (oo), o (oh) and a (ah). These three vowels, plus the aw , are

very congenial for producing the maximum amount of breath flow. They help the singer generate free,
open-throated, round, vibrant, consistently available tones. However, neither the u (oo), o (oh), nor the a
(ah) vowels grant the singer tonal brilliance, vocal focus, or precise vocal placement. Those precious
attributes are only acquired through the use of the head voice versions of the i (ee) and e (eh) vowels. In
any case, the superior singer, who possesses a near-perfectly structured singing voice, can sing all five
vowels easily and purely on any and all of the tones of his/her complete range.
The training procedures of the average American student usually rely upon the u (oo) and o (oh)
vowels and a dark, compromised, “covered” a (ah) vowel. There are but few who rely upon the i (ee) and
e (eh) vowels to keep their voices going because, very quickly, the initial help of the incorrect i (ee) and e
(eh) vowels run out of their “tricks.” This is because these singers are employing a wrong version of the i
(ee) and e (eh) vowels, one based exclusively upon chest register muscular dominance. Correct and
“safe” versions of the i (ee ) and e (eh) vowels are the head voice versions of them, which must be used
exclusively to build the voice. Much later, the advanced head voice versions of the i (ee) and e (eh)
vowels will reveal to the singer the correct manner of singing the i (ee) and e (eh) vowels in the bottom
range of the voice by ways of “reflection” and “imitation” of the head voice’s muscular actions and tonal
timbres.
Generally speaking, the first group of vowels—the u (oo), o (oh) a (ah)—produce readily
accessible “breathy,” “hollow” voices, which lack tonal “brilliance” and precise focus, meaning that the
tone is not properly directed toward its center-of-the-bull’s-eye throat position, especially with the
singer’s top tones. If a singing teacher is aware that the u (oo), o (oh) and a (ah) vowels are permanently
antagonistic toward the i (ee) and e (eh) vowels, and that each individual group is capable of achieving
certain important structural accomplishments, which the other group can not accomplish, then he/she is a
rare teacher, indeed.
Few students accept the stinging reality that most great singers of the past took many years to
build their voices to perfection. Giovanni Sbriglia (1832-1916) one of the old Italian School’s greatest
singers/teachers, stated that it took him nine years to convert Jean de Reszke’s (1850-1925) voice from an
unsuccessful baritone into one of the greatest tenors of all times. Emma Calvé (1858-1942), who Mathilde
Marchesi (1821-1913) trained to become one of the brightest stars of the Paris Opera, decided that her
vocal technique limited her to lyric roles, while she longed to sing the “gutsy” dramatic roles in opera. So
ambitious Calvé started searching for a teacher who could correctly build her chest tones, but none was
found. Luckily, she eventually found the great castrato Dommenico Mustafà who accomplished her
wishes. Mustafà taught her the secrets of correctly structuring her chest tones through the use of the voix
mixte (a combination of head voice and chestvoice muscular “blendings,” applied with an exaggerated
breath flow, and certain, little-known vocal exercises, which had granted Mustafà his own great singing
voice). Calvé described Mustafà’s mixed chest tones as “certain curious notes...strange, sexless,
superhuman, uncanny!”
A great voice teacher, besides possessing a seemingly endless store of technical knowledge about
voice building, plus great skills in applying that knowledge, must also possess superior hearing skills
since without them, he/she could not make critical judgments and decisions as to what each individual
voice lacks or already possesses and how to go about granting his/her students all their voice’s positive
needs, while eliminating all their faults.
F. Husler, the famous German voice teacher of Leoni Ryseneck, Sàndor Kónya, and soprano
Karen Bransen, all of the Metropolitan Opera, had much to say about the teacher’s hearing: “We no
longer have at our disposal the acute sense of hearing once possessed by great teachers of singing of the
past. . . Our ears have lost that strange kind of intuitive, almost somnambulistic intelligence, together
with its extraordinary, accurate, discriminating faculty.”
Sàndor Kónya studied with me for the last seven and a half years of his Metropolitan Opera
career, and Karen Bransen, also of “the Met,” for about two years. I did not teach Leoni Ryseneck. I also
taught Metropolitan tenor Flaviano Labó off and on, for approximately two years. Since he was so
successful, he had to frequently leave Manhattan for an engagement with one or more of the great opera
houses of the world. Of course it must be acknowledged that before working with me, Mr. Labó had
already studied with several illustrious voice teachers, such as Gina Cigna, Carmen Melis, Apollo
Grandforte, and Ettore Campogallilani.
But voice training is not a solo act—it is a collaboration, and each superior teacher requires a
superior student in order to produce a great singer. But where is such a rare creature during these
unusual, troubled, financially strained times? Most present-day students are ill-prepared for the long,
testy course of vocal training that a superior teacher would lay out before him/her, especially when the
amount of time needed to complete it varies from individual to individual and is unpredictable at the start
of training.
In closing, and in fairness to the dismal picture that I’ve presented about the so-called “New
American School of Voice Training,” I’d like to add that presently, in Italy, Italian voice teachers are not
doing much better than American voice teachers, with their production of great “Italian voices”, as in the
past. Most of their professional singers sing with strident tones that lack “roundness” and “beauty,”
resulting from one of the possible negative influences of the Italian language, which is prone to extreme
“openness” if not modified by “rounding.”
It is not surprising that most young, hopeful European and Asian voice students are flocking to
America for their voice training. However, they are unfortunately basing their decision to come here upon
the “canned” singing they’ve heard on popular CDs where often the singers’ voices have been enhanced
by advanced audio techniques, to give them whatever they lack, but all of which would be immediately
revealed and recognized if the same singers were heard performing “live” in any major theater.
During the long, testy, tedious process of obtaining a superior singing voice, the “organs” of the
singing voice are being transformed away from their inherent behavior, toward new muscular patterns and
responses appropriate for the singer to sing demanding vocal music, which is as much an athletic feat as a
mental and esthetic one. At the very end of training when the superior singing voice has finally been
obtained, and while singing, the vocal organs behave radically different than they once did at the start of
training. They must not be made to return to serving the old speaking voice! Doing so would throw them
out of harmonious balance with each other. It is for that reason that great singers usually adopt a rigid,
permanent policy of limited, soft volume speaking.
Most American vocal students greatly resist the transformation of their singing organs away from
the muscular patterns of their speaking voices and only feel comfortable when their larynx is incorrectly
mired in its lowest, immobile position, whereas the larynx must always be free to adjust to the various
positions necessary to satisfy accurate intonation and pure vowels. Frequently, after their voice lessons,
and sometimes during a voice lesson, American students feel that the arrangements of their vocal organs
are strange, uncomfortable, disorienting. Because of this, they mistakenly attempt to return the vocal
organs to their old, speaking voice’s muscular positions and responses. This is both foolish and
counterproductive. The serious singer must acknowledge that they can’t have the situation both ways—a
speaking voice that is available for hours on end for unimportant, daily chatter—or a great, sensitive,
beautiful and guarded singing voice that is capable of bringing one of the great operatic masterpieces to
life.
If any of my readers truly believe that the vocal organs of a great, professional singer are aligned
and related to each other in the same manner as the speaking voice and that the speaking voices’ muscular
arrangements are capable of permitting the singer to sing a challenging operatic aria, accompanied by a
full orchestra, then he/she is living in “Lollypop Land” and has never been anywhere close by a great
opera singer while he/she is singing a physically demanding aria. Admittedly, there is much more to vocal
training than all the above. If the reader wishes to learn more about my own teaching theories and
practices, he/she may read one of my many published vocal manuals. For a start, I suggestA Singer’s

Notebook and The Art of Singing on the Breath Flow, which can be purchased through Patelson’s Music
House, 160 West 56th Street, in Manhattan, NY. Tel: 212-757-5587.
Thank you very much for your interest and patience. Always keep in mind that I am a sincere and
faithful friend of the singer and very sympathetic to his/her outrageously challenging plight! Therefore, I
close with a fantasy-dream about a coming vocal-teaching revolution, followed by a renaissance of the
great training techniques of classical singing that produce great singers. I’m presently searching for allies
to bring about a New Age of enlightenment, followed by a renaissance of great classical singing.
So, get serious and do join me in the cause!
With best wises and much affection,
Anthony Frisell April 2006 — New York City
Anthony Frisell
Anthony Frisell was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, of Italian immigrant parents. He first
encountered the world of opera through recordings, and would often debate with his boyhood friends
about the merits of Beniamino Gigli versus Jussi Bjöerling. After high school, Frisell studied singing
briefly in New York City before returning to New Orleans to take up stage directing with the New
Orleans Opera Company. There he worked with conductor Walter Herbert and William Wymetal, and
such great singers as Richard Tucker, Leonard Warren, Jan Peerce, Dorothy Kirsten, Mario del Monaco,
Robert Merrill, Victoria de los Angeles, and Zinka Milanov.
Mr. Frisell returned to singing for three years under the guidance of Giovanni Cacetti, a wealthy
opera enthusiast who was the first to introduce Frisell to the “head voice” theories of voice training.
Following a brief career as an operatic tenor in Italy, Mr. Frisell returned to New York and developed a
school of voice training that resulted in the publication of his first voice book, The Tenor Voice. This was
followed by The Soprano Voice and The Baritone Voice, all of which have remained in print and are very
popular throughout the world. He has taught many international opera stars.
He was for seven and a half years, the New York teacher of the great tenor Sándor Kónya, and for
a short time, tenor Flaviano Labò, both formerly of the Metropolitan Opera, and many other International
Opera Houses. And, for several years, baritone Seymour Swartzman, formerly of the New York State
Theater.
Mr. Frisell initially learned about singing from his years as a stage director, working with great
operatic singers on stage. While he acknowledges a particular debt to the extraordinary vocal
achievements of both Bjöerling and Milanov, it is his work with Milanov and her remarkable
understanding of singing, especially pianissimo singing, that has served as his greatest instruction and
inspiration.
Mr. Frisell is also an author of fiction; his novels and many of his short stories have been
published in Europe. In 1995, Golden Throat, his novel about the international world of grand opera, was
published in the United States by Branden Publishing Co. (Brookline Village, Ma.). Mr. Frisell has
recently written the music and libretto for three operas. His first opera “The Secret of the painting”, is
based upon Oscar Wilde’s novel—The Picture Of Dorian Gray. His second opera “Rasputin”, is based
upon the lives of Rasputin and the Romanovs of 1917 revolutionary Russia. His third opera, La Vendetta,
is based upon one of his own, original short stories, of the same name.
Master Classes
given by
Anthony Frisell
Mr. Frisell is available to conduct master classes. He may be contacted in
New York City, at (212) 246-3385
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The Baritone Voice

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The Baritone Voice

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A Manualfor Training the Voice

Acquiring a Superior Singing Technique

An expanded and updated edition

Branden Publishing Company

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

IPL (International Pocket Library)

The Baritone Voice—7

The Baritone Voice—9

The "Science of Voice" Advocates

The Baritone Voice—11

Defining the Vocal Registers

A permanent antagonism exists between the two vocal registers

The Baritone Voice—13

The Cololratura Soprano's vocal range

The Soprano's vocal range

The Mezzo Soprano's vocal range

The precise location of the

The Tenors vocal range

The Baritone's vocal range

The Bass's vocal range

The vocal “passaggio”

The Lower Register

The Upper Register

The Baritone Voice—15

The Baritone Voice—17

voice, above Fn above middle C, to the initially thinner

The metamorphoses of the two vocal registers

The Baritone Voice—19

the result is always unattractive and unprofessional singing.

The Baritone Voice—21

common usage among professional singers today, especially female singers.

The basic tools used for vocal exercises

1. Breath tension, (motor force)

The Baritone Voice—23

The three methods of applying breath tension

The messa di voce

The messa di voce: a tone is started pp and gradually increased to aff.

The esclamazio viva

The esclamazio languida

The five vocal vowels

The Mechanical functions of the five classic Italian singing vowels:

The Baritone Voice—25

I. The u (oo) vowel

The ideal order of the five classic vowels

The Baritone Voice—27

II. The i (ee) vowel

The Baritone Voice—29

III. The e (eh) vowel

The Baritone Voice—31

IV. The o (oh) vowel

V. The a (ah) vowel

The Baritone Voice—33

Locating the area of the "Registers' Break"

Never force the Lower Register upward

The Baritone Voice—35

A comparison of breathing needs

The diaphragm helps to create a motor force

The Baritone Voice—39

The critical moment of transferring the breath tension

The Baritone Voice—41

Should one breathe through the mouth or nose, while singing?

The most undesirable method of breathing

The Baritone Voice—43

The single, sustained falsetto tone