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VOICE PRODUCTION
IN
SINGING AND SPEAKING
BASED ON
SCIENTIFIC PRINCIPLES
BY
WESLEY MILLS, M.A., M.D., F.R.S.C.
EMERITUS PROFESSOR OF PHYSIOLOGY IN McGILL UNIVERSITY, AND LECTURER ON
VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY AND HYGIENE IN THE McGILL UNIVERSITY CONSERVATORIUM
OF MUSIC, MONTREAL, CANADA
_FOURTH EDITION, REVISED AND ENLARGED_
[Illustration: publisher logo]
PHILADELPHIA & LONDON
J.B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
COPYRIGHT, 1906,
BY J.B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
The Rights of Translation and all other Rights Reserved
COPYRIGHT, 1913,
BY J.B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
Electrotyped and Printed by
J.B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, U.S.A.
[Transcriber's Notes: In this e-text, illustrations of music notation
have been rendered using standard text notation, e.g.: C = C two
octaves below middle C; c = C one octave below middle C; c' = middle
C; c'' = C one octave above middle C, etc.
Macrons are indicated thus: [=a], [=e], [=i], [=o], [=u].]
[Illustration: Illustrations of the appearance of the larynx during
phonation in two special cases. (Grünwald.)]
EXPLANATION OF THE COLORED ILLUSTRATIONS.
They contrast with each other in that the one (upper) is too red; the
other, too pale. The upper represents appearances such as one gets
with the laryngoscope when the subject has a very severe cold, or even
inflammation of the larynx, including the central vocal bands. In this
particular case, a young woman of twenty-five years of age, there was
inflammation with a certain amount of weakness of the internal
thyro-arytenoid muscles. Speaking was almost impossible, and such
voice as was produced was of a very rough character. In the lower
illustration we have the appearances presented in a man affected with
tuberculosis of the lungs and larynx. The pallor of the larynx is
characteristic. There is weakness of the internal thyro-arytenoid
muscle on the right side, which results in imperfect tension of the
vocal band on that side, so that the voice is uncertain and harsh.
Such illustrations are introduced to impress the normal by contrast.
The reader is strongly advised to compare these figures with others in
the body of the work, especially those of Chapter VII.
PREFACE TO THE FOURTH REVISED AND ENLARGED EDITION.
In addition to certain emendations, etc., introduced throughout the
work, I have thought it well to add a chapter in which the whole
subject is treated in a broad and comprehensive way in the light of
the latest scientific knowledge.
In this review the psychological aspects of the subject have not been
neglected, and the whole has been related to practice to as great an
extent as the character of the book permits.
It is significant that on both sides of the Atlantic there is a
growing conviction that the foundations for speaking and singing as an
art must be made as scientific as the state of our knowledge will
permit.
THE AUTHOR.
January, 1913.
PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION.
No preface to the Second Edition was written, so few were the changes
that were made in the work, and the same might apply to this Third
Edition. However, the fact that within a period of less than two
years, a Second English and a Third American Edition have been called
for, seems to the Author to be so conclusive an endorsement of the
application of science to vocal art, that he may be entitled at least
to express his gratification at the progress the cause, to which he
has devoted his pen, is making. It would seem that the better portion
at least of that public that is interested in the progress of vocal
art has made up its mind that the time has come when sense and science
must replace tradition and empiricism.
THE AUTHOR.
MONTREAL, September, 1908.
PREFACE.
The present work is based on a life study of the voice, and has grown
out of the conviction that all teaching and learning in voice-culture,
whether for the purposes of singing or speaking, should as far as
possible rest on a scientific foundation.
The author, believing that practice and principles have been too much
separated, has endeavored to combine them in this book. His purpose
has not been to write an exhaustive work on vocal physiology, with
references at every step to the views of various authors; rather has
he tried always to keep in mind the real needs of the practical
voice-user, and to give him a sure foundation for the principles that
must underlie sound practice. A perusal of the first chapter of the
work will give the reader a clearer idea of the author's purpose as
briefly expressed above.
The writer bespeaks an unprejudiced hearing, being convinced that in
art as in all else there is but one ultimate court of appeal: to the
scientific, the demonstrable--to what lies at the very foundations of
human nature.
In conclusion, the author desires to thank those publishers and
authors who have kindly permitted the use of their illustrations.
THE AUTHOR.
MCGILL UNIVERSITY, Montreal, October, 1906.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
THE CLAIMS AND IMPORTANCE OF VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY.
Science and art--The engineer, architect, physician, nurse, and
others, compared with the vocal teacher and learner--Unfavorable
tendencies--The old masters--The great elocutionists--Causes of
failure--The lack of an adequate technique--Correct methods are
physiological--Summary of the advantages of teaching and learning
based on scientific principles--Illustrations of the application of
physiological principles to actual cases--The evils from which
speakers and singers suffer owing to wrong methods--Speaking and
singing based on the same principles--Relation of hygiene to
physiology 17
CHAPTER II.
GENERAL PHYSIOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES.
Relations of animals to each other--Common properties of living
matter--Explanation of these--The mammal and man--The stimulus and its
results--The one-celled animal--Various "systems"necessary--Complexity
of structure and function--Harmony through the nervous system--The
rule of nervous centres--Means by which they are influenced, and by
which they influence--Reflex action--Muscular mechanisms and
neuro-muscular mechanisms--Work of the singer and speaker largely
reflex in character--Summary 34
CHAPTER III.
BREATHING CONSIDERED THEORETICALLY AND PRACTICALLY.
Breathing the great essential--Misconceptions--Purpose of breathing as
a vital process--The respiratory organs--Their nature--Relations of
the lungs to the chest-wall--Expansion of the chest--Its
diameters--The muscles of respiration--Personal observation--The
diaphragm--Varying quantities of air breathed--Breathing when properly
carried out by the singer or speaker is healthful 44
CHAPTER IV.
BREATHING FURTHER CONSIDERED THEORETICALLY AND PRACTICALLY.
Relations of the nervous system to breathing--The respiratory
centre--Reflex action in breathing--Methods of preventing
nervousness--Tones produced by the outgoing breath--Waste of
breath--The happy combination for good singing or speaking 57
CHAPTER V.
BREATHING WITH SPECIAL REGARD TO PRACTICAL CONSIDERATIONS.
The well-developed chest--The voice-user a kind of athlete--The
tremolo--Exercises recommended for the development of the chest--Forms
of dress that hamper breathing--Weighing and measuring,
re-measurement, etc.--Specific directions for methods to develop the
chest--Warnings--Additional exercises--Breathing through the nose and
through the mouth--Exercises for the development of the diaphragm and
abdominal muscles--Relation of the diaphragm to the staccato
effect--Forms of general exercise for the voice-user--Summary 62
CHAPTER VI.
THE SPECIAL VOICE-PRODUCING MECHANISM, THE LARYNX.
Not the only voice-producing apparatus--Specific structures of the
larynx in use when the subject phonates--Muscles and their
attachments--The cartilages of the larynx--The lining mucous
membrane--Changes in it when one has a "cold"--The vocal
bands--Functions of the epiglottis--The "middle line" and relative
position of parts--Adam's apple--Ventricle of the larynx--The
importance of the arytenoid cartilages--Muscles of the larynx in
detail--Sphincter action--Straining--Position of the larynx--Practical
considerations--Dissection of a "pluck" and especially of the
larynx--Hygiene--How disorder of one part may affect another--Summary
74
CHAPTER VII.
SOUND--THE LARYNGOSCOPE--THE LARYNX RECONSIDERED.
Some study of physics desirable--Sound and vibrations--The sounding
body--Experiments to illustrate the principles of sound--Qualities of
sound--Animals and perception of sound--The range of hearing in
man--The larynx as a musical instrument--Experiments of Johannes
Müller--Discovery of the laryngoscope by Garcia--Description
of the instrument--Method of using the laryngoscope--The
difficulties--Auto-laryngoscopy--The importance of both laryngoscopy
and auto-laryngoscopy--Change in size of the larynx due to
use--Delicate changes in the laryngeal mechanism--Changes in the
larynx during adolescence--Warnings--The "breaking" of the
voice--Analogies with fatigue, etc.--When should singing be
begun?--Singing with others--Choral singing 97
CHAPTER VIII.
FURTHER CONSIDERATION OF BREATHING, LARYNGEAL ADJUSTMENT, ETC.
Various kinds of breathing, as "abdominal," "clavicular," etc.,
discussed--Control of the whole of the breathing mechanism
urged--Correct breathing as a habit--Breathing in the most vigorous
speaking and singing--Different views expressed by a diagram--Economy
of energy in art--Reserve energy in breathing--"Pumping"--_Coup de
glotte_--"Attack"--Breath-adjustment--Quality of sound the prime
consideration in tone-production--Tremolo and other faults--Tests of
good breathing--Mouth-breathing--Exercises--Singing of a single
tone--Its relation to scale-singing--Summary and review 118
CHAPTER IX.
THE RESONANCE-CHAMBERS.
Vocal bands and resonance-chambers compared--Improvised mechanism to
illustrate resonance--Musical instruments as resonance-bodies--A vowel
in relation to the resonance-chambers--Description of the
resonance-chambers--How the quality of tones may be made to vary--New
views as to the sounding-chambers--Summary 140
CHAPTER X.
THE REGISTERS OF THE SINGING VOICE.
A controverted subject--Definitions of a register--Qualifications for
dealing with this subject--Madame Seiler--Tabular statement of her
views--Garcia's and Behnke's divisions of registers--Sir Morell
Mackenzie's views in detail--The author's earlier investigations--Madame
Marchesi's views and practice 151
CHAPTER XI.
FURTHER CONSIDERATION OF THE REGISTERS OF THE SINGING VOICE.
Auto-laryngoscopy and photography of the larynx--Dogmatism and
science--Confusion and controversy--The break--Ignoring
registers--Modification of tones, or "covering"--Points of agreement
between different writers on the subject--The falsetto for
males--Madame Seiler's special qualifications--Behnke's and
Mackenzie's views--The author's conclusions--Rule for the extension of
a register--Why certain artists deteriorate while others do
not---Males and females compared as to registers--The division of the
registers for female voices recommended by the author--Teacher and
pupil as regards registers--Objection to registers answered--The
manner of using the breath and registers--How to distinguish
registers--The teacher's part--Hearing singers of eminence is
recommended--Madame Melba--Guiding sensations--Summary 161
CHAPTER XII.
FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING VOICE-PRODUCTION.
Artistic expression only through movements--Emotions and
technique--Relation of ideas to movements--Memories and
movements--Guiding sensations essential for movements--The principles
underlying all movements the same--Associated reflexes and habits--How
habits are formed--inhibitions and their importance--Early practices
only before the teacher--Careful practice with concentration of energy
the best--Queries as to practice--Fatigue a warning--Practice in the
early hours of the day, and short of fatigue--Quality to be aimed at
rather than quantity--The total amount of time to be devoted to
practice--"Hasten slowly;" "Little and often"--The treatment of the
voice ruined by wrong methods--Summary 179
CHAPTER XIII.
CHIEFLY AN APPLICATION TO VOICE-PRODUCTION OF FACTS AND PRINCIPLES
PREVIOUSLY CONSIDERED.
Vowels, consonants, noise--Consonants and pauses--Voice-production and
vowels--Certain vowel sounds common to most languages--Why German and
English are relatively unmusical--The needs of the musical artist--The
mechanism required for the production of a vowel sound--Reconsideration
of the resonance-chambers--The larynx to be steadied but not held
rigidly immovable--The principal modifiers of the shape of the
mouth-cavity--Breath to be taken through the mouth--The lips--Tongue
and lip practice before a mirror--Importance of the connection between
the ear and the mouth parts, etc--"Open mouth"--The mouth in singing a
descending scale--Undue opening of the mouth--Proper method of opening
the mouth--Causes of compression and the consequences 195
CHAPTER XIV.
SOME SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS OF PRINCIPLES IN TONE-PRODUCTION.
Principles and their expression in a few exercises--Analysis of the
methods of tone-production--The sustained tone--Smoothly linked
tones--The legato--The staccato and kindred effects--The mechanisms
concerned--Perfection requires years of careful practice--The
bel canto and the swell--The same exercises for singer and
speaker--"Forward," "backward," etc., production--Escape of
breath--The action of the soft palate--When to use "forward" and when
"backward" production--Voice-placement--Nasal resonance, not nasal
twang--Summary 207
CHAPTER XV.
THE ELEMENTS OF SPEECH AND SONG.
The subject may be made dry or the reverse--Vowels, consonants,
noise--The position of the lips and the shape of the mouth-cavity in
sounding the various vowels--How to demonstrate that the mouth-cavity
is a resonance-chamber--Practical considerations growing out of the
above--Speaker, vocalist, and composer--Bearing of these facts on the
learning of languages--Consonants as musical nuisances--Their great
variation in pitch--Brücke's division of consonants--Tabulation of the
same 218
CHAPTER XVI.
FURTHER THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL CONSIDERATION OF VOWELS AND
CONSONANTS.
The best vowel to use in practice--Necessary to practise all--The
guttural _r_ and the lingual _r_--Consonants that favor nasality of
tone--Overtones and fundamental tones--Relation of intensity and
quality--The carrying power of a tone--Unusual distinctness in
practice as related to ease--The registers of the speaking voice
according to Madame Seiler--The range in speaking--Summary 230
CHAPTER XVII.
THE HEARING APPARATUS AND HEARING IN MUSIC.
Why this chapter is introduced--The essential mechanism of
hearing--The part played by waves and vibrations--Divisions of the
ear--The external ear in lower animals--The drum-head or tympanic
membrane--The middle ear and its connections--Relation of the throat
and the ear--The inner ear or labyrinth--The end-organ and its
relations--The connection of the ear and various parts of the
brain--The musician's ear--Relation of music and hearing--Lack of ear
and inattention--The artist and the musician--The ear and the speaking
voice--General musical training in relation to intonation, etc--The
appreciation of music, and training to that end--The art of listening
with close attention--Summary 236
CHAPTER XVIII.
CONSIDERATION OF GENERAL AND SPECIAL HYGIENE AND RELATED SUBJECTS.
Hygienic as related to physiological principles--Hygiene in the
widest sense--Unfavorable conditions in the public life of an
artist--Qualifications for success--Technique and a public career--The
isolation of the artist and its dangers--The need for greater
preparation now than ever--Choral singing and its possible
dangers--The tendencies of the Wagner music-drama--Special faults, as
the "scoop," "_vibrato_," "_tremolo_," "pumping"--Desirability of
consultations by teachers of the use of the voice--Things the
voice-user should avoid--Mouth-toilets--Lozenges--The sipping of
water--What one should and should not eat--Tea and Coffee--The whole
subject of congestion from compression, straining, etc., of the utmost
importance--A sore throat when frequent should give rise to inquiry as
to methods--Constipation--Exercise--Bathing 251
CHAPTER XIX.
FURTHER TREATMENT OF PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HYGIENE.
Stammering and stuttering--Those who have broken down--The increase of
the range of a voice--The part the student plays in settling such
questions--Selections to be avoided--Conservation of energy--Change
and contrast--The voice as related to the building in which it is
produced--The listener and pauses--Nervousness, and how to ward it
off--General conclusion 268
CHAPTER XX.
REVIEW AND REVISION.
The object of the speaker or singer--The idea of co-ordination--The
study of vocalization may be considered a study of movements--The
psychic condition--The instrument which is played upon--How is this
instrument played upon?--Vibration of the air--Breathing--The aim of
all training--The whole subject of breathing--Breathing exercises--The
resonance chambers--The formation of vowels--Muscular efforts for the
production of consonants--The pronunciation of words--General health
of great importance 276
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FIG. PAGE
Appearance of the larynx during phonation in two
special cases (in colors) _Frontispiece_
1. Muscle-fibres from the heart, much magnified 34
2. Small portion of muscle, moderately magnified 34
3. Muscle-cells from coats of intestine 35
4. Body of a nerve-cell of the spinal cord 38
5. Large nerve-cell from spinal cord of an ox 38
6. Cell from the cortex cerebri 38-39
7. Nerve terminating in a muscle 38-39
8. Muscle-fibres with capillaries around and between them 39
9. Parts of the respiratory apparatus 44
10. Trachea and bronchial tubes 45
11. Heart, lungs, and diaphragm 45
12. Diagram showing changes in shape of chest during inspiration 49
13. Diagram showing depression of the diaphragm during
inspiration 50
14. Position of diaphragm, abdominal walls, etc., during
expiration 55
15. Diagram illustrating reflex action 58
16. A well-developed, healthy chest 62
17. A chest deformed by corsets 62
18. Normal position of diaphragm and vital organs 63
19. Vital organs misplaced by compression of the chest 63
20. Thyroid and cricoid cartilages, side view 76
21. Thyroid and cricoid cartilages, front view 76
22. Back surface of cricoid cartilage 77
23. Cricoid cartilage, side view. 77
24. Arytenoid cartilages 77
25. A view of the larynx from behind 78
26. Epiglottis, thyroid and cricoid cartilages, etc. 78-79
27. Hyoid bone, crico-thyroid muscle, etc. 78-79
28. Posterior view of the larynx 79
29. Diagram showing relation of parts to the thyroid cartilage 80
30. Diagram showing the action of crico-thyroid muscle 82
31. View of larynx from above 83
32. Transverse section of larynx 83
33. False and true vocal bands, etc. 86
34. Inner surface of the larynx 87
35. Diagram to show the action of the laryngeal muscles 96
36. Registering the vibrations of a tuning-fork 100
37. Illustrating the transmission of vibrations 101
38. Illustrating the theory and practice of laryngoscopic
examination 104
39. Illustrating the practice of laryngoscopic examination 106
40. Laryngoscopic picture of male larynx 112
41. Laryngoscopic picture of female larynx 112
42. Larynx during an attack of a common "cold" 113
43. The vocal bands as seen with laryngoscope during deep
inspiration 113
44. Diagram showing form of chest and abdomen in forced
abdominal breathing 122
45. The vocal bands during the production of a high-pitched tone 138
46. Water being poured into a tube until the remaining air-space
becomes a resonator of a tuning-fork 142
47. Soft palate, fauces, and tonsils 142-143
48. Nares and soft palate, from behind 142-143
49. Turbinated bones of the nose 143
50. Madame Seiler's division of the registers 155
51. Appearance of the vocal bands when sounding first E and
then F sharp 164
52. Diagram to show the nature of registers and breaks 166
53. Diagram of the processes involved in singing 186
54. Highly magnified diagramatic representation of a section
through the superficial part of the great brain 188
55. Nerve-cell from the outer rind of the great brain, much
magnified 189
56. Position of parts in sounding the vowel A 219
57. Position of the parts in sounding I 220
58. Position of the parts in sounding OU 222
59. Position of the parts in sounding T, K, F, R, N, and P 227
60. Vertical section of the auditory apparatus 237
61. Diagram of the auditory apparatus 238
62. Two of the ear-bones (malleus and incus), enlarged 239
63. The complete chain of auditory ossicles 240
VOICE PRODUCTION
CHAPTER I.
THE CLAIMS AND IMPORTANCE OF VOCAL PHYSIOLOGY.
To know consciously and to do with special reference to guiding
principles are to be distinguished from carrying out some process
without bearing in mind the why or wherefore. Science is exact and
related knowledge, facts bound together by principles. Art is
execution, doing, and has not necessarily any conscious reference to
principles.
While every art has its corresponding science, their relation is in
some cases of much greater practical importance than in others. While
a painter may be the better for knowing the laws of light, there can
be no question that he may do very good work without any knowledge
whatever of the science of optics. He is at least in no danger of
injuring any part of his person.
Entirely otherwise is it with the voice-user. He employs a delicate
and easily injured vital apparatus. His results depend on the most
accurate adjustment of certain neuro-muscular mechanisms, and one
might suppose that it would be obvious to all who are concerned with
this art that a knowledge of the structure and functions of these
delicate arrangements of Nature would be at least of great if not of
essential importance. The engineer knows the structure and uses of
each part of his engine, and does not trust to unintelligent
observation of the mere working of mechanisms which others have
constructed. The architect studies not only the principles of design,
etc., but also the nature and relative value of materials. In his own
way he is a kind of anatomist and physiologist.
We do not trust the care of our bodies to those who have picked up a
few methods of treatment by experience or the imitation of others. The
doctor must have, we all believe, a knowledge of the structure and
working of the animal body; he must understand the action of drugs and
other healing agents. We expect him not only to diagnose the
disease--to tell us exactly what is the matter--but also to be able to
predict with, some degree of certainty the course of the malady. Even
the nurse of the day must show some grasp of the principles underlying
her art.
In connection with all the largest and best equipped universities in
America there are officials to plan and direct the courses in physical
culture. This matter is no longer entrusted to a "trainer," who has
only his experience and observation to rely upon. It is realized that
the building up of the mechanism which they are supposed to train in
an intelligent manner rests upon well-established principles.
It would be just as reasonable for an engineer to point to the fact
that his engine works well, as evidence of his ability, as for the
teacher of voice-production to make the same claim in regard to the
vocal mechanism. In each case there is a certain amount of
justification for the claim, but such teaching cannot be called
scientific. Is it even enlightened? It is just as rational to follow
in medicine methods that seem to lead to good results, without any
reference to the reason why, as to train for results in speaking and
singing by methods which have for the student and teacher no conscious
basis in scientific knowledge. The physician to-day who treats disease
without reference to anatomy and physiology is, at best, but a sort of
respectable charlatan. Why should students and teachers of
voice-production be content to remain, in the advanced present, where
they were hundreds of years ago?
Indeed, there is much more reason now than formerly why the vocalist,
speaker, and teacher should have a theoretical and practical
knowledge of the structure and workings of the mechanism employed.
Many tendencies of the present day work against successful
voice-training--worst of all, perhaps, the spirit of haste, the desire
to reach ends by short cuts, the aim to substitute tricky for
straightforward vocalization, and much more which I shall refer to
again and again. They hurt this cause; and I am deeply impressed with
the conviction that, if we are to attain the best results in singing
and speaking, we must betake ourselves in practice to the methods in
vogue at a time which may be justly characterized as the golden age of
voice-production.
We have advanced, musically, in many respects since the days of the
old Italian masters, but just as we must turn to the Greeks to learn
what constitutes the highest and best in sculpture, so must we sit at
the feet of these old masters. Consciously or unconsciously they
taught on sound physiological principles, and they insisted on the
voice-training absolutely necessary to the attainment of the best art.
However talented any individual may be, he can only produce the best
results as a singer, actor, or speaker, when the mechanisms by which
he hopes to influence his listeners are adequately trained. Why do we
look in vain to-day for elocutionists such as Vandenhoff, Bell, and
others? Why are there not actors with the voices of Garrick, Kean,
Kemble, or Mrs. Siddons, or singers with the vocal powers of a score
of celebrities of a former time? It is not that voices are rarer, or
talent less widely bestowed by nature. It is because _we do not to-day
pursue right methods for a sufficient length of time_; because our
methods rest frequently on a foundation less physiological, and
therefore less sound. Take a single instance, breath-control. In this
alone singers to-day are far behind those of the old Italian period,
not always because they do not know how to breathe, but because often
they are unwilling to give the time necessary for the full development
of adequate breathing power and control.
There was probably never a time when so much attention was paid to the
interpretation of music, yet the results are often unsatisfactory
because of inadequate technique. People seem to hope to impress us, on
the stage, with voices that from a technical point of view are crude
and undeveloped, and accordingly lack beauty and expressiveness.
Speakers to-day have often every qualification except voice--a voice
that can arrest attention, charm with its music, or carry conviction
by the adequate expression of the idea or emotion intended.
Is it not strange that a student of the piano or violin is willing to
devote perhaps ten years to the study of the technique of his
instrument, while the voice-user expects to succeed with a period of
vocal practice extending over a year or two, possibly even only a few
months?
When the anatomy and physiology of the larynx are considered, it will
be seen that the muscular mechanisms concerned in voice-production are
of a delicacy unequalled anywhere in the body except possibly in the
eye and the ear. And when it is further considered that these
elaborate and sensitive mechanisms of the larynx are of little use
except when adequately put into action by the breath-stream, which
again involves hosts of other muscular movements, and the whole in
relation to the parts of the vocal apparatus above the larynx, the
mouth, nose, etc., it becomes clear that only long, patient, and
_intelligent_ study will lead to the highest results.
It should also be remembered that such an apparatus can easily acquire
habits which may last for life, for good or ill, artistically
considered. Such delicate mechanisms can also be easily injured or
hopelessly ruined; and, as a matter of fact, this is being done daily.
A great musical periodical has made the statement that thousands of
voices are being ruined annually, in America alone, by incompetent
teaching. My experience when a practising laryngologist made me
acquainted with the extent of the ruin that may be brought about by
incorrect methods of using the voice, both as regards the throat and
the voice itself; and contact with teachers and students has so
impressed me with the importance of placing voice-production on a
sound foundation, not only artistic but physiological, that I have
felt constrained to tell others who may be willing to hear me what I
have learned as to correct methods, with some reference also to wrong
ones, though the latter are so numerous that I shall not be able to
find the space to deal at length with them.
The correct methods of singing and speaking are always, of necessity,
physiological. Others may satisfy a vitiated or undeveloped public
taste, but what is artistically sound is also physiological. None have
ever sung with more ease than those taught by the correct methods of
the old Italian masters; as none run so easily as the wisely trained
athlete, and none endure so well. People in singing and speaking will,
as in other cases, get what they work for, but have no right to expect
to sing or speak effectively by inspiration, any more than the athlete
to win a race because he is born naturally fleet of foot or with a
quick intelligence. In each case the ideas are converted into
performance, the results attained, by the exercise of neuro-muscular
mechanisms. I am most anxious that it shall be perceived that this is
the case, that the same laws apply to voice-production as to running
or any other exercise. The difference is one of delicacy and
complexity so far as the body is concerned.
It will be understood that I speak only of the technique. For art
there must be more than technique, but there is no art without good
methods of execution, which constitute technique. The latter is
nothing more than method--manner of performance. Behind these methods
of performance, or the simplest part of them, there must be some idea.
The more intelligent the student, speaker or singer, as to his art and
generally, the better for the teacher who instructs scientifically,
though such intelligence is largely lost to the teacher who depends on
tradition and pure imitation. In the present work I shall be so
concerned with the physical that I shall be able only to refer briefly
to the part that intelligence and feeling play in the result.
The qualifications for the successful treatment of vocal
physiology--that is, such a discussion of the subject as shall lead to
a clear comprehension of the nature of the principles involved, and
place them on a practical foundation, make them at once usable in
actual study and in teaching--such qualifications are many, and, in
their totality and in an adequate degree, difficult to attain. After
more than twenty years of the best study I could give to this subject
in both a theoretical and a practical manner, I feel that I have
something to say which may be useful to a large class, and, so far as
I know, that is my reason for writing this book.
For myself music is indispensable. The one instrument we all possess
is a voice-mechanism. I am one of those who regret that so little
attention is paid, especially in America, to pleasing and expressive
use of the voice in ordinary conversation. Yet how much pleasure
cannot a beautiful speaking voice convey! The college undergraduate
rarely finds vocal study among the requirements, in spite of the fact
that the voice is an instrument that he will use much more than the
pen. The truth is, the home methods of voice-production are those we
are most likely to carry with us through life, and, unfortunately,
little attention is given to the subject.
Sometimes a love of sweet sounds may be a hidden cause for much that
would otherwise be inexplicable in an entire career, as in my own
case. It led to an early study of singers and actors and their
performances; it gave rise to an effort to form a voice that would
meet the requirements of an unusually sensitive ear; it led to the
practice and teaching of elocution, and, later, to much communion with
voice-users, both singers and speakers. In the meantime came medical
practice, with speedy specialization as a laryngologist, when there
were daily consultations with singers and speakers who had employed
wrong methods of voice-production; this again led on to the scientific
investigation of voice problems, with a view of settling certain
disputed points; then came renewed and deeper study of music, both as
an art and as a science, with a profound interest in the study of the
philosophy of musical art and the psychological study of the musical
artist, all culminating in this attempt to help those who will listen
to me without prejudice. I do not think I know all that is to be
known, but I believe I do know how to form and preserve the voice
according to physiological principles; I at least ask the reader to
give my teachings and recommendations a fair trial. He shall have
reasons for what is presented and recommended to him.
Once more let it be said that I do not deny that good practical
results may follow teaching that is not put before the pupil as
physiology; but what is claimed for physiological teaching is that--
1. It is more rational. The student sees that things must be thus and
so, and not otherwise.
2. Faults can be the better recognized and explained.
3. The student can the more surely guide his own development, and meet
the stress and storm that sooner or later come to every professional
voice-user.
4. Injured voices can be the more effectively restored.
5. The physical welfare of the student is advanced--a matter which I
find is often neglected by teachers of music, though more so in the
case of instrumental than vocal teachers.
6. The student can much more effectively learn from the performances
of others, because he sees that singing and speaking are physical
processes leading to artistic ends. This is perhaps one of the most
valuable results, and I can testify to the greater readiness with
which analysis of a performance can be made after even moderate
advancement. The teacher who is wise will encourage the student to
hear those who excel, and to analyze the methods which successful
artists employ. The student can much more readily accomplish this than
detect the mental movements of the artist, though the two really go
hand in hand to a large extent.
The above are some of the advantages, but by no means all, of a method
of study of voice-production which I must claim is the only rational
one--certainly, the only one that rests on a scientific foundation.
It does not follow that such study, to be scientific, shall be made
repellent by the use of technical terms the significance of which the
reader is left to guess at, but finds unexplained. I fear such
treatment of vocal physiology has brought it into disrepute. The aim
of the writer will be to give a clear scientific treatment of the
subject, which shall not be obscured by unexplained technical terms,
and which shall be _practical_--capable of immediate use by student
and teacher. If he did not believe the latter possible he would not
think it worth while to attempt the former, especially as this has
often been done before, he regrets to say, badly enough.
Although the author has not now the tune to give regular lessons in
voice-production, he is frequently consulted, especially when abroad,
during his vacations, by speakers and especially singers who are
anxious to learn how they may increase their efficiency in the
profession by which they earn their livelihood and make their
reputation; and the reader may be gratified to learn how, in such
cases, the writer applies the principles he so strongly recommends to
others.
Let two or three illustrations suffice:
1. A tenor of world renown consulted him in regard to the position of
the larynx in singing, as he had a suspicion that his practice was not
correct, inasmuch as his voice seemed to be deteriorating to some
extent. The answer to his question need not be given here, as this
subject is discussed adequately in a later chapter.
2. The second was the case of a young lady, an amateur singer, who was
anxious to know why she failed to get satisfactory results. The author
heard her in a large room, without any accompaniment (to cover up
defects, etc.), and standing at first at some distance from her, then
nearer. Her tones were delightfully pure and beautiful, but her
performance suggested rather the sound of some instrument than singing
in the proper sense. It was impossible to learn the ideas to be
imparted, as the words could not be distinctly made out; there was a
monotony in the whole performance, though, it must be confessed, a
beautiful monotony, and there was a total lack of that vigor and
sureness that both educated and uneducated listeners must be made to
feel, or there results a sense of dissatisfaction, if not even
irritation.
The beauty of tone was owing to a production that was to a certain
extent sound, and this explained why the voice carried well in spite
of its being small. This young lady was well educated, had heard much
good music, possessed a sensitive ear and a fine æsthetic taste, and,
perhaps most important of all, in this case at least, was able to
think for herself. She was very slight of body, with an ill-developed
chest, and, from her appearance, could not have enjoyed robust health.
It was at once evident that this was an admirable case by which to
test the views advocated. Accordingly, the author addressed the young
lady as follows:
"Your voice is beautiful in quality, and carries well; you observe the
registers properly; but your vocalization is feeble, and your singing
is ineffective. This is due largely to the lack of robustness in your
voice, but not wholly. You do not tell your story in song so that the
listener may know what you have to say to him. The imperfections in
your method of speaking, so common in America--an imperfect
articulation and a limp texture of voice--are evident in your singing;
you do not phrase well, and you paint all in one color. This is due
chiefly to your breathing and your attacks. One may observe that at no
time do you fill your chest completely. You use the lower chest and
the diaphragm correctly, but you rob yourself of one half of your
breathing power, and your chest is not at all well developed. You do
not use the parts above your voice-box with vigor and efficiency, and
you direct so much attention to the quality of the tone that you
neglect its quantity and the ideas to be expressed. You have been
correctly but inadequately instructed. Your teachers have evidently
understood registers practically, as few do, but they have only half
taught you breathing and attack. Their fidelity to that high ideal of
quality of tone as the final consideration wins my respect."
The writer thought, but did not say, that they must have understood
little of vocal physiology, or they would not have left this young
lady so ill-developed physically, at least so far as the chest is
concerned.
I then asked this earnest and intelligent student, as she proved to
be, to take a full breath. She did not understand this, and was
absolutely incapable of doing it. She had been taught to begin
breathing below, to expand from the lower chest upward, and, as a
natural result, she never filled the upper chest. She was at once
shown how it was done, when she seemed greatly surprised, and said: "I
never have done that in my whole life." "Did you not run and shout as
a child?" "No, I never did run enough or shout enough to fill up my
chest." The latter was small, and flat.
The method of attack was next explained and illustrated, first without
reference to words, and then to show its importance in conveying
ideas, and the causes of the defects in speaking were indicated, and
the corrections named and illustrated. The lady was then asked to sing
again, making the improvements suggested, with the result that it was
clear that every principle set forth had been clearly apprehended,
though of course as yet only imperfectly carried out. The student was
recommended to take walking exercise, and to practice filling the
chest in the manner to be explained later.
After six weeks she again asked to be heard. The change effected was
wonderful; she was another type of vocalist now. Without any loss in
quality her voice had a volume and intensity that made it adequate for
singing in at least a small hall; her attacks were good, though not
perfect; and at the end of a very large room it could easily be seen
that her chest was, when necessary, filled full, so that she was able
to produce a large and prolonged tone. But, best of all, her health
had greatly improved, and she had gained in size and weight.
It is but fair to point out that, in the present case, the student was
an unusually intelligent and thoughtful person. Had it been otherwise,
more consultations would have been necessary, with probably many
detailed instructions and much practice before the teacher. But the
case sufficed to convince me afresh that only physiological teaching
meets the needs of pupil and teacher. I do not claim, of course, that
it is a panacea. It will not supply the lack of a musical ear or an
artistic temperament. Vocalization does not make an artist, but there
can be no artist without sound vocalization.
All the author's experience as a laryngologist tended to convince him
that most of those evils from which speakers and singers suffer,
whatever the part of the vocal mechanism affected, arise from faulty
methods of voice-production, or excess in the use of methods in
themselves correct. A showman may have a correct method of
voice-production--indeed, the writer has often studied the showman
with admiration--but if he speak for hours in the open air in all
sorts of weather, a disordered throat is but the natural consequence;
and the Wagnerian singer who will shout instead of sing must not
expect to retain a voice of musical quality, if, indeed, he retain one
at all.
Throughout this work it will be assumed that the speaker and the
singer should employ essentially the same vocal methods. The singer
should be a good speaker, even a good elocutionist, and the speaker
should be able to produce tones equal in beauty, power, and
expressiveness to those of the singer, but, of course, within a more
limited range, and less prolonged, as a rule. To each alike is
voice-training essential, if artistic results are to follow; neither
rhetorical training on the one hand nor musical training on the other
will alone suffice.
So that it may be clear that the same physiological principles apply
to the vocal mechanism as to all others in the body, a short chapter
dealing with this subject is introduced, before taking up the
structure and functions of any part of that apparatus by which the
speaker or singer produces his results as a specialist.
The laws of health known as hygiene follow so naturally on those of
physiology that brief references to this subject, from time to time,
with a chapter at the end of the work bearing specially on the life of
the voice-user, will probably suffice.