THE ART OF DRAWING-ROOM SINGING
CORRECT BREATHING AND VOICE PRODUCTION
[Illustration: FIG. 1.
A. Hard palate.
B. Soft „
D. Uvula.
E. Tongue.]
ONE of the most delightful sounds in the drawing-room is the music of
the human voice, uplifted in song to a soft pianoforte accompaniment,
if, of course, the voice be tuneful, easily produced, and sympathetic,
and the breathing taken without effort.
The first steps to be considered in singing are (1) correct breathing,
(2) voice production, (3) clear pronunciation. The tongue should be
hollowed behind the teeth, not rolled up in a ball, thus closing the
vocalist’s throat. The uvula, so called because of its supposed likeness
to a grape, should be lifted to the roof of the soft palate, the mouth
presenting a hollow open chamber, through which the notes issue in
clear, bell-like tones (Fig. 1).
The beginner will find this a difficult matter, and effort and will are
needed to keep the tongue down and the uvula up. The position of the
former may be demonstrated by means of the handle of a teaspoon pressed
against it. The tongue will prove rebellious until practice makes it
perfectly easy and natural to subdue it in the necessary manner.
In breathing, inhale a long slow breath through the nose only, keeping
the mouth closed. The air should originate in the upper part of the
diaphragm, and be held until the ribs are slowly inflated, balloon
fashion, when it should be exhaled through the open mouth, gently and
without effort until the ribs contract. Never push the ribs to lengthen
the expiration of breath.
A good plan to insure easy and quiet breathing is to count slowly to ten
while the chest box is being inflated, and also when the air is being
exhaled. In this manner the breath will be prevented from coming and
going in spasmodic gasps and jerks. The number ten may be increased
gradually to twenty or thirty, until the student is able to produce
breath sufficient for the phrase vocalized. Regular breathing exercises
should be taken every day before singing, the hands being placed upon
the ribs, in order to feel and insure their gradual rise and fall.
An anatomical study of the throat, windpipe, and lungs should be made
(Fig. 2), and this will considerably help the student to understand the
difficult mechanism of voice production.
[Illustration: FIG. 2.--Throat, windpipe, and lungs.]
Practice gradually adds new notes to the voice, but the young singer
must be careful not to strain the vocal organs by endeavoring to sing
high and low notes before they are naturally developed.
Concones and every variety of singing exercises should be practiced
before a song is undertaken. Over-practice is harmful. Vocal organs
should never be fatigued or unduly taxed, and half-an-hour’s practice is
ample--indeed, more valuable than an hour at a stretch.
Singing directly after meals should be avoided, and the throat must not
be coddled in furs or compressed by high collars.
DAINTY MODERN SONGS
In drawing-room singing, four or five-versed lyrics are not nearly so
charming as the dainty modern songs of two or three verses, and these
must never be undertaken until the student has reached a proper
understanding of phrasing, breathing, and expression.
Many singers prefer to accompany themselves, but this has its
disadvantages, as the voice is far better produced when the vocalist is
standing. The position should be easy and natural, the head erect, but
not lifted back, as this contracts and narrows the larynx.
While the singer should enter into the idea of the composer, she should
have her own conception of the song, and endeavor to give it, as far as
possible, her own individual expression, her voice being colored by the
cultivation of her soul; otherwise the most perfect vocalization will
fail to move the audience.
These elementary rules hold good for the male as well as the female
singer, and cannot be too carefully considered.
A further important factor in the art of singing is the hygiene of the
human body. The singer must cherish physical health. Plenty of outdoor
exercise should be taken. Indulgence in drinking and over-eating is
injurious. To practice when fatigued, or indisposed, is to risk
permanent harm to the voice; and to sing when suffering from a cold is
extremely foolish. At such times, breathing exercises may be taken with
advantage, as they clear the lungs and help towards recovery.
Lady singers are sometimes inclined to wear gowns which do not allow
them sufficient room for breathing purposes, and they will often
willfully sacrifice the well-being of their voices to be fashionably
attired. In order to perform their functions properly, the lungs and
ribs must have space and freedom from pressure. Too narrow bodices are
almost as pernicious to the voice as tight lacing, for these seriously
retard the breathing, and what in loose garments is natural and easy of
accomplishment, becomes an obvious struggle, which fatigues the singer
and renders her voice thin and poor in quality. This is often the reason
why a vocalist is seen to lift her shoulders and pant audibly during her
song, thus marring her conception, which may be, in every other
particular, delightful and artistic.
Many singers with weak lungs find voice production extremely beneficial,
for proper breathing and careful practice do more to strengthen a
delicate chest than any bottled remedies.
The vocalist should never stoop (for this narrows and compresses the
vocal organs), and in singing the first care should be to see that the
shoulders are well thrown back, although not strained to an unnatural
position.
In practicing, it is beneficial to keep the arms folded behind the back,
placing the hands over the elbows, and taking care not to thrust the
head forward. This will keep the chest expanded, and the body easily
upright.
THE VALUE OF A GOOD ACCOMPANIST
When performing, it is necessary to be equipped with a good
accompanist--one who understands the art thoroughly, and refrains from
banging out the notes as if the voice of the singer were merely the
background to his own performance. The three qualities essential in an
accompanist are sympathy, artistic sensibility, and discernment to
understand the temperament and conception of the vocalist.
An inefficient accompanist has power to transform an artist’s highest
and most conscientious endeavor into irritability and inability to
render individual expression. Pianists frequently are highly recommended
to singers because of their gift of sight reading. Now this is a very
valuable and important accessory, but there are many excellent sight
readers who have no idea of that delicate and tactful manipulation of
accompaniment found in the true artist, and who, even though they play
correctly the most difficult music placed before them, sadly fail
because of inadequate comprehension of the needs vital to the singer.
To hustle the singer is almost as heinous a fault as to lag behind. Some
accompanists convey the fatiguing impression of a brake applied to a
carriage wheel, and the artist feels as if she were pulling the pianist
through the song, while others play as if they were racing to catch a
train, and there is not a moment to lose. Both these defects are equally
fatal. The pianist on these occasions should neither be independent nor
dependent. She or he must realize that, although the pianoforte is
subordinate, it is extremely important because of its power to influence
the mind and conception of the singer, who should feel an electric tide
of sympathy and support flowing from the pianoforte and carrying the
voice on a wave of sound.
An accompanist should be chosen with care, rehearsed with frequently,
and must possess individual qualities in common with the temperament of
the singer. A sense of reliability and strength conveyed will do much to
put the most nervous vocalist at ease, and give that tranquility and
self-possession without which no singing is successful.
Rehearsing before a mirror is of great assistance, for it is only in
studying the reflection of one’s features when singing that one is able
to check nervous mannerisms and facial contortions. Pains must be taken
to open the lips adequately wide, for the mouth is the mold; the voice,
the molten gold; and, if the mold is twisted or narrowed, the gold will
be warped and flawed in quality.
The simpler the manner of the singer the sweeter the song, for the
affectation sometimes indulged in, the airs and grimaces commonly known
as “side,” which some singers see fit to employ, are as unsightly as a
mud-splashed window-pane. They are often also the insignia of the
incompetent and the ignorant, for it is never the true artist who thus
obtrudes herself on her hearers.
Of course, in some cases apparent affectation really originates in
extreme nervousness and hyper self-consciousness. In such cases the
singer must battle patiently with this embarrassing trait until it is
overcome, for unless this is accomplished one’s singing can never be a
joy and delight.
In order to be successful, a song must be delivered harmoniously; to
voice sweet exquisite words accompanied by facial contortions is to make
a pitiful caricature of your performance.
Take care, therefore, that your attitude, features, and expression
combine to carry the emotion conveyed in your voice. Study unity and
repose. Endeavor to forget your own identity for the time being,
considering yourself only as the cage that holds the nightingale.
Although the singer should be perfect mistress of the songs forming her
repertoire, she should always deliver them freshly and spontaneously.
There is an old saying, “Familiarity breeds contempt,” and,
notwithstanding the fact that this is usually said of individuals, it
may be applied very truly to the relationship that exists between singer
and song.
WHY SINGERS OFTEN FAIL
It is very usual for an ambitious student to be consumed with
conscientious determination. She makes up her mind to learn a difficult
song, and she works assiduously at it day after day, week after week,
until she knows every word and every note.
By-and-by she performs it proudly to a select circle of friends, and she
is surprised and discouraged to find that all her keen enthusiasm for
the song has gone. It does not seem to suit her voice; the words have
lost meaning. The emotion she at first poured into it has disappeared,
and she is thoroughly disheartened, and is quite unable to find reason
or remedy for her indifference.
An experienced artist would be able to show that student in a moment
wherein her failure lay.
She had allowed herself to become too familiar, and familiarity had bred
contempt. The song doubtless needed practice, but not incessant grinding
and toiling. One cannot hammer the arts into one’s head as if they were
nails being driven into wood. The subtle essence, the ephemeral spirit
of the song will still evade the singer. To catch that, and to reveal it
to others, the work must be as pure as the widespread petals of a
flower.
So, when listlessness replaces your high enthusiasm for a song with
which you have become too familiar, do not be disheartened, but put it
away, and determine not to touch it or hear it sung until your first
eagerness to master it is reborn. Then, and then only, take it out and
sing it, and you will be astonished at the result; for having mastered
the technicalities you are able to pour your heart into your words, and
the result amazes you and delights your hearers, who think you have
never sung anything better or more suitable to the pitch and timbre of
your voice.