By a too great pressure of the breath, the form of the waves of
sound most favorable to a good tone is disturbed. One then hears
the high over-tones sounding strongly up to the sixteenth, while
the lower over-tones with the fundamental tone sound weak or not
at all. Thus the tone takes a shrill, sharp and disagreeable sound
when the form of the vibrating waves is more or less disturbed
by too great a pressure of air. Too little breath deprives the
tone only of its strength, but not of its agreeable sound.
_Thus every tone requires for its greatest possible perfection
only a certain quantity of breath, which cannot be increased
or diminished without injury to its strength in the one case,
and its agreeable sound in the other._
In looking carefully through the histories of music, and studying
the old Italian schools, we find that it was upon this point--the
control and right division of the breathing--that the old masters
in the summer of song laid the greatest stress, and this it was
to which in teaching they gave the most time and labor. The rules
which they followed in this respect, in order to obtain a fine
tone, accord perfectly with the results of the latest scientific
investigations. And it would be far better for the art of singing
if in this respect we had followed the old Italians more faithfully,
and not have forsaken so entirely the right way.
According to the old Italian method, which must not be confounded
with the modern, the pupil was required at first to breathe just as
he was wont to breathe in speaking, and care was taken, by frequent
resting-points in the exercises, that the breath should always be
renewed at the right time. Accordingly, if the crowding, or pressure,
of his breathing was too great, he was required to learn to hold it
back. Until the organs were sufficiently practised in the formation
of a good tone, and the ear had become familiarized to its sound,
pupils were allowed to sing _only_ _piano_. As soon as the pupil had
a feeling for a pure tone awakened in him, and could of himself
distinguish the finer variations of timbre, he was taught to fill his
lungs more and more. But this was to be done, as much as possible,
imperceptibly, noiselessly, slowly, and soon enough for him to be
able properly to control the quiet breathing in the beginning of
a song. Only the sides of the body were in so doing to expand, and
breathing with raised chest was allowed only in exceptional cases, as
where long passages were to be sung with special passion. For these
places, where breath must be taken, there were certain rules which
were strictly observed.
After we have learned the natural laws which are applicable in
music, and which lie at the basis of a full, rich tone in singing,
and that a tone is, strictly speaking, only vibrating air, upon
the fine and skilful management of which its beauty and fulness
depend, and have considered the careful way in which the old
Italians taught the control of the breathing, we cannot but be
struck with the rude and negligent manner of using the breath
in our present mode of singing.
With some distinguished exceptions, it is now almost universally
the practice to require the pupil, as the very first thing, to fill
the lungs as full as possible, whereby the chest must be raised.
Then the tones must be sung in as strong and long-sustained
a manner as possible, in order “to bring out the voice,” as the
phrase is. He is next told to begin the tones with a full chest
_piano_, and slowly swell them to the highest _forte_, and then
descend as slowly, in order to learn “to govern the voice.” Thus
the pupil is always required to sing as strongly as possible,
without any special regard to the timbre of the tones, because the
timbre is regarded as a peculiarity of different voices, admitting
of no change. According to what has been shown in the preceding
pages, the present way of using the breath, by which it is supposed
that voices are rendered strong and full, only needlessly fatigues
the organs, injures the beauty and weakens even the strength of the
tones. In the same way we find, especially in the case of tenor
voices, that the aim is by greater forcing of the breath to extend
the registers beyond their limits. Another fault is often taught:
the pupil is required to force with the breath to the due pitch
those tones whose pitch is usually struck too low. No voices can
ever endure such treatment, and, although the organs may be strong
enough to remain sound while under instruction, yet the voice will
not continue good, and cannot be of long duration.
We often hear, even in fresh and unsophisticated voices,
a hoarse breathing accompanying the tones, as in the case of
worn-out voices. This breathing arises when the air, which is
exhaled and which rushes into the cavity of the mouth, is not
all in vibration, and it escapes along with the vibrating
columns of air. It sometimes happens, also, that in the too
great pressure of the exhaled air against the glottis, the
arytenoid cartilages, near their bases, and sometimes the
vocal chords leave a small opening through which the air
escapes with a hoarse noise. By keeping back the breath in
singing these faults may be corrected. Long-continued singing
piano in exercises is, moreover, beneficial in the forming of
the voice.[12]
A simple expiration does not indeed suffice for the generation
of a full sounding singing tone. There is required a certain
force by which the air is sent through the narrow and stretched
glottis. But so great an expense of force as people are usually
at is not necessary.
The influence of the same stream of air increases in proportion
as the breadth of the vibrating ligaments decreases. The tones
of the falsetto and head registers, therefore, require far less
breath than those of the chest register. The less the quantity
of breath expended in these tones, and the easier and more
quickly they are produced, the clearer and fuller do they sound.
The mechanism of the head tones especially is, as we have seen,
so delicate that only a slight excess of breath calls forth the
inharmonic over-tones which render the tone sharp and unmusical.
In wind instruments the tone can be forced upwards by a greater
pressure of air; that is, by more powerful blowing, which
appears to be practicable also in those instruments in whose
peculiar timbre the highest inharmonic over-tones overpower the
others.[13]
Together with the skill and unintermitted attention which this
part of instruction in singing requires of the teacher, there are
here yet other and peculiar difficulties which he has to meet. In
opposition to the earlier and more correct view, it is no longer
beauty of tone, but strength of tone, which is considered the
chief excellence of a voice. Accustomed to seek the beauty of
the voice in its strength, it is attempted, before the time of
instruction begins, to sing as strongly as possible from a full
chest with the greatest expulsion of breath. Thence it follows,
in the superficial way in which the study of the art of singing
is at present conducted, that nothing more is commonly required
of a teacher than that he should be able to drill his pupil in
some pieces of tolerably well conceived vocal music, which the
latter must sing as soon as possible in company. A perfect
culture of the voice is scarcely any longer expected of an
artist. People with a very scanty musical education and voices
very poorly trained are regarded as artists if they execute their
parts with expression, and trick them out with those clap-traps
which never fail to command the applause of the ordinary public.
A conscientious teacher has, therefore, universal opinion against
him when he demands a longer time for the education of a voice,
and requires of his pupils that they shall practice singing only
piano as long as it is necessary.