I llu st ra t io n s of th e a pp r nc

ea a e of t h e l ryn x d
a u ring p h on tion
a

in tw o s p ci l c
e a ases . ( Griinwal d ) .
 E X P LA N AT I O N O F T H E C O LO R E D I LLU S T R AT I O N S

Th y ih c h o th r in th t h
w t ( upp r ) i t oo d h o th r t oo
g t W i th h l ryngo cop wh n
e c o n t ra s t ea e a t e o ne e s re ; t e e ,

p l T h upp r r pr n t pp r nc uc h ea a as o ne t a

v n i n fl mm t i on f h l rynx i nc l u d i ng h
a e . e e e ese s a es s e s e s e e

t h ubj c t h v ry v r co ld a t a t

c n t r l v oc l b n d I h p r t i cu l r c
e s e as a e se e e ,
or e e a o e , e

a a young w o m n f tw n t y fi y r f
n t a a a se , a a ea s o

i n fl mm t i on W i th c rt in m oun t f kn f h in t rn l th yro
e a s . ls o e - ve

th r w as a a a w ea t a

ry t no i d m u c l S p king
a g e, e e a a e o ess o e e

lm o t m b l d uc h v oic w as pro d uc d e, a n e as w as
v ry rough c h r c t r I h l o w r i ll u t r t i on h v h pp r nc p
a e s es. ea a s i po ss1 s e

w as f n t we a t e a ea a

n t d in m ff c t d W i th t ub rcu l o i f h l ung d l rynx T h p ll or f h

o a e a a e e e s a e es re

an a t s an t

l rynx i c h r c t r i t i c Th r W kn f h in t rn l th yro
se e a e e e s s o e a . e a o e

a a m d m u c l on t a ry t en

h r i g ht i d
a s e s . e e IS ea ess o e e a -
s e

wh ic h r u lt in i m p rf c t t n ion f h v oc l b n d th t d th t t on

h v oic i unc rt i n i n t ro d uc d t o i m pr h nor

t e s e, es s e e e s o e a a a sx e. so a

t e e s d h r h S uc h i ll u t r t ion
e a an a s . s a s a re e e ss t e

m l by con t r t Th r d r i as t rongl y dv i d t o co m p r th fi gur w i th o th r

ea a a e

i n h bo d y f h w ork p ci ll y th o f C h p t r V I I
a e e s s se e se es e s

t e o t e ,
es e a se o a e .
 BA SED O N

SC I ENT I F I C P RI N CIP LE S

EM E RI T U
ON
S P R OF E

V O
SS OR O F P HY SI OL O GY IN M G LL UN V RS I TY A
CA L P H S
Y IOL G A DH G
O Y N N TH
Y
C

M G LL UN
IENE I
I I

E
E

C I
, ND L
I VE R
E C T U RE "
VA O UM O M US C
e

SITY C NS O ER T RI F I .

M N R AL C AN ADA
O T E .

E DI TI OZV, RE VI S E D A N D E N LA R GE D

P HILADELPHIA 69 ’
LONDON
 PY R I G H T 1 906
CO , ,

BY J B LI PP I NC O TT C O M P AN Y
. .

T h e Ri gh t s of Tr ans a l ti o n and all o th er gh

Ri ts Res erved

C O PY R I G H T ,
1 91 3,
BY J . B . LI PPI N C O TT CO M PAN Y

l t ty p d d P i t d b y
E ec ro e an r n e

I . B L i pp i tt C m p y P h i l d l p h i
. n co o an , a e a, U S A
. .
.
P REFAC E TO T HE FO URTH REV IS ED AND
ENLARG ED EDlTlO N .

IN addition to cert ain em end ation s, etc , intro

.

d u ced throu ghout th e work , I h ave thou ght it w ell

to add a ch apt er in which th e whol e subj ect is
tr eat ed in a bro ad and compr eh ensiv e w ay in th e
l ight of th e l at est sci entifi c knowl edge .

In this r evi ew th e p sycho l o gic al asp ects of th e

su bj ect h ave not b een n egl ect ed an d th e whol e h as
,

b een r el at ed to pr actic e to as gr eat an ex t ent as

th e ch ar act er of th e b oo k p er mi ts
.

It is signifi c ant th at on b oth sid es of th e At

l antic th er e is a growin g conviction th at th e foun
d ations for sp eaking and singing as an art must
b e m ad e as sci enti fi c as th e st at e of our knowl edge
wil l p ermit.

T H E AU T HOR.

J anu ary, 1 91 3
.
 PRE FACE TO THE THIRD E DITION .

No preface to th e S eco nd E dition was writt en ,

so few wer e th e ch ang es th at w er e m ad e in th e

work and th e s am e might app ly to thi s T hi rd
,

E di tion However th e fact th at within a p eriod

.
,

o f l ess th an two y ears a S econd En glish and a

,

Th ird Am erican Edition h ave b een c all ed for ,

s eems to th e Author to b e so conclusive an en

d orsement o f th e applic ation of sci enc e to voc al
art th at h e m ay b e entitl ed at l east to expr es s hi s
,

gr atifi c ati on at th e pro gr ess th e c aus e, to whi ch

h e h as d evot ed his p en is m aking It wo ul d s eem
,
.

th at th e b ett er portion at l east o f th at pub lic th at

i s inter est ed in th e progr ess of voc al art h as m ade
up its mi nd that th e time h as come when s ens e and
sci ence mu st r ep l ac e tr adition and empiricism .

TH E AU T HOR .

M NT
O RE AL S pt emb r
, e e , 1 908 .
 PRE FACE .

TH E pr es ent work is b as ed on a life study of

th e voic e an d h as grown o u t o f th e conviction
,

th at all t eaching and l earning in voic e cul tur e -

,

wh eth er for th e purpos es o f singing o r sp eaking ,

should as far as possible r est on a sci entifi c

found ation .

Th e author , b eli eving th at pr acti ce and prin

cip l es h ave b een t o o much s ep ar at ed h as en d eav ,

or ed to combine them in this book His purpos e .

h as n ot b een to writ e an exh austiv e work o n voc al

physiolo g y with r efer enc es at every st ep to th e
,

vi ews o f various authors ; r ath er h as h e tri ed

alw ays to k eep in mind th e r eal n eeds o f th e p rac

tic al voic e us er an d to give h im a sur e found ation

-
,

fo r th e principl es th at must und erlie so un d p rac

tic e A p erus al o f th e fi rst ch apt er of th e work
.

will give th e r ead er a cl ear er id ea o f th e author s ’

purp os e as b rieflfi expr ess ed above

T
.

Th e writ er b esp eaks an unpr ejudic ed h earing ,

b eing convinc ed th at in art as in al l els e th er e is

but on e ultim at e court o f app eal : t o th e scientifi c / ,

th e d emonstr abl e— to wh at li es at th e v ery foun

d ations of hum an n atur e .

In conclusion th e author d esir es to th ank thos e

,

publish ers an d auth ors who h ave kindly p ermitted

th e u se o f th eir illustr ati ons .

T H E AU T HO R .

M CGI LL UNI VERS I T Y M ont r al Oc tober 1 906

, e , , .
 TABLE OF CONTE NTS .

C HAPTER I .

T H E CLA I M S AN D I MPORTANCE or VOC AL P HY S I OLOGY .

Science and a t —Th engineer arch i tec t p hysici an nur se

r e , , , ,

an d o th r s com pared wi th th vocal t eac h er and

e e

l earn e —Unfavorab l e t en denci es—Th e o ld master —Th e

,

r s

great el ocut ioni st s—Cause of fai l ure —Th e lac k of an

s

a d equ at e tec hni q ue— C orr ec t m et h o d s a e p h ys io l ogic al r

Summary of t h e advan tages of teach ing and l earning

ba ed on ci enti fi c principles— I ll u t rat ions of t h e appl i
s s s

c ation of phy io l ogic al princip l es to act ual cases—Th e

s

evi l s fro m wh ic h s p ea k er s a n d s ing er s s u fi er o w ing t o

'

w rong m t h od —Speak ing and inging b ased on t h e ame

e s s s

princip l es — Rel at ion of h ygi ene t o p hys iol ogy

C HAPTER II .

GE N
A PHYS I OLOGI CAL PRI NCI PLES
ER L .

Rel at ion of ani m al s t eac h o t h r— C omm on proper t i e o f

s o e s

l i ving m at t r— Ex p l anat ion of t h —Th e mammal and

e ese

m an—Th et i mu l u s and it r u lt — Th n c ll d
s s es s e o e- e e

ani m al—V a riou y tem s nec ary— Co mp l xi t y of

s s s ess e

s t ruc t ur and func t ion — H ar m ony t h rough t h e n r v ou s

e e

sy t em— T h
s rul Of nerv ou c nt r —M an by wh ic h
e e s e es e s

t h y a e influ enced an d b y wh ic h t h y in fl u nc —R fl x
e r , e e e e e

ac t ion— Mu cu l a r m c h ani m
s a nd n uro m u cu l a r m e h e -
e s
c s s

an ism — Wor k of t h
s sing r an d p ak r l arg l y r fl x in
e e s e e e e e

c haracter—S ummary

C HAPTER I I I .

BREATH I N G CO N S I DERED TH EORE TI CALLY AN D PRACTI CALLY .

Br eat h i ng t h e great essent i al—M i conc ept ion s—P urpo se of s

b reat h ing a a vi tal proces —Th r piratory organ

s s e es s.

T heir n at ure—R el at ion s of th e l ung s t o t h e ch est wall

‘

1x
x TABLE OF C ONTENT S
Ex p an sion Of th c h t— I t d i am t r — Th mu c l es
e es s e e s e s

of r pirat ion—P r on al o b rvat ion— Th d iap h rag m

es e s se e

Varying quant i t i s of ai b r ath d—Br at hing wh n

e r e e e e

prop rly carri d u t by t h e sing r or p ak er i h al th

e e o e s e s e

ful 44

C HAPT ER I V .

BREATH I N G F U RTH ER CON S I DERED TH EORE TI CALLY A N D P RACTI CALLY .

Rel at ion s of t h e nerv ou sy t em t o b reat h ing— Th e r espir at ory

s s

c ent re—Refl ex act ion in b r eath ing— M t h o d s Of prev nt e e

ing nervousne s—T ones pro d uc ed by t h e out going

s

br eath— Waste of br at h— The h appy comb inat ion for

e

goo d singing or sp eak ing

C H APT ER V .

BRE ATH I N G WI TH S PE CI AL REGARD To PRACTI CAL C ON S I DERATI ONS .

Th e well d v l op d c h t—Th voic u r a k in d Of at hl t

-
e e e es e e- se e e

Th et r m o l o— E x rci
e r co mm n d d for t h e dev l op
e ses e e e e

m nt of th e ch t—F orm of d r ss t h at h am p er b r at h
e es s e e

ing— W igh ing an d m a uring e m a ur m nt et

e e s ,
r -
e s e e ,
c .

S pecifi c di r ec t ion for m th o d t o d vel op th e ch t

s e s e es

Warning s— Add i t ion al ex rci e — Br eat h ing t h roug h th e

e s s

no e and t h rough th e m outh— E xerci e for th e dev l op

s s s e .

ment of t h e d i ap h r agm an d ab dom in al m u cl — R l at ion s es e

of t h d i aph r agm to th st accat o eff ct —F orm Of

e e e s

g ner al exerci s for t h e voice u s r—Summary

e e -
e

C HAPTER VI .

P C AL VOI CE PRODU CI NG M ECH ANI S M THE LARYN X

THE S E I -
,
.

No t th e on l y v oic e pro d ucing app ar at u s—S pecifi c st ruc t ur es

-

of th l arynx in u wh n t h sub j ct p h onat —Mu cl

e se e e e es s es

and t h ir at tac hm n t —Th e ca rt i l age of t h

e e s l arynx— Th s e e

l ining m ucou s m mbr an —C h ange in it wh n on h a a

"
e e s e e s

cold —Th e voc al ban d —F unct ion s of t h pigl ot t i

s e e s

Th e m i ddl l in e an d r el at i v e po si t ion of
e p arts
Adam s app l e—Vent ric l e of t h l arynx— Th e im p tance
’
e r or
 T AB LE OF C ONTEN T S xi
of th aryt noi d car t i l ag — M u c l
e e f th l arynx in es s es O e

d tai l— Sp h inc ter act ion— S t ain ing_P it i n f t h

e r os o O e

l arynx— P ract ical con i d rat ion —Di ct ion of a s e s sse

pl uck and p ci all y of t h l arynx— Hygi n —Ho w

”
es e e e e

d i sor d r Of n p art m ay afl ect anot h r— Summ ary

e o e
'

e .

C HAPTER VI I .

S OU N D T H E LARYN GOS CO PE—T H E LABY N X RE C O N S I DERED

-
.

So me st u dy of p hy ics d esirab l e—S oun d and v i b r at ions

s

Th e soun d ing bo d y— E xp eri m en t s t o i ll u st r at e t h princi e

p les of oun d— Qual i t i es of soun d—A ni mal s an d p erc ep

s

t ion of oun d— T h e r ange of h aring in m an— Th e l arynx

s e

a s a m u sical in st rum nt— E xp eri ment s of J oh annes e

M ii l l e _ Di c ve y of th e l aryngo cop by Garci a—

r s o r De s e

k
crip t ion of th e in t rument— Met h od of u sing th e l aryn
s s

go s co he d iffi cu l t ies— A u t o daryngosCOpy— Th e im

por ta t anc of b o h l ryngo copy
e and a t da yng py s u o r osco

Chang in i of t h l arynx d t o u se— D l icat e ch ang

e s ze e ue e es

in t h l aryng al m ch ani m— Ch ang in t h l arynx

"
e e e s es e

d uring ad o l c nce—Wa ning — Th es e b reak ing of th

”
r S e e

voic — Anal ogi w i t h fat igu t a Wh n h ould inging

e es e, e - e s s

b e begun — S inging w i t h o t h r — Ch or al inging e s s

C H APT ER VI I I .

T
F UR HE R CON S I DERATI ON OF B RE ATH I N G LARY N GEAL ADJ US TM E NT
, ,

E TC

Variou s k i nd
of b r at h ing as abd om i nal
s c l av icul ar
e , ,
”
,

et c d i cu d— C ont ro l of t h wh ol of t h e b r at h ing
.
, s sse e e e

m ch ani m urged— C orr ct b r ath ing a a h ab it —Br at h

e s e e s e

ing in t h m o t v igorou p ak ing and S inging— Di ff r ent

e s s s e e

v i w xpr d by a d i agram— E conomy of n rgy in

"
e s e esse e e

a t —R
r r v n rgy in b r at h ing_ Pum ping Co p de
ese e e e e - u

gl tto A tt ac k
e
”
Br at h ad ju tm nt Qu al i t y of e -
s e

soun d th pri m con i d r at ion in t on pro duct ion

e e s e e-

T r m o l o an d oth r I a l t —T t f goo d b r ath ing

e e u s es s O e

M out h br at h ing —Ex rci — Singing of a ingl e t on

-
e e ses s e

I t s r l at ion to c al
e inging— Summary and revi w
s e- s e .
x ii TABLE OF CONTENTS

C HAPTE R IX .

NAN CE CH AMB ERS T H E RESO -

.

Vocal ban d and r onanc e c ham b r co m p ar ed—I m provi sed

s es -
e s

m ec h ani m t i ll u t rate r on anc —Mu ical in t rum ents

s o s es e s s

a r onance bo d i — A vow l in r el at ion to th e r e onance

s es -
es e s

c hamb r —D crip t ion of th r onance ch amber —How

e s es e es - s

t h q u al i t y of t on
e m ay b m ad t v ary— N w vi ew as es e e o e s

t o t h e so un d ing chamb r — S u mm ary -

e s

C HAP TER X .

NGI N G VOI CE T
T H E REGI S E RS or TH E S I .

A con trov r ted ub j ct —D fi nit i n of a r gi t r—Qu al ifi

e s e e o s e s e

cat ion for d al ing w i th t h i ubj ct —Madam Sei l r

Tabu l ar tat m nt of h V i w —Garci a and B h nk
s e s s e e e
’ ’
s e e er e s s e e s

d iv i ion of r egi t r — Sir Mor ll Mack n i v i w in

s s s e s e e z e s
’
e s

d tai l—Th au th or
e ar l i r inv t igat ion —Madam
e
’
s e e es s e

Ma ch esi V i ew and pr ac t ic
r
’
s s e

C HAPTE R XI .

T
FUR H ER CON S I DERATI ON OF T H E REGI S TERS OF T H E S I N GI NG VOI CE .

Aut o l aryngo copy

-
p h ot ograp hy f th l arynx— Dogma
s an d O e

ti ms an d ci nc —C onfu ion and cont rov r y— Th

s e e s e s e

br ak— I gnoring r gi t r —M difi at i n of t on or

e e s e s o c o es,

covering — Point of agr m nt b tween di ff rent s ee e e e

wri t r on t h u bj ct— Th e fal t t o for mal — Madame

p ci al q al ifi cat i n —B h nk an d M ack n i s
e s e s e se es
’ ’ ’
S ile er s s e u o s e e s e z e

V i w —Th auth or conc l u ion — Rul for t h xt n ion

e s e
’
s s s e e e e s

of a r gi ter— Why c r tain art i t d t riorate wh il

e s e s s e e e

oth r d o n ot —Mal and f mal comp ar d a t o r gi s

e s es e es e s e

t er —Th e d i v i ion of t h
s r gi ter for f mal v oic
s e e s s e e es

r co mmen d d by t h aut h or— T ach r and pupi l a

e e e e e s re

gar d r gi t r — Ob j ct ion t r gi t r an w r d— Th e
s e s e s e o e s e s s e e

m ann r of u ing t h b reat h and r gi t r — How t di

e s e e s e s o s

t ingu i h r gi ter s—Th t each r p ar t —H a ring ingers ’

s e s e e s e s
 TABLE OF C ONTENTS x iii
of em in nc e e is r commen ded—
e Madam e M lb e a —Gui d ing

F UNDAM ENTAL PRI NCI PLES UN DERLYI NG VOI CE PRODU CTI O N -

.

A r t i t ic expre ion onl y t h rough m ovem nts —E m ot ion and

s ss e s

t ec h ni qu e— Rel at ion of i d ea t o m o v m nt —M m ori es s e e s e

an d m o v m n t — G ui d ing sen at ion s es

e e s nt i al for m ove s se

men t —Th e principl s und r lying al l movem n t s t h e

s e e e

sam e—A s oc i at d r efl exes and h ab i t s— Ho w h ab i t s are

s e

formed— I n h i b i t ions and t heir i m portanc e— E arl y p ac r

ti c es onl y befor e t h e t ea c h er— Car efu l pr ac t ic w i t h co n e

c nt rat ion Of energy t h e best— Q ueri es a t o prac t ice

e s

F at igue 8 wa rning— P r ac t ic e in t h e ea r l y h our s of t h e

.

d ay an d sh or t of f at igu e—Q u al i t y t o b e a i m d at r at h er
, e

t h an q u an t i t y—T h e t o ta l am oun t of t i m e to b e d ev o t ed
"
to pr act ic e— H ast en sl owl y Li t t l e an d oft n e

Th e t r eat men t of t h e v oice ruin ed b y w rong m et h o d s

S ummary

C HAPTER XI I I .

C H IEF LY AN APPLI CATI O N T O VOI CE PRODU CTI ON OF -

F ACTS AN D
PRI NC I PLES P RE VI OUS LY C ON S I DERED .

Vow l con onant noi — C on on n t a d p au — Voic

e s, s s, se s a s n s es e

pro duct ion nd v o w l — C rt ain v ow l ound comm on t o

a e s e e s s

m o t l anguag —Why G rman and E ngl i h a r l a

s es e s re e

t iv l y un m u ica l— T h n d of t h m u ic al ar t i t —Th e
e s e ee s e s s

m ech ani m r quir d for t h prod uct ion of a v ow l oun d

s e e e e s

R con i d rat ion of t h r onanc h am b _ Th l arynx

e s e e es e-c er s e

t b o t ad i d b t n t h ld rigi dl y i mm o vab l — T h prin

e s e e u o e e e

ipal m o d i fi r
c of th h ap of t h m ou t h cavi t y
e s e s e e -

Br at h t be t ak n t h rough t h m out h— T h l ip — T ongu

e o e e e s e

and l ip pr ac t ic b for a m irror— I m por t anc of t h con

e e e e e

nect ion b t w n t h ea an d t h mouth p ar t t

"Open mout h — Th e mout h in inging a de c nd ing
e ee e r e s, e c .

s s e

s c al —Un d u O p ning of t h
e m ou th— P rop r m t h o d of
e e e e e

op ning t h m out h— C au s of com pr ion an d t h con

e e es ess e

qu nc
se e es
x iv TABLE OF C ONTENTS

C HAPTER XI V .

S OM E SPE CI FI C APP LI CATI ON S OF PRI NCI PLES I N TONE PRODU CTI ON -

.

Princip l s and t h ir xpr ion in a f w x rci — A nal y i

e e e es s e e e ses s s

of t h m th o d of t on p d t i n_ Th u tain d t on
e e s e- ro uc o e s s e e

S m oo t hl y l ink ed t on —Th l gato—Th t accat o and es e e e s

k ind r d ff cts— Th m ch ani m conc rn d— P rf ct ion

e e e e e s s e e e e

r equir s y ar s of c arefu l pract ice—Th b l c ant o and t h

e e e e e

w ll— Th e am x rci for ing r an d p ak r F

s e s e e e ses s e s e e or

war d ”
backwar d t c pro duct ion— E cap of b r ath
”

"
, , e .
,
s e e

Th e ac t ion f t h oft p al ate— Wh n t se forwar d

O e s e o u

an d wh n backw r d prod uc ion Voice p lacement

a e t — -

Nasal r esonance not nasal t wang—S ummary ,

C H APTER XV .

THE E EM E L NTS P C
0F S EE H AND S O G N .

Th e s ubj c t m ay b e m ad dry or t h r v r —V o w l con

e e e e e se e s,

s on an t noi —Th po i t ion of t h l ip an d t h hap f

s, se e s e s e s e O

th e m out h cav i t y in oun din g t h e various vo w l — Ho w

-
s e s

to d m on t r at e t h at t h
e s m out h c av it y i a r esonanc e -
s e

ch amb r—P ract ic al con i d r at ion gro wing t of th

e s e s ou e

abo v —Sp ak r v oc al i t an d co m po
e e e , r— B aring of t h s ,
se e e se

fac t s on t h l arning of l angu ag — C on onant a mu i

— Th ir gr at vari at ion in pi t ch— B fi k
e e es s s s s

cal nui anc

’
s es e s e r c e

d ivi ion of conson ant — Tabul at ion of t h am

s s e s e

C HAPTE R XVI .

T
F UR HER TH EORETI CAL AN D PRACTI CAL CON S I DERATI ON OF VOW ELS
A N D C O N S O NANTS .

b vowel t o u se in pr act ic e— N ecessary t o pr act i e al l

est s

Th e gu t t ur al r an d t h e l ing ual — C on son an t s t h at f avor r

n asal i ty of t one—Ov rt ones an d fun dam nt al t on e e es

Rel at ion of in t en si t y an d q u al i t y— T h e c arrying pow er

of a t on e—Unu sual d i tinctne s in pract ice as r l at ed to s s e

ease—Th e r egi st er s O f t h e s p eaki ng v oic accor d ing t o e

M adame S ei l er— Th e range in sp eak ing— Summary .

 TABLE OF CONTENT S x v

C HAPTER XVI I .

T H E H E RI A N G AP PARATU S AN D H E RI A NG I N M US I C.

Wh y th i c h ap t r is int ro duc d— Th e s n t ial mec hani m of

s e e es e s

h earing— Th e p ar t p l ay d by wave an d vi b rat ions e s

Div i ion s of t h e ea — Th e xt rnal ea in l o wer ani mal s

s r e e r

Th e d rum h ea d or t ym p anic m m br an —Th e mi ddl ear

- e e e

and i t s conn ec t ion — R la t ion of t h t h ro at and t h e ea

s e e r

T h inn er ear or l abyrin t h— Th e en d organ and i t s r el a

e
-

t ion s—Th e connec t ion of t h e ea an d v ariou s p ar ts of r

t h e b r ain— Th e mu ici an s ear— R el at ion of m u sic and

’
s

h aring—Lack of ear and inatt ent ion— T h e ar t i st and t h e

e

mu sici an— Th e ear and t h e speak ing voic e—Gen er al mu si

cal t r aining in r el at ion to int on at ion et c Th e apprecia ,
-

t ion of m u s ic and t r aining t o t h at end— Th e art of l i sten

,

s n—
ing wi th c l o e attent io S u mmary

C HAPTER XVI I I .

CON S IDERATI ON OF GE N ERAL

PE CI AL H YGIE NE AND RELATED AN D S

S UBJ E CT S .

Hygi nic a r el ated t o p hy io l ogical princip l —Hygi n in

e s s es e e

th w i d t n — Unfavorab l con d i t ion in t h pub l ic

e es se se e s e

l if of an ar t i t— Q al ifi at i n for ucc ss—T chni q ue

e s u c o s s e e

an d a pu b l ic c ar e r— Th i ol at ion of th art i t an d it
e e s e s s

d anger —Th e n d for gr at r pr p ar at ion now t han

s ee e e e

ver— Ch or al inging an d it po i b l dang r — Th t n

e s s ss e e s e e

of t h Wagn r mu ic d rama— Sp ci al fau l t a

” "
d n i
" ” "
e c es e e s -
e s, s

th e coop vi b at o
s t m o lo
,
”
pum p ing —De
r , re ,

i ab il it y of con u l t at ion by t ac h r of t h u
s r s of t h s e e s e se e

voice—Th ing s t h e voice u er h ould avoi d— Mout h -

s s

to i l t s— Lo ng —T h
e ipping of wat r— Wh at n
ze es e s e o e

sh ou ld an d h ou ld not eat —T a an d C off — Th wh o l e

s e ee e

su b j c t of cong
e t ion fro m co m pr ion t r aining t
es ess , s , e c .
,

of t h utm o t i m por tance—A or t h ro at wh n fr qu n t

e s s e e e e

h ou ld giv ri e t in quiry a t o m t h o d —C on t ipat ion

s e s o s e s s

— E x rci e —B at h ing
e s
x vi TAB LE OF C O NTENT S

C HAPTER XI X .

T
F UR HER TRE AT ME NT or PH YS I CAL AN D M E NTA HY N
L GIE E .

S tamm ering and st uttering—Tho e wh o h ave e n s b rok n dow

Th e incr ase of t h r ang of a v oice—Th p art t h e
e e e e

st u d nt p l ay s in
e t t l ing suc h q ue t ion —S el ect ions to
se s s

b e av oi d d— C on r vat ion of
e n rgy— Chang and con
se e e e

t r a h —Th v oic a r l ated to t h e bui ld ing in w h ic h it i

s e e s e s

pro d uc d— Th e l i t n r and p au es—N rvou n s and

e s e e s e s es ,

how t o war d it off—Gener al concl usion .

CHAP TER XX .

V
RE IEW AND RE I S I O V N .

Th e Obj ect of p ak r or s ing er— Th e i dea o f co or din a

th e s e e -

t ion— Th tu dy of v ocal i at ion m ay b e con si d r ed a

e s z e

st u dy of m o v m ent s— The p ych ic con d i t ion— Th e inst ru

e s

m ent which i p l ayed upon— How is t h i s inst rum ent

s

p l ay d upon —V i b rat ion of t h e air—Breath ing—Th e

e

aim of al l t r aining— Th e wh o l e sub j ec t of b reat h ing

Breat h ing ex rci se —Th e res on anc ch amber s— Th e

e s e

for mat ion of vowel s—Mu cu l ar effort for th e pro duct ion
s s

of con sonants— Th e pronunci ation of w or ds—G eneral

heal th of gr eat im port anc e .
 LIST O F ILLUSTRATIO NS .

Appearance of th e l arynx d u ring p h onat ion in t wo speci al

cases ( in co l ors )
1 M usc l e fi b res fro m t h e h ear t m uc h m agni fi ed
.
-
,

2 S mall por t ion of m u sc l e m od er at el y m agni fi ed

.
,

3 M u s c l e cell s fro m co at s of int est ine

.
-

4 Bo d y of a ner v c ell of t h e spinal cor d

. e-

5 Larg n er v e c ell fro m s pinal cor d of an ox

e -

6 C ell fro m t h cortex c er eb ri

e

7 N er ve t erm in at ing in a m u sc l e
.

8 M u s c le fi b res w i t h c api ll ari es a roun d and bet w een t hem

.
-
.

9 Par t s of t h e r e pir at ory app ar at us

s

1 0 T r ac h ea and b ronc hi al t u bes

.

1 1 Heart l un gs and d i ap h r agm

.
, ,

1 2 Di agr am sh ow ing c h anges in sh ape of ch est d uring

.

inspirat ion
l 3 Di agr am sh o w ing d epr ession of t h e d i ap h r agm d uring
.

in spirat ion
1 4 P o s i t ion of d i ap h r agm ab d o m in al wall s et c during ex
.
, , .
,

pirat io n
15 . Di agr am i ll u t rat ing r fl x act ion
s e e

16 . A w ll devel op ed h al t hy ch e t
e -
,
e s

17 . A ch t d form ed b y cor s t s
es e e .

18 . N or mal po i t ion of d i ap hr agm and v i tal organ s

s

19 . Vi tal organ s m i pl ac d by com pr ion of t h e ch e t

s e es s s

20 . Thyroi d and cricoi d cart i l ag i d V i ew es , s e

21 . Thyroi d and cricoi d c art i lage front Vi ew s,

22 . B ack surfac of cricoi d c art i l age

e
x viii LIS T OF ILLUS TRATIONS

23 . C ricoi d c ar t i l age , s i de V i ew
24 . Aryt noi d car t i l ages
e

25 . A v i ew of t h l arynx fro m b eh in d
e

26 . E pigl o t t i s t h yroi d an d cricoi d c ar t i l ages et c

, ,

27 . Hyoi d bone crico t hyroi d muscl e et c

,
-
,

28 . P o t rior V i ew of t h e l arynx
s e

29 . Di agr am sh o w ing r el at ion of p art s t o t h e t h yroi d car

t il age
30 . Di agr am s h ow ing th e act ion of crico t h yroi d -

31 . Vi w of l arynx fro m ab ove

e

32 . Tr an sverse s ct ion of l arynx

e

33 . F al e an d t ru e v oc al b an d s et c
s ,

34 . I nn er surfac e of th e l arynx .

35 . Di agram t o sh o w t h e ac t ion of t h e l aryngeal m us c l es .

36 . Regi s t ering t h e v i b rat ion s of a t uning for k -

37 . I ll us t r at ing t h e t r an sm i ssion of v i b rat ion s

38 . I ll u st r at ing t h e t h eory an d pr act ic e of l aryngo scopic

ex am in at ion

39 . I ll ust r at ing t h e pr ac t ic e of l aryngos copic exam inat ion .

40 . Laryngo scopic pic t ur e of m al e l aryn x .

41 . LaryngOS COpic pic t ur e of f m al e l aryn x e

42 . Larynx d uring an att ac k of a co mm on cold

43 . Th e v oc al b an d s as seen wi th l aryngo scop d uring d eep e

in spir at ion
44 . Di agr am sh owing for m o f ch est and ab d o m en in forced
ab d o m in al b r ea t h ing

45 . Th e v oc al b an d s d uring t h e pro d uc t ion of a h igh pi t ch ed -

t on e

46 . Water being pour ed int o a t ub e unt i l t h e r em ai ning air

sp ac e b eco m es a r eson at or of a t uning for k -
.

47 . Soft p al at e fauces an d t on si l s
, ,
.

48 . N ares and soft p al at e fro m beh in d ,

 OF ILL US TRATIONS x ix

51 . A pp earance of th e v ocal h ands when sou n ding fi r st E

52 . Diagr am to s h ow th e nat ure of r egi st ers and b r eak s . .

53 . Di agra m of t he proce es in vo lv ed in s inging

ss .

54 . Hig hl y m agni fi ed diag am at ic r epresent at ion of a sec

r

t ion t h roug h t h e sup er fi ci al p art of t h e gr eat b r ain .

55 . N er ve cell fro m t h e out er rin d of t h e gr eat b r ain m uch

-
,

magni fi ed
56 . Po si t ion of p art s in ound ing t h e v ow el A
s

57 . P o sit ion of t h e p art s in sound ing I

58 . P o s i t ion of t h e p art s in soun d ing OU
59 . P o i t ion of t h e p art s in soun d ing T K F R N an d P
s , , , , , .

60 . Vert ica l sect ion of t he au d i t ory app arat us

61 . Di agr am of t h e au d i t ory app arat u s .

62 . Tw o of t h e ea b on es ( m all eu s and incu s ) enl arged

r- , .

63 . Th e co m p l et e c hain of au di t ory o ss ic l es
 V O I C E P R O DUC T I O N

CHAPT E R I .

T HE CLA I MS A ND I M P O R TA N C E O F VO CA L
P
H YS I O LO GY .

To kno w consciously and to do with sp eci al ref

er enc e to guiding principl es are to b e distin

g u i sh ed from c arrying o u t s om e proc ess without

b earing in mind th e why o r wh er efor e Sci ence .

is ex act and r el ated knowl edge facts bound to ,

geth er by principl es Art is ex ecution doing

.
, ,

an d h as not n eces s arily any conscious r efer enc e to

principl es .

While every art h as its corr esponding sci enc e ,

th eir r el ation is in som e c as es of much gr eat er

k
pr actic al import anc e th an in oth ers Whil e a .

p aint er m ay b e th e b et ter for n owing th e l aws of

light th er e can b e no qu estion th at h e m ay do very
,

good work without any knowl edge wh at ever o f th e

sci ence of optics He is at l east in no d anger o f
.

injuring any p art of his p erson .

Entir ely oth erwis e is it with th e voic e us er He -

.

employs a d elic at e an d ea sily injur ed vit al app a

r atus His r esults d ep end on th e most accurat e

.

adjustm ent o f c ert a in n euro muscul ar m ech an

-

isms an d on e might suppos e th at it would b e

17
 VOICE P R ODUC TION

k
obviou s to al l wh o are conc ern ed with this art th at
a nowl edge of th e structur e an d functions o f
th es e d elic at e arr angem ents of N atur e wo ul d b e
at l east of gr eat if n o t o f ess enti al iH Ip Orta n ce .

T h e engin eer knows th e structur e an d us es o f each

p art of his engin e and do es no t trust to u nin tel l i
,

gent obs ervation Of th e mer e working of mech an

isms which oth ers h ave constructed T h e archi .

"
t eet studi es not only th e principl es of d esign etc ,
.
,

k
but als o th e n atur e an d r el ativ e valu e o f m at eri als .

In his own w ay h e is a ind of an atomist and

physiologist .

W e do not trust th e c ar e o f our bodi es to thos e

who h ave pick ed up a few methods o f tr eatment
by exp eri enc e o r th e imit ati on of oth ers . Th e
doctor must h ave w e al l b elieve a knowl edge of
, ,

th e structur e an d working o f th e anim al body ; h e

must und erst and th e action of drugs an d oth er
h ealing ag ents W e exp ect him not only to di ag
.

nos e th e dis eas e— to t ell us ex actly wh at is th e

m at ter— but also to b e abl e to pr edict with som e
d egr ee of c ertainty th e cours e o f th e m al ady .

Even th e nurs e of th e day must Show s om e gr asp

of th e principl es und erlying h er art
‘

In conn ection with al l th e l arg est and b est

equipp ed univ ersiti es in Am eric a th er e are o ffi ci als

to pl an an d dir ect th e cours es in physic al cultur e .

”
This m att er is no longer entrus ted to a tr ainer ,

who h as only his exp eri enc e an d O bs erv ation to

r ely upon It is r ealiz ed th at th e building up of
.

th e m ech anism which th ey are suppos ed to tr ain

 VOCAL PHYSIOL OGY 19

in int elligent m ann er r ests upon well estab

an -

li sh ed principl es .

It would b e just as r eason abl e for an engin eer to

p oint to th e fact th at his engin e works w ell as evi ,

d enc e of his ability as for th e t each er o f voic e

,

p roduction to m ake th e s ame cl aim in r egard to th e

voc al m ech anism In each c as e th er e is a cert ain
.

amoun t o f j usti fi cation for th e cl aim but such ,

teaching c annot b e c all ed sci entifi c Is it even .

enlight en ed ? It is j ust as ration al to follow in

m edi cin e m ethods th at s eem to l ead to good re
su l t s without any r efer enc e to th e r eason why as
, ,

to tr ain for r esults in sp eaking an d singing by

m ethods which h ave for th e stud ent an d teach er
n o conscious b asis in sci enti fi c kn owl edge Th e .

physici an to d ay who tr eats dis eas e without r efer

-

enc e t o an atomy an d physiology is at b est but a , ,

sort of r esp ect abl e ch arl at an Why should stu

.

dents and t each ers o f voic e production b e content

-

to r em ain in th e advanc ed pr es ent wh er e th ey

, ,

w er e hundr eds o f y ears ag o ?

Ind eed th er e is much more r eason now th an
,

formerly why th e voc alist sp eak er an d t each er

, ,

should h ave a th eor etic al an d pr actical knowl edge

o f th e structur e and workings o f th e m ech anism

employ ed . M any tend enci es of th e pr es ent d ay

—
work against succ essful voic e tr aining worst o f
-

all p erh aps th e spirit o f h a

, ,
st e th e desire to r each
,

ends by short cuts th e aim to substitut e tricky for

,

str aightforward voc aliz ation and much mor e ,

.

which I sh all r efer to again an d again Th ey hurt .

20 VOICE PRODUC TION
this c aus e ; and I am d eeply impr ess ed with th e
conviction th at if w e are to att ain th e b est r esults
,

in sin ging an d sp eaking w e must b et ake ours elves

,

in practic e to th e m ethods in vogu e at a tim c

which m ay b e j ustly ch ar act eriz ed as th e golden
ag e o f voic e production
-
.

W e h ave advanc ed music ally in many r esp ects

, ,

sinc e th e d ays O f th e o l d It ali an m ast ers but just ,

a s w e must turn to th e Gr eeks to l earn wh at con

s titu tes th e high est an d b est in sculptur e so must ,

w e sit at th e feet of th es e o l d m ast ers Con .

sciou sl y o r unconsciously th ey t aught o n sound

physiologic al principl es an d th ey insist ed on th e

,

voic e tr aining absolut ely n ec ess ary to th e att ain

-
.

ment of th e b est art .

However t al ent ed any individu al may b e h e can ,

only produc e th e b est r esults as a singer actor o r , ,

sp eak er wh en th e mech anisms by which h e hop es

,

to influ enc e his list en ers are ad equ at ely tr ain ed .

Why do w e look in v ain to d ay fo r elocutionists

such as Vand enh off B ell an d oth ers ? Why are
‘

, ,

th er e n ot actors with th e voic es of G arrick K ean , ,

K embl e or Mrs Siddons o r singers with th e v o cal

,
.
,

pow ers of a scor e of c el ebriti es of a form er time ?

It is n ot th at voic es ar e r ar er o r t al ent l es s wid ely
,

b estowed by n atur e It is b ec aus e w e d o n o t t o

.

day p u rsu e rig h t m eth o ds fo r a su flicien t l eng th of

tim e; b ec aus e ou r methods r est fr equ ently on a
found ation l ess physiologic al an d th er efor e l es s ,

s ound . T ak e a singl e inst anc e br eath control ,

-
.

In this alon e sin gers to day are far b ehind thos e o f

-
 VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY 21

th e O ld It alian p eriod not always b ec aus e th ey

,

do no t know how to br eath e but b ec aus e oft en they

,

are unwilling to give th e tim e n ec ess ary for th e

full development o f ad equ at e b r eathing power an d

control .

Th er e w as prob ably n ev er a tim e wh en s o much

att ention w as p aid to th e int erpr et ation of music ,

y e t th e r esul t s ar e oft en uns atisf actory b ec aus e

of in ad equ at e t echn iqu e P eopl e s eem to hop e to

.

impr ess us on th e st ag e with voic es th at from a

, ,

t echnic al p oint o f vi ew are cru de and und evelop ed,

'

an d accordingly l ack b eauty an d expr essiven ess .

Sp eak ers to day h ave O ft en every qu alifi c ation ex

-

—
c pt voic e a voic e th at can arr est att ention
e ,

ch arm with its music o r c arry conviction by th e

,

ad equ at e expr ession o f th e idea o r emotion

int end ed .

Is it not str ange th at a student o f th e pi ano or

violin is willing to devot e p erh aps ten y ears to
th e study o f th e techn iqu e o f hi s instrum ent whil e ,

th e voic e us er exp ects to succ eed with ap eriod o f

-

vocal pr actic e ext en di ng over a y ear or tw o pos ,

sib l y ev en only a few months ?

Wh en th e an atomy an d physiolo gy o f th e l aryn x

ar e consid er ed it will b e s een th at th e muscul ar
,

m ech anisms conc ern ed in voic e production are of -

a d elic acy un equ all ed anywh er e in th e body exc ept

possibly in th e eye an d th e ear An d wh en it is .

furth er consid er ed th at th es e el abor ate an d s ensi

‘

tive mech anisms o f th e l arynx are of littl e u se ex

22 VOICE PRODUC TIO N
c ept wh en adequ at ely put into action by th e
breath str eam which again involves hosts of oth er
-
,

muscul ar movements an d th e whol e in r el ation t o

,

th e p arts o f th e voc al app ar atus above th e l arynx ,

th e mouth nos e etc it b ecom es cl ear th at o nl y

, ,
.
,

long p ati ent an d in tel lig en t stu dy will lead to th e

, ,

highest r esults .

It S hould also b e r ememb er ed th at such an app a

r atus can easily ac quire h abits which m ay l ast for
life for good o r ill artistic ally consider ed Such
, ,
.

d elic at e m ech anisms can also b e easily injured or

hop el essly ruin ed ; an d as a m att er o f fact this , ,

is b eing done d aily A gr eat music al p eriodic al

.

h as m ad e th e st at em ent th at thous ands of voices

ar e b eing ruin ed annu ally in Am eric a alon e by , ,

incomp et ent t eachi ng My exp eri enc e wh en a .

practising l aryngologist m ade m e acqu ainted with

th e ext ent o f th e ruin th at m ay b e brought about
b y incorr ect methods of using th e voic e both as re ,

g ards th e thro at and th e voic e its elf ; an d contact

with t each ers an d stud ents h as so impr ess ed m e
with th e import anc e o f pl acin g voic e production on -

a sound found ation not only artistic but physio,

logic al th at I h ave felt constr ain ed to t ell oth ers

,

who m ay b e willing t o h ear m e wh at I h ave l earn ed

as to corr ect m ethods with s om e r efer enc e als o ,

to wrong on es though th e l att er are so numerous

,

th at I sh all not b e abl e to fin d th e sp ac e to d eal at

Th e Corr ect m ethodssinging an d sp eaking of

are alw ays o f n ec essity

,
physiologic al Oth ers ,
.
 VOCAL P HYSIOLOGY 23

mays atisfy a viti at ed or undev elop ed public tast e,

b u t ivhat is ar tistic ally sound is also physiolo g ic al .

NOn eh av e ever sung with m or e eas e th an thos e

ta ught by th e corr ect m ethods o f th e ol d Itali an
m ast ers ; as none ru n so easily as th e wis ely
tr ain ed athlet e and none endur e so w ell P eopl e
,
.

in sin ging an d sp eaking will as in oth er ca s es g et

'

, ,

Wh at th ey work for but h av e no right to exp ect

,

to S in g or sp eak effectively by inspir ation any ,

mor e th an th e athl ete to win a r ac e b ec aus e h e

is b orn n atur ally fl eet of foot o r with a quick .

int elligenc e In each c as e th e id eas are convert ed

.

into p erfo rm anc e th e r esults att ained by th e

, ,

ex e rci s e o f n euro muscul ar m ech anisms

-
I am .

m ost anxious th at it sh all b e p erceived th at this is

th e c as e th at th e s am e l aws apply to voice produc
,
- -

tion a s to running or any oth er ex ercis e Th e

‘

. .

di ffer enc e is on e of d elic acy an d compl exity s o far

as th e body is conc ern ed .

It will b e und erstood th at I sp eak only of th e

t echniqu e F o r art th er e m u St b e mor e th an t ech
.

niqu e but th ere I S no art without good m ethods o f

,

ex ecution which constitut e t echn iqu e

, T h e l att er .

is nothing mor e th an m ethod— mann er of perform

an ce . B ehind th es e m ethods of p erform anc e or ,

th e Simpl est p art of th em th er e must b e som e id ea

, .

T h e mor e int elligent th e stud ent S p eak er o r ,

singer as to his art an d gen er ally th e b ett er fo r

, ,

th e t each er who instructs sci entifi c ally though ,

such intelligenc e 1 8 l argely lost to th e t each er who

dep ends on tradition and pur e imitation In th e .
24 VOIC E PRODUC TION

pres ent work I S h all b e s o conc ern ed with th e phys

ic al th at I sh all b e ab l e only to r efer bri efly to
th e p art th at int ellig enc e an d feeling pl ay in th e
r esult .

Th e qu ali fi cations fo r th e succ essful tr eatment

o f —
voc al physiology th at is such a discussion o f
,

th e subj ect as sh all l ead to a cl ear compr eh ension

o f th e n atur e o f th e principl es involved an d pl ac e ,

th em on a pr actic al found ation m ak e them at once

,

—
us abl e in actu al study an d in t eaching such qu ali
fi cation s are m any an d in th eir tot ality and in an
, ,

ad equ at e d egr ee d ifi cu l t to att ain

,
Aft er mor e .

th an tw enty y ears of th e b est study I could give to

this subj ect in both a theor etic al an d a pr actic al
m ann er I feel th at I h av e s om ething to say which
,

m ay b e us eful t o a l arg e cl ass an d so far as I , ,

know th at is my r eas on for writing this book

,
.

F o r mys elf music is indisp ens abl e Th e on e .

instrum ent w e all poss ess is a voic e mech anism I -

.

am on e o f thos e who r egr et th at so littl e att ention

is p aid esp eci ally in Americ a to pl easing and

, ,

expr es siv e u s e of th e V OI Ce I n ordin ary conv ers a

"
tion Y et how much pl easur e c annot a b eautiful
sp eaking voic e conv ey Th e college undergr ad
u at e r ar ely fi nds voc al study among th e r equir e
m ents in spit e o f th e fact th at th e voic e is an in
,

strum ent th at h e will u se much mor e th an th e

p e n. T h e truth is th e,
hom e m ethods o f voic e

p roduction a r e thos e w e ar e most lik ely to c arry

with us through life and unfortun at ely littl e
, , ,

att ention is g iv en to th e su b j ect .

 VOC AL PHYSIOLOGY 25

S ometimes a love of sw eet sounds m ay b e a

”

hidd en c aus e for much th at would otherwi s e b e

inexplic abl e in an entir e c ar eer as in my own c as e
,
.

It l ed to an early study of singers an d actors an d

th eir p erform anc es ; it g ave ris e to an eff ort to
form a voic e th at would meet th e r equir em ents o f
an unusu ally s ensitiv e ear ; it l ed to th e pr actic e

an d t eaching o f elocution an d l at er to much com

, , ,

munion with voic e us ers b oth S ingers an d sp eak

-
,

ers.
I n th e m eantime c am e m edi c al pr actic e with ,

sp eedy sp eci aliz ation as a l aryngologist wh en ,

ther e wer e d aily consult ations with S ingers an d

sp eak ers who h ad employed wrong methods o f
voic e production ; this again l ed on to th e scientifi c
-

investig ation o f voic e probl ems with a V iew o f

,

s ettling c ert ain disput ed points ; th en c am e r e

n ew ed an d d eep er study o f music both as an art
,

an d as a s ci enc e with a profound int er est in th e

,

study o f th e philosophy o f music al art an d th e

psychologi c al study o f th e music al artist al l cul,

m in atin g in this att empt to h elp thos e who will

list en to m e without pr ej udic e I do not think I
.

know all th at is to b e kn own but I b eli eve I do

,

k
know how to form an d pr es erve th e voic e accord
ing to physiologic al principl es ; I at l east as th e
r ead er to give my t eachings an d r ecomm endations
a fair tri al. H e sh all h av e r easons for wh at is
pr es ent ed an d r éco mm en ded t o him .

Once mor e l et it b e s aid th at I do not d eny th at

good pr actic al r esults m ay follow t eaching th at is
26 VOICE PRODUCTION
n ot pu t b efor e th e pupil
physiology ; what as T
bu t
iscl aim ed for physiologic al t eachi ng is that—3

1It is mor e r ation al Th e student s ees th at

. .

things must b e thus and so an d not oth erwis e

.
,
.

2 F aults can b e th e b ett er r ecogni z ed an d

.

expl ain ed .

3 Th e stud ent can th e mor e sur ely guid e his

.

ow d v elopm ent an d m eet th e str ess an d S torm

n e ,

th at soon er o r l at er come to every pr o fes sion al

voic e us er .

4 Injur ed voic es can b e th e mor e effe

. ctively
r es tor ed .

5 T h e physic al w elfar e Of th e stud ent is ad

.

v an ced — a m att er which I fi n d I s O ft en n egl ect ed

by t each ers of music though mor e so in th e c as e

,

o f instrum ent al th an voc al t each ers .

6 T h e stud ent c an much mor e eff ectively l earn

.

fr o m th e p erform anc es of others b ec aus e h e s ees

'

th at sin gin g an d sp eakin g ar e physic al proc es s es

l ea ding to artistic ends This is p erh aps one o f .

th e most v alu abl e r esults an d I can t estify to th e ,

gr eat er r eadin es s with which an alysis o f a p er

fo rm ance c an b e m ad e aft er even mod er at e ad
v anc em ent Th e t each er who is wis e will encou r
.

ag e th e stud ent to h ear thos e who exc el an d to ,

an alyz e th e m ethods which succ essful artists

employ Th e stud ent can much mor e r eadily
.

accomplish this th an d et ect th e m ent al movem ent s

'

o f th e artist though th e two r eally go h and in

,

h and to a l arge ext ent .

 VOCAL PHYSI O LOGY 27

Th e above are so me o f th e advant ages but by no ,

m eans al l o f a m ethod o f study of voic e produc

,
-

tion which I must cl aim is th e only ration al o ne

certainly th e only on e th at r ests on a scientifi c
,

foundation .

It do es not follow th at such study to b e scien ,

tifi c sh all b e m ad e r ep ell ent by th e u se o f t echnic al

'

t erms th e S I gnifi can ce o f whi ch th e r ead er is l eft

to gu ess at but fi nds unexpl ain ed I fear such
,
.

tr eatm ent of voc al physiology h as brought it into

disr eput e Th e aim o f th e writ er will b e to give
‘

a cl ear sci entifi c tr eatment of th e subj ect whi ch ,

Sh all not b e obscur ed by u n expl ained t echnic al

t erms an d which sh all b e p racticaL— c ap abl e o f
,

immedi at e u se by stu dent an d t each er If h e did .

n o t b eli ev e th e l att er possibl e h e would not thin k

it worth While to att empt th e form er esp ecially ,

as this h as oft en b een don e b efor e h e r egr ets to

,

say b adly enough

, .

Although th e author h as n o t now th e time t o

give r egul ar l essons in voi ce production h e is fre
-
,

qu ently consulted esp eci ally wh en abro ad during

, ,

his vac ations by sp eak ers and esp eci ally singers
,

wh o ar e anxious to l earn how th ey m ay incr eas e

th eir efiiciency in th e profession by which th ey
earn th eir liv elihood and m ak e th eir r eput ation
;
an d th e r ead er m ay b e gr atifi ed to l earn how in ,

such cas es th e wr it er applies th e principl es h e so

,

strongly r ecommends t o others .

Let two o r thr ee illustr ations su ffi c e

1 A t enor o f W
. orld r enown consult ed him in
28 VOICE P R ODUC TIO N
r eg ard to th e position of th e l ar ynx in singing
‘

a s h e h ad a suspicion th at hi s pr actic e w as not

corr ect in asmuch as his voice s eemed to b e de

,

t erio ratin g to som e ext ent T h e answ er to hi s

.

qu estion n eed not b e given h er e as this subj ect ,

is discuss ed ad equ at ely in a l at er ch apt er .

2 T h e s econd w as th e c as e o f a young l ady an

.
,

am at eur sing er who w as anxious to know why

,

sh e f ail ed to g et s atisf actory r esults T h e author .

h eard h er in a l arg e room without any aecom ,

p an im en t ( to cov er up d ef ects an d st an
,
di ng
at fi rst at som e dist anc e from h er th en n ear er , .

H er ton es w er e d elightfully pur e an d b eautiful ,

but h er p erform ance suggest ed r ath er th e sound of

som e instrum ent th an singing in th e prop er s ens e .

It w as impossibl e to l earn th e ideas to b e im

p art ed a s th e words could not b e distinctly m ade
,

o u t ; th er e w as a monotony in th e whol e p erform

anc e though
,
it mus t b e confess ed a b eautiful
, ,

monotony an d th er e w as a tot al l ack o f th at V igor

,

an d sur en ess th at both educ at ed an d un educ at ed

l ist eners must b e m ad e to feel or th er e r esults a ,

s ens e o f di ss atisfaction if n ot even irrit ati on

,
.

T h e b eau ty o f ton e w as owing to a production

th at w as to a c ert ain extent sound an d this ex ,

pl ain ed why th e voic e carri ed well in spit e of its

b eing sm all This young l ady w as w ell educ at ed
.
,

h ad h eard much good music poss es s ed a s ensitive

,

ear an d a fi n e a esth etic t ast e an d p erh aps most

, ,

import ant o f all in this c as e at l east was abl e to

, ,

thi nk for h ers elf S h e was v ery slight o f body,

.
 VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY 29 .

with an ill d evelop ed ch est an d from h er app ear

-
, ,

anc e could not h av e enj oy ed robust h ealth

,
It .

was at onc e evid ent th at this w as an admir abl e

c as e by which t o t est th e vi ews advoc at ed Ao .

co rdi n gl y th e author addr ess ed th e young l ady as

,

follows
Your voic e is b eautiful in qu ality and carries ,

w ell ; you obs erv e th e r egist ers prop erly ; but

your vocaliz ation is feebl e an d your S inging is
,

inefl ectiv e This is du e l argely to th e l ack of

.

robustness in your voic e but n ot wholly You do

,
.

not t ell your story in song s o th at th e list ener

m ay kn ow wh at you h av e to say to him Th e im .

p erfections in your method o f sp eaking so com ,

—
mon in Am eric a an imp erfect articul ation and
a limp t extur e o f voic e — are evid ent in your sing

ing ; you do n o t phr as e well and you p aint al l,

in one color This is du e chi efly to your br eathing

.

an d your att acks On e m ay O bs erve th at at no

.

tim e do you fil l your ch est compl etely You u se .

th e low er ch est and th e di aphr agm corr ectly but ,

y o u ro b yours elf o f o n e h alf of your br eathing

pow er and your ch est is not at all well d ev elop ed
, .

You do not u se th e p arts abov e your voice box with -

vigor and effi ci ency an d you dir ect so much atten

,

tion to th e qu ality o f th e ton e th at you n egl ect its

qu antity and th e id eas to b e expr ess ed You h ave .

b een corr ectly but in ad equ at ely instruct ed Your .

t each ers h ave evid ently und erstood r egist ers p rac
tically as few do but th ey h ave only h alf t aught
, ,

you br eathing and a tt ack Th eir fi d elity to th at

.
3O VOICE PRO D UC TIO N
.

hi gh id eal of qu ality of ton e as th e fin al consid

”
eration wins my r esp ect .

Th e writ er thought , but did not s ay, th at th ey

must have understood littl e o f vocal physiology or ,

they would not h ave l eft this young l ady so ill

d evelop ed physic ally at l east s o far as th e ch est,
‘

is con cern ed .

I then ask ed this earnest and int elligent student ,

as sh e prov ed to b e to t ak e a full br eath , S h e did .

not und erst and this and w as absolut ely incap abl e
,

o f doing it S h e h ad b een t aught to b egin br eath

.

ing b elow to exp and from th e lower ch est upward

, ,

an d as a n atur al r esult
,
S h e n ev er fi ll ed th e ,

upp er ch est Sh e w as at onc e shown how it

.

w as don e wh en sh e s eemed gr eatly surpris ed

, ,

an d s aid : I n ever h ave don e th at in my whol e

”
life . Did you no t run and shout as a child ?
No I n ever did run enough o r shout enough
,

to fi l l up my ch est ”
T h e l att er w as sm al l .

an dfl at .

Th e method tt ack w as n ext expl ained an d

of a

illustr at ed fi rst without r eferenc e to words an d

, ,

th en to Show its import anc e in conveying ideas ,

an d th e c aus es of th e d efects in sp eaking w er e

indic at ed an d th e corr ecti ons n am ed and illus

,

t rated Th e l ady w as th en ask ed to S ing again

.
,

m aking th e improvem ents suggested with th e r e ,

sult th at it w as cl ear th at every principl e set forth

h ad b een cl early appr eh end ed though of cours e as ,

y et only imp e rfe ct l y c arri ed o u t Th e stud ent .

was r ecomm end ed to t ak e w alking ex ercis e an d ,

 VOC AL PHYSIOLO GY 31

to pr actic e fi lling th e ch est in th e m ann er to b e

expl ai n ed l at er .

Aft er six weeks S h e again asked to b e heard .

Th e change effect ed w as wond erful ; S h e was an

oth er typ e o f voc alist n ow Without any loss I n
.

qu ality h er voic e h ad a volume an d int ensity th at

made it ad equ at e for singing in at least a sm all
h all ; h er att acks w er e good though not p erfect ;
,

an d at th e en d o f a v ery l arge room it could easily

b e s een th at h er ch est w as wh en n ec ess ary fi ll ed

, ,

full so th at S h e w as abl e to produc e a l arge and

,

prolonged ton e But b est o f all h er h ealth h ad

.
, ,

gr eatly im proved an d Sh e h ad gained in S iz e and

,

It is but fair to point out th at in th e pr es ent

,
'

c as e th e stud ent w as an u nusu ally int elligent an d

,

thoughtful p erson H ad it b een oth erwis e mor e

.
,

consult ations would h ave b een n ec ess ary with ,

prob ably m any d et ail ed instructions and much

pr actic e b efor e th e t each er But th e cas e suffic ed
.

t o convinc e m e afr esh th at only physiologic al

t eaching m eets th e n eeds o f pupil and t each er I .

do n ot cl aim o f cours e th at it is a p an ac ea It will

, ,
.

not supply th e l ack of a music al ear o r an artistic

t emp er am ent Voc aliz ation do es not m ake an
.

artist but th er e can b e no artist without sound

,

voc aliz ation .

All th e author s exp eri ence as a l aryngologist

’

tended to convinc e h im th at most o f thos e evils

from which S p eak ers an d singers su ffer , wh atever
32 VOIC E PRO D UC TION

th e p art of th e voc al m ech anism afl ected aris e ,

from faulty m ethods of voic e production or excess -

,

in th e u se of methods in th ems elv es corr ect A .

showm an m ay h ave a corr ect m ethod of voi ce pro -

duction— ind eed th e writ er h as oft en studied th e

,

showm an with admir ation — but if h e sp eak for

hours in th e op en air in al l sort s of w eath er ,

a disord er ed thro at is but th e n atur al con se

q u en ce ; an d th e W ag n eri an S ing er who will

shout inst ead of sing must not exp ect to r et ain
a voic e o f musi cal qu ali ty if ind eed h e r et ain, , ,

o n e at all .

Throughout this work it will b e as sum ed th at

th e S p eak er an d th e sing er should employ ess en
t ial l y th e s am e voc al m ethods Th e sing er should .

b e a good sp eak er ev en a good elocutionist and

, ,

th e sp eak er should b e abl e to produc e ton es equ al

in b eauty pow er an d expr essiven ess to thos e of
, ,

th e singer b u t o f cours e W ithin a m or e limit ed

, , ,

r ange an d l ess prolong ed as a rul e T o each

, ,
.

alik e is voic e tr aining ess enti al if artistic r esults

-
,

are t o follow ; n eith er rh etoric al tr aining on th e

o n e h and nor music al tr aining o n th e oth er will

alon e su fli ce .

So th at it m ay b e cl ear th at th e s ame physio

logic al principl es apply to th e voc al m ech anism
as to al l oth ers in th e body a S hort ch apt er d ealing
,

with this subj ect is introduc ed b efor e t aking up ,

th e structur e an d functions o f any p art o f th at

app ar atus by whi ch th e sp eak er or S inger produc es

his r esul ts as a sp eci alist .

 VO CAL PHYSIOLO GY 33

Th e l aws of h ealth known as hygi en e follow so

n atur ally on thos e O f physiology th at bri ef r efer
'

ences t o this subj ect from tim e to tim e with a

, ,

ch apter at th e en d of th e work b earing sp eci ally

o n th e life of th e voic e us er will prob abl y s uffi ce
-
, .

3
 CHAPT E R 1 1 .

GENE RAL AND PH YSI O LO GI CAL CONSI D ERA ~

TI ONS .

TH E principl e th at knowl edge consists in a p er

cep ti on of r el ations will now b e applied to th e

structure and functions or us es of th e differ ent

p arts of th e body .

Th e d emonstr ation th at all anim als even al l ,

living thin gs h ave c ert ain prop erti es o r functions

.
,

in common is on e of th e gr eat r esults of modern

scienc e Man no longer can b e rightly vi ewed
.

ap art from oth er anim als In m any r esp ects h e

.

is in no Wis e sup erior to th em T h e most d e .

sir abl e cours e to pursu e is to l earn wh er ein

anim als r es embl e an d wh er ein th ey di ffer with ,

o u t dw elling at gr eat l ength o n th e qu estion o f

r el ative sup eriority o r inferiority It m ay b e nu .

h esit atingly a ss ert ed th at all anim als live move , ,

an d h av e th eir b ein g in ev ery es s enti al r esp ect in

, ,

th e s am e w ay Wh eth er on e consid ers thos e cr ea

.

t ur es of microscopic siz e living in st ag n ant ponds ,

o r m an hims elf it is found th at c ert ain qu alities

,

char act eriz e th em al l Th at mi nut e m ass o f j elly

.

like subst ance kno wn as protopl asm constituting ,

th e one c ell ed anim al amoeb a m ay b e d escrib ed as

-
,

ing es tiv e, dig es tiv e, s ecret o ry, ex cret o ry, as simi

l ativ e, r esp irato ry, i rritab l e, con tractil e, an d r e

p r o du ctive : th at is to say, th e a moeb a must t ake

34
 FI G u c l fi b fro m h h t m uc h m gn i fi d h o w ing cro t riping
M t ear a s s- s s,

h d rk l y t in d c n t r l bo d i v ry i m por t n t h l i f f h c ll
. 1 . s e- res e ,
e ,
s

nu c l el , o r t a a a to t t e e

d i v i ion d poin t f union ( S c h af r H i t l gy )

e s a e e es e e e o

lo
a s th e s s an s o .
'

e
’
s s o o .

FI G App r nc f m ll por t ion f m u c l un d r m o d r t m

ea a a s a ag nifi c a

t ion B tw n h m u c l c ll prop r for m f bin d i ng t i u m y b n

. 2 . e o o s e e a e a e

. e ee t e s e- e s e a o ss e a e s ee .
 FI G 3 u c l c ll i o l t d fro m h m u cu l r
M t co t f h in t t in S i m i l r
t

org n inc l u d i ng h bronc h i l

. . s e- e s s a e e s a a s o e es e. a

c ll
e s foun d in o m
are p r t f m o t f h in t rn l
s e a o s o t e e a a s, t e a

t ub Th c ll
es . l r d y in r pon d ing t o
ese e s a re es s ea es t i m u l u con t r c t m or l o wl y
a s s, a e s ,

an d t n d t o r m in l ong r con t r c t d wh n th y p
e e a e a e e e ass in t o th i con d i t ion th n t rip d
s a s e

m u c l c ll
s e ( S h iif
e s. c er
 PHYSIOLOGICAL CONSIDE RATIONS 35

in food ; mus t digest it or ch ang e its form ; mu s t

,
'

produce some fluid within its elf which act s on

food ; must c ast out from its elf wh at is no longer
o f an y u se ; must conv ert th e digest ed m ateri al
—
into its own subst anc e p erh aps th e most wond er
'

ful prop erty o f living th ings ; must t ak e up into its

o wn subst anc e oxyg en an d exp el carbonic acid g as
,

( c arbon dioxid e ) ; an d pos s ess th e pow er t o r e

sp on d to a stimulus o r c aus e o f ch ang e th e pro p

, ,

erty o f ch anging form an d fi n ally th e ability to

, , ,

bring into b eing oth ers lik e its elf .

B efor e justifying th es e stat em ents in det ail it

will b e d esir abl e to s ay som ething o f th e an atomy
o r structur e o f a m amm al an d w e m ay s el ect m an
,

hims elf though it is to b e r em emb er ed th at one

,

might apply ex actly th e s ame tr eatm ent to a dog ,

pig mous e or any oth er m emb er o f this group o f

, ,

anim als . T h e amoeb a and cr eatur es lik e it liv e

immers ed in w at er ; m an at th e bottom o f an ,

oc ean of air Both mov e in th eir o wn medium

.
,

th e amoeb a cr eeping with extr em e slown ess m an ,

mov ing with a sp eed inc alcul ably gr eat er In .

each c as e th e movem ents are d et ermin ed by som e

c aus e from without which is t ermed by p h ysiol o

gists a stim u lu s Th e slight est movem ent o f th e
.

thin cover gl ass pl aced over th e drop of w at er in

-

which an amoeb a is imm ers ed on a microscopic ,

slid e suffi ces to act as a stimulus an d s erv es much

, ,

th e s ame purpos e as an el ectric shock to th e

muscl es o f a m an In man an el abor at e app ar atus
.

ex ists fo r th e proc ess known as r espir ation but

,
36 VOICE PR O D UC TI O N
. ;

in this and in al l oth er cas es th e mech anism is

compos ed of wh at is known technic ally as cel ls ,

th e l atter b eing th e units o f structur e th e indi ,

vidu al bricks o f th e building so to sp eak ; and j ust

,

as an y edifi c e is m ad e up o f in di vidu al pi ec es som e

o f which di ffer from one anoth er whil e oth ers do

not to any appreci abl e ext ent s o is it with th e ,

body Th e individu al c ells of a muscl e are alike in

.

structu r e an d function but th ey difi er wi dely from

,

thos e o f a gl and o r s ecr eting organ as th e liver , .

B u t it is to b e ever r ememb er ed th at the st ate

m ents with whi ch w e set ou t hold : th at is th at ,

how ever c ells m ay di ffer th ey h av e in al l anim als

,

c ert ain prop erti es in common Of th e muscl e c ell

.
-
,

th e liver c ell and th e on e c ell ed anim al w e m ay

-
,
-

affi rm th e s am e prop erti es but th e di ffer enc e is

,

th at whil e all are s ecr etory th e l iver c ell is em i -

n entl y so an d produc es bil e which oth er c ells do

, ,

no t ; th at whil e it is but feebly contr actil e or sus ,

cep tib l e o f ch ang e of form th e muscl e c ell is ch ar

,
-

act erized by this prop erty abov e all oth ers .

Th e low er we d esc end in th e anim al sc al e th e

more simpl e are th e m ech anisms by which r esults
are atta in ed . Th e one c ell ed anim al m ay b e s aid
-

to br eath e wi th its whol e b ody whil e th e m an em ,

ploys a l arge numb er of muscl es n o t to sp eak at , ,

pr es ent o f oth er arr angem ents B u t wh en a

,
.

muscl e is ex amin ed under th e microscop e it is ,

found to consist o f c ells each on e o f which is

,

physiologic ally in al l ess enti als like an amoeb a s o ,

th at we m ay say th at a muscl e or oth er tissu e or

 PHYSI O LOGICAL C O NSI D ERATIONS 37

organ is r eally a s ort of colony o f c ells o f simil ar

structu r e and function al l working in h armony
,

like a h appy family W e actu ally do fi nd coloni es

.

o f unic ellul ar anim als much lik e am oeb a s o th at ,

th e muscl e c ells an d al l oth er c ells o f th e body m ay

-

b e comp ar ed to am oeb a an d oth er on e c ell ed -

animals .

But whil e in such unic ellul ar cr eatur es all func

tions are prop erties o f th e individu al c ell among ,

high er fo rms sys tems t ak e th e pl ac e of th e proto

plasm of th e singl e c ell Th er e is a circul atory
.

syst em a r espir atory system etc ; but we must

, ,
.

onc e mor e point ou t th at such systems are m ad e

up o f c ells s o th at every function o f th e high est
,

anim al m ay b e fi n ally r educ ed to wh at t ak es pl ac e

in th e unic ellul ar anim al A circul atory syst em

.

consists o f a h eart an d blood v ess els all fi ll ed wi th

-
,
”
blood which l att er is
,
th e life as w a s known ,

from th e earli est times ; yet this s am e b lood is o f

no mor e u se for th e nourishment of th e body whil e
it is cont ain ed in thos e tub es which constitut e th e
blood vess els th an is br ead lock ed up in a p antry
-

to a hungry boy Th at which r eally provides th e

.

nutrim ent fo r th e body is a fluid d erived from th e

blood a something lik e th e liquid p art of blood an d
,

kn own as lymp h This l att er is to th e c ells o f any

.

tissue as a muscl e a s is th e wat er fi lled with th e

, ,

food on which an amoeb a lives In lik e m ann er in .

,

spit e o f th e complic at ed app ar atus which suppli es

oxygen an d r emoves c arbon dioxid e th e r espir a ,

tory syst em r espir ation is fi n ally th e work of th e

,
 8 VOICE PRO D UC TION
c ell as in amoeb a ; a muscl e c el l r espir es ex actly as
,
-

do es th e on e c ell ed animal
-
.

Wh en w e consider th e m arv ellous compl exity o f

structur e of o n e of th e high er animals an d th e ,

am azing v ari ety o f its functions th e qu estion

,

n atur ally aris es as to how al l this is brought

about without an y sort o f cl ashing of th e in

terest s of o ne p art with thos e o f anoth er Why .

is it th at th e stom ach h as enough an d not too much

blood ? By wh at m eans h as N atur e solved th e
probl em of supplying more oxygen to p arts in
a ction th an to thos e at r est ? How is it th at o ne
s et o f muscl es acts with inst ead of ant agonizing

anoth er set a s in any complicat ed s eri es of move

,

m ents such as walking ?

,

T o bring about this h armoniz ation o r co ordin a ,

ti on th e n ervous syst em h as b een provided

,
As .

th e n ervous an d muscul ar syst ems ar e of p re

emin ent import anc e in voic e production th ey will
-
,

n ow b e consid er ed wi th mor e d et ail th an it is

'

n ec ess ary to give to oth er syst ems .

C omplic at ed as is th e n ervous syst em mod ern ,

advanc es in th e sci enc es of an atomy an d physi

olo gy h ave m ad e th e compr eh ension o f th e subj ect

easi er . It is now known th at th e n ervous syst em ,

in spit e of its wid e r amifi c ations is also m ade u p

,

o f cells which ar e structur ally an d function ally

r el at ed to each oth er an d m ake connection with

,

ev ery p art o f th e whol e communi ty th e body ,

A .

n erve c ell or n eu ron e m ay b e v ery complic ated

-
, ,
 4 .
Bo d y f n r v c ll
o a e e - e of th e s pin l cor d p ci ll y t i n d
a ,
s e a s a e so as t o h ow
s th e m inu t e

( S c h af r s t l gy
’
3. e s o o

5 .
A l rg n r v c ll fro m
a e e e- e th e s pin l cor d
a o f th e o x , m gni fi d
a e I 75 di m t r
a e e s. ( S ch aiferJ
'
 FI G 6 A c ll f no th r for m fro m h up r fi ci l or ou t r p r t f h gr t r
t e a t

br in ( cor t x c r bri ) T h gr t m oun t f br nc h ing i ugg t i v f h pow r

. e o a e ,
e s e a o e ea e

t o r c i v d t o t r n m i t r v u in fl u nc ( i m pu l ) fro m v r i ou o th r c ll in
a e e e . e ea a o a s s es e o e e

o th r w or d co m p l x i t y f t uc t ur ugg t corr pon d ing co m p l xi t y f func t ion

e e e an a s ne o s e es se s a s e e s ;
e s, e o s r e s es s a es e o .
 FI G 7 pr n t t ion f h m nn r in wh ic h n r v
Re a t n t o t r m in t
a a a e In a

m u c l uc h n d ing b i ng "
. . e se o e e e e i s see e

for m f n r v n d ing t r m d mu c l p l t ”
o ne a a e

r l t ion h i p xi t in g b tw n m u c l d n r v
s e, s e e o e e-e e e s e .

I t n d t o mph i
t h clo as ze t e a e an

x pr ion n uro m u cu l r m c h ni m h n r v ou y t m
e s e e se s s e ee s e e e,

d t o j u t i fy h
”
an s t e e e ss e -
s a e a s ,
t e e s s s e

b ing i m por t nt f m o v m n t
e as a h mu cl
or e ( S c h af r H
e s as tl gy e s es .
'

e
’
s l St o O
 FI G 8 . Th r m u c l fi b l y i ng b i d c h o th r w i th h m ll b l oo d v l
. ee s e- res es e ea e t e s a - ess e s

) roun d d b tw n th m S uc h pp r nc pr n t d un d r
,

( ca p ll
i a rl e s a an h
m i c o cop by k l t l or t r i p d m u c l uc h th o f h l rynx ( S h iif )
e ee e . ar e t e a ea a es e se e e

the r s e s e e a s e s es s as se o t e a . c er .
 PHYSI O LOGICAL C ONSIDE RATIONS 39

in its structu re b ec aus e o f its m any br anch es o r .

ext ensions from th e m ain body o f th e c ell .

It m ay b e s aid in g en er al t erms th at th e n erv

, ,

ou s c en t r es th e br ain an d th e spin al cord which

, ,

are p arts o f on e an atomic al whol e ar e ch ar ac ,

terized by th e pr es enc e o f th e c ell bodi es as w ell -

a s th eir ext ensions whil e n erv es consist on l y o f

'

th e ext ensions o r arms o f th e c ell bodies Th e -

.

n erve c ell whos e body is in th e top o f th e br ain

-

m ay h av e an ext ension o r arm which m ay r each

pr actically to th e end o f th e spin al cord an d th er e ,

mak e communic ation with anoth er c ell whos e arm ,

in turn m ay r each as far as th e t oe

,
Such nerve .

k
arms o r ext ensions constitut e th e n erv e fib r es an d -
,

bundl es o f th es e n erv es or n erv e trun s

,
-
.

Usu ally n erve fi b res m ak e connection with th e

-

cells o f an org an by a sp eci al modifi c ation o f stru c

tur e known a s a n erv e—en ding A n ervous m es .

s age or infl uenc e ( n erv e imp u l s e) m ay p ass eith er

-

—
to th e c entr e i e tow ard a c ell body o r from
.
— -
,
.

it ; in oth er words a n ervous impuls e m ay orig

,

in ate in th e c entr e or in som e org an mor e o r l es s

dist ant from it ; a n ervous impuls e m ay b e cen tral
o r p er ip h eral .N early al l c entr al impuls es we ,

now know aris e b ec aus e o f th e p eriph er al on es

, .

On e m ay illustr at e this impor tant r el ation by a

t el egr aph syst em Th e m ess age a r ailro ad op er a
.

tor s nds out e

e — th at which d et ermin es
.

wh eth er a tr ain is to b e h eld at a c ert ain st ation

o r —
s ent o n might d ep end wholly on inform ation
r ec eived from anoth er o ffi c e T h e extr a fl ow o f
.
4o VOIC E P RODUC TION
blood to th e stom ach wh en food ent ers it is owin g
to such a r el ation o f things Th e food acts as a
.

stimulus to th e ends of th e n erve fi b res an d in

-
, ,

cons equ enc e ther e is an ingoing

,
mes
s age o r impul s e and by r eason of this an out
, , ,

going ( efl eren t ) one to th e muscl e cells o f th e -

sm all blood vess els owing to which th ey contract

-
,

less strongly an d th e c alibr e of th es e v ess els is

incr eas ed ; h enc e mor e blood r each es the sm all est
vess els o f al l ( cap illaries ) Such a physiologic al
.

r el ation o f things is t ermed r eflex acti on For .

such r eflex action th ere are r equir ed structur ally

at l east two n euron es or n erv e c ells an d function
-
,

ally a stimulus o f a c ert ain str ength and qu ality .

Of cours e if mor e blood p ass es to th e stom ach

,

th er e must b e l ess s omewh er e els e as th e tot al

,

volum e o f th e blood is limit ed Th e valu e of th e

.

knowl edg e o f such a fact is obvious It must b e .

unwis e to ex ercis e vigorously imm edi at ely after

meals for this d et ermi n es blood to th e muscl es
,

which would s erve a b ett er purpos e in th e diges

tive org ans F o r a like r eason th e singer who
.

would do his b est b efor e th e public will r efrain

from t aking a l arge m eal b efor e app earing
. .

As this subj ect of r efl ex action is of th e high est

import ance th e r eader is advis ed to m ak e hims elf
,

thoroughly famili ar with th e principl es involved

b efor e p erusing th e futur e ch apt ers o f this work .

Fig 1 6 shows th e structural r el ations for r efl ex

.

action . It also indi cat es how such n ervous rel a

tion s m ay b e complic at ed by oth er conn ections of
 PHYSIOLOGICAL C ONSIDERATIONS 41

th e nerve cells involved in th e r efl ex action It

- .

will b e s een th at th ey mak e m any upward connec

tions with th e br ain in cons equ enc e o f which con
,

sciou sness m ay b e inv olv ed Ordin arily one is.

mor e o r l es s conscious o f r eflex action though th e ,

will is not involved ; in fact a willed o r voluntary

,

action is usu ally consid er ed th e r ev ers e of a r efl ex

o r involunt ary action But for a r efl ex action th e

.

b r ain is not es s enti al As is w ell known a sn ake s

.
,
’

hinder p art will move in r espons e to a touch wh en

complet ely s ever ed from th e h ead end ; and move
m ents of consider abl e compl exity can b e evoked in
a h eadl es s frog .

H er ein th en li es th e solution of th e probl em

, , .

This is Natur e s w ay o f bringing one p art into

’

h armonious r el ations with anoth er As b y a .

t elegr aphic s yst em th e most distant p arts of a vast

r ailway syst em m ay b e brought into h armonious
working so is it with th e body by means of th e
,

n ervous syst em Th e n erve c entr es corr espond

.
-

to th e h eads of th e r ail way syst em o r p erh aps , ,

more corr ectly to th e various O ffi ci als r esid ent in

,

some l arge city who from this c entr e r eg ul at e th e

aff airs of th e whol e lin e .

T h e muscul ar syst em is m ad e up o f c ells o f two

kinds thos e ch ar act eristic o f th e muscl es us ed in
,

ordin ary movem ents an d thos e employ ed fo r th e

,

movements o f th e int ern al organ s T h e muscl es .

o f th e limbs are m ad e up o f strip ed muscl e c ells

;
-

thos e of th e stom ach etc o f unstrip ed c ell s

, .
, .

Th ese l att er are slower to act wh en stimul at ed ,

42 VOICE P R ODUC TION
contr act mor e slowly an d c eas e to function mor e
,

t ardily wh en th e stimulus is withdr awn .

Th e muscul ar m ech anisms us ed by th e singer

an d sp eak er are of th e sk el et al v ari ety .

If it b e tru e th at th e w elfar e o f one p art of th e

body is bound up with th at of ev ery oth er as are ,

th e int er ests of o ne m emb er o f a fi rm with thos e

o f anoth er in a gr eat busin ess it will at onc e
, ,

app ear th at th e most p erfect r esults can follow

fo r th e voic e us er only under c ert ain conditions

-
.

However p erfect by natur e th e voc al mech anism ,

th e r esult in an y c as e must b e l argely d et ermi n ed

by th e ch ar act er o f th e body as a whol e Th e m an
.

o f fi ne physiqu e g en er ally h as n atur ally mor e to

hop e fo r th an one with an ill develop ed body

-
.

In th e n atur al working of th e body th e stimulus

to a muscl e is n ervous ; h en ce w e m ay appropri «

at ely ,
an d oft en to adv ant age, sp eak o f n eu r o

m u s cu l ar m ech anism th e n ervous el ement b eing as

,

import ant as th e muscul ar .

In a l ater ch ap ter it will b e shown th at th e

work o f th e singer an d sp eak er wh en most success
fully c arri ed out must b e l arg ely r efl ex in n atur e
a fact on which h ang w e1 gh ty consid er ations with

r egard to m any qu estions among th em m ethods o f

,

—
pr actic e th e influ enc e of ex ampl e etc b e h e ever
, ,
’
so much th e n atur al arti st It will b e th e writ er s
.

aim how ev er to giv e such w arnings an d advic e as

, ,

may assist each r ead er in h is own b est d evelop

ment M any who b egan with a comp ar atively
.

p oor physic al stock in tr ad e h ave surp ass ed th e

 PHYSIOLOGICAL C ONSIDERATIONS 43

s elf satisfi ed ones who trust ed t o o much to what

-

n ature gave th em Singers a s w ell as oth ers

.

would do well to b elieve th at Lab o r omnia vin cit .

SUMMARY .

Th e s ame fun dam ent al physiologic al principles

apply to th e low est an d to th e high est anim als .

T o all b elong c ert ain prop erti es or qu alities As .

structur e is difi erentiated o r as on e anim al difi ers

,

from anoth er owing t o gr eater or l ess compl exity

o f form th er e is a corr esponding differ enti ation
,

o f function non e how ev er ev er losing th e fund a

, , ,

ment al p rop erti es o f protopl asm E ach organ .

comes to p erform some one function b ett er th an

all oth ers This is sp eci aliz ation an d implies
.
,

advance among anim als as it do es in civiliz ation .

Th e n euro muscul ar syst em is of gr eat mom ent

-

to th e voice user He is a sp eci alist as r eg ards

-
.

th e n euro muscul ar syst ems o f th e voc al m ech an

- ‘

ism But th e s am e l aws apply to it as t o oth er

.

n euro muscul ar mech anisms It is o f gr eat th eo

-
.

r etical an d pr actic al import anc e to r ecogniz e this

,

an d th at on e p art o f th e body is r el at ed to ev ery

o th er which r el ationship is m aint ain ed chi efly by

,

th e n erv ous s yst em , and l ar gely through r efl ex

actio n .
 CHAPT E R III .

BREATH I NG CONSI DERED THEORETI CALLY

A ND PRA CTI CA LLY .

k
I F th e or ator was right in consid ering d e
ol d

liv ery as th e ess ence o f public sp ea ing as an art ,

it m ay with equ al truth b e s aid of singing th e t erm ,

b eing always s o ext end ed in signifi c ation as to

imply wh at Rossini n amed as th e ess enti al for th e
—
singer voice .

Looking at it from th e physiologic al point of

view w e m ay say th at th e one absolut ely es s ential
,

thing for sing ers an d sp eakers is breathing .

Without methods of b r eathing th at are corr ect and

ad equ at e th er e m ay b e a p erf ect l arynx an d ad

m irab l y form ed r es on anc e ch amb ers above th e

-

voc al b ands with v ery uns atisfactory r esults

, .

Th e mor e th e writ er knows o f singers an d sp eak

er s th e more d eeply do es h e b ecom e convinc ed
,

th at singing and sp eaking m ay b e r esolved into th e

corr ect u se of th e br eathing app ar atus ab ov e al l ,

els e . Not th at this alon e will su ffi ce but it is th e ,

most import ant and d etermines mor e th an any

,

k
oth er factor th e question o f suc cess or failur e .

Br eathing is th e ey n ot e with which we must b e

-

gin an d to which w e must r eturn again and again

, .

T h e ext ent to which this sub j ect h as b een mis

und erstood misr epr es ent ed and obscur ed in
, ,

works on th e voic e and its n egl ect by so l arge a

,

44
o id b o ne

ing s of th e
tr c h
a ea

F IG .
9
. A fr t v i w f p rt f h
on e o a s o t e
A b ck v i w f h p rt
p p r tu ( H ll i burt n Ph y i FIG 9 a e o t e a s

( H ll i b u t n P hy i l g
sp irat o ry a
. .
’

gy .
)
a a s . a o s s
se nt d i n
e F ig .
9 a r o
’
s s o o y
 FI G 10 A v i w f h l o w r p r t f h t r c h d i v i d ing i n t o
( S p a l t eh o l z ) t t th e

m in bronc h i l t ub wh ic h g i n br nc h i n t o t r l i k for m T h
. . e o e e a o e a ea ,

a a es , c lla a a a

bu i lt up roun d h t r m i n t ion f h fi n t b ronc h i l t ub f wh i c h th y

ee- e . e a i r- e s a re

a t t

or t f m m br nou x t n i on
e e a s o e es a es , o e a re a

s o e a s e e

W ind
s

G r t b l oo d —v
ea es se l

Th y m u g l n d s a

r t l y i ng
,

FI G h o w w ll h r l t i on f h r t l ung d d i p h r g m
( S p a l t eh o l z ) S t an a a

l ung h v b n d r w n b ck o th r w i h h r t w ou ld b co v r d lm o t
. I I s e e e a s o ea ,
s, .

Th a a t a

wh o ll y by th m I w i ll b no t d th t h h r t co v r i ng
e s a e ee ,
e se e ea e e e s

t tt c h d t o h d t t e ia

t o m c h d o th r i m por t n t org n f h b d o m n li
e . e e a e ea - e is a a e

ph g m
ra T h f c t th t h a a t a an t e a e

i m m d i t l y b n th h d i p h r g m i ign i fi c n t f h v o c u r M n i f tl y
. e e s e a a s o e

a e t a a s a s t a

v igorou br th ing i nco m p t i b l

e e ea e a o ne or e r e- se . es
,

a fu ll t o m c h
s d fr a an ee , s ea a re a e.
 BREATHING 45

numb er of thos e who profess to underst and how

to teach singi ng and public sp eaking are truly ,

am azing . Th at many should fail to fully ap p reci

ate its import anc e in att aining artistic r esults is

not so surprising as th at th e process its elf should

h ave b een so ill und erstood esp eci ally as it is op en
,

to any on e to obs erv e in hims elf or in our dom es

,

tic anim als N atur e s m ethod of getting air into

,
’

and out of th e body .

This mis appr ehension is in al l prob ability to b e

trac ed to th e dep endence of th e student and
t each er on tradition r ath er th n obs rv tion on
a e a —

authority r ath er th an r ation al ju dgm ent If a .

gr eat t eacher o r singer m akes any announc ement

wh atev er in r egard to th e t echniqu e of his art ,

it is natur al th at it should b e consid er ed with at

t ention but it m ay prove a gr eat mi sfortun e for
,

th e in di vidu al to acc ept it without thoughtful con

sider ation Th e author will illustr ate from tim e
.
,

to tim e th e truth o f th e above

, .

In this and all oth er ch apt ers o f this work th e

stud ent by which t erm I mean every one who is
,

s eriously int er ested in th e u se o f th e voic e is ,

r ecomm en ded to give att ention b efore r eading on

,

any subj ect t o th e illustr ations employ ed p erus

, ,

ing v ery car efully th e ex pl an atory r em arks b e

n eath th em .

Th e author consid ers th e summ ari es at th e con

cl u sion o f th e ch apt ers o f much import anc e Th ey.

not only furni sh ex act an d cond ens ed st at ements

o f th e m ain facts an d princip l es involved but ,
46 VOICE PRODUC TION
.

af ford th e r ead er a t est of th e ext ent to which th e

for egoing ch apt er h as b een compr eh end ed As .

th e author h as a horror o f wh at is t erm ed cr am

”
ming h e expr ess es th e hop e th at no stud ent Will
,

u se th es e synops es which h av e b een pr ep ar ed with

,

much car e for s o gr eat a misus e of th e mind as

,

crammi ng impli es .

Br eathing is ess ential fo r life Th e oxygen of .

th e air is of al l food stu ff s th e most important

,
-
, .

Without it a m amm al will p erish in l ess th an thr ee

minut es ; h enc e th er e is no n eed of th e body so
urg ent as th at of oxygen It is also of gr eat .

moment th at th e w as te— th e carbon dioxi de o r ,

—
c arbonic acid g as should b e got rid o f r apidly ;
n everth el es s it is n ot this g as whi ch kills wh en th e
,

air p a ss ag es ar e clos ed though it is highly d el e

-
,

teriou s Th e b ody is a sort of furn ac e in which

.

combustions are continu ally going on an d oxygen ,

is as es s enti al for th es e as for th e burning o f a

c andl e an d th e products are in each c as e th e s am e
, .

Wh eth er th e voic e us er r espir es lik e others to

-
, ,

m aint ain th e functions of th e body o r wh eth er h e ,

employs th e br eathing app ar atus t o produ ce

'

sound it is to b e borne in mind th at h e us es th e

,

s am e physical m ech anisms so th at th e w ay is at ,

once cl ear to consid er th e an atomy an d physiology

o f th e br eathing organs .

It h as b een alr eady pointed out th at r espir ation

is in all anim als in th e en d th e s ame pro cess
, ,
.

T h e on e c ell ed anim al an d th e muscl e c ell r espir e

- -

in th e s am e w ay an d with th e s am e r esults
,
 B REATHING 47 »

oxid ation combustion an d r esulting w aste prod

, ,

u ct s In th e anim al o f complic at ed structur e

.

sp ecial mech anisms are n ec ess ary that th e ess en

ti al oxygen b e brought to th e blood an d th e us el ess
carbon dioxide r emoved T h e r espir atory organ s
.

o r tr act includ e th e m o u th n o se l arynx tr ach ea

‘

, , , ,

bronchial tub es , an d th e lung tissue prop er or th e -

air c ells
-
.

Th e mouth nos e an d l arynx in so far as th ey

, , ,

ar e of sp eci al import anc e in voic e production will -

,

b e consider ed l at er .

Th e air ent ers th e tr ach ea o r windpi p e through , ,

k
a r el atively n arrow slit in th e l arynx o r voic e ,

box known as th e g l o ttis o r chin of th e g l o ttis

, , ,

which is wid er wh en air is b eing t ak en in ( in sp ira

ti o n ) th an wh en it is b eing exp ell ed ( ex p ir ati on ) .

Life d ep ends o n this chink b eing k ept op en Th e .

windpip e is compos ed of a s eri es o f c artil aginous

o r gristly rings conn ect ed tog eth er by soft er tis

su es Thes e rings are n ot entir e but are com

.
,

p l et ed b ehind by soft tissu es including muscl e It .

follows th at this tub e is pli abl e an d ext ensibl e— a

v ery impor tant provision esp eci ally wh en l arge,

movem ents o f th e n eck are m ad e during vigorous ,

ex ercis e an d also in singing an d sp eaking

, .

Th e bronchi al tub es are th e tr ee lik e br anch es -

o f th e tr ach ea an d ext end to th e air c ells th em

,
-

s elves which m ay b e consi der ed as b u ilt up around

,

th em in some such fashion as a toy b alloon o n its

wooden st em but with m any in fo l ding s etc ( Fig
, , . .

Th e air c ells are compos ed o f a m embr ane

-
48 VOICE PRODUC TION
whi ch m ay b e comp ar ed to th e w alls of th e b alloon ,
b ut we are of cours e d ealing with living tissu e
supp li ed by countles s blood vess els of th e most -

minut e c alibr e in whi ch th e b lood is brought very

,

n ear to th e air whi ch p ass es over th em .

Throughout th e r espir atory tr act is lin ed with

,

mucous m embran e Mucous membr anes are s o .

n amed b ec aus e th ey s ecr et e mucus th e fluid which ,

moist ens th e nos e mouth an d al l p arts of th e

, ,

r espir atory tr act Wh en on e su fl ers from a cold

.

th e mucous membr an e in th e early st ag es m ay

, ,

b ecome dry from failur e of this n atur al s ecr etion ;

h enc e sn eezing coughing etc as th e air th en acts
, ,
.
,

a s an irrit ant .

At no tim e do w e b r eath e pur e oxygen b ut ,

air — .i e a mixtur e of 21 p arts o f th e form er

.
,

with 79 p arts o f an inert g as nitrog en ; an d th er e ,

is always in th e air mor e oxygen th an th e b lood

k
ac t u ally t ak es from it in th e air c ells -
.

T h e inta ing of air is t erm ed b y physiologists

in sp iration an d its expulsion ex p irati on th e
, ,

whol e proc ess b eing resp iration Expiration .

t ak es a very littl e longer th an inspir ation and ,

th e r apidity of r esp ir ation d ep ends o n th e n eeds

o f th e b ody Th e mor e activ e th e ex ercis e th e
.
,

mor e r apidly vit al proc ess es go on th e mor e venti ,

l ati on o f th e tissu es is r equir ed an d th e mor e is

actu al ly effect ed Wh en one is at r est b r eathing
.

t ak es pl ac e at th e r at e o f from 1 4 to 1 8 inspira
tions and expir ations in th e minut e ; but of al l th e
p rocess es of th e b ody none is more vari ab l e th an
 FI G bo v h h d d ou tl i n i n d i c t h h p f h bony c g
In th e a e, t a es a e t e s a e o t

c h t d uring in pir t ion d h l i ght r on h m d ur i ng xpir t i on

. 1 2 .
e s e e a e

f h an t e es t e sa

lt r t ion in h po i t ion f h r i b d in h d i m t r f h c h t gi v ing

o t e es s a , e e e a .

Th t t s an t e a e e s o t e

vid nt
e a e a s e s o e es ,

ri t o i gr t r c p ci t y d uring in pir t ion

se ts ea e a a s a , are e e .
 FI G Th i fi gur i n t n d d i n d i c t i n pur l y d i gr mm t i c to a e, a a a w ay , by
d o tt d l i n h po i t ion f h d i p h r g m ( ) wh n in p i r t ion i m o d r t
. 1
3 . s e is e e e a

t t e a e, an d (2 )
wh n v ry d p T h unbrok n cur v d l i n bo v h d o tt d on i n d i c t
e es , e s o e a a I e s a s

e t th e posi

t i on f h d i p h r g m ( on l y pproxi m t l y f cour ) ft r x pir t ion

e e ee . e e e e a e e es a es

o t e a a a a e ,
o se a e e a .
 B REATHING 49

r esp iration, and of n ecessity for every mo difi ca ,

tion of action every movement impli es a dem and

, ,

for an incr eas ed quantity o f oxygen It is not .

surprising th erefor e th at th e v ery exercis e o f

, ,

s inging t ends in its elf to put one o u t of br eath .

Att ention will now b e di r ect ed to some facts th at

it is of th e u tmost import ance to cl early under
st and if one is to know how to breath e and th e
,

r easons for th e m ethod employed T h e lungs are .

cont ain ed in a c avity th e w alls o f which are mad e

up of a domed muscul ar ( and t endinous ) strue
ture b elow and els ewh er e of b ony an d cartil agi
,

nous tissu es fi ll ed in with soft structur es chiefly ,

muscl es This cage i s lined Within by a smooth

.

m embr an e which is k ept const antly moist by its

o wn s ecr etion T h e lungs are cover ed by a simi
.

l ar m embr an e b oth of th es e fi tting clos ely like th e

,

h and to a glove so th at ther e are two smooth

,

membr an es in opposition It c annot b e too w ell .

r ememb er ed th at th es e two th e inn er surfac e of ,

th e ch est w alls and th e out er surface of th e lungs ,

are in th e clos est cont act This is so wh at ever th e

.

ch anges th at t ak e pl ac e in th e siz e and sh ap e of

th e ch est Th e lungs are conc ave b elow an d s o fi t
.
,

accur at ely to th e fl eshy p artition b etw een th e ch est

an d th e a bdom en which constitut es th e low er

boundary of th e ch est if w e m ay u se th e t erm

,

ch est somewh at loos ely Above suiting th e .

,

sh ap e of th e ch est th e lungs are somewh at conic al

, .

Th e pr essur e o f th e air t ends of i ts elf to exp and

th e lung s which are high l y el astic ev en wh en one
, ,

4
5O VOICE PRODUC TION
do es not br eath e at al l But if mor e air is t o e nter .

th er e must b e addition al sp ac e provid ed ; h ence

gr eat er exp ansion of th e lungs can only follow an
enl a rgem ent o f th e ch est c avity in on e or in all

dir ections Th es e are spok en o f as d iam eters

. .

It follows th at it is p ossibl e to conc eiv e o f th e

ch est b eing enl arged in three an d only thr ee ,
‘

dir ections ; so th at it m ay b e incr eas ed in siz e in

its v ertic al its tr ansv ers e an d its antero post erior
, ,
-

diamet er o r di am et er from b efore b ackw ards

,
.

This exp ansion as in th e c as e o f al l oth er mov e

,

m ents can b e effect ed only by muscl es or to sp eak

, , ,

mo re accur at el y by neu ro muscul ar m ech anisms

,
-
.

'

Ex actly wh at muscl es are employed m ay b e

'

l earn ed from th e accomp anying illustr ations an d

by obs erv ation Whil e it is highly import ant to
.

know in a g en er al w ay which muscl es are chiefly

conc ern ed or r ath er wh er e th ey are situ at ed it
, , , ,

c ann ot b e d eem ed ess enti al for ev ery r ead er to

l earn th eir n am es att achm ents etc down to th e , ,
.
,

minut est d et ails as in th e c as e o f a stud ent o f

,

a n atomy prop er Th e author do es

. how e v er d eem , ,

it o f th e high est importa nc e th at th e stud ent

should l earn by actu al obs ervation on his own
person th at his ch est do es ex p and in each of th e
thr ee dir ections indic at ed abov e .

It is not n ec ess ary to di ss ect to obs erv e muscl es ;

in fact, t h ey can b e s een in acti o n o nl y on th e living
subj ect Al l who would r eally und erst and br eath
.

ing should : study th e ch est wh en div est ed of all

'

clothing an d b efor e a suf fi ci ently l arge mirror .

 B REATHING 51

He may th en obs e rv e th e followi ng duri ng a f airly

d eep inspir ation :
1 T h e ch est is enl arged as a whol e
.
.

2 Th e abdomi n al w alls mov e outw ard

.
.

3
. T h e ribs p a s s from a mor e obliqu e to a l ess
obli que position and m ay b ecome almost hori
,

z o ntal ; th eir upp er e dg es ar e also turn ed o u t

slightly though this is n o t so eas y to obs erve
,
.

4 Ag ain in th e c as e of a v ery deep an d sudden

.
,

inspir ation th e abdom en an d th e lower ribs als o

,

ar e dr awn inw ard .

Th e ch ang es ab ove r eferr ed to are brought

about in this w ay

1 Th e tot al enl arg em ent is d u e to th e action o f

.
.

m any muscl es which function in h armony with

each oth er .

2 Th e chi ef ch anges are brought about by thos e

.

muscl es att ach ed b etween th e ribs ( in terco s tal es )

but th es e act mor e effici ently owing to th e co
O p er ation o f oth er muscl es which st eady th e ribs
an d ch est g en er ally such a s thos e att ach ed to th e
,

should er bon es an d th e upp er rib s ; ind eed th e

-
,

most powerful inspir ation pos sibl e can only b e

effect ed wh en most o f th e oth er muscl es o f th e

body ar e b rought into action One m ay obs erve

.

th at even th e arm s and l egs ar e c all ed into r equisi

tion wh en a t enor sings his high est ton e as forcibly
a s possibl e though this is oft en overdon e in a w ay
,

t o b e cond emn ed Art should not b e r educ ed to a

.

g ymn a stic feat .

52 VOICE PRODUC TION
T h e most important muscl e of inspir atio n is th e
diap h rag m o r mi drifi
,
b ecaus e it produces a
,

great er ch ange in th e size of th e ch est th an any

oth er singl e muscl e Some anim als can get th e
.

oxygen th ey r equir e to m aint ain life by th e action

o f this l arg e muscl e alon e wh en all oth er r espir a
,

tory muscl es are p ar alyz ed As it is so import ant

.
,

and above al l to th e voic e us er it m erits sp eci al

-
,

c onsid er ation .

I n studying th e action of a muscl e it is n ec ess ary

to not e its p oin ts of attach m en t to h ard er stru c
tur es eith er bone or c artil age
,
N early always
.

on e such point is mor e fi x ed th an th e oth er and ,

from this th e muscl e pulls when it contr acts .

Th e di aphr agm is p eculi ar in th at it is somewh at

circul ar in sh ap e an d is mor e or l ess tendinous or
sin ew lik e in th e middl e B eing att ach ed to th e
-
.

spin al column b ehind and to th e lower six or s even

ribs wh en th e muscl e contr acts it b ecomes l es s
,

—
dom ed in sh ap e l es s convex upward an d o f —
cours e desc ends to a vari abl e d egr ee dep ending on
th e ext ent o f th e muscul ar contr action As to .

wh eth er th e ribs and with th em th e ab domin al

,

muscl es ar e dr awn in or th e r evers e is d et ermin ed

, ,

wholly by th e d egr ee o f forc e with which th e con

tr action t akes pl ac e and th e ext ent to which it is
r esist ed Throughout th e body muscl es are
.

arr anged in s ets which m ay eith er co iip erate with

o r ant agoniz e each oth er a s r equir ed

, Th e for .

cibl e b ending o f one s arm by anoth er p erson m ay

’

b e r esist ed by on e through th e u se of c ert ain

 BREATHING 53

muscl es In this th e action of th e muscl es which

.

b end th e arm is imit at ed by th e agent s eeking to

p erform this movem ent for us Th e muscl es act .

ing in Opposition to c ert ain oth ers are s aid to b e

th eir an tag onis ts .

Wer e th e di aphr agm to contr act moder at ely th e

ribs would b e but littl e dr awn in even if no ,

muscl es act ed as antago ni sts But as a matt er o f .

,

fact this domed muscl e d esc ends at th e s ame tim e

,

as th e ribs ascend b ec aus e o f th e action of th e

,

muscl es att ach ed to th em T h e diaphr ag m b eing.

conc av e b elow toward th e abdom en th e contents ,

of this c avity fi t clos ely to its und er surface .

Th er e are found th e liver stomach int estin es , , ,

etc .
— a p art o f gr eat pr actic al imp ort anc e as will ,

b e shown pr es ently .

N atur ally in br eathing th e org ans of th e abdo

, ,

m en esp eci ally thos e abov e are pr es s ed d own

, ,

somewh at with th e d esc ent of th e di aphr agm in

inspir ation an d in turn push out th e abdomin al
, , ,

wal l s If how ever th e midri ff contr act s o power

.
, ,

fully th at th e low er ribs are dr awn inw ard th e ,

abdomin al w alls follow th em Although th e .

actu al ext ent o f th e d esc ent o f th e di aphr a m is

g
sm all in its elf sinc e th e tot al surface is l arge it
,

eff ects a v ery consid er abl e enl arg em ent of th e

ch est in th e vertic al di amet er ,

Th e c ap acity o f th e lungs for air is a v ery v ari a

b l e q u antity
1 Th e qu antity o f air t ak en in with a singl e
.

inspir ation in qui et br eathing ( tidal air ) is about

2 0 3 0cubic inch es
-
.
54 VOICE PRODUC TION
qu antity t aken in with th e d eep est po s
Th e
sibl e inspir ation ( comp l em en tal air ) is about 1 00
cubic in ch es .

3 T h e qu antity th at m ay b e exp ell ed by th e

.

most forcibl e expir ation ( su pp l em en tal air ) is

about 1 00 cubic inch es .

4 T h e qu antity th at can und er no circumst anc es

.

b e exp ell ed ( r esi dual air ) is about 1 00cubic inch es .

5 Th e qu antity th at c an b e exp ell ed aft er th e

.

most forcibl e inspir ation— i e th e amount o f air

. .
,
.

—
th at can b e moved indicat es th e vital cap acity .

This v aries v ery much with th e individu al an d ,

d epends n ot a littl e o n th e el asticity o f th e ch est

—
w alls an d so diminish es with ag e I t follows th at .
,

youth is th e b est p eriod for th e d evelopment o f

th e ch est an d th e tim e to l earn th at sp eci al br eath
,

control so ess enti al to good singing an d sp eaking .

Wh en th e ribs h av e b een r ais ed by inspir ation

an d t h e abdomin al org ans pr ess ed down by th e

di aphr agm th e ch est on th e c ess ation o f th e act

, , ,

t ends to r esume its form er sh ap e owing to el astic ,

r ecoil quit e ap art from all muscul ar action ; in

oth er words inspir ation is active expir ation
, ,

l argely p assiv e With th e voic e us er esp eci ally

.
-
,

th e sing er expir ation b ecom es th e mor e imp or

,

t ant an d th e mor e difficult to control as will b e

, ,

shown l at er .

It must n ow b e app ar ent th at such u se of th e

’

voice as is n ec es sit at ed by sp eaking for th e public ,

or by singing still mor e p erh aps must t end to th e

, , ,

f —
gen er al welfar e o th e body i e th e hygi ene of . .
,
 B R EATHING 55

r espir ation i eviden t from t h e physiology

s~
A o .

tu al exp eri enc e prov es this to b e th e case T h e

'

a uthor h as known th e gr ea t e st improv e m e nt in

h ealth and vigor follow on th e judicious u se of
th e voic ’

e owing l arg ely to a

,
mor e ac tiv e r espir a

It a lso follows how ev e r th at e xh a ustion , ,

FI G . 1 4

G 4 A dB
FI t o b co m p r d th t h l ft h o w
an are a e : a t th e p o i ti n
s o of th e

d uring x pir t ion h

S . 1
«
, , e on e e s s

d i p h r gm b d o m in l w ll a a s, et c e a t e one on th e right d uring

in pir t ion T h r l t i v q u n t i t i f i i h c h t in c h c ppro i m t l y
a a , a .
, ; ,

e a e a es o a r n t e ea as e ar e a x a e

i d i c t d by h
s a . e es

n a e hdd r t e s a e a ea s .

m ay r esult from th e ex c essive u se of th e r espir a

tory muscl es as with any oth ers even wh en th e , ,

m ethod o f ch est exp ansion is quit e corr ect B e -

.

for e condemn ing any vo cal m ethod on e do es w ell

to inquir e in r egard to th e ext ent to whi ch it h as
b een employed as well as th e circumst anc es o f th e ,
56 VOICE PRODUC TION
voic e us er A poor clergyman worri ed with th e
-
.

fear of b eing suppl ant ed by anoth er man or a ,

singer un able to s ecur e employm ent possibly from

,

l ack of means to advertis e hims elf is no t likely to

,

grow fat under any method of vocal ex erci se b e it ,

ever so physiologic al ; whil e th e prim a donn a who

h as ch anc ed to pl eas e th e popul ar t a st e an d b e

”
com e a favorite m ay wax fat and kick .
BREATH ING F UR T H E R C ONSI DERED TH E O ~

RE T I CA LLY AN D PRA CTI CALLY .

WH E N on e t akes into account th e l arge num b er

of muscl es employ e d in r e spir ation an d r em em,

b ers th at th es e muscles must act in p erfect h ar

mony with each oth er if th e gr eat end is to b e
a tt ain ed
,
h e n atur ally inquir e s how this compl ex

s eri es of muscul ar contr actions h as b een brought

into conc erted action so as to r esult in th at physio
logic al unity known as breathing .

It is impossibl e to conc eive o f such r esults b eing

efi ected exc ept through th e influ enc e o f th e n er

vous syst em which acts as a sort of r egul ator

,

throughout th e whol e economy All th e p arts of

.

th e r espir atory tr act are suppli ed with n erves ,

—
which ar e o f both kinds thos e which c arry n erv
ous impuls es o r mess ages from and thos e which
convey th em to th e n ervous c entr es conc ern ed ; in
other words to an d from th e bodi es o f th e n erve
,

c ells whos e ext ensions are t erm ed n erv es Th es e .

c entr es are th e c entr al o ffi c es wh er e th e inform a

tion is r ec eiv ed and from which ord ers are issu ed ,

so to speak .

T h e chi ef r espir atory c entr e— th e c entr e— is sit

u at ed in th at p o rtion o f th e br ain j ust abov e th e
.

spinal cord in its continuation in fact and is

, , ,

known as th e m edu ll a o b l o ng ata or bu l b B u t . .

57
58 VOICE P R ODUC TION
whil e this is th e h ead centr e at which th e ingoing ,

( fl impuls s r c iv d d from which

'

a e r en t ) e ar e e e e an

th e outgoing ( e17eren t ) on es proc eed it m ak es u se ,

of m any other coll ections o f n erv e c ells or sub -

,

—
ordi n at e centr es e g thos e whos e n erve exten
. .
-
,

sions o r n erve fi b res proc eed from th e spin al cord

-

to th e muscl es of r espir ation .

Wh en all th e ingoing impuls es from th e lungs ,

etc . are cut o ff if r espir ation do es n o t actu ally

, ,

c eas e it is carri ed out in a w ay so ineffectiv e th at

,

life c annot b e long sust ain ed It follows th at as .

th e muscul ar contr actions n ec ess ary for th e ch est

an d oth er r es pir atory mov em ents ar e d ep end ent

o n th e impuls es p assing in from th e lungs etc ,

.
,

br eathing b el ongs to th e cl ass of mov ements kn own

as e e
r fl x — ch iefl y so at all ev ents ,
It will thus b e
-
.

s een th at r espir ation is a sort of s elf r egul ative -

proc ess th e movem ents b eing in proportion to th e

,

n eeds o f t h e body Th e gr eat er th e n eed fo r

.

oxyg en th e mor e are th e n erv e termin als in th e

,
-

lungs and th e centr e its elf stimul at ed with as a re , ,

sult corr esponding outgoing impuls es to muscl es

,
.

As th e r espir atory c entr e is r eadily r each ed by

impuls es from every p art o f th e body like o ne ,

who k eeps O p en hous e th er e are m any di ffer ent,

sorts of visitors not al l d esir abl e If for ex

,
.
,

amp l e a drop o f a fluid th at produc es no sp eci al

,

effect wh en On th e ton g u e g ets into th e l arynx ,

tr ach ea or lungs th e most vi ol ent coughing fol

, ,

lows This is on e illustr ation o f th e p ro t ective

.

ch ar act er o f m any r efl ex es This viol ent action of .

 FI G 5. The purpo
th i d i gr m i t o in d ic t h r l t ion b tw n ingoing
se o f a a a e t

ou t going ( ( i m pu l
. 1 s s e e a e ee

( ff r n t )
a d an ff r n t ) n r v ou in fl u nc in o th r w or d t o
in d i c t d by b l ck l i n
e e e e e e s e es s es e s,

i ll u tr t efl a e r i T h p th f h i g m g i m pu l
a ct o n . a t n s e s are a e a

by d l in h p m f t r m in t ion b i ng h o w by
s ex e s o e o es ,

an d th o f h ou t going on
se o t e es re es , t e o t o e a e s n an

a rro w t ip T h r u lt f ingoing m g m y b i th r f v or b l un f v or b l an

th t r c h h br in th roug h h y m y b i th r x h i l r t ing
-
. e es o e ss a e a e e e a a e or a a e .

T h n r v ou i m pu l a ea es t t

or d pr ing T h x p ri nc d ing r i u u ll y t i m u l t d by h i ght f u d i nc

e e s se e a e e e a e e e e a a

e e ss . e e e e e s e s s a s a e t e S o an a e e,

wh i l h b ginn r m y b r n d r d n r v ou d th i m y xpr i t l f in m ny d
t e s, an a an

w i d ly d i t n t p r t f h bo d y A n un f v or b l m g m y r c h h d i p h r g m
e e e e a e e e e s a e es s se

e s a a s o t e . a a e ess a e a ea t e a a

or in t rco t l m u c l s a d r n d r br th ing h ll o w irr gu l r

es , a n in h w or t c ea a t a s es ,

lm o t g ping T h h r t or t o m c h v n h m u c l o f th l rynx h l i m b
e s e e s , e a ,
o r, e s

ea a t a t s, e t c

d t r m b l i ng b
a s as . e s , e e e s es e ,
e .
,

m yb ff c t d h r u lt O h o th r h n d h l r ng l d
’

a e a e e ,
an e e t e es . n t e e a ,
t e a y ea an

o th r m u c l m y b t on d up d h v oic r n d r d b tt r th n u u l r u lt f
an t e as a

pp l u — i b y n r v ou i m pu l th roug h h g in b y h ight f
e s es a e e ,
e e e e e e a s a ,
es o

— t t a

fr i n d
a a se . e .
,
e s se s e ea r o r, a a ,
e s o

Ev n v ry t ig ht g l o v a pinc h ing h o m y u ff c t o h m p r h c t ion e or a a t e a

r q uir d f inging p king All th i i r lt f r fl x c t i on

e . e e s e a s i e e

f h mu cl
"
o t e s es e e or s or s ea . s sa es u o e e a e

ou t going m g up by ingoing on h c n t r b ing i h h br in h

es s a —es s et es t e e e
”
e e t er t e a or t e

pin l cor d Fro m l l th i i t i v i d n t th t h ing r p k r m u t gu r d g in t

,

a t a a a

v ry th ing un f v or b l t o x t n t th t or d i n ry p r on n d no t T h t o m c h
s a . s s e e a e s e or s ea e s s

e e a a e, an e e a an a e s ee . e s a ,

as t h d i gr m i
e al o m n t t o h o w m y xpr i t l f h br in d gi v ri
a s a s ea s ,
a e ess se on t e a ,
an e se , as

in f c t i t o ft n d o ow ing t o in d i cr t ion in t ing t o unp l n t ou tw r d ff c t a s on

r q uir d in ing i ng p king O f cour no tt m p t h b n m d in

a e es , s e ea , e as a e e

h mu cl
bo v fi gur t o x pr n t o m ic l for m d r l t ion x c tl y
t e s es e e s or s ea . se , a e as ee a e
.

t h e a e e e e ss a a a s an e a s e a .
 FI G 1 5

Br in
a

nt rco t l m u c l
h rib
i e s a s e, b et w e et
t e s

i ph r gm
Da a

I l eart

L iv r
e
S t om ach
 BREATHING 59

th e r espir atory app aratus is n ot in its elf a d esira

b l e thing b ec aus e it disturbs if it do es not exh aust
, ,

but it i s pr efer abl e to th e inflamm ation th at might

r esult i f th e fluid a br ead crumb etc w er e to p ass

"
, , ,

into th e lungs .

In like m anner th e d eep br eath an d th e Oh,

‘

th at follow a fear inspiring sight a v ery loud -

,

nois e or a s ever e pinch of th e skin ar e ex ampl es

, ,

o f r efl ex action Th ey are quit e ind ep end ent of

.

th e will though in s om e c as es th ey m ay b e p re
,

v ent ed by it .

This r efl ex n atur e o f br eathing throws much

light on many m att ers o f gr eat int er est to th e
sp eak er and singer som e o f which as th e f o rm a , ,

tion o f good h abits o f br eathing will b e c on sid ,

er ed l at er Unfortun at ely fo r th e n ervous d ebu

.

t ant his br eathing is anything but wh at h e could

,

wish it T h e p al e fac e an d almost gasping res

.

p iration in th e worst c as es ar e n o t unknown to

, ,

th e exp eri enc ed obs erver In such c as es th e p re .

v en tiv e ( in h i bit o ry ) influ enc e o f c ert ain ingoing

impuls es is b ut too obvious Such und esir abl e .

m ess ages m ay p ass in through th e ey es wh en th e

young singer looks o u t on th e throng th at m ay
eith er approv e o r cond emn ; o r th ey m ay origin at e

within an d p ass from th e high er p art o f th e br ain

,

t o th e low er br eathing c entr e Th e b eginn er m ay .

h ave hi gh id eals o f art an d fear th at th ey will b e ,

but ill r ealiz ed in his p e rform anc e His id eals .

in this inst anc e do not h elp but hind er for th ey ,

int erfer e with th e r egu l ar action o f th e breathin g

60 VOICE PRODUC TION
c entr e A few d eep breaths aft er th e pl atform
.

h as b een r each ed gr eatly h elp under such circum

st anc es It is also wis e for th e singer to avoid
.

thos e songs th at b egin softly and r equi r e long

br eaths and v ery evenly sust ain ed tones It is .

much b ett er to b egin with a s el ection th at brin gs

th e br eathing organs into fairly activ e ex ercis e at
onc e On e feebl e h esit ating or oth erwis e in effec
.
, ,
~

tive ton e is in its elf a stimulus of th e wrong kind ,

s ending in unfavor abl e mess ages which are only

too ap t to r each th e br eathing an d oth er c entr es
conc ern ed in voic e production ; but of this subj ect
-

o f n ervousn ess ag ain .

It is imp ort ant to r ealiz e th at s ounds wh eth er ,

music al o r th e r evers e are produc ed by th e out

,
.

going str eam o f br eath by an expir atory efl ort ,

.

B reath is t aken in by th e voic e produc er in ord er -

to b e convert ed into th at expir atory forc e which ,

pl aying on th e voc al b ands c aus es th em to vibrat e ,

o r p ass into th e r apid mov em ents which giv e ris e

to simil ar movem ents of th e air in th e c avities

abov e th e l arynx th e r eson anc e ch amb ers an d
,
-
,

o n which th e fi n al r esult as r eg ards sound is d e

p end ent Import ant as is inspir ation to th e

.

sp eak er an d singer expir ation is much mor e so

,
.

M any p ersons fi ll th e lungs well but do not under ,

st and h ow to husb and th eir r esourc es and so w ast e ,

br eath instead of conv erting every p articl e into

sound s o to sp eak Aft er th e l arynx h as b een
,
.

studi ed th e import anc e o f th e expir atory b l ast will

b e b ett er und erstood .

For th e voic e us er it c annot b e too soon rea

-
,
 BREATHING 61

l ized th at all b reath th at d o es n ot b ecom e s ou n d

is w as ted, or to expr ess th e s ame truth oth erwis e

, ,

th e sol e purpos e o f br eathing i s to c aus e effectiv e

vibr ations of th e voc al b ands In th es e two words
.
,

efl ec tive vib rati on s li es th e whol e s ecr et o f voic e

,

k
production th e whol e purpos e of tr aining th e
, ,

ey to th e high est t echnic al r esults th e c aus e of ,

succ ess o r failur e for thos e who sp eak o r sing .

B efor e th e l arynx th e app ar atus th at produc es

,

sound vibrations can b e effectively employ ed th e

-
, ,

sourc e o f power th e b ellows must b e d evelop ed

, ,
.

—
T o som e N atur e h as b een generous th ey h ave
l arge ch ests ; to oth ers sh e h as given a sm all er
wind ch est but h as p erh aps comp ens at ed by pro
-
,

y iding an esp eci ally fi n e voic e— box H appy are .

th ey who h ave b oth and thric e h appy thos e who

,

h ave al l three r equir em ents : a fi ne ch est a well ,

construct ed l arynx an d b eautifully formed reson

,

anc e ch amb ers

-
If with al l th es e th er e are th e
.

music al ear and th e artistic temp er am ent we h ave ,

th e sing er who is born gr eat Th es e are th e very

.

few .
—
To most it must e if gr eatn ess at al l
b
greatnes s thrust upon th em gr eatn es s th e r esult
,

o f long an d p ati ent effort to att ain p erfect d evelop

ment Ind eed even thos e with th e most compl et e

.
,

n atur al outfi t can only r each th e high est r esults o f

which they are c ap abl e by long and p ati ent ap pl i
c ation Thos e who do not b eli eve in att ainm ent
.

only through l abor wo uld do w el l to ab andon an

art car eer as th er e is a
,
lr eady a gr eat d eal too
much poor sp eaking and b ad sin ging .
 CHAPT E R V .

BREA THI N G WI TH SPE CI A L REGARD TO

PRA CT I CA L CONSI DE RA TI ONS .

T H E fi rst gr eat r equisit e for a voic e us er is a -

well d evelop ed ch est ; th e n ext compl et e control

-
,

o f it o r to put it oth erwis e th e art of br eathi ng ,

, , ,

as bri efly expl ain ed abov e .

Th e ch est m ay b e l arge enough yet not b e in th e , ,

physiological s ens e develop ed Th e voic e us er is

,
.
-

a sort of athl et e a sp eci alist whos e ch est muscl es

,

must b e strong an d n ot cover ed up by very much

sup erfluous tissu e in th e form o f fat etc Wh at ,
.

ev er th e public m ay think o f th e goodly form th e ,

singer must r em emb er th at fat is pr actic ally o f no

u se to any o n e in voic e production an d m ay prov e
-
,

a gr eat hindr anc e possibly in s om e c as es b eing a

,

coOp erativ e caus e o f th at t rem o l o so f at al to good

singing .

T h e voic e us er should esch ew eas e an d t ake

-

plenty o f ex ercis e but most o f al l must h e u se

,

thos e forms of ex ercis e which d evelop th e br eath

ing app ar atus an d t end t o k eep it in th e b est condi ‘

tion W al king running an d hill climbing are al l

.
, ,

exc ell ent but do n o t in th ems elves su ffic e to d e

,

vel op th e ch est to th e utmost .

T o th e b eginn er th e following ex ercis es are

strongly r ecomm end ed Th ey are highly impor .

t ant fo r al l wh eth er b eginn ers or not who would

, ,

62
 B REATHING

have th e b est d ev elopment of th e br eathing

a pp ar atus .

D eep breathing such a u se of th e r esp i r atory

,

organs as leads to th e gr eat est possibl e exp ansion

o f th e ch est should b e l earn ed an d pr actis ed if
, ,

not absolut ely b efore vocal ex ercis es are at

"
t empt ed at al l ev ents as soon aft er as possibl e
'

.
,

As in all c as es wh er e muscl es are employ ed th e ,

ex ercis e should b e g radu at ed It m ay b e even.

h armful to att empt to fi ll th e chest to its utmost

c ap acity at onc e It is b ett er to br eath e v ery mod
.

er at el y for s ev er al d ays Any such symptoms

.

as dizzin es s or h ead ach e accomp anying o r follow

ing th e ex ercis es indic at e th at th ey h ave b een too

vigorous to o long continu ed o r carri ed out under
, ,

unsuit abl e condit ions Above al l must th e air b e

.

pur e an d th e body absolut ely unh amp er ed most —

,

of al l th e ch est— b y any form o f clothing

,
L ast .

c entury most l adi es an d som e m en appli ed to th e

ch est a form of app ar atus known as cors ets und er ,

th e mist ak en b eli ef th at th ey w er e fo r wom en a

n ec ess ary support an d improved th e fi gur e Th ey .

n o doubt w er e r esponsibl e fo r much l ack o f d e

vel op m en t an d feebl e h ealth

,
an d as h a s b een
, ,

proved by ex amin ation o f th e body aft er d eath ,

l ed to compr ession o f th e liver an d oth er organs .

No voic e us er should u se such an effective

-

m eans of pr ev enting th e very thing h e should

.

most desir e a full an d fr ee u se of th e br eathin g

,

app ar atus .
64 VOICE PRO D UCTI O N
B efor e c arrying ou t th e ex ercis es suggest ed
o r oth ers equ ally good th e stud ent is r ecom
,

mend ed to b e weigh ed an d esp eci ally to h ave th e

,

ch est c ar efully m easu red This can b e done with

.

suffi ci ent accur acy by th e u se of a t ap e m easur e -

.

It wil l b e w ell to t ake th e circum fer enc e a few

inches above and b elow a cert ain point so th at it ,

m ay b e asc ert ain ed th at th e ch est exp ands in

ev ery r egion T h e m easur em ents shoul d b e t ak en
.

under th e following conditions

1 Th e ch est should b e almost or wholly div es t ed
.

o f clothing .

2 Its circumfer enc e is to b e asc ert ain ed— ( a )

.

wh en th e br eath h as b een allowed to p ass ou t

gently an d b efor e a n ew br eath is t aken ; ( b )
,

with th e d eep est possibl e inspir ation ; ( c ) aft er

th e d eepest possib l e expir ation which h as b een
,

pr ec ed ed by a simil ar inspir ation .

Aft er about thr ee w eeks th e individu al should

b e again m easur ed by th e s am e person in ex actly
, ,

th e s am e w ay in ord er to l earn wh eth er th er e

,

h as b een d ev elopm ent o r not and if so h ow

, , ,

much It is import ant th at th e measur ements

.

should b e m ad e at ex actly th e s am e horizont al

pl an es an d with this en d in vi ew it is desir abl e
,

to put a sm all m ark of som e kind on th e ch est ,

which m ay r emain till th e nex t measurem ents are

m ad e .

Th e m ethod o f b r eathing r ecomm end ed is as

follows
1 Inh al e v ery slowly through th e nostri l s wi th
.
,
 BREATHING 65

clos ed mouth counting m ent ally one two , thr ee,

:

, ,

four etc with r egul arity

,
.
,
.

2 Hold th e br eath thus t ak en but only for a

.
,

short tim e counting in th e s am e mann er as b efor e

,
.

3 Exh al e slowly still counting

.
,
.

Aft er a few moments r est th e ex ercis e m ay b e

’

ag ain c arri ed o u t in th e s am e w ay Th es e ex or .

cis es m ay b e in s eri es s ever al times a d ay

, .

Th e following w arnings are esp eci ally to b e

obs erved :
1 N ev er continu e any ex ercis e wh en th er e is a
.

s ens e of discomfort o f any kind wh at ever Such .

usu ally indic at es th at it is b eing carri ed ou t too

vigorously .

2 Incr eas e th e d epth of th e inspir ations d aily,

.

b ut n ot v ery r apidly .

3 Th e inspir ations an d expir ations should both

.

b e c arried o u t v ery slowly at fi rst .

4 C eas e th e ex ercis e b efor e any s ens e o f fatigu e

.

is exp eri enc ed F atigu e is N ature s warning

.
’
,

an d should b e alw ays ob ey ed It indic at es th at

.

th e w ast e products which r esult from th e u se o f

th e muscl es are accumul ating an d proving
h armful .

Aft er a w eek of such ex ercis es th e following

modifi c ation o f th em is r ecomm end ed :
1 Inh al e with th e lips slightly ap art
.
.

2 Gradu ally incr eas e th e l ength o f th e tim e th e

.

b r eath is h eld but l et it never exceed a few

,

s econds .

5
66 VOICE P R ODUC TION

3 Through op en lips allow th e br eath to p ass

.

ou t ,bu t with extr em e slown ess Th e stud ent .

sho ul d try to incr eas e this l ast som ewh at d aily as , , ,

it is above al l wh at is r equir ed in singing and also ,

in sp eaking though to a somewh at l ess d egr ee

,

a slow r egul at ed expulsion of th e br eath

, .

If wh en th e ch est is full o f air th e subj ect gently

r ais es th e arms over th e h ead o r dir ects them ,

b ackward h e will exp erienc e a s ens e o f pressur e

,

o n th e ch est If this b e c ar efu lly don e its efi ect

.
,

is to str eng th en an d it is esp eci ally v alu abl e for

,

thos e inclined to stoop Th e r ecomm end ation to .

inspir e through th e op en lips a ppli es only wh en

o n e i s i n a ro om o r in th e op en air wh en it is
,

w arm enough and free from dust But th e stu .

d ent should l earn to inspir e through th e slightly

op en mouth a s to br eath e through th e n os e in
,

sp eaking an d esp eci ally in singin g is obj ection

, ,

abl e for s ever al r ea sons which can b e b ett er ex

pl ain ed l at er ; s o th at th e rul e is to b reath e

th rou g h th e n ose w h en n o t u sin g th e v oice, an d

th r o u g h th e m ou t h w h en on e d o es .

Th ough all th e ex ercis es thus far r eferr ed to

t end to d ev elop th e di aphr agm an d abdomin al
muscl es th es e m ay b e str ength en ed by sp eci al
,

ex ercis es Th e di aphr agm is th e soft floor o f th e

.

ch est an d must at onc e b ear th e str ain o f th e air

,

th at acts on th e approxim ated voc al b ands an d ,

as sist in applying th at pr essur e with just th e

amount o f f orc e r eq uir ed an d no mor e ; h enc e it

,

is import ant th at thi s muscl e b e b oth stron g an d

 BREATHING 67

u nder p erfec t control This large c entr al muscl e

.

is prob ably n ot only th e most g en er ally efl ectiv e

of al l th e r espir atory muscl es but h as an action
,

mor e pr ecis e an d oft en mor e delic at e mor e nic ely ,

controlled th an th at O f any oth er It is possibl e

,
.

to make very pow erful movem ents of this muscl e ,

an d an ex ercis e th at will c aus e it t o d esc end d eeply

an d r em ain in a t ens e condition is v alu abl e To .

eff ect this o n e push es it down as far a s possibl e,

,

an d holds it th er e fo r a few s econds th en p er mits ,

it to r el ax gr adu ally Th e ext ent to which this is

.

succ essful can b e inferr ed from th e d egr ee to

which th e abdomin al w all bulges forward .

T h e sud den though slight movements r equir ed

in thos e forms o f voc aliz ation th at b ear mor e or
l ess r es embl anc e to wh at voc alists t erm s taccato ,

an d which ar e s o e ffective in dr am atic sp eaking

an d singing c an b e pr ep ar ed fo r by l arg er but

,

sudden movem ents of th e di aphragm as wh en on e ,

t aking a ful l br eath imit at es coughing mov em ents ,

but in a r egul ar an d measur ed w ay th e thro at b e ,

ing us ed but littl e At th e s am e time or s ep a

.
.
,

r atel y th e abdomin al muscl es m ay b e effectivel y

,

ex ercis ed by b eing dr awn in an d thrust out w ith

consider abl e forc e .

None o f th es e movem ents are el eg ant— they

sc arc ely put one in an artistic light ; but th ey are
h ighly effective in str ength ening p arts every
voic e us er must employ
-
,
.

T o furnish adeq u ate su pp ort for th e di aphr ag m

i

an d ch est in a v ery vigorous u se o f th e voic e as in ,

‘
68 VOICE PRODUC TION
th e most tryin g p ass ages a tr agic actor h as to
sp eak or a voc alist to sing th e abdomin al muscl es
,

must r emain mor e o r l es s t ens e an d to do so effec ,

tu al ly th ey must h ave str ength b eyond th at pos

s ess ed by th e corr esponding muscl es in ordin ary
p ersons ; h enc e th e desir ability of employing
sp eci al ex ercis es to incr eas e th eir vigor
.
Hill .

climbing an d bicycling also t end to this end b ut ,

th e l att er is for m any r easons not a form of ex er

cis e to b e r ecomm end ed to on e who wish es t o
att ain th e high est r esults with th e voic e Wind .
,

dust a stooping position exc essive h eat of th e

, ,

body etc are all amo ng th e m any factors of risk

,
.
,

for th e d elic at e voc al m ech anism .

As th e expir atory bl ast is so import ant in voic e

production th e ex ercis es above r ecommend ed
,

should b e follow ed by oth ers in which this prin

cip l e is sp eci ally r ecogniz ed .

1 Inspir e s o as to fi l l th e ch est to th e full est

.

with consid er abl e r apidity ; th en allow th e br eath

str eam to p ass ou t with th e utmost slown ess .

2 Fill the ch est with sp eci al r efer enc e to its

.

l ower or its upp er p art as d esir ed and very rap

, ,

idly l ettin g th e br eath fl ow ou t slowly

,
.

SUMMAR Y .

Th e prim ary purpos e o f r espir ation in al l ani

—
m als is th e s am e n am ely to furnish oxygen and
,

r emove c arbon diox id e ( carbonic acid ) Th e low .

est anim als as th e amoeb a br eath e by th e whol e

, ,
 BREATHING 69

surfac e ofbody In all vert ebr at es th e ana

th e .

t omi cal m ech anism is e ss enti ally th e s am e a

membr ane ( cover ed with fl at c ells ) in which th e

blood is di stribut ed in th e minut est blood vess els -

( c apill ari es ) R espir ation is

. fin a lly e ff ect ed in
th e tissu es ( c ells ) o f th e body Th e mor e active .

th e anim al o r th e high er in th e sc al e th e mor e

, ,

n eed of fr equ ent int erch ange b etw een th e air th e ,

blood an d th e tis su es
,
.

Th e r espir atory organs in m amm als are th e

mouth nos e l arynx tr ach ea bronchi al tub es and
, , , , ,

lung tissu e o r air c ells pro per Th e windpip e is

- -
.

m ade up o f c artil aginous rings compl eted by m em

br ane muscl e etc ( b ehind ) Th e bronchi al tub es
, ,
. . .

are th e continu ation o f th e windpip e an d br anch ,

tr ee like until th ey b ecome very fi n e Th e air

-
.

c ells are b uilt r ound th es e l atter Th e lung tissu e .

-

is highly el astic T h e lungs are m ad e up o f an

.

el astic m embr ane cov er ed with fl at c ells an d v ery

, ,

abun dantly s uppli ed wi th a m esh work o f th e -

fi n est blood v ess els -

Th e whol e o f th e r espir atory
.

tract as far as th e air c ells is lin ed b y mucous -

membr an e .

Th e air consists ess enti ally o f 21 p arts of ox y

g e n an d 7 9 p arts of nitrogen with a vari abl e qu an ,

tity of wat ery vapor Only a sm all portion of th e .

tot al oxygen o f th e air is r emoved b efor e it is

exh al ed Th e r espir atory act consists o f ( 1 ) in
.

spir ation an d ( 2 ) expir ation ; th e l att er is o f a

,

littl e longer dur ation th an th e form er Th e r at e .

o f b r eathing in m an is from 1 4 to 1 8 minut in

p er e ,
7O VOICE PRODUC TION
th e r esting st ate o r about on e r espir ation to thr ee
,

o r four h eart b eat s Th e qu antity of air inspir ed

-
.

d ep ends on ( 1 ) th e siz e o f th e thor ax an d ( 2 ) th e ,

ext ent of its movements Th es e are efi ected .

s ol ely by muscul ar contr actions and give ris e to ,

an incr eas e in al l th e di am et ers o f th e thor ax .

Th e lungs are clos ely appli ed ( but not att ach ed )

to th e insid e o f th e ch est w all an d r emain so und er ,

al l circumst anc es Wh en th e ch est c avity is en

.

l arg ed by inspir ation th e air pr es sing down into , ,

th e el astic lungs exp ands th em as much as pos

,

sibl e th at is as much as th e ch est w alls will allow ;

, ,

but th e lungs are n ever at any tim e eith er fi lled

with o r emptied o f air to th eir u tmost c ap acity . .

At most th e amount of exp ansion is very mod

,

c r at e .

Th e u an tity o
Q f Air in t h e Lu ng s .

1 . qu antity o f air inspired in qui et b reath

Th e
ing is about 2 0 3 0 cubic inch es -
.

2 Th e qu antity th at c an b e add ed to this by a

.

d eep inspir ation is about 1 00 cubic inch es .

3 T h e qu antity th at can b e exp ell ed by a forci

.

b l e expir ation is about 1 00 cubic inch es .

4 T h e qu antity th at c anno t b e exp ell ed at all is

.

about 1 00cubic inch es .

Th e above are n am ed : ( 1 ) Th e tid al air ; ( 2 )

compl ement al air ; ( 3 ) suppl em ent al air ( 4 ) re
sidu al air Th e q u antity th at can b e exp ell ed by
.

th e most forcibl e expir ation aft er th e most forcibl e

inspir ation th at is th e air th at can b e moved
, , ,
 BREATHING 71

indic ating th e vit al c ap acity , is about 2 2 5—2 50

inch es .

Th e ch est is enl arged by th e muscl es of inspir a

tion th e princip al of which is th e di aphr agm or
,

midri ff This muscl e ( t en dinous in th e c entr e )

.

is att ach ed to th e spin al column ( b ehind ) and to

th e l ast six o r s ev en ribs Wh en it contracts it
.

b ecomes l ess domed upward an d is pr ess ed down

,

more or l ess on th e cont ents o f th e abdom en ;

h enc e th e w alls o f th e l att er move outward Dur .

ing ordin ary inspir ation th e low er ribs are st ead

ied by oth er muscl es so th at no indr awing of th es e
,

ribs t ak es pl ace but a very forcibl e expir ation

,

m ak es such indr awing very notic eabl e In addi .

tion to th e enl argement of th e ch est by th e desc ent

of th e di aphr agm th e ribs are el ev at ed an d
,

ev ert ed by th e muscl es att ach ed to th em with th e ,

tot al r esult th at th e ch est cavity is enl arged in

al l its thr ee di am et ers during inspir ation Th e .

fi rst rib is fi x ed by muscl es from above During .

extr em ely forc ed inspir ation a l arg e proportion

o f al l th e muscl es o f th e b ody m ay act Ordin ary .

expir ation is th e r esult l argely o f th e el astic r eco il

o f th e ch est w alls only a few muscl es t aking p art

, .

Th e di aphr agm asc ends an d b ecomes mor e dom ed .

During forc ed expir ation m any oth er muscl es are

c all ed into action It is of import anc e for th e
.

singer an d sp eak er to not e : ( 1 ) Th at th e ch est

c avity should b e incr eas ed in all its dir ections ;
( )
2 th at th e muscul ar action should b e easy an d

und er p erfect control but al s o vigorous when

,
72 VOICE PRODUC TION
r equir ed ; ( 3 ) th at th e br eath b e t ak en through
th e nostrils wh en th e in di vidu al is not actu ally
voc alizing o r about to do so ; ( 4 ) th at th e br eath
b e k ept in o r l et out in th e proportion r equir ed .

Br eathing is a r eflex o r involunt ary act Th e .

r espir atory c entr e consisting of an expir atory

,

an d inspir atory division is situ at ed in th e bulb

, ,

or medull a oblongat a th e p ortion o f th e br ain just

,

abov e th e spin al cord All th e ing om g n ervo u s

.

impuls es affect r espir ation through th e outgoing

impuls es th at p as s along th e n erv es to th e muscl es ;
th at is the i n g om g i mpuls es p ass up by th e n erves
,

from th e lungs to th e c entr e and th enc e along ,

oth er n erves to th e r espir atory m uscl es Th e .

condition of th e blood det ermin es th e activity o f

th e r espir atory c entr e but th e incoming impuls es
,

r egu l at e this activity Th e r espir atory centr e

.

can b e appro ach ed from ev ery p art o f th e body .

Hyg ien e .

Every thing th at favors th e full and fr ee ex

p a n sio n of th e ch est in a pur e atmosph er e is f avor
abl e an d th e r ev ers e unfavor abl e
,
C ors ets are.

ag ainst th e l aws o f b eauty are unn ec ess ary for

,

support an d m ay by compr es sion injur e and dis

,

pl ac e import ant organs as th e liver stom ach etc ;

, , , .

an d must int erfer e with th e full est exp ansion o f

th e ch est Th ey h ave milit at ed against th e phys

.

ic al an d indir ectly th e mor al an d ment al advanc e

,

ment of th e r ac e .
 BREATHING 73

P ractical E x ercises .

I M easur ements
. of th e ch est .

II Ex ercis es to str ength en muscl es promot e

.
,

complet e exp ansion r egul at e inflow and outflow of

,

air, etc .

1 .
( ) a Inspiring slowly with counting, .

( b) Holding .

( 0) Expiring slowly with countin g, .

2 Th e
. s am e holding long er
,
.

3 . Th e s am e with short er inspir ation and

,

longer expir ation Gr adu ally diminish

.

fi rst an d l ength en l ast .

4 B r eathing
. through O p en lips .

5 . Exercis es to str ength en di aphragm .

6 . Ex ercis es to improve sh ap e of ch est an d

str ength en muscl es .

7 E x er cis es to str en gt h en ab domin al muscl es

.
.
 C HAP T E R VI .

TH E S PE CI A L VOI CE —P RO DU CIN G ME CHA NI S M,

T H E LA B YNX .

TH E l arynx or voice box is not th e sole voic e

,
-
,

producing app ar atus as is oft en suppos ed but

, ,

it is of gr eat possibly th e gr eat est imp ort anc e

, ,
.

In d escribing th e p arts o f this portion o f th e vocal

m ech anism th e author d eems it wis er to u se th e
t erms commonly employ ed by an atomists an d physi
ologists as oth ers are awkw ard an d in ad equ at e
,
.

Mor eover th er e is this gr eat advant age in l earn

,

ing th e t echni cal n am es o f structur es th at should ,

th e r ead er d esir e to consult a sp eci al work o n

an atomy in r efer enc e t o this or oth er import ant

organs h e will fi n d in u se th e s am e t erms as h e h as

,

hims elf alr eady l earn ed Such are as a m att er

.
,

of fact not di ffi cult to l earn or r em emb er if on e

,

kn ows th eir d eriv ation o r oth er r eason for th eir

employm ent All th e muscl es o f th e l arynx h ave
.

n ames which are not arbitr ary but b as ed on th e

k
n ames o f th e structur es to which th ey are att ach ed ,

so th at on e h as but to now th eir conn ections an d

k
th e n am es o f th e s olid structur es which are few , ,

to h ave a ey to th e whol e nom encl atur e .

Wh en on e is not using th e voic e th e l arynx is

simply a p art o f th e r espir atory app ar atus but ,

wh en one phon at es this organ assum es a sp ecial

74
 VOICE PRODUCING MECHANIS M
-
75

function fo r whi ch sp ecifi c structur es are es s en

ti al As so u nd is c aus ed by vibr ations of th e air
.
,

an d th es e m ay b e set up by vibr ations of th e voc al

cords it m ay with absolut e corr ectn ess b e s aid

,

th at th e whol e l arynx exists fo r th e voc al b ands

so far as voic e production is conc ern ed Such a
-
.

vi ew r enders th e study of th e l arynx much mor e

int er esting an d r ation al ; on e is th en eng aged in
working ou t th at solution of a probl em which
N atur e h as accomplish ed .

Th e voc al cor ds w e can conc eive might b e eith er

, ,

r el axed o r ti ght en ed an d lengthen ed o r short en ed

, ,

o r both an d b eyond th at w e c an sc arc ely und er

,

s tand how th ey might h ave b een modifi ed s o as to

b e effective in th e production o f sounds o f di ff
er cut pitch As a matt er o f fact th es e are th e
.
,

m ethods N atur e h as employ ed to accomplish h er

purpos e F o r each vo cal cord one fi x ed point
.
,

an d only o n e is r equir ed
, W e kn ow o f only on e
.

m ethod in u se by N atur e to c aus e movem ent in

living structur es— v ia contr action an d muscl e is
, ,

th e tissu e which abov e al l oth ers h as th at prop

erty ; h enc e th e movem ents of th e voc al cords ar e

brought about by muscl es But both for th e

.

att achm ent o f th e muscl es an d th e voc al cords

th ems elves solid r el atively h ard structur es are

,

r equired B on e would prove too unyielding but

.
,

c artil age o r gristl e m eets th e c as e ex actly Th e

, ,
.

entir e fr am ework of th e l arynx — its skel eton so to ,

—
sp eak is m ad e up of a s eri es o f c artil ag es unit ed
76 VOICE PRO D UC TION
togeth er so as to ensure suffi cient fi rmness with
pli ability .

T h e c artil ag es h av e b een n am ed from th eir

sh ap e as th at app eal ed t o th e origin al Obs ervers
, ,

an d th e t erms employ ed ar e of Gr eek origin Th e .

l argest an d strongest is th e th yroid ( th u reos a ,

shi eld ) c artil age which r es embl es som ewh at two

,

shi elds put together in front without any visibl e

j oint and op en b ehind but pr es enting a strongly
,

conv ex surfac e ext ern ally in front an d l at er ally

,
.

Front ( ant erior ) an d b ack ( post erior )

alw ays r efer in an atomy to th e subj ect d escrib ed ,

an d not to th e obs erv er s position In obs erving

’
.

anoth er s l ar yn x th e subj ect obs erv ed an d th e

’

obs erv er n atur ally st and front to front an d it is ,

impossibl e to see o r touch th e b ack of th e l arynx

as it is cover ed b ehind by th e oth er structur es of

th e n eck .

This thyroid th e l arg est o f th e c artil ages is

, ,

att ach ed to th e hyoid o r tongu e bon e abov e by a

m embr an e s o th at th e whol e l arynx h angs sus

,

p ended from this bon e by a m embr an e though not ,

by it alon e fo r muscl es ar e att ach ed to it which

,

also s erv e fo r its support It is o f pr actic al im

.

p ort anc e to r emember th at th e l aryn x is free to a

very consid er abl e ext ent oth erwis e it would go
,

ill with th e voic e produc er in th e vigorous u se o f

-

th e voic e not to m ention th e advant ages o f mobil

,

ity as w ell as pli ability in th e movements o f th e

n eck gen er ally .
 FI G . 20 ( S p al t eh o l z ) . S h ow s th e th yroi c rt i l g bo v d h i d b l o w
d a a e a e an t e c r co r e

bo th v i w d fro m
e e th e s id e. T he a n t rior urf c t urn d t o w r d h right
e s a e is e a t e .

P o mu m A d m i ( Ad m
a a
'
s

App l e

Th yroi d c r t i l g
a a e

S p c fi ll d in by h crico
a t

d m m br n d uring l i f
e e e

t he i e a e e

C r i coi d c r t i l
a g
a e

FIG . 21 ( S p alt eh o l z ) . A front v i ew o f FI G . 20 .

 VOICE -
P RODUCI NG M E CHANISM 77

Th e cricoid ( h rios k
S ign et ring ) is th e c arti
,
a -

l age n ext in siz e It is situ at ed b elow th e thyroid

.

c artil age with which it is conn ect ed by a m em

,

br ane th e crico thyroid Th e wid er p art of this

,
-
.

S ign et ring is situ at ed b ehind wh er e it affords

-
,

att achm ent to l arg e muscl es It als o furnish es a.

b as e of support for two very import ant structur es ,

th e aryten oid ( aru tain a a l adl e ) c art il ag es

,
As .

th e voc al b ands are att ach ed b ehind to th em and ,

as th ey h av e a l arg e d egr ee of mo b ility th ey ar e ,

from a physiologic al point of vi ew th e most im

port ant of al l th e solid structur es o f th e l arynx .

Th er e are two p airs o f sm all bodi es th e carti ,

l ag es of S an t o rini or co rnicu l a l aryng is sur

, ,

mounting th e aryt enoids an d th e cu n eif o rm o r , ,

cartil ag es of Wris b erg situ at ed in th e folds o f

,

mucous membr ane on each sid e o f th e aryt enoids ;

'

but th es e structur es are o f littl e import anc e .

T h e whol e o f th e inn er surfac e of th e l arynx is

lin ed with mucous membr an e though th at cover ,

ing over th e tru e voc al b ands is very thin and s o ,

do es not c aus e th em to app ear red lik e th e fals e

'

voc al b ands which are m er ely folds o f th e mucous

,

m embr an e How ever th e tru e voc al b ands m ay

.
,

b ecom e r ed an d thick en ed wh en infl amed b ec aus e ,

o f this s am e mucous m embr an e which though , ,

ordin arily n ot visibl e to th e eye b ecomes so wh en ,

th e condition r eferr ed to is pr es ent ; fo r infl amm a

tion is alw ays att end ed by exc ess in th e blood
supply with a promi n enc e o f th e sm all b lood
,

vess els r esulting in a corr esponding r edn ess Th e .

78 VOICE PRODUC TION
sa me thing h app ens in fact as in infl ammation of
, ,

th e ey es o r th e nos e both of which ar e mor e op en

,

to obs ervation B earing this in mind one can

.

r eadily und erst and why in such a condition which ,

is oft en appro ach ed if n ot actu ally pres ent in th e

”
c as e o f a cold th e voic e b ecom es s o ch anged
, .

Such vo cal b ands are clumsy in movement as th e ,

a rms o r any oth er p art would b e if thus swoll en .

T h e pl ain r emedy is r est c ess ation of function

,

no sp eaking much l ess att empts at sing ing Lik e

, .

th e nos e th e l arynx an d esp eci ally th e voc al b ands

, ,

m ay b e c at arrh al an d such a condition m ay c all

,

for m edic al tr eatm ent b efor e th e sp eak er o r singer

can do th e most effective voc al work .

Whil e th e fals e v o cal b an ds h ave littl e or noth

ing to do with phon ation dir ectly th ey do s erv e a ,

good purpos e as prot ectors to th e mor e ex alt ed .

tru e voc al b ands Wh en coughing sw allowing

.
, ,

vomi tin g holding th e br eath tightly etc th es e

, , .
,

folds of mucous m embr an e clos e over th e tru e

b ands oft en compl et ely an d thus shut up for th e
, ,

mom ent th e whol e o f th at sp ac e b etween th e b and s

known as th e glottis o r glottic chink to which ref
, ,

er enc e w as m ad e in a pr evious ch apt er a s th e sp ac e

through which th e air fi n ally gains acc ess to th e

lungs .

Th e tru e voc al cords ( wh ich b ec aus e of h avin g

,

some br eadth an d b eing r ath er fl at are b ett er ,

t erm ed voc al b ands ) are compos ed l argely o f el as

tic tis su e .Th e r ead er m ay b e famili ar with this
 ig l o tt i s

Th yroi d c r t i l g
a a e

P rop re a ry t noi d
e

mu cl s e

P o t rior crico ry t noi d

s e a
- e

mu cl s e

FIG A v i w f h l ryn x fro m b h i n d S v r l f h m u c l

( S p al t eh o l 2 ) t a e a t

w ll h o w n f wh i c h h tw o in d ic t d bo v
. 25 . e o e e . e o e s es

f h m o t i m por t nc Th
ry t noi d u propriu t n d t o bring h c r t i l g fro m wh ic h i t i n m d d
a re e s ,
o t e a e a e are o t e s a e. e

a e e s s e s t e a a es s a e , an

th r for h v oc l b n d t o w r d c h o th r wh i l h po t rior crico th yroi d fro m

e t e t

tt c hm nt d l i n f pu ll t n d t o p r t th
e e e a a s, a ea e ; e s e -
,

i
ts a a e s an e o d l ng th n h v oc l b n d
,
e s se a a e e se a n e e t e a a s.
 E p igl o tt i s

Th yroi d c r t i l g cu t
a a e

th rou g h
La t r l crico ry t no i d
e a a e

mu cl s e

Crico h e d l ig m n t
t
- I a e

C ricoi d c r t i l ga a e

R i ng of th e tr ch a ea

FI G 6 ( h o w ing t ruc t ur
S p a l t eh o l z S as i ndic t d bo v
a e a The m ucou
m m br n th t n t ur ll y co v r ll p r t W i th i n v oc l m c h n i m
. 2 s es e. s

e a e, a a a e s a a s th e a e a s h as b ndee is

d w y to how h mu cl
s ec t e a a s t e s es .
 Hyo l d or t ong bon ue e

Th yro h yoi d m m br n
- e a e

M as s e s of fat , no
and o f
con q u nc se e e

T he i d c rti l g
a a e

C r i co -th e Id mu cl s e

Tr cha ea

FI G 7 p r t i n d i c t d bo v
( S p a lt eh o l z ) d f th
Sh o w mg th e h crico ese t

t o b p ci ll y ob r v d T h ob l i u ( p c i ll y in h po t r i or
. 2 . a s a e a e an o e

the d mu cl t

p r t ) d i r c t i on f i fi br v i d n t th t wh n i t con t r c t i t m u t pu ll up h
i s e is e es e a se e . e q e es e a so e s e

ts t

r i ng c r t i l g in fron t d t i lt b ck i h i n d r por t i on d h i t h ry t noi d

a e o es is e e ,
so a e a s, s e

a a e ,
an so a ts e an W l' t e a e

c rt i l g
a a es ,d anl ng th n d t n h v oc l b n d
so e e an in h u tt r nc f l w
e se t e a a s, as t e e a e o o
 E pig l o tt i s

W i ng
th e
s

id
of th e
c rt il g
a a e

Ary t noi d c r t i l g
e a a e

C ricoi d c r t i l g
a a e

S f o t t ruc t ur
s es o f th e tr ch a ea

FI G 28 A b ck ( po t rior ) v i w f h l rynx
( S p a lt e h o l z ) N ot h ow t

ry t noi d c r t i l g r t on h cricoi d h o w h pig l o tt i o v r h ng

. a s e e o e a et c . e

n m
.
,

h
i m p l i h g l o tt i
t e a e a a es es t e ; t e e s e a s, as its a e
es , t e d th t h po t rior p r t f h w in d pip i c l o d in by
s ; an a t e s e f a o t e e s se so

s t ruc t ur inc l u d ing ( un t rip d ) m u c l

es , s e s e.
 VOICE PRODUCING M E CHANISM
-
79

structure which is often to b e found in th e p or

,

tions of th e n eck o f th e ox th at th e butch er s ells

a s soup b eef . It is y ellow in color an d str etching ,

it h as furnish ed m any a boy with amus ement It .

is so unm an ageabl e wh en raw th at wh en it falls to

th e dog h e usu ally bolts it th e c as e b eing oth erwis e
,

hop el ess Such el astic tissu e is how ever th e very

.
, ,

mat erial for th e construction o f voc al b ands as ,

th ey r equir e to b e fi rm yet el astic .

It is import ant to r ememb er th e r el ative position

o f p arts an d to b ear in mind th at most o f th e l aryn

geal structur es are i n p airs T o this l ast st at e

.

m ent th e thyroid and cricoid c artilages and th e

epiglottis ar e exc eptions b eing singl e , .

Of th e ep ig l o ttis a fl exibl e c artil age it is n eces

, ,

s ary to say littl e as its function in voic e produc

,
-

tion if it h ave any h as n ev er b een d et ermin ed

, , .

It h angs as a fl exibl e prot ective lid over th e glottis ,

and food in b eing sw allowed p a ss es ov er an d about

it It no doubt acts to k eep food and drink ou t

.

o f th e l arynx yet in its abs enc e in som e c as es

, , ,

owing to dis eas e no very gr eat diffic ulty w as ex

,

p ienced prob ably b ec aus e c ert ain muscl es act ed

e r ,

mor e vigorously than usu al and t end ed to clos e up

th e glottic chink .

T h e following simpl e di agr am will it is hop ed , ,

m ake th e r el ative position o f p arts pl ain s o far as

th e ant erior ( front ) att achments o f p arts to th e
thyroid c artil age are concern ed It will b e under .

stood th at th e inn er ant erior surfac e is m eant an d

,
 VOICE PRODUCTION
th at b y middl e lin e is int end ed th e middle lin e
of th e body th e im aginary v ertic al di am et er p ass
,

ing lik e a plumb lin e from th e middl e pl an e of th e

-

head l et us suppos e downward just in front of

, ,

th e l arynx .

FI G . 2 9.

A t
n eri or d
m id l e l i n e

A tt ach m en t o f g
epi l o tti s

O 0 T ru voc
e al b an d s

0 O y Th ro-aryte oid n c
mus l es

Th e ngl e m ad e abov e and in front wher e th e

a

two wings o f th e thyroid c artil age meet is t erm ed

Adam s app l e ( P omu m Ad am i ) and in som e c as es
’
, ,

mostly m al es is very promi n ent Ad am s appl e

,
.
’

h as in its elf how ev er no sp eci al signifi c anc e in

, ,

voic e production
-
.

Th e littl e conc avity b etw een th e fals e voc al

b ands abov e an d th e tru e voc al b ands b elow is
t erm ed th e ven tricl e of th e l arynx It allows of .

more sp ac e for th e fr ee movem ents of th e

b ands esp eci ally thos e mor e import ant in voic e
,

production .

Th e vocal b ands are att ach ed b ehind to th e

proj ecting angl e o f th e b as e o f th e aryt enoid carti
l age which is its elf somewh at tri an g ul ar in sh ap e
, ,

th e b as e of th e tri angl e b eing downw ard and r est

 VOICE PR O DUCING M E CHANISM
- 81

ing on upp er and post erior ( b ack ) surfac e of

th e
th e cricoid c artil ag e with which it m akes a fr ee ,

j oint so that it can move swivel lik e in all direc

,
-

tions This is most import ant b ecaus e through

.
,

it is explained th e fact th at th e voc al b ands m ay

b e eith er t ens ed an d l engthened o r r el ax ed an d
short ened .

T h e mu scl es act on th es e m o vab l e cartil ag es, an d

n earl y al l th e ch ang es in t h e v o cal b an ds a re

b rou g h t th rou g h t h e al t erati ons in p ositi on

ab o u t

o f th e aryt en oid cartil ag es , t o w hich th ey are

at tach ed b eh in d .

B efor e d escribing th e muscles of th e l arynx th e ,

r ead er is r emind ed of th e order o f structur es from

abov e downw ard in front which is as follows , ,

Th e hyoid bon e .

Th e thyro hyoid m emb r an e

-
.

Th e thyroid c artil age .

Th e crico thyroid memb r an e

-
.

Th e cricoid c artil age .

Th e tr ach ea .

Th e l att er is conn ect ed with th e cricoid c artil age

b y its m embr ane .

Al l th e abov e structur es can b e felt in on e s ’

o wn p erson th e mor e r eadily if h e b e thin and

,

h ave a long n eck Th e hyoid bon e o r ton g ue .

,

bone is th at h ard structur e just above th e cricoid

,

cartil ag e an d which o ne m ay easily d emonstr at e

,

to b e much mor e movabl e th an th e l arynx its elf .

Th e ton gu e muscl es are att ach ed to it ab ov e an d ,

6
 '

82 VOICE PRODUC TION

from it b elow th e l arynx is susp end ed, as already
, ,

expl ain ed .

Th e muscl es of th e l arynx are b est u nd erstood if

th e principl e o f ant agonistic action alr eady r e
ferr ed to b e r ememb er ed Sp eaking g en er ally
.
,

th e muscl es are arr ang ed in p airs which h av e an

n —
opposit e o r a tag onistic action viz : ( 1 ) Thos e .

th at open and clos e th e glottis ; ( 2 ) thos e th at

r egul at e th e t ension o r d egree o f tightn ess of th e
, ,

vocal b ands .

1 Th e muscl es whos e action t ends to app r ox i

.

m at e th e — h t r —
voc al b ands t e addu c o s are th e ary
t en oid eu s p r op riu s an d th e t hy r o aryt en oid eu s
’

-
.

Th e former is att ach ed to th e post erior or b ack

surfac e o f both aryt enoid c artil ages ; th e l atter as ,

its n ame indic at es to th e ant erior an d inn er sur

,

fac e o f th e thyroid an d th e ant erior low er surfac e

o r angl e ( v o cal p r o ces s ) of th e aryt enoid .

T h e op ening o r wid ening o f th e glottis is efi ected

on each side ( one muscl e of th e p air an d its action
b eing alon e d escrib ed in this an d oth er c as es )
by th e ant agonist o f th es e muscl es th e crico ,

a ryt en oid eus p os ticu s whos e att achm ents ar e ex

,

actl y as indic at ed by th e n am es — viz to th e pos .

,

terio r p art o f th e t wo c artil ag es n am ed Wh en .

r eading th e d escriptio n o f th es e o r oth er muscl es

it is absolut ely n ec es s ary to h ave a pictori al illus
fr ation or th e r eal obj ect b efor e o n e Th e pull of
.

this muscl e is from th e mor e fi x ed point as in all ,

oth er c as es ; h enc e th e forc e is appli ed in a di r co

tion from b elow an d outward with th e r esult th at
,
 y
Ar ten oi d i d c til
ar age.

e voc l cord tr tch d

a s e e
ico ryt noi d
.

Cr -a e
e voc l co d
a r .

C rico t h yroi d m u c l
- s e.

C ricoi d c rti l
a a e.g
h p n
F I G . 3 0 ( C a ma ) ig h g
D a ram s o w inti c ic t h yroi d m u c l
l gt h ni f t h m
ac on of r o- s e,
tc i n c l c rd T h d tt d l i n in d i c t
.

u d h
s t re h g o f t h e vo a o s , an d en e ng o e e o e es a e
p iti mu l t td
.

t h e os o n as s m e w en t h e sc e h as co n rac e .
 Fa l v oc l b n d
se a a

T ru v oc l b n d
e a a

P o i t i on
a
s

ry t no i d c rti l
e
of
a a g e

FI G .
31 l ryn x l ook d
( S p a l t eh o l z ) . Vi w
e of th e a as e at fro m bo v T h i ll u
a e. e s

h o w p t icu l r l y w ll bo th h t ru d h f l
t ra t i o n s s ar a e t e e an t e a se v oc l b n d T h t ru
a a s . e e

v oc l b n d
a p l c d m uc h th y wh n b ry t on i
a s a re a e as e a re e a a e s s ing i ng v ry l o w t on
a e e.

T h p r t f h fi gur l o w t
e a o t h p g r pr
e n t h b ck
e es on t e a e e e se s t e a p r t f h l rynx
a o t e a .

T ru ( l o w r ) v oc l b n d
e e a a Th yro ry t noi d m u c l
-
a e s e

G l o tt ic c h ink
or g l o tt i,

Th yro i d c r t i l g
s

a a e

Ary t no i d u propriu
e e s s

mu c l s e

FI G ( S p al t eh o l z ) A cro c t ion t r n v r t o the l ryn x uc h a s c an be

r d i l y m d w i th
.
32 . ss -s e a s e se a ,
s

ea a e a s t rong kn i f e
 VOICE -
P RODUCI NG ME CHANISM 83

th e a ryt enoid c art il ag e is tilt ed outw ard an d with ,

it th e vocal b and is moved from th e middl e lin e .

Th e crico thyroid als o t ends to op en th e glottis

- .

Just as th e di aphr agm is th e most import ant

muscl e o f br eathing so is th e crico thyroid th e
,
-

most import ant in or di nary sp eaking an d in sing

ing in th e lower r egist er It is a r el atively l arge
.

an d strong muscl e with an obliqu e dir ection in th e

m ain though it is compos ed in r eality o f s ever al

,

s ets of fi br es some o f which are much mor e obliqu e

in dir ection th an oth ers ( Fig As its n am e
.

indic at es its po ints o f att achm ent are to th e thy

,

roid an d th e cricoid c artil ages but th e most fi x ed ,

point ( o rig in ) is its point o f att achm ent t o th e

l arger c artil age ; h enc e its di r ection o f pull is from
th e thyroid with th e r esult th at th e ant erior p art
,

o f th e cricoid is dr awn up th e post erior p art

,

down an d th e aryt enoid c artil ag e r esting on th e

, ,

upp er p art o f th e cricoid b ackw ard so th at th e

, ,

voc al b and is r end er ed long er an d mor e t ens e

( see esp eci ally Fig .It is import ant to not e
th at this is th e muscl e most us ed in singing th e
low er ton es o f th e sc al e an d th at its action must
,

n ec ess arily c eas e to a gr eat ext ent wh en a c ert ain

, ,

point in th e pitch is r each ed as th er e is a limit to

,

th e d egr ee o f contr action o f all muscl es ; an d b e ,

sid es th e crico thyroid sp ac e is of v ery mod er ate

,
-

siz e an d th e cricoid c artil ag e can ascend only

,

within th e limits thus d et ermined It thus follows .

th at N ature h as provid ed in th e ch ange o f m ech an

ism for a n ew r egist er ,which is nothing els e th an
84 VOICE PRODUC TION
’

a ch ange o f mech anism with a corr esponding

.

ch ange o f function It will b e at onc e app ar en t

.

th at th e cl aim th at r egist ers are an invention of

m en an d without found ation in n atur e is without
, ,

support in an atomy and physiology Th e crico .

thyroid is p rob ably however of much mor e im , ,

portanc e to tr agic actors and b aryt on es th an to

t enors o r sopr anos This however is no excus e
.
, ,

fo r th e n egl ect o f its d evelopment by th e l att er

cl ass as oft en h app ens for without it th e b est tones
, ,

o f th e low er r eg ist er are impossibl e On th e oth er .

h and th e elocutionists who pr escrib e for stud ents

,

pr actic es th at involv e th e exc essiv e u se o f this

muscl e with a cr amp ed position o f th e voc al
,

organs th e la rynx b eing gr eatly dr awn down with

, ,

th e vi ew o f producing disproportion at ely h eavy

low er tones must t ak e no comfort from th e ab ove
,

an atomic al an d physiologic al facts Art implies .

proportion an d it w as one of th e ambitions o f al l

,

th e b est actors in th e gold en ag e o f histrionic art

to h ave an even voic e — i e on e equ ally good . .
,

through th e whol e r ange r equir ed Th e tr agic .

actor elocutionist
,
an d public sp eak er
,
an d th e ,

singer wh eth er sopr ano o r b ass should n egl ect no

, ,

muscl e though th ey m ay b e justifi ed in d ev eloping

,

s om e in exc ess o f oth ers but ever with a w atchful ,

eye o n th e w eak est p art .

2 Th e muscl es which r egul at e th e t ension of th e

.

voc al b ands are th e following :

( )
a Th e t h yr o —a ry t en o i d eu s ( p air ) which by ,

tilting th e aryt enoid c artil ages forw ard r el ax es th e

 VOICE PRODUCING MECHANIS M
- 85

tension of vocal b ands Wh en th ey act with

th e .

f—
th e addu cto r s e g th e aryt enoid eus proprius
. .
,

th e r esul t must b e r el ax ation and approxim ation

b ehind wh ch impli es a gr eat er or l ess d egr ee of
,
i

short ening as usu ally h app ens wh en a c ert ain

,

point in an ascending sc al e is r each ed in p ersons

'

whos e methods o f voic e production h ave not b een -

in some w ay modifi ed an d a n ew r egist er b egins , ,

which in most femal e voic es is m ark ed by a mor e

o r l es s di stinct an d abrupt alt er ation o f th e qu ality

o f th e ton e .

T h e crico thyroids are th e ant agonists of th e

-

abov e n am ed muscl es
-
an d th ey m ay act eith er
,

very much alon e or to some ext ent in coOp eration

, ,

with th e above to r egul at e o r st eady th eir action ;

,

for in movem ents s o complic at ed as thos e r equir ed

for voic e production it is highly prob abl e th at w e
-

are inclin ed to r educ e ou r expl an ations o f m u scu

l ar action to a simplicity th at is exc essiv e an d t o ,

appr eci at e but in ad equ at ely th e d elic acy an d com

p l ex ity o f th e m ech anism an d th e proc ess es in

volved It is quit e c ert ain th at in th e production
.

o f th e high est ton es o f a t enor or sopr ano s ev er al

muscl es coOp erate and on e esp eci ally s eems to

, , ,

b e of gr eat import anc e in th e form ation o f such

ton es most o f all p erh aps in high sopr anos Th e
, , , .

muscl e r eferr ed t o is th e thyro aryt enoid alr eady -

d escrib ed It is not only att ach ed to th e two car

.

til ag es indic at ed by its n am e but als o along th e ,

whol e of th e ext ernal or out er surfac e o f th e voc al

b and It will b e r em emb er ed th at pr actically al l
.
 86 VOICE PRODUC TION
th e muscl es rr anged in p airs one on each side
are a ,

o f th e middl e lin e T h e muscl e n ow und er con

.

sid er ation mor e p erh aps th an any oth er is com

, , , ,

pl ex in its action App ar ently a very few o f its

.

fi br es may act mor e o r l ess ind ep end ently of all

th e oth ers at a p articul ar mom ent an d with a sp e
cifi c an d very d elic at e r esult a v ery slight ch ang e
,

in pi tch Ex actly how this is att ain ed no one h as

.

a s yet ad equ at ely expl ain ed ; but it is doubtful

wh eth er any singer who do es not poss ess a p erfect
control over this muscl e can produc e th e high est
ton es of th e sopr ano with eas e an d effectiven ess .

It is esp eci ally th e muscl e o f th e hum an birds o f

th e high er flights .

( )
b To th es e thyro aryt enoids which for most
-
,

singers an d al l sp eak ers are prob ably chi efly r e

l axing in action must b e added as aiding in this
,

function anoth er p air th e l ateral crico arytenoids

,
-
.

Th ey are situ at ed b etween th e cricoid an d aryte

'

n oid c artil ag es an d th e dir ection o f action is

,

obliqu ely from b elow an d forw ard upward an d , ,

b ackw ard so th at th e aryt enoids are brought fo r

,

w ard and also approxim at ed mor e o r l ess which ,

involves r el ax ed t ension at l east possibly als o

, ,

short ening of th e voc al b ands .

Wh en a t enor or sopr ano singer r each es th e

upp er tones say abou t
,
o r high er th er e ,

is consid er abl e closing up in th e l aryn x ,

much in th e w ay in which th e p arts o f

th e mouth ar e brought togeth er in sucking This .

is t erm ed sphin cter action th e mouth and th e eyes

,
 i
E p g l o is tt

ri t
he I d ca

po se th e inn r t
t l ag e,
e
cu t

as p ec
h ro u g h t o
of r nx
la y
ex

v n
v tr i
o cal ba d
"
e

t rm
e ed en cl e of r x
th e l a y n
T r v ue o cal ba d n

h o w v riou t ruc t ur
F I G 3 3 ( S p al t eh o l z ) S d p ci ll y w ll h f l t

t ru v oc l b n d w i th h p c b tw n th m ( v n t r i c l f M org gni ) bu t
. . s a s s es . an es e a e e a se

an d t h e e a a s, t e s a e e ee e e e o a ,

wh ic h h asp ci l func t ion in p h on t i on un l i t c t

no e a m ll r on nc as a s a es a e

c h m b r wh ic h po ib l Th i p c i n t ur l r u lt f h xi t nc f tw o
s a ,
ess a s

a t

p ir f v oc l b n d in uc h c l o pro x i m i t y
e ,
is ss e . s s a e s a a a es o e e s e e o

a s o a a s s se .
 Fa l v oc l b n d
se a a

V ntri c l
e e o f th e l rynx
a
T ru v oc l b n d
e a a

FI G ( S p a l t eh o l z ) r t h v b n cu t w y t o x po t o v i w h wh o l f
Pa t

l ryn x" ( l in d W i th m ucou m m br n ) xc ll n t i w

s a a a e e e o
.
34 . e ee e se

th e inn r urf c
e s a e o f th e a e A s e a e n e e e V e

h v oc l b n d v n t ric l f h l rynx b tw n th m ffor d d

.

”
of t e a a s an d of h t e e e o t e a e ee e ,
is a e .
,
 VOICE —P R ODUCING ME CHANISM 87

b eing clos ed by such action of which th ey are th e

,

most easily obs erv ed ex ampl es As a r esult o f .

this squ eezing there is in some c as es th at r edd en

ing o f th e fac e an d th at tightn ess which is oft en
felt uncomfort ably an d which is s training b e
, ,

caus e wh en pr es ent in mor e th an a very slight d e

gr ee it is injurious owing to congestion o r accu m u
,

l ation of blood in th e blood v es sel s w ith al l th e b ad

-
,

cons equ enc es o f such a state o f things Wh en th e .

tightening do es n ot go b eyond a c ertain point it is

—
norm al ind eed such sphinct er action is in ev ita
,

b l e ; but it is th e exc ess which is s o comm on in

t enors an d oth ers who str ain for undu e power an d ,

to produc e ton es too high in pitch for th eir d e

v el o p m en t o r th eir m ethod which is so dis astrous
,

to th e thro at an d to th e b est art also .

Wh en th e voc al b ands are in action th eir vibr a

tions are accomp ani ed by corr esp onding vibra
—
tions o f th e c artil ages o f th e l arynx a fact of
which any one m ay convinc e hims elf by l aying his
fi ngers o n th e upp er p ar t o f th e thyroid esp eci ally ,

wh en a low and pow erful ton e is produc ed This .

vibr ation is not confi n ed to th e l arynx but ext ends ,

—
to oth er p arts e g th e ch est its elf for when
,
. .
,

o n e sp eaks o r sings a distinct vibr ation o f th e

ch est w alls can b e felt though th e ext ent to which

,

this is pr es ent is v ery vari abl e in di fferent p er

sons As an asc ending sc al e is sung th e l aryn x
.

c an b e f elt ( by th e fi ngers ) to ris e an d th e r ev ers e

,

as th e pitch is lo w er ed This is du e p artly to th e

.

action o f thos e muscl es att ach ed to th e l aryn x

88 VOICE PRODUC TION
which are not conn ect ed with th e movements of th e
voc al b ands an d p artly to th e influ enc e of th e
,

expir atory air bl ast -

Th e glottis p arti ally clos ed
.
,

a s it must b e in phon ation pr es ents consid er ab l e

,

r esist anc e to th e outgoing str eam of air h enc e th e ,

upward movem ent of th e l aryn x wh en it is l eft

fr ee an d not h eld down by muscul ar action
, .

In singing an d sp eaking th e l arynx should b e

st eadi ed oth erwis e th e attac
,
o r applic ation

o f th e air bl ast to th e voc al b ands c annot b e p er

-
,

fect On th e oth er h and it is obviously incorr ect t o

.
,

attempt to hold th e l arynx alw ays in th e s am e

position Holding down this organ by m ain force

.
,

as in th e production o f th e s o c all ed str aw b ass

‘ ’
-
,

is one o f th e sur est m ethods of producing conges

tion and cons equ ent disord ers o f th e voc al organs ;
an d th e author wish es to w arn all voic e produc ers -

ag ainst such u nn atur al pr actic es Stud ents of

.

elocution an d young actors oft en sin in a simil ar

”
w ay an d cl ergym an s sor e thro at is almost
’
,

alw ays du e to this o r s om e s imil ar mi sus e o f th e

voc al organs On e s own s ens ations an d common

.
’

s ens e should n ever b e disr egard ed how ever emi ,

n ent th e t each er who r ecommends u nphysiolo g ical

m ethods .

P RACTI CAL C O N S I DERATI O N S .

Wh en th e stud ent h as r ead th e above descrip

tion o f th e structur e an d functions of th e l arynx ,

an d stu di ed th e illustr ations w ell h e will b e p re

,

p ar ed to d eal with th e subj ect in a pr actic al man

 VOICE PRODUCING MECHANISM
- 89

n or, an d without th at it is fear ed his id eas will

r emain somewh at h azy .

First of all h e should try to fi n d th e p arts men

,

tion ed in his own p erson following this up by ,

ex amin ations o f oth ers for which purpos e chil

,

dr en m ake good subj ects as th ey h ave usu ally ,

n ecks th at are not too d eeply p add ed with fat an d ,

th ey m ay b e easily l ed to t ak e th e ex amin ations as

a sort o f fun .

From above downward one feels in th e middle

lin e th e p arts in th e order pr eviously mention ed ,

b eginning with th e hyoid bon e On e m ay l earn .

th at th e l arynx is mov abl e and yielding a h ard ,

structur e cover ed with soft er tissu es but wh at ,

th es e are an d much mor e can only b e l earn ed by

, ,

ex ami n ation o f th e l arynx aft er it h as b een re

moved from som e anim al Every butch er can .

provid e th e m at eri al for getting a sound pr actic al ,

knowledg e of th e r espir atory app ar atus H e may .

b e asked to supply th e following

1 A pig s
. pluck
’
i e th e lights -
or . .
, ,

lungs with th e windpip e att ach ed

, Th e liv er .
,

h eart etc are n ot r equir ed though to obs erve th e

,
.
, ,

r el tions
a o f th e a —
circul tory syst em i e th e h eart . .
,

an d l arge blood v ess els — to th e r espir atory syst em

-

will b e time well sp ent Unl ess sp eci al instru o

.

tions are giv en th e l arynx which th e butch er may

, ,

t erm th e w eezen d m ay b e l acking or mutil at ed

, .

It should b e expl ained th at this org an with a p art ,

o f th e windpip e an d th e extr em e b ack p art o f th e

‘

tongu e and al l b elow it are r equir ed For on e

, , .
90 VOICE PRODUC TION

sitting thi s singl e pluck will su fi ce as it will ,

.

s erve fo r a gen er al ex amin ation Th e lungs may

.

b e dil at ed by ins erting a tub e into th e windpip e ,

tying it in position an d blowing into it with

,

gr eat er or l ess forc e It should b e esp eci ally o h

.

s erved how sudd enly th e lungs coll aps e wh en th e

br eath forc e is removed as this illustr ates well
,

th eir el as ticity By cutting through th e windpip e

.

l engthwis e an d following it downward o n e l earns

h ow num erous ar e th e br anch es of th e bronchi al
tr ee etc
,
.

For a s econd sitting on e should s ecur e at l east

two sp ecim e ns o f th e l arynx o f th e pig or sh eep ,

though th e form er is mor e like th e human an d so ,

th e b ett er on th e whol e A c as e of di ss ecting

.

instrum ents is not es s enti al ; a sh arp pocket knife -

will s erve th e purpos e In ord er th at th e stud ent

.

m ay h av e a cl ear id ea o f th e c artil ages al l th e soft

,

tissu es must b e cut o r scr ap ed away It is neces

.

s ary to ex ercis e gr eat c are or th e m embr an es

,

connecting th e c artil ages togeth er will b e cut

through ; an d on th e oth er h and unl ess th e work
,

in th e n eighborhood o f th e aryt enoids b e cau

tio u sl y don e th es e c artil ages m ay b e injur ed and
, ,

it is most import ant th at th eir swivel lik e action -

an d th eir r el ations to th e tru e voc al b ands b e

obs erved Th e glottic chink can b e s een from

.

ab ov e o r b elow an d should b e obs erv ed from both

,

vi ew points Its m ar gi ns are form ed by th e tru e

-
.

voc al b ands .
 VOICE PRODUCIN G M ECHANISM
-
91

Th en with th e fi g u r es b efor e h im th e student

, ,

should end eavor to isol at e each o f th e muscles

d escrib ed Th e muscl es can always b e r ecogniz ed
.

by th eir red col or but it is to b e r em emb ered th at

,

thos e on th e inn er surface o f th e l arynx such as ,

th e crico aryt enoid are cover ed with mucous m em

-
,

br ane which after d eath is v ery p ale This can

,
.

by c ar eful diss ection b e r emoved an d if in doing ,

this a small p air o f forc eps b e employed th e work ,

will b e gr eatly facilit at ed One must b e very skil

.

ful indeed if h e would g et all th e muscl es o u t ,

o r w ell expos ed to vi ew as individu als on a singl e ,

sp ecim en Likely s ever al will b e r equir ed b efor e

.

entir ely s atisf actory r esults ar e r each ed but th es e ,

ar e w ell wort h all th e tim e an d l abor r equir ed

m
.

T h e action o f th e muscl es can in so e m easur e b e

d emonstr at ed by pulling on th em in th e di r ection
o f th eir loos est att achm ent though it must b e c on
,

fess ed this is much mor e diffi cult in th e c as e of

most o f th e muscl es o f th e l arynx th an in thos e of
oth er p arts o f th e body .

Should th e sp ecim ens b e very succ essfully dis

s ect ed it m ay b e worth whil e to k eep th em for
,

futur e obs erv ation in r ath er w eak alc ohol ( 40p er

,

in say a pr es erve j ar
, ,
.

All ex amin ations o f th e voc al b ands m ay l eave

th e O bs erver dis appoint ed ; h e m ay fail to r ealiz e ,

most lik ely h ow such wond erful r esults can b e

,

accomplish ed by structur es s o simpl e as thos e h e

s ees b efor e him But wh en th e l aryngoscop e is

.

brought int o u se th en com es a r evel ation This

, .

instrument will b e describ ed in th e n ext ch apt er .

92 VOICE PRODUC TIO N:
.

HYGIE N E .

Some o f th e hygi enic principl es involved have

alr eady b een r eferr ed to an d illustr at ed an d ,

others follow from th e facts alr eady set forth It .

is v ery import ant for th e voic e us er to b ear in -

mind th at his l arynx is a p art of th e r espir atory

tr act and th at th e whol e o f this r egion an d th e
,

entir e digestiv e tr act p art o f which is comm on

,

to both are lin ed with mucous m embr an e If th e

,
.

nos e b e affect ed with c at arrh th e thro at do es not,

usu ally long esc ap e ; and if th e b ack o f th e mouth

c avity ( p h arynx ) b e disord er ed th e voc al b ands ,

an d oth er p arts of th e l arynx are almost sur e to

b e involved mor e o r l ess .

Th e condition o f th e stom ach is refl ex l y if not ,

by dir ect continuity through th e mucous m em

br an e expr ess ed in th e thro at gen er ally ; h en c e
,

as exp eri enc e sh o ws th e voic e us er c annot ex er

,
-

cis e too gr eat c ar e as t o wh at an d how much h e

eats esp eci ally b efor e a public app ear anc e
, He .

must know hims elf wh at b est suits him in this ,

r egard to a d egree th at is n ec ess ary fo r few

,

oth ers .

Wh en singing mor e blood is s ent to th e organs

,

us ed h enc e th e gr eat d anger o f th at exc ess o f

,

blood b eing r et ain ed in th e p arts too long as mi ght ,

easily h app en from pr essur e about th e n eck etc .

,

It is sc arc ely n ec ess ary to point ou t th at draughts ,

cold rooms etc will also d et ermine th e blood from

,
.
,

th e skin inward an d set up th at complic at ed con

,

dition of multifo rm evils known as a cold

”
,
 VOI C P E ODUCI NC M E CHANISM
E L 93

Th e obvious pr in cipl e of pr evention li es in k eeping

h
t e body ,
an d esp eci ally th e n eck , should ers ,
an d
ch est , w arm aft er using th e voc al organs in any
w ay in public T o h and th e singer a wr ap aft er
.

l eaving th e pl atform is always wis e an d th e judi ,

cio u s fri end will see th at conv ers ation is not

allow ed much l es s forc ed on th e possibly br eath

,

—
l ess and w eari ed voic e us er a pr ec aution th at is
-

prob ably mor e honor ed in th e br each th an in th e

obs ervanc e fo r in this as in oth er c as es one s
,
’

fri ends are sometimes his worst en emi es .

SUMMAR Y .

Th e l arynx is th e most important

org an in voice
production and consists of c artil ages muscles th e
, , ,

voc al b ands tru e an d fals e m embr anes an d liga

, ,

m ents folds o f mucous m embr an e etc It is situ

, ,
.

at ed b etw een th e hyoid ( tongu e ) bon e abov e an d

th e tr ach ea b elow Th e c artil ag es are th e 1 )

.

epiglottis ( 2 ) thyroid cricoid aryt enoid th e two

, , , ,

sm all unim port ant cornicul a l aryn gis or c arti

, ,

l ages o f S antorini surmounting th e aryt enoids

, ,

an d th e two cun eiform o r c artil ages of Wrisb erg, ,

in th e folds of mucous membr an e on each sid e of

th e a ryt enoids .

Th e muscl es are att ach ed to th e m ain c artil ages .

In addition to th e muscl es th at are conc ern ed with

th e movem ents of th e voc al b ands oth ers th at hold ,

th e l ar yn x in pl ac e o r r ais e an d lower it are

att ach ed ex tern al ly to th es e esp eci ally to th e l arge
,

thyroid c artil age T h e epiglottis th e fals e voc al

.
,
94 VOICE PRODUC TION
.

cords th e tru e voc al cords an d th e thyro aryte

, ,
-

n oid muscl es are att ach ed to th e int erior ant erior

surfac e of th e thyroid in this order from above

down .

T h e fals e voc al b ands h ave no dir ect function in

phon ation T h e w h o l e l arynx s o far as p h o n ation
.
,

is con cern ed m ay b e s aid t o ex is t fo r th e t ru e

,

v o cal b an ds Th ey are att ach ed clos e tog eth er to

.

th e int ern al and ant erior surfac e of th e thyroid

in front an d to th e low er ant erior angl es ( voc al
proc ess es ) of th e aryt enoids b ehin d B etween th e .

fals e voc al b ands above and th e tru e voc al b ands

b elow th er e is a c avity ( th e ventricle of Mo r
g agni ) Th e fals e voc al b ands are prot ective an d
.
,

approxim at e clos ely durin g coughing sw allowing , ,

etc .

It is very import ant to not e th at th e aryt enoid

c artil ages move fr eely on th ei r b as e swivel like so ,
-
,

th at n early al l th e changes effect ed in th e mov e

ments an d t ension of th e voc al b ands are brought
about through alt er ations in th e position o f th es e

c art il ages ; an d this impli es th at all th e muscl es

conc ern ed are att ach ed t o them From above .

down in front th e order o f structures is as

, ,

follows
Hyoid b on e .

M embr an e .

Thyroid c artilage .

M embr ane .

Cricoid c artil age .

Tr ach ea .
 VOICE PRODUCIN G M E CHANIS M
-
95

Th e hyoid bon e is n o t a p art of th e l arynx but ,

'

from it th e l arynx is susp end ed Th e b one itself .

g i v es a tt achm e nt to th e muscl e s o f th e tongu e .

Th e glottis is th e ch ink b etw een th e tru e vo cal

b ands .

Th e muscl es o f th e l arynx m ay b e divid ed into

th e following : ( 1 ) Thos e th at op en an d thos e th at
clos e th e glottis ; ( 2 ) thos e which r egul at e th e ten
sion of th e voc al b ands Th e l att er includ e th e ( a )
.

crico thyroids which t ens e an d elongat e th em ( b )

-
, ,

thyro aryt enoids which r el ax an d short en th em

-
,
.

T h e crico thyroid m ay b e c onsid er ed th e most

-

import ant muscl e o f phon ati on b ec aus e it is s o ,

much us ed an d s o effective By its action th e ori

.

c o id is pull ed up in front an d down b ehind so th at ,

th e aryt enoids are dr awn b ack and thus th e voc al ,

b ands t ens ed an d l ength en ed T h e l ater al crico .

aryt enoids an d th e thyro aryt enoids h av e th e

-

—
O pposit e effect i e th ey r el ax an d short en th e
.
,
.

voc al b ands ; h enc e wh en th ey come into pl ay a

n ew r egist er b egins Th e thyro aryt enoids at
.
-
,

tach ed along th e whol e l ength o f th e voc al b and s

ext ern ally h av e a v ery import ant but not w ell
,

u nd erstood action in th e production o f th e high er

ton es an d prob ably als o of th e fals etto

, .

T h e whol e l aryn x is lined with mucous m em

br an e th at covering th e tru e voc al b ands b ein g
,

very thin . T h e fals e voc al b ands are m ad e up

chi efly o f mucous m embr an e ; th e tr u e vocal b ands
abound in el a stic tissu e Th e l arynx ris es durin g
.

th e production of high ton es and durin g ph ona , .

96 VOIC E PRO D UC TION
tion its vib r ations may b e felt ,
lso thos e of
as a

th e ch est .

P ractical .

1 F eel in your own p erson th e p arts of th e

.

l arynx etc from above down

,
.
,
.

2 Not e th e vibr ation o f th e l ar yn x wh en a vow el

.

is spok en or sung A simil ar vibr ation of th e

.

ch est walls m ay b e felt by th e h ands l aid over

th em .

3 Note th e ch ange o f position o f th e l arynx in

.

singing a sc al e .

4 Diss ect a pig s or sh eep s pluck

’ ’
.

sp ecimens of th e l arynx .
 FI G . Th th r fi gur i ll u t r t p rh p m or c l r l y h t i f h m
35 . e se ee es s a e e a s e ea t e ac on o t e us

c l in d ic t d F G a e I S

rro w h o w h d i r c t ion f h pu ll f h m u c l T h r u lt f th i c t ion

es .

Th e a s s t e e o t e o t e s es . e es o s a

i h t po i t ion f h c r t i l g
e new d v oc l b n d
o wh ic h i h o w n by d ou tl in
t a a an a a

l o d pic t d i n d T h h v r ou t r ri m i t o in d i c t h h y d
s s e es s, s s re es .

T h mu cl i s a s a e t e t

c r t i l g By co m p r i ng h upp r d h l o w t fi gur i t W i ll b n th t th y
e s e e e re . e ea 1e e s r0 1

a a e . a t e e an t e es e e s ee a e a re

O ppo i t O f cour in p h on t ion h v oc l b n d n v r m uc h p r t d t a re a a e

h ow n in h i ll u tr t i on R th r d o h l o w r fi gur in d i c t c
s es . se, a e a a s e e so se as

t a f xtr m
a t e e a e a a se

p r t ion d t o v ry d p i n pir t ion H o w v r th i ll u t r t ion

s e s s . e es e o e e e

m r ly
d i gr m m n t t o in d i c t in g n r l y h m nn r f h w orking f p rt F
se a a ue a e ee s a . e e ,
ese s a s are e e

a wa t a t

x c t p i c t ur f h v oc l b n d d r l t d p r t C h p t r V I I
a a s ea a e e e a e e o e o a s. or

e a es o t e a a s an e a e a s , s ee a e .
V oc l b n d
a a s h .

M u cl
s e
 C HAP T ER VI I .

SO UND— TH E LARYN GOS CO PE TH E LARY NX

—
RE C ONS I DE RE D

B E F ORE discussing ou r subj ect furth er it is d esir

abl e th at some att ention b e giv en to a few of th e

fund ament al principl es of th at d ep artm ent o f

physics t erm ed acou stics an d which d eals with th e
,

subj ect o f sound If th e stud ent h as th e op p or

.

tu n ity to study thi s subj ect th eor etic ally an d p rac

tic ally as it is set forth in som e good work on
,

physics h e will h ave no r eason to r egr et th e time

,

sp ent A d eep knowledge o f th e l aws of sound is

.

not abs olut ely ess enti al o r ev en highly n ec ess ary

, ,

fo r a su ffici ent und erst anding of th e principl es in

volved in voic e production It is how ever all
-
.
, ,

import ant th at a few facts and principl es b e thor

oughly gr asp ed .

F o r thos e who f eel th at th ey h ave th e time for

a study o f acoustics th e author would esp eci ally
,

r ecomm end Tynd all s work o n sound in whi ch th e

’
,

subj ect is tr eat ed with wond erful cl earn ess an d

ch arm Wh at w e end eavor now to bring b efor e
.

th e r ead er w e h av e found suffi ci ent for n early al l

th e purpos es o f th e voic e us er -
.

An obs erver on th e str eet looking at a milit ary

,

b and notic es c ert ain movements of on e m emb er

,

o f th e org aniz ation which r esult in wh at h e t erm ed

th e sound o f th e drum ; but a deaf m an b y his side,

7 97
98 VOICE PRODUCTIO N
though h e s ees th e movem ents h ears nothing ,
.

This b eing an alyz ed means th at th e movements

, ,

of th e drummer s arm conv eyed through th e

’
,

drumstick to th e membr an e o f th e drum give ris e

'

to movements in it which s et up corr esponding

movem ents of th e air within th e drum which ag ain ,

c aus e movements o f th e body o f th e instrum ent ,

th e whol e c ausing mov em ents of th e ext ern al air ;

an d h er e th e pur ely physic al proc ess ends Th e .

movem ents oth er th an muscul ar on es are not r ead

ily obs erv ed but exp erim ents not only prove th at
,

th ey exist but d emonstr at e th eir n atur e even to

, ,

th eir ex act r ate o f occurr enc e th eir siz e etc

' ‘

, , .

Th es e mov ements are t erm ed vi b ration s an d as , ,

h as b een indic at ed pr evi o usly th ey ar e th e sol e ,

physic al c aus e of sound But th at th e l atter is not

.

d u e wholly to a physic al origin is evid ent from th e

fact th at sound for th e d eaf do es not exist It .

must th er efor e b e a p erson al a subj ectiv e ex p eri

, , ,

enc e an d as th e sl eeping unconscious p erson do es

, ,

not n eces s arily h ear a sound th e proc es s is not ,

wholly a corporeal o r physiologic al proc ess ; it is

fi n ally an exp erienc e of th e mind th e conscious ,

n ess and so is psychologic al as well as physio

,

logic al .

Th e fact th at sound h as a physic al b asis in th e

vibr ations o f bodi es eith er solid liquid or , , ,

gas eous m ay b e brought home t o on e in various

,

w ays C oncussion o r sh aking o f som e kind is

.

ess enti al t o st art th es e vibr ations T h e air is . .

m ade u p of its p articl es and on e b eing mov ed

‘

,
 ‘

SOUND
s ets up in evit ably movem ents in n ei ghb oring p ar
, ,
"
ticl es o n al l si des h enc e vibr ations t r av el in al l
’

dir ections which expl ains why a s ound in th e

str eet m ay b e h eard by thos e in every p ar t o f th e
'
‘

str eet not to o distan t and also in th e upp er rooms

'

of th e hous es an d b elow in th e b as em ents This .

is an import ant fact fo r th e singer or sp eaker to

'

b ear in mind His purpos e must b e to Set up

.
’

vibr ations th at will tr avel with gr eat p erfection :

an d r apidity in all dir ections .

Th e following exp erim ents o f a simpl e kind will

s erv e to convinc e thos e who m ay not h av e given
much att ention to th e subj ect th at sound is du e to
movements of so me obj ect which w e t erm th e ,

soundi ng b ody strictly th at which st arts th e vibr a

,

tions by its own movem ents o r vibr ations .

If a sufficiently fl exibl e b and o f met al o r a sti ff

pi ec e of wh al ebon e b e fi x ed at on e en d in a vic e ,

an d th en sh arply pull ed to o n e sid e and sudd enly

l et g o a sound r esults
,
Th e s am e effect is pro
.

du ced wh en a tight cord o r sm all rop e is pluck ed

at an d th en sudd enly r el eas ed In each of th es e .

c as es if actu al movem ents ar e n o t s een a c ert ain

, ,

h az e which s eems to surround th e o bj ect m ay b e

obs erv ed Th e s am e can b e s een wh en a tuning
.

fork is set into action by a bow a blow etc In ,

'

,
.

th e c as e of th e fork a gr aphic tr acing ( Fig 3 6) can .

b e r eadily t ak en o n smok ed p ap er thus d emon ,

str ating to th e eye th at vibr ations exist th at th ey ,

occur with p erfect r egul arity an d with a fr equ ency

th at can b e m easur ed .
1 00 V O ICE PRO D UC TI O N
A simi l ar obs er vation c an b e m ade in th e c as e of
stringed instrum ents If pi ec es of p ap er b e l aid .

o n th e strings o f a violin an d th e bow th en dr awn ,

across th em th e bits of p ap er will fly o ff owing to

,

th e movem ents— i e —
th e vibr ations of th e . .
,

strings .

Th at a forc e appl i ed at one en d of s ever al ob

j ect s in a lin e or s eri es c aus es an obvious effect
at th e oth er en d can b e w ell illustr at ed in a simpl e
,

way If a numb er of individu als st and one b ehind

.

F I G 36 . .

( T y d ll ) I ll u t t h o w h v i b r t ion f tuni g fork r gi t r d

d ( m ok
FI G 36 n a s ra es t e a s o a n - are e s e e

or d r t h t h m o v m n t f h fork h ll b
. .

on ab l ck
a d ) gl
en e I e as s . n a t s o t s a

t c d in h for m f gu l r c v h urf c m u t b k pt m v ing

s e e e e e e

ra e t e o re a ur es , t d fi ni t
e s a e s e e o a t a. e e

gl t
re u ar ra e.
’

a noth er in a line each w ith h is h ands l aid fi rmly,

o n th e should ers o f th e o n e n ext to him an d th e ,

p erson at th e en d b e push ed th e forc e will b e con ,

v eyed through al l th e int erm edi at e individu als ,

an d c aus e th e unsupport ed p erson at th e dist ant

end to mov e 8 0 is it with th e p articl es o f which

.

th e air is compos ed Th e movem ents b egun in .

th e drum set up by cont act corr esponding move

m ents or vib r ations in th e adj ac ent air which ulti ,

mately reach th e h earing subj ect s ear th er eby ’

,
 S OUND 1 01

af e
f ct hi s br ain an d are accomp ani ed by th at,

ch ange in consciousn es s which h e t erms hear

”
ing It will b e obs erved th at th es e events consti
.

tut e a ch ain and a br eak anywh er e will pr event a

,

s ound b eing h eard ; ther e is th en in fact no sound , ,

.

Sounds are ch ar act eriz ed by p itch v olu m e an d , ,

q u ali ty .

T h e p itch
is d et ermined by th e numb er o f vibr a
tions th at r each th e ear within a c ert ain tim e ; th e
mor e numerous th e sound waves ( vibrations ) in a -

s econd , th e high er th e pitch .

FI G 3 7
. .
3

FI G 3 7 ( T yn d ll ) M n t i ll u t r t v ibr t ion T h i m pu l co mm unic t d

a ea to a e a s. e se a e

b y b ll pu h d fro m h h n d ll h int r v ning on c u on l y h e l t t o

. . s

th e a s e t e a to a t e e e es a ses t as

a c t u ll y m o v bo d i l y
a e .

Anim ms di ffer good d eal as to th e limits ofa

h earing C ats h ear v ery high pitch ed sounds as

.
-
,

o f mic e th at hum an b eings m ay not notic e an d it

, ,

is likely th at ins ects h ear sounds altog eth er b e

yond th e limit o f th e hum an ear But it is won .

d erfu l how much hum an b eings di ffer among th em

s elv es in r egard to this m att er It h as surpris ed .

th e author to fi nd th at m any p ersons c annot h ear

th e high pitch ed not e of c ert ain birds as th e wax
-

wing .
1 02 VOICE PRO D UC TION
Th e lower l imit sp eaking gen er ally is fo r most
, ,

p ersons 1 6 vibr ations and th e high est 3 8 000vibr a

,

tions a s econd according to H elmholtz h enc e th e

, ,

entir e r ange of t h e hum an ear wou l d b e fully 1 1

oct aves ; but th e pr acti cal r ange of music al sounds

is within 4 0 a n d 4 000 vibr ations a s econd i— .

about 7 oct av es — an d as is w ell kn own ev en thi s

, ,

r ange is b eyond th e appr eci ation o f most p ersons ,

though as to this much d ep ends on cultivation

att ention to th e subj ect ext ending over a consid er

abl e p eriod o f tim e .

Th e v o lu m e o r loudn es s o f a sound d ep ends on

, ,

th e siz e of th e vibr ations just as o n e feels a blow

,

from a l arge obj ect oth er things b eing equ al mor e

, ,

th an from a sm all on e Th e ear drum h ead is in

.
-

th e c as e of a l arge s ound b eat en as it w er e mor e

, ,

p owerfully Th e singers th at give us bign ess of

.

sound instead o f qu ality b el abor our ears so to ,

sp eak ; th ey tr eat us as p ersons of m ean under

—
st anding dull int ell ects ; th e thing is es s enti ally
vulgar .

Th e q u ality of a sound is d et ermin ed by th e

form o f th e vibr ations A sound o f good qu ality
.

is to th e ear wh at a b eautiful st atu e or pictur e is

t o th e eye . As will b e expl ain ed l at er th e form ,

or qu ality d ep ends largely o n th e sh ap e etc o f , .

,

th e r eson anc e ch amb ers above th e voc al b ands

-
.

M uch discussion h as t ak en pl ace from time to

time as to th e n atur e o f th e l arynx as a music al
instrum ent som e b eing inclin ed to r egard it as
,

most clos ely alli ed to a stringed instrum ent oth ers ,

 S OUND 1 03
‘

to a wind instrum ent

-
It h as ob viously points o f
.

res embl anc e to both but th e most r ec ent re

,

s earch es m ak e it cl ear er th an ever th at it is n eith er

o n e nor th e oth er strictly sp eaking but th at it
, ,

st ands in a cl ass by its elf It is how ever h elpful

.
, , ,

in considering m any qu estions to b ear in mind its ,

r es embl anc es to both wind an d stringed in stru

m ents Th e vo cal b ands are not wholly fr ee
.

throughout th eir l ength lik e th e strings of a violin

, ,

nor d o th ey b ear any gr eat r es embl anc e to th e r eed

of such an instrum ent as th e cl arin et but as in th e ,

l att er th e forc e c ausing th e vibr ations is a bl ast o f

air. W e h av e alr eady point ed out th at th e voc al
b ands are set into vibr ation sol ely by th e ex p ira
t ory bl ast of air .

TH E L ARY N GO S C O PE .

Th e distinguish ed physiologist Joh ann es Miil l er

d emonstr at ed th e working of th e l arynx by sp ecial
exp erim ents He fi x ed into th e windpip e a b el
.

lows and showed in th e d ead l arynx o f cours e

, , , ,

th at th e b l ast from this s ourc e cou ld c aus e th e

voc al b ands to vibr at e an d thus produc e sounds ,

which by v arying th e str ength o f th e forc e etc ,

.
,

were m ad e t o vary in pitch .

Whil e such exp erim ents indic at e th e ess enti al

principl es of a possibl e voic e production as th e -
,

conditions in life w er e n ot an d could n ot b e fully

m et th es e r esults wer e r ath er sugg estiv e th an
d emonstr ative of N atur e s m ethods Th es e inves
’
.
‘
1 04 VOICE PR O D UC TION
tig ation ss erv ed a good purpos e b ut th ey w er e
,

m anifestly in adequ at e an d this w as felt by on e

,

thoughtful voc al t each er so k eenly th at h e pon

d er ed much on th e subj ect in th e hop e of fi nding a

,

m ethod of ob serving th e l arynx during actu al pho

nation . T o thi s di stinguish ed t each er M anu el
,
 SOUND 1 05

G arci a b elongs th e honor o f inventing th e mean s

,

o f obs erving th e voc al b ands in action This w as .

accomplish ed in 1 8 54 an d s oon aft er G arci a r ead

, , ,

an accoun t o f his obs erv ations to th e R oy al S o

ciety o f London ; an d though much in this p ap er

r equir ed corr ection by subs equ ent obs ervations it ,

r emains to this d ay th e found ation o f our kn owl

edge o f th e action of th e l arynx in voic e
production .

As usu ally employ ed th e l aryngoscop e cons 1 8 ts

,

o f two mirrors th e h ead mirror s o c all ed b ec aus e

,
-
,

it is usu ally att ach ed to th e for eh ead by an el astic

b and and th e thro at mirror which is pl ac ed in th e
,
-
,

b ack p art o f th e mouth c avity T h e purpos e o f .

th e h ead mirror is to r efl ect th e light th at r each es

-

it from a l amp o r oth er s ourc e of illumin ation into

th e mouth c avity so p erfectly th at not only th e
b ack o f th e mouth etc but th e l arynx its elf m ay b e
,
.

w ell light ed up ; but inasmuch as this illumin ation

m ay b e accomplish ed und er favor abl e circum
,

st anc es by dir ect sunlight th e h ead mirror is

, ,
-
,

though mostly indisp ens abl e n ot an absolut ely ,

ess enti al p art o f th e l aryngoscop e Th ere is in .

,

d eed o n e advant age in th e u se of dir ect sun light

, ,

in th at th e color o f th e p arts s een r em ains mor e

n early norm al L amplight t ends b ec aus e o f its
.
,

yellow color to m ak e p arts s eem r ath er o f a

,

d eep er red th an th ey actu ally are ; but this to th e

pr actis ed obs erver always using th e s ame sourc e
,

o f illumin ation is not a s erious m att er — his st and

,

ards of comp arison r em ain th e s am e Mor eover , .

1 06
~
VOICE PRODUC TION
thi s o b j ection do es not apply equ ally to el ectric
so much us ed .

It b eing a fund am ent al l aw of l ight th at th e

angl e o f r efl ection an d th e angl e o f incidenc e cor

r espond are in fact th e s ame— it w as n ec ess ary

—
, ,

th at th e thro at mirror should b e set at an angl e to -

its st em s o th at th e light p assing up by r efl ectio n

,

FI G .
39 .

F I G 39Th i i ll u t tion i m t t o h o w m or p ci ll y h r l t i v po i t ion f

'

ean s e es e a t e a

h righ t i w ring h h d m irror wh i l

. . s s ra s e e s o

o b rv r
se d ob r v d
e an T h ob r v r on t e s ea t e ea -

w t h ro t m irror
se e . e se e , , , e

t o a m b in po i t ion—i r l i t y h m m irror i w d iff r n t

to s n ea t e sa e n t o

t o r fl c t h p ic t ur f h n l c h m b r p ci ll y
-
s s ee e , e e

p i tion O i p l c d
os s ne e t e e o t e asa a e s, e s

t h ir h in d por t ion T h w ll f h o
. s a e so as e e a

e er m y f h p urpo af th i il l u t e n se, et c a or t e s es o

n t th t h cro ll ( t rbin t d ) bon

. e s o .
, s s

i
t rat o n b con i d r d tr n p
e a areco m in t o a t e s u a e es , e t c

v i w T h t ongu i pro t ru d d Th l igh n i t hi fi gur i u u ll y p l c d

s e e s ,
so .
, e

e . e e s e . e t , n o t s ee n s e, s s a a e

on t h l ft f h
e e ubj c t in Fig 3 8
o t e s e ,
as . .

from th e l arynx should wh en striking on th e sur ,

fac e o f this pl an e thro at mirror b e r efl ect ed ou t -

,

w ard m a str aight lin e to th e eye which must b e ,

in th e s am e horizont al pl an e with it This an d al l . .

th e oth er f acts an d principl es involv ed can only

b e und erstood by a c ar eful insp ection o f th e
accomp anying fi gur es which it is hop ed will m ak e ,
 SO UN D 1 07

th e subj ect plain T h e thro at mirror is none

.
-

oth er th an th e mouth mirror of th e d entists and in

-
,

u se by th em b efor e G arci a discov er ed how it might

b e employ ed to throw light on th e l arynx in a

.
,

doubl e s ens e .

Th e ess enti als th en for a V i ew o f th e i nt erior

, ,
. -

o f th e l arynx ar e : A s ourc e o f illumin ation ; a

mirror to r efl ect th e li ght r eaching it from this
sourc e into th e b ack of th e thro at an d l arynx ; an d
’

a s econd mirror to r efl ect th e light outw ard which

is in th e fi rst inst anc e r efl ect ed from b elow from

, , ,

th e int erior o f th e l arynx T h e pri n cipl es m

‘

volved are few an d simple but th eir applic atio n ,

to any p articul ar c as e is n o t easy an d is som e ,

tim es w ell nigh impossibl e

-
.

T h e thro at mirror should b e pl ac ed against th at

-

curtain susp end ed in th e b ack of th e mouth c avity

known as th e soft p al at e so th at it must b e ,

push ed b ack out of th e lin e of vi ew But m any

.
.

p ers ons fi nd such a for eign obj ect in th e thro at a

su flicien t c aus e o f unpl eas ant s ens ations s o th at

r etching m ay b e th e r esult Gen er ally th ere is a .

t end ency to r ais e th e tongu e b ehind in a w ay fat al

to a vi ew o f th e mirror an d th e pictur e r efl ect ed
fr om it
. . Th es e difficulti es how ever can b e over , ,

come by a d eft h and using th e mirror brought to

blood h eat by pl acing it 1 n warm w at er o r
holding it ov er som e sourc e of h eat as a sm all ,

l amp an d dir ecting th e subj ect obs erved t o

, ,
.

breath e fr eely an d th rou g h th e m ou th This l at .

ter t ends to qui et th at unruly m emb er th e tongu e, ,

1 08 VOICE PRODUC TION

an d l ead it to assum e th e fl at position so import ant

to an unobstruct ed vi ew It is for th e s am e r eason
.

th e author urges mouth br eathing during sp eakin g

an d singing No oth er t ends s o w ell to put th e
.

tongu e in th e corr ect position .

Th e ext ent to which one feels th e annoyanc e o f

a sm all mi rror h eld gently in th e thro at d ep ends

r eally on th e amount o f att ention di r ected to it ,

an d th e d egr ee o f d et ermin ation with which h e r e

solves to ex ercis e s elf control T h e author h as

-
.

ex amin ed an entir e cl as s o f stud ents o f voic e

production an d found only one p erson who did

not succ eed in at onc e giving him a vi ew o f th e
l arynx . B u t it must b e at onc e s aid th at o f al l
p ersons ex amin ed by th e author during his ex p eri
enc e as an inv estigator o f voic e production an d in -

sp eci al medical pr actic e none h ave b een abl e to

,

show th eir thro ats th e l arynx includ ed s o well as

, ,

s p eak ers an d abov e all sing ers ; which in its elf

, ,

indic at es th at sp eaking an d singing do giv econtrol

o f th e thro at— th at al l its p arts r espond to th e will

o f th e obs erv ed p ers on T h e author must furth er

.
,

how ever r em ark th at h e h as found this control

,

associ at ed not s o much with voc al power as with

int elligent study Int elligenc e t ells in music a

.

good d eal mor e th an many p eopl e h ave yet l earned

t o b eli eve ; but on this point th e r ead er will l ong
h —
sinc e h ave l earn ed t e author s vi ews in fact s o
’
,

d eep are his convictions o n this subj ect th at h e

hop es h e m ay b e p ardon ed for frequ ent r efer enc e
to th em in one form or anoth er
,
.
 S OUN D 1 09

On e n tomic al fact m ay b e so invincibl e that a

a a

vi ew of th e glottis c ann ot b e obtained at al l : th e

epiglottis m ay so ov erh ang th e op ening to th e

l arynx th at a good vi ew o f its int erior is absolut ely

impossibl e in other c as es only occ asion ally an d
,

under very favorabl e circumst anc es Such c as es .

are how ever o f th e r ar est occurr enc e whil e th er e

, , ,

ar e not a few p ersons in whom o n e m ay ev en see

down th e windpip e as far as its division into th e

two m ain bronchi al tub es an d infl amm ation may
,

thus oft en b e tr ac ed from th e voc al b ands far down

th e mucous m embr an e common to th e l arynx ,

windpip e etc ,
.

As h as b een r em arked pr eviously it is only ,

by the u se o f th e l aryngoscop e th at o ne can see

th e voc al m ech anism o f th e l arynx in action s o ,

th at for in vestigation l aryngoscopy is ess enti al .

Auto l aryngoscopy o r th e u se o f th e l aryngoscop e

-
,

by th e subj ect to obs erve his own l arynx h as its ,

sp eci al difficulti es an d advant ages th e gr eat est o f

,

th e l att er b eing p erh aps th at th e obs erver m ay

, ,

u se hims elf as oft en an d as long as h e will whi l e ,

h e would h esit at e to m ak e ob s ervations on oth ers

at gr eat l ength or with fr equ ent r ep etition Th er e .

are no n ew principl es involved in auto l aryn g o -

scopy Th e obs erver must simply see th at a good

.

light is r eflect ed into his own thro at and th at th e ,

pictur e in his thro at mirror is r eflect ed into an

-

oth er into which h e m ay gaz e an ordin ary small

,

h and gl ass usu ally su ffi cing

-
.
 10 VOICE PRODUC TION
Only rar ely 1 s th e individu al m et who can him
s elf so control his tongu e th at assist ance fro th e m
obs erving l aryn gologist 1 s unnec ess ary In by far .

th e gr eat er numb er O f inst anc es th e ton g u e aft er ,

b eing protrud ed must b e g ently h eld by th e l eft

,

hand o f th e obs erver a sm all n apkin cov ering th e

,

tip O f th e organ Th e auto l aryngologist must o f

.
-
,

cours e control his own tongu e an d b etter if with

, ,

o u t any h and cont act .

I t is scarcely n ec ess ary to s ay th at b efor e pl ac

ing th e mirror in th e mouth its t emp eratur e mus t
b e t est ed by touching it for a mom ent against th e
b ack of th e h and .

N early all th e fac ts o f i mport anc e inphonation ,

s ever al of which h ave already b een r eferr ed to ,

or will b e m ention ed in th e Summ ary an d Re

vi ew b elow could only h ave b een discov er ed by
,

th e u se Of th e l aryn goscop e: Th e di ffer enc e in th e

l aryn x in th e two s ex es an d in di ffer ent typ es of
sing ers an d sp eak ers though Op en to ordin ary
,

O bs ervation diss ection etc

,
ar e still b ett er
,
.
,

brought out by th e u se o f th e instrument now

und er consid er ation .

On e n atur ally exp ects any organ to b e l arg er

an d h eavi er in th e m al e th an in th e fem al e an d to ,

this th e l aryn x is no exc eption ; and individu al di f

feren ces are equ ally pronounc ed Th er e m ay b e .

almost if n o t quit e as much d ifl er ence b etw een th e

l arynx of a b aryt on e an d O f a t enor as b etw een

th at o f an ordin ary m an wh o is n o t a public voice
u s er an d th e l arynx of th e ordin ary wom an Th e .
 SOUND 111

l arynx of th e contr alto m ay in its siz e and gen er al ;

d evelopm ent r emind one of th e s am e organ in th e

m al e Th e voc al b ands o f th e b ass sing er m ay
.
.

b e to thos e o f a sopr ano as are th e strings o f a

—
violonc ello t o thos e of a violin using th es e ex
ampl es it will b e und erstood m er ely as ro ugh
'

, ,

ill u str atibn s .

Th e ch ange in th e siz e of th e l arynx produc ed

by even a few months judicious pr actic e m ay b e ’

astonishing As alr eady hint ed it is impor tant

'

,
.

th at in bringing ab o ut this d ev elopment exclusive

att ention should n o t b e given as is s om etim es ,

don e es peci ally in th e c as e O f sp eak ers to th e

, ,

low er ton es though it is n ot so import ant for th em

,

a s fo r sing ers to h av e an ev en d ev elopm ent up to

th e high est r ange .

But ag ain th e author would urge th e voic e us er

' -

t o aim at att aining th at d elicat e control o f muscl es

( n eur a muscul
-
l

a r m ech anisms t o sp eak mor e sc ien ,

tifi cal l y ) so import ant for th e fin est voc al effects ,

r ath er th an b e s atis fi ed with m er e power T h e .

v oc alist an d sp eak er must ind eed b e athl etic

'
'

sp eci alists but th ey should n o t aim at b eing lik e

,

th e ordin ary ath l et e much l ess m er e strong men,

o f th e circu s .

It is s aid t h at M ad am e M ar a within h er r ange

O f thr ee oct aves could effect 2 1 00ch anges o f pitch ,

or 1 0
. 0 b etw een each two tones O f th e tw enty on e -

in h er comp ass w hich would r epr es ent a succ es

,

sive ch ange in th e l ength Of th e voc al b ands o f a

sm all fr action possibly n ot m or e th an T rim ; of : an
,
112 VOICE PRODUC TION
—
inch something unappro ach abl e in nic ety in th e
u s e O f any oth er instrum ent Ev en if w e make
.

l arge d eductions from th e above th e p erformanc es ,

o f thos e who h av e r each ed th e high est l aryng eal

control must r emain marvellous al l th e mor e wh en ,

it is r em emb er ed th at this control ov er th e l arynx ,

to b e effi ci ent for music al purpos es must b e aecom ,

p an ied by a corr esponding m a st ery o f th e ar t o f

br eathing Is it n ec ess ary to point out th at such
.

wond erful d evelopm en t an d control can only b e

att ain ed aft er y ears o f st eady work b y th e b est

methods ?
At on e period in th e life of th e individu al
ch anges Of such import anc e t ak e pl ac e in th e entir e
n atur e physic al m ent al an d mor al th at h e b e
, , , ,

com es almost a new b eing This epoch is known

.

as th e p eriod o f pub erty or adol esc enc e an d m ay ,

b e consid er ed th at o f th e gr avest mom ent during

on e s whol e life ; for th en for b ett er or wors e
’
, ,

gr eat ch ang es in evit ably occur It is incomp ara.

bly th e p eriod o f gr eat est d evelopm ent and u n , ,

fortun at ely th er e m ay also spring into b eing with

, ,

striking suddenn ess physic al an d psychic tr aits

,

which c aus e th e gr eate st anxiety In any c as e th e .

,

thoughtful must th en r egard th e youth o r m aid en

with feelings o f th e d eep est int er est if not ,

anxi ety ; an d in th e c as e o f th e voic e us er esp e -

,

cially th e sing er thi s p eriod m ay com e l ad en with

,

th e d estini es of th e futur e .

Th e voc al organs esp eci ally in m al es und ergo

, ,

v ery m arked ch anges in r el ative pro p ortions and

8
 Fa l v oc l b n d
se a a
’
‘

l ru e v oc l b n d
a a

/
upp r t ip f
ry t no i d c r t i l g
P o sl t 1 0n Of e o

a e a a e

FI G run w ld ) I f t h i b co m p r d W i th h n x t i ll u t r t i on ( F
(G a e a e t a IG

o m f h d i ff r nc b tw n h l ryn x f h m l d th t f h f m l m y
.
40 . s e e s .

t t a t t a e a

T h v oc l b n d i n F b i ng th o f m l h vi r d Wid r
s e o e e e es e ee e o e a e an a O e e

b no t d a a IG an

Th y
e e . e
4 s . 0 ,
e se o a a e, are ea e e .

e m or co v r d by h pig l o tt i th n in h o th r c —th t f f m l
are e e e t e e s a t e e a se a o a e a e

(F IG Th f l v oc l b n d w ll n in bo th c
a se d by th ir r d n
( d rk in h fi gur ) con t r t W i th h wh i t n
. e a a s are e s ee a s es , a n e e e ss

a t f h t ru v oc l b n d I bo th
as t t n

i ll u t r t ion h b n d in h in pir t ion p i t ion

e es e e es s o e e a a s.

s a s t e a s are t e s a os .

T ru v oc l b n d
e a a

R i ng s of th e tr ch
a ea,

w ll n
e s ee

FIG . run w ld ) L ryngo copic p i c t ur

41 (G a . a s e of th e fe m l l ryn x— t o
a e a be con
tras t e d w i th th t f m l h o w n in F 4
a o a a e s I G. 0.
 FI G 42 run w ld ) I th i c O w i ng t o h ubj c t h v ing co ld i t i W i th
(G n as e , t e a a

d i ffi cu lt y th t h t ru d i t ingui h d fro m h f l v oc l b n d r dd n d
. a . s e s ,
s

b t c an t a se a a

( d rk i n h fi gur ) w r h for m w i t h corr pon d i ng c h ng in h c h r c t r f

a e e e s s e e s, s o e e e

t e e t a t a a

Th i i w w ob t in d h ubj c t w p h on t in g th t h v oc l
a e e e er , es es e e O
,

h a as t as a a t a

ppro x i m t d o m w h t c l o l y
t e V Oice . s V e as e e s e . so e

b nda s a re a a e s e a se .

l v oc l d
Fa se a o an

T ru v oc l b n d a a

T r c h l i nn r
e

a ea e

urf c s a e

B ck a o f th e l ryn x
a

FI G . run w ld ) S h o w h l ryn x i t m y b
43 (G a . n on l y by h s tf h e a as a e see t e u se O t e

l ryngo cop T h bo v i
a s e. x m p l f h pp r nc f h v oc l b n d d uring
e a e s an e a e o t e a ea a e O t e a a s

a d p in pir t ion d in th i ubj c t in th o i ll u t r t d by F G 4 4 h cir

ee s a ,
an s s e ,
as se s a e I S . o, 1 ,
t e

m w r f v or b l th t h ob r v r cou ld
st an c e s e e so a av n h t r c h h ring
e a t t
in d ic t d in h pic t ur T h r d r W i ll b r in m in d th t in th i d
cu e se e s ee e e e a ea , t e s

f wh ic h a e t e ea

Wh i l r i g ht r m in righ t fron t b co m b ck d b ck
o are e. e e ea a s an

l l l ryngo copic pic t ur es , e e a s

th t h b ck f h l ryn x pp r t o w r d h ob r v r
a a s ,
e es a , an a

fron t ,
so a t e a o t e a i l ow t a ea s a t e se e e .
,
s es on

th p g
e a e.
 SOUND 113
I

a ctu al growth S O m ark ed is this th at th e boy

.

s opr ano m ay actu ally b ecome a b arytone or , ,

unfortun at ely no long er h ave a singing voice at

,

al l .

S O far l arynx is conc ern ed th e ch ang es

as th e
are l ess pronounc ed usu ally in th e girl ; n ev erth e
, ,

l ess th e p eriod is one of such ch ange for th e femal e

,

th at th e gr eat est c ar e should b e ex ercis ed at this

tim e esp eci ally in th e c as e O f city girls Th e body
, .

r equir es all its avail abl e r esourc es for th e growth

an d d ev elopm ent which is so ch ar act eri stic o f thi s

biologic al and psychologic al epoch ; h enc e it may

b e ruinous for th e futur e o f th e girl if at this tim e
th e s am e str ain is put upon h er as o n th e adult ,
wh eth er in th e direction of study physic al ex er ,

tion or s oci al ex cit ement and of cours e th e voic e

, ,

must su ffer with all th e r es t Th e farmer who .

would att empt to work th e colt o f a y ear o r two

o l d as h e do es th e hors e o f four o r fi v e would b e

r egard ed as eith er grossly ignor ant of his business

o r utt erly r eckl ess a s to his own int er ests if not
,

positively cru el DO ou r mod ern us ages not show

.

a n egl ect o f facts o f vit al mom ent still mor e

m ark ed ? Unfortun at ely th e wom an al l h er life ,

must liv e to a gr eat er or l ess ext ent on a s ort o f

, ,

p eriodic u p curve o r down curve O f vit ality ; and

- -

th at this fact is so gener ally ignor ed by soci ety

an d educ ators is on e o f thos e p eculi ariti es o f o u r

ag e at which in spit e of its gr eat adv anc em ent in

,

so m any dir ections a futur e g en er ation must,

w onder .
114 VOICE P R ODUC TION
T o u se th e voic e wh en th e h ealth is ev en slightly
disorder ed is not without risk to th e voc al org ans ,

an d it is th e cl ear duty O f ev ery t each er o f voc al

cultur e at al l ev ents to allow no pr actic e and to

, ,

give no l essons th at imply th e actu al u se O f th e

voc al org ans at th es e times N o r is this a gr eat .
.

loss rightly consid er ed for th e int ell ectu al sid e o f

, ,

th e subj ect which r equir es s o much att ention m ay

, ,

r eadily b e m ad e t o t ak e th e pl ac e Of th e voc al for a

few d ays .

Th e SO c all ed -
br eaking of th e voic e is
l argely confin ed to m al es b ec aus e th e growth ,

ch anges etc as alr eady s aid are most m ark ed

,
.
, ,

in boys At this tim e also th er e is fr equ ently

.
, ,

an exc ess of blood suppli ed to th e l arynx with pos ,

sib l y som e d egr ee o f st agn ation or cong estion ,

which r esults in a thick ening Of th e voc al b ands ,

un equ al action o f muscl es etc which must involve ,

.
,

imp erfections in th e voic e In al l such c as es com

.

mon s ens e an d physiology alik e pl ainly in di c at e

th at r est is d esir abl e All shouting singing etc
.
, ,
.
,

should b e r efrain ed from an d even ordin ary ,

sp eech as much as possibl e in v ery m ark ed c as es

, , ,

esp eci ally wh en th e individu al is ev en slightly

indispos ed or w eary .

In oth er c as es th e ch anges ar e so gradu al an d

so littl e m ark ed th at it is n ot at al l n ec ess ary to
discontinu e voc al pr actic e if c arri ed out with c are
,

an d und er th e guid anc e o f an int elligent fri end o r

t each er ; but b ec aus e o f th e possibility o f th e voice

ch an ging in qu ality th er e is no tim e wh en th e
,
 S OUN D 115
'

a dvic e of an exp eri enc ed an d enl igh ten ed teacher

o r l aryn gologist is mor e n ec ess ary .

Th e condition pr es ent in th e voc al b ands and

l arynx gener ally o f th e boy at pub erty is mor e or
l es s akin to th at found in fatigu e ill h ealth ,
-
,

ho ars eness etc as well as in O ld ag e wh en m u scu

,
.
, ,

l ar action is v ery unc ert ain so th at in th e w eak

,

l arynx as els ewh er e th e o l d m an m ay appro ach

, ,

th e und ev elop ed youth an d for much th e s am e

,

—
r e son l ack of coOrdinated or h armonious control
a

o f p arts .

Th es e r em arks imply O f cours e th at th e youth

, ,

h as alr eady b egun studi es in voic e production and

-
,

th at r ais es anoth er import ant qu estion viz .

,

Wh en should th e individu al who is suffi ci ently en

dowed music ally b eg in to sing o r study public
,

utt er anc e pr actic ally in som e o f its forms ?

N O faculty d evelops earli er th an th e music al ,

an d this is a strong argum ent in its elf for th e

early study O f music ap art altog eth er from oth er

,

consid er ations about which th er e is room fo r mor e

d i ffer enc e o f opinion Should th e child g et his
.

music al d evelopm ent through th e u se o f his own

music al instrum ent o r anoth er ? If h e shows n at
ur al ability fo r th e u se o f th e voic e should h e b e ,

tr ain ed very early ?

Against early tr aining m ay b e urged th e facts
abov e r eferr ed to — th e li ability of gr eat ch ang es
t aking pl ac e in th e -l aryn x at pub erty esp eci ally ,

in th e boy But m ark ed are th e ch anges th at t ak e

.

pl ac e in oth er p arts o f th e b ody also an d thi s is ,

116 VOICE PRO D UC TION
not urged against ex ercis es for gen eral d evelop
ment for th e boy It is a r em arkab l e fact th at
,
.

m any o f th e gr eat compos ers s ang as b oys and ,

_

p ossibly this h as h ad something to do with th eir

writing music for th e voic e l at er wh en th ey w er e
, ,

most Of th em b y no m eans fin e singers ; b ut on this

too much str es s should not b e l aid .

T h e qu estion at issu e is to b e sh arply m ark ed O ff

from anoth er— th e public app ear anc e of childr en
as soloists ,r ecit ers etc In this c as e th e qu estion
,
.

is mor e complic at ed and c annot b e s ettl ed by

,

physiologic al consider ations alon e Our pro b lem .

is also to b e kept ap art from anoth er v ery impor

—
t nt qu estion th e singing of childr en or ind eed
a , , ,

adults in cl ass es choirs etc

, , ,
.

If a child shows hims elf a d esir e to sing and ,

esp eci ally if h e h as music al ability above th e aver

ag e an d a voic e th at is o f fair r ange an d qu ality ,

one c an s carc ely s ee why h e should not b e en cou r

aged ,
an d pl aced und er a wis e teach er ; for it
is doubtful if th er e b e any b ett er w ay O f d evelop
ing th e ear an d music al n atur e even if in futur e ,

th e child shows th at h e will accomplish mor e as an

instrum entalist Such voc al tr aining t ends to de
.

v el op m ent o f th e l arynx an d th at can scarc ely b e

,

wholly lost no m att er wh at ch anges pub erty may

,

bring about At th e s am e time on e must t ake

.
,

c ar e not to b e to o hop eful in r egard to child sing

er s. N atur e gives u s some surpris es and not ,

alw ays pl eas ant on es .

 SOUND 117

But as to th e cultivation Of th e voc al organs

with th e view o f producing a b eautiful sp eaking
voic e by proc ess es akin to thos e us ed for th e
,

singer as th e t eaching o f this work const antly

,

impli es th er e can b e no doubt

,
Unl ess th e indi
.

vidu al acquir es a r esp ect fo r th e b eautiful in th e

sp eaking voic e wh en young it is fear ed h e m ay
,

n ever g et it as th e existing st ate of things only to o

,

cl early shows .

It is hop ed th at enough h as b een s aid on this

subj ect to indic at e th e principl es at al l ev ents s o
,

far as physiology is conc ern ed o n which th e d e

,

cision s r eg arding som e w eighty q u estions must b e

m ade .

Th e qu estion O f singing with oth ers as usu ally ,

c arried ou t in schools s eems to th e author a very

,

doubtful procedur e to say th e l east as fo r thos e

, ,

with fi ne thro ats it m ay prove injurious and for ,

thos e who h ave feebl e music al endowm ents it do es

little ; but of this sub j ect and conc ert ed singing
gen er ally again .
 CHAPTE R VIII .

F URTHER CONSI DE RATI ON OF BRE A THI NG ,

LA RYN GEA L A DJUSTMENT E T C ,

.

E XPE RIE N C E prov es th at br eathing for th e ,

sp eak er an d sing er is on e of thos e subj ects th at

,

m ay b e v ery in ad equ at ely compr eh end ed by th e

stud ent an d th e author r egrets to say m ay b e
, , ,

positively misr epr es ent ed by t each ers an d writ ers .

— —
Some indeed a gr eat m any t each ers di r ect
,

th eir stud ents t o employ abdomin al o r dia

p h r agm a tic br e athing oth ers cl avicul
,
ar
r espir ation A little consid er ation must convince
.

thos e who h ave r ead th e ch apt ers on br eathing

th at such distinctions in which on e p art of an ,

entir e proc ess is tr eat ed as if it w er e th e w hol e ,

c annot b e justifi ed By cl avicul ar . breathin g

som e mean upp er ch est br eathing an d oth ers a ,

k
form of r espir ation in which th e shoulders ( cl a
v icl es o r
, ey bo n es ) are r ais ed with inspir ation
-

in an O bj ection abl e m ann er Th e l att er is o f .

,

cours e to b e cond emn ed ; yet very exc eptionally

, , ,

a t enor Of exc ell ent tr aining m ay feel th at h e can ,

und er th e circumst anc es of th e hour r each a cer ,

'

t ain ton e very high in hi s r ange only b y th e utmost

ex ertion W e all know h ow a singer s r eput ation
.
’

m ay b e mor e o r l es s ruin ed should h e fail to r each

—
such a high not e o n e ind eed by which h e m ay
~

, , ,

owing to th e viti ated t ast e o f th e public h ave, ,

1 18
 L AR YNGEAL ADJUSTMENT 119

a cquired a r eput ation b eyond his artistic merits .

Und er th es e circumst anc es such a sing er might b e

just ifi ed in a momentary u s e o f every r esourc e o f
wh at physiologists t erm f o rced resp iratio n in clud ,

ing cl avicul ar br eathing ; but in gen er al an y r ais

in g of th e should ers should b e absolut ely avoid ed .

Wh en cl avicul ar br eathing is us ed I n th e
s ens e o f upp er ch est br eathing it is corr ect as fai
,

a s it go es but th e t erm i s not a h appy o n e to

,

employ in this s ens e an d it h a s l ed to error in

,

th eory an d practic e .

In th e s am e w ay ,
di aphr agm atic br eathing
is p erfectly corr ect but its exclusiv e u se c annot b e
,

justifi ed for N atur e t each es us oth erwis e It is

, .

tru e th at th e low er p art o f th e ch est which always ,

should exp and with th e d esc ent of th e di aphr ag m .

,

is wid er th an th e upp er ; it is tru e th at by a very

well d evelop ed di aphr agm atic br eathing a singer
-

or sp eak er is fairly w ell provid ed with br eath

pow er ; but why t each thi s m ethod exclusively ,

wh en th er eby th e voic e us er is b eing robb ed of

-

possibly from on e qu art er t o on e third o f his tot al

br eathing effi ci ency ?
It is likely th at t each ers h ave insist ed on dia
p h r ag m at ic br eathing esp eci ally in th e c as e o f
,

fem al es b ec aus e unfortun at ely pr eval ent mod es

, , ,

k
o f dr ess so r estrict th e low er ch est etc th at in di
, .
,

v idu al s in stin ctiv el

y ee r eli ef in upp er ch est o r
'

cl avicul ar br eathing in which c a s e it m ay b e o b

,

s erved th at th e actu al br eath p ower O f th e singer

is v ery sm all It c annot b e d eni ed th at few p eopl e
.
1 20 VOIC E PRODUC TION
v r ad equ at ely fil l th e
e e ch es t
l east o f all few —
,

—
women and if admonitions as to di aphr agmatic
br eathing acc omplish this purpos e th e pr actic e ,

must b e comm end ed But anoth er r em edy should

.

O bviously pr ec ede this on e : th e r espir atory pris

on er should fi rst b e r el eas ed .

NO doub t in th e most vigorous singing an d

,

sp eaking th e low er p art O f th e ch est with th e ,

di aphr agm is o f th e gr eat est import anc e but

, ,

oft en b oth th e sp eak er and th e singer as in a ,

short r apid p ass age r equir e to t ak e br eath and

, , ,

th e only w ay in which th ey can r eally m eet th e c as e

is by a short mor e or l es s sup erfi ci al action of th e
,

r espir atory app ar atus in which th e upp er ch est

,

must pl ay th e chi ef p art Th er e is no opportunity

.

to fi ll th e whol e ch est s o th at any admonition in

,

r egard to abdomin al br eathing is th en quit e ou t of

pl ace .

Th e fact is th e voic e us er should h av e control

,
-

o f his whol e br eathing m ech anism an d u se one ,

p art mor e or l es s th an anoth er o r al l p arts equ ally ,

an d to th e full est ext ent as th e circumst anc es r e

,

quir e ; an d if th e stud ent h as not alr eady l earn ed

such control th e author r ecomm ends his p r actis
,

ing br eathing with sp eci al att ention fi rst t o fi lling

th e upp er ch est compl et ely an d th en th e lower , .

It must b e r ememb er ed th at for a long time br eath

ing for th e voic e us er must b e a volunt ary proc ess
,
-
, ,

which as h as b een point ed ou t is n ot th e usu al and

, ,
 LARYN GEAL AD JUST M ENT 1 21

n atural one for th e individu al wh en not pho

'

n ating which l att er is ess enti ally r efl ex o r inv ol u n

,

t ary Th e voic e us er in oth er words must with

.
-
, , ,

a d efi nit e purpos e in vi ew t ak e ch arg e o f hims elf ,

.

In tim e br eathing for him to o will b ecome r efl ex

,

i e c o rr ect br eathing for th e purpos es o f his art

. .
,

will b ecome a h abit It must b e point ed ou t th at

‘

th e br eathing fo r any p articul ar composition lit ,

er ary or music al should b e c ar efully studi ed out

, ,

for this is nothing els e th an d et ermining how this

p art o f th e voic e us er s mech anism can b e em
-
’

ployed with th e b est artistic r esult This fortu .

,

n atel y is now r ecogniz ed by a l arg e numb er O f

,

t each ers fo r th e fact is th e artistic is at pr es ent

, ,

much b ett er und erstood an d appr eci at ed th an th e

t echnic al ; w er e it not s o such err atic lit er atur e on ,

th e subj ect o f br eathing could n ev er h ave ap

p eared .

On anoth er asp ect of th e subj ect th er e is room

fo r much gr eat er d ifl erence o f opinion Among .

ev en emi n ent sing ers an d t each ers th er e is l ack o f

agr eem ent in r egard to th e p art th e di aphr agm

an d abdom en should pl ay in th e most vigorous

( f o r tissim o ) singing .

Singers O f r enown pr actis e wh at m ay b e t ermed

a sort o f forc ed abdominal o r di aphr agm atic
breathing Th e br eath is so t aken th at th e whole
.

ch est is fi l l ed th e di aphr ag m brought well down

, ,

an d th e abdomin al w alls dr awn in r tr ct d

( e a e ) ,

which gives th e sing er in al l p arts above and ,

b elow a b ellows with t ens e walls in all p arts with

, ,
 1 22 VOICE P RODUCTION
th e gr eat advant age th at such br eathing p ermits
of a fi rmn ess oth erwis e un att ain abl e an d h e is ,

en abl ed to ex ert his br eath forc e with gr eat cer

t ainty and pow er an d as some m aint ain with al l , , ,

th e control n ec ess ary fo r ev end elic at e effects .

FI G . 44 .

FI G 44 n t n d d x pr
I h to
y h w vi w f r pir t ion d i cu
ess to t e e e t e tdi e a s se n

in d ic t h for m f h c h t d
e e e o s o es s

h b o d y f h w ork ( p
. .

t e o t 3e 7) T h d o tt d l in
. I I -I I . e e es a e t e O t e es an

a bdom en adv c t d by o m h b t f h ingi ng p ki g f l ong d v ig

o a e s e as t e es or t e s or s ea n o an .

o ro us p gassa es .

Against this it h as b een urged th at it is u nn at

ural n ot according to wh at is found in m an an d
,

oth er animals in n atur e It is p erh aps forgott en .

th at wh en w e m ak e a gr eat effort as in lifting w e , ,

put th e br eathing app ar atus into just thi s st at e ;

—
we gird up our loins o r th e equiv al ent of th at
 LARY NGE AL ADJU STME NT 1 23

proc ess— so th at this m ethod c annot b e s aid to b e

contr ary to n atur e Th e only qu estion s eems to
.

b e as to wh eth er it is n ec es s ary an d adv ant ageous ,

o r wast eful o f en er g y F o r ordin ary eff orts it

.

do es not s eem to b e n ec ess ary though th e ch est ,

must in singing an d sp eaking alw ays b e h el d mor e

o r l ess full not by any delib er at e an d p ainful
,

c fl o rt but in a qui et unobtrusiv e w ay

, ,
.

T h e di agr am ( Fig 44 ) will m ak e th e di ffer enc e

.

in th e th eori es r eferr ed to cl ear .

Up to th e pr es ent th e student h as b een urged to

fi l l his ch est aft er d ays o f l ess vigorous pr actic e
, ,

to th e fullest r et ain th e m ech anism in this condi

,

tion for a short t im e an d th en in th e slowest an d

,

mos t r egul ar fashion r el ax it th e purp os e b eing ,

d evelopm ent an d control In actu al sp eaking an d

.

singing such br eathing is not usu ally eith er pos

sibl e o r d esir abl e .

N atur e h ers elf alw ays works with th e l east pos

sibl e exp enditur e o f en er gy an d with pow er in
r es erve Th es e must b e th e voic e us er s prin
. -
’

c ip l es to b e d elib er at ely an d p ersist ently appli ed

, .

T o fi l l th e ch est to th e full est o n al l occ asions is to

u s e up energy t o no purpos e an d to induc e fatigu e .

Art is ever economic al E ffort O bvious effort d e

.
, ,

tr acts from th e list en er s enj oym ent E as e in th e

’
.

ex ecut ant corr esponds with enj oym ent in th e l is

ten er o r at all events if nothing mor e it puts

, , , ,

him in such a fr ame o f mind th at th e mor e posi ,

tive qu aliti es o f th e p erform anc e fi nd him in an

undisturb ed r eceptive st at e
, .
1 24 VOICE PRODUCTION
Th e singer or sp eaker must br eath e easily and
ad equ at ely but n o t so as to w ast e his en ergi es
,
.

Prior to th e ex ecution of his t ask h e should con ,

sider wh at r espir atory effi ci ency c alls fo r in th e

c as e of any p art icul ar phr as e an d m eet this ,

without w ast e i— fully but with something to

.
,

sp ar e For th e b est art as w ell as th e sound est

.
,

t echni qu e th er e should alw ays b e in th e ex ecutant

,

enough an d to sp ar e Let th e l ast word b e s o

.

utt er ed o r sung th at th e list ener m ay feel how ,

ev er vigorous th e p ass ag e th at mor e could h av e ,

b een don e h ad it b een r equi r ed ; in oth er words

s p ea k o r sing th e l as t w o rd f eeling th at
,

several

o th ers m ig h t foll ow di d on e s o ch o o s e .

Wh en this principl e of r es erve forc e is not

O bs erved th e voic e us er m ay distr ess hims elf o r
,
-

his audi enc e in a v ari ety of ways among oth ers by ,

a b ad h abit known a s pumping — i e endeav . .

,

oring to produc e s ound wh en th e br eath pow er is

r eally spent It is only n ec ess ary to r efer to it for
.

a mom ent th at its unwisdom and physiologic al

unright eousn ess m ay b e app ar ent .

Anoth er t erm cou p d e g l otte ( blow o r shock o f

,

th e glottis ) h as l ed to so much confusion an d mis

,

und erst anding which unfortun at ely h as b een fol

, ,

low ed by erron eous pr actice th at it would b e well ,

if its furth er employment wer e ab andon ed .

Br eathing s o far as voic e production is con

,
-

c ern ed is fo r th e sol e purpos e o f c ausing th e voc al

,

b ands to vibr at e ; and at this st age we m ay say

th at th e p erfection of any voc al r esult d ep ends
 LARYNGEAL AD JUSTMENT 1 25

wholly on th e efficiency with which thes e vi b rations

ar e produc ed s o th at br eathing and tone are
,

brought togeth er s o to sp eak by th e m edi ation of

, ,

th es e littl e b ands th e voc al cords ; and this is th e

,

justifi cation for sp eaking of th e l arynx as th e voc al

organ This us age howev er is obj ectionabl e as
.
, , ,

it tends to n arrown es s an d to divert th e mind from

oth er highly import ant p arts o f th e voc al mech
an ism .In one s ens e th e r espir atory org ans and
,

th e r eson anc e ch amb ers are each as import ant as

-

th e l arynx .

Th e term cou p de g l o tte h as b een som etim es em

”
ployed as th e equival ent o f att ack an d again ,

as th e synonym o f n early al l th at is b ad in voic e

production As to this l att er all d ep ends on th e

.
,

s ens e in which th e t erm is employed .

B efor e th e voc al b ands can b e set into suit ab l e

vibrations th e expir atory br eath str eam must b e -

dir ected ag ainst th em in a sp eci al m ann er an d ,

they th ems elves must b e ad apt ed to th e bl ast It .

is a c as e o f compl ex a n d b eautiful adapt ation .

Th e cl arin et o r flut e pl ay er must l earn to blow ,

an d equ ally must th e sing er l earn to u se h is br eath .

T h e proc es s es each employs though n ot id entic al

, ,

are clos ely r el at ed ; both u se th e br eath to c aus e

vibr ations an d th er e can b e non e th at are effec

,

tive in eith er c as e exc ept a c ert ain r el ation o f

, ,

ad apt ation o f br eath str eam to instrum ent b e

-

effect ed — with th e cl arinet pl ayer adjustment o f

-
,

br eath to r eed an d with th e vo ice us er o f br eath

,
-
,

to vocal b ands .
1 26 VOICE PRODUCTI O N
E x actly wh at ch anges are m ad e in th e l arynx ,

an d by wh at m eans h av e alr eady b een d escrib ed

, ,

an d will b e ag ain consid er ed in mor e th an o n e p art

o f this volum e Th e m ain fact is th at owing t o a

.

multitud e Of n euro muscul ar m ech anisms th e di ff

-

eren t p arts Of th e r espir atory an d l aryng eal ap

p ar atus are brought to work in h armony for th e

production o f ton es .

Th e n atur e of th e vibr ations of th e voc al b ands ,

an d th er efor e th e ch ar act er o f th e sounds pro

, ,

d u ced d ep end in no small m easur e on on e thing

, ,

to which att ention c annot b e too c ar efully given .

T o a l arge ext ent th e pitch th e volum e th e qu ality , , ,

th e c arrying pow er etc Of a t on e d ep en d o n th e

’

.
, ,

adjustm ent now r efer red to — on e of th e facts

-

which w er e if not physiologic ally at l east p rac

, ,

tic ally r ecogniz ed by th e Ol d It ali an m ast ers .

T each ers everywh er e felt th e n eed O f some tech

n ical t erm to expr ess th e adjustm ent w e are con

s iderin g h ence th e expr ession cou p d e g l ot te,

,

which is n o t in its elf nec ess arily eith er incorr ect or

fo r oth er r ea son to b e cond emn ed All d ep ends .

o n th e s ens ein which it is us ed as w e h ave alr eady ,

s aid It must howev er b e admitt ed th at it do es ,

.
, ,

to most p ersons convey th e idea of somethi ng

,

th at is more o r l ess vio l ent as w ell as sudden so ,

th at th er e s eems t o lurk in this t erm a t end ency to

misl ead to say th e l east
,
.

Th er e r eally should n ev er b e a blow o r shock of

k
th e glottis ; th e voc al b ands should n ever strik e
to geth er vi ol ently o r ind eed stri e to geth er at
, , ,
 LAR Y NGEAL ADJUS TMENT 1 27

al l
,
in th e O r din ary s ens e o f th e t erm Th e y .

should however b e approximat ed with consid er

, ,

abl e r apidity an d with a p erfect adjustm ent to th e

br eath str eam an d this must b e associ at ed with
-
,

a lik e p erfect ad apt ation o f th e br eath str eam to

-

th em through th e h armonious working of th e m any

muscl es ( n euro muscul ar m ech anisms ) whi ch con
-

stitu t e th e most import ant p art O f th e r espir atory

mech anism In brief th e adjustm ent o f th e

.
,

br eathing an d l aryn geal m ech anisms r esulting in

th e ad equ at e an d suit abl e approxi m ation of th e
voc al b ands fo r ton e production constitut es th e
-

c ou p d e g l o t t e o r as th e author pr efers to t erm it

, , ,
”
th e att ack .

To g et this p erfect should b e on e o f th e aims o f

t each ers an d on e o f th e ambit ions o f stud ents .

Without a good att ack th e singer o r sp eak er fails

to d o hims elf justic e an d th e list en er is l eft u n
,

s at is fi ed T h e good att ack s ugg ests physiologic al

.

an d t echnic al p erfection s o far a s it go es ; a rtisti

,

c ally it impli es power an d sur en ess an d for th e

, ,

list en er s atisfaction a feeling th at wh at h as b een

,
.

att empt ed h as b een accomplish ed ; an d th e b est of

it is th at th e auditor at th e en d o f a l arge h all

exp eri enc es thi s s ens e O f s atisf action quit e as fully

a s th e p ersons sitting in th e fi rst r o w of s eats .

Without good att acks th er e can b e no int ell ectu al

singing o r sp eaking n o bro ad phr asing and much
, ,

mor e th at al l should aim at who com e b efor e th e

public an d which list en ers h ave ind eed a right to
, , ,

exp ect . But just b ec aus e m any p ersons feel this

1 28 VOICE PRODUC TION
to b e true th ey m ak e s erious errors in att empting
,

to att ain th e r esult ; th ey substitut e m ain forc e

for th e corr ect m ethod Imp ati enc e and e ager .

ness m ay d efeat th e voic e us er s purpos e In this -

’
.

an d al l oth er c as es th e action should b e p erform ed

with but mod er at e forc e o r ev en at fi rst s oftly , , , ,

and with gr adu al incr eas e in vigor an d alw ays in ,

r el ation to th e qu ality O f th e sound produc ed ;

qu ality must always b e th e fi rst if n ot also th e
l ast consid er ation .

If th e m ethod b e corr ect pow er can b e attain ed ,

with p ati enc e ; if wrong th e thro at an d voic e may

,

b e absolut ely ruin ed This point will b e con sid

.

er ed l at er but w e must at onc e expr ess th e opinion

,

th at a bungling att ack in which main forc e is sub

stituted for th e prop er m ethod is one of th e most
d angerous as it is on e o f th e most s erious errors
,

in th e t echniqu e o f mod ern singing an d th e s am e ,

m ay O ft en b e ch arged against ou r public sp eaking .

Anoth er o f th e worst faults of singing th e ,

tr em ol o is du e to unst eadin ess in att ack an d in

,

m aint aining th e prop er r el ations b etween th e

br eathing an d th e l aryngeal m ech anism If th e .

voic e us er fails to g et a ton e o f good qu ali ty easily

-

an d without esc ap e of br eath to any appr eci abl e

ext ent h e must consid er th at his m ethod is incor

,

r ect Th er e must b e no w ast ed br eath in th e b est

.

voc al t echniqu e This l eads to in efi ectiveness in

.

th e voic e produc er an d l ack o f s atisfaction in th e

-

listener B r eath must for a p erfect t echniqu e

.
, ,

— —
m ean ton e all ton e and thi s must b e produced
9
 LARYNGEAL ADJUS TMENT 1 29

s o th at th e singer is not awar e by any unpl eas ant ,

feelings th at h e h as vo cal b ands o r a l arynx at al l ;

,

in a p erfect t echniqu e one must only b e distinctly

aw ar e of c ert ain s ens ations in th e p arts ab ov e th e

l aryn x in his mouth c avity etc His conscious

, ,
.

—
n ess is conc erned with ton e th e r esult B u t to .
,

att ain this th e m ethod must b e physiologic al — i .

,

n atur al an d not only th at but c arri ed o u t with an

, ,

appro ach to p erfection in th e d et ails O f th e proc ess

which t ak es time an d c alls for infi nit e p ati enc e and

c ar e al l p erm eat ed by sound an d clear ideas of
,

wh at is b eing aimed at by th e voic e us er Nothing -

.

should b e att empt ed till th e method an d th e end

ar e und erstood thoroughl y ; to do oth erwis e is to

w ast e tim e d efeat th e purpos e and court failur e

, ,

and di s appointm ent ; an d th e mor e th e stud ent

can think for hims elf an d th e l ess d ep end ent h e is

,

o n his t each er th e b ett er will it b e for both an d

,

for art its elf .

From al l th at h as b een hith erto s aid it will b e

inferr ed th at on e of th e b est t ests of a good att ack ,

o r any oth er featur e in voic e production is th e -

,

abs enc e o f esc ap e O f br eath as such from th e , ,

mouth M any p ersons b egin wrongly ; th ey at

.

t empt to produc e ton es by forcing th e br eath out

in such a w ay th at al l th eir r esourc es in br eathing
are at onc e sp ent inst ead o f b eing husb and ed with
,

th e c ar e O f a mis er : As time is th e most pr ecious

poss ession O f m an as m an so is br eath for th e
, ,

sing er o r sp eak er It is his ho ard Nothing must

. .
1 30 VOICE PRODUC TION
b e p aid ou t of this always limi t ed c api tal fo r wh ich
th e b est v alu e is n ot O bt ain ed .

Th e t est fo r p erfect economy Of br eath known

to O ld er gen er ations o f actors still r em ains th e
b est Th ey w er e accustom ed to hold a c andl e a
.

few i nch es fr om th e mouth wh en speaking If th e .

fl am e did not flick er it w as cl ear th at br eath w as

,

n o t b eing us el essly exp ell ed .

Inst ead Of feeling th at th e br eath p ass es out th e ,

voic e produc er should r ath er feel wh en p h onat

-
,

ing as if it p ass ed in— an illusion it is tru e but

, , ,

still a s afe o n e It will b e found th at holding a

.

mirror o r th e h and with th e b ack turn ed tow ard

'

th e mouth and a few inch es ( four to six ) from it

, ,

will s erv e fairly w ell to indic at e wh eth er th e

br eath is esc aping o r n o t though in s ensitiven ess
,

an d convincing pow er this is not equ al to th e fl am e

t est
.

W e would again urge th at in every inst ance of

phon ation in eith er sp eak er o r sing er th e breath ,

b e t ak en throu gh th e op en mouth O nl y in thi s

.

w ay can enough br eath b e inh al ed in th e m er e mo

m ent avail abl e for this purpos e Oft en th e singer
.

o r actor must t ak e br eath with a bsolut ely th e

greatest r apidity pos sibl e and th e n arrow p as

,

s ages of th e nos e do n ot s uffi c e to admit enough air

within th e tim e for action .

But even mor e import ant p erh aps is th e fact

, ,

that when br eath is t aken through th e nostrils th e

sing er m ay fi n d th at on O p ening his mouth to sing
th e tongue and soft p al at e are in an unf avor abl e
;
 LARYNGEAL A D JUSTMENT 1 31

position for good ton e production ; his sounds -

m ay b e m u fll ed thro aty ; but if br eath b e inh al ed

,

through th e op en mouth and not through th e nos e ,

at al l th e tongu e t ends to l ie fl at an d this org an

, ,

an d oth er p arts a s sum e th e corr ect position for

good in t on ation .

Mouth br eathing for th e purpos es o f ton e ,

production is th e only method which h as physio

,

lo gi c al justifi c ation M any singers esp eci ally .

compl ain of h aving troubl e with th e tongu e ; some

b eli ev e it t o o l arge others th at it is b eyond th eir
'

control Th es e so c all ed l arge tongu es h ave o n e

.
-

adv ant ag e — th ey m ay ex ercis e a gr eat infl u enc e on

th e qu ality o f th e ton e ; an d corr ect b r eathing
brings th em to good b eh avior Th e author h as .

time and ag ain by expl aining th e infl u enc e O f

,

mouth r espiration brought sudd en j oy to th e h ear t

,

o f th e singer who h ad b een all his life troubl ed

with th e tongu e an d worri ed by th e consciousn es s

,

th at his ton es l acked in clearn ess c arrying pow er , ,

etc .

Nos e br eathing is O f cours e to b e us ed excl u

s iv el y wh en th e subj ect is not phon ating Duri ng .

th e l att er many opportuniti es occur to clos e th e

mouth ; and th e id ea th at drying of th e mucous
m embr ane o f th e mouth etc will occur by r eason , .
,

o f mouth br eathing in sp eaking and singing is

purely im agin ary .

E XE R C I S ES .

Th e stud ent wh at ev er his d egr ee o f advanc e

,

m ent will fi nd th e ex ercis es about to b e recom

,
1 32 VOIC E PRODUC TION
mended, Or oth er s clos ely r esemb ling them, of
gr eat v alu e .

It c annot b e too well born e in mind O bvious ,

though it is th at all sp eaking and singing wh at

, ,

ev er els e th ey b e are ton e production ; h enc e th e

,
-

fi rst thing fo r every on e to asc ert ain r egar din g

hims elf is th e extent to which h e can form and hold
—
tones of good qu ality in oth er words th e succ ess ,

with which h e can est ablish th e ess enti al co Ordi

n ations o r h armoni ous actions O f th e br eathing
an d l aryngeal m ech anisms an d m aint ain th em for ,

a consid er abl e l ength of tim e .

M any singers can produc e a fairly good and

.

powerful tone, but it is a sort of vo cal explosion

r ath er th an a ton e which will continu e to do
,

th e S inger s bid di ng for as long as h e will Th e

’
.

corr ectly produc ed an d sust ain ed tone is th e fo u n

d ation o f all th at is be st in voice production ; all -

th e r est is but a s eri es o f vari ations on this .

H enc e th e author r ecommends th e following pr ae

tic e to al l wh at ever els e th ey m ay do or h ave
,

don e It is to b e a t est of inspir ation att ack

.
,

economy o f br eath adjustm ent o f th e voc al b ands

, ,

th e r eson anc e ch amb ers etc

-
,
.

1 Inh al e slowly through th e som ewh at op en

.

mouth fi lling th e ch est mod er at ely full an d at

, ,

onc e att ack so as to produ ce a ton e o f but mod

erate force but o f th e b est qu ality possibl e
, .

2 C ontinu e to hold this ton e as long as th e

.

b reath is easily suffici ent t aking c ar e th at th e ton e

,

be on no account sust ain ed aft er th er e is th e slight

 LARYNGEAL ADJUSTMENT 1 33

est difli cu l ty in
m aintaining it of th e s ame qu ality
'

an d pow er as b efor e St eadines s an d p erfection

.

in qu ality are to b e th e chi ef consider ations .

3 Th e stud ent is advis ed aft er a few d ays

.
,
’

pr actic e in this m ann er to not e with a watch th e ,

tme during which h e can hold a ton e under th e

r estrictions above r eferr ed t o and to endeavor ,

to incr eas e th e holding pow er d aily by a littl e .

It will o f cours e b e n ec ess ary to fil l th e ch est more

, ,

completely d ay by d ay .

4 It will also b e w ell for th e voic e produc er

.
-

to practis e t aking very d eep an d r apid inspir a

tions follow ed by th e most prolonged expir ations
,
.

5 This m ethod o f br eathing m ay th en b e put to

.

th e actu al t est in inton ation .

An oth er ex ercis e v ery v alu able in giving br eath

control is th e following
Produc e a ton e ex actly as b efor e but every now ,

an d th en at r egul ar int erv als at fi rst

,
th en at ,

irr egul ar on es cut th e ton e o ff short by suddenly

,

arr esting th e br eath an d aft er a v ery short p aus e

, , ,

continu e again in ex actly th e s am e way with ou t

taking a fr esh br eath ; an d as in th e above an d al l ,

oth er ex ermses fr equ ently appl y th e h and and

, ,

wh en mor e pr actis ed th e mor e ex acting fl am e t est

,
.

Th e fi rst Of th e above ex ercis es m ay be r ep re

s ent ed to th e eye by a continuous str aight lin e ; th e
s econd by str aight lines with short sp ac es b etween
th em .

In al l th es e exercis es th er e must n ever b e any

1 34 VOICE PRODUCTION

sort of p u sh anyw h er e neith er in th e ch est n o r

,

thro at Such m ethods are absolut ely wrong b e

.
,

c aus e s o w asteful of en ergy Th e ton e should .

come as sponta neously and in evit ably as th e g as

from a sod a w at er bottl e wh en th e cork is slightly
-

loos en ed or if this illustr ation b e too strong ( it

, ,

is employed b ec aus e g as air is conc ern ed in each

, ,

c as e) l et us say, as wat er from th e pip e O f a w ater

,

works syst em wh en th e tap is turn ed T h e ton e

’
.

s h o u l d co m e, th e b reath m u s t tarry .

If th e stud ent do es n o t feel eas e c ert ainty an d , ,

i n evit abl en es s in r esult h e h as not m ad e a good

,

att ack If h e c annot sust ain th e tone fo r a few

.

s econds h e should conclude th at his m ethod Of

,

using his br eath is w ast eful In tim e a ton e.

should b e easily h eld for at l east t en s econds .

Th e purpos e of th e s econd ex ercis e is to give

still mor e fully br eath control an d to l ead th e
-
,

voic e us er to r ealize h ow important is b r eathing

-

k
for intonation .

Th e stud ent m ay as Why n o t b egin as is ,

O ft en don e by th e sin g ing Of sc al es ?

,
R eally
us eful sc al es are t o o compl ex ; th ey imply th e u se
o f a s eri es of ton es fo rm ed according to th e prin

cip l es insist ed upon abov e Th e fi rst thing is to

.

t n p rf ct ton — t th voc l m ch nism

g e o e e e e o u s e e a e a

und er simpl e conditions ; an d th at ton e s h ou ld b e

ch o sen w hich t h e v oice u s er can p ro du ce o
-

f b es t
q u ali ty an d w ith g r eates t eas e, w i th l eas t cp en di
ec

tu r e f
o It
en erg yshould n ev
. er b e s el ect ed from
th e extr em es o f th e subj ec t s r ang e From th e
’
.
 LARYNGEAL ADJUSTMENT 35

favorit e o r b es t ton e h e should w o r down and u p k '

th e sc al e After th is th e sc al e com es easy an d al l

'

.
,

actu al singi ng i s scal e singing — th e u se Of int er

v als— and al l sp eaking th e s am e thi ng ; so th at ,

from every point o f vi ew, this exercis e Should b e

the fi rst in inton ation an d th e stud ent will do w ell
,

not to l eave it till th e conditions abov e pr escrib ed

can b e fully m et Som e singers h ave continu ed
.

such ex ercis es throughout a long artistic c ar eer .

It is to b e understood alw ays th at th e ex ercis es ,

etc r ecomm end ed in this work are int end ed fo r al l

.
,

voice us ers wh eth er th ey are singers o r sp eakers

-
,
.

It is easy for a sp eak er to p ass from such p ro

longed ton es to th e short er on es r equir ed in sp eak
ing but aft er such ex ercis es h e can do s o with a
,

feeling o f eas e m astery o f hims elf improved ear

,
n

, ,

an d purity O f sp eech n o t oth erwis e att ain abl e .

T h e author would also insist in th e most em ,

ph atic m ann er on th e gr eat import anc e o f making

,

al l such ex ercis es music al Every tone should b e

.

th e b est th en possibl e to th e voice us er an d power -

,

must on no account b e aim ed at for som e tim e .

Thus are d evelop ed and go h and in h and as th ey ,

alw ays should a sound t echni qu e with th e artisti c

,

consci enc e and p erc eptions .

S UMMARY AN D REVIEW .

‘
T h e P rincip l es 7 P h etc I n vol ved
3
( ysic s,
.
, .

S ou nd ( ton e) is a ment al r esult h aving its origin

in c ertain ch anges in th e ear an d th e br ain owing ,
1 36 VOIC E PRODUCTI O N
to vib r ations of th e air Ton es h ave p itch de .
,

p ending on th e numb er o f vibr ations in a s econd,

v o l u m e ( pow er ) d ep ending on th e siz e Of th e
,

waves or vibrations an d qu ality ( tim b re) d et er

, ,

min ed by th e S h ap e of th e w aves Pitch is deter .

min ed by th e voc al b ands volum e by th e s ame in , ,

gr eat p art an d qu ality b y th e sh ap e o f th e r eso

,

n anc e ch amb ers above th e voc al b ands Th e

-
.

r eson anc e ch amb ers influ enc e volume also A ton e

-
.

is augment ed by r eson anc e .

Th e l arynx b ears c ert ain r es embl anc es to b oth

string ed an d w ind instruments but it is r eally ,

uni qu e ( su i g en eris ) Th e vibr ations Of th e voc al

.

b ands are c aus ed sol ely by th e expir atory curr ent

o f air which is mor e or l ess h eld b ack by th e cords
, ,

owing to th eir approxim ation so th at th e gr eat er ,

th e O bstruction th e strong er must th e bl ast of air

b e oth er things b eing equ al an d th e r esult in
, ,

cr eas e in pitch Th e problem N atur e h ad to solve

.

is very compl ex .

Th e l aryngoscop e w as invent ed in 1 8 54 by a
t each er o f singing M anu el G arci a who soon aft er
, ,

g ave an account O f it to th e Roy al Soci ety o f Eng

l and Th e instrum ent consists ess enti ally Of two
.

”
mirrors th e ext ern al o r h ead mirror
,
which is
,
-
,

conc ave an d r efl ects into th e l arynx an d th e in ,

t ern al o r mouth mirror which r eflects th e pic

,
-
,

tur e outward to th e eye Th e l att er mirror is .

pl an e an d set at an angl e Th e pictur e m ay Show

,
.
,

un d er th e most favor abl e circumst anc es all th e ,

upp er p arts o f th e l arynx including th e voc al ,

 LARYNGEAL ADJUSTMENT 1 37

bands but sometim es also th e windpip e as far

, , ,

down as its division into th e two m ain bronchi al

tub es Th e diflicu l ties commonly m et with in th e
.

u se of th e instrum ent ar e a constr ain ed action of

th e thro at an d mouth p arts o f th e subj ect u nn at ,

ur al br eathi ng an unruly tongu e etc Th e ep i

, ,
.

glottis m ay also n atur ally s o ov erh ang th e glottis

, ,

th at a good vi ew o f th e vocal cords is impossible .

It is di fli cu l t to see mor e th an One h alf to two

-

thirds o f th e l ength of th e voc al b ands Th e pic .

tur e s een is th at o f th e p arts Of th e l arynx r e

vers ed i — whil e right r em ains right posterior ,
.

b ecomes ant erior Th e l aryn goscop e shows th at

.

( )
1 in S inging an a sc ending sc al e th e voc al b ands
are fo r a c ert ain tim e in action ( vibr ation )
throughout th eir whol e l ength ; th at ( 2 ) th er e
m ay b e O bs erv ed a r ath er sudd en ch ange wh en th e
voc al b ands are r el ax ed and S hort en ed an d th at ,

this process of short ening go es on th e b ands ap

,

p ro a c h in g mor e and mor e both b ehind an d in

,

front till ( 3 ) in th e high est ton es o f a sopr ano

,

o f gr eat r ange th er e is only a sm all portion of

each voc al cord tow ard th e c entr e th at is n o t a

p
p r o x 1 m ated som ewh at clos ely .

With c ert ain qu alifi c ations it m ay b e s aid th at

,

th e action o f th e voc al b ands is alik e for al l voices .

In all c as es a c ert ain d egr ee of approxim ation o f

th e voc al b ands is absolut ely n ec ess ary fo r phou a
tion an d th e m ech anism is gen er ally simi l ar I n
,

mal es an d femal es till th e high est ton es above ,

allud ed to are r each ed

, This is in h armony with
.
1 38 VOIC E PRODUCTION
th e following facts : ) T h e crico
( 1 thyroids a r e th e -

muscl es most in u se in or di n ary sp eech an d in sing

ing th e lower tones ( 2 ) S ever al muscl es com
.

bine in r el axing an d short ening th e voc al b ands .

( )
3 T h e p eculi ar m ech anism o f th e hi gh est ton es

in a s opr ano voic e of gr eat comp as s is only to b e

expl ain ed by a combin ed action of s ever al muscl es ,

an d a v ery d elic at e an d pr ecis e u se O f th e in t ern al

th e aryt enoids att ach ed along th e whol e l eng th

-

o f th e out er surf ac e Of th e voc al b ands Th e .

l arynx Of th e m al e difl ers from th at o f th e femal e

chi efly in its gr eater siz e w eight etc Th e vocal , ,
.

b ands in th e mal e m ay measur e from th r ee fif th s -

t O fou r fi fth s O f an inch wh en r el ax ed an d from

'
-
,

four fi fth s to on e inch wh en t ens e ; in th e femal e

-
,

from two fi fth s t o thr ee fi fth s o f an inch wh en r e

- -

l ax ed an d from thr ee fi fth s to four fi fth s o f an

,
- -

inch wh en t ens e Th er e are structur al di fferenc es

.

corr esponding to an d d et ermining th e kind o f

v oic e as to r ange an d pow er mor e esp eci ally
,
.

T h e b ass singer h as as a rul e th e l argest l arynx

, ,

an d th e longest an d h eavi est voc al b ands .

At pub erty th e ch anges th at t ake pl ac e in th e

b ody gen er ally are associ at ed with corr esponding
alt er ations in th e l arynx Th e l arynx grows .
,

ch anges its proportions etc O ft en som ewh at rap

,
.
,

idly and th e r esult m ay b e a corr esponding altera

,

tion in voic e as r egards r ange power an d qu ality

'

, , ,
.

Th e voic e b ec aus e o f imp erfect an atomical an d

,
”
physiologic al adjustment m ay br eak ,
to a ,

gr eat er or l ess ext ent T h e s am e m ay t ake pl ace

.
,
 F IG 45 nt W h t t h ut h r h fr q u nt l y n by th
Rep rese s a f th
e a o as e see e u se o e

l y n g cop w h n opr n i p r d uci g v ry h ig h h d t n y C D

. . e ,

ar os e, e a s a o s o n a e ea o e , sa or

b r v d t h t t h v c l b n d ppr x i m t i n fr nt d
-
, ,

E in lta I t w i ll b
. e O se e a e o a a s a o a e o an

b h in d top p d s t h t th n l y p rt f t h b n d c p b l f v ibr ti n
e so a e o a s o e a a a e o a o a re

h t p ti n w h ic h f r m th m rg in f th v l p ning h w n i th
e s

th o se s or or o s o e a s o a n

i ll u tr ti n O n l y v ry l i m i t d nu m b f in g r
e o O e s o e

s a o . a e p bl f the d l ic t er o s e s are c a a e o e e a e

a d j u t m nt r q uir d
s e s e e .
 LARYNGEAL ADJUSTMENT
owing to simil ar imp erfect adjustm ent in Ol d ag e , ,

an d t empor arily owing to dis ea s e w eakn ess n erv

, , ,

o u sn ess ,
fatigu e faulty production etc
,
Th es e
,
.

facts in di c ate th at und er such circumst anc es th e

v o ice sh ou l d b e us ed with gr eat c ar e n o t at al l o r
‘

, ,

in a whisp er wh en th e vocal b ands are pr actic ally

,

n o t in action .

In a singer highly endow ed by n atur e an d p er

fected by long tr ainin g b as ed on th e sound est
principl es th e action o f th e muscl es of th e l aryn x
,

m ay r each a d egr ee of p erfection only to b e com

p ar ed with th at o f th e eye an d ear .

C onsider ation o f th e cou p d e g l o tte th e att ack , ,

o r adjus tm ent O f m ech anisms to produc e ton e th at

b egins corr ectly ; br eathing with O p en mouth

, ,

with effectiven ess an d economy O f en erg y ; singing

for childr en in choirs etc h ave b een discuss ed
, ,
.
, .

Pr actic al ex ercis es should b e r el at ed to th e prin

cip l es und erlying th em Music al an d aesth etic
.

principl es are alw ays to b e associ at ed with a sound

techniqu e T h e artistic an d t echnic al or physio
.

logic al consci enc e sh o uld b e associ at ed .

 CHAPT E R IX .

TH E B E SONAN CE —CH A M BE RS .

W H E N it is born e i n mi nd th at th e vo cal b ands

h ave little o r nothing t o do with th e qu ality of
ton es th e imp ort an ce Of thos e p arts o f th e vo cal
'

app ar atus which d et ermin e qu ality an d th e error ,

o f sp eaking o f th e l arynx as if it alon e w er e th e

sol e voc al org an b ecom e app ar ent

,
.

It m ay b e strictly s aid th at th e voc al b ands

s erve th e purpos e of m aking th e r es on anc e mech
an ism av ail abl e Wh at on e h ears m ay b e s aid to
.

b e vibr ations o f this r eson anc e app ar atus and not , ,

strictly thos e o f th e voc al b ands though this ex

, ,

pr ession would also b e corr ect but would not indi ,

c at e th e fi n al link in th e s eries o f vibr ations .

T h e ton e c aus ed by th e vi b r ation of two such

sm all b ands as th e voc al cords must in th e n atur e ,

o f th e c as e b e v ery feebl e
,
It b ecom es important
.

for th e r eader to convinc e hims elf o f th e impor

t anc e of r eson anc e in soun di ng bodies and mus i c al
instrum ents .

Wh en th e st em o f a tuning fork so sm all th at it

-

can b e sc arc ely h eard wh en in vibr ation exc ept by ,

’

th e p erson holding it is l aid against a s olid b ody

, ,

as a t abl e its sound is at onc e so incr eas ed th at it

,

can b e h eard in th e most dist ant p art o f a l arge

room Wh en th e s am e fork is h eld O ver an empty

.

1 40
 RE S ONANCE CHAMBE R S - 41

ar of suit bl siz e an d sh ap e a simil ar but mu ch

j a e ,

l ess m arked incr eas e Of its ton e is to b e Obs erv ed '

If a cord of but mod er ate thickn ess b e fasten ed

at e ach en d to a thin pi ec e o f wood s ay a S plit ,

S hingl e an d a littl e block o f wood in imi t ation of

, ,

th e bridg e o f a violin b e pl ac ed und er th e cord so

,

as to r end er it t en s e w e h av e th e ess enti als of a

,

string ed instrum ent th e pitch o f whi ch can b e

,

m ade to v ary by moving th e block about and thus

varying th e tightn es s O f th e cord B ut th e sound .

o f such an improvis ed instrum ent produc ed by ,

dr awing a b ow across th e cord is ridiculously

.
,

feebl e .

In th e actu al violin th e volume Of s ound as well ,

as its q u ality d ep ends on th e siz e sh ap e and

, , ,

w eight o f th e instrum ent T h e strings s erv e th e

.

purpos e o f c ausing th e body O f th e instrument th e ,

air within it ,and in cons equ enc e th e air without

, , ,

b etw een it an d th e ear of th e auditor to vibr at e or ,

move in a sp ecifi c m ann er .

Simi l arly th e imposing siz e of th e gr and pi ano

,

is associ at ed in evit ably with loudn ess as com ,

p ar ed with a sm all er instrum ent A violonc ello .

must produc e a l arger ton e th an a violin though ,

not n ec ess arily one mor e int ens e .

Th es e principl es Of r eson anc e apply in th e c as e

of th e singer and th e sp eaker Th e b ass and b ary
.

ton e produc e ton es o f l arger volume ( as well as

di ff er ent qu ality ) th an thos e o f th e t enor b ec aus e ,

th eir r eson anc e app ar at u s is di ffer ent in siz e and

h
s a e p . It is tru e th eir
,
voc al b ands th eir w ind ;
,
1 42 VOICE PRODUC TION

power and th e l aryngeal muscl es are di fferent

,

—
th ey are not O f th e s am e siz e eta an d in a more , ,

r emot e s ens e this is th e c aus e of th e di ffer enc es

,

in th e ton es th ey produc e ; but th e imm edi at e caus e

is to b e sought in th e r eson anc e m ech anism an d , ,

abov e al l in th e r eson anc e ch amb ers

,
-
.

It is tru e th at wh en o n e sp eaks or sings th e ,

ch est windpip e an d l arynx m ay b e felt to vibr ate

, , ,

but th e ess enti al vibr ations are su p ra g l ottic -

abov e th e voc al b ands .

Thes e resonanc e ch amb ers are th e m ou th cavity

-
,

in th e wid est s ens e and th e n asal ch am b ers It

, .

is highly prob abl e th at th e vibr ations Of th e ch est

w alls an d of th e bon es of th e h ead m ay to some .

d egr ee modify th e vibr ations of th e air within th e

r eson anc e ch amb ers chi efly in th e dir ection o f in
-
,

ten sifi cation ; but th e id ea th at th e hollow sp ac es

in c ert ain of th e bones O f th e h ead h ave any app re
ciab l e infl u enc e on th e ton es o f th e sp eak er o r

singer can at b est not b e consider ed as d emon

,

strated an d it s erv es no pr actic al purpos e to tak e

,

into account this possib ility .

T h e gr eat facts th e f acts which are so pl ain

,

th at th ey m ay b e demonstr at ed to a child are ,

th es e : th at th e qu ality o f any ton e— e g a vowel . .

,

—is ab solut ely d et ermined by th e sh ap e of th es e

c aviti es th e mouth an d n as al ch amb ers This
, .

subj ect will b e tr eat ed furth er when th e tones etc , .

,

o f sp eech are consid er ed but in asmuch as no on e ,

can sing in th e prop er s ens e o f th e t erm withou t

, ,

th e u se of vowels at l east and as w e produc e d ifl

, ,
 FI G T yn d ll ) R pr n t i ng w t r b i ng pour d in t o h v l A
46 ( a e t B, t i ll
t o r pon d t o h i br t i on f h t uning fork
. a . e es e e e e es s e

th e a i p c i j u t ffi
r- s a e s s su u e nt es t e V a s o t e -
. The
air th u b co m r on t or f h f rk
s e es a es a O t e o .
 otp l t
S f a a e

P i ll r f
a s o th e
fa uc es

FI G 4 7 m ou th i x t r m l y W i d l y p n d
( S p alt eh o l z ) T he The oft p l t is
n t r m i n t i ng in h u v u l d on c h i d x t n d i ng fro m i t h p i ll r
. . s e e e e O e e . s a a e

a t a re t of

p i r f fo ld b tw wh ic h h t on i l i n t o l
s ee e e a, an ea s e, e e e a s

the f uc
a e s, a a o s e ee n t e s s see i e.
 Uvu l a

FI G 48 Vi w
no fro m b h i n d h o w ing h p r t
O f th e se , e t c . , nu m r t d bo v t a s e e a e a

m oun t f w ll ing f h l i n i ng
. . e e ,
s e e.

I i no t h r d t o un d r t n d th t
t y con i d r b l
e s a a an e a a t

m ucou m m br n m ight gi v ri t o d i ffi cu lt y in br th in g th roug h h no

s a s e o s e o e

d t

v n co m p l m ou th br th i ng
s e a e e se ea e s e, an

e e e - ea .
 C aw t ies O f n o se

Ha rd p l t
a a e

M ov b l
a e or s oft
plt
a a e

T ongu e T o n5 i l

FI G h o w i ng w ll h cro ll ( t urb i n t d ) bon f h no

( S p a l t eh o l z ) S e t e t

wh i h br k up h p c d m k i t m or c v rnou I
s a e es o e se ,
.
49
t a an a e b n th t th r a t can

co mm un i c t i on b h in d b tw n h m ou th d h n l c v i t i
c ea e s e e e s . e see a e e is

fr t d th t an t if

oft p l t d h t ongu pprox i m t h br th t r m m u t p in t o

ee a e ,
e ee e e a sa a es , a n a

h a a e an t e a a e, t ea an d

th rough h no gi v ing r i t o n l i t y in u t r nc
t e s e e -s ea s a ss

t e se , se a sa t e a e.
 B ESONAN CE -
CHAMBERS
erent vowels wi th eas e O n e m ay at onc e d emo n
,

str ate to hims elf th at this is done b y alt ering th e

sh ap e of his mouth c avity an d chi efly by th e ,

ag ency o f th e tongu e an d soft p al ate .

A short description o f a p art to which m any

voic e us ers r emain str angers all th eir lives will
-

now b e given Th es e r eson anc e ch amb ers r em ain

.
-
,

fo r m any an app ar atus us ed d aily an d absolutely

,

ess enti al yet n ev er ex amin ed

,
Fortun at ely a few .
,

illustr ations which should b e follow ed by an ex

,

amin ation of th e stud ent s o wn r eson anc e ch am

’
-

b ers an d th eir various p arts as th ey m ay b e s een in

a mirror will r emov e all di fficulty in th e und er
,

st anding o f th em an d pr ep ar e for th at d et ail ed

,

study to b e r ecomm end ed in a subs equ ent chapt er .

P as sing from b efor e b ackward on e m eets th e ,

lip s th e t eeth an d g u m s th e h ard p al at e which is

, , ,

a continu ation o f th e gums ; th en susp end ed from ,

th e h ard p al at e b ehind is th e s of t p al at e b ack Of

, , ,

which li es th e p h arynx ( oft en t erm ed th e

thro at an d abov e it an d constituting its con

tinu ation th e n as o p h aryncv; an d lying o n th e

,
-

floor of th e mouth th er e is th e to ng u e .

C ert ai n o f th es e p arts as th e t eeth gums h ard

, , ,

p al at e n as al bon es etc constitut e fi xed strue

, ,
.
,

tur es an d though th ey d et ermin e in n o sm all m ea

,

sur e th e sh ap e Of th e r eson anc e ch amb ers and s o -

,

to a d egr ee th e qu ality of th e voic e s o movable ,

are th e lips soft p al at e an d above all th e tongu e

, , , , ,

th at th er e is th e wid est scop e for v arying th e qu al

ity and even th e volume o f th e voic e ; so that it
1 44 VOICE PRODUC TION
is a good thing pr actic ally for ev ery o n e to b e
, ,

li eve th at so far as qu ality at al l events i s con , ,

cern ed h e is th e m ast er of his own d estini es

,
.

Though w e are accustom ed t o b eli ev e th at th e

mouth an d nos e are though n eighbors quit e s ep a
, ,

r at e an d indep end ent o f each oth er such is n o t ,

th e ca s e Ind eed in th e p re n at al condition th es e

.
,
-

are not two but on e ; an d in som e inst anc es th ey

,

r em ain imp erfectly s ep ar at ed owing to th e failur e ,

o f th e h ard p al at e to d ev elop to t e full

h — a con di

tion known as cl eft p al at e an d giving ris e to ,

a p eculi ar n as al inton ation to b e expl ain ed p re,

s en tl y .

Th e n as al ch am b ers are
divided into two by a
vertic al p artition as on e can r eadily d emonstr at e
,

by th e u se o f his fi ngers and are still furth er ,

brok en up by c ert ain bon es th e scroll sh ap ed o r ,

-

tu r bin ated b on es so th at th e n a s al ch amb e rs are

,

o f very limit ed siz e an d much divid ed up by bony

,

outgrowths from th eir w alls Th e v ertical s ep .

tu m whil e bony abov e is c artil aginous an d fl exibl e

, ,

below .

Without th e aid of instrum ents an d a good light

th e nos e can b e but indiffer ently ex amin ed from
th e front whil e it r equir es th e gr eat est skill on th e
,

p art o f a l aryn gologist to see it well from b ehind .

How ever th e whol e diffi culty can b e got over by

,

visiting a butch er an d s ecuring a sh eep s h ead ’

split through from b efor e b ack In a few mo .

m ents on e can l earn al l th e ess enti al facts includ ,

ing that one of gr eat pr actical import anc e viz : — .

10
 RES ONANCE CHAMBERS -
1 45

th at v ry p art of th e r eson anc e Ch amb ers is l in ed

e e -

by th e s ame mucous m embrane which is also con

tinned downward into th e l arynx an d th e gull et .

It will b e thus obs erv ed th at th e thro at an d nos e

communicat e in th e fr eest m ann er b ehind an d th at ,

th e only w ay of closing Off th e mouth c avity from

th e n as al ch amb ers is b y m eans o f th e tongu e an d
th e soft p al at e working together As in th e
'

prop er u se of th e tongu e and s oft p al at e lie many

o f th e s ecr ets of th e art O f th e sp eak er an d sing er ,

s p eci al att ention must b e giv en to th es e p arts .

Th e t ong u e which compl et ely fi lls th e floor of

,

th e mouth is m ad e up O f s ev er al muscl es of dif

,

ferent at t achm en t s which expl ains why this organ

,

is so mo vabl e T o say th at it can with th e gr eat est

.

eas e an d r apidity b e turn ed tow ard ev ery o n e o f

th e thi rty two points m ark ed o n a m arin er s com

-
’

p ass is but to feebly expr es s its c ap acity fo r

,
.

movem ents Wh at w e are most conc ern ed with

.

now is its pow er to alt er th e sh ap e of th e mouth '

cavity in every p art .

Th e s of t p al at e is susp end ed lik e a curt ain from

th e h ard p al at e b ehind It is compos ed Of mus
,
.

r an g e
'

cl es ar d in p airs an d is continu ed into a ,

conic al tip b elow known as th e uvu l a an d on each ,

sid e into folds th e p ill ars of th e fau ces b etween

, ,

which l ie th e ton sil s which are in sh ap e lik e very

,

small almond nut s Wh en quit e norm al thes e .

should not protrud e much if at al l b eyond th e , ,

c avi ty mad e by th e folds r eferred to ab ove .

1 46 VOICE PRO D UCTION

B oth th e tonsils an d th e uvul a m ay b ecome so

enl arg ed as to b e a sour ce of awkw ardn ess or mor e

s erious evil to th e voic e us er Th ey m ay in fact -

.
, ,

r equir e O p er ativ e int erferenc e S o s erious how .

,

ev er is th e d ecision to op er at e or th e r ev ers e fo r
, , ,

th e voic e us er th at th e author r ecomm ends th at

-

such op er ations b e entrust ed o nl y to l aryng ol o

gists who h ave some knowl edg e of th eir i nfluenc e
o n voic e production
-
.

It is o f th e gr eatest moment t o O bs erv e th at th e

qu ality o f ton es can b e m ad e to vary in th e high est
d egr ee by th e j oint u se of th e to ngu e an d soft
p al at e Wh en in voc alizing th e ton gu e is r ais ed
.

b ehind an d th e soft p al at e m ad e to appro ach it ,

o r actu ally to m eet it th e ton e a ssum es a mor e or

,

l ess nas al ch ar act er Th e r eason of this is th at

.

th e c avity of th e mouth prop er or mouth in ,

th e n arrow er s ens e th e forward p art is shut Off

, ,

from th e hinder p art o r th e ph arynx s o th at th e

, ,

br eath is then dir ect ed upw ard an d p ass es chi efly

through th e nos e producing a n as al tone or twang
,

—alw ays a fault an d o ne fearfully common in

,

Am eric a .

Wh en th e tongu e alon e is r ais ed b ehind or ,

dr wn b ck unduly ton es b ecom e m uffl ed indis

a a —
,

tinct etc This is also a very common fault but

,
.
,

is found in Engl and and G erm any also English .

sp eech is oft en h ard an d guttur al German unduly ,

guttur al if n o t so h ard and Am eric an slovenly

, ,

an d horribly n as al .
 RES ONANC E CHAMBERS - 1 47

B ut wh at m ay in a c ert ain d egr ee b e dis agr ee

abl e and a voc al error i s i n anoth er a positiv e
,

exc ell enc e ; so in thi s c as e th e u se of th e tongu e

, ,

an d s oft p al at e in th e prop er d egr ee an d at th e

right moment gives us emotion al expr ession This .

subj ect will however b e consid er ed again l ater ;

, ,

in th e meantim e th e student is advis ed to do a

,

littl e exp erimenting in th e u se of his tongu e an d

soft p al at e with a vi ew of noting how th e qu ality
,

of ton e m ay b e thus mad e to vary He is also ad .

vis ed to u se a h and gl ass with th e O bj ect of Ob serv

- ~

ing th e p arts mentioned in this ch apt er an d if h e ,

can also fi n d a fri end willing to l end his mouth fo r

obs ervation so much th e b ett er

,
.

Th e soon er any voic e us er com es to feel th at his

-

voc al d estini es l ie in his own h ands th e b etter , .

Know thys elf is as nec ess ary an admonition

for th e sp eak er and sing er as for any oth er artist ,

but with th at must go anoth er B eli eve in thy

,

s elf — th at tho u c anst produc e tones o f b eautiful

an d ex p res sivb qu ality if thou wilt ; it m ay b e only

aft er much wis ely dir ect ed work but yet it is ,

possibl e.

Allusion must b e m ad e to th e d anger Of thos e

eng ag ed in m ath em atic al an d physic al investig a

tions applying their conclusions in too rigid a

m anner to th e anim al body It w as h eld till
.

r ec ently th at th e pitch Of a voc al ton e w as d et er

min ed sol ely by th e numb er o f vibr ations Of th e .

voc al b ands as if th ey act ed lik e th e strings of a

,

violin o r th e r eed o f a cl arin et while th e r eso ,

1 48 VOICE PRODUCTION
n anc e ch amb ers w er e thought to simply t ak e up
-

"
th es e v ibr ations an d det ermi n e nothing b u t th e
qu ality o f tone ; th ey wer e b eli ev ed not to h ave
any influ enc e on pitch Against thi s Vi ew th e
. .

author long ag o d emurr ed T o Prof Scriptur e

. .
,

how ev er b elongs th e cr edit of demonstr ating th at

,

th e r es on anc e ch amb ers d et ermi ne pitch also

-
It .

s eems prob abl e th at th e voc al b ands s o b eat th e

air within th e r eson anc e ch amb ers as to d et ermi n e
-

th e r at e O f vibr ation o f th e air of th es e c aviti es ,

an d so th e pitch o f th e ton e produc ed Th es e .

ch amb ers n ot h aving rigid w alls On e can th e b et ,

ter und erst and th at th e t ension of th es e p art s m ay

not only b e di fi erent in in div idu al s but v ary in th e
~

s am e p ers on from tim e to tim e according to t h e ,

condition O f his h ealth etc H er ein w e fi nd an

,
. .

oth er sourc e O f expl an ation Of v ari ations in th e

voice All thes e consid er ations m ake th e r eso
.

n ance ch amb ers mor e import ant th an ev er so th at

-
,

th er e is gr eat er obj ection to sp eaking of th e

. .

l arynx as th e vo cal organ th an w e wer e awar e

of b efor e th es e investigations w er e undert aken .

SUMMARY .

Without a r eson ator which m ay b e solid o r ho l

,

low th e sound m ad e by a r eed o r t ens e string is

,

feebl e Th at th e mouth can act as a r esonator

.

m ay b e proved by holding a vibr ating tuning for k -

o f suit abl e pitch b efor e this ch amb er wh en op en .

Th e r eson ating ch amb ers o f import anc e are

supr a glottic Of thes e th e mouth
-
. incl uding
 RES O NANCE CHAM BERS -
1 49

al l as f a back
r ph arynx an d th e n as al
as th e
ch a mb ers are th e princip al Th es e two m ain c avi .

ties are s ep ar at ed from each oth er by th e h ard

p alate which is a bony floor covered with mucous
, ,

membr an e, as are al l th e p arts o f th e r eson anc e .

ch amb er s Th e h ard p al at e ex tends h o riz on tally

.

from th e gums b ackw ard an d is continu ed as th e ,

soft p al at e Th e l att er is a muscul ar and there

.
»

for e movabl e curt ain th at divid es with v arying ,

degr ees O f compl et en ess th e mouth ( in th e n ar ,

—
rower s ens e ) from th e ph arynx an d n aso ph arynx ‘

—i e th e sp ace b ack o f th e soft p al at e an d th e .

,
. .

post erior n ar es ( b ack n o stril s f resp ectiv el y By .

th e el ev ation o f th e b ack o f th e tongu e an d th e

low ering of th e soft p al at e as wh en on e sp eaks
n as ally th e mouth prop er is l argely shut o ff from
'

th e n as al ch amb ers so th at th e br eath must b e

,

dir ect ed through th e nos e Cl eft p al at e als o .

co nn ects undesir ably th e mouth an d n as al ch am

b ers Th e tonsils l ie b etw een tw o folds th e pil
.
,

l ars of th e fauc es conn ect ed w ith th e s oft p al at e

, .

Wh en norm al in siz e th e tonsils should sc arc ely

.

ext end b eyond th es e folds Th e uvul a is th e cen

'

tr al lower tip of th e soft p al at e; Th e n as al ch am

b er s are divid ed by a c entr al bony an d cartil a
g in o u s p artition th e s eptum n asi but are furth er
, ,

encro ach ed upon o n each sid e by thr ee scroll lik e

,
-
,

( turbin at ed ) bon es Th e tongue is compos ed o f

.

s ever al muscl es which expl ains why its move;

'
' ‘

ments m ay b e s o complic at ed and d elic ate The .

1 50 VOICE PRODUCTI O N

mouth c avity is bound ed in front by th e gum s ,

t eeth an d lips
,
.

T h e form an d to som e ext ent pos sibly th e siz e

, , ,

o f th e r e son anc e ch amb ers d et ermin e th e qu ality

-

o f th e ton e produc ed in sp eaking an d singing .

Th e sh ap e an d siz e o f th e mouth can b e m ad e to

v ary by th e soft p al at e an d lip s but chi efly by th e ,

tongu e so th at th e movem ents o f th e l atter esp e

, ,

cial ly c annot b e too w ell stu di ed

,
.

It w as formerly consid er ed th at pitch w as de

term in ed sol ely by th e r at e of vibr ation Of th e
voc al b ands ; though th e author O ppos ed this vi ew
as rigidly appli ed V ery rec ently Prof Scrip .
- .

tur e b y th e u se o f new methods h as shown th at

, ,

th e supr a glottic ch amb ers c annot b e corr ectly

-

lik ened to a r es on ator with rigid walls It is h eld .

th at th e vocal b ands give a numb er Of sudd en

shocks to th e air in th e r eson ators s o th at in a , ,

s ens e th e r eson ance ch amb ers det ermin e both th e

,
-

pitch an d th e qu ality of th e ton e ; an d as th e ten

sion o f th e r eson ators vari es with both th e physi
cal an d psychic al condition of th e individu al v ari ,

ation s in ton e production mor e esp eci ally as to

-
,

qu ality can now b e th e b ett er und erstood : Ac

,
.

cording to this V i ew th es e ch amb ers are n ot prop

er ly r es on ators but sounding caviti es .

Th e r ead r att nt ion is p ar ticu l arl y d rawn to th e new

e
’
s e

v i w f t h e m t h o d of act ion of t h voc al b and et c r f rr ed

e s O e e s, .
, e e

t o on t h i p ag s Sinc t h ab ove was w ri tten

e. e h vi w h av
e , su c .
e s e

b com mor w i d l y known and it i hop d t h at a t h y a

e e e e , s e s e re

very r adical t h y m ay b e stab l i h d by o t h r m t h o d

e e s e e e s.
 "
CHAPT E R X .

THE RE GI STERS OF T HE SI N GI N G VOI EC .

AB OU T no subj ect in th e whol e r ange of voice

production h as th er e b een s o much confu sion difi ,

er enc e o f opinion an d c o ntrov ersy as th at of

,

registers ; so th at it I s I mpor tant at th e v ery outs et

to defi ne r egist er and throughout to aim at th e
,

utmost pr ecision an d cl earness .

A r egist er is a s eri es of cons ecutive an d homo

g en eo u s sounds rising from th e gr av e to t h e acut e ,

produc ed by th e d evelopm ent o f th e s am e m ech ani

cal principl e th e n atur e Of which ess enti ally di ff
’

er s from any oth er s eri es of sounds equ ally con

secu tiv e and homog en eous produc ed by anoth er,

m ech anic al principl e ( M a nu el G arci a ) .

A r egister consists o f a s eri es o f ton es which

are produc ed by th e s am e m ech anism ( B ehnk e) .

A r egist er is th e s eri es of tones of like qu ality

producibl e by a p articul ar adjustm ent of th e voc al
cords ( M ack enzi e ) .

From a consider ation o f th e abov e propos ed

d efi nitions it will b e s een th at for th e su cc essful o r ,

at all ev ents compl et e o r id eal inv estig ation o f a

,

subj ect s o m any sid ed and diflicul t m any q u al ifi ca

-
,

tions are d esir abl e if not abso l u t ely ess enti al It

, .

" Th e c h ap ters on th e Registers o f t h e Singing Voic e m ay b e

o mi tted b y readers wh o se prac ti cal in terest is con fi n ed to t h e
k
Spea ing Voi ce .

1 51
1 52 VOICE PRODUC TION

is n ot to o much to say th at th e id eal investigator

o f th e r egist ers shou ld h av e a pr actic al knowl edg e

o f g en er al an atomy an d physiology tog eth er with

,

a d et ail ed an d ex act knowl edge of th e voc al

organs ; b e vers ed in th e l aws O f sound ; h ave an

ad equ at e knowl edge of music ; b e c ap abl e of ex am

ining hims elf with th e l aryn gos cop e ( auto l aryn -

g o s co py ) as w ell a s oth ers ( l aryn goscopy ) poss ess

an acut e ear fo r th e pitch and qu ality of ton es ;

b e hims elf ab l e to u se his voic e at l east fairly w ell

in singing and sp eaking ; b e provided with th e al l
import ant b all ast o f common s ens e an d an im
,

p arti al mind longing above all things to l earn th e

truth .

As few can hop e to unit e al l th es e qu aliti es in

th ems elves in ev en a moder at e d egr ee op enn ess ,

o f mind t emp er anc e in th e expr ession O f opinion

, ,

an d common s ens e with exp eri enc e must b e

,

l argely r eli ed on to furnish working conclusions .

A discussion o f a subj ect s o diffi cult an d com

plic at ed is not easy to follow It is but just to
.

oth er investigators an d fair to th e r ead er to

, ,

pr es ent th e vi ews o f thos e who h ave poss ess ed

sp eci al qu alifi c ations for d ealing with th e qu es
tion s inv ol v ed
'

. T h e author wil l end eavor to p re

s ent th e grounds on which oth ers h ave t ak en th eir
st and in a few words an d cl early if th e r ead er
, ,

will p ati ently follow Th er e will at fi rst s eem

.
,

possibly to b e littl e agr eement but it will b e shown

, ,

th at o n som e o f th e most ess ential points th er e is

subs tanti al unity o f opinion ; and th e subj ect is of
 "
THE SINGING V O ICE 1 53

such vit al moment as th e author will end eavor to ,

mak e cl ear th at it is h op ed th at th e most p ati ent

,

ex amin ation will b e given to th e qu estions th at

a ris e from th e b eginning to th e en d O f th e discus

,

sion F o r th e author to expr ess a dogmatic O pin

.

ion and simply st at e his dis agreement or agr ee

,

ment with oth ers would b e contr ary to th e whol e

,

Spirit of this work an d l eave th e subj ect wh er e it

,

—
onc e w a in th e r ealm of hop el ess dis agr eem ent
s

an d controv ersy If th e probl em of th e r egist ers

.

is to b e solved to th e s atisfaction o f th e rational

think er it must b e by evid enc e an d not th e m er e
, ,

O pinions O f any t each er o r writ er however em i ,

nent To l ay this evid enc e b efor e th e r ead er is

.

n ow th e author s ta sk
’
.

One o f thos e most emin ently equipp ed by a ,

gr eat v ari ety of qu aliti es for th e investigation o f ,

this subj ect or any oth er qu estion o f th e voic e

, ,

w as M ad am e S eil er Wh en ev er th e author is.

obliged to di ffer from this r eally gr eat investiga

to r h e do es s o with th e s ens e of th e high est r esp ect
,

for h er opi ni ons g en er ally b ec aus e sh e always ,

sought fo r sci entifi c grounds for such opinions .

Her vi ews m ay b e thus bri efly pr es ent ed

S h e r ecogniz ed thr ee r egist ers ch est fals etto , , ,

an d h ead with th eir subdivisions

, .

(1 ) Th e fi rst c h est regi ster ex (1 ) w h o l e gl ottis (vo

Th e
cal b an ds ) is m o v ed in l o ose
i n m en
Vi b rati ons
.

and to
E 4 °
in w o m en .
{1 54 VOIC E PRODUC TION

( 2) Th e seco n d c hest giste r

re ex

te n ds to in bo t h ( or l igam en tous gl o tt is) l one

a
se x es .
are in ac tion .

(3) Th e fi rst falsetto ex ten ds in

( )
3 T h e dg
e es a l on e o f th e
fem ales to d v ocal b an d s v ib rate b u t th e
,

w h o l e gl o tt is is in action
m al es
.

in to

( 4) Th e e dg
on l y o f th e
es

Th e on d falsetto in
sec th e v oc al ban ds a e used an d th e
r ,

v ocal ligam en ts al on e are in

femal e exten d s to
E ac tion .

an d to In w o m en .

(5 ) Ed ges on l y o f th e VO
cal b an d s in v i b rat ion ; p a r

(5) A b o ve t h is poin t h ead ton es t i al c l o sur e of th e l igam en ts

b egin .
po steriorl y ( beh in d ) .

It will b e noted th at M ad ame S eil er spoke o f

th e vo cal b ands ( cords ) prop er as th e l igam en
”
tous glottis an d includ ed in th e
,
glottis th e
aryt enoid c artil ages th ems elv es o r at al l ev ents , , ,

th at p art o f them th eir lower ant erior angles

, ,

known as th e voc al proc ess es ( or ext ensions ) to ,

which th e voc al b ands prop er are attach ed .

T h e abov e t abul ar s tat em ent shows ( 1 ) th at

M ad am e S eil er reco gniz ed fi v e r egist ers for b oth
m al e an d fem al e voic es ; ( 2 ) th at sh e us ed th e
t erm fals etto in a s ens e di ffer ent from its
ordin ary o ne Usu ally this t erm is n o t applied at
.

al l to th e fem al e voic e but only to th at sp eci al

,

modifi c ation O f th e m al e voic e s eldom employed

now an d al most n ever ex cept by t enors With
,
.
 THE SINGING VOICE 1 55

”
voic es r epl aces mi ddl e, in th e common er us age.

G arcia also r ecogniz ed fi v e r egist ers B ehnke

, , .
,

a t each er of sin g ing w

,
h o pr actis ed l aryn go sco py
and auto l aryngoscopy in th e inv estig ation o f th e
-
1 56 VOICE PRODUC TIO N
r egist ers u sed er thick
"low
upp er thick ”
"lower thin ” upp er thin ” and small ” as
,

,
'

,
,

,
,

answ ering to th e
” ”
fi rst ch est s econd ch est , ,

etc o f M ad am e S eil er an d oth ers

.
, .

N early al l writ ers h av e us ed th e t erm br eak

to indic at e th e point at which a n ew r egist er b e
gins B ehnk e h eld th at th e break b etween th e
.

thick an d th e thi n r egist er occurr ed in b o th s ex es

at ab out Th e voc al b ands in this
‘

p art o f th e sc al e vibr at e in th eir

entir e br eadth an d th e s eri es o f ton es a bove
,

th e point just r eferr ed to is produc ed by a n ew

mech anism but on e which is th e s am e fo r al l
,

voic es an d both s ex es only th e i nner edges

of th e voc al b ands vibrat e .

According to B ehnke th e m al e voic e h as but two

,

r egisters th e thick an d th e thin but th e femal e

, ,

voic e thr ee th e thick th e thin an d th e sm all

, , ,
.

Th es e t erms w er e n ot origin al with B ehnke b ut ,

h ad b een us ed earli er by Cu rw en .

B ehnk e w as emph atic on o ne point to which w e ,

would c all sp eci al att ention in his own words ,

If th er e is s training anywh er e it is during th e ,

att empt to c arry th e m ech anism o f th e upp er thick

”
b eyond its n atur al limit .

M ackenzi e ( aft erwards Sir Mor ell M ackenzi e)

h eld th at It is c ert ain th at how ev er ov er refi ned -

musici ans m ay multiply th e r egisters o f th e

voic e physiologic ally th er e are but two i e — . .
, ,

ch est an d h ead th e fals etto o f th e m an an

,
’

”
swerin g to th e h ead production o f wom en .
 T HE SINGING VOICE

According to th e s ame author Th e essential

‘

factor in ch est production is th e long r eed whilst ,

th e ess enti al factor in h ead d elivery is th e short

”
r eed .Th e t erms long r eed an d short
r eed wer e th e equiv al ents of M ad ame S eil er s ’

glottis an d lig amentous glottis resp ec

tiv el y M ackenzi e h eld th at th e Cartil agino us

.

( int er aryt enoid ) glottis is gener ally op en l n th e

-

lower and gently clos ed in th e upp er tones of th e

ch est r egist er whil e a s egment o f th e ligam entous
,

glottis ( voc al b ands prop er ) is tightly clos ed in th e

h ead voic e .

As th e r esult o f th e ex amin ation o f 50 p er

s ons gift ed with fin e voices 42 o f whom were
" tr ain ed ”
singers an d 8 n atur al ”
,

singers ,

M ackenzi e formul at ed his conclusions as follows

1 In t enor voic es th e whol e glottis m ay b e op en to
.

E
an d not unfr equ ently to
B eyond this point th er e is
closur e o f th e c artil aginous glottis S ometim es .

th e whol e glottis is op en throughout .

2 I nb aryton e voic es th e whol e glottis is oft en

.

d occ asion ally to

E
O p en to n
3, a
"
B eyond this point th e c arti
‘

'

2 r

l agin o u s glottis is clos ed exc ept in r ar e c as es

,
.

3 In b ass vo i c es th e whol e glotti s is s ometim es

.

op en to B eyond this point exc ept ,

in a few inst ances , th e c artil aginous

glottis is gr adu al ly clos ed .
1 58 VOIC E PRODUCTIO N
.

4 In sopr anos and mezzo sopr anos th e whol e

.
-

glotti s i s somet im es op en to often to

b eyond which th e c arti E
l ag in ou s glottis is usu al ly clos ed .

Th e glottis is sometim es clos ed throughout th e

sc al e and in one ca s e it w as op en throughout
,
.

5 In contr alto voic es th e whol e of th e glottis is

.

b ey ond whi ch th e car

E
often op en to
t i l ag in o u s
E portion is clos ed .

6 In th e h ead voic e o f wom en an d th e fals etto

.

voic e o f m en stop closur e ( i e closur e so

-
. .
,

tight th at th e cords in this r egion do not vibr at e)

alw ays t ak es pl ac e in th e post erior portion o f th e

ligam entous glottis and sometim es at th e ant erior

,

p art also .

This writ er also h eld th at B oys who sing alto

alw ays u se th e ch est r egist er He w as of opin .

ion th at Th e qu ality of th e voic e g en er ally b ut , ,

not always indic at es which m ech anism is b eing

,
”
us ed .

Th e vi ews of th e author publish ed at a form er ,

p eriod and b as ed on th e sp eci al ex amin ation of a

,

l arge numb er of p ersons with th e l aryngoscop e ,

etc.
,
an d on auto l aryngoscopy -
may b e b ri efly ,

st at ed as follows
A nom encl atur e for th e r egist ers invo l ving no
th eory would b e b est such for ex ampl e as l ow er
, , , ,

middl e an d u p p er r eg isters
, M andl who r ecog .
,

n ized only two r egist ers spok e o f th em as

.

,
”
lower an d upp er equiv al ent to ch est
,
”
an d h ead , as commonly us ed .
 T HE SINGING VOICE 1 59

Th e uthor ex amin ed with th e l aryngoscope 50

a

p ersons who might ( with Grii tzn er ) b e divid ed

,
” ”
into tr ain ed sin gers n atur al singers an d ,
,
”
n o n sing ers
-
T h e whol e glottis w as found to
.

b e op en in all voic es in th e low est ton es o f th e

ch est regist er and this condition obt ained up t o
,

about b eyond which anoth er mech

an ism E c am e into pl ay exc ept in r ar e ,

c as es
.

T h e high fals etto o f m en an d th e h ead voic e o f

wom en are produc ed by a simil ar mech anism an d
m ethod .

In th e investigation of r egist ers mor e att ention

should b e given to th e u se o f th e br eathi ng organs
th an h as hitherto b een don e by thos e writing o n
this subj ect .

As M ad am e M arch esi of P aris h as t aught with, ,

pr eemin ent succ es s an d with th e gr eat est pr actic al

,

consider ation for th e pr es erv ation o f th e voice an d

th e voc al org ans in an unimp air ed con di tion an d ,

a s th e author h as h ad through h er kindn ess th e

, ,

opportuni ty to b ecom e acqu aint ed with h er m eth

o d s by obs erv ation h er v iew s on th e r egist ers a re
,

h er e pr es ent ed It is to b e understood th at as
.

sh e t each es only l adi es h er vi ews ar e consid er ed

, ,

s o far as sh e is conc erned as applying only to ,

fem al e voic es Th es e vi ews are furth er pr es ented

.

b ec aus e M ad ame M arch esi w as h ers elf t aught by

G arci a who w as in the di r ect lin e of th e ol d It ali an
,

m ast ers though it will b e obs erv ed th at th e pupil

,

h as r et ain ed only th e ess enti als of th e m ast er s ’

views on th e r egist ers .

1 60 VOICE PRODUC TION
1 Ther e are thr ee r egis ters in fem al e voices
.

ch est mi ddl e an d h ead

, , .

2 Whil e th er e are sm all differ enc es in voic es

.

an d in di vidu als as r eg ards th e r egist ers th e fol

,

lowin g p rincipl es apply to al l o f th em :

( )
a Th e ch est r egis ter must n ev er b e c a rri ed
ab ov e

should b e cover ed or mod

ch est ton es.

( )
c In all c as es "
:
must b e a h ead
i
ton e .

d
( ) In quick p a ss a g e s ch est should not b e ca r
—
k
ri ed b eyond i e
E E ;
. .
, are

m i d d l e in quic p as

sages .
 CH APT E R XI .

F URTHER CONSI D ERA TI ON O F T HE REGI S

TERS OF T HE SI N GI N G VO I CE .

Ir will ,
it is hop ed b e a pp a r,
ent to th e r ead er
th at th e subj ect now under tr eatment m ay b e con
sid ered eith er th eor etic ally or pr actic ally If .

sci ence b e ex act sys tem atiz ed an d wh en compl ete

, , , ,

unifi ed knowledge th en ev ery s ourc e o f inform a

,

tion must b e employ ed in th e investigation o f so

diffi cult a subj ect as th e regist ers Th er e m ay b e .

di ffer enc es o f opinion as to th e r el ative import anc e

o f som e of th es e m eans o f inv estig ation
— e g . .
,

auto l aryngoscopy but th at it should b e utiliz ed

-
, ,

th ere can b e no qu estion T h e v alu e o f photog .

raph y o f th e l arynx a s c arri ed out up to th e p res

,

en t m ay b e qu estion ed ; but th er e can b e no doubt

,

th at if this m ethod of studying th e action of th e

voc al b ands could b e push ed to a c ert ain point ,

much light might b e thrown on th e qu estions at

issu e .

M er ely to as sum e th at a method of tr eating th e

r egist ers which h as g iven app ar ently good p rac , ,

ti cal r esults in th e h ands o f on e t each er is sound ,

an d r ests on a sci entifi c b asis is unwarr ant ed ,

It .

m ay b e simply a littl e b ett er or a littl e wors e th an

som e oth er How is th e stud ent to distinguish in
'

.
,

h is choic e b etw een Mr A an d Mr B in th e ca s e

,
. .
,

o f two succ essful t e ach ers both o f whom r ecognize

,

1 61
1 62 VOICE P R ODUC TION

k
r egist ers ? A physiologist m ay b e sound as far
as h e go es yet l ack th at pr actic al
,
nowledge o f th e
voic e which th e voc al t each er prop erly consid ers
r equisit e in d et ermining h ow a pupil sh all u se th e
r egist ers Am ong thos e who are most dogm atic
.

o n this an d oth er qu estions th er e is oft en a p l en ti

ful l ack o f knowl edge o f th e voc al org ans ; an d

s ome cl ev er l aryngologists must h ave l earn ed .
,

wh en th ey w er e c arried into th e discussion of this

subj ect that som e knowl edge of music an d singing
,

is absolut ely indisp ens abl e an d th at enough can

,

not b e pick ed u p ev en by an abl e m an in a few

, ,

minut es d evot ed to in terro g ating _sin g ers espe ,

cial l y wh en th es e V o c alist s h av e b een tr ain ed by

wid ely di ffer ent m ethods an d h ave as is too oft en

, ,

th e c as e giv en but littl e r eal t h ou g h t to th e scien

,

tifi c or ind eed an y oth er sid e o f th eir art

, , ,
.

W e fi n d br eak confound ed with r egister ,

an d th e m eaning att ach ed to th e l att er at b est on e , ,

sid ed o r in adequ at e in som e r esp ects Th e t ruth .

is such a subj ect c annot b e s ettl ed by th e physi

,

ologist even wh en a l ar yn gologist as such ; nor

, ,

can th e solution to a sci enti fi c qu estion o f this kind

b e giv en by a singer as a singer ,

Such a probl em.

c an only b e s ettl ed as w e h av e throughout in

,

sist ed by thos e poss essing m any qu alifi c ations

, ,

an d ev e n wh en th e investigator unit es in hims elf

ev ery int ell ectu al qu alifi c ation som ethi ng will d e
,

p end o n his t emp er ament an d spirit An atmos .

.

p h or e of controv e rsy is not f avor abl e to sci enti fi c

investigation , an d among th e d angers th at ever l ie

 THE SINGING VOIC E 1 63

in th e p ath of th e t each er are prid e and pr ejudic e .

T h e a ssumption th at one is pr ep ar ed to t each is

too oft en associ at ed with vi ews an d feelings th at
pr event th e guid e from r em aining hims elf a stu
d ent and b eing r eady to l earn ev en from th e very
b egin ner as h e must if h e h ave th e tru e spirit
,
.
.

Un fortunat ely s ev er al of th e most highly qu alifi ed

,

writers on this subj ect h av e formul at ed their

vi ews und er conditions unfavor abl e to th e attain
m ent of th e whol e truth .

It is to b e borne in mind alw ays th at a r egister

implies ( 1 ) a s eri es o f tones o f a ch ar act eristic
cl ang tim b re color o r qu ality ; ( 2 ) th at this is du e
, , ,

to th e employm ent o f a sp eci al m ech anism o f th e

l arynx in a p articul ar m anner It follows th at in .

thinkin g o f r egist ers sci entifi c ally one must t ak e ,

into account both th e ton es an d th e m ech anisms

by which th ey are produc ed .

N atur ally with most untr ain ed p eopl e th e p as

, :

s age from o ne r egi st er to anoth er is associ at ed

k
with a sudd enness o f ch ange which is unpl eas ant ,

an d which is t erm ed th e b r ea It is oft en sug.

g estiv e of w eak ness unc ert ainty

,
etc an d t o an ,
.
,

ear a t onc e s ensitive an d ex acting through tr aining

is intol er abl e when v ery pronounc ed Oft en this .

br eak is very m arked in contr altos an d is inv aria ,

bly so pronounc ed in th e m al e voic e wh en it p ass es

to th e upp er fals etto th at even th e dull est ear do es
not fail to notic e th e ch ange .

It is th er efor e not surprising th at t each ers

, ,

should h ave sought to l ess en th e unpleas ant sur

1 64 VOICE PRODUCTION
pris e for th e list ener c aus ed b y th e b r eak Some .

h av e look ed on r egist ers as almost an invention of

th e Evil On e and forbidden th e u se of th e term to
,

their stud ents ; b ut such ostrich like tr eatment of

-

—
th e subj ect such b urying of th e h ead in th e s and
— do es not do away with a difficulty much l es s can ,

such a pl ain fact as th e exist enc e o f r egist ers b e

ignor ed without th e most d etriment al r es ul ts as ,

w e sh all end eavor to m ak e pl ain Som e feeling

.
,

th at th e br eak w a s an artistic abomin ation h ave ,

proc eed ed t o t each th e student to r educ e al l tones

to th e s ame qu ality which is about as r ational as
,

asking a p aint er to giv e us pictur es by th e u se ,

o f but on e pigment .

To att empt to abolish r egist ers would b e like

l eavin g but one string to th e violin ; which in stru
m ent in its pr es ent form h as a r egist er for each
, ,

string ; an d th e pl ay er end eavors to avoid th e

br eaks th at natur ally occur in p assing from string
to strin g an d to g et a smooth s eri es o f ton es just
,

as th e int ellig ent voc alist do es .

Th e r egist ers m ay b e r epr es ent ed to th e eye by

th e m ethod illustr at ed in fi gur e 52 .

T h e wis e instructor r ecogniz es r egist ers ; th ey

are a fact in n atur e an d on e to b e v alu ed
,
Th e .

mor e colors th e gr eat er th e r ange of th e artist s

,
’

pow ers oth er thing s b eing equ al wh eth er th e

, ,

artist p aint with pi gm ents o r ton es ; but just as

th e p aint er us es int erm edi at e ton es o f color to p re

vent rud e tr ansitions or b r eaks so must th e singer
,
 A p h o t ogr p h i c r pr n t t ion f h pp r nc f h v oc l h d
FI G 5 1 a e se a t a ea a t a an

wh n ubj c t i oun d i ng fi r t E d th n F h rp i n wh i c h l tt r c i br
. e o e es o e s

th e s an h a t

i x t n th i nc h ccor d i ng t o
e e s s s e s , a e as e e V a

t ory por t ion f h v oc l b n d

t h or t n d bou t
a s a re s e a o ne S
”

b n m i n n tl y ucc fu l in p h o t ogr p h ing h l ry nx I l l

s o e a e -
ee , a

D F r nc h h h w t t Wl

no t d th t th i i h poin t in h c l
r . e , o as ee e e s e ss a e a .

be e a s s t e wh ic h h c h ng f r gi t r u u ll y
t e s a e at t e a e o e s e s a

t k pl c a e th r i c h ng f m c h ni m corr pon d i ng t o h c h ng in
e e e s a a e o e a s es t a

q u l i ty
a es .
, e e

a .
 T HE SINGING VOICE 1 65

modify or cover th e ton es b etw een th e r egis

‘

ters— i . u se to som e ext ent th e m ech anism of

both neighboring r egist ers .

k
T h e r ead er who h as p erus ed th e pr evious ch ap
t er thoughtfully m ay n atur ally as With such
°

differ enc e of opini on among emin ent authors lik e

thos e quot ed how am I to know whi ch one to fol
,

low an d wh at to b eli eve on this subj ect ?

,

T h e answ er to th at qu estion we propos e now

t o giv e .It will b e wis e to endeavor to show just
wh er ein th e writ ers quot ed differ an d on wh at th ey
agr ee . A c ar eful ex amin ation will show th at
th er e is subst anti al agr eem ent on th e most im
port ant points
1 All agr ee th at th er e are r egist ers o r n atur al
.
,

ch anges o f qu ality of ton e corr esponding to

,

ch ang es o f m ech anism or m ethod .

2 All with th e exc eption o f M ad ame S eil er

.
, ,

agr ee th at th e most import ant ch ang es t ak e pl ac e

at o r n ear in fem ale voic es an d th e ,

m aj o r i t y consid er th at this appli es

to both s ex es equ ally .

3 Oft en in m al es th er e is som e l aryng eal ch ang e

.

low er th an this .

4 All agr ee th at th e high fals etto o f t enors is

.

o f a sp eci al qu ality an d produc ed by a m ech anism

,

o f its own— i . al l consid er it a s ep ar at e r egist er

—an d oft en at l east it b egins n atur ally about
, ,

E
which is usu ally how ever writt en
SL ,

an octav e high er though r eally sung

,

as given above .
1 66 VOICE PRODUC TION
.

Th e point of gr eatest str ain is gen erally ,

fo r both s ex es about thi s point an d m any

, ,

p ersons c annot sing hi gh er th an this i — .

for m al es an d its oct ave fo r

E
about ,

femal es .

It is to b e r em emb er ed as M ad ame S eiler h as

,

pointed o u t th at at th e p eriod of gr eat est p erfec

,

tion in voc al tr ain ing some hundred an d fi f ty

,

y ears or mor e ag o conc ert pitch W as very

, .

much low er than it is to d ay ; so th at to t each

-

t enors to sing in o n e r eg ist er up to

th en w as quit e a di fferent m att er from
,

wh at th at would b e t o day Th e ol d It ali an m as

.

t ers w er e accustom ed to tr ain singers to th e u se

o f th e f als etto an d wh at ever vi ews m ay b e h eld
,

as to th e d esir ability o f th e t enor using this r eg is

ter s o far as ar t is conc ern ed th er e can b e no

, ,

qu estion wh at ever th at physiologic ally it is easy ,

an d on e o f th e m eans by which r eli ef m ay b e

sought from th e high t ension c aus ed by c arrying

up th e low er r egist er .

Th e author aft er a sp eci al inv estig ati on o f this

,

an d oth er qu estions conn ect ed with th e r egisters ,

c am e to th e conclusion th at th e fals etto in mal es

an d th e h ead voic e in fem al es ar e produc ed by a

simil ar m ech anism In th e high fals etto th e voc al

.

b ands do not vibr at e throughout th eir whol e

br eadth an d th er e must b e fo r a succ essful r esult
, , ,

in every c as e a feeling o f eas e d u e to th e r el ax a

,

tion o f c ert ain m ech anisms in u se up to that p oint

and th e employm ent o f n ew on es .
 Th fi gur t con v y th roug h h y o m f h m in
t ru th r g r d i ng h n t ur f r gi t r d b r kT h fi gur
Fi Gs .
52 . m e se e s are ea n to e t e e e s e o t e a

a t e a h l ft pp l i to s e s an ea e on t e e a es

d wi t h h
s e e o e s . e

t h c f
as e w i th th r r gi t r in h v oic
o ne eebr k on l y v ry t an t ea s

m o d r t l y m rk d h i ll u t r t ion h righ t pp l i
e o e s e s e e, e e

e a e a e t h m p r on ft r
a on t a to t sa e s a

t r in i ng w h n h br k h v b co m in d t inc t lm o t i m p rc p t ib l F
; e s e es e e e

t ea a a e

i m i l r d i gr m bu t in h d f
a ,
e e s e e e is s e e. or
,

t c h ing purpo h u th or i ccu t o m d

s es t e a s a t o u se a a a a a

m co l or h d i ff r nc b ing r n d r d l ob v iou b y in t r m d i t h d
ea s e S ,
s es o

t h sa t e a e a

in h right h n d fig r
e e , e e e e e e e ess s e e s es

b twe eenh r gi t r h d
t e e s e s a es t e - a u e.
 THE SIN GING VOICE 1 67

Th e uthor now o ffers with al l r esp ect b ut with

a , ,

confi d enc e a few criticisms o n th e em in ent inv es

,

tig ato rs whos e conclusions an d m ethods h e h as

b een discussing .

Mad ame S eil er w as th e writ er wh o as h as b een ,

alr eady s aid brought mor e num erous an d high er

,

qu alifi cations of a sci entifi c an d pr actical kind to

th e inv estig ation of this subj ect th an any oth er
p erson How ever th e study o f physics involving
.
, ,

as it do es th e u se o f m ethods of extr em e pr ecision ,

t ends to b eget h abits of mind which are n o t in al l

r esp ects th e b est fo r th e consider ation o f biologi
cal probl ems M adam e S eil er an d h er m ast er
.
,

th e physicist H elmholtz r eg ard ed th e voc al m ech

,

an ism v ery much in th e s am e light as th ey di d th eir

l abor atory app ar atus Only in this w ay can th e

.

author expl ain som e of M ad am e S eil er s positions ;

’

but on this assumption on e can underst and why

sh e should m ak e fi v e r egist ers an d consid er th em
,

all app ar ently o f equ al import anc e

, , This l att er .
,

t og eth er with th e t end ency g en er ally to pr es ent

h er vi ews in too rigid a form w as w e think h er , , ,

gr eat error .

B ehnk e admitt ed th at al l fi v e r egist ers might b e

h eard esp eci ally in contr altos but h e did n ot
, ,

att ach equ al import anc e to each o f th es e r egist ers .

M ack enzi e th e author conc eives to h ave b een

misl ed h y th e very m ethod th at h e consid er ed a
'

sp ecial virtu e i n his inv estigations— th e ex amin a

tion o f tr ain ed singers Sur ely if o ne would l earn
.
,
’
wh at is N atur e s teaching on this subj ect h e must ,
 "
1 68 VOICE PR O D UC TION
not dr aw conclusions from tr ained voc ali sts alone
By tr aini ng on e m ay l earn to walk w ell on his
h ands but this do es not prov e such a m ethod th e
,

n atural on e n o r would it b e good r eas oning to

,

dr aw this conclusion even if a few individu als

,

w er e found who could thus walk mor e r apidly

th an in th e usu al w ay .

T h e div ersity th at M ackenzi e found in singers

do es not in th e author s opinion exist in n atur e ;
,
’
,

much if n o t most of it w as du e to tr aining an d ,

al l th at can b e s aid is th at s ev er al p eopl e m ay sin g

in difi eren t w ays with not gr eatly di ffer ent

'

msth etic r esults ; but such m ethods o f inv estig a

tion m ay as in this c as e l ead to c o nclusions th at
, ,

are d ang erously lib er al .

Th e author holds to day as h e did wh en h e pub

-
,

l ish ed his r esults m any y ears ag o th at Impr es ,

sions from gen er al l aryngoscopic obs ervations or

conclusions dr awn from singl e c as es will not s ettl e
th es e qu estions V ery lik ely di ffer enc es such as
.

th es e writ ers allud e to m ay exist to a slight d e

gr ee ; but if th ey do I qu estion wh eth er th ey are
,

su ffici ently op en to obs ervation ever to b e c ap abl e

o f d efi nition ; nor is it lik ely th at th ey int erf er e

with m ethods of voic e production which are alik e

-

”
op er ative in all p ersons .

Holding th es e vi ews not only can th e author ,

not agr ee with thos e who b elieve th at th e ch ange

in a r egist er occurs in di ffer ent p ers ons o f th e
s ame voic e ( 6 g s opr ano ) at appr eci ably diff
. .
,

erent l ev els in th e sc al e an d ev en vari es n atur ally

,
 THE SINGING VOICE 1 69

from day to day but h e holds that to b eliev e thi s

,

in theory an d embody it in pr actic e is to pursu e

a cours e not o nl y d etrim ent al to th e b est artistic

r esults but contr ary to th e pl ain t eachings o f

,

physiology in gener al an d th at of th e voc al organs

in p articular .

Th e ch ang e in a r egist er should b e pl ac ed l ow

enough in th e sc al e to sui t al l of th e s ame sex .

f
k
I t is sa e to carry a h ig h er reg ist er d own , bu t it is
alw ays ris y, an d m ay b e inj u riou s t o th e th roat,
to carry a l ow er u p b eyon d a cer tain p oin t Th e
.

l att er l eads not only to a limit ation o f r esources in

ton e coloring but als o to str aining to which w e
, ,

h ave b efor e allud ed Though this proc es s m ay

.

not b e at onc e obviously inj urious it invariably ,

b ecomes so as tim e p ass es an d no voc alist who

,

hop es to sing much an d to l ast can ignor e r egis

t ers much l es s m ak e th e ch ange at a point to any
,

appr eci abl e ext ent r emov ed from thos e th at scien

tifi c inv estigation an d equ ally sound pr actic e t each

us are th e corr ect on es at which to m ake th e
ch anges .

Why is it th at som e artists of world wid e r epu -

tation sing as w ell to day as tw enty y ears ag o

-
,

whil e oth ers h ave broken down o r h ave b ecom e

hop el essly d efective in th eir voc al r esults in a few
y ears ? Th er e is but one answer in a l arg e pro a

portion of th es e c ases : corr ect m ethods in th e

form er an d wrong m ethods in th e l att er cl ass of
s in g ersw —an d corr ect in no small d egr ee r efers
to a strict obs ervanc e of r egist ers .
1 70 VOICE PRODUC TION
Th e uthor h as known a professional soprano
a

to s ing ev ery ton e in th e trying H ear , O Isr ael

( E lij ah ) in t h e ch est r egist er How c an .such a

sing er hop e to r etain eith er voice or a sound

thro at ? But so long as au di en ces will appl aud
exhibitions of m er e lung pow er an d brut e for ce
-

th e t eachings of physiology and h ealthy art will b e

viol at ed But sur ely al l artists th ems elves and

"
.
, ,

al l enlight en ed t each ers should unit e in cond emn

ing such viol ations of N atur e s pl ain t eachings

’

Th e qu estion o f th e r egist ers is g en er ally con

sid ered n ow a som ewh at simpl er on e for m al es
"
th an for fem al es B ass es an d b aryton es sin g in
.

th e ch est r egist er only ; t enors are usu ally t aught

to sing in th e ch est r egist er ; but few t each ers b e
li ev e th at th e high fals etto is worth th e ex p en di
tur e o f th e tim e an d en ergy n ec ess ary to at tain
facility in its u se .

Prob ably in many m al e voic es th er e are th e

distinctions of r egist er M ad am e S eil er alludes to
i e fi rst ch est an d s econd ch est o r som e ch ange
. .
, ,

an alogous to th e middl e of f em al es ; but fr om one ,

caus e an d anoth er this s eems to r eadily dis app ear

, .

Wh eth er it would not b e worth m aint aining is a

qu estion th at th e author suggests as at l east worth
consider ation C ert ain it is th at sp eaking g en
.
,

erall y th er e is no ch ange in m al es equ ally p ro

,

n ou n ced with th e p as s ag e from th e low est to th e

n ext high er ( ch est to middl e ) r egister in fem al es .

Wh at th en are th e vi ews th at th e author b e

, ,

l iev es so well ground ed in r egard to th e r egist ers

, ,
 THE
’

SINGING VOICE 1 71

th at th ey may b e mad e in all confi d ence, th e b asis

,

o f t eaching ?

Without h esit ation h e r ecommends th at ar

,

r angem ent of th e r egist ers set for th in th e l ast

ch apter It is not th e exclusive inv ention nor th e
.

b asis of practic e of any o n e p ers on but it m ay ,

fi tting ly enough b e as sociat ed with t h e n am e o f a

’

woman who for over fi fty years h as t aught sing

ing with so much r egard fo r tru e art and for
’
—
N atur e s t each ings i e for physiologic al as w ell
. .
,

a s a rtistic principl es .

Such a method for femal e voic es is wholly con

sistent with th e b est scientifi c t eaching known to
th e author ; it is in h armony with th e l aws of
vocal hygi ene ; it gives th e singer b eautiful tones ,

an d l eav es h er with improved an d not injur ed , ,

voc al org ans Such an arr angement o f th e r egis

.

t ers is n ot m arr ed by th e rigidity o f M ad ame

S eil er s nor th e l axity of M ack enzi e s but com
’ ’
,

bines flexibility with suffi ci ently d efi nit e limit a

tions.

As to just how much a t each er o f singing should

say to th e pupil o n th e subj ect o f r egist er s an d
‘

esp eci ally in a physiologic al w ay must d ep end on ,

circumst anc es About th e wisdom of t each ers o f

.

singing ( and elocution ) u nd erst anding th e voc al

mech ani sm and c ar efully weighing t h e m att er of
,

r egist ers from every point of vi ew th e r ead er of ,

thi s book will h ave no doubt by this tim e th e , ,

author v entur es to h Op e .
.
1 72 VOICE PRO D UC TI O N
Of cours e, one m ay obj ect that for every tone, as
it difi ers slightly in qu al ity from its neighbor in
—
th e sc al e th er e should b e a n ew r egist er a new
,

mech anism Such an obj ection , though th eoreti

.

k
cally sound, is o f no pr actic al weight Wh at stu .

d ents wish to now an d instructors to t each is ho w

—
to att ain to good s inging th e kind th at gives
g enuin ely artistic r esults , and l eaves th e thro at
an d entir e body of th e voc alist th e b ett er fo r his

efi o rt
. Th e t eaching o f this work in r eg ard to
th e r egist ers and oth er subj ec ts is int end ed to
accomplish this an d n o t to occupy th e att ention
,

of r ead ers with voc al or physiological r efi n em ents

of no pr actical import anc e .

Th e author h as alw ays b een of O pinion th at

thos e who h av e investig at ed an d writt en on this
subj ect h av e d evot ed insu ffici ent att ention to on e
—
point viz th e m ann er of using th e b r eath Th e
,
.

br eathing in th e u se o f th e high fals etto for ex ,

ampl e is as di ffer ent as are th e l aryn geal pro

,

c ess es ; and this is a point of pr actical import anc e ,

fo r th e voic e us er must ev er consid er economy in

-

b r eathing It is exp en di tur e in this dir ection th at

.

most t ax es al l sing ers even th e b est tr ain ed an d

, .

th e most highly endow ed .

k
But th e stud ent deeply impr ess ed with th e im
,

p ort ance of th e subj ect o f r egist ers m ay as ,

How am I to distinguish b etw een on e r egist er

an d anoth er ? How am I to know wh en I am sing
”
ing with ch est middl e or head voic e ?
, ,
Th e
answer is By s ens ations — ch iefl y by h earing ,
 THE SINGING VOICE 1 73

but lso by c ertain s ens ations ( l ess prop er ly

a

t erm ed feelings in th e r eson ance ch amb ers -

an d to a c ert ain ext ent in th e l arynx Of cours e

.
,

b efore one can thus id entify any regist er h e must ,

h ave heard a singer of fairly good voi ce form th e

ton es o f this p articul ar r egist er One wh o h as .

n ever h eard sounds o f a p articul ar color or qu ality

c ann ot o f cours e l earn to r eco gniz e th em from
, ,

mer e d escription though by this means h e is oft en

,

p pr e a r ed to h e a r an d to a ssoci
,
a t e cl ea r id e as

with th at h earing .

As th e r egisters are of such gr eat pr actic al im

p o rt an c e e s,p ec
.
ia ll y for th e f em al e voic e th e r e is ,

no p eriod wh en it is of so much valu e to h ave a

l ady t each er as just when th e voic e is b eing
pl ac ed — which should mean th e r ecogni tion of
its m ain qu ality an d th e teaching o f r egist ers by
,

imit ation as well as description Th e stud ent

.

should b e m ade to und erstand by pr actical ex ,

ampl es th e subj ect o f

, covering o r m o difi ca
,

tion C ert ainl y th e tr aining of a voc alist c annot

.
,

b e ad equ at ely undert ak en b y ev en th e most l earn ed

musician however good an instrument alist if h e
, ,

h as p aid no att ention to th e voic e pr actic ally .

Much of th e t eaching don e b y thos e ign orant o f

voic e production how ever well m eant may b e
-
, ,

a positive dr awb ack an d l eav e th e would b e singer

,
-

with faults th at m ay n ever b e wholly er adic ated .

Th e author would r ecomm end al l stud ents who

h ave b eg u n a s erious pr actical study o f th e r egis
t er s to h ear if possi b l e some singer of emin ence
, ,
1 74 VOIC E PRO D UCTION
who obs erv es r egist er form ation strictly In thi s .

w ay mor e can oft en b e don e in g etting a cl ear

notion of their ch ar act eristic qu alities in a singl e ,

ev ening th an by list ening to an or di n ary am at eur

, ,

o r t o such a voic e a s an oth erw is e exc ellent voca l

t each er can bring to h er work on m any occ asions ;

,

b ett er on e hour list ening to a M elb a with h er oh ,

s ervanc e o f regist ers covering etc as set forth

, ,
.
,

by th e author in this ch apt er th an a score o f ,

voc alists o f indi ffer ent ev en if not incorr ect pro

,

duction On e th en h as b efor e h er an individu al

.

who after long an d c ar eful tr aining att ains re

, ,
s

su l ts not ind eed within th e r each o f al l but such

, , ,

as m ay b e appro ach ed if th e s am e m ethods are

pursu ed long enough ; an d in M ad ame M elb a an d ,

oth ers th at might b e n amed th e stud ent h as ex

,

ampl es o f how thos e using corr ec t m ethods an d ,

not worshipping at th e shrin e o f m er e voc al

power m ay r etain th e voc al organs uninjur ed
,
.

an d th e voic e unimp air ed aft er th e l aps e o f w ell

nigh a scor e of y ears o f ex acting public singi ng .

T each ers will do w ell to encour age th eir pupil s

to h ear th e b est singers ; for do n ot students need
inspir ation as w ell as discipline ?
Gr ant ed th at th e c ar can at onc e d et ermin e wh at
r egist er th e pupil h ers elf o r anoth er singer may
b e using wh at oth er guid e h as sh e ?
,

Th er e are c ert ain s ens ations as alr eady s aid , ,

felt within th e r eson anc e ch amb ers an d l arynx

-
,

which ar e sur e guid es In a p erson who h ad

.

learn ed to r eco g niz e th e correct r eg ist er form ation

 THE SINGING V O ICE 1 75

by th e help of th e ear an d thos e s ens ations now

r eferr ed to th e l att er would suffic e t o b e a p arti al
,

guide at l east ev en h ad h e b ecome d eaf While

, ,
.

thes e s ens ations are absolut ely ch ar act eristic it ,

is diffi cult to d escrib e th em ; th ey must b e ex p eri

en ced to b e und erstood T o att empt to d escrib e
.

th e t ast e o f a p each to o n e who knew th at of an

’

appl e but h ad n ever eat en a p each would b e p er

.

h aps not absolutely us el es s but would c ert ainly

, ,

s erve littl e purpos e T h e s ens ation must accom

.

p any th e corr ect form ation o f th e ton e Th e .

t erm str aining carri es with it th e idea o f

unpl eas ant s ens ations ; al l underst and pr actically .

wh at this t erm means ; yet th e s ens ation o f str ain

in a t enor c arrying his ch est r egist er too high is
n o mor e m ark ed th an th e s ens ation o f r eli ef wh en

h e ch anges t o th e fals etto .

Wh en onc e th e voic e h as b een w ell pl ac ed littl e ,

att ention n eed b e o r is usu ally p aid consci ou s ly

, ,

t o th e s ens ations as soci at ed o f n ec essity with al l

ch anges in th e v oc al organs When on e b ecomes .

unduly conscious o f any o f th e norm al s ens ations

o f th e body h e is no long er a p erfectly h ealthy
,

p erson At th e s ame time as w e h av e point ed

.
,

o u t in Ch apt er II an d sh al l do mor e at l ength

.
,

shortl y s ens ations are absolut ely ess ential guides

,

for all muscul ar an d oth er proc ess es o f th e body ;

b ut th ey should ent er just so much into con sciou s
n ess an d no mor e
,
.

k
It is pr actic ally h elpful to th e voic e produc er -

and th e t ea cher to thin of th e r esonance ch amb ers -

1 76 VOICE PRODUC TION
an d th e b earing a clos e r el ationship to th e
ear as

movements ess enti al to to ne production T h e sen

-
.

s ation s from th es e p arts are o f import anc e ab ove

al l oth ers in voic e production

-
Th ey are th e chi ef
.

guid es an d th e attention may to adv ant age b e

,

conc entr at ed on th em .

NO doubt th e qu estion O f r egist ers for th e

s p eak er must b e consid er ed but this can b e don e
,

to gr eat er advant age in a l at er ch apt er .

SUMMARY .

All good d efi nitions Of a r egist er mus t r eco gniz e

t wo things : ch ang e o f qu ali ty in th e voic e an d
-

ch ange O f m ech anism in th e vo cal app ar atus A .

br eak is not a r egist er but oc curs b ec aus e of th e

,

exist enc e of r egist ers Th e abrupt tr ansition o r

.
,

br eak is to b e avoided by covering or modi fi c ation

, ,

o f th e upp er ton es o f th e lower ( at l east ) r egist er .

F o r an ad equ at e scientifi c ex amin ation o f th e

qu estion of r egist er s m any q u al ifi cation s are r e
,

quir ed in th e investigator ; and th e stud ent wh en ,

not an investigator should end eavor t o w eigh th e

,

evid enc e pr es ent ed so as to choos e with caution

from among conflicting O pinions He should b e .

suspicious o f thos e Wh o scout th e valu e o f scien

tifi c study o f this or any oth er subj ect an d also ,

o f thos e who cl aim th at exp eri enc e is O f no im

port anc e in s ettling such a qu estion .

Though s ev er al w ell q u al ifi ed p ersons who h ave

-

written on th e subj ect di ffer in s om e r esp ects th ey ,

are in agr eem ent as to m any of th e mor e impor ~

 T HE SINGING VOICE 1 77

tant points They are pr actic ally al l convinced

.

th at th er e is commo nl y a ch ange o f r egister for

all voic es at or n ear o n e point in th e scal e ( F ) ,

an d th at if this b e pr actic ally disr egard ed d an ,

gerons str aining m ay r esult .

C onclusions drawn from tr ain ed sing ers , alone,

m ay b e misl eading Al l cl ass es of p ersons should
.

b e ex amin ed with th e l aryn goscop e if corr ect an d ,

far r eaching g en er aliz ations are to b e s afely m ad e

-
.

Th e pr ecision an d rigidity of physics and m ath e

m atics c annot b e introduc ed with s afety into a
subj ect O f this ch ar act er ; oth erwis e th e division
an d limits O f r egist ers will b e fix ed with a n arrow

n ess of m argin th at do es not comport with

N atur e s m ethods
’
.

In all qu estions Of r egist er th e method of ,

—
br eathi ng i e th e n atur e o f th e applic ation o f
. .
,

—
th e expiratory bl as t must b e duly consid er ed .

With m al e voices th e subj ect is usu ally con sid

,

er ed much simpl er th an in th e c as e of fem al e .

voic es Men sing mostly in th e ch est r egist er ;

.

b ass es and b arytones wholly so with th e r arest ,

exc eptions T enors are taught to do so Wh eth er

. .

th er e might not b e a subdivision o f this r egist er

m ad e to advant age in tr aining th e au thor l eav es ,

as an O p en qu estion ; b ut about str aining in th e ,

c as e of t enors an d al l oth ers an d as to th e impor

,

t anc e o f r ecognizing thr ee r egist ers for fem al e

voic es th er e is in his mind no qu estion Th e fact
, .

th at som e m ay not b e ab l e to produce h ead tones

12
1 78 VOICE PRODUCTION
do es not justify c arrying up th e ch est r egister to
an y appr eci abl e ext ent ev en by altos
,
.

Now as in p ast times th e high fals etto for

, ,

m al es if good th e r esult of prop er tr aining h as

, , ,

th e w arr ant O f both art an d sound physiolo g y .

In th e u se o f r egist ers s ens ations ar e infallibl e

,

guid es Of th es e th e most import ant are thos e

.
,

associ at ed with th e organs of h earing but thos e

,

a ri sing in th e voc al organs ar e also v alu abl e .

Thos e only should exp ect to sing artistic ally ,

an d to pr es erv e th eir voic es unimp air ed fo r a long

p er i od who wis ely obs erve N atur e s t eachings in

,
’

r egard to r egist ers .

 CHAP TE R XII .

F UN DA MENTAL PRI N CI PLE S U NDERLY I NG

VOI CE—PROD UCTI ON .

IT is highly import ant for th e speaker or singer

to r ealiz e early in hi s car eer th at al l forms O f
a rti stic expr es sion can b e c arri ed ou t only through
—
mov ements muscul ar movem ents ; in oth er
words t echniqu e o r ex ecution impli es th e u se o f
,

n euro muscul ar m ech anisms However b eautiful

-
.

th e conc eption in th e mind o f th e p aint er it can ,

only b ecome an artistic thing wh en it assum es

—
m at eri al form wh en it is put on c anvas Th e .

most b eautiful melody is no poss es sion Of th e

world whil e it is in th e mind of th e compos er
alon e ; till it is ex p r ess ed it is as good as non
,

exist ent .

Even po etry can only affect us wh en it exists

in th e form of words produc ed by lip or p en B e .

tween th e glowing thought Of th e po et an d th e

corr esponding emotion produc ed in ours elves
th er e must int erv ene som e form o f t echniqu e— i .

som e applic ation of n euro muscul ar action This

-
.

l att er t erm is a conveni ent one an d h as b een al ,

r eady expl ain ed I t is a condens ed expr ession for

.

th at u se of th e n ervous an d muscul ar syst ems th at

r esults in movem ents simpl e o r compl ex
, .

Without n erve c ells an d muscl es movem ents are

-

impossibl e sp eaking gen er ally an d for a will ed or

, ,

1 79
1 80 VOICE PRO D UC TION
volunt ary movement th er e must b e something
more an idea o r conc ept B efor e on e can m ake a
,
.

movement r esulting in a simpl e line or even dot on

a pi ec e O f p ap er h e must h av e th e id ea o f th at
,

line or dot in mind In like m ann er b efor e one .

,

pl ays o r sings a single not e h e must h ave th e id ea ,

o f th at not e in mind ; in oth er words th e id ea is ,

th e ant ec ed ent to th e movem ent an d absolut ely ,

ess enti al To h av e such an id ea m emory is mec es

.
,

s ary It is impossibl e to sing a ton e aft er anoth er ,

.

a s an i mi t ativ e efi o rt unl ess on e h a s th e pow er to

,

r etain th at ton e in m emory fo r at l east a bri ef

period o f time ; an d b efor e this s am e tone can b e
r eproduc ed on sight O f it as r epr es ent ed by a ‘

writt en note th e memory of th e s ound to which

,

it answers must fi rst b e r ec alled ; an d not only so ,

—
but oth er m emori es indeed memori es of all th e ,

s ens ations associ at ed with th e bodily mech anism

us ed in producing it .

This appli es to al l movements O f wh at ever ,

kind th at w e at any tim e ex ecute Without

, .

th e p ast— i e . .
,
—
without memories no pr es ent .

Some of th e m emori es associ at ed with an act m ay

b e lost an d oth ers suffici ent for its p erform anc e
, ,

in som e fashion r em ain A m an m ay forget aft er

,
.
,

th e l aps e of months o r years how to tie his n eckti e ,

in a c ert ain w ay as h e st ands b efor e a mirror ; yet

,

o n turning aw ay h e m ay succ eed at once In this .

c as e th e visu al memori es thos e th at com e through ,

th e ey es w er e lost b ut oth ers thos e a ssoci at ed

, , ,

with mu scul ar movements r emain T h e muscul ar ,

.
 FUND AMENTAL PRINCIPLE S 1 8]

s ens e m ay prov e an ad equ at e guide wh en th e vis

u al is in efi ectiv e .

In th e s am e w ay one m ay c all up a melody b y

,

moving th e fi ngers over th e pi ano k eys when it ,

c annot otherwis e b e r ecov er ed o r on e r escu es an ,

air from oblivion by humming a few o f its tones ;

all o f which is expl ain ed by th e r eviv al of mus

cu l ar an d simi l ar m emori es .

All volunt ary movements are at fi rst accom ‘

p l ish ed r el ativ ely slowly an d with diffi culty Th ey .

soon w eary us A child l earns to w alk with th e

.

gr eat est diffi culty an d only aft er numb erl ess fail
,

ur es o r errors T h e fi rst ton es o f th e wou ld b e

.
-

pi anist or violinist are produc ed but slowly and

with gr eat diffic ulty in spit e O f th e most d et er
,

mined effort I f th e att empts to voc aliz e are any

.

more suc cessful it is b ec aus e on e h as alr eady

,

—
l earn ed to t alk a pro cess th at in th e fi rst inst anc e
( in infancy ) w as even mor e l ab orious th an th at o f
walking .

Th e d egr ee t o which any on e succ eeds in his

earli est eff orts to sing a sc al e will d ep end o n th e
-

r eadin es s with which h e can u se a vari ety of n euro

a a —
muscul r m ech nisms indeed al l thos e as soci ,

at ed with th e r espir atory l aryngeal an d res on , ,

anc e app ar atus Fortun at ely fo r th e voice us er

.
-
,

this app ar atus h as al l b een in u se in ordin ary

sp eaking But wh en this l atter proc ess is an a
. .

l yzed it is found th at it is n o t ess enti ally di ffer ent

, o

from singing In each th e s am e m ech anism is

.

us ed and in much th e s am e way ; but every one

,
1 82 VOICE PRO DUC TION
knows th at n ot all who can t alk are abl e to sing ,

an d it is usu al to s ay th at thos e who c ann ot h av e

no ear for music ; and this expr es s es a p art

o f th e truth though n o t in a sci entifi c w ay
,
Wh at .

is r eally th e truth is found to b e on an alysis th at , ,

c ert ain g u iding s ens ations chi efly thos e from th e

,

h earing app ar atus ( ear nerves brain ) are iusuf

, , ,

fi cient owing eith er to n atur al d efect o r l ack o f

,

tr aining ; but th at this is n ot th e o nl y expl an ation

is pl ain from th e fact th at m any compos ers with
th e most vivid music al im agin ation th e most p er ,

fect audi tory memo ry an d th e most acut e c ar can

, ,

not sing in any but th e most imp erfec t m ann er .

As w e h ave s aid b efor e th e sp eak er of gr eat power

,

to affect his fellows through ton es o r th e artistic ,

sing er must b e a sort of voc al athl et e In th e ath

,
.

l et e ther e is a v ery p erfect associ ation into o ne

whol e of c ertain s ens ations from eye skin mus , ,

cl es etc an d c ert ain movem ents Th es e exist in

,
.
,
.

all m en but in v ery un equ al d egr ee

,
T h e singer .

is a ton e sp eci alist in whom th e p erc eption of th e

pitch and th e qu ality of sounds m ay not b e mor e
acut e th an in th e compos er pos sibly l es s s o but h e
, ,

c an do wh at th e compos er o f mus i c oft en c annot

viz associ at e th es e s ens ations with muscul ar

.
,

movements o f a highly p erfect ch ar act er ; in dif

ferent words h e h as th e t echniqu e which oth ers
,

h ave not in an equ al degr ee .

In th e singer an d sp eak er th er e is a very clos e

a ssoci ation b etw een th e s ens ations o f th e r eso

nanc e ch amb ers th e l aryn x an d oth er p arts of th e

-
, ,
 FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE S 1 83

voc al mech anism and thos e from th e car So p er

,
.

fect do es thi s b ecome from tr aining th at th e n eces

s ary t echniqu e at l ast b ecom es easy But it is of .

th e gr eatest import anc e th at th e ex act n atur e o f

this process b e r ealiz ed by both stud ents an d t each
ers for w eighty consid er ations grow out of it
,
.

W e wish to impr ess th e fact th at th e n atur e o f

al l n euro muscul ar proc ess es is ess enti ally th e
-

s am e L earning to sing is lik e l earning to talk

.
,

an d th e l att er is not r adic ally di ffer ent from l ea rn

ing to w alk This l ast is at fi rst slow imp erfect

.
, ,

l ab orious an d l argely a volunt ary o r will ed pro

,

c ess o r mor e strictly a s eri es o f proc ess es As

, , ,
.

progr ess is m ade th er e is l es s o f th e volunt ary and

,

mor e th at is involunt ary o r wh at physiologists,

t erm r efl ex Wh en id eas feelings etc ent er into

.
, ,
.
,

a proc ess which is c arri ed o u t refl ex l y a h ab it is ,

form ed .

On e m ay s ay th at t alking impli es a s eri es o f

as soci at ed r efl ex es th e p arts associ at ed b eing th e
,

r espir atory th e l aryngeal an d th e r eson anc e ap

, ,

p ar atus Singing only appro ach es this condition

.

of r eflex action an d h abit aft er pr actic e an d yet ,

no air is p erfectly sung exc ept wh en th e r esult

is th e outcome o f a sort O f n ew h abit Every .

song involves th e l earning o f n ew vo cal h abits

'

On e forms a n ew h abit of an athl etic ch ar act er al l

th e mor e r eadily b ec aus e of pr evious on es A .

m an l earns to pl ay on e g am e o f b all th e b ett er ,

usu ally if h e h ave alr eady pl ay ed at anoth er th e

, ,

r eason b eing th at h e h as only to modify th e action

1 84 VOICE PRODUCTION
of uro mu scul ar m ech ani sms , not associ ate new
ne -

mech ani sms togeth er to th e s ame extent as in th e

form ation O f a h abit O f a wid ely di ffer ent kin d as ,

rowing a bo at At th e s ame tim e one must always

.
,

—
unlearn s om ething br eak up Ol d h abits to some ,

ext ent . An O p er a singer O ft en m akes a failur e

O f or atorio at fi rst T h e s ets o f r efl ex es or th e
.

h abits , bo di ly an d ment al whi ch h e h as found val

,

u ab l e for th e o n e form of art do not suit th e oth er

p erfectly ; n everth el ess th e s ame mat eri als are

,

us ed th e r efl ex es are in th e m ain th e s am e He
, .

must u se pr eventions o r in h ibitions, as th e physi

,

ologists t erm th em R ath er is it th at h e must

.

avoid doing c ert in thi gs

a n — i e mo di fy his n euro
. .
,

muscul ar proc ess es o r r eflex es , th an form wholly

n ew on es .

Wer e it not fo r r efl ex es and h abits l earni ng ,

would b e so slow on e lifetim e would n ot su flice to

mak e an artist It must b e ap p ar ent th at h ab its
.

an d r efl ex es ar e N atur e s w ays of economizing

’

en ergy . As th e b est h ave b ut a limit ed amount of

en ergy it should b e th e aim of every on e who wi ll
,

not b e a mer e r eckless sp endthrift to economiz e ,

to m ak e th e most o f wh at N atur e h as given him ;

h ence th e purpos e o f pr actic e is n o t only to r end er
succ es s mor e c ert ain and mor e p erfect but to m ak e ,

eff orts t ell to th e full est ext ent with as littl e ex

k
p en di tu re o f en e rgy to th e sp eak er o r sing er a s

possib l e H e sing s o r sp ea s b est w h o attain s th e

.

end w ith t h e l eas t ewp en di tu r e of en ergy .

 F UN D AM E NTAL PRINCIPLE S 1 85

It m ay with sci entifi c accur acy b e s aid that th e

obj ect o f th e student should b e to att ain to th e
form ation of corr ect h abits in singing and sp eak
in g an d o f th e t each er to guid e in this pro cess
,
.

It follows that al l pr actice by the b eginn er should

b e c arri ed out only in th e pr es enc e o f on e who
knows th e corr ect m ethods and can t each th e stu
d ent how t o form his h abits wis ely Pr actic e
.

al on e m ay not only do littl e good but by th e for

, ,

m ation o f wrong h abits O f production b e posi ,

tively mischiev ous ; yet a tr ain er o f athl et es often

l ays mor e r estrictions on his ward as to when and
how h e sh all pr actis e and ex ercis es mor e sup er
,

vision O ver it th an do s ome t each ers of singing

, ,

in spit e o f th e fact th at th e app ar atus th e singer

o r sp eak er us es is much mor e d elic at e an d wrong
,

h abits much mor e injurious .

Th e admonition Pr actis e pr actis e i s gr eatly

, ,

overdone Th e b est r esults c annot b e Ob t ain ed in

.

eith er singing ,sp eaking or pl aying with th e

, ,

l engthy an d n ec ess arily mor e or l ess imp erfect if

n o t c ar el ess pr actic e in whi ch m any stud ents o f

music indulge B etter ten minutes with th e whol e

.

att ention o f a fr esh an d int er est ed mind giv en

int elligently to a subj ect th an ten hours O f m ere

mech anic al movement It is a mist ak e to suppos e
.

th at th e acquir ement of a sound t echniqu e is a

purely m ech anic al proc ess W e h av e shown th at
.

fo r all succ essful efi o rt th er e must b e th e id ea ,

an d as soon a s th at fad es from w earin ess etc

, .
, ,

th e pr actic e should b e discontinu ed Student s

.
1 86 VOIC E PRODUCTION

are not tr eated fairly wh en giv en ex ercis es th e

m eaning or purpos e of which is not expl ain ed
to th em .

Th er e is now mor e n eed th an ever th at th e

t each er O f music or elocution should b e int ell ectu al
an d not m ech anic al in his m ethods T echniqu e is.

m ech anism but it should b e m ech anis m su b ordi

,

n ated to id eas T echniqu e is ess ential to art but

.
,

it is n o t art Art is th e soul t echniqu e th e body

.
, .

Th e soul will b e unknown to th e world without

t echniqu e ; h enc e th e author strives in this book
to t each th e principl es on which a sound voc al
t echniqu e r ests but only th at wh at is b est in th e
,

soul b e not hidd en th at th e on e n oble or po etic

,

thought sh all b e multipli ed a thous and tim es — in

d eed th at if it b e suffi ci ently worthy it sh all like
, , ,
”
T ennyson s Brook ’
go on for ever ,
T o b eli eve .
,

o n th e on e h and th at th e high est ar t can b e at

,

tained with a very m ediocr e t echniqu e an d on th e , ,

oth er th at a p erfect t echniqu e is th e m ain obj ect

,

o f music al tr aining ar e alik e gr eat an d mi sch iev

,

ou s errors .

Th e author h as b een ask ed fr equ ently such qu es

tions as th e following : Wh en is th e b est tim e to
pr actis e ? How long should a singer pr actis e at
o n e tim e an d fo r h o w long during a singl e d ay ?
,

Should on e pr actis e s oftly ( p ian o ) o r vigorously

( f o r e)
t — etc .

Oft en th e stud ent is puzzl ed by contr adictory

O pinions on this subj ect On e c el ebr at ed prim a
.

donn a st at es th at sh e n ever pr actis es mor e th an

 FI G 53 By th i d i gr m h u t h or h tt m p t d gi v h r d r o m i d f
s a a t e a as a to t ea ea o

in v o lv d in ingi ng ingl t on fro m h t i m h

. . e e e e e s e

t h n t ur
e af h c h in f proc t a t t

h no t t i ll h m u c l
e o e O esses e s a s e e, e e e

e y l ook
e s on t conc rn d h v gi v n i t u tt r nc
e e t t on T h
e s es e e a e e e a e as a e. e

v riou n r v ou c n t r conc rn d
a s e sll i h br in ( th oug h h
e es pin l cor d upp l i
e e a re a n t e a t e s a s es

s o m ubor d in t c n t r ) Th r
e s a en ory c n t r th o f h y d h e e a re s e t e an t

th o n d i ng h co mm n d t o h m l in v o lv d F ur th r
e es . s e es , o r se or e e e ear
,

an d m o t or c n t r e es , o r se s e t e a s t e «
u s c es e . e ,

th m u t b
es e t d by p th
s no t h ow n in d t i l bu t r pr n t d by c n t r
e c o n n ec e a one

c n t r wh ic h m y l o po ib l y h v m uc h t o d o W i th
s s e a , e es e e e e

s pok n f m i as an as so at o n
”
a a s a

Bu t ll v n t h d p n d nc f m o v m n t on ingo i ng m g
e O e e, ss e
, ,

e m o t ion s, e t c at a s, t

n t ion si m p h si d T h d f c nno t p k i ng d h b l in d c nno t r d

. , e e e e e e e O e e s es s a es o r

se sa a an t

m u c l bu t in h r l t i ng
s e ze . e ea a s ea or S , e a ea

( or d in ry ) m w T h d f c t m y
a b in i th r n a no t t e a

n r v ou m c h ni m b tw n th m A xp l i n d in h bo d y f h w ork x cu t i on
us . e e e e e e se ses o r s es , e

a a t t

d p n d on l t tw o f c t or n t i on or ingo i ng m g
e s e s e ee e . s e e e o e e e
,

e e s at eas d m ov m n t
a s, se sa s, es sa es , a n e e s

d t r m in d by th N w h t b tw n h ingoing d h ou tgoing t co n n ec zo n t an t

i m pu l i h m o t i m por t n t d h l t un d r t oo d p r t b h bo v d i gr m
e e e es e . o e e ee e e

s es s t e s a an t e ea s e s a ,
ut t e a e a a

w i ll l t r v t o m p h i h f c t th t uc h conn c t ion xi t d th t in
at ea s se e e as z e t e a a s e s e s ,
an a a

g n r l w y h r u lt p rfor m nc
e e a a t e b xp l in d N tt m p t h b n m d t o
es ,
e a e, c a n e e a e . o a e as ee a e

tr c h p th f o th r n ory i m pu l t h n th o fro m y d
a e t e a se th i w ou ld
s ses a se e e an ear, a s s

m k h d i gr m t oo co m p l i c t d
o e

a e t e a a a e .
 FI G .
53 .

M o t or c n t r
e e

A oci t io
ss a n

ow r
L e or pri m ry a
e y c ntr
e- e es

H i gh cr nt r
e

e
ey e
e

H i g hc r n t r
e
e
e ar

ow r
L e ea r- c n tr
e es

La i y n x
'

Da i phr gm a
 F UNDAMEN TAL P RINCIP LE S 1 87

on e hour a nother equ ally distinguish ed

d ay ; a , ,

th at sh e h as O ft en sp ent s ever al hours in almo st

continuous str enuous pr actice Wh at is th e stu .

d ent to b eli eve an d whom to follow ? No one fo r

, ,

no two p ersons are alik e All th e abov e qu estions

.

c an b e s afely an d sur ely answ er ed in th e light of

s ci enc e an d exp eri enc e combin ed but such qu es ,

tions c annot b e s ettl ed by th e dictum O f any singer ,

t eacher o r writ er n o r do es th e exp eri enc e in it

, , ,

s elf o f any on e p erson furnish an adequ at e guid e

,

for oth ers .

Investigation h as shown th at th e u se of muscl es

t ends to th e accumul ation o f th e w ast e products
O f vit al activity ; th at such accumul ation is asso
ciated with th e exp eri enc e in consciousn ess o f wh at
”
w e t erm fatigu e an d which is pr ec ed ed by
,
”
wearin ess T h e l att er is a Warning th at th e
.

more s erious condition is appro aching but is to b e ,

distinguish ed from anoth er feeling not n ec ess ary

to nam e O ft en pr es ent in unwilling youthful stu
,

d ents an d for which v arious forms of tr eatment

,

are som etim es tri ed so unsucc essfully th at it is as

w ell to discontinu e study altogeth er .

1 Th e tim e at which as a rul e any work can

.
, ,

b est b e c arri ed ou t is during th e early hours of th e

d ay so th at if it is possibl e pr actic e should b e
, ,

b egun early an d aft er some pr elimin ary ex ercis e

,

for th e good of th e body gen er ally— c g a short . .

,

w alk during which th e lungs m ay b e fi ll ed with

,

pur e air As th e muscl es of th e ch est etc are to

.
, .
,

b e us ed in voic e produ ction such a w alk o r oth er

-
,
1 88 VOICE PRODUCTION
form Of general ex ercis e should not b e l engthy .

En ergy should b e r es erved fo r th e muscul ar activi

ti es involved in voc al pr actic e .

2 Th e principl e th at guid es in all u se of th e

.

muscl es all ex ercis e is th at it b e t ak en und er th e

, ,

most favor abl e circumst anc es an d short o f fatigu e ,

ev en of w earin ess ; h enc e th e qu estion wh eth er th e

stud ent should pr actis e fi ve minut es o r on e hour

is on e th at h e h ims elf and h e alon e can d etermi n e
, , ,

provided h e is ol d enough an d obs erv ant enough

to know wh en h e b egins to feel w eary in his voc al
m ech anism wh eth er it b e in th e r espir atory
,

organs th e l arynx o r th e r eson anc e ch amb ers

, ,
-
.

With som e th er e is a weak spot and this s ettl es ,

th e qu estion for al l oth er parts

. As a rul e b e .
,

ginn ers will do well not to practic e at fi rst for , ,

longer at on e time th an fi v e minut es not only b e ,

c aus e o f th e possibl e wearin ess but b ecaus e at th e,

outs et it is diffi cult to k eep th e attention fi x ed .

T h e ear an d br ain tir e as w ell as th e muscl es .

N atur ally th e condition O f th e stud ent at th e

,

time h as much to d o with th e l ength o f a pr actice ,

but al l thing sare d et ermined b y th e s ensibl e appl i

c ation of th at principl e which sci ence an d ex p eri
enc e alik e show to b e a s afe guid e .

N atur ally as in oth er ex ercis es th e dur ation of

, ,

an ex ercis e m ay b e gr adu ally l ength en ed with ex

i en ce O n e sing er m ay fi n d an hour a d ay su ffi
p e r .

cient if sh e b e alr eady p erfectly tr ain ed in every

,
” ”
r esp ect— b e in good form or fit ,
as th e ,

athl et es s ay
— an d h ave only light or co l o ratu ra
 FI G 54 bo v i d i gr mm t ic r pr n t t ion f h ighl y m g i fi d
The a

t ion ( or v ry th i n l ic ) th rough h ou t r m o t m o t p fi I p r t f h gr t
. . a e s a a a a e e se a o a n e s ec

t e e s or s su er Ci a a t

br in ( cor t x c r br i ) d i in r t d t o h l p h r d r t o for m o m i d f h
e s e o e ea

a e e e ,
an s se e e t e ea e s e ea o t e

co m p l xi t y f t ruc t ur f h m o t i m por t n t p r t f h br in f
t h h ig h t a a t ar a s t

conc rn d Th i co m p l x i t y i gr t r in m th n in o th r
e o s e o e s o e a so e es

m n t l proc
e a esse s are e e . s e s ea e an a e

a ni m l
a s .
 FI G 55. A n r v c ll fro m
. e e- e th e ou t r rin d
e of th e gr t br in ( cor t
ea a e x c r br i )
e e ,

m uc h m gni fi d ( S c h f r )
a e . a e .
 FUNDAMENTAL PRINC IPLE S 1 89

p arts to sing ; but wo u ld this suffi c e to form a

singer to sust ain th e h eavi est dr am atic p arts for
hours togeth er b efor e a l arg e public audi ence ?
Th e tr aining of a hundr ed y ards sprint er should
-

not b e th e s am e as th at pr escrib ed for a long

dist anc e runn er or a wr estler .

3 In all practic e it is ever to b e born e in mind

.

th at th e end even in an ex ercis e is artistic Tones

, ,
.

o f th at qu ality only which is th e b est possib l e t o

th e singer at th e tim e are to b e produc ed and ,

ev erythi ng els e must yi eld to this .

4 N O Wi s e tr ain er ever allows his ch arges to

.

go on a r acing tr ack an d at onc e run a hundr ed

y ards at th e high est p ossibl e s p eed Such a cours e .

would b e agains t all sound knowl edge an d al l th e

b est exp eri ence H enc e th e qu estion O f p ian o an d
.

forte practic e answers its elf ; th e singer should

n ever b egin any ex ercis e fo rte but eith er p ian o o r
,

m eo d ra t o— as to which d ep ends on th e individu al .

Som e p ersons can o nl y aft er long study produce

r eally good tones p ian o ; such if not most p ersons
should of cours e b egin practising with mod er ate
, ,

force .

C ert ainly th e voic e us er should in order t o gain

,
-
,

volum e gr adu ally incr eas e th e vigor o f hi s prao

,

tic e but ex actly h ow to do this and to wh at ext ent

, ,

d aily are qu estions in which th e advic e of a sen

,

sibl e an d exp eri enc ed t each er is of gr eat value ,

though th e principl e on which th at O pinion should

b e found ed is cl ear enough .
1 90 VOICE PRODUCTION
5 Th e
. qu estions as to th e tot al amount o f time
to b e d evot ed to pr actic e in a singl e d ay and as to ,

wh eth er pr actic e should b e continu ed d ay after

d ay for w eeks and months without int erruption ,

must b e d ecid ed by th e condition of th e student ,

an d n o t by any arbitr ary O pin ion S om e individ .

u al s an d som e r ac ers h ave a c ap acity for st eady

work not poss ess ed by oth ers an d h appy are th ey ;

,

b ut th er e are oth ers who go on by spurts an d such ,

n atur es are O ft en c ap abl e o f r eaching lofty artistic

heights if th ey b e wis ely m an aged Th ey n eed
,
.

much th e s am e s ort O f c ar e as a v ery fl eet but

m

unc ertain r ac e hors e an d th ey are often a sourc e

-
,

o f disgust to th ems elv es an d O f worry to th eir

t each ers ; but th ey in s ome c as es g et far b eyond

wh at th e more st eady on es can attain to while ,

oth ers are so unst eady without b eing t al ent ed th at

th ey are a tri al an d a tri al only to all conc ern ed
, , .

Such p eopl e should even wh en cl ev er n ot b e en

, ,

co u rag ed in th eir v ag ari es but brought gr adu ally

,

an d t actfully und er a strict er disciplin e .

6. H ast en slowly appli es to al l music al

practic e th at of th e voic e includ ed an d th er e

, ,

nev er w as a tim e in th e history o f th e world u n ,

fortun at ely wh en p eopl e b eli ev ed in it l ess Th e

, .

author would esp eci ally w arn th e stud ent against

at tempting to forc e progr ess by viol ent o r unduly

long continu ed p ractices fo r if th e voc al app ar atus

-
,

b e str ain ed it m ay r em ain imp air ed for months or

,

ev en for life Littl e an d O ft en

. is a good
maxim for vo cal pr actice, al l th e mor e as th e dis
 FUNDAME NT AL P RINCIPLE S 1 91

continu ation fo r th e tim e o f voic e production

, ,
-

n eed n ot imply th at th e mind must c eas e to act .

An artist is n ot form ed by voc aliz ation alon e but ,

by pro cess es of educ ation th at are many an d com

plic at ed into which w e might b e t empt ed to ent er
,

did th ey not l ie b eyond th e r ange o f th e pr es ent

work .

If th e principl es set forth in this ch apt er are

sci entifi c ally r eli abl e an d w e b eliev e th ey will not
,

b e qu estion ed c ert ain pr actic al consid er ations are

,

w ell worthy O f sp eci al att ention If pr actic e rep .

,

etiti on l eads to th e form ation o f h abits mor e or

,

l ess fi x ed th en th er e can b e no sur er w ay to ruin

,

a sp eak er o r voc alist th an to p ermi t him to p rac

tis e by a wrong m ethod ; th e mor e h e pr actis es ,

th e mor e h e st amps in wh at is b ad It follows.

th at th e most hop el ess c as es eminent t each ers h ave

to d eal with are to b e found among thos e voc alists
who com e to th em aft er y ears of profession al life
b efor e th e public One must look o n som e o f th es e
.

p eopl e as on a building spoil ed by a b ad arch itec

tur al d esign In som e c as es th er e is nothing to do
.

but to t ak e th e whol e structure ap art an d put it

togeth er afr esh It m ay b e humili ating to th e
.

voc alist an d it is a s ever e cond emn ation o f c ert ain

,

m ethods o f t eaching but th er e is O ft en no oth er

,

cours e O pen th e only qu estion b eing as to wh eth er

,

th e m at eri al is good enough to warr ant such a

r adic al proc eeding Every emin ent t each er can
.

r ec all such c as es an d might fi l l volum es with their

,

histori es If mor e o f th es e w er e publi sh ed as

.
1 92 VOICE PRODUC TION
warning s to students and t each ers a g ood purpos e ,

would b e s erved It is truly sad to fin d th at th e

.

prosp ects of on e who might h ave b een formed into

a fi n e artist h av e b een hop el essly ruin ed by y ears

of pr actic e b as ed on principl es th at are r adic ally

unsound .

In th e n ext ch apt er som e sp ecifi c applic ations

”

o f th e principl es discuss ed in th e for egoing p ag es

will b e consider ed .

SUMMARY .

All forms of arti sti c and oth er expr ession imply

movements F or a will ed o r volunt ary movement
.

th er e are r equir ed ( 1 ) an id ea ( 2 ) a n euro mus ,

-

cnl ar m ech ani sm Such movements m ay b e r el a

.

tively simpl e o r highly compl ex Th ey al l t end .

,

wh en fr equ ently c arried o u t to b ecome r eflex and , ,

to som e ext ent unconscious or subconscious

'
.

C ombin ations o f refl ex es wh en associ at ed with

consciousness b ecome h abits M ovem ents o nl y .

att ain th eir high est p erfection wh en th ey r each

this st age It follows th at th e purpos e o f al l

.

music al pr actice sho ul d b e to establish thos e r e

fl ex es which att ain th e end th e id eal an d to form
, ,

co rr ect h abits A po em properly r ecited or a

.

song s atisfactorily sung impli es a combination Of

c ert ain r eflex es or h ab its Som e of th es e are in
.

th eir m ain featur es common to all sp eech and

s ong b ut m any ar e p eculi ar to each ex ampl e
,
.

As phon ation impli es th e u se of th e muscl es

'

( n euro muscul
-
ar m e ch anisms ) of th e ( )
1 r espir a
 FUNDAMENTAL P RINCIPLE S 1 93

tory organs ( 2 ) voc al b ands ( 3 ) r eson anc e

, ,

ch amb ers an d as thes e must all work in h armony

, ,
”
or b e c o Ord in ated it will b e s een th at sp eaking
,

an d sin ging are physiologic al ly highly compl ex .

When in addition id eas an d feelings ar e associ

, ,

at ed an d d et ermin e th e ex act form o f th es e c o

,

or din ations th e whol e matt er is s een to b e still

,

more compl ex T h e emission Of a singl e ton e i m

.
‘

—
pli es ( 1 ) an idea th e n atur e o f th e sound as to
pitch an d qu ality ( 2 ) such an arr angem ent o f al l
,

th e p arts o f th e m ech anism as will produc e it .

T h e form er involves m emory o f th e ton e ; th e l at

ter m emori es of form er mov em ents Th en p artly
, .
,

as a s eri es o f volun t ary acts an d p artly r efl ex l y ,

according a s th e stud ent is mor e or l ess adv anc ed ,

o r th e p articul ar ton e n ew or o l d in ex p eri enc e do ,

th e v arious neu rO muscul ar arr ang ements p ass

-

into ord erly action In this proc ess th e ear is th e

.

chi ef guide always in r el ation to memories Wh en

, .

o n e us es th e print ed p ag e th e ey es also guid e ,

i e th e n ervous impuls es th at p ass in through

. .
,

th es e avenu es d et ermin e th e outgoing on es th at

bring th e muscles into action In doing so th ey .

rous e m any oth ers ( associ at ed n ervous conn ec

tions ) which are highly imp ortant wh en an artistic
r esult is to b e r each ed .

T o consid er a singl e c as e : As sum e th at th e not e

is to b e sung Th e following are re
E
.
.

quir ed : ( 1 ) M emory o f this ton e .

2 ) Ad apt ation through eye an d ear O f al l th e

neuro muscul ar m ech anisms
-
r equir ed for ( a)
13
1 94 VOICE PRO D UC TIO N
bringing th e voc al b ands into th e corr ect posi
tion and d egr ee O f t ension ; ( b ) th e prop er
sh ap e t ension etc o f th e r eson anc e ch amb ers ;
, ,
.
,
-

( )
c th at u se of th e br eathing app ar atus s u it abl e
to c aus e th e prop er vibr ations o f th e voc al b ands .

All u se o f th e voic e imp li es this much but in most ,

inst anc es th er e are ass o ciated n ervous m ech an

isms an d id eas th at ar e highly import ant in d et er
mining th e ex act volume qu ality etc o f th e ton e
, ,
.
,

as r el at ed to expr ession o f id eas an d feelings ac

cording to convention al us age .

T h e br eath str eam must in al l c as es b e so em

-

ploy ed th at th er e sh all b e economy Of en ergy no — .

wast e W ast e occurs wh en ever air esc ap es to any

.

appr eci abl e ext ent through th e glottis chink as ,

th at impli es an imp erfect adjustment o f th e vocal

b ands an d th e expir atory curr ent From this an d .

oth er points O f view it m ay b e s aid th at h e is th e

b es t sing er w h o g ets th e m os t p er f ect resu l t w ith
th e l eas t ex p en di tu r e of en ergy .

It is of th e high est importanc e th at during

ev ery pr actic e an d ev ery mom ent o f each pr actic e
, ,

att ention b e giv en to as p erfect a r esult as pos

sibl e and th at th e s am e m ethod b e invari ably

,

employ ed .

All qu estions as to m ethods o f pr actising can b e

d ecided on well known sci ent ifi c principl es which
-

h armoniz e with exp eri enc e and n eed not b e left ,

in th at loos e an d uns atisfactory condition wh en

th e dictum of som e individu al is substitut ed for
principl es c ap abl e of actu al exp erim ent al d emon
stration .
 CHAP TE R XIII .

CHIEF LY AN A PPLI CA TI ON TO '

C VO I E P RO ~

D UCTI ON OF FA CT S AN D PRI N CI PLES

PREVI O USLY CONSI DE RE D .

C ERTAI N sounds m ay b e m ad e without th e u se of

words or syll abl es ev en without th e employment
,

o f vow els o r conson ants but inton ation prop er

,

c annot b e c arri ed o u t without vowels at l east ,

.

T h e ex act n atur e O f vow els an d conson ants will b e

consid er ed in th e n ext ch apt er but in th e m eant im e ,

it m ay b e poin t ed ou t th at a vow el is a fr ee an d
op en sound r equiring fo r its production a c ertain
form of th e r eson ance ch amb ers N eith er vow els
-
.

—
nor conson ants are absolutely pur e th at is eu ,

tirely fr ee from for eign el em ents from nois e ; but ,

fo r all pr actic al purpos es a vow el is a pur e sound ,

a conson ant a sound accomp ani ed in evit ably b y

much nois e This nois e is l arg ely du e to th e dif

.

fi cu l ties o f sounding co nson ants th e br eath br eak ,

ing against th e voc al organs esp eci ally th e t eeth , ,

lips etc much as th e w aves o f th e sea ag ainst a

,
.
,

r ocky b each S o far th en as music al qu ality is

.

conc ern ed a conson ant is an unmitigat ed nuis anc e

, .

On th e oth er h and non e but th e most el em ent al

,

communic ation by sounds could b e c arri ed o u t by

th e u se o f vowels alon e T h e conson ants stop th e
.

br eath curr ent s ep ar at e th e vow els an d thus l ay

-
, ,

th e found ation for th e expr ession o f id eas Id eas .

1 95
1 96 VOICE PRODUCTION
imply di fferences ; a n ew id ea is conveyed b y a
n ew word which in its simpl est form is a syll abl e
,
.

Wh en a conson ant is introduc ed aft er a vowel ,

sound a momentary arrest is produc ed in th e

,

br eath fl ow an d thi s h as its corr esponding effect

-
,

on th e mind It is in fact equiv al ent to a p aus e

.
, ,

s ay a comm a o r a p eriod If introduc ed b efor e a .

v ow el it is m ark ed Off in a more d efi ni t e way

,
'

Th e effect of this is to en abl e th e ear th e b ett er to

gr asp th e so u nds Th er e is th e principl e O f dif
.

feren tiation an d th e principl e o f r est both highly ,

import ant in all s ensory and oth er psychic o r

m ent al proc ess es .

C onsid er th e s ent ence He is a m an — com

pos ed pur ely o f monosyll abl es R emove th e con .

”
son ants an d w e h av e th e following
, e i a a .

Th eir in effectiven ess in conveying id eas is at onc e

pl ain fo r thoug
, a m an conveys two id eas ,

such are n ot expr ess ed by th e vow els which are

identic al whil e e
, an d
" i ”
are common t o
,

too m any words o f one syll abl e to s erv e any u se

ful purpos e alon e in th e conveyanc e O f d efinite
, ,

id eas Th e conson ants at onc e m ark O ff th e limi

.

t ation s ; th ey fenc e around th e id eas s o to sp eak , .

F o r th e communic ation O f id eas th ey are indis

p ens abl e ; n everth el ess b eing l argely nois es th ey
, ,

are music ally abomin abl e .

It follows th at voic e production should b egi n -

—
with vow el sounds a d not words not ev en syl
n ,

l abl es For succ essful inton ation th e fi rst steps

.
,

should b e m ad e as simpl e as pos sib l e, as w e h ave

 F UNDAMEN T AL PRINCIP LE S 1 97

a lready end eavor ed to show h ence no such compli ,

c ation as a consonant al nois e should b e introduc ed .

Upon this point th er e is room fo r no di fi erence of

O pinion tho ugh as to which vow el sound is b est
,

suit ed fo r th e b eginn er and for mor e advanc ed

,

voic e production th er e h as b een gr eat di versity

-
,

in t eaching— a diversity which w e propos e to

show in th e n ext ch apt er n eed not exist to any
, ,

appr eci abl e ext ent .

C ert ain vowel sounds m ay b e s aid to b e common

to most of th e l angu ages us ed by civiliz ed p eopl es .

Th es e are u 6 a ( ah ) a i ( ci ) an d 6
, ,
Ther e
, ,
.

i s fortun at ely among t each ers consider abl e

, ,

agr eem ent as to th e qu estion of th e b est vow el

soun d with which to b egin in ton ation o r th e pro ,

c ess o f formin g music al ton es Th er e can b e no .

qu estion th at a ( ah ) is for gen er al purpos es th e

b est th e r eason for which will appear l at er Un
, .

fortunat ely th er e is not in th e minds o f students

,

o r t each ers g en er ally a su ffi ci ently d eep conviction

o f th e import anc e o f form i ng th e voic e by long

continu ed pr actic e with vowels only for which l ack ,

th e spirit o f th e tim es is l argely r esponsibl e .

Until a stud ent of eith er sp eaking o r singing can

form ev ery vowel p erfectly which impli es th e ,

r ecognition of th es e sounds as pur e an d p erfect ,

an d th e ability t o sing th em a s th e ton es o f a

music al sc al e h e shoul d not t ak e a singl e st ep in

,

any oth er di r ection T o do so is to wast e time and

.

to low er artistic ideals .

1 98 VOICE PRODUC TION
Wh en words are to b e us ed th e qu estion as to
,

which langu age should b e employ ed is fo r th e

singer at l east a very import ant on e Th e id eal
, ,
.

voc alist who will bring b efor e th e ideal public th e

b est in voc al music must sing in It ali an Fr ench , ,

G erman and English at l east E ach o f th es e l an

, , .

gu ages produc es its own effects through th e voic e ,

an d each pr es ents its o wn adv ant ag es an d d if fi cu l

ti es ; but al l comp et ent to judge are agr eed th at
It ali an b ecaus e o f th e abund anc e O f vowels in its
,

words is th e b est l angu age in whi ch to sing or at

, , ,

all ev ents to b egin with as a tr aining

,
B ec aus e o f .

th e pr eval enc e of conson ants th e Germ an an d th e

,

English l angu ages are r el ativ ely unmusic al Th e .

English abounds in hissing sounds which are a ,

tri al to th e singer with an ex acting ear and p er

fect t ast e an d produc e most unw elcom e effects on
,

th e r efi n ed list en er who r eally puts music fi rst an d

th e conv ey anc e O f id eas s econd in a voc al composi
tion It should o f cours e b e th e aim o f th e stu
.
, ,

d ent to overcom e th es e difficulti es as G erman an d ,

English th e l angu ages o f Go eth e Schill er an d

, , ,

Sh ak esp ear e are fo r dr amatic an d som e oth er

,

purpos es not equ all ed by any oth er l angu ages .

But th e artist an d above al l th e music al artist

, ,

must b e a citiz en o f th e world H e d eals with .

thos e forms O f emotion common to al l m ankind ,

an d not with th e p eculi ar littl e combin ations o f

ideas th at grow up in a provinc e city o r villag e ; , ,

though o f cours e h e will not n egl ect loc al coloring ,

s o well illustr at ed in th e fol k songs or popul ar -

 FUNDAM ENTAL PRINCIPLE S 1 99

m elodi es th at h ave survived for ages in difi erent

countri es
Though a vowel can b e produc ed pur e o nl y wh en
th e r eson anc e ch amb ers as sum e a c ert ain form
-
,

this is O f cours e only on e link in th e ch ain o f pro

, ,

duction Th e br eathing app ar atus an d th e l arynx

.

are also conc ern ed an d w e are ag ain brought b ack

, ,

as ev er to th e tripl e combin ation o f th e thr ee s ets

,

O f m ech anisms so Oft en allud ed to yet w e v entur e , ,

to think v ery in adequ at ely link ed in th e mi nds Of

,

l earn ers if not also of t each ers

,
.

In producing a vow el sound th e en d aimed at is ,

o n th e o n e h and purity on th e oth er a s a r esult

, , ,

—
th e easy an d effectiv e u se of m ech anisms i e th e . .
,

t echniqu e In every c as e th e breath must b e us ed

.

—
without w ast e just enough and no mor e ; th e ,

l aryngeal app ar atus th e voc al b ands must b e , ,

s o ad apt ed as to set th e air O f th e r eson anc e

‘

ch amb ers into p erfect vibr ation which only occurs ,

wh en th e expir atory bl ast is appli ed in th e corr ect

w ay an d at th e right moment to th e prop erly ad
just ed voc al h and s This l att er w e h ave d efi ned
.

as th e att ack It impli es giving a good st art to

.

th e ton e It is n ot all b ut it is a l arge h alf in

.
, ,

th e artist and for th e auditor

RE C O N SI DE RAT I O N OF T H E RE SO N AN C E C HAM BE RS
-

W e sh all now give furth er att ention to som e of

th e mor e import ant p arts of th e r eson anc e ch am -

b ers in so far as th ey b ear dir ectly on voic e

,

production .
2 00 VOICE PRODUC TION
In singing and sp eaking th e l arynx should b e
,

s teadied but not h eld rigi dl y fi x ed in any on e p osi

,

tion It will b e r ememb er ed th at to this p art o f

.

th e voc al m ech anism are att ach ed b elow th e , ,

tr ach ea an d above th e tong u e indir ectly through

, , ,

th e hyoid bon e an d th e thyro hyoid m embr an e as

-
,

w ell as c ert ain muscl es which influ enc e th e r el ative

position of th es e various p art s s o th at t o m aint ain
,

th e l aryn x in th e s am e position ab solut ely must , ,

b e ag ainst N atur e s methods

’
Th e ton g u e alone
.

must in its movem ents t end to alt er th e position of

th e l arynx as w e h av e b efor e point ed o u t
,
At th e .

s ame time th e l axn es s and l ack of Oontrol which

,

som e singers p ermit in th eir vo cal organs und er ,

th e mist ak en id ea th at all th e p arts o f th e

thro at c annot b e too fr ee pr events th em from
,

g etting th e effects th ey d esir e with th at vigor and

,

c ert ainty th e public so much admir es an d rightly ,

s o Th e gold en m ean should b e Obs erved ; b e

.

tw een undu e t ension which impli es in ability to

,

control wh eth er it b e in th e l arynx or th e br eath

,

ing app ar atus and a loos en ess inconsist ent with

,

n eat and c ert ain r esults th e voic e produc er must

,
-

choos e with th at common s ens e s o in disp ens abl e

,

to succ ess in al l und ert akings b ut which will n ever

,

b e ad equ ately encour aged till stud ents look mor e

fr equ ently fo r th e r easons of th e proc edur es rec
o mm en ded to th em an d t each ers striv e to g ain
,

influ enc e with th eir pupils by showing th em th at

wh at th ey r ecommend li es b eyond th eir own minds
 FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE S 2 01 .

— that it in fact , h as its found ation in th e l aw s of

,
.

N atur e .

Of th e tong ue soft p al at e an d lips whi ch are

, , ,

th e princip al modifi ers o f th e sh ap e of th e mouth

c avity th e tongu e h as by far th e most influ enc e
,
.

Wh en th e tongu e li es fl at i n th e mouth it m ay b e ,
t
consid er ed to b e in its prim ary position an d it is ,

import ant th at in singing an d sp eaking th e stud ent

l earn to b egin his voice production with this organ
-

in th at position or a slight mo difi c ation of it for

, ,

it is only wh en it is thus pl ac ed th at a ton e at onc e

round full an d pur e can b e produc ed
, ,
.

In ord er to s ecur e this r esult th e voc alist o r ,

sp eaker must b egin by t aking br eath through

th e mouth as w e h av e alr eady insist ed an d at
, ,

onc e b efor e th er e is time for any sti ffening of

,

,
—
p arts commenc e to inton at e i e as soon as . .
,

enough air h as b een inha l ed for th e purpos e int end

ed. Th e corr ect position is facilit at ed wh en on e

t aking br eath through th e mouth acts as if about
to yaw n If this act b e w ell imit at ed th e stud ent
.
,

will fi nd on looking into a h and gl ass th at th e

,
-
,

tongu e is mor e or l ess furrow ed b eh ind in th e mid

d l e— in oth er words it form s a sort O f trough ;
,

an d th e d eep er th e trough th e stud ent l earns to

form at will th e b ett er fo r th ere are tim es in

,
f
,

actu al singing an d sp eaking wh en this must b e as

d eep as possibl e It is cl ear th at in this w ay th e

.

c entral convexity abov e form ed b y th e h ard ,

p al at e forms with th e corr esponding conc avity in

,

th e tongu e a sort Of trump et sh ap ed org an admir a -

202 VOICE PRODUC TION

bly ad apt ed for th e prod uction of th e desired

ton e .

Th e tongu e is import ant in th e high est d egr ee

not only in th e form ation O f vowels as will b e ,

shown mor e fully in th e n ext ch apt er but also in ,

sh aping conson ants .

It is som etim es import ant to move th e tongu e

from on e position to anoth er with great r api di ty .

Such a composition as Figaro s song ( c avatin a ) ’

in Rossini s B arb er of S evill e could not b e

’

prop erly sung by any o n e not poss essing gr eat

control over th e tongu e Indeed this composition .
,

m ay b e consid er ed a p erfect t est of th e ext ent to

which th e singer is a m aster of mouth gymn astics ;
an d this is only o n e O f many such works In .

like m ann er m any p ass ages in Sh akesp ear e an d

,

oth ers O f th e b est writ ers in al l l angu ages can only

b e spok en with effect by tho s e with a m ast ery over
th e tongu e lips soft p al at e etc but ab ove al l th e
, , ,
.
, ,

tongu e .

I mport ant as are th e lips m any p ersons t end to ,

u se th em t o o much an d th e tongu e too littl e in

, ,

sp eaking an d singing Th ey att empt to m ak e up

.

for a mouth almost clos ed in front by th e t eeth by ,

exces siv e mov em ents o f th e lips .

Sp eci al tongu e an d lip pr actic e should b e c arri ed

o u t b efor e a mirror Th e lips should b e k ept
r ath er clos e to th e gums and moved aw ay as littl e
,

as pos sibl e ( i e th e lips ) as to do so s erv es no

. .
, ,

good pur po s e and is unpl eas ant to th e eye O f th e

,

O bs erver T eeth an d lips must b e r egard ed s o far

.
,

as music al sounds ar e concern ed as d an ger r e ,

 FUNDAMENT AL PRI NCIPLE S 203

gions — rocks on th e shor e against which th e ,

singer or sp eaker m ay shipwreck hi s tones His .

Obj ect should b e to u se th em adequ at ely to form

vow els an d consonants— ih oth er words in th e for ,

m ation not th e spoiling o f words as is so O ften

, , ,

th e c as e .

W e cannot too much insist on both sp eak er an d

singer att en di ng to forming a conn ection b etw een
his ear an d h is mouth c avity He is to h ear th at .
,

h e m ay produc e good ton es an d th e ton es c annot ,

b e corr ectly form ed if th ey b e not w ell obs erv ed .

T O list en to on e s s elf c ar efully and const antly is

’

a most v alu abl e but littl e pr actis ed art Th e stu .

dent should list en as an in exor abl e critic acc epting ,

only th e b est from hims elf .

This l eads to th e consid er ation of th e qu estion Of

th e op en mouth Th e expr es sion
. O p en mouth
m eans no doubt to most p eopl e th e op en lips
, , ,

r ath er th an th e op en mouth cavity i — O p en in .

front th e t eeth well s ep arat ed In voic e produc

, .
-

tion by O p en mouth both O pen c avity and op en

,

lips must b e understood .

l
Th er e is a sp eci al t end ency in m any p erh aps in ,

most p ersons to clos e th e mouth c avity unduly in

,

singing a d esc ending sc al e This is oft en accom .

p a n ied by a b ad u s e o f th e br eath an d a g en er al ,

r el ax ation O f th e voc al app ar atus which i s possi ,

bly mor e frequ ent in sopr anos and t enors whos e ,

chi ef effects are O ft en p roduc ed by th eir high

ton es B u t to day mor e th an ever wh en r efi n ed
.
-
, ,

int ell ectu al an d emotion al effects are d em and ed,

2 04 VOICE PRODUC TION i

is it import ant th at th e lo wer ton es so effective in

,
‘

producing emotion al st at es should n ot b e n eg

,

l ected by any singer of wh at ever voic e ; whil e for

sp eakers high ton es are r eally comp ar atively little
us ed .

Much mor e att ention is p aid by t eachers and

s tud ents to th e op en mouth at th e pr es ent tim e
'

th an form erly ; in fact lik e s om e oth er good

,

thi ngs it is O ft en overdon e Th e individu ality o f

, .

th e singer an d sp eak er must alw ays b e born e in

mind If some ar e obliged to op en th e mouth a s
.

much as oth ers th e r esult will not b e h appy Any

, .

on e m ay d emonstr at e to hims elf th at th e qu ality o f

‘

a t on e m ay b e at onc e ch anged by unduly op ening

o r closing th e mouth On e m ay say th at th e m ou th

.

s h ou l d b e s u flicien tly op en ed t o p r o du ce t h e b es t

p o s s i b l e effec t W e.h av e n ev er s ee n th e mouth

op ened to such an ext ent th at it w as positively
—
unsightly r eminding one o f th e rhinoc eros at a
—
zoo without feeling th at th e ton e h ad su ffer ed
th er eb y .

If al l would r ememb er t h at th e mouth is b est

op en ed by simply d rop p ing th e l ow er j aw p as ,

siv el y in th e easi est m ann er possibl e th ed iffi cu l

, ,

ti es some stud ents exp eri enc e would dis ap p ear .

M any act as if th e proc ess w er e chi efly an active

on e whil e th e r ev ers e is th e c as e as on e m ay Oh
, ,

s erv e in th e sl eep er wh en th e muscl es b ecom e nu

—
duly r el ax ed a condition th at is o ften accom
p a n i e d by snoring which, is produc e d by a mouth
b reathing th at giv es ris e to vibr ations of th e soft
 FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE S 2 05

p al ate W e m ean to say th at th e lower j aw d rop s

.

wh en muscl es r el ax and th at O penin g th e mouth is

,

l argely a p assive thing whil e closing th e mouth is

,

an active proc ess .

Th e position O f th e h eadi n its influ enc e on ton e

production is an insuffi ci ently consid er ed subj ect .

It is impossibl e th at th e h ead b e much r ais ed or

lower ed without ch ang es b eing produc ed in th e
voc al app ar atus esp ecial ly th e l arynx an d if th e
, ,

ton e is not to sn fi er in cons equ enc e sp eci al c ar e ,

must b e t aken to m ak e comp ens atory ch anges in

th e p arts affect ed It is only n ec ess ary to sing
.

any vow el an d th en r ais e th e chin gr eatly

,
to ,

O bs erv e a distinct ch ange in th e qu ality o f th e

ton e with corr esponding s ens ations in th e voc al
,

organs .

To sp eak or sing with th e h ead turn ed to one

sid e is pl ainly unfavor abl e to th e well b ei ng o f -

th e p ar ts us ed b ec aus e it l eads to compr ession

, ,

which gives ris e to th at congestion b efor e r eferr ed

to as th e sourc e o f s o m any evils in voic e us ers -
.

T o sit at a pi ano an d sing is an unphysiolo g ic al

proc eeding b ec aus e it impli es th at th e h ead is b ent
,

in r eading th e music 011 a p age much lower th an

.

th e ey es an d wh en with this th e h ead is turn ed

, , ,

to o n e sid e to allow o f r eading th e music o n th e

dist ant sid e o f th e p age furth est from th e middl e
,

lin e o f th e h ead th e cas e is still wors e If all who

,
.

thus u se th e voc al organs do not gi ve evid enc e o f

th e truth o f th e abov e by ho ars en ess etc it is ,
.
,

s imply b ec aus e in young an d vigorous org an s

2 06 VOICE PRO D UC TION

th er e m ay b e consid er ab l e power of r esisting u n

favorabl e influ enc es T h e stud ent is recom
.

m end ed to u se his voi ce in th e st anding position

only when pos sibl e as al l oth ers are mor e dr l ess
, ,

unnatural .

One O ft en h as th e opportunity to o b s erv e how

th e effect is lost wh en a r ead er b ends his h ead
downward to look at his book or manuscript ; an d
h e hims elf if th e proc ess is lon g continu ed will
,
-
,

almost c ert ainly feel th e injurious influ enc e of thi s

acting on his voc al organs .

 CHAPT E R XIV .

SO ME SPE CI FI C A PPLI CA TI ONS OF PRI N CI PLES

IN TONE PROD UC TI ON .

IT is no doubt valu abl e ind eed for most singers

,

ess enti al to employ a s eri es of el ab or at e ex ercis es

, ,

or v ocalis es which in some c as es difl er from each

,

oth er only by slight gr ad ations ; but it is to b e

borne in mind th at al l th e actu al principl es in
volved can b e expr ess ed pr actic ally in a v ery few
ex ercis es Th es e are : ( 1 ) Th e singl e sust ain ed
.

ton e ; ( 2 ) th e ton es o f a sc al e sung so as to b e

smoothly linked tog eth er ; ( 3 ) th e s am e sung ,

somewh at mor e ind ep end ently of each oth er ; ( 4 )

th e s am e but each ton e b eginning and ending v ery
,

sudd enly If th e ex ecution o f any vo cal music al

.

composition b e an alyz ed it will b e found th at

,

th es e four m ethods cover subst anti ally th e whol e

ground As on e oth er is v ery ext ensively us ed in
.

g iving expr ession in th e form o f sh ading it is ,

—
worthy O f sp eci al m ention viz ( 5 ) th e sw ell . .
,

All Oth ers are modifi c ations of th e ab ove .

As thes e methods of ton e production are of so

-

much imp ort anc e it will b e worth whil e to an alyz e

,

th em It will b e found th at in each th er e is a ch ar

.

acteristic u se of th e br eathing m ech anism Th e .

l arynx an d th e r eson anc e ch amb ers are o f cours e

-

int erm edi ate as usu al b etw een th e breath str eam
, ,
-

and th e r esult th e ton e ; without th em th er e cou l d

,

2 07
2 08 VOICE PRODUC TION

be no tones But if th e stud ent h ave clearly in

.

mind th e m emory of th e ton e h e wish es to pro

duc e including its various prop erti es of pitch
, ,

volume qu ality etc it will b e found th at th e point

, , .
,

r equiring strict att ention in production is th e , ,

br eathing esp eci ally th e m ann er O f using th e ex

,

i
p ato ry curr ent
r .

1 T h e sust ain ed ton e r equir es an amount of

.

br eath proportion al to its l ength an d th e gr eat ,

aim in its production should b e to conv ert so to

,

sp eak al l th e br eath into ton e as w e expl ain ed in a

, ,

previous ch apt er This sust ain ed ton e which .

,

m ay b e pr actis ed wi th advan tage o n every on e O f

th e not es o f a sc al e is in th e n atur e O f things , , ,

th e v ery found ati on o f al l good singing and

sp eaking .

2 In th e s econd and third ex ercis es th e difi er

.

ences in th e m ethod l ie in th e att ack an d th e man

n er o f using th e br eath T he smoothly link ed .

ton es are th e mor e difficult for most p eopl e since ,

th ey r equir e sp eci al control over th e l aryng eal

mech anism an d th e br eathing app ar atus B e .

tween th e singing O f a sc al e in this m anner

( l eg ato ) an d as it is fr equ ently don e th er e is th e
,

s ame di ffer enc e as in wal ing u p st airs as do es a k -

,

p erfectly tr ained b all et d anc er and this act as car -

,

ried o u t b y a rough countrym an us ed only to ,

plough ed fi elds etc F o r a p erfect ex ecution th e

, .
,

att ack whil e d ecisive enough must b e most c ar e

, ,

fully r egul at ed an d th e br eathing which is always

, ,

to b e consid er ed in a good att ack must b e of th e ,

 SPECIFIC AP PLICATIONS 2 09

most even ch aract er ; the outflow r equi r es th e

most p erfectly controll ed movements of th e res
p ir at o ry app a r a tus In t h e oth e
.r form of ex ercis e

( d et ach ed ton e s ) th er e i s oft en a t l ea st a l ittl e , ,

mor e emph asis on th e att ack and th e br eathi ng is ,

p erh aps n ot alw ays so ev en but in some p ass ages , ,

in actual singing th e m ethod employed for th es e

,

l ess clos ely link ed tones is in most r esp ects th e

s am e as th e l ast .

.4 Very di ff er ent from all th e pr ec eding is th e

mode of production usu ally d esign at ed by musi
cian s s taccato m arcat o etc ,
T h e ton e is att ack ed
,
.

suddenly and as sudd enl y dropp ed which ex

, , ,

pr ess ed physiologic ally m eans th at th e entir e ,

voc al mech anism is r apidly adjust ed one p art to ,

anoth er an d as sudd enly r el ax ed ;

,
an d th e on e

s eems to b e about as diffi cult as th e oth er In this .

a c ert ain sudd en t ension Of th e voc al app ar atus is

k
es s enti al Th e whol e r espir atory app ar atus aft er
.
,

th e br eath is t a en is h eld mor e o r l ess t ens e

,
In .

ex ecuting th es e ab rupt ( st acc ato ) efl ects th e

"
di aphr agm is th e chi ef ag ent and O per at es ,

against th e column of air in th e lungs th e ,

ch est and ab domin al walls b eing kept mor e or

l es s t ens e .

Though this is th e c as e th e voic e produc er wil l

,
-

succ eed b est if h e gives att ention t o th e r eson anc e

ch amb ers aft er h aving put th e br eathing m echan
,

ism into th e right condition Th er e should b e as .

littl e movement of th e ch est walls di aphr agm , ,

l arynx etc as pos sibl e Th e whol e is a question

,
.
, .

14
21 0 VOICE PRODUC TION

of t ens ion bu t not rigidity and th e r eason th e

, ,

st acc ato effect is so diffi cult fo r most p ersons is

th at th ey att empt to accomplish it by emcessiu e
m ovem en ts Of th e br eathing app ar at us or l arynx .

T h e min d must b e r eli ev ed of any feel in g o f nu

d u e tension an d th e r esult att ain ed by th e est ab
,

l ish m ent o f a clos e connection b etw een th e ear an d

th e r es on anc e ch amb ers -
Th e fi rst int errupt ed
.

eff ects should b e o f v ery bri ef dur ation and as

p ia n o a s possibl e but th e att,

empt to produc e th e

r eal st acc ato m ay to gr eat advant age b e pr ec ed ed

by an ex ercis e r ecomm ended in Ch apter VII I .
,

viz singing a ton e of som e dur ation th en sud

.
, ,

denl y int errupting it and with th e s am e br eath

, , ,

b eginning th e ton e again as sudd enly as it w as

interrupt ed In fact till this can b e don e with
.
,

eas e th e st acc ato prop er should not b e att empt ed ,

for though th e principl es involved are th e s am e ,

th e ex ecution r equir es far mor e skill th an th e

ex ercis e r ecomm end ed fo r an earli er st age an d ,

which it is w ell to continu e throughout .

Simpl e as th es e ex ercis es s eem from m er e de

scription or as c arri ed out with a c ert ain d egr ee
,

o f succ ess p erfection in th em is not to b e att ain ed

,

short O f y ears o f th e most diligent study How .

m any singers living can sing an asc ending an d a

d esc ending sc al e in succ ession with a p erfect stae
, ,

c ato to m ention no oth er efi ect ? Y et among al l

,

th e r esourc es o f dr am atic singing an d speaking

non e is mor e import ant th an this one Wh at s o .

elo qu ent as th e sil enc e aft er a p erfect stop— a com

‘
 SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS 21 1

l
p ete and s atisfactory arr est of th e tone ? HOW :

m any modern actors are c ap able o f it ? H ow

m any singers ? Inst ead of th e perfect arr est th e ,

list en er is conscious not of th e round ed and com

,

p l e t e ton e
,
but of an edg e mor e o r l es s r agged .

Ther e is some nois e with th e actu al ton e -

T h e abov e ex ercis es wh en c arried ou t to a p er

,

feet r esult give us b el can to singing for which th e

, ,

O ld It ali an school was so not ed and which is now ,

l argely a lost art not so much b ec aus e th e methods

,

are not kn own t o t each ers a s b ec aus e stud ents will

,

n o t do th e work n ec ess ary to att ain to thi s b el

can t o . We s eek for short cuts and we g et cor ,

r esponding r es ults
‘

Th e b el can t o is s imply b eautiful singing th e

, , ,

r esult of p erfect t echniqu e an d is oppos ed to ,

efl ect s which are not truly artistic though no ,

doubt often hi ghly expr essive to th e unmusic al and

th e in artis tic .Th ey m ay app eal to us as feats ,

but th ey are not artistic r esults an d as w e have , ,

b efor e insist ed th ey are injurious in many c as es

,

to th e voc al organs whil e good voic e production

,
-

s t r ength ens th em .

5 Th e sw ell is s imply a mod ifi c ation o f th e su s

.

tain ed ton e . Wh en a tone is p erfectly sust ained ,

without any ch ange in volume etc w e h ave a most , .

,

valu abl e effect an d one very diflicu l t to achi eve

, ,

b ec aus e it implies such a st eady applic ation o f th e

br eath power an d such nic e adjustm ents of all th e
p arts conc ern ed To produce a tone with varia
.

tions in it is easy enough and th at is wh at is ,

21 2 VOICE PRODUC TION

usu ally given us instead of th e p erfectly even tone,

r emin di ng us of a str aight line .

In th e sw ell as th e n ame suggests th e tone

, ,

should ris e gr adu ally in volume o r loudness an d ,

as gr adu ally d eclin e If this can b e done r eadily

.
,

an d continu ed for s ev er al s ec onds it wil l b e easy ,

to produc e oth er effects as th e sudden sw ell but

, ,

such efi ects should com e aft er not b efore th e , ,

slow er on es A critic al Obs erver soon r ealiz es th e

.

d efects o f modern t echniqu e wh en h e li st ens to a

singer s to nes wh en att empting slow efi ects as in
’
,

a softly sust ain ed m elody Only th e w ell train ed

.
-

voc alist can hop e to sing such a melody esp eci ally ,

if long sust ain ed in a w ay to m eet th e d em ands

,

o f an ex acting ear an d adv anc ed music al t a st e .

It will b e app ar ent th at th e sw ell is th e b asis of

sh ading a qu ality th at is s o hi ghly appr eci at ed in
,

this r efi ned ag e He who can m an age th e swell

.

p erfectly h as th e s ecr et of this effect in his poss es

sion as h av e non e oth ers .

Al though w e h ave r eferred mor e to th e singer

th an to th e sp eak er in this ch apt er it is to b e
, ,

und erstood th at th es e and al l oth er ex ercis es sug

g ested are of gr eat valu e in formi ng th e voic e for
public sp eaking It is n ot s o import ant it must
.
,

b e admitt ed for th e S p eak er as for th e singer th at

,

his tones b e music ally p erfect as h e r eli es mor e on ,

id eas th an on ton es still with every id ea employed

, ,

by th e public sp eak er th er e is th e ins ep ar abl e feel

”
ing o r
, feeling ton e ; -
s o th at th e sp eak er as ,

w ell as th e singer is to s ome ext ent dep end ent on

,
 SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS 21 3

ton e p ainting— indeed must b e if h e will b e no , ,

”
m ere m an of wood a dry stick to some extent
, , ,

in spit e O f th e u se of appropri at e l angu age g est ,

ur es etc Th ere are m any avenu es to th e h eart ,

,
.

an d th at by ton es c annot with impunity b e n eg

l ected by th e sp eaker though for his purpos e th e ,

singing of tones n eed occupy only w eeks OI ~

‘

months , while for sing ers in th e c as e o f al l wh O , ,

would att ain t o a high d egr ee o f excell enc e it ,

must ex t end over y ears .

ORWARD ” PRO DU CTI O N

F ,
B AOK W ARD, ET O .
,
.

C ert ain ex p r ession s are in common u se by t each

er s an d sing ers such as,
to dir ect th e br eath
” ”
forward ,
forward production b ackw ard ,

production etc NO doubt such t erms m ay s erve

’

.
,

a pr actic al purpos e though th ey are O ft en us ed

,

with l ament able vagu en es s but it must b e und er ,

stood th at th ey do n ot answ er to any cl early dem

o n strated physiologic al p rin cip l es Th er e is fo r .
,

ex ampl e no cl ear evid enc e th at th e br eath c an b e

,

dir ect ed toward th e h ard p al at e in th e n eighbor

hood Of th e t eeth as th e dr awings sometimes pub
,

l ish ed would indic at e .

It h as alr eady b een m any tim es urged th at wh en

br eathing is s atisfactory br eath do es not escap e ,

to any consid er abl e ext ent into th e mouth c avity ,

but th at th e expir atory bl ast is us ed to set th e air ,

O f th e r eso nanc e ch amb ers into vibr ation Th e

-
.

ch anges th at must b e made in th es e c avities to ,

l ead to c ertain effects are accomp ani ed by ch ar ,

21 4 VOICE PRO D UC TION

acteristic s ens ations and thes e and not th e direc

, ,

t ion of th e br eath are l arg ely r esponsibl e for th e

,

ideas on which th e abov e expr essions r est .

As b efor e shown th e soft p al at e is constantly

,

b eing us ed mor e or l ess an d wh en it an d th e ,

tongu e uni te in action s o as to cut O ff th e mouth

c avity o r mor e strictly th e ant erior portion o f
, , ,

it from th e n as al ch amb ers a v ery pronounc ed

, ,

modifi c ation in th e ton e r esults an d o f n ec essity , , ,

such actu al esc ap e of br eath as occurs t ak es pl ace

through th e nos e In r eality th er e is a sp eci al
.
,

modi fi c ation o f th e sh ap e of th e r eson anc e ch am

'

b ers for every tone produc ed and esp eci ally wh en ,

th e color o r qu ality is ch anged as w ell as th e pitch ,

.

Th er e is th er efor e not only

,
forw ard
,
an d

b ackw ard but also middl e production though , ,

in r eali ty th es e t erms at b est but imp erfectly

,

d escrib e even for pr actic al purpos es wh at

, ,

h app ens .

It is to b e fear ed th at with s om e t each ers Of b oth

singing an d sp eakin g forward production h as
b ecom e a sort of p anac ea fo r al l voc al ills ; but it is
n o t an d j ust th e r evers e t eaching is r equir ed in
, .

c ert ain c as es If a voic e b e brilli ant yet h ard it

.
, ,

will b e improved by a mor e b ackward production ,

judiciously employ ed an d in this w ay th e Fr ench ,

l angu ag e is O ft en to b e r ecomm end ed to such sing :

er s a,
s it f avors this b ackw ard production with
,

such u se of th e n as al r eson anc e as m ellows th e

ton es Th e t enor who h as not l earn ed th e u se O f
.

th e n as al r eson anc e to give richn es s to th e ton es

,
 SPECIFIC AP PLICATIONS 21 5

of his mi ddl e and upp er r ange h as miss ed a valna ,

bl e principl e On th e other h and fo r voic es th at

.
,

are too soft l ack brightn ess an d fail in carrying

, ,

power a mor e forw ard production will O ften im

,

prove th e qu ality O f th e voic e gr eatly B u t a little .

consid er ation must convinc e th e stud ent th at if h e

is to b e mast er of hi s voic e production throughout -
,

if h e is to produc e ton es of every sh ade o f qu ality ,

h e must b e abl e to shift th at voic e about in every

qu art er as occ asion dem ands ; in oth er words al l ,

th e ch ang es p o s s i b l e in th e res o n an ce ch am b ers

-

mu st b e at h is Such is th e c as e in th e
co mm an d .

very gr eat est singers Of both s ex es ; and O f ,

cours e thi s appli es equ ally if not stil l mor e to

, , ,

sp eakers .

Wh en th e voic e producer h as l earn ed to inton ate

-

surely wh en th e voic e is pl aced and th e s ecr ets

, ,

o f th e r egist ers ar e known t o him h e will do w ell ,

to exp eriment a little c autiously with his own

, ,

r eson anc e ch amb ers so as to wid en his pr actic al

-
,

knowl edge of th e principl es underlying th e modi

fi catio n O f ton es Why should th e stud ent O f th e
.

voic e r em ain a m er e imit ator wh en th e one who ,

works in any oth er dir ection is or should b e en , ,

cOu rag ed to b e an origin al investig ator ? Th e ina

bil ity O f students to judge of eith er th e grounds for
o r th e v alu e o f th e ex ercis es an d m ethods r ec om

m end ed to th em b y th eir t each ers s eems to th e

author to indic at e a r egr ett abl e st at e o f things
,

which t each ers of every form of v Ocal culture

should end eavor to remedy S ome t each ers do .
21 6 VOICE PRODUC TION
”
not u se t erms b ackw ard and forward
th e ,

but d arkening and brigh t ening th e voice ;

an d o f cours e th e r esult o f a c ert ain u se of th e
, ,

tongu e an d soft p al at e is to d arken or v eil th e

qu ality O f th e voic e But th e attentive r ead er will
.

scarc ely mi st ak e th e author s meaning in th e abov e ’

an d oth er r efer enc es to thi s subj ect .

I t is sc arcely n ec ess ary to point out th at in wh at

h as b een s aid no encour agem ent is int end ed to b e
given to th e n as al twang or any thi ng r es embling ,

—
it an d it is ea sy t o s o u s e th e n as al r eson ance
th at it b ecomes a d efect ; but th e valu e o f a j udi
cions u se O f th e nos e in singing and speaking is ,

w e are convinc ed not as w ell kn own in voc al t each

,

ing as it d es erv es to b e .

SUMMARY .

Th e r el ation of vo wels an d conson ants to sing

ing an d sp eaking In ton ation should b e by vow els
.

only at fi rst C onson ants are a n ec ess ary evil in

,
.

singing but al l import ant in th e form ation of

,
-

—
words i e in imp arting id eas
.
,
. .

Every l angu age h as its own sp eci al m erits and

d efects for th e purpos es o f song and sp eech Th at .

l angu age which abounds in vow els is th e b est

ad apt ed for voc al ex ercis es etc ,
.

It is a c ardin al error to b egin a cours e in sp eak

'

ing an d esp eci ally singing with ex ercis es b as ed on

words Vowel sounds should b e exclusively em
.
.

ploy ed at fi rst In th e form ation of vowels and

.
 SPE CIFIC APPLICATIONS 21 7

co nson ants th e r eson anc e ch amb ers are esp eci ally
-

involved .

Th e tongu e soft p al at e an d lips are th e most

, ,

movable p ar ts an d so h ave th e l argest sh ar e in

,

d —
giving color an meaning t o sounds i e th ey are
. .
,

th e org ans most import ant in th e form ation o f th e

el ements of wor d s .

Th e op en mouth should mean Op en mouth

c avity an d duly s ep ar at ed lips .

It is import ant th at th er e b e control o f all p arts

of th e r eson anc e ch amb ers an d a lw ays in r el ation
-
,

to oth er p arts O f th e voc al app ar atus .

 CH AP T E R XV .

THE E LE MEN T S O F SPEE CH AN D SONG .

THE subj ect tr eat ed in this ch apter may b e made

dry enough ; but if th e stud ent wil l whil e r eading ,

th e d escriptions given end eavor to form th e

,

s ounds describ ed obs erving at th e s am e tim e his

,

o wn r eson anc e ch amb ers ( mouth p arts ) c ar efully

-

in a h and gl ass an d then follow up th e applica

-
,

tions m ad e th e r ead er s exp erienc e will b e in all

,
’
,

prob ability lik e th e author s : th e m o r e th e sub j ect

,
’

is studied th e mor e int er esting do es it b ecom e ,

esp eci ally if on e experim ents with his own

r eson anc e app ar atus .

Vow els and conson ants are th e el em ents of syl

l ab l es and words are compos ed of th e l att er
, .

How ev er pur e a vowel is it is accomp ani ed in its

,

utt er ance by s ome nois e ; a conson an t by r el a ,

tivel y a gr eat d eal of nois e .

A n ois e in distinction to a music al t on e is ch ar

, ,

acterized by irr egul arity a s r egards th e vibr ations

th at r each th e ear while in th e c as e of a ton e a

,

d efinit e numb er O f vib r ations strikes against th e

drum h ead O f th e ear within a given tim e ; so th at
-

so far as syll abl es an d words even vow els are , ,

conc ern ed w e are not dealing with pur e ton es

, .

For th e form ation O f each vow el a d efi nit e form

Of th e r eson anc e ch amb ers is ess enti al
-
In utt er .

21 8
 SPEECH AN D SONG 21 9

ing ei th er for th e purpos es of sp eech o r song th e

, ,

vow el u th e mouth c avity h as th e form of a

l arge fl ask such as ch emists u se for th eir m anip u
l atio n s but th e n eck in this c as e is short
,
Th e .

whol e r eson anc e c avity is elongat ed an d th e lips ,

are protrud ed ; th e l arynx is d epr ess ed an d th e ,

root o f th e tongu e an d th e fauc es ( folds from th e

soft p al at e usu ally spok en of as th e pill ars o f
,

th e fauc es appro ach Th e pitch of this vow el .

is very lo w .

Wi defi afl i - lik e Ca
S f otp l t a a e en di n g in th e

To ngu e

FI G 56 ( Beau nis ) S ho
po i t io f p rt in oun d ing h v o w l By m
w s th e s n o a s t

p ring th i i ll u t r t ion w i th th o fo ll o w i g h l t i v l y g t r i f h c vi t y
. . s e e a . co
a s s a n t re a t
f h m ou t h in t h i c
se , e e r ea e s ze O e a
O t e w i ll b v i d nt T h r d r i r co mm n d d t o onc
s a se

t t h corr c t n f t h r pr n t t ion b y oun d ing h v o w l d O b r ing

e e e . e ea e s e e e at e
es t e e ess o

h n d m irror
ese e ese a s s t e e s , an se v
th p rt
e f hi
a w v oc l m c h ni m w i th
s o s o n a e a s a a -
.

In th e lips
n ear er to th e t eeth and th e n eck
‘

0 are ,

o f th e fl ask is short er an d wid er th e l arynx is

;
somewh at more el evat ed th an in th e l ast c as e ,

an d th e pitch O f th e sound is high er .

Wh en s ounding a ( as in fath er ) th e mouth cav

2 20 VOIC E PRODUC T ION

ity h as th e sh ap e o f a funn el wid e in front ; th e ,

tongue li es r ath er fl at on th e floor o f th e mouth ,

t h e lips are wid e ap art and th e soft p al at e is

'

som ewh at r ais ed .

In a ( as in fate) th er e is s om e modifi c ation of

th e l ast th e tongu e and l arynx b eing mor e r ais ed
,
.

Th e pitch o f this vow el is high er th an is th at o f th e

mor e op en a .

In th e c as e of é ( as in m e) th e fl ask is r el atively
sm all , and th e n eck is l on g an d n arrow , th e l arynx
'

FI G 5 7
. .

I
FI G 5 7 ( B eau nis )
.
h o w h l i p o i t io
. S s t e re at v e s n of p rt in oun d i
a s s g
n I . In s ou d i
n g
n

p i t io
E th e o s n is a goo d d l l ik th t f I
ea e a or .

much r ais ed lips dr awn b ack against th e t eeth

,
th e ,

an d th e t o n gu e gr eatly el ev at ed s o a s to form th e ,

n arrow neck of th e fl ask T h e pitch of this vowel .

is high .

Wh en s ounding l ( as in min e) th e c avity of th e

f

m outh b ehind r es embl es a sm all b elli ed fl ask with a -

 SP E EC H AND SONG 221

l ong narrow n eck th e l arynx is at its hi ghest and

, , ,

t h e lips assum e a position much as in th e c as e o f (5;

b etween th e h ard p al at e an d th e b ack of th e tongu e
—
th er e is o nl y a n arrow p ass age a m er e furrow .

T h e pitch of this vow el is also hi gh .

It is thus s een th at every vow el h as its ch ar ac

teristic qu ality an d pitch th e ord er as r eg ards th e
,

l att er b eing from b elow upward u 0 a (i e i , , , , , ,

.

Th at th e mouth cavity r eally can act a s a r eso

nanc e ch amb er can b e easily d emonstr at ed by hold
-

ing a sm all vibr ating tuning fork b efor e th e op en

-

mouth an d varying th e sh ap e and si ze of th e

,

c avity till th e sound of th e fork is ob served to b e

sudd enly incr eas ed in volume Th e c avity th en .

is a r eson anc e ch amb er for th e fork an d thus

-
,

int ensifi es its sound ; in oth er words th e air in ,

th e mouth c avity vibr at es in h armony with th e

tuning fork -
.

To d emonstr at e in a simpl e manner th at each

vowel h as its own pitch th e mouth c avity is p u t
.

into th e form usu al in sounding th e vow el an d th e ,

fin g er is fi lli p ed against th e ch eek wh en a ton e ,

an sw ering in pitch t o th at o f th e vow el in qu estion

r esults Th e d emonstr ation is easi er with th e

.

lower pitch ed bro ad er vowels but th e corr ectn ess

-
, ,

o f th e ord er of th e pitch m ention ed ab ov e can thus

b e shown to b e est abl sh ed

i .

Som e very import ant p rincipl es for th e sp eak er

an d sing er hinge upon th e ab ov e m ention ed facts -
.

It follows fo r ex ampl e th at it is impossibl e to

, ,

give a vowel its p erf ect s ound in any but one posi
2 22 VOIC E PRODUC T IO N

tion of th e mouth p arts so th at for a sing er to ,

utter a word cont aining th e vowel a ( 00) at a high

pitch is a pr actic al impossibility Th e list en er .

m ay know wh at syll abl e is m eant and ov erlook th e ,

d efect eith er from h ab it o r from an uncritic al

attitud e but compos ers o f voc al music should b ear
,

such facts in mind an d not impos e impossibiliti es

on sin g ers At th e s ame time th e vocalist in
.
, ,

FI G 5 8
. .

" G 53 ( Beau nis ) : S h o ws l t v p it

th e re a i e os ion o f th e p rt
a s d
in so u n ing 0 ”

ord er to s atisfy a mod ern audi enc e is obliged to ,

s ound ev ery word an d every syll abl e as corr ectly

as possibl e e v en if th,
e ton e su fi er som e wh a t
th er eby It is wond erful how fully th e b est po ets
.

h ave W ith th e insight o f genius adapt ed th eir

, ,

words ( vowels ) to th e id eas th ey wish to convey ,

an d h ad al l compos ers o f v oc al m usic don e th e

p th o f th e sing r would not h v b e en

same th e a e a e
,
 SP EE C H AN D S ONG 2 23

s tr ewn with so many thorns Th e diffi cu lti es in

.

th e c as e of th e sp eak er are simi l ar but l ess ,

m ark ed as his r ange is so much mor e limit ed as

,

r eg ards pitch .

This subj ect h as als o most import ant b earings

o n th e l earning o f l angu ag es . One is b orn with
t endenci es tow ard c ert ain mouth positions etc ,
.
,

an d from infancy h e is const antly using th e r eso

’

nanc e ch amb ers in c ert ain ch ar act eristic w ays In

-
.

th e cours e o f y ears th es e positions etc b ecom e

,
.
,

such fi x ed h abits th at it is diffi cult to ch ange th em ,

s o th at fo r this as w ell as m any oth er r eas ons th e

l earning o f l angu ages by p ersons b eyond a c ert ain
ag e is a diflicu l t m att er . But to al l stud ents o f a
for eign tongu e it is r eally es s enti al to expl ain th e
physic al mech anism by which th e various sounds
are m ad e . Th e author h as known an adult to
struggl e fo r months with Fr ench an d G erman pro
n u nciation an d g et into a st at e of discour agem ent
, ,

fearing th at h e n ever would b e abl e to l earn th e

l angu ages in which h e wish ed to sp eak an d sing ,

when a few mom ents sp ent in expl aining just wh at

w e h av e writt en abov e fo r vow els an d wh at we
,

h av e earlier an d sh all now mor e fully set forth in

this ch apt er as r egards conson ants h ave b een fol
,

low ed by th e lifting of th e cloud from th e mind an d

o f a lo ad o f h eavin ess from th e h eart .

T h e l earn er should 1 ) h ear th e sound ( el e

—
m ent l a vowel say ) from th e lips of th e t each er
a , ,

an d actu ally p erc iv e just wh at th at sound is

e — i .

h e must r eal ly h ear it ; ( 2 ) o b s erve th e sh ap e of

 2 24 VOIC E PRO DUC T ION

r eson anc e ch amb ers ; ( 3 ) try to produc e th e

th e -

s am e sh ap e o f his own an d und er th e guid anc e of

,

his ear and his eye ( w atching th e mouth of th e

t each er ) so utt er th e s ound corr ectly T hi s sound .

should b e fi x ed in th e mind an d th e ear tr ain ed by

,

comp aring it with oth er s ounds as th e wis e t each er ,

will do an d r equir e imitations Any l angu age can

, .

be pronounc ed corr ectly in a short t im e if this ,

method b e follow ed It is ind eed th e only one

.
, ,

th at r ests on sci enc e and common s ens e Th e stu .

d ent wh en aw ay from th e t each er aft er h e h as ,

o nc e l earn ed to form th e vow els corr ectly should ,

pr actis e with a h and gl ass b efor e h im for s ome

-

time at l east
,
, .

Th e l earning of a n ew l angu age is th e acquiring

of a n ew mouth o r at al l events entir ely n ew
, , ,

methods of using th e old on e In reality however, .

,

this is not s o fully th e c as e as it at fi rst s eems .

In al l th e l angu ages o n e wish es to acquir e th e ,

s am e vowels occur and for th e l earn er it is oft en a

,

qu estion of lower o r high er pitch o r gr eate r ,

o r l ess br eadth though al l this involv es th e for

,

m ation o f new h abits and th e fi ghting o f ol d on es ,

an d oft en in th e c as e of th e adult th e struggl e is a

long continu ed an d s evere on e

-
Som e n ations .

sp eak at a lower pitch th an oth ers an d if a for ,

ei gn er enunci ate ever so w ell yet at th e pitch o f ,

his own an d n ot th at o f th e n ew l angu age his ,

utt er ance m ay s eem for eign T h e G erm ans sp eak .

at a much low er pitch th an Am eric ans an d th eir ,

tongu e, even wh en gr amm atic ally spok en by th e

 SPEEC H AND SON G 2 25

l atter is ap t to h ave a sort of for eign fl avor It

,
.

slightly disturbs th e list en er who is not accus ,

k
t om ed to h ear his moth er tongu e tr anspos ed into
-

anoth er ey so to sp eak
,
.

W e h ave known a l earner to d erive great b enefi t

from h aving it point ed ou t to him th at c ert ain o f
his vowel sounds would at onc e c eas e to b e incor
r ect if th eir pitch wer e alt er ed Of cours e in .
,

do in g this th er e were at onc e m any ch anges m ade

,

in th e r esonance ch amb ers in ord er to g et th e

-
,

ch anged pitch Pitch acc ent and dur ation of th e

.
, ,

sound throw much light on th e subj ect of di alect ,

as a littl e an alysis o f Irish o r Scotch will show .

C onson ants are as we h ave alr eady s aid noisy

, ,

nuis anc es for th e singer but indisp ens abl e for,

word form ation and so for human intercours e

-
, .

E ach h as also its own pitch an d investigators ,

h ave come to a m easur abl e d egr ee of agr eem ent

o n this subj ect .

T o illustr at e : M ad am e S eil er found th at r and s

are s ep ar at ed from each oth er by an int erv al o f

Th e l att er 9 ,
. can
,
not
b e sound ed without mor e or l es s of a

hissing s ound suggesting esc ap e of air which is

, ,

v ery unpl eas ant to th e ear and unfortun at ely , , ,

th es e hissing sounds are very common in English ,

s o th at th e sp eak er or singer is c all ed upon to u se

al l his art to overcom e this dis agr eeabl e efi ect .

—
This is also p ro minent in whisp ering i e , th e . .

15
 2 26 VOICE PRODUC T ION

sc ap e of br eath with its corr esponding effect on

e ,

th e ear Whisp ering is effect ed chi efly if not

'

.
,

s ol ely by th e r eson anc e ch amb ers th e vo cal b ands

,
-
,

k
t aking only th e slight est p art if any at al l ,
.

T h e physiologist B rii c e tr eating of th e utter ,

anc e o f conson ants consid er ed th at th ey w er e ,

form ed by th e mor e or l es s compl et e closur e of cer

t ain doors in th e cours e o f th e outgoing blast of
air an d w e h av e alr eady r eferr ed to a conson ant
,

a s an unpl eas ant int errupt er music ally con sid ,

er ed P erh aps w e should b e dispos ed to comp ar e

.

th em to th e p eopl e th at t alk during th e p erform

anc e at a conc ert did w e not wish t o avoid bringing
,

such us eful m emb ers o f th e sp eech community into

und es erved disr epute .

C onsonants lik e vowels h av e th eir own mouth

, ,

positions This follows from th eir h aving pitch

.
,

but in addition th ey r equir e th e u se o f th e ton g u e

, , ,

lips etc in a sp eci al way Th e princip al articul a

, .
, .

tion positions are th e foll owing : ( 1 ) B etween th e

lips ; ( 2 ) b etween th e tongu e an d th e h ard p al ate ;
( )
3 b etw een th e tongu e an d th e soft p al at e ; (4)
b etween th e voc al b ands .

To indic at e this c ert ain t erms h ave b een em ,

ployed an d as th ey are in common u se by thos e

,

who tr eat of this subj ect it will b e w ell t o expl ain ,

th em .

E x p l osiv es are conson ants in utt ering which

th er e is compl et e closur e with a sudden op ening
of th e r eson anc e ch amb ers in front as in b and p
-
,
.
 SP EE C H AND S ONG 2 27

FIG .
59 .

FI G 59 pr n t t ion f h r l t i v p o i t io f h p t d h
( Beaun is ) Re es e a t
u lt i g h p f h oun d ing h m b r w h h con on nt i d ic t d
. .
o e e a e s n o t e ar s an t e
f rm d
res n s a e o t e s c a e en t

oc ll y V i fi c t io f h t th f l
e s a s n a e a re o e
f t h il l u t t ion w ill p ro v pro fi t b l
.

v a er a n o t e ru u ness o e s ra
.
s e a e.
 28 VOIC E PRODUC T ION

Vib ratives c all for an almost complet e closur e

o f th e door an d a vibr ation of its m argin , as in r .

AS p im tes p artly clos e th e op ening , which is at

onc e suddenly op en ed again as in f v etc
, , ,
.

R es on an ts clos e th e mouth so th e so u nd must

,

fi nd its way ou t through th e nos e as in m n mg

, , ,
.

Th e abov e m ay b e put in t abul ar form as

follows

Palatal r

Of cours e th e ab ove is o nl y one of m any possib l e

cl assifi c ations an d expr ess es only a p art o f th e
,

whole truth for th e form ation o f a singl e conso

,

n ant is a v ery complic at ed pro ces s th e ex act na ,

tu re o f which can only b e v ery imp erfectly ana

l yzed an d expr ess ed in words .

In compl exity of action th e r es on anc e ch amb ers -

are wond erful b eyond any instrum ent d evis ed by

m an an d th e mor e one stu di es th e subj ect th e

, ,

gr eat er th e wond er b ecomes at th e amount an d

compl exity o f th e work don e in a singl e day s ’

sp eaking It is also easy to und erst and h ow diffi

.

cult it is to att ain to absolut ely p erfect r esults .

To en ab le on e s fellow creatur es to underst and

’ -

him in even his moth er tongu e involves an amount

-

o f eff ort an d en er g y a compl exi ty an d facility in

,

function th at can only b e r each ed aft er months

,

o f pr actic e in infancy ; b ut to at tain to th at d egr ee

 SPEE C H AND SONG 2 29

of p erfection th at mak es an artist in sp eaking how

,

much gr eater is th e exp enditur e in vit al c apit al

Is not th e r esult wh en att ain ed worth th e best
"
efforts of th e most t al ent ed individu al ?
 CHAPTE R XVI .

F URTHER THE O RETI CA L AN D P RA CT I CA L

CO NS I DERA T I ON O F VOW E LS
A N D CONS ONA N T S .

TH Er ead er will now b e pr ep ar ed to consider th e

answ er to b e giv en to th e qu estion as to th e vow els

most suit abl e for pr actic e in inton ation Pl ainly, .

a ( ah ) puts th e r eson anc e ch amb ers into th e easi -

est an d b est position to form a good pur e tone .

—
T h e pitch of th e vow el is int ermedi at e not very
low and not high in th e sc al e F or th e higher .

ton es evid ently a e an d i are b ett er th an a ( ah )

, , , , ,

mu ch l ess 0 an d u which are quit e out of th e ,

qu estion comp ar atively sp eaking

,
.

How ever as music must b e sung with vowels in

,

ev ery position it is p l ainl y n ecessary to l earn to

,

sound al l th e vow els w ell throughout th e sc al e In .

fact on e might wis ely aft er pr elimin ary pr actic e

, ,

o n a b egin a sc al e b elow with u th en go on to o a

, , , ,

d, e, an d i .

S om e h ave r ecomm end ed th at th e voc alist b egin

his sc al e pr actic es with a an d wh en th e high er ,

mid dl e ton es are r each ed th at h e u se (2 an d for , ,

h ead ton es c7 an d e an advice which is obviously

.
,

s ound as it is b as ed on sci entifi c principl es

, .

S ounds th at are very expr essive in public utt er

anc e wh eth er in sp eech o r s ong ar e l an d e sp e
, ,

cial l y r In ordin ary sp eech most p ersons u se

.

2 30
 VO WE L S AND C ONSONAN T S 23 li

onl y th e guttur al r in th e form ation of which th e

,

soft p al at e t akes a promin ent p art ; but fo r th e

sp eak er and th e singer th e lingu al r is oft en much
mor e efl ectiv e It is produc ed by th e vibr ation of
.

th e tip of th e tongu e an d can only b e formed w ell

, ,

in most c as es aft er long continued an d p ers ever

,
-

ing pr actic e .

C ert ain conson ants t end to n a s ality Th es e are .

m n ng an d o f thes e al l p ersons who are dispos ed

, , ,

to this production to th e point o f exc ess must esp e

ciall y b ew ar e Th es e l ett ers with such p eopl e
.
, ,

should b e given a r apid an d forward production ,

whil e singers with h ard an d m et allic voic es will do

w ell to sing syll abl es b eginning with th es e conso
n ants such as m ew n ew any eng etc
, , , , ,
.

According to th e t eachings o f physics th e qu al ,

ity o f a tone is d et ermined l argely by th e numb er

an d v ari ety o f th e o v er t on es accomp anying th e

fund am ent al ton e Pr actic ally al l music al ton es

.
,

wh eth er voc al o r instrument al are m ad e up of th e

,

ground ton e an d c ert ain oth ers l es s loud an d prom

in en t and th e l att er are th e ov erton es
,
Th es e .

m ay b e very num erous an d s om e are favor abl e

,

an d oth ers unfavor abl e to exc ell enc e in qu ality .

It h as b een thought as th e r esult o f sci entifi c in

,

v estig ation th at wh en th e fi rst oct av e o f th e fund a

,

m ent al ton e an d its fi fth int erv al are promin ent ,

th e voic e is soft and with th e fi fth an d s ev enth

,

w ell in evidenc e th e voice is bright an d cl ear

, .

It might b e s aid th at th e voic e us er should en -

deav o r to k eep ou t o f his voic e c ert ain overt on es

23 2
. VOICE PRODUC T IO N
.

sp eci ally thos e which are n ot withi n th e r ange

e

o f ou r mod ern h armoni es A h arsh voice is one in

.

whi ch such unh armonic int ervals pr eponder at e .

T h e most b eautiful qu ality of ton e is produc ed

by keeping int ensity within limi ts an d by a sud ,

den el astic at tack a point o n which w e dwelt at

, ,

som e l ength b efor e ; but this only emph asiz es th e

import anc e o f all who u se th e voic e employing not ,

only wh en b eginn ers but througho u t th eir c ar eer

, ,

ex ercis es with vow els alon e Only in this w ay will

.

th e associ ation b etw een th e h earing o f pur e ton es

an d th eir production b e est ablish ed .

Such ex ercis es are also necessary t o give good '

c arryin g pow er to th e voic e If mor e att ention .

w er e given to this point an d l ess to th e production

,

o f m er e volum e o f so u nd it would b e w ell fo r th e

,

b est music al art N atur ally th e high er th e pitch

.
,

o f ton es within certain limi ts th e gr eat er th eir

, ,

c arrying pow er an d th e r ev ers e o f cours e with

, , ,

th e low er ton es ; so th at it is v ery import ant th at

th e sp eak er an d singer u se al l r eason abl e m eans to
produc e th es e low er ton es w ell els e th ey are ,

muffl ed and th e words associat ed with th em are

,

not h eard This principl e should b e born e in mi nd

.

esp eci ally by t enors an d light s 0p r an o s in whom , .

th e low er ton es ar e not usu ally th e b est or th e ,

easi est t o produc e ; so th at a good att ack an d c ar e

ful an d n eat syll ab l e form ation with all att ention

-
,

to both vowels an d conson ants should b e espe ,

cial l y studi ed an d ab ov e al l in ton es b elow ab out

, , ,

G on th e tr ebl e cl ef Th e t endency to clos e th e

.
 VOWELS AND C ONSONAN T S 23 3

mouth esp ecially in a desc ending sc al e b elow thi s

, ,

point and to confound blurring with s oft ( p ian o )

,

singing is common ,
A p ian o ton e should b e
.

formed with esp eci al c ar e as to att ack open ,

mouth etc and al l words associ at ed with th e

,
.
,

dull er low er —pitch ed vow els b e spoken with th e

,

gr eat est distinctness both in singing and sp eak

,

ing At th e s am e tim e th e b aryton e and contr alto

.
,

should n ot bo ast thems elves over th e t enor o r so

p r an o if,
th ey are mor e succ essful with low e r ton es
an d th e words associ at ed with th em fo r th e l att er ,

cl ass of singers can oft en r evel lik e birds in r egions

E ach in its own order "

not appro ach abl e by th e d eep er voic ed singers

It follows that if th e organs of sp eech are us ed

-
.

so as t o produc e vowels conson ants and th eir , ,

c ombin ations with unusu al and for pr actic al pur

, ,

pos es unn ec es s ary distinctn ess th e actu al p er

, ,

form ance as d em anded by a critic al ear will b e

, ,

easi er . One th at can run two hundr ed y ards as

r eadily as anoth er can on e hundr ed is in a b ett er
position for th e short er sprint th an th e oth er m an ;
h ence th e wisdom of th e singer and sp eak er pr ao
tising fi rst with unusu al an d indeed unn ec ess ary
distinctn ess s o far as th e list en er is concern ed
, ,

in ord er th at h e m ay s atisfy even th e critic al with

ease — th at all import ant principl e in art
-
.

All p ersons must of n ec essity sp eak in some

, ,

r egist er and even an ear but littl e cultiv at ed can

,

r eco gniz e th at th e pitch an d qu ality o f th e ton es

234 VOICE PRODUC T ION

of a dult m al es adult fem al es and chil dren difi er

, ,

greatly from each oth er .

M ad am e S eil er h as thus expr ess ed h ers elf on

this subj ect
Wom en u se mostly ton es of th e s econd ch est
an d fi rst f als etto r egist ers som etim es also thos e
,

o f th e fi rst ch est r egist er Men sp eak an oct av e

.

low er th an women an d u se mostly th e upp er half

,

o f th e ch est r egis ter In public sp eaking as w ell

.
,

a s on th e st ag e th e s econd ch est r egist er is us ed

,

by m en an d sometim es also th e lowest tones of th e

,

voic e Th e s econd fals etto an d h ead r egist ers are

.

us ed o nly by littl e chil dr en .

It will b e r em emb er ed th at M ad ame S eil er s ’

s econd ch est corr esponds to th e upp er ch est

ton es of some writ ers and th at ,
fals etto is
”
equiv al ent to middle as gener ally employed
,
.

Ordin ary sp eech is economic al an d a r ange of ,

very few ton es usu ally not mor e th an two to four

,

int erv als o f th e s cal e suffi c es but on th e stage

, , ,

an d by som e o f ou r b est public sp eak ers twic e this ,

r ange m ay b e exc eed ed In n atur e th e cat under

.
, ,

th e excit em ent o f a h eat ed int ervi ew with a fellow

voc alist m ay p as s throu gh an entir e o ct ave
,
.

SUMMARY .

Th e sh ap e of th e
r son nc ch amb ers vari es in
e a e-

th e form ation o f vow els and conson ants whi ch ,

m ay b e cl assifi ed accordingly or accor di ng to ,

th eir pitch .
 VO WE L S AND C ONSONAN T S 23 5

Pr actical impl ic ations for sin ging and sp eaking ,

th e l earning of foreign l angu ages , th e study of dia

lects etc
,
.

T h e import anc e of sp eci al att ention to thos e

words cont aining th e l ow pitch ed and d ark vowels
-
,

esp eci ally wh en low in th e s cal e an d wh en sung

,

p ian o .

Overtones and th eir h earing on th e qu ality of

,

th e voic e .

T h e c arrying pow er o f th e voic e d et ermin ed by

,

th e m ethod o f its production is mor e import ant

,

th an its volu me .

T h e v alu e o f pr actic e with th e u se o f a mirror

,

an d of th e form ation o f th e sounds in pr actic e wi th

a distinctn ess in exc ess o f th e actu al n eeds of th e

l ist en er E as e is essenti al to art

. .
 CHAP E R T XVII .

IN MUSI C .

So important are th e m g om g s ensory mess ages

( impuls es ) th at origin at e in th e ear as a gu 1 d e not,

only in th e appr eciation o f music al sounds but in

thos e mov ements on whi ch all music al ex ecution ,
al l voc al efl ect s wh eth er of s ong o r sp eech de
, , ,

p end th at we think th e r eader will w elcome a

,

ch apt er on th e ear even though it b e no p art of

,

th e voc al app ar atus prop er .

T h e ess enti al m ech anism us ed by N atur e to give

us th e s ens ation o f s o u nd consists of 1 ) a compli
cated form of n erv e ending ; ( 2 ) an au di tory n erve
-

leading from an d a continu ation in a c ert ain

, ,

s ens e o f th e l att er ; ( 3 ) n erve tr acts an d h earing

, ,

c entres in th e b r ain Th e whol e constitut es a v ery

.

complic at ed m ech anism but th e principl es on

,

which it is con struct ed m ay b e r educ ed to a few .

M ech anic al or physic al principl es as w ell as phys ,

iol o gical on es are involv ed

, .

Th e entir e app ar atus h as for its purpos e th e

conversion o f th e vibr ations o f th e air into th e
vi b r ations o f a fluid which thus stimul at es th e end
,

organ and brings about thos e ch anges in th e nerve

,

which r esult in corr esponding ch anges in th e br ain ,

th at are associ at ed in som e way w e c ann ot ex

,

pl ain to th at st ate of consciousn ess w e t erm h ear

,

ing C omplic at ed as is th e audito ry app aratus

.
,
 VO WE L S AND C ONS ONANTS 23 7

it can b e r eadily enough compr eh end ed if th e ,

r eader accomp any th e p erus al o f th e t ext by an

ex amin ation o f th e fi gur es introduc ed .

FI G 60 . .

Sem icircul ar

Co ch l ea.
m o t import n
s a t

Eus t ac h ian tu b e

T m y orp ic m m b r n
d m h d)
an e a e

( ru - ea

F I G 60 th i ill u tr t i p t
( Beaunis ) x p d i w by h m l f
In s s a on ar s are e to v e t e re ova o

th l i w i h i b on w h ic h in th i fi gur i cut w y
. . . o se

T h w h ol f h inn
ty m p ni ) h Eu t c h i ub x t di ng fro m h b k
e e o t e er ear es t n e s a a

Th d ru m h d ( m m br
o ers . e, s .

ea e ana a t e s a an t en t e ac

h ro t d p i g i t h m i d dl m icircu l r c l ( w h ic h
e -
; e, e

f h t e t a an O h en n n o t e e ear ; t a ana s are

conc rn d w i t h h i g b u t w i t h h m in t nc f q ui l ibriu m ) h coc hl

o , e se

not e ear n t e a ena t e ea ,

il h ll wh ic h nt in h rio p rt m o t n t i l h ring h h i
e , e o e ;

( s na -s e co a s t e va us a s to ea as t e a r

c ll h t rm i l f h u d i t ory r v h l t t n rv i t l f d v l th
s esse a ,
”
t e e na s o t a ne t a an se era o er

p t — w l l h w S h ou l d h E u t c hi n tu b b c l o d o w ing w l li g f
e s, e e, e er e e se ,

ar s are e s o n t e s a a to s e n o

l ini g m ucou m mb c t i m ou f t m por ry d fn m y lt

. e e se
'

i
ts n s e rane, a er a n a nt a ea ess a resu

b c u h i w i th i h m i ddl h
o e ,

e a s e, t e a r
( d ru m ) b ing b orb
n t d d f
er i ea r a an es a r no t

d um h d
e e s e ,

b i g
e n d m i tt d h u t r i pr
a e g i t h
t e o e u a r td d esses a a ns t e - ea u nco nt erac e an

d r h co d u ting m ch i m rigi d
, r ,

ren e s t e n c e an s too .

An atomists sp eak o f ( 1 ) an out er o r ext ern al

ear ( 2 ) a middle ear drum or tym p anum an d
, , , ,

( )
3 a n inn er ear o r l abyrinth , .
23 8 VOIC E PRODUC T ION

Th e p u rpos e
of th e ou ter ear is to coll ect th e air
vibrations an d convey th em to th e middl e ear,
FI G .

i
S em circul ar canal

Co c hl ear canal

FI G 61 ( Beau nis) t ti f h u dit y pp at

Di a g ram m ti a c pr esen a on o t e a or a ar us.

x t rn l m i ddl d in t l p r t d by d t d l i
. . re

Th e e e a e , an A h l;
erna c ar are se a a e ot e nes t e ex t erna

x t l u d i t o y m t ; 3 ym
, .
,

B h m i ddl ; C h in t l
t e e ic l t erna ern a a r ea us t

5 E t c hi
e ear ; aur e

) w i th i ch i
, , I e ; 2 , ,
.
,

p nu m ( m i ddl
a e e arf bo 7 8 9 In t o it op ts a n o n es , ens us a an

ub l d ing f o m b ck f t h r t 4 m m br t y m p i d u m h d l i g h
.
, , , ,

t e, ea r a oa ana an r - ea c os n t e

x t n l T h m o t i m por t n t p rt f h i
o ; ,
e or ,

m i ddl ff fro m h
e c ar o t i 3 a a t nn er ear s I

h coc h l c n l i w h ic h h h i c ll roun d w h ic h l tt r h fi l
e e er a ear. e s o e ,

t e ear a a foun d
n t a r- e s are a a e t e na

b nc h f h u dit o y rv d A bo v i i h c l v t ib u l i d b l w i h
, e ,

ra es o t e a ne e en t s t e s a a es an e o t t e

l t y m p i p g fill d w i t h fl ui d T h op n ing th c n l
r . e

sc a a an ass a l d s to ese a a s are c ose

w ith m mb n Att c h d h m m br n f th v l op ning i h t p ( ti

, es e . e e

e ra e. a to t a e s t e s a es s r

I i thu th t v ibr t ion co mm unic t d h c h i f bo fr m h

e e e a e o e o

ru p) t s s s een a a a e to t e a n o n es o t e

p d to h fl ui d fill ing h p g ( c l ) f h c h
. s

t y m p nic m m br n
a e a e are asse on t t e assa es s a a o t e oc

ff ct h h i c ll rv f h i g d t h gh i h
e

l
ea, d th u
an s a d eh t e a r- e s, an so t e ne e o ear n , an ro u t t e

b i ra n . Th p rt i d ic t d by
e a d 6
s i mpo t n t i h m i t c f
n a e an are r a n t e a n enan e o

conc rn d in h ring
: 2 I

e q il i b iu m b ut
u r , are n o t e e ea .

whi ch p ass es th em o n to th e inn er ear wh er e th ey ‘

produce th e vibr ations in th e fluid th er ein con

t ain ed an d wh ich aff ect th e en d org an and n erv e
'

-
 H EARING IN M USIC 23 9

en din gs and thus initiat e th e ess enti al ph ysiol ogi

,

cal proc ess es in th e n erve of h earing It follows .

th at w e h ave an inst ance of th e conversion of one

FI G . 6a
.

62 ( Beau nis) . n T wo u
( h m ll e
of th e b o es o f t h e ear t e a s or h a mm er and

t h incu n v i l ) n l rg d Th m ll bon h v j oi t l ik l rg n The

l i f v y c f v ibr t io i in d ic t d by B A
e s or a e a e . ese s a ear- es a e n s e a er o es .

ne o con e an e o a ns s a e .

kind o f vibr ations th os e o f th e air into anoth er, ,

kind thos e o f fluid which l att er furnish a suth

, ,

cien tl y d elic at e stimulus o r excit ation o f th e fi n e

h air lik e ex t ensions (p rocess es ) o f th e cells kno wn

—
2 40 VOICE PRODUC TION

as h air b out which th e n erves in their fin al

-
cel l s, a

s mallest br anch es wr ap th ems elves .

Wh en w e ours elves h ear s ounds wh en und er

wat er w e are affec ted dir ectly by th e vib r ations
,

of that wat er ; in this c as e w e in our whol e body , ,

r epres ent th e h air c ells which are stimul at ed b y

-

th e fluid ( end olymp h ) which surrounds them .

FI G 63 ( Beau nis ) co m p l t c h in f b on
The e e a o es . The rr a ow s in di t i g
ca e n a en

f o m h t ym p
. .

eral w ay t h e d ir c t io f h l in f t n m i io
n o t e e o ra s ss n of v ib t io
ra ns r t e anic

h fl id w i h in h p
e

memb rane on to t e u t g f h i
t e assa es o t e n ne rear.

Th extern al ear w ell d evelop ed in m any of

e ,

th e low er anim als b eing oft en highly mov abl e is

, ,

pr actic ally immovabl e in m an an d is wholly w ant ,

ing in some animals as th e frog T h e circul ar ,

.

pl at e one s ees b ehind th e eye of th e frog is th e

drum h ead o f th e middle ear
-
.

From th e d ru m h ead o r tymp anic m em b ran e

-
, ,

th e vibr ations which are now thos e o f a s olid are

, ,

communic at ed b y a s eries o f very sm all bones ,

 H E ARING IN MU S IC 2 41

mos t b eautifully link ed togeth er by p erfect j oints ,

to anoth er m embran e which clos es a sm all hol e in

,

th e out er w all o f th e i nn er ear .

T h e middl e car it will b e s een is a drum with

, ,

its str etch ed membr an e l ik e any other drum and ,

it to o h as a communic ation with th e ext erior air

through a tub e th e E u s tachian tu b e which l eads
, ,

from th e drum into th e b ack p art of th e thro at .

Wh en on e h as a cold th e mucous membr an e which

,

lin es this tub e m ay b ecome swoll en o r ev en ca

t arrh al an d b e s o clos ed th at no air can ent er from
,

th e thro at ; th e air al ready within th e drum b eing

absorb ed th e out er air pr ess es unduly ag ainst th e
,

drum h ead with th e r esult th at th e whol e conduct

-
,

ing app ar atu s is put mor e o r l ess ou t of condition ,

an d a c ert ain d egr ee of d eafn es s n atur ally r esults .

Th e t ension o f th e drum h ead is r egul at ed by a-

muscl e att ach ed to th e bon e which is conn ect ed

with th e inn er p art of this m embr ane .

It is n ow easy to und erst and how any unfavor

abl e condition o f th e thro at m ay afi ect th e ear or ,

th at of th e ear influ enc e th e thro at .

In th e hearing mech anism of m an th e inn er ear , ,

o r l a byrin th w ell so nam ed b ec aus e of its compl ex

,

ity is r eally situ at ed in th e inn er h ard est portion

,

o f th e t empo r al bon e It consists o f a m em .

br an e an d a bony portion th e form er cont aining ,

th e ess enti al m ech anis m o f h earing th e l att er b eing ,

chi efly prot ective to it T h e m embr anous portion

.

consists of a s eri es of c an als communic ating with

-

som e simil arly m embr anous s acs th e whol e b eing ,

16
2 42 VOICE PRODUC TION

surround ed by and fil led with fluid Th es e l att er .

communic at e with an ex t ension t ermed th e cochl ea ,

which cont ains a c entr al c an al in which th at col l ec

tion of cells is found which constitut es th e end
o rg an among th em th e h air c ells about which th e
,
-
,

n erve ends .

This en d organ in th e cochl ea m ay b e comp ar ed

-

very fi tl y to th e t el ephon e which r ec eiv es th e m es

s age an d th at portion o f th e br ain wh er e th e audi
,

tory tr act ends to th e t el ephon e at th e dist ant end

,

of th e p ath th e list ener th er e r epr es enting con

,

s ciou sn ess T h e auditory p ath within th e br ain is

.

long an d complic at ed th er e b eing in fact m any

, , ,

way st ations through which th e m ess ag e p ass es

-

b efore it r each es th e fi n al on e .

Th e auditory n erve proc eeds fi rst t o th e low est

o r hind ermost portion of th e br ain known as th e ,

bu l b or m edu l l a o b l ong ata; th enc e a continu ation

,

o f th e n erv e tr act p a ss es forw ard to a c entr al

r egion th e p o s t erio r co rp o ra q u adrig emin a th en

, , ,

by a n ew r el ay o f n erve fi b res to th e high est and

-
,

most import ant p art of th e br ain th at most clos ely ,

a ssoci at ed with consciousn ess th e c o r t ex of t h e

,

t em p o ral l o b e wh er e th er e is situ at ed th e most

,

import ant o f all th e c entr es of h earing .

It will b e app ar ent on consid er ation th at

, ,

h earing is a v ery el abor at e r esult th e out ,

com e of m any physiologic al proc ess es ( initi at ed by

physi cal ones ) th e initi al an d fi n al b eing b etter
,

und erstood th an th e int erm edi at e on es .

On e asks with n atur al curiosity an d int er est

, ,
 H EARING IN MUSIC 2 43

Is th e auditory app ar atus of th e highly endow ed

musici an di ffer ent from and sup erior to th at of th e
‘

individu al with littl e t alent for music ?

It is not easy to giv e a short an d d efi nit e answ er
to this qu estion No sp eci al ex amin ations o f th e
.

ess enti al p ar ts o f th e ears o f emin ent musici ans

h ave b een m ad e so far as w e are awar e an d as

, ,

y et f ew o f th e br ains o f this cl a ss o f m e n It .

is however pr actic ally cert ain th at th er e is a

, ,

br ain development p eculi ar to th e born musician ,

an d th at this wh at ev er els e it m ay b e involves a

, ,

sp eci al exc ell enc e o f th e auditory p ath within th e

br ain r ath er th an any unusu al d evelopm ent of th e
,

ess enti al p arts o f th e ear Th e individu al who is a

.

music al prodi gy h as without qu estion a m o re

, ,

p e rf ec t c o n n ec ti o n e st ablish e d b etw ee n his audi

tory app ar atus in th e wid est s ens e o f th e word
, ,

an d thos e muscul ar m ech anisms employ ed in th e

ex ecution o f music wh eth er voc al o r instrum ent al

, ,

th an is th e c as e with th e av er age m an Usu ally .

,

with this go es a wid e s eri es of br ain associ ations

or conn ections w e m ay pr esume b etw een th e au di
, ,

tory tr acts an d oth er r egions fo r without this it is

,

difficult to expl ain t emp er am ent an d artistic p er

c ep tio n . Th at th ey are not n ecess arily associ ated ,

how ever is cl ear from th e fact th at s om e h ave a

,

high d egr ee of ex ecutive ability an d littl e r eal

art istic d ev elopm ent ?

It must n ever b e forgott en however th at wh at , ,

ev er els e music m ay b e it is ess enti ally an d pri

,

m arily a s ensuous exp eri enc e Th e on e w h o enj oys

.
2 44 VOICE PRO D UC TION

music must feel its s ensuous charm and th e artist ,

who furnish es th at which is enj oy ed addr ess es hi m

s elf prim arily to our auditory mecha nism E x e .

cu tin g music is h earing music an d enj oying music ,

is h earing music though both m ay involve much

,

mor e th an this and h er ein in di vidu als must di ff er

,

gr eatly owing to educ ation p ast exp erienc e etc ;

, , ,
.

but al l who h ave th e pow er to r eally appreci ate

music must b e c ap abl e o f th e s ensuous enj oym ent
o f ton es In this al l everywh er e fi nd something in
.

comm on ; oft en th at which w e enj oy is of th e most

vari ed n atur e .

One thing is c ert ain : thos e conn ections b etw een

th e h earing an d th e motor proc ess es w e t erm sing
ing o r pl aying should b e m ad e early in life if th ey ,

are to r each th at d egr ee o f facility an d g en er al

exc ell enc e ess enti al to succ ess W e think ther e is

.

good r eason to b egin voic e production early as -

,

w ell as th e pr actic e of an instrument though w e do ,

not m aint ain th at th e argum ent is as strong in th e

on e ca s e as in th e oth er .

Th at th e ear fo r music may b e well d ev el

op ed in th e s ens e th at one m ay know p erfectly
,

wh at is corr ect in time an d tun e without th e power ,

to ex ecut e w ell th er e can b e no doubt as witn es s

, ,

th e c a s e of m any compos ers but th e r ev ers e do es

,

n o t hold Th er e can b e no doubt th at th e n ervou s

.

imp u ls es th at p ass fr om th e ear to th e b rain are of

al l s enso ry m ess ag es th e m o s t imp o rtan t
g d es
u i
for t h e o u tg oing o n es th at d et ermin e th e n eces s ar
y
movements .
 H EARING IN MUSIC 45

Th e a uthor would advis e every s erious student

of music to b eli ev e in th e u nlimit ed c ap acity of his
o wn ear for improvement Th e l ack of . ear of

m any p eopl e is d u e l arg ely if not s ol ely to in at , ,

t ention Indeed an exc es s o f t emp er ament may

.
,

b e a positiv e hindr anc e to music al d ev elopm ent ,

both as r egards appr eci ation an d ex ecution fo r ,

it m ay b e accomp ani ed by in att entive list ening and

cons equ ent in adequ at e h earing On th e oth er .

h and no one should b ec aus e h e h as a good faculty

, ,

for tim e an d tun e an d th e m emorizing of airs con ,

olud e th at h e is an artist Th e on e facu l ty m ay

.
.

"
exist altog eth er ap art from th e c ap acity for th e

high est art It is a m att er of history th at s ever al

.

voc alists now b efor e th e public an d who r ank in ,

th e high est cl ass o f music al artists displ ay ed at ,

o n e p eriod of th eir c ar eer a l ack of p erc eption a s

to pitch o r rhythm th at w as to s ay th e l east very , ,

discour aging an d which but for th eir forc e o f

, ,

ch ar act er would h av e kept th em from ever b ei ng

,

emin ent .

If on e h ave n eith er ear t emp er am ent nor artis

'

, ,

tic p erc eption h e shoul d not w ast e his en ergi es o n

,

music l study at l east not ext end ed efforts ; b u t

a —
,

if h e h ave th e two l ast an d but a mod er at e ear h e

, ,

will do w ell t o try to improv e th e low er for th e

s ak e o f th e high er qu aliti es .

In childr en th e difli cu l ty oft en is du e wholly to

in att ention .

Thos e who would cultiv at e th e sp eaking voic e

are fr equ ently discour aged from l ack o f ”
ear ,
2 46 VOICE P RODUC TIO N
.

an d wh en urg ed to follow such ex ercis es as h ave

b een r ecomm end ed in this work compl ain th at ,

th ey h av e not th e ear to do s o T o such th e .

author would s ay P ers ev er e ; b eli ev e in your

,

ear ; l earn to list en — i e to att end to s ounds h av .

.
, .

”
ing music al qu aliti es .

B esid es it must not b e forgott en th at in addition

,

to th e ear — i e th e ability to appr eci at e r el a

. .
,

—
tive pitch tune an d rhythm th er e is also th e
, ,

entir ely distinct f aculty th at appr eci at es th e q u al

i ty o f sounds Th e l att er is r eally mor e import ant

.

fo r th e sp eak er who can succ eed with a v ery mod

,

erate d ev elopm ent o f th e faculty fortim e an d tun e ,

but to whom th e pow er to appr eci at e th e q u ality

o f s ounds is ess enti al .

No doubt th e fi rst an d fund amental qu aliti es in

th e m ak e u p o f a musici an ar e th e c ap aciti es to
-

appr eci at e pitch an d rhythm but no r esult worthy ,

th e t erm artistic c an b e produc ed in which

att ention is not giv en to th e qu ality of sounds ,

h enc e th e t echnic al an d artistic should b e d evel

op ed tog eth er Th e l ack o f att ention on th e p art
.

o f a c ert ain cl as s o f voc al t each ers to th e qu ality

o f th e ton es produc ed is on e o f th e sp eci al d efects

in th e instruction o f th e d ay .

In th e early w eeks o f voc al tr aining wh en th e ,

stud ent should inton e only b efor e his t each er th e ,

form er n eed not b e l eft without music al cultur e

.

an d it is for each t each er to giv e th e pupil th at

tr aining at this tim e which will for est all disgust

, ,
 H EARING IN MUSIC 2 47

and imp ati enc e a t th e a pp a r e nt slown ess of his

progr es s At this tim e much can b e done to
.

cultivat e th e ear in all its various pow ers .

An d t e a
h uthor would lik e t o put in a pl ea for
h
t e d v
e e lopm ent o f th e a pp r e ci ati o n o f m u s ic .

Wh at ev er difl eren ce o f O pinion th er e m ay b e as to

chor al singing singing in schools etc th er e can
, ,
.
,

b e no qu estion th at tim e sp ent in d eveloping th e

appr eci ation o f music al art is w ell sp ent an d,

m akes for th e d evelopment an d p r ovid es for th e

innoc ent an d el ev ating sourc es of enj oym ent of a
p eople If som e o f th e time sp ent in b ad pi ano
.

pl aying w er e d evoted to th e d evelopment of th e

power to appr eciat e and d elight in r eally good
music including th e sweet sounds of sp eech an d
,

s ong th e world would th er eby b e gr eatly th e

,

gainer .

Th e author would impress on al l stud ents of

music an d of th e voic e as us ed in both singing
,

an d sp eaking th e p ar amount import anc e o f l earn

,

ing early to list en most att entively to oth ers wh en

exe cuting music ; an d abov e all to list en with th e
, ,

gr eat est c ar e to th ems elv es an d n ever to acc ept

,

an y music al ton e th at do es n ot fully s atisfy th e ear .

Wh en one consid ers how much h arshn ess is p ass ed

a s sin gin g o r sp eakin g by th e stud ent ev en by
, ,

thos e who pos e as public sing ers an d sp eak ers ,

o n e must oft en wond er wh er e th ey k eep th eir ears .

'

As a m att er of fact th e ideal list en ers are r ar e

, ,

an d th e critic al ear lik e a s entin el on u ard is

, g ,
2 48 VOICE PRODUC TION

among stud ents r eally s eldom to b e m et with if

, ,

on e extend th e t erm list ening to mean g iving

att ention equ ally an d in th e most critic al w ay not ,

only to pitch and rhythm but also to th e qu ality of

,

sounds th e effects of p aus es sh ading etc all of

, , ,
.
,

which are p erc eiv ed through th e ear .

If such list ening r equir es as it do es th e clos est

, ,

att ention it must giv e ris e to fatigu e so th at it

, ,

is cl ear th at th e l engthy pr actic es som e undert ak e

ar e against th e pl ain est l aws o f physiolo g y an d

psychology even if th e h earing proc es s es alon e b e

,

consid er ed ; but as w e h ave b efor e shown th er e ,

are oth er r easons why such l on g cbn tin u ed ex er

'

cis es as som e att empt are in ev ery w ay unwis e ;

in fact in th e author s opinion th ey are in th e
,
’
,

musi cal world a gr eat evil und er th e sun .

SUMMARY .

H earing is fi n ally a psycho l ogic al or m ent al

condition a st at e o f consciousn es s but is always
, ,

a ssoci at ed with c ert ain physiologic al proc ess es ,

which are initi at ed by a physic al stimulus in th e

form of w av es in a fluid surrounding th e h air c ells -

of th e au di tory end organ ; which w av es m ay

-

ag ain b e tr aced to th e mov em ents o f th e b on es o f

th e middl e ear c aus ed by th e sw m g mg to an d fro

,

o f th e drum h ead owing to vibr ations of th e air

-
,

produc ed b y a s ounding body .

Th e ear is an atomic ally divisibl e into ext ern al ,

middl e ( tym p anu m o r drum ) an d int ern al ( l aby

.

,
 H EARING IN MUSIC 2 49

rinth out r
Th e coll cts t h vi b r ations th e
) . e ea r e e ,

middl e ear conducts them and th e int ern al con ,

verts th em into a sp ecial physiologic al condition

of th e h air c ells an d th e auditory n erve This
-
.

condition is communic at ed to th e oth er links in

th e an atomic al h earing ch ain until th e high est ,

p art o f th e br ain or cort ex is r each ed H earing

, ,
.
,

from th e physiologic al point of vi ew is th e o u t ,

come of a s eri es o f proc es s es h aving th eir d ev elop

m ent in a corr esponding s eries o f c entres , or col
l ections of n erve c ells -
.

Th e p erc eptions associ at ed with th e ear in th e ,

mind of th e musici an are thos e o f th e pitch , ,

rhythm ( an d tim e ) an d qu ality of tones T h e

, .

loudn ess o f a tone is o f cours e r ecogniz ed by th e

, ,

ear also but this is h ardly a musical qu ality

,

prop er In r eality lik e all th at b elongs to h ear

.
,

ing th es e p erc eptions are th e r esult o f a s eri es o f

,

physiologic al proc ess es in whi ch th e ear t ak es an

,

import ant but n ot th e sol e o r ev en th e chi ef p art ,

which is to b e r eferr ed to th e br ain .

It is pr actic ally import ant to r eco g niz e th at

th es e various qu aliti es are distinct p erc eptions ,

an d th at th e ear for r el ativ e pitch m ay exist

w ell d evelop ed an d th e color cl ang or qu ality of , ,

a ton e b e imp erfectly r ecogniz ed an d th e r ev ers e , .

T h e most compr eh ensive ear tr aining involves -

att ention t o each o f th e abov e ch ar act ers o f ton es

,

an d then uniting th em in a music ally p erfect r e

sult L ack o f
. ear is often simply want of
att ention to th e ch ar act ers o f sounds .
 VOICE PRODUC TION

Th e a uditory mess ages are th e most import ant

o f all th e n ervous impuls es th at r each th e br ain
,

fo r th e musici an wh eth er appr eci ation or ex ecu

,

tion b e consid er ed Th ey are th e chi ef guides for

.

th e outgoing n ervous impuls es to th e muscl es.

T h e good ex ecutant must above al l b e a good

, ,

list en er
.
 CHAP E R T XVIII .

CONSIDERA TI ON OF S PE CI AL
GENERA L A ND
H Y GI ENE AN D RELA TED S UBJE C TS .

HYGIE N E d eals with th e l aws by th e obs ervanc e

o f which h ealth is to b e m aint ain ed an d dis eas e

pr evented ; but as such l aws must b e b as ed on

physiological principl es hygi ene follows from
,

physiology Accordingly throughout this work

.
,

o u r m ethod h as b een to point o u t th e corr ect w ay

a s s oon as th e physiologic al principl e h as b een l aid

down so th at th e r eason for th e r ecomm end ation

,

made would b e obvious How ever it may b e w ell

.
,

if now some o f th e mor e import ant t endenci es ,

errors b ad h abits an d d angers to b e g u ard ed

, ,

against by th e singer an d sp eak er b e point ed o u t

afr esh bri efly with s ome ad dition al obs er vations

, ,

th at exp erienc e h as shown to b e of pr actic al

i mport anc e .

Hygiene for all p ersons should in th e wid est

, , ,

sens e r efer to th e whol e m an his body int ell ect

, , , ,

feelings an d will though th e t erm h as usu ally b een

, ,

r estrict ed to th e pr es ervation o f b o dily h ealth .

B u t fortun at ely it is b eing mor e an d mor e r ecog

, ,

n ized th at m an is a whol e an d th at o n e p art o f him

,

c annot su ffer without th e oth ers p articip ating so ,

w e sh all pursu e th e bro ad er cours e an d con sid er ,

th e gen er al welfar e o f th e voic e us er as prop erly -

coming und er consid er ation .

2 51
2 52 VOICE PRO D UC TION

H e, b eing hum an b eing lik e his fellows must

a , ,

of cours e, obs erve th e s am e l aws fo r th e pr es erva

tion of his g en er al h ealth as they, but just b ec aus e
h e comes b efor e th e public his c as e is p ecul i ar an d
, ,

h e must in addition t ak e sp eci al pr ec autions to

, ,

avoid ev ery form o f t empor ary or p erm an ent

di s ability .

Th er e 1 s o f cours e much I n th e life of a public

, ,

sp eaker o r singer th at conduc es to h ealth of b ody

an d mind such as th e vigorous u se of th e br eath
,

ing app ar atus th e favor abl e effect o f pr ais e ex

,

pr ess ed i n on e w ay an d anoth er etc but even with ,

.
,

th e mos t succ essful all this m ay b e mor e th an

,

count er b al anc ed by other unfavor abl e factors

-
.

Wh en o ne consid ers th e n ecess ary tr av elling oft en ,

including night j ourneys th e l at e hours th e con , ,

centr ated eff orts ess enti al to succ ess th e u n cer ,

t ainty o f th e public t ast e th e riv alries j ealousi es

, , ,

exh austion etc oft en associ at ed with a public ca

,
.
,

r eer it must b e cl ear th at no on e should emb ark

,

u pon it without count ing w ell th e cost For one .

with m ediocre ability imp erfect tr aining voic e o f

, ,

v ery limit ed r ange pow er an d qu ality feebl e

, , ,

will an imp erfectly d ev elop ed body an d indif

, ,

ferent health t o ent er on a public c ar eer is p rac

,

tic ally to court failur e an d to ensur e dis appoint

m ent an d unh appin ess .

It is to b e rememb er ed th at n ever w as th e world

so ex acting of th e artist an d n ever w er e th ere s o
,

m any aspir ants to popul ar favor so th at th e com ,

p etition in th e r anks of th e actors and singers at ,

 GE N E RAL HYGIEN E 2 53

l east, is v ery k een At th e s ame tim e, ther e is .

—
room for a c ert ain cl ass of p ers ons viz thos e .
,

with good h ealth exc ellent physiqu e fi rst r ate, ,

-

a bility s
,
elf control s
-
ound mor a l principl es,
p ers e ,

v eran ce industry music al feeling an d artistic in

, , ,

sight wi th voc al organs tr ain ed lik e th e muscles of

,

th e athl et e and in th e cas e o f singers sound musi

, , ,

c al knowl edg e an d an ex acting an d r eli abl e ear .

Consid ering th at th e actor often th e public ,

sp eaker and th e singer are const antly b eing put

,

und er exc essive str ain it follows th at such ,

p ersons should b egin with an unusu ally good phys ,

ic al organiz ation— oth ers can sc arc ely hop e to g et

into th e fi rst cl ass even with th e b est abiliti es ;
,

an d ( 2 ) b ec aus e th er e is a t end ency to exh austion

o f th e body an d mi nd through emotion al an d oth er

exp enditur e th e public voic e us er must t ak e p re

,
-

cautions on th e o ne h and to pr event this an d

, , , ,

on th e oth er to m ak e good his outl ay by sp eci al

,

m eans He needs mor e sl eep an d r est gen er ally

.

th an oth ers and h e should count er act th e influ ence

,

o f unh ealthy conditions o n th e st age o r pl atform

by some qui et hours in th e op en air al l th e b etter ,

if with some congeni al fri end symp ath etic with ,

his aims yet b elonging pr efer ably p erh aps to

, , ,

anoth er profession an d who will sp eak o f topics ,

oth er th an thos e th at are ever r ecurring in th e life

o f an artist Th e u ni nt errupt ed pursuit of o ne
.

thing without th e mind and spirit b eing fed from

,

oth er springs can b e good for no hum an b eing

, .

Th e sp eci al ist who is only a s p eci al i st will never

 254 VOICE PRODUC TIO N

r each th e very high est point Th e artist mu st .

s eek s o urc es of inspir ation an d m ent al nutr im ent

outsid e o f his own lin e of thought o r h e will su fl er ,

profession ally an d in his own spirit .

Th e r ead er will by this tim e und erst and why

th e author consid ers th at for one wh o would b e an
artist to ent er on his public c ar eer without th e

full est m ent al equipm ent an d voc al tr aining is an

exc eedin gly unwis e cours e T echniqu e should b e
.

acquir ed b efor e an aspir ant to succ es s st eps on a

public st ag e or pl atform an d this is ex actly wh at

,

k
is so s eldom don e in th es e d ays and why we h ave ,
m

s o few singers actors an d p u b l ic sp ea er s of th e

, ,

high est r ank M any v ery m any know wh at th ey

.
, ,

wish to expr ess and in a s ens e how to expr ess it,

, , ,

but th ey h av e n eith er th e formed voic e n or th e

control of th at voic e by which th eir id eas are to b e
embodi ed . Let no on e d elud e hims elf into th e
b eli ef th at t echniqu e will b e l earn ed in public ;
su ch is r ar ely if ev er th e c as e
, ,
Expr ession styl e.
, ,

etc. m ay com e to th e voc alist o r speak er al l th e

,

mor e r eadily if h e occ asion ally go es b efor e th e

public ; but th at such m ay b e so h e must fi rst h ave ,

voic e an d t echniqu e It is b ec aus e o f th e n egl ect

.

o f this tr aining fo r th e a cquir em ent o f t echniqu e

th at so m any n atur ally good voic es are o f littl e

pr actic al u se for th e public an d this expl ains why
,

th e r anks o f th e professions ar e crowd ed with in

ferior artists if ind eed artists th ey m ay b e c all ed
, , , .

Th e is ol ation of th e dr am atic and musical artist

f rom h is fellows gen er ally is a gr eat evil Much .
 GENERAL HYGIENE 2 55

that soci ety compl ains of in th e lives of artists

would n ever exist but fo r this isol ation in spit e ,

of th e fact th at th e artistic t emp er am ent is so

moody an d so impulsive s o littl e r egardful o f
,

ordin ary conv ention aliti es Th at it is so is p artly

.

th e fault o f soci ety It is quit e tru e th at b ec aus e

.

o f j ourn eying r eh ear sals etc th e tr av elling artist

, ,
.
,

h as littl e tim e to m eet th e m emb ers o f th e com

munity in privat e life ; but this st at e of thi ngs
could b e mitigat ed w er e s ociety an d th e artists
th ems elves convinc ed th at fo r any cl ass of p eopl e
to live in littl e hives wholly s ep ar at ed from th eir
,

fellows must b e unfortu nat e fo r th em an d soci ety

,
.

Artists as m en an d women ar e pr actic ally u n

known to th e world though th eir fals e s elves as
,

r epr es ent ed by s ens ation al p ar agr aphs in n ews

p ap ers are only to o famili ar to us It m ay truly .

b e s aid of th e artist B e thou as ch ast e as ice ,

”
as pur e a s snow thou sh alt not esc ap e c alumny
,
.

It is within th e power of soci ety to alt er this an d ,

it sh ou l d do so .

Why is it th at actors an d sing ers do n o t pr ep ar e

th ems elv es by as prolong ed an d thorough a voc al
tr aining as in a p ast tim e ?
C onsid ering th at th er e n ever w as a p eri od wh en
th er e w as th e s am e scop e for ar t n ever a tim e ,

wh en th e public w as so eager t o h ear an d so abl e

to p ay for art as n ow n ever a p er iod o f such wid e
, ,

spr ead int elligenc e on all subj ects music includ ed , ,

th e qu estion is a v ery p ertin ent on e W e b eli eve .

th er e are m any factors underlying th e t echnical

 VOICE PRODUC TION

d ec adence we must r egr et Th e orch estr a h as

.

gr eatly d ev elop ed ch or al singing is common in all

,

co u ntri es and th e spirit of th e tim es h as ch anged

,
.

S o an alytic al so r efi n ed is our ag e th at singing

, ,

sometimes b ecom es a s ort of music al decl am ation ,

but unfortunat ely without th at pow er to decl aim

, ,

pos s ess ed by th e actors and oft en th e op er a sing -

er s o f a form er p eriod A singer oft en att empts

.

now to m ake up by an expr essive r eading of a

song for t echnic al d efects W e must all com
,
.

m end every evid enc e of int ell ectu ality in music ,

b u t th is do es not im p l y th at w e should acc ept good

‘

int entions fo r ex ecution p erformanc e Let us

— .

h ave every possibl e d evelopment o f orch estr al

music ; l et every vill ag e h ave if possible its chor al
, ,

s oci ety but l et non e ent er it who h av e not b een

,

tr ain ed vo cally .

Out of th e author s own exp erienc e h e could a

’

t al e unf old o f th e evil don e to th e voc al org ans by

thos e who h ave sung in choirs without ad equ at e
voc al tr aining Chorist ers are t empt ed to r each
.

high ton es by a proc ess of th eir own without any ,

r egard to r egisters and with corr esponding

,

effects on th eir thro ats som e o f which imply also

,

l asting injury to th e voic e its elf .

In chor al singing th er e is th e tendency to l ean o

o n cert ain sing ers who ar e n atur al l ead ers with ,

th e r esult th at th er e is littl e ind ep end ent list ening

an d individu al cultur e ev en if th e singer could
,

h ear his o wn voic e w ell whi ch is n o t usu ally th e

,

c as e Th e s am e obj ections and oth ers apply to

.
 GENERAL HYGIENE 2 57

cl as s singing in schools which do es littl e for ,

music and tends to m ake s lovenl y singers If

,
.

some of th e time given to school singing were

t aken up in ill ustrating why cert ain music al s el ec
—
tions are good and oth ers m er e rubbish in other
,

words in forming th e t ast e o f th e n ation in th e

,

hi —
c ldr en a valu abl e work would b e done ; but ,

school cl as s singin g as commonly c arri ed ou t

, ,

t ends r ather to injur e th an d evelop voic es an d

good music al t ast e .

W e c annot hon estly p ass by th e su bj ect o f Wag

n er s music an d some of its t endenci es Wagn er
’
.

w as an int ell ectu al gi ant among m en and his ,

works are am azin gly gr and yet they u nfo rtu ,

n atel y are in a c ert ain s ens e r es ponsibl e for much

, ,

h ad singin g an d not a littl e inj ury to fi n e voic es .

First of all Wagn er s op er as are in their pr es

,
’
,

ent form t o o long

,
To sing th es e composition s
.

night aft er night is b eyond hum an powers even in ,

th e c as e of tho s e of th e mo st p erfect music al and

t echn ic al tr aining If th ey w er e divid ed into two
.
,

and o ne h alf s u ng o n o n e eveni ng an d th e oth er

o n th e n ext it would b e a g ain for th e public an d

,

th e artists It is impossibl e for even th e music ally

.

cultivat ed to absorb an d assimil at e th e whole of

” "
s u ch an op er a as Si egfri ed o r Trist an and "
Isold e in on e ev ening an d it i s too much to ex p ect
’
,

any artist to sing them through without a r est .

Again th ey c all for such strong acc ents such

, ,

d eep an d str enuou s br eathing th at th e artist im ,

e

17
258 VOICE PRODUC TION

p erson ating a h ero or a god o r goddess is put to a

d egr ee of ex erti on th at is to o gr eat for human
pow ers wh en continu ed for more th an a very mod
er at e p eriod ; b esid es th er e is a t emp tation to a
,

wrong u se o f th e l arynx — a forcibl e c ou p d e g l o t te ,

o r att ck
a — th at is exc eedi ngly d angerous an d h as ,

injur ed m any voic es and ruin ed o th ers T h e m an .

or wom an who would sing W agn er s greater ’

music dr am as should in addition to a strong ,

physiqu e b e m ast er of a wond erfully p erfect t ech

,

niqu e Th es e op er as should n ev er b e att empt ed

.
‘

by v ery young singers of eith er sex an d esp eci ally ,

not by very young wom en Th ey are fo r th e pow .

erfu l ,
th e m atur e th e p erfectly tr ain ed
,
th e ,

exp eri enc ed .

Turning to som e sp eci al faults w e would w arn ,

”
ag ainst th e sco op th e exc essiv e u se o f th e
,

t am en t o or glid e so common a f ault at th e

p o r , ,

pr es ent tim e and th e vib rato an d trem o l o

,
.

T h e two form er ar e music al faults so w e p ass ,

th em by without furth er consid er ation Oth erwi s e .

is it with th e l ast two faults ; th ey both r esul t from

a wrong u se o f th e voc al org ans Th ey are both .

du e to som e unst eadin ess an d l ack of control an d , ,

unfortun at ely wh en onc e acquir ed are very dith

, ,

cult to r emedy T h e unst eadin ess m ay b e almost

.

anywh er e in th e voc al org ans but is usu ally r efer ,

abl e to th e r espir atory app ar atus or to th e l arynx .

A vi b rato is th e mild er form o f th e evil an d is ,

encour aged w e r egr et to say b y som e t each ers

, , ,
 GENERAL HYGIENE 2 59

whil e th e trem ol o is du e to an extr eme u n steadi

nes s and so far as w e are aw ar e, is univers ally
, ,

c ondemn ed It is about th e worst fault any singer

.

can h av e It is evident in som e c as es only wh en

.

th e voc al ist sings p iano but mostly in vigorous ,

singing an d oft en aris es from str aining di sr eg ard

, ,

of r egist ers etc It m ay b e du e to th e singer

,
.

trying to control too l arge a supply of air or fro m ,

bringing a bl ast t o b ear on th e voc al b ands t o o

strong for th em I n every ca s e th er e is l ack of
.

a djustm ent b etw een th e voc al b ands an d th e r espi

r at o ry org ans Th e r em edy must b e ad apt ed to

.

th e c as e but usu ally th e singer must for a tim e

,

g 1 v e up th e u se o f th e voic e in f o r t e sin g ing alto

geth er an d gr adu ally again l earn to control h is
,

voc al mech anism .

Associ at ed som etimes with this fault is anoth er ,

which indeed often gives ris e to th e form er— viz
, ,
.
,
”
pumping o r att empting to voc aliz e aft er th e
,

br eath pow er is exh aust ed One should alw ays .

h ave enough air in r es erve to sing at l east two

ton es mor e th an wh at is r equir ed .

It will b e obs erved th at good singing and sp eak

ing are always physiologic al— i
k
th ey d ep end 4
.

on th e obs ervanc e of w ell nown physiologic al -

principl es ; w e wish w e could add principl es ,

cl early r eco gniz ed by singers and t each ers g en

er all y . It is to thos e Wh o do th at we wo u ld rec
omm en d th e stud ent o f th e voc al art to go at th e

outs et of his c ar eer oth erwis e much tim e may b e ,

lost and p ossib ly much injury done W e distin .

2 60 VOICE PRO D UC TIO N "
g ui sh ,
cours e b etw een th e teach er who r ecog
of ,

n izes physiologic al principl es only pr actic ally an d

th e o n e who do es so consciously .Th e form er m ay

b e an exc ell ent and s afe t each er though w e think
, , ,

not s o good oth er things b eing equ al as on e of th e

, ,

—
l atter typ e as yet som ewh at r are .
,

At an earli er period we r eferr ed to th e impor

tant m att er of cl assifying th e voic e It oft en h ap.

p ens th at on e who is a t enor is tr ain ed as a b ary

ton e o r a contr alto a s a sopr ano an d th e r evers e
, , ,

only to discover l at er th at a mist ak e h as b een

m ad e If it could b ecom e th e custom to h ave voc al
.

consultations among teach ers as medic al on es

,

among doctors th e author is convinc ed it would

,

b e well Oft en a p ati ent is s ent a long dist ance to

.

consult a m edic al m an an d to r eturn to hi s own

,

physici an for tr eatm ent b as ed on th e di agnosis

m ade In th es e inst anc es th e doctor c onsult ed is
.

exp ect ed to writ e his vi ews priv at ely to th e p a

t ien t s doctor an d to r ecomm end tr eatm ent Why

’
.
,

should th e s am e not occur in th e voc al t each er s ’

profession ? It is consid er ed sc and alous in th e

m edic al p ro fessmn t o steal ano th er phy
sician s p ati ent an d why should not a simil ar
’
,

etiqu ett e pr ev ail in th e prof es sion now und er con

sid er ation ? Th e t each er in doubt abou t a voic e

might thus obt ain th e vi ews o f anoth er m emb er o f
his profession o f long er exp eri enc e on such a
, ,

vit al p o in t as th e cl assifi c ation o f a voic e an d with ,

s atisfaction alik e to hims elf an d to his pupil If .

th e t each er or pupil w er e not s atis fi ed with th e

 GE NE RAL HYGIENE 1

di agnosis anoth er emin ent vocal t each er might b e

,

consult ed whi ch would only b e following custom in

,

th e m edi c al profession .

We would again r emi nd th e r ead er th at voic es

are to b e cl as sified by q u ality an d n o t by r ang e
, ,

at l east not to any appr eciabl e ext ent .

Of al l p ersons th e singer sho u ld know hims elf

,
.

He must l earn his limi t ations and th e s oon er th e

,

b ett er At th e outs et o f his c ar eer h e m ay b e abl e

.

to t ak e c ertain lib erti es with hims elf with app ar ent

impunity but sooner o r l at er h e will p ay th e p en
,

alty ; s o th at w e r ecomm end him to live with al l

th e c ar e o f an athl et e in tr aining Howev er it .

m ay b e with oth er m en spirits in ev ery form t o

, ,

b acco etc are not for him Both t end to irrit ate
,
.
,
.

an d r el ax if n o t to infl am e th e thro at not to m en ,

tion th eir b ad effects on th e gener al h ealth both ,

psychic al and physic al This advice is all th e

.

more n ec ess ary wh en on e consid ers th e ex acting

n atur e o f th e profes sion al life of th e artist .

Str enuous exertion t ends to fatigu e an d ex h au s

tion with a n atur al d esir e to r eli eve th em by some
,

sp eci al m eans such as alc ohol T o do so is oft en

, .

but to m ak e a b eginning o f th e en d How m any .

bright lights in th e dr amatic and music al p r o fes

sions h ave b een pr em atur ely qu ench ed through in
d u l g ence in th e d elusive dr aught
tiv es etc are to b e tak en which should n o t b e a
, .
, ,
"
If toni cs s ed a ,

h abitu al pr actic e th ey should b e us ed only under

,

th e di r ection of a m edic al m an and not s elf p re ,

- ~

scribed .
2 62 VOICE PRODUC TIO N

As th e sp eak er an d singer must oft en pr actis e

th ei r art in an atmosph er e th at is far from pur e ,

th ey will do w ell to c arry out in a routin e w ay

s o m e sort of mouth toil et on th eir r eturn home an d
th e n ext morni ng V arious simple mouth an d
.

thro at wash es m ay b e us ed such as ( 1 ) w at er with

,

a littl e common s alt dis solv ed in it ; ( 2 ) w at er con

—
t aining a few drops o f c arbolic acid just enough
to b e distinctly t ast ed ; ( 3 ) wat er cont aining lis
terin e ; ( 4 ) eith er of th e l ast two with th e addition
o f a pinch of bic arbon at e of sodium to a t eacupful

o f th e fluid wh en th er e is a t end ency t o c at arrh

,
.

Th e u se of loz eng es in a routin e way is not to b e

co mm end ed an d thos e containing morphi a co
, ,

c ain e etc should b e employed only und er th e

,
.
,

sup ervision o f a m edic al practition er Som e .

tim es esp eci ally in th e c as e of n ervousn ess a

, ,

licoric e p ell et or a p articl e o f gum ar abic s erves

a good purpos e in aiding in k eeping th e mouth

moist .

F o r o n e with a h ealthy thro at th e sipping o f

w at er is unn ec es s ary an d th e h abit is on e on no
,

account to b e l earn ed fo r th e most admi rabl e

,

effect m ay b e spoil ed through th e sp eak er stopping

to sip w at er ; th er e is th e fat al an d r apid d esc ent

from th e lofty to th e littl e .

It is much mor e important to avoid eating cer

t ain things which int erfer e with th e voic e th an to
t ak e anything t o improve it b efor e singing or
sp eaking E ach individu al should l earn just wh at
.

h e can or c annot with s afety eat C ert ain kinds

.
 GENERAL HYGIENE 2 63

of fruit ch
,
e e s e f
,
a t m e at p a stry
, nuts oc c,
asion ,

ally ev en butt er not to m ention puddings etc ,

.
,
,

must b e put on th e list o f wh at singers an d sp eak

e rs h ad b ett er not p art a k e o f b efor e a public ap
p ea r an ce But
. th e qu antity is quit e as imp ort ant

a s th e qu ality o f th e food t ak en About on e h alf

.

th e usu al qu antity at most an d o f very simpl e but

, ,

nourishing food is enough fo r an y on e who would

,

do hims elf justic e b efor e th e public If blood an d .

en ergy b e dr awn O R to th e stom ach by a l arg e

m eal it c annot b e avail abl e for th e us es of th e

,

artist . Mor eover a full stom ach pr essing up

,

under th e di aphr agm gr eatly h amp ers th e move

ments of this th e most import ant o f all th e muscl es
,

o f br eathing . Of cours e th e public singer o r

,

sp eak er should eat aft er his work is don e of wh at ,

an d how much h e can b est l earn by exp eri enc e .

As th e author h as felt c all ed upon to condemn

th e u se of alcohol in every form h e should p er , ,

h aps point ou t th at to t ak e a cup o f such a mild

,

stimul ant as tea o r co fl ee during an int erv al in ,

th e c as e o f thos e who feel w eary is g en er ally an ,

u nobj ection abl e ind eed oft en a us eful proc edur e ;

, , ,

but th e l ess th e artist coddl es hims elf esp eci ally ,

whil e still young th e b ett er

,
.

we would again c all att ention to on e an atomical

fact o f great import anc e fo r th e expl an ation o f
cert in f cts of ex p eri enc e
a a — v iz : th at th e whol e
r espir atory tr act th e l aryn x includ ed is lined
, ,

with a mu cou s m em b ran e which is continuous with

,

th at covering th e inn er surfac e o f th e diges tive

2 64 VOICE PRODUC TION
.

org ans Th at is to say, th e nos e, th e mouth th e

.
,

b ack of th e thro at th e l arynx th e windpip e th e

, , ,

bronchi al tub es th e gull et th e stom ach an d intes

, ,

tin es are al l brought into structur al connection by

this common lining membr an e Mor eover , th es e .

p arts h ave to s ome ext ent th e s am e n erv e supply ,

an d ar e in fact so r el at ed th at d er angem ent in

, ,

on e r egion must afi ect soon er o r l at er an d to a ,

vari able d egr ee according to th e r esisting power

o f each individu al oth er r el at ed p arts Thus it
,
.

is th at a disord er ed stomach afi ects th e voic e th at ,

a cold m ay affect di g estion th at a c at arrh o f th e

,

nos e will eventu ally r each th e voc al b ands etc , .

Anoth er principl e of wid e r eachi ng import anc e

-

is th at all sorts o f comp ression must of n ec essity , ,

b e att ended by fu nction al di sord ers whi ch if long , ,

continu ed will r esult in organic o r structural

,

ch ang es implying d et erior ation o f a kind th at must

b e mor e o r l es s p erm an ent Wh at ever th e c aus e
.

o f compr ession of th e ch est o r n eck th e r esult is ,

th e s ame : a r et ention of blood in p arts for too

—
long a p eriod a condition o f things which must
in evit ably b e injurious .

Th e tissu es are m ad e up o f c ells which ar e th e ,

in di vidu als o f th e bodily community Around .

th es e c ells are found th e sm all est o f th e blood

v ess els th e c apill ari es b etween which an d th e tis
, ,

su es a sort o f physiologic al b art er is continu ally

going on th e c apill aries h anding over ox yg en an d
,

food suppli es from th e blood an d r ec eiving wast e

,

m at eri als in r eturn as th e blood creeps along at a

,
 GENE RAL HYGIENE 2 65

very slow r at e If however in cons equenc e o f

.
, ,

pr essure on a p art th e blood b e k ept b ack in th es e

,

minut e vess els to o long th ere is n atur ally a doubl e

,

evil : fi rst th e food an d oxyg en suppli es f ail — th ey

,

—
h ave b een us ed up already an d s econdly th e , ,

w ast e products accumul ate in th e tissu e cells so ,

th at th er e is a combin ation o f st arvation and poi

—
soning a s ort of physiologic al slum life with cor ,

r esponding d egrad ation ; so th at it is not at all

difficult to underst and why tight coll ars neck ,

b ands cors ets etc must b e unmix ed evils ap art

, ,
.
, ,

altog eth er from th e fact th at th ey s o gr eatly h am

p e r th e v ery mov em ents th e voic e us er most re -

quir es for th e succ essful ex ecution of his t ask .

k
All sorts of str aining o r forcing also involve this
s ame evil , nown to medic al m en as cong es tion .

Th e s or e thro ats so common with thos e who forc e ,

owing to methods ess enti ally wrong o r simply to ,

th e t o o vigorous u se o f m ethods corr ect in th em

r h —
s elves a e to b e tr ac ed to t e above i e to this .
, .
,

cong estion which is b ad an d b ad only

, , .

If on e who h ad a n aturally s ound thro at at th e

outs et fi nds th at aft er voc al exercis e h e ex p eri
ences eith er a sor en ess o r an undu e w earin ess of

p arts h e shoul d conclud e if h e is living und er

, ,

h ealthy co nditions th at th e m ethods h e is employ

,

ing are incorr ect and seek th e n atural r em edy

, .

Prop er vocal ex ercis e should in thos e with h ealthy ,

voc al org ans always improve th em an d th e condi

,

tion of th e whol e m an Th e author h as m et thos e

.
 VOICE PRODUC TIO N :

who h ave b een ruin ed voc ally for life by th e u se of

c ertain methods r ecommend ed by would b e pro -

fession al guid es Why should n o t al l who assum e

.

th e r esponsibility o f guiding sp eak ers an d esp e

cial l y singers b e r equir ed by th e st at e to show th at

th ey h av e not only a kn owl edg e of music and voc al

t echniqu e but also at l east a mod er at e amount o f
,

pr actical knowl edge o f th e an atomy and physi

ology of th e voc al org ans with som e el ement ary
,

inform ation on gen er al physiology ? If th e injury

don e by incomp et ent t each ers w er e r ealiz ed w e ,

feel c ert ain th at th e ab ove proposition would not

b e qu estion ed .

A common c aus e of congestion o f th e digestive

org ans with which of cours e oth er p arts symp a
, , ,

th ize physiologic ally is cons tip ati on v ery oft en

, ,

th e r esult o f insuffi ci ent ex ercis e an d injurious in ,

m any w ays Sp eakers an d singers v ery g en er ally

.

rid e to and from th eir engagem ents s o th at th er e ,

is sp eci al r eason why th ey should see to it th at

som e tim e is set asid e for g en er al ex ercis e as ,

w alking in th e op en air which would of its elf work

,

ag ainst th at t end ency to grow fat which is th e

physic al curs e th at s eems to fall on artists abov e

most oth ers .

It seems sc arc ely n ec ess ary to point o u t how im

p ort ant it is fo r thos e who propos e to t ak e up th e
life of th e st ag e o r th e pl atform to look to h ard en
ing th ems elves against c atching cold by friction ,

o f th e skin cold b athing etc

, Th e u se of a
,
.
 GENERAL H YGI EN E 2 67

sponge b ath of cold salt and w at er to th e up per

-

p arts o f th e b ody esp eci ally th e n eck and ch est , ,

will prov e valu abl e in m any c as es but th e en er ,

vating effects of h ot wat er shou ld b e av oid ed by

al l .

r mar k m ad e in r egar d t Wagn r m u ic on p ag e 2 5 7

Th e e s o e
’
s s

h av be n among t h very few t o wh ic h x cep t ion h as b en t ak n

e e e e e e

by my r vi w r e e e s .

T o t h o wh o d i agr e w i t h me on t h e m eri ts o f t h e c a e I
se s e s

h ave no t h ing t say b t o me have a um d t hat t h e wri t r

‘

o , u s ss e e

wa s p a ksing e t of pur t h
ouory in r al ignor a nc o f We a gn eres , e e
’

w ork I w i h t t t h at c l a o f cri t ic right

s. s o se ss s .

I h av p nt a gr at m any s a on in G rmany and have

e s e e e s s e ,

h ar d Wagn r w or k un d r a gr at vari t y of circu m tances

e e
’
s s e e e s ,

and h av h ar d t h m al o in sev r al o th count ri

e e e sI h av al o e er es . e s

h ad t h e opp r tun i ty of g t t ing behi n d t h

o sc n in a w ay t hat
e e e es

f ll t o t h e l t of f w
a s o I t h in k I am en t i t l d to peak w i th
e , so e s

r ath er m or t h an th e u ual aut h ori ty

e s .

My convict ion a expre d in th e f or going chap t r have

s s sse e e

in th int rval r at h r t r ngt h n d t han weaken d I am fi rmly

e e e s e e e e .

conv inced t hat it w ould b in t h int er t of a t t h inger and e e es s r , e s ,

t h au d i t or al i k
e i t h r t o h or t n t he op ra or to pro duce
e, e e s e se e s,

t h m in o m w ay wh ic h w i ll r l i ve t h
e s e con t inuou t r ain I t e e e s s

mu t n t be forgot t n i th r t h at t h poor over wor k d and

.

s o e , e e , e e

gr at ly und rp i d orc he t ral p l ayer oft n uffer s v r ly in

e e a s e s se e e

h i n r v ou
s e y tem from l ong cont inu d Wagn r p layi ng
s s s e e .
 CHAPT E R XIX .

MEN TA L H Y GI ENE .

S tamm ering and s tu ttering lli ed b ut n et

are a

id entic al d efects Th ey r equir e sp eci al tr eatm ent

.
,

th e earli er th e bett er Much can b e done by th e

.

ex ercis e of a littl e p ati enc e an d kind consider a

tion to m ak e th e subj ect o f th es e infi rmities feel at

,

eas e an d s o m anifest th e d efects as littl e as possi

,

b l e It is of cours e as a g en er al r ul e v ery unwis e

.
, , ,

to t ak e any notice wh at ever of such imp erfec

tions as th ey are th er eby m ad e wors e As a rul e
,
.
,

th ey are b est tr eat ed pr actic ally by thos e who

h ave m ad e this br anch a sp eci alty .

Thos e wh o h ave b een b adly t aught or who h ave ,

overwork ed th e voc al organs an d in cons equ ence , ,

m ay h av e brok en down are among th e most dis

,

cou ragin g if th ey b e n ot th e v ery worst c as es th at

com e under th e tr eatm ent of th e physici an o r voc al

t each er If th e thro at b e ou t o f ord er a sp eci alist
.
,

should b e consult ed He wi l l lik ely enj oin com

.

p l et e r est o f th e voc al org ans an d his a

,
dvic e

should b e implicitly followed B u t usu ally th e.

tim e comes wh en som e sort o f voc al ex ercis es m ay

b e r esum ed Wh en this is th e c as e th e choice o f
.
,

a t each er b ecomes of th e utmost import anc e mor e ,

so th an in ordin ary cas es fo r furth er injudicious

,

treatm ent m ay l ead to th e utt er ruin of th e voice .

2 68
 FURTHER TREATMENT 2 69

Assumi ng th at m edi c al tr eatm ent is no longer o r

no t at al l r equir ed w e r ecomm end : ( 1 ) Th at al l
,

pr actices b e only p iano or at most m o d erato for , , , ,

some time ; ( 2 ) th at th ey b e o f very bri ef dur a

tion at any one p eriod s o as to avoid fatigu e ; ( 3 )
,

th at th ey b e w ell within th e r ange o f th e singer .

Th e s am e principl es apply to sp eak ers who h ave

broken down wh eth er owing to b ad m ethods or to
,

over u se of th e voice It is most impo rtant th at

-
.

str ength and facility b e gr adu ally gain ed an d th at ,

w eariness not to s ay fatigu e b e strictly avoid ed

, ,
.

If th e g ener al h ealth b e good tim e p ati ence and , , ,

th e utmost c ar e in th e application o f th e abo ve

principl es und er th e dir ection o f an enlight en ed
,

t each er will in a l arge proportion of c as es r estor e

,

th e voic e for effici ent u se in at l east mod er at e

eff orts . Of cours e much d epends on th e age g en
, ,

er al h ealth int ellig enc e etc

, of th e subj ect , .
, .

On th e qu estion o f th e ext ent to which a singer s ’

r ange can b e s afely incr eas ed th e great es t di ff er ,

enc e of opinion exists an d very extr em e vi ews,

h ave b een held On th e o ne h and are thos e who

.

al most ridicul e th e id ea of m aking ton es an d ,

on th e oth er thos e who m aint ain th at th e r ange o f

,

al l young sing ers can b e incr eas ed by prop er

tr aining .

As a m atter o f fact th er e are m any singers b e

,

fore th e public to day whos e r ange eith er upward

-
,

o r downw ard h as b een incr eas ed by m any ton es

, ,

in some cas es almost an oct av e an d th es e singers ,

are succ essful artists an d sound voc alists ; whil e

2 7O VOICE PR O D UC TION

oth ers h ave sought to add b ut two o r thr ee ton es

to th eir r ange an d in v ain This is quite intel l i
,
.

g ib l e
. As a rul e thos e o f
,
th e form er cl a ss h av e

fall en into th e h ands of v ery good t each ers whil e ,

y e t young h a
,
v e h ad e xc e ll ent h ealth a n d w e ll
formed voc al organs an d b een p ati ent an d att en
,

tiv e stud ents Th e acquisition h as b een gr adu al

.
,

an d n ev er forc ed W e h av e b efor e s aid th at if a

.

pupil felt his thro at th e wors e for a l esson in voc al

cultur e th er e w as som ething wrong : eith er th e
,

m ethod w as incorr ect in its elf o r th e pr actic e w as ,

continu ed too long o r c arri ed ou t too vigorously _ .

.

Of cours e it is alw ays assum ed th at th e voc al

,

org ans are in a normal condition an d th e student s ,

’

h ealth good not only gen er ally but on th e d ay of

th e pr actic e .

It is in every c as e fo r th e stud ent hims elf to

d et erm in e from his ow n feelings wh eth er th e at
, ,

t empt to r each a c ert ain ton e produc es str aining ,

an d fo r th e t each er t o judg e wh eth er this b e so ,

from th e app ear anc e of th e fac e of th e pupil th e ,

ch ar act er of th e ton e etc One thing is c ert ain :

,
.

h arm an d h arm only is don e by any form of

, ,

forcing o r str aining At th e s am e tim e as th e ath

.
,

l et e incr eas es th e h eight to which h e can j ump o r ,

th e sp eed with which h e can run ev en during a ,

singl e s eas on it s eems illogic al to concl ud e th at

,

in no c as e can a singer s afel y r each ton es th at are

—
not ori g in ally in his voi ce m eaning th er eby th at
h e is un ab l e to sing th em at th e outs et of his
"
 FURTHER TREATMENT 71

c ar eer This is one o f thos e subj ects on which

.

common s ens e and sci enc e unite in admonishing

us to t est c autiously and to progr ess gr adua lly if ,

th e purpos e is to b e achi eved with go od r esults for

th e individu al an d for art .

It is also unwis e fo r a singer to att empt thos e

s el ections in public th e r ange o f whi ch tax es h im
to th e v ery utmo st Th ey l ead to undue anxi ety
.

a s t o succ ess viol at e th e principl e o f r es erv e forc e

, ,

to which r eferenc e h as s ever al times b een m ad e ,

an d m ay l ead t o voc al failur e if n o t to injury to

,

th e thr o at
k
. Though it is t ru e th at occ asion ally a
song su ffers by tr ansposition to a low er ey if ,

th e voc alist is d et ermin ed t o sing a composition

even slightly b eyond his ea sy r ang e it is b ett er to
,

r esort t o it th an t o risk th e possibiliti es m ention ed

above an d oth er und esir abl e on es .

Ev eryon e who purpos es to follow th e arduous

c ar eer o f th e voc al or dr am atic artist would do
w ell to r ealiz e early th e import anc e o f l earning
th e art o f cons erving en ergy o r m aking th e most
,

o f all th at N atur e h as given him Wh en a m an

.

o r wom an is sm all an d h as l ess br eath pow er th an

,

som e oth ers it b ecomes mor e import ant th at th ey

,

obs erve th e l aws o f contrast r est etc in th eir

, ,
.
,

public efforts A f orte h as much th e s am e efl ect

.
,

if it b e pr eced ed by d ark er qui et er ton es as if it

, ,

w er e r eally loud er In l ike m ann er a p aus e m ay

.
,

oft en s erv e a very good purpos e in pr ep aring th e

ear of th e list en er fo r an eff ect th at should h e t ell
2 72 VOICE PRODUC TION

ing yet a diffi cult one for a p erson of limi ted phys
,

ic al pow ers .

In r eality all th e b est art r eco gniz es , mostly

,

unconsci ously th e p eculi ariti es of ou r physical

,

an d m ent al n atur e A continuous f o rte fo r ex

.
,

ampl e c eas es to b e a f o rt e in r eality sinc e th e ear

, , ,

an d th e mi nd w eary und er it and al l th e effect of ,

contr ast is lost As w e h ave more th an onc e s aid

.
,

—
good art is physiologic al in h armony with th e
l aws of th e b ody as w ell as o f th e mind It fol
, .

lows th at each on e should study esp eci ally how to

m ak e th e wis est th e most effective u se o f his
, ,

powers for what is best for o ne may not b e so

,

for anoth er .

A singer or sp eak er b y r eason of a voi ce some ,

wh at sm all 1 n volum e m ay s eem to b e shut ou t ,

from c ert ain b uildings This n eed r ar ely b e th e .

c as e T h e artist must simply th e mor e c ar efully

.

consider how h e sh all vary his effects how so u se ,

his powers th at th ey sh all suffic e A loud v01 ce .

m ay b e a very b ad on e for th e h ear er an d m ay ,

annoy an d w eary r ath er th an pl eas e Wh en a .

building is l arge n early all efl ects should b e in

,

—
cr eas ed e g al l p aus es l en gthened th e temp o
. .
, ,

t ak en a littl e slow er th e contr asts m ad e stronger

, ,

etc —
. r ath er th an th e volum e of ton e incr eas ed
, .

Th e m ethod of att ack b ecom es of th e utmost im

port ance ; all l ow or soft p ass ages should b e sung
o r utt er ed with th e gr eat est distin ctn ess al l fi n al
,

l ett ers most p erfectly finish ed It is es p ecially im .

 FURTHER TREATMENT 73

p ort ant for a sp eaker to b e awar e of his fav orit e

i —
most easy an d n atur al pitch an d also th at
.
,

pitch which b est ad apts his voic e to a c ert ain build

ing M any forg et that sound do es not in r eality
.
, ,

tr av el very r apidly and th at allow anc e must b e

,

mad e fo r this so th at one tone sh all not br eak on

,

th e ear b efor e anoth er h as h ad tim e to b e att ended

—
t o o ne id ea to b e gr a s p ed b efor e anoth er is p e r 4

s ented .

Of al l things p aus es are of th e gr eat est impor

t anc e to th e list en er th at h e m ay appr eh end th e
, ,

ideas pr es ented an d to th e sp eaker th at h e m ay

, ,

h ave time to t ak e br eath an d a brief r est an d also ,

s eiz e th e opportunity to r eaddr ess hims elf s o to ,

sp eak to his auditors by th e u se of anoth er acc ent

, , ,

pitch of tone or wh atever h e d eems most ap t to

,

his purpos e Sp eakers who m ak e suit abl e p aus es

.

with int ention ( n ot from l ack o f id eas ) o r from ,

an artistic instinct giv e pl easur e a s w ell as effect

, ,

th eir int ell ectu al purpos e for th e list en er als o gets

,

his moments fo r r est p erc eives r eadily wh at is

,

m eant an d enj oys th e pur ely s ensuous in th e art

,

far mor e th an wh e n th e sp eak er s utt er anc e rush es

’

on lik e a torr ent All this applies to a c ert ain

.

ext ent to th e sing er though it is but very in ade

,

at l obs rv e d— w e must s a how v r much

q u e y e y e e , ,

b etter th an at a form er p eriod wh en ranting ”

, ,

on th e st age esp eci ally w as a v ery common fault

, .

In an earli er ch apt er att ention w as g iven to th e

pr ec autions to b e t ak en b efor e a pub lic app ear
2 74 VOICE PRODUC TION

a nc e sp eci ally by thos e who are in exp eri enced ;

, e

and w e would ag ain emph asiz e th e f act th at thos e

who h ave th e be st tr aini ng an d h av e m ad e th e ,

most p erfect sp eci al pr ep ar ation fo r th e coming

ev ent are l east lik ely to suffer from th at gr eat
,

di sturb er n ervousn ess ; an d wh en th ey are some

,

wh at tens e th e w ell disciplin ed oft en r ecover r ap

,
-

idly an d fr equ ently astonish th eir fri ends by th e

,

succ es s o f th eir fi rst app ear anc e W e strongly .

r ecomm end al l who can to t ak e r est on th e d ay

pr ec eding an d following a h ard ev ening s work ’
,

an d pr efer ably in summ er in th e O p en air

,
A , .

qui et w alk in a p ark wh er e one m ay think or ,

obs erve o r not as h e feels inclin ed is an exc ell en t

, ,

thing to do eith er b efor e o r aft er a str enuo u s

,

artistic effort If th e b att ery is to b e w ell

.

ch arg ed it must not b e disch arged even p arti ally

,

b efor e th e right mom ent Am at eurs an d th e inex .

p erien c ed a r e p articul arly ap t to n egl ect such

pr ec aution fo r succ ess an d to fritt er away th eir ,

en ergi es by att ention to d et ails possibly trivial ,

on es up to th e l ast mom ent

,
.

H appy is h e who w ell pr ep ar ed fo r his task

, ,

fr ee from worri es unmoved by envy j ealousy o r

, , ,

undu e ambition can st ep b efor e th e public re

,

solved to do his b est for art an d who h aving don e , ,

it can r est in th e s atisfaction th at h e h as con

,

trib u ted som eth ing t o th e inn oc ent an d ennoblin g

‘

enj oym ent o f his fellows an d so h as h elp ed to ad ,

v anc e thos e o f his own gener ation ; c aring littl e

for eith er th e fl atteries of admir ers or a criticism
 FURTHER TREATMENT 2 75

th at m ay b e ignor ant unjust or m align ant but

, , ,

k
feeling th at th e b est r ew ard is th e approv al of his
own consci enc e nowing th at Art is long an d ,
”
life short.
 C HAPTER XX .

REVI EW AND REVI SION .

AL L th e most import ant truths of bj ect any su

m ay b e s tat ed in a b ri ef sp ac e Th e Author pro

.

pos es to make this fi nal ch apt er on e of a r est ate

ment o f th e ess enti als of th e subj ect in th e light
o f our pr es en t day knowl edg e an d with a di stinct
-
,

r el ation to pr actic e .

Th e obj ect of th e sp eak er or singer 1 8 to pro

duce c ert ain sounds which sh all as easily as pos
sibl e conv ey to th e list en er his own st at e of mind .

It follows that h e must h ave a cl ear id ea of th es e

sounds th at h e must h ear th em m ent ally prior to
,

th eir utt er anc e ; in oth er words th e psychologic al

,

must pr ec ed e th e physiolo gic al Voic e production

.

for th e purpos e o f sp eaking and singing impli es

a co O p er ation of th e psychic an d th e ph ysiol og
-

ic al a co ordin ation o f proces ses th at are psychi c

,
-
,

and physic al som atic or physiologic al

,
.

It is w ell to r egard th e subj ect from as m any

point s o f vi ew as possibl e and to consid er th e
,

various w ays in which th e s am e truth may b e

st at ed .

'

Str ess must b e l aid on th e id ea of co ordi -

n ation for proc ess es m ay b e ind ep end ently sat

,

isfactory yet fail to l ead to th e d esir ed r esult if

th ey are n ot conn ect ed h arm onis ed o r co ordi
,
-

276
 REVIEW AN D REVISION 277

n ated . l att er is th e b ett er t erm b ecaus e it

Th e
suggests a c er tain ord er of progr ess As a .

m att er of fact fi rs t th e psychi c th en th e physio

, ,

logic al Th e id ea m ay b e cl ear , yet from a phys

.

ic al d efect as in st amm ering th e r esult do es not

, ,

follow though this physiologic al imp erfection

,

in mov ement m ay its elf b e th e r es ul t of a psychic

condition an d g en er al ly is so A cl ear er c as e i s
.

th at o f p ar alysis o f th e voc al org ans T h e id eas .

to b e expr ess ed m ay b e p erf ectly cl ear in th e mind

y et impossibl e o f expr ession T h e d.ef ect i s at
th e dist al en d o f th e combin ation in th e
physic al som atic or bodily p art o f th e proces s
,

to expr es s th e s ame id ea by th e u se o f di ffer ent

.

t erms Th e consid eration of conditions of d efect

.

o r p athologic al st at es m ay m ak e norm al p sycho

logic al an d physiologic al on es cl ear er as h as ,

b een shown by th e abov e illustr ations Th e p rac .

tic al import anc e o f th e co ordin ation of proc ess es

-

i s very gr eat It is not possibl e for one born

.

d eaf to sp eak b ec aus e th e n ec ess ary m ent al or

psychic conditions for co ordin ation do not exist
-

th er e is no sound in th e mind to b e ex
—
pr ss ed no t becaus e th er e is an y s erious an a
e

t omical d efect In lik e m ann er th e stud ent of

.

singing will pr oduce no b ett er ton e th an h e h as

in mind no m atter h ow much h e pr actic es vocali
z ation It fo llows th er efor e th at th e psychic
.
, ,

stat e of th e stud ent should b e k ept in adv anc e of

h is actu al powers of ex ecution This h e will mo st.
2 78 V O ICE PRO D UCTION

succ es sful ly do b y list ening to th e b est arti sts

eith er dir ectly o r if this b e impossibl e by h earing
—
th eir gramophon e r ecords al l t hi s in addition
to th e b est th e t each er can do for him by th e cor
r ection of faul ts giving h im illustr ations of b etter
,

ton e by his own efforts et c If th e stud ent h as

,
.

th e oppor tunity of h earing hi m s elf by m eans of a

phonogr aphic r ecord h e sho ul d not f ail to do so
,
.

No o n e ever h ears hims elf as oth er s h ear him .

As th e mind an d th e br ain are always asso

ciated in thought and f eeli ng ; in oth er words in ,

p sychic proc es s es an d th es e l att er fi n d expr es

,

sion chi efly through movem ents in on e s ens e a

,

study o f voc aliz ation m ay b e consid er ed a study

of movem ents T h es e are alw ays brought about
.

by th e u se of s ev er al muscl es wh ich act together

for a d efini t e end th ey are co ordin at ed As
-
.

s u ch mov em ents ge n er ally involve m any muscl es

an d to b e effectiv e must b e ex act an d und er p er

fect cont rol much pr actice is n ec es s ary th ou gli

" much
, ,

sho ul d h av e r efer enc e r ath er to th e

cl earn es s o f th e mind in r ef er enc e to wh at is t o
b e att ain ed an d th e m eans o f accomplishing it,
r ath er th an to th e amount of time sp ent over th e
actu al pe rform anc e W e m ay confi d entl y as s er t
.

th at t echniqu e or th e physic al sid e of putting th e

id eas into ex ecution which is simp ly m akin g cer
,

tain movem ents is successful l argely in p ropor

,

tion to th e p erfection o f th e p sych ic proc es s es in

v o lved A cl ear h ead should p r ec ed e th e moving
.
 REVIEW AND REVISION 79

h and or functioning voc al org ans Th e stud ent

,
.

should think t echniqu e b efor e and aft er its actu al

ex ecution . This is even yet in spit e of a gr eat,

adv anc e in r ec ent y ears , th e w eak est p art of th e

stud ent s method of work All th at w e know of

’
.

s ci enc e as w ell as th e r esults of all rightly dir ect ed

pr actic e emph asiz es th e import anc e of thi s c entr al
truth .

A ssu mm g th at th e psychic condition i s s atis

factory for th e producti o n of a d efin it e ton e
th at it is h eard m ent ally what follows b efor e it is
,

actu ally produc ed b efor e it b ecom es a ton e from

,

th e physicist s p oint of vi ew ? Wh at is th e ch ain

’

o f physic al som atic b odily o r an atomic al ( to u se

, ,

s ev er al words th at expr ess simil ar but slightly

di ffer ent asp ects of th e s am e m ain id ea ) conn ec
tions involved an d wh at is th e n atur e of th e phy s
,

iol og ical proc ess es ; in oth er words wh at ar e th e ,

p arts of th e body involv ed an d how do th ey act ?

This will b e cl ear er if w e fi rst consid er th e
m ech anism conc ern ed an d its functions in a g en
er al w ay .

Th e instrument which is pl ay ed upon which ,

fi n ally g iv es ris e to th e ton e m ay be spok en of as

,

th at conn ec t ed s eri es of caviti es for which w e

have n o singl e t erm but which are gen er ally
nam ed th e r eson anc e ch amb ers wh en r eg arde d

from th e p h ysicist s p oin t of view To th e musi

’ '

c ian th ey ar e th e instru m ent to th e physiolo g is t

,

an d an atomist a set o f ch amb ers communic ating

.
28 0 VOICE PRO D UC TION

with each oth er Pl ainly al l th e r est of th e voc al

.

mech ani sm exists for th em an d too much str ess

,

c annot b e l aid o n this fact Howev er exc ellent

.

th e st at e of tr aining of th e p art b elow th em thi s

is o f no av ail exc ept in so far as it can affect th es e
r eson anc e c aviti es .

Ho w is thi s instrum ent pl ay ed upon an d how

are th es e c aviti es m ad e actu ally into r esounding

ch amb ers ? In th e answ er to thi s in th e reco gn i

,

tion o f th e r el ationship of th e thr ee distinct p arts

o f th e voc al app ar atus li es th e on e gr eat fund a

m ent al conc eption of th e m ann er in which ton e

is produc ed T o und erst and this cl early is to
.

compr eh end in it s m ain outlin es th e whol e sub

j ec t of voic e production in a sci enti fi c w ay .

B efor e a ton e is h eard vibr ations of th e atmos

p h e ri c air must r each th e ear Th.e s e ar e s et up
by th e vibr ation of th e air within th e r eson anc e
ch amb ers an d this again is eff ect ed by th e
,

m ech anism b elow th em by th e mov em ents

o f th e voc al b ands of th e l arynx which are du e to

th e bl ast o f air em an ating from th e lungs , this

its elf b eing brought into b eing by th e mov em ents
o f th e ch est usin g th e t erm in th e wid est s ens e
, ,

thus including th e di aphr agm etc ,

.

Br eathing h as for its obj ect so far as p h on a

tion i s conc ern ed no oth er purpose th an to so
affect th e voc al b ands th at th e r eson anc e ch am
,

b ers r eally do r esound T h e qu estion is h ow is

.

th i s br eathing b est accompli sh ed s o th at th e in

 REVIEW AND REVISION 28 1

strum ent shall b e most effici ently pl ayed upon ?

W e c annot alt er th e an atomical structu r e of th e
instrument appr eci ably but w e can improve th e
,

fun ctioning of th e s ever al p arts of th e who l e

app ar atus B r eathi ng can b e improv ed as re
.

g ards power and control M or e can b e don e with

.

l ess exp endi tu r e of energy th an origin ally if ther e

b e j udicious tr aining . How sh all w e tr ain ? As
th e outg oing str eam of air alon e afi ects th e v oc al
h and s it is cl ear th at w e must aim to so apply
,

an d r eg ul at e t hi s outflow th at th e d esir ed r esul t

sh all follow from th e l east possibl e exp enditur e o f

en ergy . How th e air i s got in is import ant only

in r el ation to its exp enditur e But th e easi er th e
.

supply is furnish ed th e b ett er This l aw o f th e

.

c ons ervation o f en ergy i s on e o f th e gr eat est im

port anc e for all b eings h ave but a limit ed supply

,

o f en ergy an d our probl em must ev er b e how b est

to husb and this as a wis e m an should study how

b est to sp end his limit ed incom e On e must n ot
.

only consid er wh at is c all ed for in ordin ary con

v er s ation al sp eaking , o r in singing in a sm all

room but als o wh en th e gr eat est possibl e efforts

,

ar e d em and ed In al l c as es wh en movem ents are

.

conc ern ed ind eed wh en ever activity of any kind

,

psychic o r physiologic al is involved th e l aw o f

h abi t should b e b orn e in mind o n e should so

think an d do th at a h abit m ay b e est ablish ed for a

,

h abit impli es wh en a good one th at th er e i s

, ,

economy of both m ent al an d bodily en ergy .

28 2 VOICE PRODUC TION

Th e aim of al l tr aining is to est ablish good

h abits — ways of doing things which will l eav e th e
su bj ect with mor e c apit al to inv est so to spe ak as ,

he w ast es l ess It follows th at th e s am e m ethods

.

sh ould alw ays b e us ed in trying to att ain th e s am e

end .Th er e are few subj ects o f equ al import anc e
so littl e consid er ed by stud ents of music in a con
s cious int ellig ent w ay A cl ear conviction a s to
.

th e found ation for clo s e adh er enc e to c ert ain

m etho ds of doing things is an inv alu abl e m ent al
ass et for any stud ent .

Th e whol e subj ect of br eathing h as b een s o

—
fully consid er ed in pr evious ch apt ers ind eed
mor e or l ess in al l p arts of this work th at it is
—

not n ec es s ary to go into much d et ail now T h e .

inv estig ations o f physiologists in th e int ern al

h av e only emph asis ed th e author s t eaching on ’

thi s subj ect T h e pr es ent position of th e subj ect

.

m ay b e st at ed thus : ( 1 ) In inspir ation th e whol e

ch est is enl arged this involving th e d esecen t of
,

th e di aphr agm ( )
2 . T h e amount o f mobility is
much gr eat er in th e lower h alf of th e ch est ( 3 ) .

This lower h alf of th e ch est an d th e di aphr agm

act tog eth er c onsti tuting a sp eci al m ech anism of
,

great import anc e ( 4 ) Th e ab d omin al mu scl es

.

disch arge a cc op er ative function It follows th at

-
.

th e advic e of a pr es ent d ay famous t enor to

”
br eath e low is s oun d N everth el es s it must
'

.
,

not b e forgott en that inspir ation b egins above and

.

th at th e upp er ch est h as its functions also It is .

 REVIEW AND REVISION 2 83

not mer ely a r egion of support for th e low er

mech anism, important as thi s function is Th e
"bdomin
.

t erms a l
a anddi aphr agm atic res
p ira tio n h av e l ed t o misund erst andin g N eithe r

th e abdo m
.

i n al mu scl es nor th e diaphr agm ev er act

alon e in normal r espir ation tho u gh th ey are im
,

port ant co op er ativ e factors

-
.

Br eathing ex erci ses should b e b as ed on bro ad

vi ew s of th e subj ect and no p art o f th e r espir a
,

tory mech anism should b e n egl ect ed .

Sm all an organ as is th e l arynx it is through

it th e en ergy o f th e expir ato ry act is tr ansmitt ed
efl ectiv el y or th e r evers e to th e al l im p ort ant r es
-

on an ce ch amb ers . This should b e so don e that

th er e is no w ast e ; in oth er words th at th er e b e
,

p erfect co ordin ation b etw een th e br eathing and

-

th e l aryn g eal m ech anism T h e voc al b ands must

.

b e so r el at ed in function to th e expir atory

m ech anism th at th e outgoing bl ast of air sh all b e
as eff ectiv e as pos sibl e Ther e must b e no w ast e
.

o f pow er o f th e expir atory b l ast through

esc ap e o f air th at accomplish es no purpo s e Th e .

bl ast must b e s o applied to th e voc al b ands or , ,

in oth er words th ey must b e so ad apted to th e

,

bl ast th at th er e i s no w ast e o f en ergy If th e .

b ands approxim at e a littl e too l at e th er e is w ast e

o f br eath pow er . T h e b ands must further so beat
th e air of th e r eson anc e ch amb ers as to g et th e
gr eat est possibl e r esult with th e l east pos s ibl e
ex p enditur e of ener gy As all th es e co ord in a
.
-
2 84 VOICE PRODUC TION
.

tion s imp ly th e action of m any muscl es in a re

l at ed w ay it is pl ain th at int elligent an d prolonged
,

tr aining is n ec ess ary ; and if ou r sci entifi c knowl

edg e h ad no oth er r esul t th an to est ablish such a

convictio n on a sur e b asis it wo ul d b e w ell wor th

whil e ; but it is a light unto th e feet of th e student
an d t each er at ev ery st ep only it must b e a cl ear
,

light not on e s een through a mental h az e If

,
.

th ere b e failur e th e fault must n ot b e set do wn to

sci ence but to ours elv es .

It i s ever to b e born e in mind th at wh en any

thing is don e in th e right w ay n o t only is ther e
no p ain unpl eas ant feeling o r evil aft er effects
,
-
,

but wh en r eal skill h as b een att ain ed through

'

tr aining th e r esult is accomplish ed with a s ens e

,

o f eas e an d all th e accomp anying feelings are

agr eeabl e Th e singer n eed not know th at h e h as

.

a thro at by any dis agr eeabl e r emi nd er At th e

.

s ame time a function m ay b e corr ectly disch arged

but continu ed too long so th at wearin ess o r posi
,

tiv e fati g ue with som e evil cons equ enc es m ay

follow F atigu e alw ays impli es mor e or l ess pois
.

oning of th e syst em .

Of th e r eson ance ch amb ers th e mouth c avity

, ,

th e ph aryngeal c avity and th e n aso ph arynx -

,

whi ch may both b e r egard ed as a p art of th e

mouth c avity and th e n as al ch amb ers th e l att er
, ,

m ay b e consid er ed th e l east v ari able in sh ap e ;

neverth el ess th ey can by m eans o f th e soft p al at e
, ,
 REVIEW AN D REVISION 28 5

be to a l arge ext ent shut off fro m th e oth er p arts

o f this s eri es of ch amb er s
.

Th e m eans by which th e size and shap e of th e

r eson ance ch amb ers can b e vari ed are chi efly th e
soft p al at e and th e tongu e th e l atter b eing of th e
,

gr eat est import ance T h e ch ang es in th e sh ap e

.

of th e mouth c avity n ec ess ary for th e formation

o f vow els are du e chi efly to th e mov em ents of th e

tongu e and th e tongu e is mor e l arg ely conc ern ed

,

in th e utt er anc e o f conson ants th an any other

mo veabl e p art of th e upp er v ol ce m ech anism .

F o r pr actic al ends it is import ant to r ealiz e

that one sp eaks with th e tongu e ; and if one b e
l iev ed th at everything d ep end ed on this org an ,

—
oth er p arts including th e out er mouth or lip s
h —
mer ely to b e k ept out of t w ay th e r esult would
e

on th e whol e lik ely b e g ain .

In th e formation of vow els th e r esult may b e

good wh en th e lips t ak e but th e slight est active
p art an d th e stud ent is advis ed to pr actic e vowel
,

form ation without th e u se of th e lips He is lik ely

.

to u se th em enough in any c as e provid ed h e en

sur es th e formation of pur e vowel sounds and ,

p eopl e s eem to h ave an extr aordin ary facility for

over doing th e u se of lip movem ents for g etting
-
,

th e t eeth in th e way and thus spoiling ton e th at

,

was b egun w ell b efor e it h as escap ed from th e

,

mouth It m ay b e obs erved th at thos e who g et

. .

th eir living on th e str eets by th e u se o f th e voice ,

286 VOIC E P RODUC T I ONJ

k
.

an d wh o u se th e v oice much
often spea and

r apidly, an d in spit e of thi s are h eard w ell, so

construct th eir w ords th at th e lip s are n ot s een
t o mov e to any appr eci ab l e ex ten t ex cep t as th e
low er j aw moves Th e lip s s eem to b e always
. .

ap art It is not th e amo u nt o f mo vement th at is

.

import ant b ut th e kind of movement, especi ally,

its rap idity .

M u scul ar efforts fo r th e pro ductio n of con

.

s on an ts should b e n eat decisive sharp r ath er

, , ,
'

th an h eld ones which t end t o spoil th e word as a

,

who l e As a rul e, on e is s afe in holding th e vow el

,

as long as possibl e an d in m ak in g th e time dw elt

o n th e conson ant as short as possibl e con

sist ent with distinct an d mu sic al utt er anc e .

Th e s am e appli es t o sin ging with ev en gr eat er

‘

forc e In sp eaking esp eci ally short p aus es n ot

.

print ed in th e t ext m ay b e m ad e t o gr eat adv an

t age an d thi s is oft en b ett er th an dwelling on
,

conson ants Th e mouth o f th e speak er an d still

.

mor e th at of th e sing er should not attr act th e at

t ention o f th e l ist en er so th e l es s movem ent o f th e
,

lip s of a kind r eadil y op en to ob s ervation th e ,

b ett er B esid es such movem ents b ein g u nn eces

.

s ary are a w ast e of muscul ar an d n ervou s en ergy .

Singer s are not w arr ant ed in d ep artin g to any

appr eci ab l e ext ent fr o m th e pronunci atio n of .

words l aid down as st and rd for s p eak ers cg —

" "
a ,

”
"
sh all should not b e sung as shol an d in

s uch a word as motion th e fin al syll ab l e should

”
,
 REVI E W AN D REVISION 87

not b e m ad e equ ally import ant with th e fi rst one .

Sing ers should obs erve th e l aws of a good el ocu

tion ; in oth er words such tr eatm ent of th e l an
,

gu ag e of th e song as an approved r eader wo ul d

employ . T h e author wo u ld go s o far as to say
th at no singer should app ear in public till h e can
utt er ev ery syll abl e as h e sings s o th at it is r eadily
'

r ecognis ed by th e list en er At pr es ent such is

.

r ar ely th e c as e even with th e b est voc alists All

.

prosp ectiv e voc alists should study utt er ance by

th e sp eaking voic e fi rst an d continu e it wh en th e
study o f singing h as b een b egun Th e words o f
.

ev ery so n g ,
etc .should b e m ast er ed in all re
,

sp ect s b efor e th ey are sun g .

As th e d egr ee of succ ess in singing or sp eak

ing d ep ends so far as t echn iqu e is conc ern ed on
‘

a s eri es of co ordin ations th e condition of b oth th e

-

psychic an d bodily m ech anism as d et ermin ed by

tr aining an d th e g en er al h ealth of th e individu al
is of gr eat import anc e ; an d it is not to b e forgot
ten t h at th e mind as w ell as th e body is to b e con
sidered in al l qu estions o f hygi en e .
 I N DEX .

Breath 60 72 , ,

contro l of 20 2 1 , ,

Acous tics 97 exerci e for 1 33 1 34

s , ,
,

Adam s apple 80
’
,
in p honation 1 3 0 ,

Adduc tors 8 2 ,
mann er of u ing 1 72 208 s , ,

Air 48
,
t r am 22 1 2 5 1 94
s e , , ,

co m plemental 70 ,
B reathi ng 44—7 3 1 1 8 1 2 4
, , ,

q uantity of in lungs , ,
ab d m ina l 1 1 8
o ,

re i dual 70
s ,
c lavicular 1 1 8 1 1 9 , ,

supp lem en tal 70 ,

ti dal 7 0 ,
di ph ragmatic 1 1 8 1 1 9
a , .

Amateurs 27 4 ,
exerci e 131 s s,

American speech 1 46 ,
mec hani m contro l o f 1 20 s , ,

Americans pi t c h of 2 24 , ,
metho d of 64 1 77 , ,

no e 1 3 1
s ,

Anato my ,
35
Art 1 7 27 2
.
C

Art ist Iso lation o f

, , 254 Cart ilage of San torini , 77
Artistic 246 ,
W ris berg 7 7 ,

Cells 3 6
,

m peramen t 3 1
te ,
Chest 50 62 7 1
, , ,

Ary tenoi d cart ilages 77 , cavi ty of 7 1 ,

As pirates 2 28 , co m plete cont ro l of 62 ,

At tack 3 0 1 2 5 1 27 208
, , , , po ition of in inging 1 23
s , s ,

best tests of a goo d 1 29 , in p aking 1 23 s e ,

goo d 1 27 3 5 2 , , Child ren pub lic appearance of

,

Au dit ory me sages 2 50 s ,

1 16
Auto laryngo copy 1 09 1 1 0
-
s , , , regi ter o f 2 3 4
s ,

1 52 , 1 61 s
Ch oral inging 247
s ,
I
Ch o i ter 2 56
rs s,

Circu latory sy tem 37 s

B ackward pro du ction

,
”
, 213 Cl rgy man ore thro at
e
’
s s -
, 88
Bel Cant o 2 1 1 , Co ld a 77 92
, , ,

Break 1 62 , prevention o f 93 ,
290 I NDE X

Co lor 2 1 4
,

Co m po sers 1 1 6 , Ex pirato y b las t

r , 60, 68 , 88 , 1 03 ,
C onsonant a 1 95 1 96 , , , 1 77
C ons onan ts 2 23 22 5 2 26 , , , , 23 0 c urrent 1 3 6 , , 208
23 5 E x p l osi v es 2 2 6 ,

m outh posit ions o f 22 6—2 28 , E xpression 2 54 ,

Corsets evil effec ts of 7 2

, ,

Coup de gl o tte 1 24 1 27 1 3 9 ,
-
,

C ramm ing 46 ,

Cricoid c art ilage 77 8 1 ,

high , 1 70, 1 7 8
t h yroi d 83 8 5 , , in males 1 60 1 78 , ,

memb rane 8 1 ,
Feeli ng to ne 21 2
-

Fo o d 2 63
,

F orward pro duc t ion 2 1 3

”
,

D Fu n dam en tal princip les 1 79 ,

Dial ec ts 2 25 23 5
, . 1 94
Diameters 50 , a pplication of , 1 95—206
Diap hragm 52 53 , , , 66, 7 1 to ne , 23 1

E G
Bar, 1 8 2 , 23 6, 24 5 , 248 Ga rcia Manuel 1 05 13 6 1 59
, , . ,

c onnec tion wi th m ou th cav German language 1 98 ,

ity, 203 s peec h 1 4 6 ,

drum h d o f -
ea ,
240 Ger mans pi t c h o f 2 2 4
, ,

external purpose o f 240 , , Gli de 2 58

,

for mu ic 2 44 s , Gl o t t is 47 7 8 8 2 88 1 2 6 1 59
, , , , , ,

lack of 24 5 249 , , in baryt one v oices 1 57 ,

inner 23 7 2 4 1 , , bass v oices 1 57 ,

mi d dle 23 7 2 4 1 , ,
cont ralt o v oices 1 58 ,

m usical 3 1 , me o soprano v oices 1 58

zz -
,

outer 23 7 , tenor v oices 1 57 ,

Ease, 1 23 , 23 3
E l sh , 1 98
ng i H
s peec h 1 46 ,
H d po ition o f 205
ea , s ,

Ep igl o t t i 7 9
s, H ring 1 01 23 6 2 50
ea , ,
-

Eus tach i an t u be 24 1 ,
diff r nc in im l
e e e an a s,

Execu t ion 1 7 9 2 56 , ,
highest li mit o f ,
1 02
Exercis es 1 3 1 —1 3 5 1 39
, , lo wer lim it o f , 1 02
practical 73 , Helmholt z 1 67 ,
 IN D EX 2 91
'

k
M
Hyoi d bon e, 8 1 , 95 Mac enme, Sir Morrell , 1 56, 1 67 ,
1 68

I M r Madame range of 1 1 1
a a, , ,

I ll ust ration of princip les 27 28 Marc at o pro d uc t ion 209 ,

I m pul es 2 3 6
s ,
, ,
Marc hesi M adam e teac h ing o f
, , ,

1 59
I nh ib i t ions 1 84
regi ter of 23 4
,

I ns pirat ion 48 5 1 7 1
Men , s ,

I n t onat ion 1 95 1 96 23 0
, , ,
Messages Au ditory 2 50 , ,
,

correc t po sition for goo d

, ,
Met hods correc t 2 2 23 , , ,

faulty 3 2
,

131 ,

I ta ia l n language , 1 98 Mi ddle pro duc tion 2 1 4 ,

Mid ifi see di ap hrag m

r ,

Min d 2 1 0
,
K
Mirror use of 2 3 5
Kno wle dg e, principle o f , 34
,

Mouth as a esonance cham ber

, r
,

22 1
L resonat or 1 48 ,

La rynx 60 7 4—96 1 3 6 1 48 258

, , , , ,
cavi t y 1 4 9 ,

anato m y of 2 1 ,
respiration 1 3 1 ,

as a m u sic al inst ru ment ,

toi let of 2 62 ,

1 02 Mo vement 1 92 s,

c hange in si e o f 1 1 1 z ,
Muscles 3 6 8 2 , ,

cont ro l o ver 1 1 2 ,
ab d o m inal 66 ,

difi e ence in ize 1 1 0

‘

r s ,
Muscular ac tion 7 1 ,

growth of 1 38 ,
mec hani m 42 s ,

in ac tion 1 09 m o vement 1 79 s,

Music 243
,

in inging an d speak ing

s , 1 98 ,

m u cl of 8 1 95
s es ,
appreci at ion of 24 7 ,

of th e male 1 3 8 intellec tuali ty in 2 56 ,

pho tography o f 1 61 ,
intelligence in 1 08 ,

phy io logy o f 2 1
s ,
interpretat ion of 2 1 ,

ventric le o f 8 0 ,
Musical artist 1 98 ,

vib rations of 96 car, 31

pro digy 2 43
,

wh ole 94 , ,

Laryngo cop e 91 1 03 1 3 6
s , , ,
facul ty develops early 1 1 5 ,

Ligam n t ous gl o t t is 1 57
e ,
faul t 258 s,

Lip 202 s, soun ds prac tical range of ,

L ng 49 53
u s, , 1 02
Lym p h 3 7 , t ones , 23 1
2 92 IN D EX
Mu ici
s a n fun damental q ual i ties
, Prac tic al consi derations 88 ,

of 246 , P rac tic e 1 3 2 1 85 1 92

, .
-

b es t t i m e to 1 8 6 1 8 7 , ,

by wro ng met ho d 1 91 ,

Nasal ch am bers , 1 44 , 1 49, 2 1 4 for sustained tone 1 3 2

met ho ds of 1 94
,

Nasalit y 23 1 , ,

Pu berty at 1 1 2 1 3 8
, , ,

in b oys 1 1 4 1 1 5 , ,

i m pul es 24 4 s , , 2 50 in girls 1 1 3 ,

system 3 8 ,
P u b lic singing ag e to beg in
peak ing 2 1 2
, ,

Nervo usness , 27 4 s ,

Neuro m uscular mech anis ms

-
, P u m ping 2 59 ,

proc es es 1 8 3 s
Q
,

sy t em 43
s ,
Q uah ty , 1 01 , 1 3 6, 2 1 4

N oise , 218
R
0 R an d s, interv al between
Reed l o ng 1 5 7
,

O pen m outh 2 03 204 , , , 21 7 , ,

Ordinary peec h 2 3 0 s ,
sh ort 1 57 ,

O v ert ones 23 1 23 5 , ,
Refl ex ac t ion 40 ,

Refl xe ass ociat ed 1 83

es , ,

P pro tec ti ve character o f , 58 ,

Palate c left 1 49
, , 59
har d 1 49 2 1 3 , ,
sets of , 1 84
sof t 1 4 5 2 1 4 2 1 6 23 1
, , , , Register , 23 3
Pho nat ion 1 92 1 93 , , c hange in 1 69 1 77 , ,

b reath in 1 3 0 , c hest 1 60 ,

exam p le of 1 93 , defi ni tion of 1 76 ,

Physics princip les of inv o lved

, , in femal e v oices 1 60 ,

1 35 of b asses and b ary tones 1 70

Physio logic al considerat ions
,

, 34 of tenor 1 70 s,

43 Regi ters 1 5 1 —1 78
s ,

chings 26 3 1
tea , , Behnk on 1 55 1 56 1 67 e , , ,

Pi ano pro d uc t ion 2 59 , G arci a on 1 55 ,

Pillar of th e fauc 1 4 5
s es , Mack en ie on 1 56 1 67 1 68 z , , ,

Pit ch 1 01 1 3 6 1 50 2 1 4
, , , , Madame Seiler on 1 53 1 65 , , ,

fav ori te 27 3 ,
1 70
Portamento pro duc t ion 2 58 , M a n dl on , 1 58
 INDEX 2 93

Res onan ce chambers ,

1 02 , 1 3 6, S peaker purpose of 99 , ,

1 40—1 50, 1 75 , 1 82, 1 98 , Sp ak ing goo d 2 59

e , ,

2 1 3 , 22 3 , 22 4 , 2 28 , 2 3 4 ,
—
Speec h elemen of 2 1 8 229
t s ,

in oun ding b o dies 1 40

s ,
organ of 2 33 s ,

of m usical inst rument 1 40 s. ,

puri ty of 1 3 5 ,

1 41 Sphinc ter ac tion 8 6 ,

Resonants 22 8 ,
S taccato pro duc tion 209 ,

Resonat or 1 48 ,
S tamm ring 2 68 e ,

Re pirat ion 46 4 8
s , , , 68 , 69 St op c l osu e 1 58
-
r ,

forc ed 1 1 9 ,
S t raining 8 6 1 7 5 , ,

hygi ne of 55 e ,
S t raw b as 8 8 s,

m ou t h 1 3 1 ,
S tut tering 268 ,

Respirat y cen t reor , 57 , 58 , 1 72 S tyle 2 54,

effi ci ency 1 2 4 ,
S w ll 207 2 1 2
e , ,

organ 47 s,
T
sy tem 3 7
s ,

t rac t 26 ,
T ec hni que , 23 , 1 7 9, 1 83 , 1 8 5,

T eet h 2 02 ,

Science 1 7 , T em perament 2 45 ,

Scrip ture Prof 1 50 , . T enors 2 3 2

Seil r M adame 1 53 1 65 1 70
,

e , , , , T h ro at mirror 1 07 ,

Selec tion in public 27 1

s , sore 2 65 ,

Sensation 1 7 2 1 74 1 75 1 78
s, , , , Th yro ary tenoi deus 8 4 85
-
, ,

Sep tu m nasi 1 49 ,
hyoi d memb ran e 8 1 ,

Singer purpo se of 99
, , T hyroi d cart i lage 7 6 8 1 , ,

range of 2 69 , T i mb re 1 3 6 ,

Singing ch oral 2 56
, ,
T one 1 3 2 1 3 5 1 3 6
, , ,

c la 2 57 ss , carrying po wer o f 1 26 ,

fort i i m o 1 2 1ss ,
co l or of 2 1 4 ,

g oo d 2 59 ,
groun d 23 1 ,

in sch oo l 247 s, head , 1 60

Song elemen t of 2 1 8—2 29
, s , piano 23 3 ,

Soprano highest t ones of 1 37

, ,
pit c h of 1 2 6 ,

l igh t 23 2 ,
pro d uc tion 1 3 2 207 —2 1 7 , ,

So un d 60 97—1 03 1 3 5 2 2 5
, , , ,
q u al it y of 1 2 8 1 42 1 50 2 3 ] , , , ,

q uality o f 1 02 246 , ,
th e u tained 2 08 s s ,

Tyn dall on 97 ,
v o lu me o f 1 2 6 ,

v o lu me of 1 01 1 02 1 3 6 , , , T one s, 1 89
Soun ding bo d y 99 , head , 1 77
294 INDEX
Voice , 44 , 2 54
highest , 1 37 b reaking o f 1 1 4 ,

lo wer 1 3 7 , b righteni ng th e 2 1 6 ,

q u ali ty o f 1 46 , c arrying po wer of 23 2 ,

t i m b re of 1 3 6 , dark ning th e 2 1 6
e ,

upp er 8 6 , ev en 84 ,

T o ngue 1 3 1 1 4 5 1 49 2 1 4
, , , , har h 2 3 2
s ,

con tro l of 2 02 , head in females 1 66

, ,

influence of 2 01 , in ill h al th 1 1 4 e ,

T o nsils 1 45 1 49
, , l ou d 27 2 ,

T rachea 8 1 , p laced 2 1 5 ,

T rem ol o 1 28 2 58 259
, , , po i tion in use o f 206
s ,

p o duc tion 2 2 2 44
,

T un ing fork 99 ,
r , ,

s mall in v o lu m e 2 7 2 ,

user 1 7 3 3 46 , _ , ,

Uv u la, 1 45 exerci es for 1 3 5 s ,

V
well p lac ed 1 7 5 ,

Voices cla ifi c ation o f 2 60 261

ss
Vib rations , 61 , 98 , 1 00, 23 6
,

injured 26
, ,

,
Vib rat ives , 2 28
Vo wel a 1 95
Vib rato 2 58
,
,

pu i ty o f 1 99
r
,

Vi tal c ap aci ty 7 1 ,
sounds 1 96 1 97 2 1 6
,

Voc al athl ete 1 8 2 ,

Vo wels adap tation o f to i deas
, , ,

Voc al ban ds 8 7 1 03 1 2 6 , , ,
,

2 22
, ,

ac t ion o f 1 3 7 ,
an d consonants 23 0, 23 5
fal e 78 s ,
da rk 23 5
,

t rue 7 7 78 8 0 94
,
, , , ,
fo rmation o f 2 1 8—22 1
v ib rat ions o f 1 3 6 ,
lo w pi t c hed 23 5
,

cor ds fal e 95
-
,
, s ,
m ou t h posi tions o f 2 1 8
Madame Seiler on ,
perfec t sound o f 2 2 1
,

t rue 95
,
,
pi t c h o f 2 2 1 225 230
meth o d 3 2 s,
q uali ty o f 2 2 1
, , ,

p hy io logy 1 7—3 2
s ,
,

t raining earl y weeks o f , ,

W
Voc ali es 207
s ,
W agn er 2 57 ,

Vocalist i dea] 1 98
, ,
W hispering 2 2 5 , , 2 26
Vocalizat ion 1 9 3 1 , ,
Wo men register , of . 2 34