HOW TO SI NG

"MEI NE G E SA NG SKU NS T "

L I L LI L E H M A NN

TRANSLATE D F R OM THE G E RMA N

RI C H A RD A LDR C I H

N E W A N D RE VI S E D E DI TI O N

Nzfiu gm
M A C M I L L A N C O M P A NY
1 9 14

A ll ri gh ts r es er ved
 C OP YRI G HT, 1902 A ND 1 9 14 ,

B Y T HE MACM I LLA N C MP A Y O N .

Se t u p l t typ d N v
an d e e c ro e o e mbe r, 1 902 . Re pr n i tde

Febru ary, 1 903 ; Ju ne , 1 9 04 ; A u gu t

s , 1 905 ; Ju ly , 1 906 ;

j an u ary, 1 90 8 .

Ne w and re vi se d e di ti on , Janu ary , 1 9 1 4.

Norman 1 "mm"
J S C u shi ng C o
. . . B erw i ck 63 S m th 00 i .

Norwood , Mass , U S A
. . . .
PREFACE T O THE REVI SE D E D ITI O N

TH E Object O f the first edition is attained .

The book has opened the eyes Of many to the

nature of the art of song . All those who have
anythin g to say or
‘

write must expect to meet

mi sinterpretations "there are just as many
ideas and modes Of expressing the same thi ng
as there are listeners and readers .

I have endeavored in thi s second edition

, ,

to forestall misinterpretations and to express

‘

better what I had to say in the first . I t must

not be thought that I lay claim to anythi ng
new " But I do lay claim to having translated
that which has Often been said and likewise
misunderstood , into the language Of the singer
wh o can only guide hi mself by tone sen sati ons

and learn therefrom .

Only a few are chosen ,

n ot all can become
great artists . But every one who devotes him
vi PREFAC E TO TH E REV I SE D ED ITIO N

self earnestly to this vocation shou ld endeavor

to attain the fi hi ghest e ci en cy . Even though
the theatre has experi en ced an incisive reform
and will again and again I do not see why we ,

should not hold ourselves responsible for the

technique Of the art Of song the beauty and the
,

preservation O f the human voice Of which we

shall always stand in need Without a thorough .

knowledge Of technique the art is an impossi ,

bility or is in sufficient . TO keep ou r bodies

supple and healthy we take gymnastic exer

cises . Wh y then should not singers also take

daily gymn astic exercises with their vocal
organs so as to preserve their material fo r their
profession Technique is inseparable from art
‘
P .

Only by mastering the te chnique O f his material

is the artist in a condition to mou ld his mental
work of art and to again give it his posses
sion borrowed from life to others . Even
artists intellectually highly gifted remam
crippled without this mastery Of the technique .

Surely every great artist has now and then ex

peri en ced it himself .

 PREFACE TO THE REVI SED ED ITIO N vn

Only b ecause I feel myself so small and im

perfect in the face Of ou r great art O f song ,

only b ecause I see how much there is still left

to learn do I from the b ottom Of my heart
wish an d hope that others will do it b etter than
I to W hom no one will be able to deny at least
two thi ngs "seriousness and the highest respect
for art and capab ility .

LI LLI LEH MANN .

SCHARF LI NG , M O NDS E E ,
1 9 14 .
 C ONTENTS

MY PUR P O S E
M Y TIT L E TO WR IT E O N TH E AR T O F S ON G

S E C TI O N I
P R E L IM I NA RY P R A C TIC E

SE C TI O N II
OF THE B REA TH

S E C TI O N I I I

OF TH E BRE A TH A ND W H I R L ING C URR E N T S

S E C TI O N IV
TH E S ING E R S PH Y S IO L O G I C A L S TU D I E S
’

S E C TI O N V

E Q U A L I z I NG TH E V OIC E FO R M

S E C TI O N V I

TH E A TT A C K A ND TH E V OW ELS .

I
S E C T O N VI I

NA S A L NA S A L S I NGI NG
 C O NTENTS

S E C TI O N VIII
TH E HE A D V O IC E
S E CT O N I IX
SE NSA TIO N A ND P O S ITI O N O F TH E TO NGU E
SE C T I O N X
TH E SE NSA TIONS O F TH E NO S E

S E C TI O N XI
TH E S E NS A TIO NS O F TH E PA L A T E

SE C TI O N X II
TH E S E NS A TI ON O F TH E RE S ONA N C E O F TH E HEA D
CA V ITIE S

S E CTI O N X III
O N V O C A L RE G I S T E R S — VOC A L RA NG E S

SE C T I O N XIV
DE V EL O P ME NT A ND EQ UA L I Z A TI O N

S E C TI O N XV
WH IT E VO ICE S

SE C TI O N XV I
T H E O DO R WA C HT E L

S E C TI O N XV II
TH E HI GH E S T H E A D TO N ES
 C O NT ENTS

S E C TI O N XV III
TH E TR E M O L O

SE C TIO N XI X
TH E C U R E

SE C T I O N XX
TH E T O NG UE

S E CTI O N XXI
PR E P A RA TIO N FOR SI N G I NG .

S EC T I O N XXII
P O S I TI O N O F TH E M O UT H

S E C TI O N XXIII
TH E C O NNE C TI O N O F V OW E L S

S EC TI O N XXI V
TH E L IP S

SE C T I O N XXV
TH E V O W E L S O U ND AH O F FOR M E R DA Y S

SE C TIO N XXVI
I T A L IA N A ND G E RM A N

SE C T O NI XXV II
U
A XI L IA R Y V O W E L S
 C O NTENTS

SE C TI O N XXV I I I
RE S O NA N T C O N S O NA N T S

S E C TI O N XXI X
PR A C TI CA L E XE R C I S E S

SE C T I O N XXX
TH E G R E A T SC A L E

S E C TI O N XXXI
V E LO C ITY

SE C T I O N XXX II
TR IL L

SE C T O N I XXXIII
How To H OL D O NE S
’
SE L F W H N P R A C TIS IN G
E

SEC T O N I XXX I V
P RO N UN C IA TION CO N S O NA N T S

S E C TI O N XXXV
CO NC E R N I N G E XP RE SS I ON

S E C TI O N XXXV I
BE FO RE TH E PUB L IC
 C O NT ENTS iii
x

S E CTI O N XXXV II
I N T E R P R E T A TI O N

S E C TI O N XXXV II I
IN CO NC L U S I ON

NO T E —A G OO D RE M E DY F OR CA TA R RH A ND

H O A R S ENE S S
2 H O W TO SI NG

functions Of the several organs and the fewest

singers are informed on the s ubj ect . Every
serious artist has a sin cere desire to help others
reach the goal the goal toward which all
singers are striving "t o sing well and beauti

fully .

The true art Of song has always been pos

sessed and will always be possessed by such
individuals as are dowered by nature with
all that is needful for it that is healthy
,

vocal organs uninjured by vicious habits

,
Of

speech ; a good ear a talent ,

fo r singing ,
in

t elligen ce , industry and energy

,
.

In former times eight years were devoted

to the study Of singing at the Prague Con
serv at ory, for instance . M ost Of the mis
takes and misunderstandings Of the pupil
could be discovered before he secured an en

g g
a e ment , and the teacher could spend so
much time in correcting them that the pupil
learned to pass judgment on himself properly .

But art to day must be pursued like every

-

thing else by steam Artists are turned ou t in

,
.
 MY P U RPO SE 3

factories that is in
, ,
SO -
called conservatories ,
or

by teachers who give lessons ten or twelve

hours a day . In two years they receive a cer
’
tifi cat e Of competence or at least the teacher s
,

diploma Of the factory . The latter especially

, ,

I consider a crime that the state should prohibit

,
.

All the inflexibility and unskilfu lness mis ,

takes and deficiencies ,

whi ch were formerly
dis closed during a long course Of study do ,

n ot appear now under the factory system

, ,

until the student s ’

p Ubli c career has begun .

There can be no question Of correcting them ,

for there is no time no teacher no critic ; and

, ,

the execu t anh has learned nothing absolutely ,

nothing whereby he could undertake to dis

,

tingu ish or correct them .

The incompetence and lack Of talent white

washed over by the factory concern lose only
t oo soon their plausible brillian cy . A failure
in life is generally the sad end Of such a fa ctory
product ; and to factory methods the whole art
Of ng is more and more given over as a
so

sa crifice .
4 HO W TO S I NG

M y artistic
ons cience urges me to disclose
c

all that I have learned and that has be come

clear to me in the course O f my career for the ,

“ ”
benefit O f art ; and to give up my secrets ,

whi ch seem to be se crets only be cause students

so rarely pursue the path Of proper study to its
end . If artist s Often such only in name come
, ,

to a realization Of their defi cien cies they lack

,

only too frequently the courage to ackn owl

edge them to others . No t until we artists

all rea ch the point when we can take counsel
with each other about ou r mistakes and defi
ci en ci es , and di scuss the means for overcoming
them putting our pride in
,
ou r pockets will ,

bad singing and inartistic effort be c he cked ,

and ou r noble art Of singing come into its

rights again .

M Y TITLE TO W R I TE O N TH E A RT O F S O N G

Rarely are so many desirable and n eces

sary antecedents united as in my case .

The child Of two singers my mother being ,

 MY PURPO SE 5

gifted musically quite out Of the common ,

and active for many years not only as a dra

matic singer but also as a harp V irtuoso I with
, , ,

my sister M arie received a very careful musical

,

education and later a notable course Of in

,

stru ction in singing from her From my fifth .

year on I listened daily to singing lessons ;

from my ninth year I played ac companiments
On the pianoforte sang all the missing parts in
, ,

French Italian German and Bohemian ; got

, , ,

thoroughly familiar with all the operas and ,

very soon knew how to tell good singing from

bad . Our mother took care too that we should
, ,

hear all the visiting notabilities Of that time in

opera as well as in c oncert ; and there were
many Of them ever year at the D eutsches
Landestheater in Prague .

She herself had found a remarkable singing

teacher in the Frankfort basso ,
P Oppel ; and
kept her voice noble beautiful young and
, , ,

strong to the end Of her life ,

that is till
,

her seventy seventh year

-
,
notwithstanding
enormous demands upon it and many a blow
6 HO W TO SI NG

Of fate . She could diagnose a voice infalli

bly ; but required a probation Of three to four
months to test talent and power Of making
progress .

I have been on the stage since my eighteenth

year ; that is ,
fo r thirty four years
-
. In Prague
I took part eve ry day in operas operettas , ,

plays ,
and farces . Thereafter in D anzig I
sang from eighteen to twenty times a month in
coloratura and soubrette parts ; also in Leipzig ,

and later fifteen years in Berlin

,
. In addition
I sang in very many oratorios and concerts and ,

gave lessons now and then .

As long as my mother lived she was my

severest critic never satisfied ,
. Finally I be
came such for myself . Now fifteen years
more have passed Of which I spent eight very
,

exacting ones as a dramatic singer in America ,

afterward fulfilling engagements as a star in ,

all languages in Germany , ,

Austria , Hungary ,
France England and Sweden
, ,
. Nevertheless
my study Of singing experienced no ret rogres

sion . I kept it Up more and more zealously by

 MY PURPO SE 7

myself ,
learned Something from everybody ,

learned to hear myself and others .

For many years I have been devoting my

self to the important questions relating to
singing and believe that I have finally found
,

what I have been seeking . It has been my

endeavor to set down as clearly as possible all
that I have learned through zealous ,
con sci en

tious study by myself and with others and ,

thereby to Offer to my colleagues something

that will bring order into the chaos Of their
methods Of singing ; something based on sci
ence as well as on sensations in singing ; some
thing that will bring expressions Often mis
understood into clear relation with the exact
functions Of the vocal organs .

In what I have just said I wish to give a

sketch Of my career only to S how what my
voice has endured and why notwithstanding
, ,

the enormous demands I have made upon it ,

it has lasted so well . O ne who has sung for

a short time and then has lost his voi ce and
, ,

for this reason b ecomes a singing tea cher, has

8 HO W TO SI N G

never sung consciously ; it has si een an

/
a ccident and this accident will be repeated
, ,

for good or for ill in his pdpfls

,
.

The talent in whi ch E

ll the requirements Of

an artist are united is very rare . Real tal

ent will get along even with an inferior teacher
, ,

in some way or another ; while the best teacher

cannot produ ce talent where there is none .

Such a tea cher ,

however ,
will not begu ile
people with promises that cannot be kept .

My hief attention I devote to artists

c ,

whom I can , perhaps assist in their

, diffi
cult but glorious profession
, ,
. O ne is never
done with learning ; and that is especially
true of singers . I earnestly hope that I may
leave them somethi ng in my researches ex , ,

peri en ces ,
and studies that will be
,
Of use . I
regard it as my duty ; and I confide it to all
who are striving earnestly for improvement .

GRU N E W AL D ,

O ct 3 1, 1900
. .
10 H O W TO SI NG

O nce when I was acting as substitute for

a teacher in a c onservatory the best pupils
,

ofthe institution were promised me those ,

who needed only the finishing touches But .

when after my first lesson

, ,
I went to the
director and complained Of the ignorance Of

the pupils my mouth was closed with these

,

“
For Heaven
’
words ,
s sake don t say such
,
’

things ,
or we could never keep our conserva
H
tory going ‘

I had enough and went ,

.

The best way is for pupils to learn pre

parato ry books by heart and make drawings , .

In this way they will get the best idea of the

vocal organs ,
and learn their functions by
sensation as soon as they begin to sing . The
pupil should be subj ected to strict examinations .

In what does arti sti c si ngi ng difi er f

rom
natu ral si ngi n g

In a clear understanding Of all the organs

concerned in voice produ ction and their func ,
 PRELI M I NARY P RAC TI C E 11

tions singly and together ; in the understand

,

ing O f the sensations in singing cons cientiously ,

studied and scientifically explained ; in a

gradually cultivated power Of contracting and
relaxing the muscle s Of the vo cal organs that ,

power ulminating in the ability to submit

c

them to severe exertions and keep them under

c ontrol . The prescribed tasks must be mas
tere d so that they can be done without exer

tion with the whole heart and soul and with

, ,

complete understanding .

H ow is this to be attained ?
Through natural gifts among which I reck on
,

the possession Of sound organs and a well

favored body ; through study guided by an
excellent teacher who can si ng well hi mself ,

study that must be kept up for at least six

years without counting the preliminary work
, .

O nly singers formed on su ch a basis after

,

years Of work ,
deserve the title Of artist ;
only such have a right to look forward to a
lasting future and only tho se equipped with
,

such a knowledge ought to tea ch .

 HO W TO SI NG

Of what consi sts arti sti c si ngi ng ?

Of a clear understanding first and fore ,

most ,
Of breathing in and ou t ; Of an u n
,

derst an ding Of the form through which the

breath has to flow , prepared by a proper
position Of the larynx the tongue and the , ,

palate . Of a knowledge and understanding

Of the functions Of the muscles Of the abdo
men and diaphragm which regu late the breath
,

pressure ; then Of the chest muscle tension

,
-
,

against which the breath is forced and whence , ,

under the control Of the singer after passing ,

through the vocal cords it beats against the ,

resonating surfa ces and vibrates in the cavities

Of the head Of a highly cultivated skill and
.

flexibility in adjusting all the vocal organs

and in putting them into minutely graduated
movements without inducing changes through
,

the pronunciation Of words or the execution Of

musical figures that shall be injurious to the

tonal beauty or the artistic expression Of the
song . Of an immense muscu lar power in the
b reathi ng apparatus and all the vocal organs ,
 PRELI M I NARY P RACTI C E 13

the strengthening Of whi ch to endure sustained

exertion cannot be begun too long in advance ;
and the exercising Of which as long as
,
on e sings
in public must never be remitted
,
for a single
day .

As beauty and stability of tone do n ot

depend upon excessive pressu re Of the breath ,

so the muscular power of the organs used

in singing does not depend on convulsive rigid
ity but in that snakelike power Of contracting
,

and loosening which a singermust consciously

1
,

have under perfect control .

The study needed fo r this occupies an

entire lifetime ; n ot only because the singer
must perfect himself more and more in the
rOles Of hi s repertory even after he has
been performing them year in and year ou t,

but b ecause he must continually strive f or

progress , setting himself tasks that require

1
In physiol ogy when the mu scl es resu me their normal
st at e they are sai d t o b e relaxed
, B u t as I wi sh t o avoi d
.

gi vi ng a fal se concepti on in ou r vocal sensati ons I prefer ,

to u se the word l ooseni ng

“ ”
.
14 H OW TO SI NG

greater and greater mastery and strength ,

and thereby demand fresh study .

He who stands sti ll, goes backward .

Nevertheless , there are fortunately gifted

geniuses in whom are already united all the
qualities needed to attain greatness and per
fecti on and whose circumstances in life are
,

equally fortu n ate ; who can reach the goal

earlier without devoting their whole lives
,

to it . Thus ,
f or instance in ,
Adelina Patti
everything was united the splendid voice , ,

paired with great talent for singing and the ,

long oversight Of her studies by her distin

guished teacher ,
Strakosch . She never sang
rOles that did n ot suit her voice ; in her earlier
years she sang only arias and duets or single
solos never taking part in ensembles She
‘

.
,

never sang even her limited repertory when

she was indisposed . She never attended re

but came to the theatre in the evening

hearsals,
and sang triumphantly without ever having ,

s een the persons who sang and acted with her .

 P RELI M I NARY P RACTI C E 15

She spared herself rehears als which , on the day

Of the performance or the day b efore exhaust
, ,

all singers because Of the excitement Of all

,

kinds attending them and which contribute,

neither to the freshness O f the voice n or to the

j oy Of the profession .

Al though she was a Spaniard by birth and

an Am erican by early adoption she was so , ,
to

speak the greatest Italian singer

,
Of my time .

All was absolutely good correct and flawless

, , ,

the voice like a bell that you seemed to hear

long after its singing had ceased .

Yet she could give no explanation of her

art ,
and answered all her colleagues ’
ques
“
Ah , j
’
tions concerning it with an e n en sais
”
rien l

She possessed unconsciously as a gift Of

, ,

nature a union ,
Of all those qualities that
all other singers must attain and possess
con sci ou s ly Her
vocal organs stood in the
.

most favorable relations to each other Her .

talent and her remarkably trained ear main

, ,

tai ned control over the beauty O f her singing

16 H O W TO S I NG

and Of her voice The fortunate circumstances

.

Of her life preserved her from all injury The .

purity and fl awlessn ess Of her tone the beauti

,

ful equalization Of her whole voice constituted ,

the magic by which she held her listeners en

tranced . M oreover ,
she was beautiful and
gracious in appearance .

The accent Of great dramatic power she

did not possess ; yet I ascribe this more to

her intellectual indolence than to her lack

Of ability .
R ed li n es d t di i i
en o e v s o n of t h e b re a th i n the mi ddl e r an g e an d
h i gh er middl e r an ge .
R es o n an c e
of t he c av
ity o f t he
h d
f o re e a .

R ed li n es d t di i i f t h b th i
eno e v s on o e re a n the c
r es o n an e o f th e
h d c viti hi gh g
ea a es , r an e .
 SECTI O N II

O F TH E B RE A TH

TH E b reath b ecomes voice through the

operation Of the will and the instru rnent ality
‘

Of the vocal organs .

TO regulate the breath to prepare a pas ,

sage Of the proper form through which it shall

flow circulate develop itself and reach the
, , ,

necessary resonating chamb ers must be our ,

chi ef task .

Concerning the breath and much more

besides there is so much that is excellent in
O scar G u tt mann ’
s
“
Gymnastik der Stimme ”

that I can do no better than to refer to it

and recommend it strongly to the attention
of all earnest students .

H ow do I breathe ?

Very short Of b reath by nature my mother ,

had to keep me as a little child almost sitting

23
24 HO W TO SI NG

upright in bed . After I had outgrown that

and as a big girl cou ld run arou nd and play
well enough I still had much trouble with
,

shortness Of breath in the beginning Of my sing

ing lessons . For years I practised breathing
exercises every day without singing and still ,

do so with especial pleasure now that every ,

thing that relates to the breath and the voice

has become clear t o me . Soon I had got so far
that I could hold a swelling and diminishing
tone from fifteen to eighteen seconds .

I had learned this "to draw in the abdomen

and diaphragm raise the chest and hold the
,

breath in it by the aid of the rib s ; in letting

ou t the b reath gradu ally to relax the abdomen .

To do everyt hing thorou ghly I doubtless exag

gerated it all . But since for twenty -

fi ve years
I have b reathed in this way almost exclu sively ,

with the utmost care I have naturally attained

,

great dexterity in it ; and my abdominal and

'

chest muscles and my diaphragm have been

strengthened to a remarkable degree . Yet I
was not satisfied .
26 H O W TO SI NG

trained whose performan ces naturally are

,

likely to give art a black eye .

Undoubtedly I took in too much air in breath

ing cramped various muscles thereby
, , depri v
ing my breathing organs and muscles Of

their elasticity . I Often had with all care,

and preparation for inhalation , t oo little breath ,

and sometimes when not giving special thought

,

to it more than enough

,
. I felt ,
t oo , after
excessive inhalation as if I must emit a certain
amount Of air before I began to sing . Finally
I abandoned all superfluous drawing in Of the
abdomen and diaphragm inhaled but little , ,

and began to pay spe cial attention to emitting

the smallest possible amount Of b reath which ,

I found very serviceable .

How do I breathe now ?

The diaphragm I draw in ,

my abdomen
just a little only immediately to relax it
, . I
never raise the chest but I distend the upper
,

ribs and support them with the lower ones like

pillars under them . In this manner I prepare
 OF TH E B REAT H 27

the form for my singin g the supply chamber ,

for the breath exactly as I had learned it from

,

my mother which however I had exaggerated

, , .

At the same time I raise my palate high and

p revent the escape Of breath through the
nose . The diaphragm beneath reacts elas
tically against it and furnishes pressure from
,

the abdomen . Chest diaphragm the closed

, ,

epiglottis and the raised palate all form a sup

ply chamber for the breath .

O nly when I have begun to sing especially

when singing long cantilena like phrases -
do
I push the breath against the chest thereby ,

setting the chest muscles in action . These

combined with the elastically stretched dia
ph ragm and abdominal muscles ,
the abdomen
is always brought back to its natural position
during singing ,
exert a pressure in the f orm ,

which as we have already learned is the supply

, ,

chamber and bed Of the breath . This press

ure enables us to control the breath while
Singing .

From this supply chamber the breath must

28 H OW TO SI NG

very sparingly and gently pass between the

vocal cords which regulate it and over the
, ,

epiglottis . The vowel a lifts the epiglottis ;

it must always be again and again kept in mind ,

always be placed and pronounced anew — even

when other vowels are to be enunciated . Then
the singer only experiences the sensation O f the
—
inflated well closed form Of the supply chamber
,

which he must be heedful ,

especially when
carefully pronouncing the consonants not to ,

impair The longer the form remains flexible

.

and unimpaired the less breath escapes and

,

the longer it may flow from the form .

This form or supply chamber the breath,

pressure ,
which includes abdomen ,
di aphragm
and chest muscles is Often named,
At emst au en

“ ”
(breath restraint ) and St au pri n,
z ip (law o r

principle Of restraint) which terms carry in

,

themselves the danger Of inducing the pupil

to make the diaphragm rigid to ,
h Old ‘

back the
breath and to stiff en the entire vocal organs
instead of making him realize that only from
an eternally alive form with elastic muscu lar
 OF THE B REATH 29

action can the breath flow the tone reso ,

nate .

The more flexibly the breath pressure is

exerted against the chest o n e has the feeling
,

in this Of singing the tone against the chest

.

from whence it must be gently and flexibly

pushed ou t, the less the breath flows through
the vocal cords and the less consequently , ,

are they directly burdened . The strong co

operation of chest muscles and diaphragmatic

pressure prevents the overburdening Of all the
directly participating vocal organs .

In this way under control the breath reaches

, ,

the tone form prepared above by the tongue ; it

reaches the resonance chambers prepared for
it by the raising and lowering Of the soft palate
and those in the head cavities . Here it forms
whirling currents O f tone which now fill all
,

attainable resonating cavities necessary for

tone perfection . Not until the last note Of a
“ ”
phrase has passed the bell or cup shaped
-

cavity Of mouth and lips may the breath b e

allowed to flow unimpeded may the form or
,
30 HO W TO SI NG

supply chamber b e relaxed which , ,

n everthe

less , must quickly prepare itself for the next

phrase .

TO Observe and keep under control these

many functions singly ,
or in conjunction forms ,

the ceaseless delight Of the never failing foun

tain Of song study .

In preparing the form for the flow Of breath

(tone fl ow
-
) all the organs,abdomen diaphragm , , ,

upper ribs larynx tongue palate nose lungs

, , , , , ,

bronchial tubes abdominal and chest cavities

, ,

and their muscles participate ,

. These organs
can to a certain degree be relatively placed at
, ,

will and we singers are in duty bound to

,

acquire the necessary technical skill to perform

any task as nearly perfectly as possible . The
vocal cords which we can best imagine as
,

inner lips ,
we do not have under control
either as beginners or as artists . We do not
feel them . We first become conscious O f them
through the controlling apparatus Of the breath ,

which teaches us to spare them by emitting ,

breath through them in the least possible

 OF THE B REAT H 31

quantity and of even pressure thereby, p ro

du cing a steady tone . I even maintain that

all is won if we regard them directly as b reath
regu lators and relieve them
,
Of all overwork
through the controlling apparatus Of the chest
muscle tension . With the tongue whose back
,

b ecomes ou r breath and pitch rudder we are ,

enabled to direct the breath to those reason an ce

surfaces which are necessary for the pitch Of

every tone . This rule remains the same for
all voices .

If for the b reath there is created in the

mouth an elastic form in which the currents,

may circulate unhindered by any pressure or

undue contraction or expansion it becomes

,

practically unlimited . That is the simple

solution Of the paradox that without taking
a deep breath on e may Often have very much
breath and Often after elaborate preparations
none at all . Generally the chief attention is
directed to inhalation instead Of to the elastic
,

forming and agility of the organs for the breath .

It is only due to the ignorance Of the causes ,

32 H OW TO SI NG

to the absence Of the form to the pressure and ,

to the convulsive tightening O f the muscles that ,

the singer is unable to sing in one breath all

that is included in the musical or speech phrase .

As soon as the breath leaves the larynx ,

it is divided (Previously in inhalation

. a , ,

similar thing happens ; but this does not

concern us immediately and I prefer to direct ,

the singer s chief attention to the second

’
oc

currence ) . One part may press toward the

palate the other toward the cavities Of the
,

head . The division Of the breath occurs

regularly from the deepest bass to the highest
,

tenor or soprano step

,
for step vibration
,
for

vibration without regard to sex or individuality

,
.

Only the differing size or strength Of the vocal

organs through whi ch the breath flows the ,

breathing apparatus ,
or the Skill with which
they are used are different in diff erent individ
,

u als . The seat Of the breath the law Of its

,

division as well as the resonating surfaces

, ,

are always the same and are diff erentiated at

most through difference of habit .
34 H O W TO SI NG

by it These should only be made elastic

.

and mobile for further demands t o be put upon

them . In thi s way the breath can be reg
u l at ed and be made use Of sparingly .

The column Of breath coming in an u n int er

ru pt ed stream from the larynx must as soon

as it flows into the form prepared fo r it accord
ing to the required tone by the tongue and ,

palate ,
fi ll this form soaring through all
,
i ts
corners with its vibrations . It makes whirl
ing currents ,
which circulate in the elastic
form surrounding it and it must remain there
,

till the tone is high enough strong enough and , ,

sustained enough to satisfy the judgment Of

the singer as well as the ear of the listener .

Should there be lacking the least element of

pitch strength
, ,
or du ration the tone 1s I mper
,

fect and does not meet the requirement .

Learning and teaching to hear is the first

task Of both pupil and teacher . O ne is impos
sible without the other . It Is the most dif
fi cu ltas well as the most grateful task and it ,

is the only way to reach perfection .

 B REAT H AND WH I RLI NG C U RRENT S 35

Even if the pupil unconsciously Should

’
produce a flawless tone it is the teacher s ,

duty to acquaint him clearly with the cau ses

Of it . It is not enough to sing well ; on e must

also know how on e does it . The teacher
must tell the pupil constantly making him ,

describ e clearly his sensations in singing ,

and understand fully the physiological fac

tors that coOperat e to produce them .

The sensations in singing must coincide

with mine as here described if they are to ,

be considered as correct ; for mine are based

logically on physiological causes and corre
spon d precisely with the Operation Of these
causes . M oreover ,
all my pupils tell me
Often to be sure not till many months h ave
, ,

passed how exact my explanations are ;

how accurately ,
on the strength Of them ,

they have learned to feel the physiological

processes . They have learned slowly to be , ,

sure to become conscious

,
of their errors an d

false impressions ; for it is very diffit

“

to
ascertain such mistakes and false adjust
36 H OW TO SI NG

ments of the organs . Fal se s ensations in

singing and disregarded or false ideas Of physi
ological processes cannot immediately be
stamped ou t . A long time is needed fo r the
min d to be able to form a clear image Of those
processes and not t ill then can knowledge and
,

improvement be expected . The teacher must

repeatedly explain the physiological processes ,

the pupil repeatedly disclose every confusion

an d uncertainty he feels , until the perfect
consciousness Of his sensations in singing is
irrevocably impressed upon his memory that ,

is has b ecome a habit

,
.

Am ong a hundred singers hardly one can

b e found whose single tones meet every re

q u i re ment . An d among a thousand listen

ers even among teachers
, ,
an d among artists ,

hardly one hears it .

I admit that such perfect tones sometimes ,

generally quite unconsciously are heard from ,

young Singers ,
and especially from b egin
ners, and never fail to make an impression .

The teacher hears that they are good so ,

 B REAT H AND WH I RLI NG C URRENT S 37

does the public . Only a ve ry few know why,

even among singers because only a very few

,

know the laws governing perfect tone p ro

duction . Their talent ,

their car perchance ,

tell them the truth ; b ut the causes they neither

know n or look f or .

“
O n such unconscious singing directors ,

managers ,
and even conductors ,
b uild mi s
t akenly their greatest hopes . NO one hears
what is lacking ,
or what will soon b e lacking ,

and all are surprised when e xperienced Sing

ers protest against it .

They b ecome enthusiasti c ,

properly ,
over
b eautiful voic es but pursue quite the wrong
,

path in training them for greater tasks . As

soon as such persons are ob tained they ,
are

immediately b undled into all rOles ; they have

hardly time to learn o ne rOle b y heart , to

say nothing Of comprehending it and work

ing it up artistically . The stars must shi ne
i mmedi ately But with what resources ?
With the fresh voice alone ? Who is there
’

to teach them to u se their resources on the

38 HOW TO SI NG

stage ? Who to husband them for the future ?

The manager ? the director ? Not at all .

When the day comes that they can no longer

perform what not they themselves but the
directors expected Of them ,
they are put
to one side and if they do not possess great
,

energy and strength Often entirely succumb ,

.

They could not meet the demands made upon

them because they did
,
n ot know how to use
their resources .

I shall be told that tones well sung even ,

unconsciously are enough ,

. But that is n ot

true . The least un favorable circumstance ,

overexertion ,
indisposition ,
an unaccustomed
“
situation anything can blow
,
ou t the u n con

”
cious One s light at least make it fli cker
’
s ,
or

badly . Of any self help when there is igno

-
,

rance of all the fundamentals there can be ,

no

question . Any help is grasped at Then ap

pears the called (but false)

so -
individual
”
ity ,
under whose mask so much that is bad
presents itself to art and before the public .

This is not remarkable in V iew Of the ,

co m
 B REAT H AND W HI RLI NG C U RRENTS 39

plexi t y Of the phenomena Of song . Few

teachers concern themselves with the funda
mental studies ; they Often do n ot sing at all

themselves or they sing quite wrongly ; and

,

co nsequently can neither describe the vocal

sensations n or test them in others . Theory
alone is Of no value whatever . With Old
singers the case is Often quite the contrary
so both seize whatever help they can lay
hold Of .
 SECTI O N IV

THE S I NG E R S
’
PHYS I O LOG I CAL ST UDIE S

S C I E NCE has explained all the proce sses of

th e vocal organs in their chief functions and ,

many methods of singing have b een b ased

upon physiology physics and phonetics , , . To
a certain ext ent s cientific explanations are
a b solutely necessary to the singer as long
as they are confined to the sensations in sing
ing, foster understanding Of the phenomenon ,

and summon an intelligible picture for the

hitherto unexplained voice sensati ons -
,
or for
the ordinarily misunderstood expressions Of
“ ” “ ” “ ” “ ” “
full ,
bright ,
dark ,
nasa ,
singing
forward , etc . They are quite meanin gless
without the practical teachings O f the sensa
tions O f such singers as have directed their
attention t o them with a knowledge Of the end
in V iew and are competent to correlate them
,

with the facts Of science .

40
42 HO W TO SI NG

This is all that physiology means for the vocal

organs Sin ce these things all operate t o
.

gether one without the others can accomplish

,

nothi ng ; if the least is lacking singing is quite ,

impossible or is entirely bad

,
.

Physiology is concerned also with muscles ,

nerves ,
sinews ligaments
, ,
and cartilage ,
all
Of which are used in singing but all Of which ,

we cannot feel . We cannot even feel the

vocal cords . Certain ly much depends for the
singer upon their proper condition and whether
as voice producers or breath regulators we ,

all have good reason always to spare them as

much as possible and never to overburden
,

them .

Though we cannot feel the vocal cords we ,

can nevertheless hear by Observing whether

, , ,

the tone is even ,

in the emission Of the
breath under control ,
whether they are per
forming their functions properly . O verbu r

dening them through the pressure of u n con

trolled breath results in weakening them .

The irritation Of severe coughing thoughtless

,
o r eh e ad , high s s

D i d dl e ran g e .

ce, lo w ra n g e .

R ed li n d
es t
en o e the c
reso n an e .
 THE S I NG ER S
’
PHYSIO LOGI CAL ST UD I ES 45

talki ng or shouting immediately after singing

may also set up serious congestion of the vocal
cords which can be remedied only through
,

slow gymnastics of the tongue and laryngeal

mu scles by the pronunciation Of vowels in
,

conjunction with consonants . Inactivity O f

the vocal organs will not cure it ,
or perhaps
n ot till after the lapse Of years .
(See exercise
h
'

d e a
y , y , y , y ,
oo

A good singer can n ever lose his voice . M en

tal agitation or severe colds can for a time
deprive the singer Of the use of his vocal or

gan s , or seriously impair them . Only those

who have b een singing wi thout consciously
correct use Of their organs can become dis
heartened over it ; those who know better
will with more
, or less difficu lty cure them ,

selves and by the use

, of vocal gymnastics
bring their vocal organs into condition again .

F or this reason ,
if for no other ,
singers
hould seek
S to acquire ac curate knowledge
of their own organs as well as Of their func
,

tions that they may

, not let themselves b e
46 HO W TO SI NG

burnt ,
cut ,
and cauterized by unscrupulous
physicians . Leave the larynx and all con
n ect ed with it alone ; strengthen the organs
by daily vocal gymnasti cs and a healthy ,

sober mode Of life ; beware Of catching cold

after singing; do not sit and talk in restan
rants .

Students O f singing Should use the early

morning hours and fill their days with the
,

various branches Of their study . Sing every

day only SO much that on the next day you
,

c an pra ctise again feeling fresh and ready for

,

work as , study requires Better one

regu lar .

hour every day than ten to— day and none

to morrow
-
.

The public singer shou l d also do his pra e

ti sing early in the day that he may have , ,

himself well in hand by evening H ow Often

"
.

on e feels indisposed in the morning Any

physical reason is sufficient to make singing

difficult ,
or even impossible ; it need not be
connected ne cessarily with the vo cal organs ;
in fact I believe it very rarely is For thi s
, .
 THE SI NG ER S
’
P H YSIO LOGI CAL ST U D I ES 47

reason ,
in two hou rs everything may have
changed .

I remember a c harming incident in New

York . Albert Niemann , ou r heroic tenor ,

who was to sing Lohen gri n in the evening ,

complained to me in the morning of severe

hoarseness . TO give up a rOle in America
costs the singer as well as the director much , ,

money . M y advice was to wait .

Ni emann . What do you do , then when , yo u

are hoarse ?
I . Oh I practise and see whether it still
,

troubles me .

Ni em Indeed ; and what do

.
you practise
I . Long slow scales , .

Ni em . Even if you are hoarse ?

I . Yes ; if I want to sing ,
or have t o, I
try it .

Ni em . Well , what are they Show me .

The great scale, the i nf alli ble cu re .

I showed them t o him ; he sang them with ,

words Of abuse in the meantime ; but grad

48 H OW T O SI NG

u ally his hoarseness grew better . H e did

not send word Of his inability to appear in
the evening but sang and b etter than ever
, , ,

with enormous success .

I myself had to sing Norma in Vienna some

years ago and got up in the morning quite
,

hoarse . By nine O clock I tried my infallible

’

remedy ,
but could not sing above A flat ,

though in the evening I should have to reach

high D flat and E flat . I was on the point
Of giving up because the case seemed to me
,

so desperate . Nevertheless , I practised till

’
eleven O clock half an hour at a time and
, ,

noticed that I was gradually getting better .

I n the evening I had my D flat and E flat at

my command and was in brilliant form . P eo

ple said they had seldom heard me sing so well .

I could give numberless instances all going ,

to Show that you never can tell early in the

day how you are going to feel in the evening .

I much prefer for instance , ,

n ot to feel SO very
well early in the day because it may easily ,

happen that the opposite may be the case

 SECTI O N V

E Q U A LI Z I N G TH E V O I CE . F O RM

IN the lowest range O f female and male

voices with the latter it occurs in nearly
the entire c ompass O f the voice the passage to
the resonance Of the head cavities is well nigh -

cut O ff, the pillars Of the fauces being stretched

over the pharynx and drawn back to the wall
Of the throat ,
thus confining tonal sound
almost exclusively to palatal and chest res
on an ce . The larynx is to be thought Of as
being placed flexibly against the palate . The
tension between 6, d , 00 is very little rather
,

horizontal than perpendi cular ; the vocal cords

are tensed but little . The covering for the
tone created by the 00 is felt in velvet like -

softness at the nose and while singing like a , ,

b ig arch e xtending along the palate towards the

b ack . It is united to all other vowels and
50
 Q
E UALI Z I NG THE VOI CE . FO RM 51

organs by means Of y. Thi s we call the chest

voice the most powerful
,
Of all ranges .
(From
the gramophone reproductions , you can dis
tinctly hear how much more sonorous the voices
Of men who sing exclusively with chest voice
sound than those Of the female whose chest
, ,

notes are the exception ) .

By raising the soft palate behind the nose

(sensation is like a mild elastic cold in the nose ) ,

raising the back of the tongue placing the ,

larynx closer by means Of a and by tensing ,

the O cords by means of e upward and

v cal

00 downward the pillars Of the fauces are

drawn together thus freeing a passage for the
,

breath or tone toward the head cavities the ,

resonance of which it n ow puts to good account .

This is the head tone the highest range Of all

,

voices the falsetto the thinnest range whose

, ,

characteristic quality however is the great

, ,

est degree O f carrying power .

Between these two extreme functions Of the

vocal organs the deepest chest and the high
,

est purest head voice O r falsetto lie all grades ,

52 HO W TO SI NG

Of the lower and higher middle range as well ,

as the mixed chest and head voice the ,

voix
”
mixte ,
eve rything which may be secured
through the adjustment Of the muscles of the
vocal organs that is through the fit adjust
, ,

'

ment Of the vocal organs in vowel mixin g .

(See plates ) .

The palatal sensation which is here indi

cat ed by black lines is naturally only a sen
sation . It is accounted for in the tension Of
another muscle that begins above the palate ,

divides in two parts and extends along and

,

down the back Of the throat . It is a stretch

ing muscle which as soon as the pillars Of the
,

fauces are raised puts in its appearance and

,

creates the sensation as if the pillars Of the

fauces extended in a wide curve directly from
the nose down to the diaphragm . As a matter
Of fact the pillars Of the fauces draw more and
more together toward the top the higher we
ascend with the tones . The sensation though, ,

increases through this cou nt ert ensi on down

wards .
Red li d
ne t
e n o e s s e n sa ti on f or t h e p r o p g ti
a a on f o rm .
 E QUALI Z I NG THE V OI C E . F O RM 59

Though as I have said in the foregoing the

, ,

passage to the head cavities is almost cut O ff

b y the stretching O f the

pillars Of the fauces over A Y
E “

the throat yet a branch

,

stream Of breath however small must penetrate

, ,

b ehind and above the pillars with ,

6 through the
nose and later to the forehead and head cavities
,
.

This creates overtones (head tones) which must

vibrate in all tones even in the lowest These
,
.

overtones lead from the purest chest tones slowly , ,

wi th a const antly changing mixture

Of b oth kinds Of resonance first to ,

the high tones Of bass and baritone ,

the low tones Of tenor the middle ,

tones Of alto and soprano finally ,

t o the purest head tones the highest tones Of the

,

tenor (falsetto) , or soprano .

(See the plates ) .
60 H O W TO SI NG

The ext remely delic ate gradation of the

scale Of increase Of the resonan ce Of the head
cavities in ascending passages and of increase ,

Of palatal resonance in descending depends ,

upon the skill to make palate tongue and , ,

larynx act elastically and to let the breath

, ,

under control Of the abdominal and chest press

ure flow uninterruptedly in a gentle stream
,

into the closely conne cted resonating cham

bers . T hrough the previous preparation of

the larynx an d tongue it must reach its reso

,

nating surfaces as though passing through a

cylinder and must circulate
,
in the form pre
vi ou sly prepared for it proper for ea ch tone
,

and vowel sound . This form surrounds it

gently but firmly . The supply Of air remains
continuously the same rather i n creasi ng than ,

di mi ni shi ng notwithstanding the fact that

,

the quantity which the abdominal pressure has

furnished the vocal cords from the supply
chamber is a very small one That it may not .

hinder further progression the form must ,

remain elastic and sensitive to the most delicate

 E QUALI Z I NG TH E V OI C E . FO RM 61

modification of the vowel sound . If the tone

is to have life it must always be able to con
,

form t o any vowel sound The least dis .

placement Of the form or interruption Of the

breath breaks up the whirling currents and
vibrations and consequently affects the tone
, ,

its vibrancy its strength and its duration

, ,
.

In singing a continuous passage upward the

form becomes higher by means of e and more
pliant by means Of 00 ; the most pliable place
on the palate is drawn upward (See Plate A ) . .

When I sing a single tone I can give it much

more power ,
mu ch more palatal ,
chest , or

nasal resonance than I could give in a series

,

Of ascending tones . In a musical figure I

mu st attach the lowest n ote i n su ch a way that

I can easi ly reach the hi ghest . I must there ,

fore give
,
it much more head tone than the
Single tone requires (Very important ) When . .

advancing farther I have the feeling on the ,

palate above and behind the nose toward the

, ,

cavities of the head ,

Of a strong but very
elastic rubber b all which I fill like a balloon
,
62 HOW TO SI NG

with my b reath streaming up far back Of it .

An d this fi lling keeps on in even measure .

That is ,
the bran ch stream Of the breath ,

which flows toward resonances Of the head

cavities must be free to flow from the mouth
,

without hindrance (See Plate B ) . .

I can increase the size Of this ball above ,

to a pear shape as soon as I think Of sin ging

,

higher ; and indeed I heighten the form by

, ,

making it supple before I gO o n from the tone

just sung placing it, , SC to speak higher and
, ,

“
keep in thi s way the form that is the , ,
prop
”
agati o n form ,
ready for the next higher tone ,

whi ch I can now rea ch easily as long as no inter

ruption in the stream Of breath against the
mucous membrane can take place . For this
reason the breath must n ever be held back, but
must always b e emitted in a more and more
powerful stream The higher the tone the .
,

more numerous are the v ibrations the more ,

rapidly the whirling c urrents c irculate , and

the more on e has the sensation Of a p p
er en di c

ular tone or breath form . Catarrh Often dries

 EQ UALI Z I N G THE V OI C E FO RM 63

up the mucous membrane ; then the tones are

inclined to break O ff . At su ch times on e must
S ing with pe cu liar circumspe ction and with an ,

especially powerfu l stream Of breath behind the

tone "it is better to take breath frequently .

In a descending scale or figure I must , on the

contrary preserve very carefully the form taken
,

for the highest tone must think it higher , ,

u nder no circumstances lower ,

but must
apparently keep the same height and imagine
that I am striking the same tone again . The
form may gradually be a little modified at the
upper end ; that is the soft palate is lowered
,

very carefu lly toward the nose "k eeping

almost always to the form employed fo r the
highest tone sing the figure
,
to its end toward
,

the nose with the help

,
Of the vowel 00 . This
auxiliary vowel 00 means nothing more than
that the larynx is slowly lowered in position ,

whi ch act must be renewed at every change

Of tone or letter .

When this happens ,

the resonance Of the
head cavities is diminished that Of the palate
,
64 HO W TO SI NG

and little by little that Of the chest increased ;

for the soft palate sinks and the pillars
, Of the
fauces are inflated more and more Yet the .

head tone must not be entirely free from

palatal resonance . B oth remain to the last
breath united mutually supporting each other in
,

ascending and descending passages and alter ,

n at ely but inaudibly in creasing and diminishing .

These things go to make up the form

The raising and lowering Of the soft palate ,

and the corresponding lowering and raising

Of the pillars Of the fauces .

T he proper position of the tongue "the tip

rests on the lower front teeth mine even as
low as the roots of the teeth .

The back Of the tongue must stand high

and free from the throat ready for , y
an move
ment .
f A u rrow mu st be f ormed i n the tongu e,

which is least prominent in the lowest tones ,

and in direct head tones may even completely

disappear . As soon as the tone demands the
palatal resonance the furrow must be made
,

prominent and kept so In my case it can .

66 HO W TO SI NG

at pleasure having thus perfect mastery over

,

them . F or this incessant practice is required ,

increasing control Of the b reath through the

sense Of hearing and the breath pressure .

At first a very strong will power is needed

to hold the muscles tense without pressure ;
that is ,
to let the tone ,
as it were ,
soar
through the throat mouth , ,
or cavities of the
head .

The stronger the improper pressure in the

production of the tone the more difficult it
,

is to get rid Of . The result is simply in ,

other words ,
a strain . The contraction Of
the muscles must go only so far that they
can be slowly relaxed ; that is can return ,
to

their normal position easi ly . Never must the

neck be swelled up or the veins in it stand
,
ou t .

Every con vu lsi ve or pai n u f l feeli ng i s wrong .

 d li d t ti t h e f o rm i n s lo wp r o ge s s i on o f to n
o n of es .
Re ne e no e s se n s a
 SECTI O N VI

THE ATTA C K A ND TH E V O WE LS

O UR ear perceives sounds . A single tone

as ordinarily held in the conception O f singer
and listener does not really exist . TO the
musician each separate tone holds component
parts that give height strength and depth
, ,
.

As soon as the singer realizes this very important

point he will comprehend the difficulties O f the
,

vocal art and will learn to overcome them .

TH E ATTA C K

In the attack the breath must b e directed

to a focal point on the palate which lies u nder
the tone height
-
. An d n ow, unitn with it
strength and depth it is made t o resonate in this
,

strongly concentrated space formed by the

relative position Of the vocal organs .

To this end are necessary a knowledge

69
70 H O W TO SI NG

Of all vowel functions and a well trained ,

-
ear

sensitive to all perfect vowels used in singing ;

no t those that have become habit through
the uncontrolled speech Of the untrained but
those which the noble art Of song demands .

Often great misunderstandings if not indeed , , ,

ill effects are brought about when teachers in

,

the begin ni ng Of their instruction demand Of

their pupils pure sounding vowels for pure '

vowels in the strict sense Of tonal art cannot

unless the pupil is unusually favored be
produced at all .

The pure singing or tone vowel is n ot at all

pure in the ordinary sense Of the word O n the
“

contrary because
,
of the tone form necessary it ,

is rather complicated . It even becomes more

complicated through the different tone color
ings which it is compelled to adopt according
to register pitch interval syllable and word
, , , ,

combination usage Of speech or tonal art

, , .
‘

It
is possible to sing twenty different 6, a ,
ah, 6,
’
00 s which in their own nature already mixed
, ,

sound pure and intelligible in the word . The

 TH E ATTACK AND TH E VOW ELS 71

vocal organs must adjust themselves simul

taneou sly to the speech usage and art of song
to aid on e in striving towards the highest
d egree Of beauty and ability .

The teacher must while the pupil s sing

, ,

b egin to explain the tone form how the vowel

-
,

is really made with the aid O f other vowels ;

and draw their attention to the co Operati on O f

the different vowels on each tone while they are

vocalizing . They must learn to unite on e

vowel with another by the aid Of the semi

vowel y
. Then they must be taught to com
bine two and three and gradually be made to

enunciate them artistically . A perfect tone

can only b e made by the skilful blending of

several vowels ; and on the other hand well

sounding vowels Of carrying quality can only
be created in a perfect tone . In the recogni

tion Of the complicated process Of uniting sev

eral vowel forms to make on e lies the secret Of

the true attack the foundation pile and con

,

cepti on of whi ch we are now ready to consider .

If one has tabulated the vowels for the

72 H O W TO SI N G

physiological processes of the vocal organs

and accustomed oneself to think in these
vowels musically it is not difficult to set the
,

correct form for the attack provided , on e has

through practice fu lly mastered the work O f
each separate vowel .

Above all strike ou t the so -

called pure vowel
ah since it is the root Of all evil and also
eliminate frOm the memory that it is a single
tone . Even though the vowel ah in various
combinations sounds like ah, it has ,
n ot with

standing in its fundamental feature Of vowel

blending necessary to its tone form nothing ,

in common with the accustomed vowel ah

as it is ordinarily spoken . O ur musical table

for the vowel ah and for the attack presents
itself as follows
Vowel e tone height tone carrier head voice
-
, ,
.

a strength ,
b rightness ,
place deter
mi ning vowel ,
note line upon
which the tone soars .

oo = tone depth flexibility covering eu

-
, , ,

phony chest resonance

,
.
74 H O W TO SI NG

palate draws upward toward the nose and the

vowel form remains prepared for ea ch succeed
ing vowel . It is best to imagine the y as a
hinge formed with tongue and palate . It
binds all letters with on e another . Shut in
the back by the union Of palate and back Of

tongue and also the pillars Of the fauces it ,

allows of a flexible O penI ng upward toward

the nose by means Of e and downward toward
the chin by means O f 00 . The e and 00, though ,

are fastened to the hinge as if by rubb er

bands .

The ordinary ah, as practically pronounced

by every layman , and so Often demanded
by many teachers Of their pupils ,
is an
absurdity as the tongue is usually pressed
,
'

down not only by false habit but Often

m
pressed down
2 ”
y 7 77 artificially with
a

i n s t r uments .

This leads to flat ordinary defective singing

, , ,

if not Often to the ruin O f the voice itself ,

e.
g,
. begin to pronounce from y.
 THE ATTAC K AND TH E VO WELS 75

In pronouncing the vowel all the tendons

and muscles Of the nose and cheeks are drawn
into activity . The nostrils and with them the
pillars Of the fauces distend .

LW i t h a we place the larynx closer under the

nose and connect both vowels so that when
we say a we mix it with e and when we say

5 we mix it energetically with a .

The a position is the first and chief action

for the attack for all singing and pronunciation
and must under all conditions whether nar
rower Or wider darker
,
or brighter stronger
,

or entirely toned down b e always retained

because through this position only the breath
finds its attack on the hard palate . The a
gives the tone concentrated strength ; it opens
the epiglottis . It frequently happens that
pupils ,
even singers , do not set the larynx
in place at all ; the tone lacks strength and
energy and wavers to and fro without sup
port . Such a fault can only be remedied if
the pupil or singer energetically sets a before
every tone or letter in doing which he must
,
76 HO W T O SI NG

have the sensation Of pushing the larynx

dire ctly under the nose into the chin .

Af ter h aving secured the first position set

ting the larynx with a we with , ,
ou r thoughts
dwelling on e, place the broad ba ck Of the
flexible tongue against the entire palate whi ch
sinks toward it . The nose dilates still wider
and we reach as if drawn by rubber bands
the e whi ch vibrates above the nose by which ,

action the larynx fixes itself still closer . Avoid

all pressure Of the tongue From this second

position we pass to the third as soon as we have
assured ourselves of the y hinge . With our
thoughts on 00 we then draw back quickly
the point Of the tongue from under the lower
teeth and let everything that lies under the
tongue drop flexibly and pronounce n ow,

with the lips pushed forward the vowel ,

00. By means Of y it remains j oined to e

,

and cannot and must n ot be lost in any vowel .

Through this tongue and larynx action the soft

palate has separated itself from the back of the
tongue leans toward the nose and so covers
, ,
 TH E ATTAC K AND THE V O WELS 77

the tone . But the back Of the tongue never

theless lies in the y position as high and supple
as possible . By means Of the tongue thus
raised the closely but flexibly held larynx
, ,

and the free and slightly covered nose the two ,

bright vowels partially remain and combine ,

with them the dark vowel thus making a ,

complete singing tone that is the requisite

,

triple vowel sound which sounds like

- -
ah but
’
which isn t it in the usual comprehension .

I n the gently concentrated a and e form a

minute space between the fore part Of the
tongue and the palate is created by the above
mentioned change which space gives place to
,

the tone that is now mixed with chest resonance .

By setting the larynx low ,

or better by making
it supple the chest resonance is introduced
, .

By means Of the y
-
form which,
is closed toward
the back Of the mouth the tone is kept forwar d ;
,

and this kind Of singing there is only on e

really good kind which varies in each indi

,

vidual according to the size Of the voice and

the skill is called singing toward the front .
78 H OW TO SI NG

The sensation created by the relative posi

tion Of the triple vowel sound stret ches from
- -

the nose over the palate over the back and root ,

Of tongue larynx chest ribs down to the dia

, , , ,

ph ragm The higher

. we wish to sing the ,

more positive and elastic we have to regard

—
the d line as the centre Of each tone and attack .

The higher and more flexibly the nose and

tongue function with e and a operates so much ,

deeper down to the diaphragm the tension

with 00 extends which then seems to ring out
in and beyond it as if it were a di
“'

e ,
e
p p
r en cu

larly stretched string . C ramp or pressure is

n ot allowable but a very strong energy is
,

necessary to preserve the muscular tension

in spite O f its firmness elastic well ,

balanced ,
and still keep united the various
muscles put in play .

With the vowel ah we must especially see

that the tongue accustomed to wrong usage
, ,

under no condition returns to its Old position

but that it is always directed by y to its true
position . If in the beginning the vowel ah
 THE ATTAC K AND THE V O WELS 79

created on the triple vowel basis sounds at -

times more like a or e or 00, we must not be

come disconcerted for through conscious pra e
,

tice the tongue will notwithstanding b ecome

, ,

accustomed to its work . There is no other

road to perfection .

If the diffi culties Of the ah lie in the giving

up Of Old habits and in the readjustment on

the triple vowel basis then the a vowel brings

-
,

others with it . As I have said before in speak

ing Of the attack in order to make the vowel
,

sound a the larynx is with energy brought

,

in closer relation with the n ose . By raising

the nostrils a preparation is made . The sen
sation is then as if the larynx were under the
nose in the chin . If we then sing a en ergeti

cally we soon become conscious Of an inherent

strength which is created partially by the
energetic opening Of the epiglottis in the p rO

nu n ci at i on Of a and partially by the position

Of the larynx which makes possible the attack
Of the breath on the hard palate This a

strength must be inherent in every tone indeed ,

80 H OW TO S I NG

in every letter . Wisely to use it , to distribute

it apply it flexibly
, ,
n ot to overstrain it in the
f m
orti ssi
o nor lose it in the pi an o is an art
in itself and moreover a great part Of the art Of
singing .

For me it is the note line on which as -

, on a
b alance I measure my tone po wer weighing
, ,

it as if on a scale balancing it upward and

,

downward . It is the kernel Of every tone ,

the binding medium between strong and weak .

It is a power that we must continually econ o

mize and yet again lavishly but wisely ex

pend .

SO many singers are ,

fo r this reas on ,
n ot

“ ”
able to (to markieren
outline a composition
by accenting cert ain notes) because they let
go Of this elastic but energetic strength Of the
position and have nothing left but a dis
”

(t -

united e which su ffi ces for the loose head tones

Of the higher range but is inadequate when the
“ ”
singer wishes to markieren in a lower range .

TO sing mez z a voce does not mean to destroy

the relative position Of the vocal organs ,
n or
86 H OW TO SI NG

colorless without the help Of it . Both vowels are

closely united and are dependent on each other .

e receives strengt h from a ; a lightness and tone

height from 6. Think them united as if with
a rubber band . In continual change closely ,

united they meet first at one and then at

, an

other end O f their course . Neither must oo ever

be sung spoken alone It retains the posi
”

-
or . (t

tion and the a ,

fo r without it it would sound

hollow and weak . Generally it needs in addition

the help of e which opens the much covered nose
,
.

We have n ow sufficient proof that on e vowel

can never b e sung alone as tonal perfection ,

and the art of song make other demands . Not

until all vowel positions have b ecome hab it to

the quickly acting memory and to the muscles ,

dare we speak of technical artistic skill and are

we able to rely on ou r knowledge . Then only
can we speak Of a musically trained car when all ,
 THE ATTAC K AND THE V OWELS

the demands that art has a right to exact have

b ecome clear . This is n ot all in addition to the
mixing Of vowels we must think of enunciating
,

them which is Of the greatest importance t o the

,

word which is to b e pronounced and ,

n ot only
thi nk Of the necessary tone color f or each word
and letter .

The vowel o is uncomf ortable in asmuch , as

one is easily tempted to exaggerate the n eces

sary enlargement Of the form .

‘

We must hold
the enlarged form round and cut O ff and make
all helping vowels like e, a , 00 still more flexible
than with other letters .

I n order to comprehend all Of thi s , we must at

first exaggerate everything also the vowel color
,
-

ing . But as soon as we led by good teachers

, ,
b e

come sure Of ou r c ar and judgment we b egin to ,

see how the smallest nuances change the tone and

how fine the effect is . The more delicately they
are applied in the various degrees Of strength the ,

richer the color the nobler and more vital they

,

will be able to harmonize tone word and senti , ,

ment which the sou l of the artist desires to

express .
 SECTI O N VII

NA SA L . NA SA L S I NG I N G . S I NG I N G TO W A RD

TH E N O S E . C O V E R I N G TH E TO N E . C HA N

TE R DA N S LE MA S Q U E . NA SA L TW A N G

BY raising the back Of the tongue toward the

soft palate and lowering the soft palate toward
the tongue we produ ce a nasal sound such as
, ,

is heard in the pronunciation Of the word

“ ”
hanger fo r instance . The air is then chiefly
expelled through the nose as the fore part Of ,

the mouth is cut O ff from the throat by y .

The nasal sound can be exaggerated some

thi ng that very rarely happens ; it can be much
neglected something that very Often hap
pens . Certain it is that it is not nearly enough
a vailed Of .

The Germans have only small opportu nity

to make the acquaintance Of the nasal sound ;
they know it in only a few words " Engel “
,
”

88
90 H O W TO SI NG

’
TO fix the pupil s attention on the nasal tone
and the elasticity Of the palate he shou l d Often ,

b e given exercises with French words .

toward the nose (n ot to b e

Singing nasal or

“ ”
confounded with nasal twang which is pro ,

du ced by a high larynx and by pinching the

tongue on a) cannot be enough studied and
utilized . O n account Of its tonal effect its ,

noble timbre it should be amply employed

,

on all kinds Of voices . By it is effected the

connection Of tones with each other from the ,

lowest chest to the highest head voice ; all -

the beauty Of the cantilena lies in the con

scious application Of it . This is all that singers
“ ”
mean when they speak Of nasal singing
really only singing toward the nose . Palate
and b ack Of tongue laid one toward the other
, ,

create a covering for the tone which is called

“ ” “
covering the tone ; in French ,
chan ter

dan s le masqu e
.

How little the teachers speak O f it is shown

by the fact that many singers are quite igno
rant Of what nasal singing means and when by
R ed li n es d t
en o e mo vemen t of t he t ngu
o e an d p l t
a a e fo r t h e
n as a l tone .
94 H O W TO S I NG

Blind voices are caused by the exaggerated

‘ ”
practice Of the nasal singing which the
singers concerned do not sufficiently diminish
in the head voice drawing the pillars ,
of the
fauces t oo far toward the wall Of the throat
and so closing O ff the passage toward the head
cavities .

M any singers persist in the b ad habit here

described as long as nature can endure it ;
,

in the course Of time however even with the , ,

most powerful physiques they will begin to ,

S ing noticeably flat ; in the case Of the less

powerfu l ,
the fatal tremolo will make its
appearance which results in the
,
ru in Of so
many singers .

H ow Often have I heard young singers say ,

I no longer have the power to respond to the

”
demands made upon me ,
whereas the trouble
lies only in the insufficient use Of the resonance
Of the head cavities . It should never be for
gotten that as the posture O f the voice changes ,

the position Of the organs cannot remain the

same .
 SECTI O N VI I I

TH E H EA D V O I C E

TH E head tone signifies ,

fo r all voices from ,

the deepest b ass to the highest soprano ,

leaving out Of question the fact that it furnishes

the overtones fo r each single tone Of the whole
vocal gamut ,
youth . A voice without vi
brancy is an old voice . The magic Of youth ,

freshness ,
is given by the overtones that
sound with every tone . Height , youth fresh ,

ness Of the voice a and e .

SO to utilize the head voice (resonance O f

the head cavities) that every tone shall be
”
able to carry and shall remain high enough
to reach higher tones easily is a difficult art , ,

without which , however ,

the singer cannot
reckon upon the durability Of hi s voice . Often
employed unconsciously it is lost through heed,

lessness mistaken method

, ,
or ignorance ; and
95
96 H OW TO SI NG

it can hardly ever be regained or if at all , , ,

o nly through the greatest sacrifice Of time ,

trouble and patience

,
.

The head voice (the third register)

pu re

is ,
on account O f the thinness that it has by
nature the neglected step child Of almost all
,
-

singers ,
male and female ; its step parents -
,

in the worst significance Of the word ,

are
most singing teachers male and female ,
. It
is produced by the complete lowering Of the
pillars Of the fauces while the softest point
,

Of the p alate behind the nose is thrown

up very high ,
seemingly ,
almost into the

head ; in the highest position ,

still higher ,

thinking e above the head .

The back Of the tongue stands high but ,

is formed into a furrow in order that the ,

mass Of the tongue may not be in the way ,

either in the throat or in the mouth . In

the very highest falsetto and head t On es the
furrow is pretty well filled ou t, and then
no more breath at all reaches the p alatal and
chest resonance .
98 H O W TO SI NG

ing Of the words)

a composition especially ,
Of

than in the brilliant fireworks Of former times .

The head voice too must not be regarded as

, ,

a definite register Of its own . If it is suddenly

heard alone I mean disconnected with chest
or palatal resonance after forcing the pre
ceding tones Of the higher mid dle range it is ,

Of course noticeably thin and stands ou t to its

disadvantage like any sharply defined regis
ter) from the middle tones . I n the for
mation Of the voice no register should exist
or be created ; the voi ce must be made even
throughout its entire range . . I do not mean
by this that I should sing neither with chest
tones n or with head tones . O n the contrary ,

the practised artist Should have at his com

mand all manner Of different means Of ex
pression that he may be able to use his single
,

tones ,
according to the expression required ,

with widely diverse qualities Of resonance .

This too must be

, ,
c ared for in his studies .

But these studies because they must fit each

,

individual case ,
according to the genius or
R ed li n d
es t
en o e v o c l
a s en s a ti o ns o f so p ra no an d t i g
en o r S n ers .
 THE H EAD V OI C E 1 03

talent O f the individual can be imparted and ,

directed only by a good teacher .

The head voice when its value is properly

,

appreciated is the most valuable possession

,

Of all singers ,
male and female . It should
n ot b e treated as a Cinderella or as a last ,

resort ,
as is Often done too late ,
and so
without results ,
because too much time is
needed to regain it when once lost — but
, ,

should be cherished and cultivated as a guar

dian angel and guide like no other ,
. With
ou t its aid all voices lack brilliancy and carry
ing power ; they are like a head without a
b rain . O nly b y constantly summoning it to
the aid Of all other registers is the singer able
to keep his voice fresh and youthful . O nly
by a careful application Of it do we gain that
power of endurance which enables us to meet
the most fatiguing demands . By it alone can
we effect a complete equalization Of the whole
compass Of all voices and extend that compass
,
.

This is the great secret of those singers

who keep their voices youn g till they reach
1 04 H OW TO S I NG

an advanced age Without it all vorces Of

.

whi ch great exertions are demanded infallibly

meet disaster . Therefore the motto must be ,

always pra cti ce and again practice to keep

, , , ,

one s power uninjured ; practice brings fresh

’

ness to the voice ,

strengthens the mus cles ,

and is for the singer far more interesting

, ,

than any musical composition .

If in my explanations I frequently repeat

myself ,
it is done n ot unintentionally ,
but
deliberately because ,
of the difficulty Of the
subj ect as well as Of the
,
su p erfi ci alit y and
negligence o f so many singers who after once ,

hastily glancing through such a treatise ,

if
they consider it worth their while at all to
inform themselves on the subj ect ,
think
they have done enough with it .

O ne must read c ontinually ,

study con

st antly by one s self to gain even a faint

’
,

idea Of the difficulty Of the art Of singing Of ,

managing the voice and even ,

Of one s’
own

’
organs and mistakes which are one s second ,

self . The phenomenon Of the voice is an

106 H O W TO SIN G

Of the larynx Of the tongue and Of the palate

, , ,

and finally to the sensation Of the resonan ce

,

of the head cavities . The perfect tone results

from the combined operations Of all these
functions the sensations Of which I under
,

take to explain and the control Of which the

,

ear alone can undertake .

This is the reason why it is so important

’
to learn to hear one s self and ,
to sing in such
a way that one can do so at all times .

Even in the greatest stress Of emotion the ,

power of self control must never be lost ;

-
yo u

must never allow yourself to sing in a

slovenly that
,
I s, In a heedless way , ,
or to
exceed your powers or even to reach their ,

extreme limit . That would be synonymous

with roughness ,
which should be exclud ed
from every art especially in the art Of song
,
.

The listener must gain a pleasing impres

sion from every tone ,
every expre ssion Of

the singer ; and the feeling that much more

may be given if desired .

Strength must n ot be confounded with

 THE H EAD V OIC E 1 07

roughness ; and the two must n ot go hand

in hand together . Phenomenal beings may
perhaps be permitted to go beyond the strength
Of others ; but to the others this must remain
forbidden . It cannot become a regular p rac

tice and is best limited to the single phe

,

no men on . We should otherwise soon reach

the point Of c rudest realism from which at ,

b est we are not far removed . Roughness will

never attain artistic justification not even in ,

the case Of the greatest individual singers ,

be
cause it is an Offence .

The public should witness from interpreta

tive art only what is good and noble on which
to form its taste ; there Should be nothing
crude or commonplace put before it which ,

it might consider itself justified in taking as

an example .

Of the breath sensation I have already

spoken at length . I must add that it is Often
very desirable in singing to breathe through
the nose with the mouth closed ; although
when this is done the raising Of the palate
,
108 H OW TO SI NG

becomes less certain as it happens somewhat

,

later than when the breath is taken with the

mouth open . It has however this
, ,
di sadv an
tage that neither cold air nor dust is drawn into
,

the larynx and air passages . I take pleasure in

doing it very Often . At all events the singer,

should Often avail himself Of it .

We feel the larynx when the epiglottis Springs

up and when we pronoun ce a by whi ch we ,
can

judge whether the epiglottis springs up quickly

enough and if the breath strikes the hard palate ,

which gives the tone its strength . The low

position of the larynx can easily be secured by
pronouncing the vowel 00 ; the high by , p ro

n ou n ci ng the vowels a and e

. Often merely
thinking Of one or the other is enough to put
the larynx tongue and palate in the right rela
, ,

tion to each other . Whenever I sing in a high

vocal range I can plainly feel the larynx rise
,

and take a diagonal position by means O f the “

tongue which though only signifies a closer

, , ,

union Of the organs one with the other and

a higher position Of the back Of the tongue
 SECTI O N I X

S E N SA TI O N A ND PO S ITI O N OF TH E TO N G UE

WE feel the placing Of its tip against or

b eneath the front teeth ; I place the tip very
low, so that it really curves over in front .

(See plate ) .

Its hinder part must be drawn back toward

the palate ,
in the pronunciation Of every
letter .

Furthermore by looking in the mirror we

,

can see that the sides Of the tongue are raised

as soon as we wish to form a furrow in it ;
that is as we mu st do to produce the pala
,

tal resonance .
(O n
ly in the head tone with
ou t the added palatal or chest resonance h as
the tongue no furrow ; it must ,
however ,

lie very high since otherwise its mass when

, ,

it lies flat ,
presses against the larynx and
produces pinched or otherwise disagreeable
tones ) .
 PO SI TIO N OF TO NGUE 111

The best way is to get the mass Of the

tongue ou t Of the way by forming the furrow
in it . In high notes when the larynx must
,

stand as closely as possible the back Of the ,

tongue also must stand very high ; but since

there is a limit to this we are compelled to
,

make the larynx take a lower position ,

to call
in the assistance Of the vowel ao .

C o rre ct In c o rre ct

The correct position Of the tongue prepar ,

at ory to singing is gained by saying the vowel

,

sound aou ,
as if about to yawn .

The tongue must n ot turn over upward with

its tip . As soon as the tip has been employed
in the pronunciation Of the consonants l, n , s,

t, and z, in which its service is very short and

sharp it must return to its former position
, ,

and keep to it .

It is best to watch the movements Of the

1 12 H O W TO SI NG

tongue in the mirror until we have formed the

correct habit permanently . The more elastic
the tongue is in preparing the form fo r the
breath t o pass through the stiller will it appear
, ,

the stiller will it feel to us . It is well how

,

ever for a considerable time to watch in a

,

mirror all functions Of

the organs that can
b e seen ; the expression O f the face the position ,

Of the tongue the position Of the mouth and

, ,

the movement Of the lips .

1 14 H OW TO S I NG

it as for example
, , ,
n which must be pro
n ou n ced in singing an d thus renewing the
nose functions three times in on e letter not
,

to speak Of the very delicate wavelike nuances

which have to b e produced in the n sound itself
-
.

All thi s is to make the letter resonant more

on this subj ect later . Nose and tongue func
tion should be practised first .
 SECT I O N XI

TH E S E N S A TI O N S O F TH E PA LATE

TH E sensati ons of the palate are best made

clear to us by raising the softest part behind
the nose . This part is situated very far back .

Try touching it carefully with the finger . It

is Of immeasurable importance to the singer .

By raising it the entire resonance Of the head

cavities is brought into play consequently
the head tones are produced . When it is raised
the surface Of the pillars Of the fauces is re

du ced in size . In its normal position it allows

the pillars to be distended and to close O ff

the head cavities from the throat in order to ,

produce the chest tones ; that is to permit the ,

breath to make fullest use Of the palatal res

on an ce . As soon as the soft palate is lowered
under the nose it makes a point Of resonance
for the middle range O f voice by permitting the ,

1 15
1 16 H OW TO S I NG

overtones to resound at the same time in the

nose .
(See plate middle range,) .

Thus the palate performs the whole work

so far as c oncerns the different resonances ,

which can be u nited and separated by it but ,

must always work together i n close relati on ,

always bou nd together i n all ton es, i n all ki nds

f
o voi ces .

The lowest chest tones Of the bass , the

highest head t On es Of th e soprano are thus ,

the t wo poles between which the entire gamut

Of all voices can be formed . From this it
can be perceived that with a certain degree of

skill and willingness to work every voice will

,

be capable Of great extension .

 li d
R ed n es en o te mi ddl e r an g e o f so p ran o , c t lt
o n ra o , an d t e n or .
I n th e G erman mes of t h e
na t
n o e s , it r e p re sent b i n t h
s e E ng li h
s .
R ed li n d
es t d i vi i
e no e s on of th i
t h e b re a n t he mi ddle r an ge .
Red li n d
e t
en o es voc al se nsa ti on of so p r an o an d t
e n or .
13 0 H O W TO S I NG

In singing very high head tones I have a feeling

as if they lay high above the head as if I were ,

setting them O ff into the air (See plate ) . .

H ere , too ,
Is the explanation Of singing
in the n eck . The breath in all high tones,

which are much mixed with head tones or

which use them entirely passes very far back , ,

directly from the throat into the cavities of

the head and thereby and through the Oblique

, ,

position Of the larynx gives rise to the sensa ,

tions just described . A singer who inhales

and exhales carefu lly that is with knowledge
, ,

Of the physiological processes will always have ,

a certain feeling Of pleasure an attenuation in

,

the throat as if it were stretching itself upward .

The bulging ou t Of vei ns m the neck that ,

can

so Often be seen in singers is as wrong ,

as the
swelling up of the neck looks very ugly and is
, ,

not without danger from congestion .

With rapid scales one has the feeling Of great

firmness Of the throat muscles with trills Of a ,

certain stiffness Of the larynx (See

.

An unsteady movement Of the latter this way ,

 RESO NANC E OF THE H EAD C AV ITI E S 13 1

and that would be disadvantageous to the trill

, ,

to rapid scales as well

,
as to the c antilena .

F or this reason b ecause the changing move

,

ments of the organs must go on quite i m

perceptibly and inaudibly it must be more ,

like a shifting than a movement . In rapid

“
scales the lowest tone must be placed with
a view to the production Of the highest and in ,

descending the greatest care must be

,
exer

cised that the tones sh all not tumble over

each other single but shall produce the sen
,

sation O f closely connected sounds through ,

being b ound to the high tone position and

pressed toward the nose .

In this all the participating vocal organs

must be able t o keep up a muscular contraction ,

Often very rigid the form remain tensed

, , on e

organ to another . An d in this tension on e or

the other vocal organ as larynx tongue dia , , ,

ph ra m
g , palate , or nose must act with especial
,

elasticity or especial strength according to the ,

necessity of accent or according to the physi

cal condition Of the singer . O nly gradually
1 32 H O W TO SI NG

through long years Of c areful and regu lar

study is it to be achieved . Excessive practice
is Of no Use in this only regular and intelli
gent practice ; and success comes only in
course Of time .

Never should the muscular contractions

become convu lsive and produce pressure whi ch
the muscles cannot endure for a long time .

They must respond to all necessary demands

upon thei r strength yet remain elastic in order
,

that easily relaxing or again contracting they

, ,

may promptly adapt themselves to every

nuance in tone and accent desired by the
singer .

A singer can become and continue to be

master Of hi s voice and means of expression
only as long as he practises daily conscious
vocal gymnastics . In this way alone can
he Obtain unconditional mastery over his
muscles ,
and ,
through them ,
Of the fi nest

controlling apparatus ,
Of the beauty Of hi s
voice ,
as well as Of the art Of song as a
whole .
 SECTI O N X III

O N V O CA L RE G I S TE RS . V O CA L RAN G E S

WHAT is a vocal register ?

A series Of tones sung in a certain way ,

which are produced by a certain position Of the

vocal organs larynx ,
tongu e ,
and palate .

Every voice in cludes three registers hest

c ,

middle and head,

. But all are not employed
in every class of voice .

Two O f them are O ften found connected

to a certain extent in begin ners ; the third
is usually much weaker does not exist
, or

at all . Only very rarely is a voice found

naturally equalized over its whole compass .

DO registers exist by nature ? NO . It may

b e said that they are created through long
years Of speaking in the vocal range that is
easiest to the person ,
or in on e adopted by
imitation which then becomes a fixed habit
,
.

1 34
 ON VO CAL REGI ST E RS 13 5

If this is coupled with a natural and proper

working of the muscles of the vo cal organs it ,

may become the accustomed range strong in ,

comparison with others and form a register

,

by it self . This fact would naturally be ap

pre ci at e d only by singers .

If , on the other hand ,

the mus cles are
wrongly employed in speaking not only the ,

range of voice generally used but the whole ,

voice as well may be made to sound badly

,
.

SO , in every voi ce ,
on e or another range may
be stronger or weaker ; and this is in fact , ,

almost always the case sin ce mankind speaks ,

and sings in the pit ch easiest or most accus

t omed, without giving thought to the proper
position of the organs in relation to each other ;
and people are rarely made to pay attention
as children to speaking clearly and in an agree
able voice . In the most fortunate instances
the range thus practised reaches limits on both
sides not so much those Of the person s power
,
’
,

as those set by his lack Of S kill or practice

,
.

Limitations are put on the voice through taking

13 6 H O W TO SI N G

account only Of the easiest and most accus

t omed thing without inquiring into the poten
,

t i aliti es Of the organs or the demands Of art .

Now, suppose such a pecu liarity which , in

clu des, let us say three ,
or four tones is ex ,

tended to six Or eight then in the course Of , ,

time in the worst cases a break is produced

, ,

at the outside limits . In the most favorable

cases the tones lying next beyond these limits
are conspicuously weak and without power
compared with those previously forced . This
on e way Of singing can be used no farther ;
another must be taken up only perhaps to , , ,

repeat farther the incorrect procedure .

Three such limits or ways Of singing can

be found and used Chest middle an d head
‘

.
, ,

voice ,
all three form registers when e agX
gerated but they should be shaded
,
o ff and
melt into each other . The organs through ,

the skilful training Of the teacher ,

as well
as by the exercise Of the pupil s talent and
’

industry must be accustomed to taking su ch

,

positions that on e register leads into another

 I b
d li
Re n es d t c
en o e ov ere dt o n es f or b ass an d b ar it o ne .
142 H OW T O S I NG

the organs although the difference may be

,

imperceptible if it is to have its proper place

,

In the whole . People cling to the appella

tions of chest middle and head
, ,
regi ster , con
founding vocal range with register and mak
,

ing a hopele ss confusion ,

from which only
united and very powerful forces can succeed
in extricating them .

As long as the word register is kept in

use ,
the registers will not disappear . An d
yet the register question must be swept away
, ,

to give place to another class Of ideas sounder

,

views on the part of tea chers and a truer ,

conception on the part Of singers and pupils .

Re dli nes d t
e n o e a re gi t d
i s f orme w h en as man y
s er t o n es a s p o ss i
ble ar e for c d up
e o n o n e a n d t h e s amep i t
o n of reso n an e c
p c t lt t
.

(S o ran o , o n ra o , an d e n or )
.
 I II a

Red lin d
es t ch g
en o e an e of a tt ac k . (B as s an d it
b ar on e )
.
 SECT I O N XIV

DE VE LO PME NT A ND E Q UA LI Z ATI O N

NATURA LLY a singer can devote more strength

to the development Of ’

on e or two connected
ranges Of his voi ce than to a voice perfectly
equalized in all its accessible ranges . For
this are required many years Of the most
patient study and Ob servation Often a long ,

continued or entire sacrifice of on e or the

other limit Of a range for the benefit Of the adj a
‘

cent weaker one ; Of the head voice especially ,

which if unmixed sounds uneven and thin in

, ,

comparison with the middle range until by ,

means Of practised elasticity Of the organs ,

endurance Of the throat muscles ,

muscular
tension Of the organs in relative position a ,

positive equalization can take place .

V oices which contain only one or two

registers are c alled short voices ,
for th eir
15 1
15 2 H OW TO S I NG

availability is as limited as they are them

selves .

Yet it must be remembered that all voices

alike whether short
, or long even those
, Of

the most skilful singers when age comes , on ,

are apt to lose their highest ranges if they ,

are n ot continually practised throughout their

entire compass with the subtlest use Of the
head tones . Thence it is to be concluded
that a Singer ought always to extend the
compass Of his voice as far as possible in ,

order to be certain Of possessing the com

pass that he needs .

O n the formation Of the organs depends

much Of the character Of the voice . There
are strong weak deep and high voices by
, , ,

nature ; but every voi ce by means Of proper ,

study can attain a certain degree Of strength

, ,

flexibility and compass ,

.

Unfortunately ,
stubbornness enters largely
into this question and Often works in oppo,

siti on to the tea cher . M any ,

for instance ,

wish to be altos either because they are afraid

,
15 4 H OW TO SI NG

an d effect management Of the breath and

, ,

perfection Of the throat formation must give

the power to produce every dynamic gradation
and detail of expression . Registers are ,
ac

cordin gly, produced when the singer forces a

series of tones generally ascending upon
, ,
one

and the same resonating point ,

instead Of
remembering that in a progression Of tones
no on e tone can be exactly like another ,
be
cause the position Of the organs must be dif
ferent for each . The palate must remain
elastic from the front teeth to its hindmost
part mobile and susceptible though imper
, ,

cept ibly, to all changes . Very much depends

on the continuous harmony Of action Of the
soft palate and nose which must always be ,

in full eviden ce the raising and extension

,

Of the former producing changes in the tone .

If as Often happens when the registers are

,

sharply defined tones fall into a ,

cu l de sac,

escape into another register is impossible ,

without a jump whi ch may lead to disaster

,
.

With every tone that the singer has to sing ,

 D EVE LOP M ENT AND E QUALI Z ATIO N 15 5

he must always have the feeling that he can

go higher and that the atta ck for different

,

tones must not be forced upon on e and the

same point .

The larynx must not be su dden ly pressed

down nor j erked up except when this is de ,

sired as a spe cial effect . That is when

,
on e

wishes to make a transition ,

legato, from a
chest tone to a tone in the middle or head
register as the old Italians used to do and as
, ,

I ,
t oo, learned to do thus " ,

In this case the chest tone is attacked very

nasal in order that the connection may
,
re

main to the upper note and the larynx is ,

suddenly j erked up to the high tone . This was

called breaking the tone ; it was very much
used and gave fine effects when it was well
,

done . I use it to day especially in Italian

-
,

music where it belongs

, . It is an exception
to the rule for imperceptible or inaudible
15 6 H OW TO S I NG

change of position of the organs ,

that it
shou ld not be made su dden ly .

The scale proceeds from on e semitone to

another ; each is different ; each as you go ,

on , requires greater height ,

wherefore the
position Of the organs cannot remain the
same for several different tones . But ,
as
there should never be an abrupt change audi
ble in the way Of singing so should there ,

never be an abrupt change felt in the sensa

tions Of the singer s throat ’
. Every tone must
be imperceptibly prepared in an elastic channel
that is relaxed placed , ,
and again relaxed ,

and must produce an easy feeling in the singer ,

as well as an agreeable impression upon the

listener .

The small peak indicated in the illustra

tion is enormously extensible and can be shifted
into infi n ite varieties Of position . H owever
unimportant its raising and lowering may
appear they are nevertheless
,
of great impor
tance for the tone and the singer . The focal
point Of the b reath that forms simultaneously
,
15 8 H O W TO SI NG

I f the singer will control his tone ,

and
in practising he must always do so ,
he
needs only to test it to see whether he can
easily make it softer without perceptible change
in the position Of the organs and carry it higher ,

toward the nose and the cavities Of the fore

head ; that is prepare ,
a form for its continua
tion upward .

I n thi s way he can learn how mu ch hei ght

a ton e n eeds wi thou t bei n g too hi gh, an d how

mu ch i t of ten lacks i n hei ght an d du rati on to

sou n d hi gh en ou gh .

In this way remarkable faults become evi

dent "The reason why a tone sounds too
low the so -
called transition tones from the
lower to the middle range and from this to
the higher come up for consideration chiefly
is that the pillars of the fauces are raised
tOO high toward the back preventing the head,

tones from sounding at the same time ; or the

soft palate is lowered too far under the nose ,

which results in pressing the tone t oo long and

too far toward the teeth . This fault is met
R ed li ne d t
e n o es s o ft t p i t
es o n on the p l t
a a e.
162 H OW T O SI NG

young voices this can easily happen and can

,

also result from weariness when the bodily

,

strength is not developed sufficiently to endure

the fatigue Of practising . A very circumspect
course must then be followed .
 SECTI O N XV

W H I TE V O I C E S

THE RE are also singers male and female , ,

who use too much head tone through their en

“ ”
tire compass ; such voices are called white .

Their use Of the palatal resonance b eing in

su ffi cient , they are not able to make a deeper
impression because their power
, Of expression
is practically nothing . In su ch cases it would
be advisable to raise the pillars Of the fau ces
a little higher and place the larynx somewhat
,

lower and to mingle judiciously with all the

,

other vowels the vowel sound

,
76 ,
( that requires
a lower position Of the larynx . The voices
would become warmer and would sound more
expressive . As soon as the singer is able to
create easily ,
inaudibly and ,
c onsciously on
every tone the correct propagation form for
the next tone all questions as to register must
,

1 63
164 H OW TO SI NG

disappear . He must not however be drilled

, ,

on regi sters ; several tones must not be forced on

on e an d the same point . Every tone should
be put naturally into its own place ; should
receive the pit ch duration and strength it
, ,

needs for its perfection . An d on e master rules

it all ,
the ear
The goal is unfortunately so seldom rea ched
, ,

because it can be rea ched only through the

moderation that comes from mastery ; and ,

alas only true masters practise it .

It may be accepted as true that the lower

ranges Of the voice have the greatest strength ,

the middle ranges the greatest power Of ex

pression ,
the higher the greatest carrying
power .

The best mixture all three together

may be developed to the highest art by the
S kill Of the individual Often indeed only by a , , ,

good ear for it . Whenever expression Of the

word s significance beauty Of the vocal material
’
, ,

and perfection Of phrasing are found united

in the highest degree it is due either to knowl
,
166 H OW TO SI NG

tones are a part Of all female voices . They

do not understand how t o make u se O f its assist
ance because they Often have no idea
,
Of its
e xistence ,
or know it only in its unmixed
purity that is its thinnest quality
,
. Of its
proper application that is its necessary
, ,
ad

mixture with chest resonance they have not ,

the remotest co nception Their singing is gen

.

e rally in keeping with their ignorance .

The mixture is present by nature in all

kinds of voices but singers must possess the

,

S kill and knowledge to employ it ,

else the
natural advantage goes for nothing .
 SECTI O N XVI

TH E O DO R W A C HTE L

TH E most perfect singer that I remember

in my Berlin experience was Theodor Wachtel ,

in this respect that with his voice Of rare

,

splendor he united all that vocal art which ,

as it seems is destined quite to disappear

,

from among us . How b eautiful were his

coloratura ,
his trills ,
simply flawless '

Phrasing force fulness Of tone and b eauty

, , ,

were perfect ,
musically without a blemish .

If he did not gO outside the range Of Arnold ,

George Brown Stradella Basco the Postilion
, , , ,

and Lionel , it was prob ably because he felt

that he was not equal to interpreting the
Wagnerian spirit . In this he was very wise .

As one of the first Of vocal artists whose

,

voice was superbly trained and was preser ved

to the end Of his life I have had to pay ,
to
1 67
168 H OW TO SI NG

Wachtel the tribute of the most complete

admiration and recognition ,
in contrast to

many others wh o thought themselves greater

than he and yet were not worthy
,
to unloose
the latchet Of his shoes .

Recently the little Italian tenor B on ci has

won my hearty admiration for his splendidly
equalized voice his perfect art and his knowl
, ,

edge Of his resources ; and notwithstanding

the almost ludicrous figure that he cut in
serious parts ,
he elicited hearty applause .

Cannot German tenors ,

t oo , learn to sing
well, even if they do interpret Wagner Will
they n ot learn ,
for the sake Of this very master ,

that it is their du ty not to use their voices

re cklessly ?
Is it n ot disrespectful toward ou r greatest
masters that they always have to play hide
and seek with the bet can to, the trill and ,

coloratura ? Not till on e has fully realized

the difficulties of the art Of song does it
really become of value and smgifi can ce . Not
till then are one s eyes opened to the duty
’
1 70 H O W TO S I NG

by no other Palatal resonance without ad

.

mixture O f the resonance O f the head cavities

(head tones ) makes the tone very powerful
when heard near by b ut without vibrancy
,

for a large auditorium . This is the best proof

of h ow greatly every tone needs the proper
admixture .
 SECTI ON XVII

TH E H I G H E ST H E A D TO NE S

AS we have already seen there is almost

,

no limit to the height that can b e reached

b y the pure head tone without admixture
Of palatal resonance . Very young voices ,

especially can reach such heights for with

, ,

ou t any strain they possess the necessary

adaptability and skill in the adjustment to
each other Of the larynx tongue and pillars
, ,

O f the fauces . A skill that rests on ignorance

of the true nature Of the phenomenon must
b e called pure chance and thus its disappear
,

ance is as puzzling to teacher and listener as

its appearance had been in the first place .

How Often is it paired with a total lack Of

ability to produce anything but the highest

head tones " As a general rule such voices
17 1
1 72 H O W TO SI NG

have a very short lease Of life because their

,

possessors are exploited as wonders ,

before
they have any conception Of the way to use
them ,
of tone right singing and Of cause and
, ,

effe ct in general . An erroneous pressure Of

the muscles a wrong movement Of the tongue
,

(raising the tip for instance , ) an , M ,

attempt to increase the strength Of the tone ,

all these things extinguish quickly and for

all time the wonder singer s little light -
’
.

We Lehmann children in ou r youth cou ld

sing to the very highest pitch . It was noth
ing for my sister M arie to strike the 4 -
line
c a hundred times in succession and trill ,
On

it for a long time . She could have sung in

public at the age Of seven . But since ou r

V oices through the circumstances Of

,
ou r life
and surroundings were forced to early,
exer

tions they lost their remarkable high notes ;

,

yet enough was left to sing the Q u een of

Ni ght (in M ozart s opera D ie
“ ’

with the high f .

Af ter I had been compelled to use my lower

174 H OW TO SI NG

the path clear for the introduction Of the breath

into the cavities Of the head .

Singers who on the other hand pronounce

, ,

a and 6 too sharply need only introduce an

,

admixture Of 00 ; they thereby lower the posi

tion Of the larynx and thus give the vowel
,

and tone a darker color .

Since the stream Of breath in the highest

tones produces currents whirling with great
rapidity the more rapidly the higher the tone
,

is the slightest pressure that may injure the

,

form in which they circulate may ruin the

evenness Of the tone its pitch perhaps the tone
, ,

itself . Ea ch high tone must soar gen tly, like

the overtones .

The upper limits Of a bass and b aritone

voice are

where , consequently the tones must be mixed

,
.

Pure head tones that is falsetto are never

, , ,

dema nded higher than this I regard it how .

,
Red li n es d t
en o e v o cl
a ti i
s en s a on n t he hi gh t h d t
es ea o n es
wit h u t mi t u
o x re .
 SECTI O N XVIII

TH E TRE M O LO

BIG voices produced by large strong organs ,

through which the breath can flow in a broad ,

powerful stream are easily disposed to suffer

,

from the tremolo because the outflow

, Of the
b reath against the vocal cords occurs t oo

immediately . The breath is sent there directly

from the diaphragm instead Of being driven
by abdominal pressure forward against the
chest the controlling apparatus from whence
,

it in minimal quantity and under control is

, ,

a dmitted to the vocal cords . Even the strong

est vocal cords cannot for any length Of time
stand the unc ontrolled pressure of the breath
that is the direct breath pressure
,
. O ne must
learn to tense them by means Of the various
muscular fu nctions .

In inhaling the chest shou ld b e raised

,

1 78
 THE T REM O LO 1 79

not at all or b ut very little except an exer

cise for the e xpansion Of the chest is to be

made O f it . The pressure Of the breath against
the chest must be maintained as long as it is
desired to sustain a tone or sing a phrase . As
soon as the elastic abdominal and chest press
ure ceases the tone and the breath are at
,

an end . Not till toward the very end Of the

breath that is Of the tone or the phrase
, , ,

shou ld the pressure be slowly relaxed and the

chest slowly sink .

While I am singing I must press the b reath ,

against the chest evenly for in thi s way alone ,

can it be directed evenly against the vocal

cords which action is the chief factor in a
,

steady tone and in the only possible and proper

use Of the vocal cords . Control Of the b reath
should never cease . O nly in the beginning
Of singing does the chest against which the
b reath is pushed start to slowly inflate ,

reaching its greatest distention o nly when the

breath phrase is ended . Then the chest
slowly sinks . The tone should never be made
18 0 H O W TO S I NG

too strong or too weak to be kept under control .

This Shou ld be an inflexible rule f or the Singer .

I direct my whole attention to the pressure

against the chest whi ch forms the door
,
of the
supply chamber of breath . Thence I admit

Vo c al C or d s .

to the vocal c ords uninterrupte dly only j u st

so much a s I wish to admit . I must not be
stingy nor yet extravagant with it
,
. Besides
giving steadiness , the pressure against the
chest (the controlling apparatus) establishes
the strength and the duration of the tone .

Upon the proper control depends the length

of the breath ,
which ,
without interruption ,
1 82 H O W TO SI NG

Even the vibrato to which full voices are

,

prone should be nipped in the bud for grad

, ,

u ally the tremolo and later something even

worse is developed from it . Life can be infused
into the tone by means of vowel mixing a way -
,

that will do no harm .

Vibrato is the first stage tremolo the second

,

and much more hopeless which shows itself

,

in flat singing on the upper middle tones of

the register . Referable in the same way to

the overburdening Of the vocal c ords is the
excessive straining Of the throat muscles ,

whi ch through c ontinual constriction lose their

power of elastic contraction and relaxation
because pit ch and duration of the tone are
gamed in an incorrect way by forcing ,
. Neither
should be forced ; pitch should be merely main
tai ned as it were soaring ; strength should not
,

be gained by cramped compression of the

throat muscles but by the completest possible
filling with breath of the breath form and the
resonance chambers under the government
of the controlling apparatus .
 TH E T REM O LO 1 83

Neglect of the head tones (overtones) is

paid for dearly .

The more violent exertions are made to

force them and to keep them the worse are the
, ,

results . For most of the unhappy singers who

do this there is but one result "the voice is
"
,

lost . H ow pitiful
If the first and second stages of tremolo
are di ffi c u lt to remedy because the causes
,

are rarely understood and the proper meas

ures to take for their removal still more rarely ,

the repair Of the last stage Of the damage is

nothing less than a fight in which only an
unspeakable patience can win the victory .
 SECTI O N XIX

TH E C URE

TH E RE are no magic cures for the singer .

O nly slowly ,
V ibration upon vibration can
the true pitch be won back . In the word
“
soaring lies the whole idea Of the work .

NO more may the breath be allowed to flow

uncontrolled through the wearied vocal cords ;
it must b e forced against the chest always , ,

as if it were to come directly ou t thence . The

throat muscles must lie fallow until they have
lost the habit of cramped contraction ; until
the overtones again soar as they should and ,

are kept soaring long ,

though qu ite pi an o .

At first this seems qu i te impossible and is ,

indeed very difficult demanding all the pa

,

ti entenergy But it is possible and he can

’
s .
,

not avoid it for it is the only way to a thor

,

18 4
1 86 H O W TO SI NG

ment ; and every new garment , t oo , is u n co m

fort able at first . One cannot expect an imme
diate cure either Of himself or Of others
, . If
the singer undertakes it with courage and
energy he learns to use his voice with
,
con

scious understanding ,
as should have been
done in the beginning .

An d he must make up his mind to it that ,

even after a good cure the ,

O ld habits will
reappear like corns in wet weather whenever
, ,

he is n ot in good form physically . That should

n ot lead to discouragement ; persistence will
bring success .

As I have already said singers with dis ,

“ ”
abled voices like best to try .
magic cures ;
and there are teachers and pupils who boast
of having effected such magic cures in a few
weeks hours
"and
or .

Of them I gi ve warn i ng equ ally, of

unprincipled physicians who daub around in

the larynx burn it cut it and make every
, , ,

thing worse instead of better .

I cannot comprehend why singers do n ot

 THE C U RE 1 87

unite to brand such people publicly and put

an end to their doings once for all .

There is no other remedy than a slow very ,

carefu l study of the cau ses Of the trouble ,

which in almost all cases consists in lack of

control of the stream of breath through the

vocal cords ,
and in disregard Of the head
tones that is
, ,
of the overtones ; as well as in
forcing the pitch and power of the tone upon
a wrong resonating point Of the palate and in ,

constricting the throat muscles . In these

points almost invariably are all mistakes to

b e looked for ; and in the recognition Of them

the proper means f or correcting them are
“

already indicated .

The cure is difficult and tedious . It needs

an en dless patience on the part of the suf
ferer as well as Of the physician that is of ,

the pupil and the (the only

si ngi ng teacher

proper physician for this disease) because

the nerves of the head are already sufficiently
un strung through the consciousness Of their
incapacity ; yet they should be able to act
1 88 H O W TO SI NG

easily and without eff ort in producing the

head tones .

The repairing of a voice requires the great

est sympathetic appreciation and ci rcu mspec
tion on the part Of the teacher who should
,

inspire the pupil with courage ; and

on the part of the pupil all his tranquillity
, ,

nervous strength and patience in order to

, ,

reach the desired goal

"
.

Where there i s a wi ll there i s a way

1 90 H OW TO SI NG

itself to do so . F or this reason the b ack of the

tongue must be raised high the larynx stand ,

lo w .

The tongue must generally f orm a furrow .

With the lowest tones it lies relatively flat

test the tip
,
always against and b eneath the
front teeth So that it can rise in the middle
, .

As soon as the furrow is formed the mass ,

of the tongue is put out Of the way since it

,

stands high on both sides . It is almost im

possible to make drawings Of this ; it can
best be seen in the mirror . As soon as the
larynx is low enough and the tongue set elas
tically against the palate and drawn up be
hind (see plate a) the furrow is formed Of
,

itself In pronouncing the vowel ah (which

.

must always be mixed with 00 and o) it is a

good idea t o think of yawning .

The furrow must be formed in order to

allow the b reath to resonate against the hard

‘

palate beneath the nose .

Without the furrow in the tongue no tone ,

is perfect in its resonance . The only exception

 TO NGUE
'

THE 19 1

is the very highest head and falsetto tones ,

which without any palatal resonance and

"
(t -
placement have their place solely in the
head cavities Strong and yet delicate it
.
,

must be able to fit any letter of the alphabet ;

that is help form its sound
,
. It must be Of
the greatest sensitiveness in adapting itself to
every tonal V ibration it must assist every
,

change of tone and letter as quick as a flash

and with unerring accuracy ; without changing
its position t oo soon or remaining t oo long in
it in the highest range it must b e able almost
,

to speak ou t in the air .

With all itsstrength and firmness the tongue

must be of the utmost sensitiveness toward
the b reath which as I have often said must
, , ,

n ot be subj ected to the least pressure above

the larynx or in the larynx itself . Pressure
must b e limited to the a bdominal and chest
muscles ; and this should b etter b e called
stress than pressure .

Without hindrance the column Of b reath ,

at its upper end like diverging rays of light ,

1 92 H O W TO SI NG

must fill and expand all the mucous mem

branes with its V ibrations equally ,
diffuse
itself through the resonance chambers and ,

penetrate the cavi ties of the head .

When the back Of the tongue can rise no

higher ,
the lary nx must be lowered . This
Often happens in the highest ranges and one ,

needs only to mingle an 00 in the vowel to

be sung whi ch must with deep set larynx
, ,

however be felt not forward in the mouth but

,

behi nd the nose . When the larynx must stand

very low, the tongue naturally must not be
too high else it would affect the position of the
,

larynx . The mass Of the tongue must then

be disposed of elsewhere ; that is by the f orma ,

tion a furrow (see plate) One must learn

of .

to feel and hear it To keep the larynx the

.
,

back of the tongue and the palate always in ,

readiness to Off er mutual assistance , must

become a habit .

As soon as we have the tongue under con

trol that is have acquired the habit of

, ,

forming a furrow we can use it confidently

,
1 94 H O W TO SI NG

pillars of the fauces contract in order , to leave

the way for the head tones to the head cavities
entirely free . In doing this the Sides
,
of the
tongue are raised high . Every tongue should
occupy only so much space as it can occupy
without being a hindrance to the tone
"
.

The bad bad tongue

,
on e is t oo thick ,

another too thin a third too long a fourth

, ,

much t oo short .

Ladi es an d tl men , these are n othi ng bu t

"
gen e

the excu ses o f the laz y

 with t h i p i ti f b th "
Red li n eSd en ot e t h at I t h d i p h gm
e ns ra on o re a e a ra
i l t tch d b ckw d ; I I l g t h c p cit y f th
,

is se n s b y s re e a ar e n ar es e a a o e
ch t by t h d w i g d w f it fl ; I I I d f m th
,

es e ra n o n o s oor an so or s e
pply ch m b fe t h b th ; IV i di c t th p
,

su a er r e re a f n a es e re ss u re o
th g i n t t h ch s t t n i m cl ; V t h tt c k
,

th b e rea a a s e e e s on us e e a a .
198 HOW TO SI NG

same time its back being thus raised and

,

elastic ready to meet all the wishes

, of the
singer that is the needs of the larynx
, . The
larynx must not be pressed either too low or
tOO high but must work freely
,
. The breath
is enabled to stream forth from it like a column ,

whose form is moulded above the larynx by

the base Of the tongue .

When these three functions have been per

formed the three vowels
,
a, e, 00 are placed
for the attack . This placement is always the
same because it is the foundation of each tone
no matter what the word is we wish to pro
nounce Only after this placement for the
.

attack is the word thought placed and sung , , .

Now further care must be given that the

point Of attack on the palate that is ,
t he

focal point of the breath —be not subj ected

to pressure ,
and that the entire supply of
breath be n ot expended upon the palatal
resonance .

To this end the palate must remain elastic ,

for it has a twofold duty to perform . It must

 P REPARATIO N F O R SI NGI NG 19 9

not only furnish resistance for the focal point

of the breath ,
except in the very highest
head tones ,
around whi ch it can be diffused ;
the same resistance which stands against the
,

stream of breath from below must also afford

,

a firm pliant and elastic floor for the overtones

, , ,

which soaring above the palate shift as is

, , ,

needed to or above the hard and soft palate

, ,

or are divided in the nose forehead and head

,

cavities . It can easily be seen how any press

ure in singing can be dangerous everywhere ,

and how careful the singer is forced to be to

avoid such mistakes .
 SECTI O N XXII

TH E PO S I TI O N O F TH E M O UTH ( C O NTRA CTI O N

O F TH E M U SC LE S O F S PE E C H )

WH AT must my sensations be with the

muscles Of speech ? How shall I Control

them ?
The best positi on Of the mouth the means ,

of securing the proper use Of the muscles Of

S pee ch and Of the vo cal organs is established
,

by pronouncing the vowel a ,

n ot too sharply ,

in the middle range of the voice and trying ,

to retain the position of the muscles after the

sound has ceased .

This cannot be done without a smi li ng

position of the mouth consequently with a
,

strong cont raction of the muscles of the mouth ,

tongu e and throat which can be felt to be

, ,

drawn up as far as the ears .

In doing so the tongue as far as the tip

2 00
2 02 H OW TO SI NG

I repeat the warning not to force several ,

tones upon the same resonating point ,

but
to see that upon each tone the form n eces

sary for succeeding tones is prepared . Neg

lect of this will sooner or later be paid for
dearly .

Notwithstanding the strong muscular con

traction that the vocal organs must un dergo
in pronouncing the vowel a the breath must ,

be able to flow gently and without hindrance

through its form in order completely ,
to fill
up its resonance chambers . Again , and always ,

attention must be given that in singing and ,

in speaking as well nothing shall be cramped

,

or held tense except the pressure Of the breath

,

against the chest . It is of the utmost impor

tance to m aintain this position for all vo w
els ,

with the least possible perceptible modifi ca

tions .

How can this be done A and e are bright

vowels must be sung with a pleasant almost
, ,

smiling position of the mouth 00 and 0

,
.
,

on the contrary are dark vowels

, ,
for which
 THE PO SITIO N OF THE M OUT H 2 03

the lips must be drawn into a sort of spout .

Look at the position Of the throat in these

vowels "(1) as they are usually sung and
spoken ; as I feel it in singing as I sing
, ,

them and as they must b e sung and felt

,
.
 SECTI O N XXI I I

CO NNE CTI O N O F V O W E LS

HO W do I connect them with each other ?

I f I wish to connect closely together two vowels
that lie near to or far from each other I must
,

first establish the muscular contractions fo r

a ,
and introduce between the two vowels
whether they lie near together or far apart ,

a very well -
Then (supposing for
defi n ed y .
,

instance that I want to connect a and e) I

,

must j oin the a closely t o the y and the y ,

closely to the 6, so that there is n ot the least

resonating space between the two that is n ot

filled during the changes in the position of the

organs however carefully this is undertaken
,
.

There must be no empty space no useless ,

escape of breath between any two of the sounds

, .

At first only t wo , then three and four and,

2 04
2 10 HO W TO S I NG

placed . From yoo it is best to go to yu ,

that
lies still farther forward and requires of the
lips an iron firmness ; then to y ,
o touching
slightly on the e that lies above the 0; then
return to d
y , and not till then going to ye ah
-
,

which must then feel thus

e

C C -O ah-a
‘

The y is taken under the ah, that the word

may not slide under ; for usually the thought
of ah relaxes all the organs "the tongue lies
flat the larynx becomes unsteady is without
, ,

definite position and the palate is not arched

,

and is without firmness . In this way ah be

comes the most colorless and empty vowel of
the whole list .

With every change Of vowel ,

or Of any
other letter there are changes in the posi
,

tion of the organs since tongue palate and

, , ,

larynx must take diff erent positions for differ

ent sounds .

With a and e the lary nx stands higher ,

 C O NNEC TIO N O F V O WELS 2 11

closer the palate is sunk

, ,
or in its normal
position .

With 00, o, and ah the larynx stands low ,

the palate is arched .

With a e and , ,
ah the lips are drawn
back .

With 00, o, u ,
and 0 they are extended far
forward .

The auxiliary sound y connects them all

with ea ch other so that the transitions are
,

made quite imperceptibly . Since it is pro

n ou n ced with the tongue drawn high against
the palate it prevents the base
,
of the tongue
from falling down again .

This should be practised very slowly that ,

the sensations may be clearly discerned and ,

that no V ibration that gives the vowel its

pitch and duration may escape attention .

The muscu lar contraction described com

prises the chi ef functions Of the vocal organs ,

and is as necessary for S inging as the breath

is for the tone . Year in and year ou t every
singer and pupil must pra ctise it in daily
2 12 H O W TO S I NG

exercises as much as possible ,

on every tone
of the vocal compass .

In the lowest as well as in the highest range

the sharpness of the a is lost as well as the
,

clear definition Of all single vowels . A should

be mingled wi th 00, ah, and e. In the highest
range the vowels are merged in each other
, ,

because then the prin cipal thing is n ot the

vowel but the high sound
,
.

Even the thou ght Of ; and e,

a the latter espe
ci ally, raises the pitch Of the tone The
explanation Of this is that a and e possess sym
pathetic sounds above the palate that lead
the breath to the resonance Of the head cavi
ties .

F or this reason tenors Often in high notes

resort to the device Of changing words with
dark vowels to words with the bright vowel
e. They could attai n the same end without ,

changing the whole word by simply thi nki ng ,

of an e
.

Without over exertion the singer can pra e

-
,

tise the exercises given above twenty times a

2 14 HOW TO SI NG

rehearse single scenes as well as the whole ,

Opera ,
fo r hours at a time . That gave me the
certainty Of being mistress of my resonances
down to the last note ; and very Often I felt
able to begin it all over again SO must it be .
,

if one wishes to accomplish anyt hing worth

while .

Another end also is attained by the same

exercise ,
the connection ,
not only of the
vowels ,
but Of all letters ,
syllables ,
words ,

and phrases . By this exercise the form for

the breath tone and word in which all the
, , ,

organs are adjusted to each other with per

fect elasticity is gradually established
,
. Slowly
but surely it assures greatest endurance in
all the organs concerned in speaking and
singing ,
the inseparable connection of the
palatal resonance with the resonance of the
head cavities . In this way is gained p erfe c

tion in the art of singing which is based not

, ,

on chance but , on knowledge ; and this slow

but sure way is the only way to gain it .

By the ab ove described method all other

-
 C O NNEC TIO N OF V O WELS 2 15

alphabetical sounds can be connected ,

and
exercises can be invented to use with it which ,

are best adapted to correct the mistakes of

pupils at first on
,
on e, then step by step on two
and three connected tones etc ,
.

At the same time it is necessary to learn

to move the tongue freely and with the u t
,

most quickness by j erking it back after pro

, ,

n ou n cing consonants as quick as a flash into

, ,

the position in which it conducts the breath to

the resonating chambers for the vowels With .

all these movements is connected the power of

elastically contracting and relaxing the muscles
and the larynx.
 SECTI O N XXIV

TH E LI PS

OF special importance for the tone and the

word are the movements O f the lips which ,

are so widely different in the bright and in

the dark vowels . These movements cannot
be too much exaggerated in practising . The
same strength and elasticity to which we
have to train the muscles of the throat and
tongue must be imparted to the lips which ,

must be as Of iron . Upon their co Operati on

much of the life of the tone depends and ,

it can be used in many shadings as soon as ,

on e is able to exert their power consciously

and under the control Of the will .

Every vowel every word every tone can

, , ,

b e colored as by magic in all sorts of ways

by the well controlled play
-
of the lips ; can ,

as it were be imbued with life as the lips

, ,

2 16
 SECTI O N XXV

TH E VO WE L-
SO UN D AH
‘

OF F O RM E R DAY S

TH E RE is much discussion as to whether

ah 00 or some other vowel is the on e best
, ,

adapted for general practice . In former times

practice was entirely on the vowel sound -
ah .

The old Italians taught it ; my mother was

trained SO , and never allowed her pupils to
use any other vowel during the first months of
their instruction . Later , to be sure ,
every
letter every word was practised and improved
, ,

c ontinually till it was corre ct and had i m

, ,

pressed itself upon the meInory as well as the ,

ear of the pupil

,
fo r all time .

I explain the matter thus

The singer s mouth should always make
’

an agreeable impression . Faces that are for

ever gri nning Or showing fish mouths are dis
gusting and wrong .
 —
THE V O WEL SO U ND AH 2 19

The pleasing expression Of the mouth requires

the muscular contractions that form the bright
vowel ah .

M ost people who are n ot accustomed to

using their vocal resonance pronounce the ah

quite flat as if it were the vowel sound lying

,
-

lowest . If it is pronounced with the position

of the mouth belonging to the bright vowels ,

it has to seek its resonance in speaking as ,

well as in Singing in the same place as the dark

,

vowels ,
on the high arched palate
-
. TO permit
this it must be mingled with
, 00 . The fur
rows in the tongue must also be formed j ust ,

as with 00 and h only spe cial attention must be

,

given that the back Of the tongue does not fall ,

but remains high as in pronouncing a , . In

’ ’
this way ah comes to lie between ao o ah
-
d
y ,
and forms at the same time the connection
b etween the bright and the dark vowels and ,

the reverse .

For this reason it was proper that ah should

be preferred as the pra ctice vowel as soon ,

as it was pla ced properly between the two ex

no H ow TO S I NG

tremes ,
and had satisfied all demands . I
like to teach it because its use makes all mis
,

takes most clearly recognizable . It is the most

difficult vowel . If it is well pronounced , or

sung it produces the necessary muscular con

,

tractions with a pleasing expression of the

mouth and makes certain a fine tone color
,

by its connection with 00 and 0. If the ah is

equally well formed in all ranges of the voice ,

a chief difficulty is mastered .

Those who have been badly taught ,

or

have fallen i nto bad ways ,

should practise
the vocal exercise I have given a bove , with
a-
e h
y y y ,
a -
etc .
,
S lowly listening
, to themselves
carefu lly Good results cannot fail ; it is an
.

infallible means o f improvement .

Italians who sing well never speak or sing

the vowel sound ah othe rwi se than mixed ,

and only the neglect of this mixture could have

brought about the decadence Of the Italian
teachi ng of s ong . I n Germany no attention
is paid to it . The ah, as sung Often by most
Italian s of the present day quite flat sounds , ,
2 22 H O W TO SI NG

voice used to toss

, O ff great coloratura pieces ,

beginning on the vowel sound -

ah, and then
going up and down on a ,
cc, au oah . At the
time I could n ot understand why she did it ;
now I know perfe ctly ,
be cause it was easier
for her . The breath is impelled against the
cavities of the head the head tones are set into
,

action .

Behind the a position there must be as

much room provided as is needed for all the
vowels with such modifications as each on e
,

requires for itself The matter of chief i m .

portance is the position of the tongue i n the

throat that it shall not be in the way of the
,

larynx which must be able to move

,
u p and
down ,
even though very slightly , without
hindrance .

All vowels must be able to flow into each

other ; the singer must be able to pass from
on e to another without perceptible alteration ,

and back again .

 SECTI O N XXVI

ITA L IA N A ND G E RMA N

HO W easy it is for the Italians who have ,

by nature through the characteristics

,
of their
native language all these things which others
"
,

must gain by long years of practice A

single syllable often unites three vowels ; for
instance ,
“
tuoi ”
(t u oyé ) ,
“
miei m
( y y)
ea é
”
“
mu oj a,
etc .

The Italian s mingle all their vowels . They

rub them into and color them with each other .

This includes a great portion of the art Of

song which in every language
, ,
with due regard
to its peculiar characteristics must be learned ,

by practice .

To give o nly a single ex ample of the diffi

culty of the German words with the ,
everlast

ing consonant endings to the syllables take ,

the recitative at the entrance Of Norma

223
2 24 H O W TO S I NG

Wer l asst hier Au fru hrstimmen ,

Kriegs
ruf ert Onen , wollt Ihr die G Ott er z wingen ,

Eurem Wahnwitz zu frOhnen Wer wagt

vermessen gleich der Prophetin der
,
Z u kunft
Nacht zu lichten wollt Ihr der
,
G Ott er Plan
vorschnell vernichten Nicht M enschenkraft
KOnnen die Wirren dieses Landes schlichten .

Twelve endings on n

“
Sediziosi voci ,
voci di guerra ,
avoi chi
V ha
’ ’
alzar Si attenta presso all ara del D io
chi presume dett ar responsi alla vegente
Norma e di Roma affrett ar il fato arcano
,
.

Ei n on dipende no non dipende da p otere

, ,

umano
From the Italians we can learn the connec
tion of the vowels fr om the French the use
,

of the nasal tone . The Germans surp ass the

others in their power Of expressiveness . But
he who would have the right to call himself
an artist must unite all these things ; the bel

can to, that is beautiful

,
I might say good
singing and all the means of expression whi ch
,

we cultivated people need to interpret master

22 6 H OW TO S I NG

muscles ,
which ,
though feeling always in a
state Of relaxabi lity, appear to me like flexi

ble steel ,
of which I can demand everyt hi ng ,

b ecause never t oo much and which I ex

erci se daily Even in the entr actes Of grand ’
.

operas I go through with such exercises ; for

they refresh instead of exhausting me .

The unconstrained co Operati on Of all the

organs as well as their individual functions
, ,

must go on elastically without any pressure

or cramped action . Their interplay must b e
powerfu l yet supple that the breath which ,

produces the tone may be diffused as it flows

from one to another Of the manifold and com
plicated organs (such as the ventricles of M or
gagni) supporting itself on others being caught
, ,

in still others and finding all in such a state

,

of readiness as is required in each range for

each tone . Everything must be combined in
the right way as a matter of habit .

The voice is equalized by the proper rami

fi cati on Of the breath and the proper connec
tion of the different resonances .
 ITALI AN AND G ERMAN 2 27

The tone is colored by the proper mixture

of vowels ; oo, o, and ah demanding more
palatal resonance and a lower position of the
larynx a and
,
C more resonance of the head
cavities and a higher position o f the larynx .

With 00, o, u, and ah the palate is arch e d higher

(the tongu e forming a furrow ) than with
a and e where the tongue lies high and flat
, ,
.

There are singers who pla ce the larynx too

low, and arching the palate too high sing too
, ,

much toward 00 . Such voices sound very

dark ,
perhaps even hollow ; they lack the
interposition of the a, that is the larynx
,

is placed too low .

O n the other hand there are others who ,

press it upward too high ; their a position is

a permanent one . Such voices are marked by
a very bright sharp quality of tone Often
, ,

like a goat s bleating

’
.

Both are alike wrong and disagreeable .

The proper medium between them must be

gained by sensitive training Of the ear and a ,

taste formed by the teacher through examples

22 8 H O W TO S I NG

drawn from his own singing and that of

others .

If we wish to give a noble expression to

the tone and the word we must mingle its ,

vocal sound if it is not ,

00, with 0 or 00 . If
we wish to give the word merely an agree
able expression we mingle ,
it with ah, a and
,

e. That is we must use all the qualities of

,

tonal resonance ,
and thus produce colors
whi ch shall benefit the tone and thereby the
word and its expression .

Thus a single tone may be taken or Su ng

in many diff erent ways . In every varying
connection ,
c onsequently the singer must be
,

able to change it a ccording to the exp ression

desired But as soon as it is a question
. of

a mu si cal phrase in which several tones ,

or

words ,
or tones alone are conne cted the law
, ,

Of progression must remain in force ; expres

sion must be sacrificed partly at least to the , ,

beauty of the musical passage .

If he is skilful enough the singer can im ,

part a certain expression Of feeling to even the

 SECTI O N XXVI I

A UXI L I A RY V O W E L S

LI KE the auxiliary verbs will and have ,

a ,
e, and 00 are auxiliary vowels ,
Of who se
aid we are c onstantly compelled to avail our
selves . It will perhaps sound exaggerated
when I present an example Of this but as a ,

matter fact pronunciation is consummated

of

in this way ; only it must not become notice ,

able . The method seems Singular , but its

Obj ect is to prevent the leaving O f any empty
resonance spa ce and to obviate any interrup
,

tions that could affect the perfection of the

tone .

F or example when I wish to sing the word

,

”
Fraulein ,
I must first and before all else
, ,

think of the pitch of the tone before I attack

,

the f With the f the tone must be there

.
,

already bef ore I have pronoun ced it ; to pass

,

23 0
 AUXI LI ARY V OWELS 23 1

from the f to the r I must summon to my aid

the auxiliary vowel oo, in order to prevent the

formation Of any unvocalized interstices in

the sound . The r must not now drop O ff , but
must in turn be j oined to the 00, while the
tongue should not drop down behi nd ,

but should complete the V ibrations thus ,

in a straight line (See.plate ) .

It is very interesting to note how much

a word can gai n or lose in fulness and beauty
of tone . Without the use Of auxiliary vowels
no connection of the resonance in words can
be effected ; there is then no beautiful tone
in singing only a kind Of hacking
,
. Since it
must be quite imperceptible the use of aux ,

ili ary vowels must be very artistically man

aged and is best practised in the beginning
,
,

very slowly on single tones and words then ,

proceedin g with great care to two tones two ,

232 H O W TO S I NG

syllables and so on
,
. In this way the pupil
learns to hear But he must learn to hear
.

very slowly and for a long time until there ,

is no failure of V ibration in the tone and word ,

and it is all so impressed upon his memory

that it can never be lost . The auxiliary
vowels must be present but the lis
,

tener should be able to hear from the assist

,

ance of the 00, only the warmth and nobility

Of the tone from the a and
,
é only the carry
ing power and brilliancy of it .
2 34 H OW TO S I NG

sible the lips closed and a pause being made

, ,

between the two syllables ; n ot till then is

the second syllable pronounced with a new ,

formation of the second consonant .

An d thi s is done ,
n ot only in case of a doub
ling of on e consonant but whenever two
,
co n

sonants come together to close the syllable ;

for instance ,
win ter -
,
dring -
en , kling -
en ,

bind -
en ; in these the nasal sound plays a
specially important part .

The tediousness Of singing without proper

separation of the syllables is not appreciated
till it has been learned how to divide the con

sonants . The nasal close Of itself brings a

new color into the singing which must be ,

taken into account ; and moreover the word ,

is much more clearly intelligible especially in ,

large auditoriums where an appre ciable length

,

oftime is needed for it to rea ch the listener .

By the nasal close also an uninterrupted , ,

connection is assured between the consonant

and the tone even if the latter has to cease
, ,

apparently f or an instant
, .
 RES O NANT C O NS O NANTS 2 35

I teach all my pupils thus . But since

most of them consider it somethi ng unheard
Of to be forced to pronounce in this way they ,

very rarely b ri ng it to the artistic perfection

which alone can make it effective . Except
from Betz I have never heard it from any
,

on e . After me no on e will teach it any more .

I shall probably b e the last one . A pity

 SECTI O N XXIX

PRA CTI CA L E XE RC I S E S

TH E practical study Of singing is best begun

with single sustained tones and wi th prepa ,

ration On the sound of ah alone mingled

,
with
o and 00
. A po sition as if one were about to
yawn helps the tongue to lie in the right place .

In order not to weary young voi ces t oo

much it is best to begin in the middle range

, ,

going upward first by semitones and then

, , ,

starting again with the same tone ,

going
downward . All other exercises begin in the
lower range and go upward .

The pupil must first be able to make a

single tone good and judge it correctly before
, ,

he should be allowed to proceed to a second .

Later, single syllables or words can be used

as exercises for this .

The position of the mouth and tongue must

23 6
238 H OW TO S I NG

b e cramp ed but should be allowed

,
to per
form their functions elastically .

The contraction of the mus cles should never ex

ceed their power to relax . A tone must always
b e sung whether strong
, soft with an easy
or , ,

conscious power . Further before all things

, ,

sing always with due regard to the pitch .

In this way the control of the ear is exer

ci sed over the pit ch strength and duration

, ,

of the tone and over the singer s strength

,
’

and weakness of whi ch we are Often forced

,

to make a virtue . In short ,

on e learns to

recognize and to produce a perfect tone .

In all exercises go as low and as high as

the voice will allow without straining ,
and
always make little pauses to rest between
them even if you are not tired in Order to
, ,

be all the fresher fo r the next With a

‘

on e .

certain amount of skill and steady purpose

the voice increases its compass and takes the ,

proper range easiest to it by nature

,
. The
pupil can see then how greatly the compass
Of a voice can be extended . F or amateurs it
 A tt ck
a .

Red lin d n t t h t wi t h t h i
es e o e a e nsp i ti f b t h l t h
ra on o rea z e di p h gm
a ra
i bly t tch d b c kw d ; I I l g th c p city f t h
,

is sen s s re e a ar e n ar es e a a o e
c h t by t h d w n d w
,

es e ra o n o f it fl s ; III d
o or an so f m th
or s e
upply ch mb f t h b t h ; I V i d ic t t h p u f th
,

s a er or e rea n a es e re ss re o e
th g i n t t h ch t t i mu cl ; V t h tt ck
,

b r ea a a s e es ens o n s es , e a a .
 SECTI O N XXX

TH E G RE A T SCA LE

TH I S is the most necessary exercise for

all kinds of voices . It was taught to my
mother ; she taught it to all her pupils and
to us But I am probably the only one Of

"I do
.

them all who practises it faithfully

n ot trust the others . AS a pupil on e must
practise it twice a day ,
as a professional
singer at least once .

The breath must be well prepared the expira ,

tion still better ,

f or the duration of these five and

four long tones is greater than would be supposed .

The first tone is positively attacked and

by the relaxation Of the diaphragm immediately
after the attack is , diminshed, that is it is
,

made supple as the b reath is then decreased

,
.

2 42
 TH E G REAT SC ALE 24 3

All the other vocal organs take up thi s relaxa

tion and so b ecome elastic . The so controlled
breath may now completely fill up its tone
form as long and as strong as on e wishes to
make the tone . Yet an excessive crescen do

is ugly and inartistic . It is due to the trans

formed energy into elasticity which the attack
requires that a pushing
,
Of the breath and a
rigid contraction of the organs need n ot be
feared any longer But on e must always .

remember to make the organ as nose palate , , ,

tongue ,
larynx ,
and diaphragm , after every
energetic attack pliable and elastic by relaxing
,

the diaphragm . Then without particularly

swelling the tone that is making a crescendo
, , ,

the singer must try in order ,

to progress ,
to

mentally shape the propagation form for the

next tone . The thought must precede the
act a long time . Af ter having fixed the pitch ,

the diaphragm and with it all the other organs

are a gain relaxed and so forced to b e pliable .

Without altering the form which insures to

the sustained tone its existence to the last
2 44 H OW TO S I NG

moment — lift nose palate tongue wi th the

, , ,

thoughts dwelling on e an d a and push the

,

new form already mentally changed

, ,
with an
energetic but elastic a position of the larynx
in a place created for the next tone If the .

pitch whi ch unites E and a i s se cured then ,

the larynx places itself immediately under

the tongue on 00 ; that is it be comes pliable
,

for new and elastic pro cesses . Now only can

the second tone also become perfect . Before

and after every change of tone and letter all
the mentioned pro cesses are renewed .

Every first phrase of the great scale ends

with nasal res onan ce in the middle range that ,

is covered The se cond higher phrase is

,
.

covered too but towards the forehead and

,
24 6 H OW TO S I NG

centre . But this focal point must in an elastic ,

state be of service to every form movement

,
-

and may in cases where the nose palate tongue , , ,

or diaphragm operate less a ctively be made use ,

Of more energetically than would otherwise be

necessary in a normal state . It would mean to
give stronger expression to a than to 6 or 00
.

There are many singers who produce velocity

solely with a with a wabbling larynx which
,

acts alone disunited to nose palate or dia

, , ,

ph ragm . Their tones instead of being con

n ect ed one with the other as with a band , ,

tumble out singly . This sort of coloratura ,

”
which we used to j okingly call clu ckeratu ra,

is wretched and has nothing in common with

the art of song .

When 00 a and , , e are auxiliary vowels they ,

need n ot be plainly pronounced .

(They form
an exception in the diphthongs ,
“
Trau uu m, ”

“ ” “ ” “
Leiiid, Lau u u ne, Feu yer, etc ) . As
auxiliary vowels they are only means to an
end a bridge a connection from one thing to
, ,

another . They can be taken anywhere with

 TH E G REAT SC ALE 24 7

any other sound ; and thence it may b e seen

how elastic the organs can be when they are
skilfully managed .

The chief Object of the great scale is to

secure the pliant form and the sustained use of
the b reath precision in the preparation of the
,

propagation form the proper mixture

, Of the
vowels which aid in placing the organs in the
right position for the tone to b e changed for ,

every diff erent tone although imperceptibly ;

,

further the intelligent use

,
Of the resonance of
the palate and head cavities especially the ,

latter whose tones soaring above everything

, ,

else form
,
the connection with the nasal quality
for the whole scale .

The s cale must be practised without t oo

strenuous exertion but ,

n ot without energy ,

gradually extending over the en tire compass

of the voice ; and that is if it is , to be per
fect , over a compass of two octaves . These
two octaves will have been covered when
‘

, ,

advancing the starting point by semitones -

,

the scale has been carried up through an

24 8 H O W TO S I NG

entire octave . SO much every voice can

finally accomplish ,
even if the high notes
must be very feeble .

The great scale ,

properly elaborated in
practice accomplishes wonders "it equalizes
,

the voice makes it flexible and noble gives

, ,

strength to all weak pla ces operates to repair ,

all faults and breaks that exist and controls ,

the voice to the very heart . Nothi ng es

capes it .

By it ability as well as inability is brought

to light something that is extremely u n

pleasant to those without ability . In my

Opinion it is the ideal ex ercise but the most ,

difficu lt one I know . By devoting forty

minutes to it every day a ,
c onsciousness of
certainty and strength will be gained that ten
hours a day of any other exercise cannot give .

This should be the chief test in all co nserv

at ori es . If I were at the head of on e, the

pupils should be allowed for the first three
years to sing at t he e xaminations only dij i
cu lt exer cises like this great s cale before they
, ,
250 H OW TO SI NG

proper way if I wished always to b e able to

,

rely on them .

Pra ctice and especially the practice of the

,

great Slow scale is the only cure for all

, ,
in

juries and at the same time the most excel

,

lent means Of fortifi cation against all over

exertion . I sing it every day Often twice , ,

even if I have to sing on e O f the greatest roles

in the evening . I can rely absolutely on its
assistance .

If I had imparted nothing else to my pupils

but the ability to sing this one great exercise
well they would possess a capital fund of
,

knowledge whi ch must inf allibly bring them

a rich return on their voices I Often take .

fifty minutes to go through it only once for ,

I let no tone pass that is lacking in any

’

degree
in pit ch power and duration
, , , or in a single
vibration of the propagation form .
 SECTI O N XXXI

V E L O C I TY

S I N G E RS male and female who are lacking

, ,

velocity and the power Of trilling seem to me ,

l ike horses without tails . Both of these things

belong to the art of song and are inseparable
,

from it . It is a matter of indifference whether

the singer has to use them or not ; he must be
able to . The teacher who neither teaches nor
can teach them to his pupils is a bad teacher ;
the pupil wh o , notwithstanding the urgent
warnings of his teacher ,
neglects the ex er

c ises that can help him to acquire them and ,

fails to perfect himself in them is a ,

bu ngler .

There is no excuse for it but lack of talent ,

or

laziness ; and neither has any place in the

higher walks Of art .

To give the voice velocity practise first ,

Slowly then faster and faster figures

, , of five ,

25 1
 H OW TO S I NG
'

25 2

six seven and eight notes etc

, , ,
.
,
upward and
downward .

If has well mastered the great slow

on e ,

scale with the nasal connection skill in sing

, ,

ing rapid passages will be developed quite

of itself because they both rest
,
on the same
f oundation , and without the preliminary pra e
tice can never be understood .

Put the palate into the nasal position the ,

larynx upon ae ; attack the lowest tone of the

figure with the thought Of the highest ; force
the breath as it streams very vigorously forth
,

from the larynx toward the nose but allow , ,

the head current entire freedom without ,

en

ti rely doing away with the nasal quality ; and

then run up the scale with great firmness .

In descending keep the form of ,

t he high
est tone even ,
if there should be eight to
twelve tones in the passage adjusting ,
e and a
very close to each other so that the scale ,

slides down not a pair of stairs but a smooth

,

track the highest tone aff ord ing as it were

, , ,

a guarantee that on the way there shall be

25 4 H O W TO SI NG

the movement of larynx and tongue and they ,

cannot rise higher and higher with a figure

that often reaches to an immense height the ,

singer must resort to the aid Of the auxiliary

vowel oo, in order to lower the larynx and
so make room for the breath

A run or any other figure must never sound

thus

-
0

ah ha ha ha ha

b ut must be nasally modified above , and

tied ; and because the breath must flow out
unceasingly in a powerfu l stream from the
vocal cords an ,
h can o nly be put in beneath ,

whi ch makes us sure Of this powerful stream

ing ou t of the breath and helps only the,

bran ch stream Of breath into the cavities Of

the head . Often singers hold the b reath ,
 V ELO C ITY 25 5

concentrated on the nasal form ,

firmly on

the lowest tone of a figure and without , ,

in

t erru pting this nasal form ,

or the head tones ,

that is the b reath V ib rating in the head cavi

,

ties finish the figure alone

,
. When thi s happens
the muscular contractions Of the throat tongue , ,

and palate are very strong .

L o i s elet
’
. C h pi
o n-Vi ard o t

The turn ,
t oo, based on the consistent con

necti on of the tonal figure with the nasal

quality ,
whi ch is Obtained by pronouncing
the 55 toward the nose by means ,
of which the
larynx is made pliable . The y insures the
connection O f all vowels to one another ; it is
the mobile hinge
,
of the closed form . Every
vowel is ready to help —for ascending a and
,

e, for descending (70 . In the closed form they

25 6 H O W TO SI NG

accomplish the change Of form quickly and

elastically without ever relaxi ng it entirely .

With combined strength ,

especially with
the co Op erati on of on e or the other organ ,

numberless nuances may be attained through

conscious practice ; in the in the f orte
pi an o, ,

in mez z a di voce, in darker or lighter coloring ,

in the velocity or breadth of the form with ,

on e breath . In such manner every one can

attain velo city and if he is apt apply it in
, ,

serious song .

How often have I heard the ha-ha—

ha-haa ,
etc .
,
a wretched tumbling down of different
tones instead of a smooth decoration Of the
,

cantilena . Singers generally disregard it ,

be
cause no on e can do it any more and yet
.

even to day it is of the greatest importance

-
.

(See Tri s tan u n d I s olde ) .

The situation is quite the same in regard to

the appoggiatura . In this the resonance is
made nasal and the flexibility of the larynx ,

whi ch ,
without changing the resonance ,

moves quickly up and down accomplishes

 SECTI O N XXXII

TRI LL

TH E RE still remains the trill which is b est ,

practised in the beginning as follows

from the upper note to the lower one .

and e are placed very closely against each

a

other nearly pinching and held tight ; the

, ,

larynx kept as stiff as possible and placed

high . Both tones are connected as closely ,

as heavily as possible ,
upward nasally ,

downward on the larynx ,

for which the y,
again is admirably suited They must be
‘

.
,

attacked as high as possible and very strongly ,

25 8
 T RI LL 25 9

conn ected with the chest . The trill exercise

must be practised almost as a scream . The
upper note must always be strongly accen ted .

The exercrse 1 s practised with an even strength ,

without decrescendo to the end ; the breath

pressure acts more and more strongly unin ,

t erru ptedly to the fi n ish .

Trill exercises must be perf ormed with

great energy on the whole compass
,
of the
voice . They form an exception to the rule
in so far that in them more is given to the
throat to do always ,
however under the
,

control of the chest than in other exercises .

That relates however to the muscles

, ,
.

The breath vibrates above the larynx but ,

does not stick in it consequently this is not

,

dangerous . It is really a gymnastic exercise

for the muscles .

The exercise is practised first on two half ,

then on two whole tones ,

of the same key
(as g iven above) advancing by semitones
, ,

twice a day on the entire compass of the

voice It is exhausting because it requi res
”

.
2 60 H OW TO S I NG

great energy ; but fo r the same reason it

gives strength . Practise it first as slowly
and vigorously as the strength of the throat
allows then faster and faster till
, , on e day
the trill unexpe ctedly appears . With some
energy and industry good results should be
rea ched in from six to eight weeks and the ,

larynx should take on the habit Of perform

ing its function by itself . This function
gradually becomes a habit ,
so that it s eems
as if only on e tone were atta cked and held ,

and as if the second tone simply vibrated

with it As a matter of fact the larynx
.
,

will have been so practised in the minute

upward and downward motion that the singer ,

is aware only Of the vibrations Of the breath

that lie above it while he remains mindful
,

all the time only Of the pitch of the upper

note .

One has the feeling then as of singing or

holding only the tone (which must be

lo wer

placed very high ) while the upper

, one vibrates
with it simply through the habitude of the
262 H O W TO SI NG

If the larynx has acquired the habit properly ,

the trill can be carried on into a pi an o and

pi an i ssi mo and prolonged almost without end

with crescendi and descrescen di , as the old

Italians used to do and as

,
all G ermans do who

have learned anything .

 SECTI O N XXX III
’
H o w To H O LD O NE S SE LF WH E N PRA CTI S I NG

IN practising the singer should always

stand if possible before a large mirror in
, , ,

order to be able to watch himself closely .

He should stand upright ,

quietly but not
stiffly and avoid everything that looks like
,

restlessness . The hands should hang quietly ,

or rest lightly on something ,

without tak
ing part as yet in the interpretation of the
expression The first thing needed is to bring
.

the body under control that is to remain , ,

quiet so that later

, ,
In s mg mg, the singer can
do everything intentionally .

The pupil must always stand in such a

way that the teacher can watch his face ,

as well as his whole body . Continual move

ments of the fingers hands , ,
or feet are n ot

permissible .
2 64 H OW TO SI NG

The body must serve the singer s purposes ’

freely and must acquire no bad habits . The

singer s self possession is reflected in a feel
’
-

ing of satisfaction on the part of the listener .

The quieter the singer or artist ,

the more
significant is every expression he gives ; the
fewer motions he makes the more importance
,

they have . So he can scarcely be quiet

enough . O nly there must be a certain accent
of expression in this quietude ,
which can
not be represented by indiff erence . The
quietude Of the artist is a reassurance for
the public ,
fo r it can come only from the cer
tainty of power and the full command of
his task through study and preparation and
perfe ct knowledge Of the work to be pre
sented . An artist whose art is based on

power cannot appear other than self possessed -

and certain of himself . An evident u n eas mess

is always inartistic and hence does not belong ,

where art is to be embodied .

A
Al l dependence
upon tricks of habit creates nervousness and
lack of flexibility .
266 H OW TO S I NG

It is enough for a musical person to strike

a single note on the piano when he practises
alone , or perhaps a common chord ,
after
which the body and hands should return
to their quiet natural position
,
. O nly in a
standing posture can a free deep breath be ,

drawn and mind and body be properly pre

,

pared for the exercise or the song to follow .

It is also well for pupils to form sentences

with the proper number of syllables upon
which to sing their exercises so that even ,

such exercises shall gradually gain a certain

amount Of expressiveness . Thus the exer

cises will form pictures which must be con

n e ct e d with the play of the features as well ,

as with an inner feeling and thus will not

,

be come desultory and soulless and given over

to indifference . Of course not till the mere
tone itself is brought under complete control ,

and uncertainty Is no longer possible ,

can
the horizon Of the pupil be thus widened
without danger .

Only when a scene re quires that a vocal

 P O SI TI O N WH I LE P RACTI SI NG 2 67

passage be sung kneeling or sitting mus t

the singer pra ctise it in his room long be
fore the performance and at all rehearsals ,

in accordance with dramatic requirements

Of the situation . O therwi se the si nger shou ld

always S TA ND . We must also look out for

unaccustomed garments that may be required
on the stage and rehearse in them ; for
,
in

stance hat helmet hood

, , , ,
c loak etc
,
. With
ou t becoming accustomed to them by practice ,

the singer may easily make himself ri di cu

lous on the stage . H ence comes the ab

surdity of a Lohengri n who cannot sing with

a helmet another who cannot with a Shield
, ,

a third who cannot with gauntlets ; a Wan

derer who cannot with the big hat another ,

who cannot with the spear a ,

J ose who can
not with the helmet etc ,
. All these things
must be practised before a mirror un til the
requirements Of a part or its costume become
a habit . To attain this the singer must be
,

completely master of his body and all his

movements .
268 H OW TO S I NG

It must be precisely the same with the

voice . The singer must be quite independent
of bad habits in order consciously to exact
from it what the proper interpretation of

the work to be performed requires .

He should practise only so long as can

b e done without weariness . Af ter every exer

cise he should take a rest , to be fresh for the

next on e . Af ter the great scale he should
rest a
t least ten minutes ; and these resting

times must be Observed as long as one sings ,

and not b e filled wi th other tasks .

Long -
continued exertion shou ld not be
exacted of the voice at first ; even if the effects
of it are n ot immediately felt a damage is ,

done in some way In this matter pupils .

themselves are chiefly at fault because they ,

cannot get enough as long as they take pleas

,

ure in it .

For this reason it is insane folly to try

to sing important roles on the stage after
one or two years of study ; it may perhaps
b e endured for one or two years without
 SECTI O N XXX IV

PRO NU N C IA TI O N . CO N S O NA NTS

WI TH O U T doubt the Italian language with its

wealth of vowels is better adapted for smgI ng
than the German language so rich in consonants ,

or than any other language . The organs of

speech and the vocal apparatus in the Italian ,

language are less subjected to violent form

,

modifi cati ons . The numerous vowels secure

for the Singer an easy connection of the sounds ,

while t he poor pronunciation Of the many hard

consonants interrupts every form and tone
connection . H owever, every on e who pro

fesses to be an artist should learn to pronounce

and sing well every current language The .

mixing and connecting of several vowels in the

different vowel forms -
on single tones is a Study
in itself The most appropriate xercise for
“

. e

it consists In placing a y before each vowel and

2 70
 P RO NUNC I ATIO N . C O NSO NANTS 271

of renewing it before each followi ng vowel ,

so that y becomes a binding medium and at

the same time a gymnastic exercise fo r the

muscles of the vocal apparatus .

First sing one or two syllables very slowly ,

in one b reath so as to learn to observe each

vibration and each position Of the tongue
and the palate ; then gradually add a third and
a fourth syllable . The y is so slowly prepared
by the tongue t hat it seems like a syllable itself .

If we take into consideration that many

German words contain as many consonants as

vowels whi ch must be pronounced and resonate

,

on a single tone Sprung,

,
as for example ,

Strauch bringst Herbst schweifst brauchst

, , , , ,

etc we must acquire great deftness Of the

.

vocal apparatus that is with the organs tongue

, , ,

larynx palate lips nose chest and diaphragm

, , , , , ,

so that we can at least approximately meet

2 72 H OW TO SI NG

such great demands . To begin with , we must

try clearly to understand that every letter
demands its own form that every union ,
of the
Vo cal organs from one letter or tone to another
must again create a new form . Perhaps it is
better to say in this instance "a new quality of

the form or tone . In order to accomplish this

the existing form must in its concentration be
resolved into y
-
W hich prevents the form from
falling apart before a change can be made to
a new form that is a new position
, , ,
no matter
whether a tone vowel or consonant
, , or an entire
word is to be changed . Each of the three first
mentioned form modifi cations has its own parti c
-

ular quality . If several of them take pla ce simul

t aneou sly, the change will be doubly difficult .

D ark vowels are to be thought of as concave ,

bright vowels as straight and consonants as ,

convex .

D ark vowels C ,
b ri ght vowels con

sonants
All vowels ,
all consonants need auxiliary
vowels . A vowel by itself with its finest shades
274 H OW TO S I NG

To prevent extreme differences in sounds

from bright to dark or vice versa the two forms ,

in the pronunciation of the word must be

brought as near together as possible ,
eg . the
vowels must be colored or mixed according to
the warmth and character of the word to be
sung . AS consonants compress all vowel forms -

and so cut off all tone connection we are

-
,
co m

pelled to look for a means to preserve sound

and tone connection It consists in pron ou n c
-
.

ing nearly all consonants in the a form and

during the enunciation in alternating the con

cave and convex positions often so that a ,

kind of wavelike motion is produced in which

the consonants may Often resoun d with the
vowel as for example
,

The process is particularly noticeable with r .

But s, m l d though pronounced in a different

, , ,

manner also need all auxiliary vowels

,
. While
several vowels are always adjusted to sound as
one the consonant must during the process of
,
 P RO NU NC IATIO N . C O NSO NANT S 2 75

articulation be slowly produced by the flexible

,

motion and countermotion of larynx tongue

, ,

and palate . D uring their formation and even

in their preparation they take up considerable
time as they have to perform a twofold work in
,

order to resound . It is then the exact Opposite

to that which most singers and pupils under
—
stand by clear cu t and correct articulation or ,

to that whi ch they are in the habit of doing

by giving the consonants a hard quick and , ,

toneless articulation without preparing them

and without making them flexible .

With most consonants it is a question of the

vowel form -
a in which they are placed and
articulated as the vowel a must nearly always
,

be pronounced before a word and generally

after a word closing with a consonant . I n the
latter case it is used as a sort o f after sound -
,

for example

If in addition there is a question Of pitch ,

then even a the note line (with which I have

-
276 H O W TO SI NG

underlined the word) is not sufficient There .

must be added to the a an e over the nose that ,

is the a must be placed higher

,
. Prefixes and
“ H
su ffixes as in verraten verleugnen ,
U
,
H (I
zer
t rii mmern
”
etc receive a covering of
,
.
,
76 or
0 b,

treating them as if they were written without

6 thus V Orrat On O . In this way they be
come secondary to the main s yllable which ,

especially in the recitative ,

cannot be t oo

strongly accented .

We see how in defian ce to all the opposition

which the consonants are ever ready to off er
the vocal apparatus of the singer or speaker ,

the modified concave vocal form remain s

v ictorious . It remains victorious as long as
the distin ctnes s of the consonant is only at

tained through the coresonan ce O f the bright

vowels a e and Often also through the
, ,
coreso

nance of d o and o
”

All singing, and especially the consonan ts ,

278 H OW TO S I NG

cause in the pronunciation of the vowel ,

or in
the breath or attack
,
. It is not the vowel but ,

the preceding or succeeding consonant that

constricts the form and prevents the continu
ance of tonal resonance . In time many singers
lose their voice through the inflexibility Of the
muscles Of the tongue and larynx . As beauty
of tone is the foundation of vocal art it should ,

be the aim Of every singer to alter it as little

as possible by means of skilful and flexible p ro

nu n ci ati on without endangering the distin ct

ness of enunciation .

Not only the word and syllable whi ch are

sung in the form Of the dominating vowel of the
word but every letter necessitates a form
,

modi fi cation . One letter j eopardizes another ,

every letter imperils tone beauty every con -

,

sonant endangers every vowel ,

on e form an

other in which
,
one must pronounce or Sing .

Stability beauty height depth strength and

, , , , ,

suppleness of tone and word run eternal dan

ger of b eing altered and thrown from their path .

In order to equalize the form modifi cations -

 P RO NUNC IATIO N . C O NSO NANTS 2 79

it is necessary constantly to employ all those

auxiliary vowels especially a and e which
have the power to raise the tongue and palate ,

thus raising the pit ch and form . Every vowel

may eventually be an auxiliary vowel ac

cording to the demands of tone beauty

-
. We
can better see from an illustration what a rev
olu ti on the change of letters in the form of a
perfect tone endeavors to bring about ; how
the singer must concentrate his entire attention
on the form modifi cat ion s
-
or form preserva
-

tion while articulating every letter so that he

may remain master of the beauty O f his voice .

No letter , Il O syllable ought to be pronounced

badly . The teacher should not let a poorly
pronounced syllable pass uncorrected . He must
correct over and over again until letter syllable , ,

and word are connected with each other by

good resonance .

As I have Often mentioned we Shall have to,

abolish the false designations used in the

pedagogics of vocal art as well as those used
by the professional singer erroneous appella
,
2 80 HOW TO SI NG

tions which produce false comprehension on

the part of the teacher and singer . For ex

ample "the false idea of the breath on which
for years nearly the entire attention was di
rect ed, thus diverting it from the form for the
breath . The misunderstood idea of breath
restraint (A tem stau en ) on the part of the pupil
-

corresponds to the idea Of a channel without

outlet ,
In which the water collects without
flowing O ff whereas the breath must continu
ally issue from the mouth . It has become t he

habit of consideri ng the breath as the only

cause fo r a bad or a good tone . This is the
cause the eternal breath pressure with
of

which so many singers produce their tones

and ruin their voices . Tone and tone strength -

may only be produced by muscle stretching -

and by the subtlest tension of the vocal organs .

To avoid such an error it would be advisable

to leave the coaction of the diaphragm out of

play at firs t directing the entire attention to

,

the form only that is to the relative position

,

Of no se palate larynx and tongue and finally

, , , ,
2 82 H O W TO SI NG

flexibly and dissolves the connection b etween

,

the di aphragm and the upper organs which then ,

wobble helplessly to and fro, produ cing tremolo

and uncertainty . I have seen a single such tone
(breath ) left formless ruin the entire even
ing for the singer Because he was suddenly
.

robbed Of all support ,

he thought himself
suddenly indisposed and was unable to sing to
the end Unfortunate ignorance "Wretched
"
.

Art
The weakest as well as the strongest tone
which the singer is able to give depends on the
energy of the experienced artist ,
upon the
lesser or greater tension of all the muscles of

the vocal organs in themselves and on e to the

other . This tension extends from the nose ,

the temples over the larynx and

, , t he chest
muscles d own to the diaphragm . At certain
heights the nose and the diaphragm are the
poles from which the tension from on e to the
other seems like the tensed string of a harp .

Without this tension a steady tone is an im

po ssibility . It naturally becomes we aker and
2 84 H OW TO SI NG

more flexible the lower we descend and more

tensed the higher we wish to sing .

In this form whose ends

, or poles are tensed
against each other everything takes place which
,

the intervening organs as larynx and tongue

,

which must likewise be in exact tension with

them have to execute in articulating , or

whi ch they have to execute in the progression

of the tone toward the height or depth . Only
he whose ear is so acutely trained that he can
hear that each tone interruption is produced
by the poor action of larynx and tongue or by
the tightening of the diaphragm or soft palate ,

or by muscular laxn ess has any idea ,

of the
deli cacy of the work ; and only he has any
idea of it who through years
,
of work has tried
to produce tone binding in such a manner that
-

the tone will continue to resonate uninterrupt

edly in spite of the difficulties Offered by the
language he is using , or by bad and careless
habits Of speech . That wou l d mean to be
moderate ; to hold together all organs flexibly
but still energetically not to allow the action
,
2 86 H OW TO SI NG

To some extent we here see what resources

,

are at ou r disposal and that only by the con

scious knowledge Of the adjustment of ou r

vocal organs which must be on e with ou r ear

(hearing ) may a permanent art o r a lasting
voice (within human limits) be secured The .

co operation of all muscles ligaments tendons

, , ,

and nerves with each other and the action

within themselves must be Secured to produce
a mobile supple movable and indestructible
, , ,

form for the breath . The form may be modi

fi ed but never destroyed . Some singers have
natural gifts . The true artist though has , ,

worked over them and dire cted them into

artistic paths . We need only to have observed
J oseph Kainz (a noted German actor) whose ,

muscular tension and elasticity were admirable

and from whose technique of breathing every
singer could learn Su ch wonderful technique
.
,

united with su ch a wonderful soul as in this

ca se gave the li stener the keenest enj oyment
, .

An d surely he could only have a cquired this

te chnique through very earnest study and per ,
 P RO NU NC I ATIO N . C O NSONANT S 287

haps through the knowledge that a lasting art is

impossible without technique . Also in listening
to the concert singer M eschaert you can very
well hear the striking elasticity of larynx and
palate which so charmed me in
,
his wonderful
singing .

C onsciously or unconsciously used technique ,

remains a necessity to art and to the artist

himself as without it there is no art
,
. Is it
’
not a magnificent task to secure for one s self
a privileged po sition in the world of art by
acqu iring conscious ability ? By gaining for

"
one s self a beautifu l voi ce
’
or , if such a on e

naturally exists by preserving it to the end of

one s life
’

Singers have acquired the habit of pron ou n c

ing words in the same direction as they are

written that ,
i s, from left to right from front ,

to back this also gives a false idea of pro

n u n ciat i on in vocal art . W ords to be sung
artistically are not sung as the maj ority are
in the habit Of pronouncing ordinarily ; not
in a straight line but in accordance with note
28 8 H O W TO SI NG

height and depth beginning almost at the

,

pharynx and placing before the last pronounced

letter letter for letter
,
. O nly a few artists
have a clear and conscious idea of thi s .

H ow rarely does any on e speak sonorously ,

and to S peak thus would signify to j oin

words constantly on e to the other in vowel
"
,

forms
With many German singers and speakers the
back and root of the tongue remain rigid in
the throat while pronouncing consonants ,
es

p eci ally the end consonants of a word . No

on e, unless he naturally speaks flexi bly thinks ,

Of relaxing the form before and after each

con sonant and Of c reating new vowel forms
for the additional auxiliary vowels which aid
in renderi ng the consonant sonorous an d in
t elligible . F or example

Naturally the auxiliary vowel is only a prolonga

tion of sonority and is n ot an articulated syl
2 90 H OW TO SI NG

strength are in such instances so compressed

,

that they make everything c onnected with

them immovable . An d especially the strength
of a tone whi ch comes into existence by the
,

placement of the larynx (in the e and 00 ten

sion) by means of the vowel a whose coworkers ,

are the cricoid and thyroid cartilages (esp ecially

in the higher -
a nd highest voi x -
mi me tones) ,
must only be produced in an elastic manner .

The cartilages must be drawn together as if

by a magnet ; they must then be held together
elastically and then be elastically relaxed .

As soon as the tongue and root of tongue

through stiffness or contraction hinder the
action of the cartilages all the muscles
,
of the
larynx become cramped and for the moment
the singer is lost .

I can only compare the sensation of this

elasti c magnetic force to that Of two fine mag
netic needles or to two slowly movi ng bolts
in a machine whi ch are drawn toward each
other to a c ertain point but can never touch
each other ,
and which notwithstanding the
 P RO NUNC IATIO N . C O NSO NANTS 29 1

force of attraction tend to retract . So the

placement of the vowel a with the larynx
which now takes a position between two
magnetic poles creates a balance of strength
upon which the tone must soaringly be main
t ained . F or example

Pronunciation that
is too distinct partie
,

u larly of consonants ,

d e s t r o y s all tone
connection and the
tone and p p
ro a

gat i on-
form .

But singing de
pends chiefly ou the
connection Of tones . Every single tone in a
scale for example may
, ,
be right but the con

n ecti on from one tone to another very wrong .

The error arises from the fact that the form of

the tone just completed was not entirely relaxed ,

and the tension of the organs one to the other

was not dissolved before the form was prepared
fo r the next tone . The refined singer must
2 92 H O W TO SI NG

learn to hear this work of connection and

dissolution . TO complete two tones ,

then ,

there are necessary four different though

connected forms The transition form from
.

on etone to another must naturally n ot be

heard and yet the two tones of a scale would
lack an important factor if this transition form
were not present whi ch , ,
for example I not only,

hear but of which I also have a distinct sensa

tion (when hearing others) The connecting .

form then is an intermediate form for a mute

intermediate sound . It lies b etween two dif
ferent tones or letters and is eff ected principally
by the relaxat ion Of the diaphragm and larynx ,

whi ch relaxation extends over the entire form

and diminishes the current Of breath . It is
only when this process (whi ch corresp onds t o
the dissolution O f the form) is perfectly accom
I

plish edthat the entire vocal organs (tensed in

thems elves and one to the other which action ,

makes the vo cal apparatus) are shi fted the

entire length for t he second tone toward the ,

top for height and toward the bottom for

2 94 H O W TO SI NG

The voiceless consonants k, p, t are pre

pared silently but with flexibility The labials .

like f and w the sibilants s sch 2 the aspirates

, , , ,

like (German
oh ) ph v (German ) whether
, pro , ,

n ou n ced with lips upper teeth root of tongue

, ,

and palate with tip ,

of tongue and protruding
un derlip or in any other manner must accord
, ,

ing to their peculiarity be intonated very slowly

(though we can hardly say they are rendered

quite sonorous) . Nearly all of them are

intonated in the a form
-
.

After each ( )
consonant pause - T
which
serves as well for distinct utterance as for
preparation the consonant in question , as k
, ,

p,
t must
,
be pronounced ve ry distinctly and

quickly .

Every letter vowel or consonant requires then

, ,

not only its own distinct form transition form , ,

and adjustment in regard to tone height by -

adjustment in regard to tone height is meant -

 PRO NUNC I ATIO N . C O NSO NANTS 29 5

concentrated force
"
the (t line
-
of but it modi
fies its own form continually by calling into
play other vowels which tend to make the form
flexible to place it higher to spread it
, , ,
to make
it narrower in short everythi ng which tends
, ,

to change the tonal quality .

Accordi ng to tone height and the demands

-

of the word the modified form moves from

,

on e letter to another without alterin g the

note line a the pit ch and purity Of the tone
-
, .

Every tone can lay claim to various heights

accordi ng to the harmony to whi ch it belongs .

To render the necessary form modifi cati ons -

as comf ortable as possible for the vocal appara

tus to adapt them advantageously for the tone
,

height and to use them in such a mann er that

,

the ear Of the listener is insensible to the changes

is the great feat of vocal art . He who exp ects
rapid progress during the study of this mos t
difficult task will never master the art of song .

There are endless difficulties to overcome ,

there are so many words in all languages ,

there exi st so many complications in the

2 96 H OW TO S I NG

sentence arrangement that it becomes a life

long study .

The ignorant the unskilful

, , or the careless
will easily cramp his organs in making the
rapid mo di fications of the form . If thi s be
comes habit the singer is to b e pitied for as
, , ,

grand as his profession could be it now becomes ,

a torture . To prevent thi s he must become

,

acquainted with hi s vocal apparatus with the

fullest consciousness must learn to use it and
,

must secure skilfulness in its use through con

scious study . In the beginning the best way ,

to become acquainted wi th the u naccustomed

functions is through very great exaggeration
which must after knowledge and technique
,

are gained be diminished and changed into

,

flexible action and tension of the mus cles so ,

that finally these are united in a machi ne like -

harmonious whole . The apparatus must be

supple elastic in every movement and cou nter
,

movement and obey with energy that which

,

governs it .

Ever since Wagner made his influence felt ,

2 98 H O W TO SI NG

manner of causes without b eing able t o discover

the true one . An d this is because the real
cause precedes the eff ect a long time . It is
necessary to see that the tongue is put in a
soft pliable state
,
Of preparation a long time
b efore the consonant is even thought and is
kept soft and pliable during pronunciation
even though the consonant is hard .

It takes a very finely trained ear to discover

the cramped and hard pronunciation of the con
s onants in others
,
or in himself . Bu t as soon
as we have discovered the origin (the tongue) ,

ou r eyes are opened and we may confidently

begin a new and long lasting study which is

justified in taking up ou r entire attention .

TH E A R IA O F D O NNA ANN A

A NAL Y SIS O
O F TH E M V E M E NTS O F TH E V O CA L
O RG A N S
Largh etto . Ub er
l l es b l eib st du t h eu er
a .

Th e red l etters denot e t he fo ret h ou gh t .

Very su ppl e an d cl ose p o sit i on of l aryn x on a an d

00 .Th e 6 over t he n ose toward t he h ead cavit i es
is contin u all y ren ew ed t h e 00 1s d i ssolved an d re
,

n ewe d wi t h each l ett er .

 P RO NUNC IATIO N . C O NSO NANT S 2 99

e h ead - i y
v o ce i n gp o w e
c arr r o p e-n s t h e n o se .

d — fi x es t h e l arynx r a i s e s t h e
,
ep i g l o tt i s s e cu re s ,

h eigh t for the t on gu e note line gives strength

,
-
,

(w hi ch i n t hi s high pos iti on mu st on l y be u sed in

a so ar n g i mann er) .

oo c h est i
V o ce p al atal reson an ce d ept h
covers the t on e di sso lves t he form flexibi l ity
makes the l arynx pl i ab l e .

s i l ent pau se b efore do u b l e conson ants an d be

fore t, k, p , Upon w hi ch fo ll ows s h ort cl ear cu t ,
-

pro n u i i
n c at on .

y conn ect ing medi u m an d t en si on .

 SECTI O N XXXV

P
CO N C E RNI NG E X RE S S I O N

WH E N we wish to study a role or a song ,

we have first to master the intellectual con

tent Of the work . Not till we have made

ourselves a clear picture of the whole should
we proceed to elaborate the details through ,

which however the impression

, ,
of the whole
should never b e allowed to su ff er . The co m
plet e picture should always shine ou t through
A . I f it is t oo much b roken into details ,

it becomes a thing Shreds and pat ches

of .

So petty accessories must be avoided that ,

the larger outline of the whole picture shall not

suffer The complete picture must ever claim

.

the chief interest ; details should not distract

attention from it In art subordination of
.
,

the parts to the whole is an art of itself Every .

3 00
 SECTI O N XXXVI

B E F O RE TH E PU B L I C

IN the wide reaches Of the theatre it is needful

to give an exaggeration to the expression ,

whi ch in the concert hall where the forms Of

,

society rule ,
must be entirely abandoned
.
.

An d yet the picture must be presented by the

artist to the public from the very first word ,

the very first note ; the mood must b e felt In

advance . This depends partly upon the bear

ing of the singer and the expression of coun
t en an ce he has during the prelude whereby ,

interest in what is coming is roused and is

’

directed upon the music as well as upon the

poem .

The picture is complete in itself I have only

to vivify its colors during the performance .

Upon the management of the body upon the ,

electric current which should flow between the

302
 BEFO RE THE PUB LI C 3 03

artist and the public , a cu rrent that Often

streams forth at his ve ry appearance but Often ,

is n ot to be established at all , depend the

glow and effectiveness of the color which we

impress upon ou r picture .

N0 artist should be b eguiled b y this into

giving forth more than artistic propriety per
mits either
,
to enhance the enthusiasm or to

intensify the mood ; for the electric connection

cannot be f orced . Often a tranquillizing feel
ing is very soon manifest on both sides the ,

eff ect of which is quite as great even though ,

less stimu lating . Often , t oo, a calm still under

,

standing between singer and public exercises

a fascination upon both that can o nly be
attained through a complete devotion to the
task in hand and renunciation Of
, any attempt
to gain noisy applause .

To me it is a matter of indiff erence whether

the public goes frantic or listens quietly and
reflecti vely, for I give ou t only what I have
undertaken to . If I have put my individu
ality my powers my love for the work into
, , ,
3 04 H OW TO S I NG

a rOle or a song that is applauded by the pub

lic I decline all thanks for it t o myself per
,

sonally, and consider the applause as belong

ing to the master whose work I am interpreting .

If I have succeeded in making him intelligible

to the public ,
t he reward therefor is contained
in that fact itself and I ask for nothing more
, .

Of what is implied in the intelligent inter

pret at i on Of a work of art as to talent and
,

study the public

,
h as no conception . O nly
they can understand it whose lives have been
devoted to the same ideals . The lasting under
standing of such ,
or even of a part of the pub
lic is worth more than all the storm
,
of applause
that is given t o so many .

All the applause in the world cannot repay

me for the sacrifices I have made for art and ,

no applause in the world is able to beguile me

from the dissatisfaction I feel over the failure
of a single tone or attempted exp ression .

What seems to me b ad because I demand ,

the greatest things of myself is to b e sure

, , ,

good enough f or many others . I am however,

,
3 06 H OW TO S I NG

n ot be sufficiently censured . In the same way ,

going ou t before the end at ,

u n fi t t i ng times ,

and the use of fans in such a way as to disturb

artists and those sitting near should be avoided
by cultivated people . Artists who are con cen

t rati ng their whole nature upon realizing an

idea "which they wi h
,
s to interpret with the
most perfect exp ression should not be dis ,

tu rbed or disquieted .

O n the other hand operatic performances

, ,

an d c oncerts especially should be limited in

,

duration and in the number of pieces pre

sented . It Is better to Offer the public a
single symphony or a short list of songs or

pianoforte pie ces which it can listen to with

,

attention and really absorb than to provide ,

two or three hours Of difficult music that

neither the public can listen t o with sufficient
attention nor the artist perform with sufficient
concentration .
 SECT I O N XXXVII

P
I NTE R RE TATI O N

LE T us return to the subj ect O f E xpression ,

and examine a song ; for example ,

m by S chu mann
”
Der Nu ssbau ,
.

The prevailing mood through it is one Of

quiet gayety consequently one demanding
,

a pleasant expression of countenance . The

song picture must ustle by us lik e a fairy
r

story . The pi cture shows us the fragrant

nut tree putting forth its leaves in the spring
under it a maiden lost in revery who finally ,

falls asleep happy in her thoughts

,
. All is
youth and fragrance a ,
c harming little pic
ture ,
whose colors must harmonize . None
Of them should stand ou t from the frame .

O nly one Single word rises above the rustling

,

of the tree and this must be brought plainly

,

to the hearing of the listening maiden and

307
3 08 H OW TO S I NG

hence also , ,
of the public the second n ext

year . The whole song finds its point in that

on e word . The nut tree before the house
puts forth its g reen leaves and sheds its fra
gran ce ; its blossoms are lovingly embraced by
the so ft breezes whispering to each other two
,

by t wo , and Offer their heads to b e kissed ,

nodding and bowing ; the song must be sung

with an equal fragrance each mu srcal phrase ,

in one breath that is ,

with six inaudible breath
ings without ritenuto
,
.

They whisper of a maiden who night and

day is thinking ,
sh e knows not of what her
“ ” “
self . Between selber and ni cht was a
slight separation of the words can be made ,

“
by breaking O ff the r in selber nasally ;
and holding the tone nasally without taking ,

“
a fresh breath atta cking the ,
nicht anew .

In thi s way an expression of un certainty is

“ ”
lent to the words nicht was .

But n ow all becomes quite mysteri ous .

”
They whisper , they whisper one must
bend one s thoughts to hear it ; who can under
’
3 10 H O W TO S I NG

tones that seem t o enhance the peace of nature ,

far from the haunts of men .

As tranquil as are the clouds that pass by ,

as peaceful as is the mood Of nature as luxu

,

ri ou s as are the flowers that spread their fra

gran ee so tranqui l and calm must be the
,

b reathing of the singer which draws the long ,

phrases of the song over the c hords of the

accompaniment and brings b efore us in words
,

and tones the picture of the warm peace of sum

mer in nature and the radiant b eing
,
of a man
dis solved within it .

I mark the breathing places with V . Ich

"
liege still im hohen grii n en Gras V und sende

"
lange meinen Bli ck V nach oben V and again
co mfortably ,
c almly nach oben .

“
V on Grillen rings u mschw armt V Ohn ’

Unterlass V von Himmelsblau e wu ndersam

von Himmelsblau e V wu ndersam
'

umwoben V
u mwoben .

Each tone each letter is connected closely

, ,

with the preceding and following ; the expres

sion of the eyes and of the soul should be
 I NT ERPRETATIO N 3 11

appropriate to that of the glori fied peace of

’
nature and of the soul s happiness . The last
phr ase should soar tenderly saturated with a ,

warm and soulful coloring .

"
“ ’
Die s chOn en weissen W olken zieh n dahin

" "
V durch s ’
ti ef e Blau V, I gaze at it for a mo

" "
’
ment wie s chOn e, stille Traums V l osing one s
self wie s chOn e stille Trau me . V A feeling

""
of dissolution takes away every thought of

"
living and being M ir ist V als ob V ich
l angst V gestorben bin The whole being

"
is dissolved in the ether ; the end comes with
outstretched wings soaring above the earth
und ziehe seli g mit V durch ew
’
ge Raume V

"
und ziehe selig mit V durch ew
’
ge R aume .

"
Dissolution of the soul in the universe must
sound forth from the singer s tone ’
.

“ ”
The E rlki ng, by S chu bert .

For him who is familiar with ou r native

legends and tales the willows and alders in
,

the fields and by the brooks are peopled with

hidden beings ,
fairies ,
and witches . They
stret ch out ghostl y ar ms as their veils,
wave
3 12 H OW TO S I NG

over their loose hair they bow cower rais e , , ,

themselves become as big as giants or as lit

,

tle as dwarfs . They seem to lie in wait for

the weak to ,
fill them with fright .

The father however who rides with his

, ,

child through the night and the wind is a ,

man no ghost ; and his faithf u l steed that

, ,

carries both no phantom ,

. The picture is pre
sented to us vividly ; we can follow the group
for long . The feeling is of haste but ,
n ot

of ghostliness . The prelude shou l d conse

quently sound simply fast but ,

n ot overdrawn .

The first phrases of the singer shou ld be con

nect ed with it as a plain narrative .

Suddenly the child hugs the father more

closely and buries his face in terror in his
bosom . Lovi ngly the father bends over him ;
qu i etly he asks him the cause of hi s fear .

Frightened the child looks to

, on e side and ,

asks ,
in disconnected phrases ,
whether hi s
father does n ot see the Erlking the Erlking ,

with his crown and train They had just rid .

den by a clump of willows Still quietly the .

,
3 14 H OW TO SI NG

voice comes b ack again . In a low whisper

sounds and words are distinguished . Erlking
invites the boy to play with hi s daughters ,

who shall dance with him and rock him and

sing to him .

I n the heat of fever the boy implores his

father to look for the Erlkings daughters ’
.

The father sees only an Old gray willow ; but

hi s voice is no longer calm . Anxiety for his
sick child makes his manly tones break ; the
comforting words contain already a longing
for the j ourney s end ’
quickly quickly must , ,

he reach it .

Erlking has n ow completely filled the fever

ish fancy Of the child . With ruthless power
he possesses himself of the boy all oppositi on
'

is vain the silver cord is loosened . Once

more he cries out in fear to his father then his ,

eyes are closed . The man ,

beside himself ,

hi s
’
strains every nerve own and his horse s ;
his haste is like a wild flight . The j ourney s ’

end is reached ; breathless they stop but the

race was in vain .
 I NTERP RETATIO N 3 15

A cold shudder runs through even th e nar

rator ; his whole being is strained and tense ,

he must force hi s mouth to utter the last words .

D er Spi elmann, by S chu mann

“ ”
.

If the critics were to study as eagerly as the

finished artist there would be enough material
,

on hand for stimulating discussions from which

the public at large would profit .

Thus lying before me is a letter on music

wherein one of my last concerts but more ,

’
especially Schumann s Spielmann is the ,

theme of discussion . Would it n ot be interest

ing to the public to learn how such songs find
interpretation in the artist ?
This song had long claimed my attention .

The text is constructed on on e idea in which

the fate of three human beings is decided in
cruel shortness of time . This appealed to
me an interesting picture and a well adapted -

composition .

A small rural wedding with music and dance ;

“ ”
the pale bride the ,
Spielmann who is n ot

the bridegroom b ut who plays fo r the dance ,

3 16 H O W TO SI NG

pressing the fiddle so strongly against his

heart that it breaks in a thori sand pieces
a compassionate spectator to whom it is pain
ful to see so young a heart which craves for ,

“ ”
happiness perish The Spielmann s sud
,
.
’

den outburst of insanity puts an end to his

meditation . A poor “
M usikant ”
lowers his
frightened glance and prays to God to save
him from such a terrible end .

The whole song is over In a flash . One only

begins to comprehend it at the outburst of

insanity and before,

on e has fu lly realized all ,

the poor “
M usikant ”
has finished his prayer
and then very softly as from a great distance a
, , ,

faint strain of the dance melody reaches

-
ou r

ear .

It is seen how everyt hing concentrates it

self On the insane outburst ; and yet to this
phrase like all others composed
,
on three notes
of the middle range accents Of expression can ,

not be given But I attempt it The song is

. .

mine I possess it absolutely and in my in

.

most soul know how it ought to sound . I must

3 18 H OW TO SI NG

and the end is attained then I have made it mine

,
.

The given music n ow facilitates matters and ,

I follow the composer s restrictions not too high

’
, ,

not t oo low only the e xact tone appropriate

,

to a tormented sou l in a song of modest limits .

Now devoting a couple of weeks to diligent

’
study I am able to do justice to Schumann s
,

composition .

NO I am no friend
,
Of extremes . Every
thing has its limits and art especially must
,

ever be mindful of it . Neither in grief nor in

happiness in gentleness nor in brutality may
, ,

we indulge in exaggeration . We must never

go beyond the line of beauty . In only a few
cases may genius be allowed to overstep t he

bounds but this exaggeration is only produced

,

through sublimity of expression ,

n ot through
brutality .

I am reminded of the answer given me by a

celebrated Shakespearean actress upon being
asked if she acted the part Of J u li et " I ll“ ’
n ot

act Juliet until I am a grandmother "The”

response is significant of the respect which

 I NTERP RETATIO N 3 19

certain rOles inspire in great artists . They lab or

over them a lifetime never thinking them fit
,

for presentation .

In a small way I too can furnish an example

of these scruples . As a young girl I sang with
’ “
great pleasure Schumann s Frauenliebe und
Leben . Later I let it alone . I realized more
and more how deep how great certain ones
, ,

are such a world Of feeling is it really

possible to sing them ? It seemed to me that
I was t oo weak for the task and yet how gladly
"las "There is no pros
,

I would sing them A

pect o f my ever b ecomin g grandmother .

 SEC TI O N XXXVIII

I N CO N C LU S I O N

class of voice is dependent upon the

TH E
I nborn characteristics of the vocal organs .

But the development of the voice and all

else that appertains to the art of song can,

providing talent is not lacking ,

be learned
through industry and energy .

If every singer cannot b ecome a f amou s

artist every singer is at least in duty bound
,

to have learned somethi ng worth whi le and ,

to do hi s best according to his powers as soon ,

as he has to appear before any public . As

an artist he should
,
n ot aff ord this public
merely a cheap amusement but should ,
ao

quaint it with the most perfect embodiments

of that art whose sole task properly is to

ennoble the taste of mankind and to bestow

,

happiness ; to raise it above the miseries of

3 20
 NO TE

A G ood Remedy f or Catarrh an d H oarseness

P bo ili n g h ot water i nto a s au cer an d let a

ou r ,

l arge spon ge s u ck it all u p Th en sq u eez e it fi rml y

.

ou t a g ain .Ho l d the spon g e t o t he n o se an d mou t h ,

an d b reat h e al t ern at el y t h ro u gh t h e n ose an d mo u t h ,

in an d o u t .

I i my exerci ses the great scal e passages et c

s ng , , ,
.
,

an d all t he vo we l s i n t o i t an d so fo rce t he ho t steam

,

t o a ct u p o n t he l u n g s b ron chi al t u b es an d espe ci all y

, ,

on t he mu co u s memb ran es whi l e I am b re at hi n g i n

,

an d ou t t h rou gh t h e sp on g e Aft er t hi s h as b een

.

kep t u p for t en or fi ft een mi n u t es was h t he face ,

in co l d wat er Thi s can be rep eat ed fo u r t o six

.

t i mes a day The sp o n g e s h ou l d be fu ll of wat er

.
,

b u t mu st be q u i te sq u e ez e d o u t Thi s has h el ped

.

me great l y an d I can re commend it hi g hl y I t can

, .

d o n o in j u ry b ecau se i t i s n at u ral B u t aft er b reat h

.

i n g in t he hot s t eam d o n ot go o u t i mmed i at el y

,

i n t o the co l d air .
 Stan dard Boo ks on Sin gin g, Sin gers, an d Mu sic

C lara Schu mann "

A n A rti st
’

s Li fe
By B E RT H O L D LI TZ M A NN . Trans lt a ed an d i dg d
ab r e fro m
t h e fo u r th diti
e on b y G RA C E E H A . D OW , w ith an i t d cti
n ro u on by
W H H AD O W
. . .

Tw o v olu mes . I llu str a ted . Cloth, n et

T hi s wor k base d n i tim t m t i l f u d i d i i

o n a e d a er a o n n ar e s a n

l tt
e e rs, as th e re c d f g t ti t c
or o ad v t d t th
re a ar s
’
s a re e r e o e o e

me mo ry of h er ill t i h b d c mp
u s r ou s p t iv i d
u s an - o o s e r, res e n s a v

pictu re O f mu s ic l hi t y f th i t th c nt y
a s or o e n n e ee n e u r .

Engli sh O pe ra an d Nati o nali sm

B y CECI L F O R SYT H E . Clot/z, 1 2 772 0, n et

A v er yi t n e res ti ng d ic i
s u ss o n o f h t E gl i h p h
w a n s o e ra as b ee n ,
i s, an d o u g ht to b e , t g th
o e er w ith cc u t f i t
an a o n o n ne e e n th
c t y p
en u r o e ra .

A Bo o k o f O pe ras
B y H EN R Y E . K R E H BI EL , au th or of
“
H o w to L it
s en to
M u sic , ”
St u d i es in th e W agn eri an D rama, et c .

D ecor a ted clot/z, 1 2 7720, m t ; by ma i l, fi z iz j

di p
In s e n sab e l t p g gi v i g i
o o d bl f m i f
era o e rs, n , n re a a e or , n or

m ti a on a b t th
ou c f th p i cip l p
e so u r th i hi t y
es o e r n a o e ras, e r s or

and chi e f mu ic l ch ct i tic

s a ara er s s.

A P rac ti ca l G u i de to the
Mo de rn O rche stra
By JA M E S L YO N
é mo, $ 3 5 m t ; postpa i
’
Clot/z, I a,

A re li b l
a e gu i d e to th e ge n era l ch ct i tic ara er s s of th e mu sic al
i t
n s ru me n ts in u se at the p nt tim f c
rese e, or o mp o se rs, con

d u c to rs , an d s t ud t en s .

T H E M A C M I L L AN C O M P A NY
P u bl i sh er s 64 —
66 F if th A ven u e New Y or k
 Standard Boo ks on Sin gin g, Sin gers, an d Mu sic

inte rpretati o n in So ng
B y H A RRY PL UNKET G REEN E
D ecor ated cloth, mo, ost a i d,

"
12 n et ; p p
T h u d f m ic l v k w M G
o san s o u s f th o e rs no r re e n e as o n e o e

m t cc mp l i h d p l t f m i g
os a o f hi d y
s eI thi b k a or s n e rs o s a . n s oo

h t ll
e m thi g f th
e s so c t f hi w cc
e n Th w k o e se re o s o n su ess . e or

b gie wh nsth th t f i gi g h
ere o l ft ff with
e rs o n e ar o s n n ave e o , a

t dy f i t p t ti
s u o It h
n er littl t d w ith th m
re a l on. as e o o e o re e e

m t y t p i
e n ar m ic l ed c ti
s e sTh th p p
n a us a u a on . e au or s
’
u r o se ,

which h h w ll cc mpl i h d h b
e as t giv i n th
e a o s e , as een o e e

sh t t p ibl f m th t which i m t l ik ly t p
o r es o ss e or a s os e o ro ve u se

f l t th
u tud t
o e s en .

The A rt o f Si ngi ng
By SI R C H A RL E S SA NT L EY
D ecor a ted cloth , g i lt top, Iz mo, n et

thi tt cti
In s a ra ve v o lum e th e ve t eran b ar it o ne gi ves hi s val

nabl pi ie p o n o ns u o n i gi
s n ng an d var o i u s matters c o nn e ct d e

th with
e re Th .
”
e Regi ster .

The P syc ho lo gy o f Si ngi ng

'

By DAVI D C TA YL O R
’
. 1 2 771 0, n et ; p p
ost a z a,

A v l bl b k f th t ch
a u a e oo or e ea e r and s tud t en , fo un d d e on th e
fu d m nt l p i cip l
n a f th
e a r n es o e art .

Mu si cal C o mpo si ti on
A S hort Treatise f or S tu dents
B y S I R C H A RL ES V I LLI E RS STAN FO RD
Cr ow n n et

A wor k which gi u ch d ic m t might fi nd u ful

ve s s a v e as a as er se

i n t chi g (
ea th i c t lli g) t d t f c mp i
n o r ra er n o n ro n a s u en o o os

ti onIt i t
. m t t é umé f th
s, o sop i nc f e ex e n , a r s .
o e ex er e e o

tw ty fi y
en i-
w tchi g
ve d c itici i g th
ears ff t f n a n an r s n e e or s o

m y yan
g m mou n f wh m h v i n d men , so e o o a e r se , an so e

o f wh m i i g t mi c i th i c ft
o are r s n , o e n en e n e r ra .

THE M A C M I L LA N C O M P A N Y
P u b l i s h er s 6 4 6 6 F i f t h Avenu e New Y ork -
 HVDIS P ENSAB LE TO E VE R Y S TUDE N T OF M USI C

G rove s Dic tio nary Mu sic

’

o f an d
Mu 31c1ans
D D
E IT E BY
J . A . F ULLER M AIT LAND , M A . .
, P S A. . .

P r i ce, n et per vo lu me
Th e set o
ffi ve volu mes, n et Th r ee-q u a r ter leva n t,
F u ll mor oc co, Ca r r i age ex tr a .

C om pl t i fi e e y l ct v v l m
n ve ro a b u d h d m l y i t mp d
o a o o u e s, o n an so e n s a e

c l th d l g t l y p i t d I t i l d l y
o an e e an r n e d f . t h f ll t; b ts so on on or e rs or e u se u

S p ci l t m f p ym t by m th l y i t ll m t wi l l b fu i h d
e a er s or a en on ns a en s e rn s e on

a pp l ic ti a o n.

G v D icti y h b
ro
’
e s t bl f m th fi t i t nd d f t h
o n ar as e en n o a e ro e rs as n e e or e

g en era l de rea mu ch r asf t h mu i ci d t thi h

as th
or m e s an , an o s as e u n co

m o n su cc f th w k b
e ss o d e It w origi lly p l e end t fi ll tw u e. as or na an n e o o

vo u l m d c
e s , an q tly o n se l y ll th tic l i th fi t f th f
u en n e ar l a e ar es n e rs o e o u r vo

u m i w hich th fi t d iti
es n fi ll y pp d w c mp
e rs e on d i t f na a eare , e re o re s se n o ar

l p c th w cc d d l t t th
e ss s a e an as a f q orl i mp t c I th
e a er o o se o e u a o r an e . n e

p re s e nt d iti m ch h b d t
e on u t th b l c b t w t h
as een o ne o re s o re e a an e e ee n e

li
e ar er an d l t p t f th w k b y th l g d w iti g f m y ti
a er ar s o e or ,
e e n ar e re r n o an ar

l b y th vi i g c t i b t
c es e re s n Th i f th v l m h b
on r u o rs . e s ze o e o u es as ee n c o n

s id bly i c
e ra d n reas e .

I th
n igi l i
e or A m ic
na m ic l m tt
s su e w v y c ti ly
er an u s a a ers e re er s an re

f d t d m t f b t m ici w ig d ti l y I th w
erre o an os o ou r es u s an s ere n o re en re . n e ne

e d iti onthi f l t h b s au m d d th A m ic
as p t f th w k h mg
e e n re e ie ,
e er an ar o e or av

b pl c d i th p i c d h d f M H y E K h b i l f th
e en a e n e ex er en e an s o r. en r . re e , o e

N w Y k T ib
e or r u ne .

Th c p f th D i c ti y h b g t l y l g d i th w y
e s o e o e o n ar as ee n re a e n ar e n o er a s .

Th e re w tic l
as n o ar Ac tic i th fi t d iti
e on d ch c mp
ou s s n e rs e o n , an su o o se rs

B ch B l i B hm i d q t l y t t d I th '

as a , er oz d C h pi w
, ra s , an o n e re na e u a e re a e . n e

ne w d itie th w on k f ll c mp
e or f
s o l i mp t c h v b c t
a o o s e rs o rea o r an e a e e en a a

l g
o d y t m tic ll y
u e s s e da th i p a mbu n (wh er ch e r od) i u s nu e rs e re s u a re u s e n

lik m e ch c itic l m k h v b
a n n e r, s u r d mi tt d v
a re i th c
ar f
s a e een a e ,
e en n e as e o

l ivi g m
n e n , asl i k ly t giv th
a re d e g l ido f th p ci l
e e re a er a e n e ra ea o e s e a

ch ct i tic f th m ici d l t w ith T h l g l i t f c t i b t i

ara er s s o e u s an s ea . e on s o on r u o rs h

c ul d m y c mp
es an o d p f f m i c i th g
o s e rs a n t t i iti
ro e sso rs o u s n e rea e s u n ve rs es

a nd c vt i th w l d
o n s e r a o ri e s n e or .

T H E M A C M I L LA N C O M PA N Y
P ub l i sh ers 64 —
6 6 F f th i Aven u e New Y o k r