\normalsize
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\chapter*{PREFACE}
\pagestyle{fancy}
%\large
\emph{The Theoretical and Practical Vocal Method} that I now publish
is an educational work which commences with the vocal alphabet, that is
to say, with elementary exercises, and contains also a series of
\emph{Elementary and Progressive Vocalises} for the formation of the
mechanism of the voice.

I would again set forth the principle that I have already laid down in
prefaces to different works that I have published, which is, that in
order to obtain a speedy and satisfactory result, pupils should never
be burdened with more than one difficulty at a time, and they should
be assisted in overcoming obstacles by having them presented in a
natural and progressive order.
It is with this object in view that I have written special Exercises
and Vocalises for each particular difficulty.

It is essential that the mechanism of the voice should be trained to
execute all possible rhythmical and musical forms before passing to
the æstetical part of the art of singing.

May this work, which I look upon as my last of the kind, add to the
important results that I have obtained from forty-two years'
application of my system.

\hfill MATHILDE MARCHESI
\newpage
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\chapter*{PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR STUDENTS}

\section*{ATTITUDE OF THE SINGER}
The attitude of the pupil, in singing, should be as natural and easy
as possible.
The body should be kept upright, the head erect, the shoulders well
thrown back, without effort, and the chest free.
In order to give perfect freedom to the vocal organs while singing,
all the muscles surrounding those parts should be completely relaxed.

\section*{THE MOUTH}
As the vocal tube extends to the lips, the beauty of a voice may be
quite spoiled by a faulty position of the mouth.

The smiling mouth, for example, favoured by many singing-teachers past % favored
and present, is absurd, and quite contrary to the law of acoustics.
Smiling causes the mouth to assume the position required for
pronouncing the Italian E (pronounced \emph{ay}.) % prounced
This vowel makes the vocal tube square, and gives the voice a too open
tone, called by the Italians \emph{voce sgangherata} and by the French
\emph{voix blanche}.
Therefore, the mouth should be opened naturally, by letting the chin
fall, as in pronouncing ``ah'' (not too broad), and it must be kept
immovable in this position for the entire duration of the sound.

In opening the mouth, only the lower jaw moves, the upper one being
fixed; hence the necessity for lowering he chin.
The muscles of the jaw possess great contractile power, and will not,
at first, remain relaxed during the whole length of the sound; but
with practice they will eventually gain the necessary elasticity.
When this elasticity is once acquired, it will enable the chin to
articulate the consonants distinctly and rapidly in singing.

\section*{RESPIRATION}

Respiration consists of \emph{Inspiration}, during which the air
passes through the glottis, the trachea or windpipe, and the bronchial
tubes to enter the lungs;
and of \emph{Expiration}, during which the air is breathed out again
through the same channels.

In the normal state, these two movements succeed one another in a
regular and rhythmical manner and \emph{without any intervention of
  the will, as during the sleep}.
Consequently, all premeditated action for facilitation or regulating
these functions in a special manner is fatally injurious, because it
opposes and impairs the freedom of the normal movements of the vocal
organs and of the muscles which governs them.
In addition to the outward movement of the ribs, the chest (thorax, a
bony, conical cage, slightly flattened) can expand, in
\emph{Inspiration}, at its base, summit and sides.
So there are \emph{three} respiratory movements, or three kinds of
breathing, namely:---
\begin{itemize}
\item \emph{Diaphragmatic} or \emph{Abdominal;}
\item Clavicular;
\item Lateral or Interocstal.
\end{itemize}

The lungs, formed of a spongy, elastic tissue, perforated in every
part by thousands of little tubes destined to receive the air, are
concave and largest at their base, and separated from the abdominal
cavity by a convex muscular partition, called the Diaphragm, upon
which they rest.
At the moment of \emph{Inspiration} this partition descends, causing
the base of the lungs to expand.

Normal respiration, or the natural breathing of a healthy person, is
\emph{diaphragmatic} or \emph{abdominal}.
By this method of respiration the lungs are expanded at the base, and
consequently receive the greatest quantity of air.
By the other methods, which are bad, the lungs are only partly filled;
whence the necessity for more frequent breathing and the
impossibility of singing long phrases in a single breath.

The use of the corset by females causes \emph{lateral} breathing,
because it compresses the abdominal walls.
Ladies who would become singers are, therefore, strongly advised to
avoid clothes which, by interfering with the freedom of the waist,
prevent the inflation of the lungs at the base.

\section*{ATTACK (COUP DE GLOTTE)}
After the lungs are filled, it is necessary, for the production of a
tone, that the pupil should hermetically close the glottis so that its
extreme edges, called the \emph{Vocal Cords}, may be set vibration by
the air which bursts through at the moment of \emph{Expiration}.
The \emph{Coup de Glotte} requires, then, a sudden and energetic
approximation of the lips of the \emph{glottis}, an instant before
\emph{Expiration} commences.

This organic action, which forms the \emph{Attack} or \emph{Emission}
of the voice, is brought about by preparing the glottis and mouth for
the production of a vowel.
As stated above, the best vowel for use for the formation and
development of the voice is the Italian vowel A (\emph{ah}), attacking
it naturally and without effort or affectation.

It should be understood that the \emph{Coup de Glotte} is a natural
movement of the vocal organs, and the pupil has only to bring under
the control of the will this spontaneous action which has been
developing since the first cry at the moment of birth.
It is, in fact, the possession of this same natural faculty that
enables us to form unconsciously all the vowels in speaking.

The closing of the glottis is, then, a natural and spontaneous organic
action.
But, in speaking, this action is intermittent, the opening of the lips
of the glottis being followed by their contraction with an equal
rapidity.
The pupil need do no more than endeavour to keep the glottis contracted
after its lips have been brought together.
That is to say, when once the note has been attacked, it is necessary
to practice holding the glottis contracted as long as the teacher
considers it expedient for the development of the elasticity of the
vocal organs; a development which practice will increase daily.
We repeat, then, that if the pupil would acquire a good attack, the
glottis must be closed an instant before \emph{Expiration} commences; in
other words, it should be prepared.

If the column of air issuing from the lungs finds the glottis open,
and, in consequence of there being no obstacle in its way, no body is
set vibrating, then the result is \emph{Aphony} (no sound).
If the \emph{Vocal Cords} are not firmly and evenly closed throughout
their entire extent at the instant that the air commences to escape
from the lungs, the lips of the glottis being unable to contract fully
during \emph{Expiration}, the tone will be weak and hoarse, and the
intonation uncertain, because the \emph{Vocal Cords} will not vibrate
throughout their entire extent, and the vibrations cannot be
isochronous (equal).
Moreover, because the air escapes in puffs and the lungs empty
rapidly, the tone is of short duration, and the pupil's respiration is
short and unsteady, as the supply of breath has to be renewed so
frequently.

To sum up, the firmer and more complete the approximation of the lips
of the glottis, the more resistance they will offer to the air which
escapes from the lungs, and the less air it will take to set the
\emph{Vocal Cords} vibration.
The slower the \emph{Expiration}, the longer the tone will last.
The equal and continuous pressure of the air against the vibrating
body produces \emph{isochronous} (equal) vibrations, and maintains
equality of tone throughout its entire duration.

\section*{REGISTERS OF THE FEMALE VOICE}
This is the \emph{Alpha} and \emph{Omega} of the formation and
development of the female voice, the touchstone of all singing methods,
old and new.
As this is to be, above all, a \emph{Practical Guide} for students,
this important subject cannot here be treated in detail.
The anatomical, physiological, and acoustical explanations and
demonstrations necessary for a clear understanding of the organic
phenomena which cause the three series of consecutive and homogeneous
tones of the three registers, of an essentially different nature, I
give verbally to pupils, with the aid of anatomical charts and an
artificial human larynx.

Nevertheless, before offering any practical remarks upon this subject,
so important in the formation of the voice, I consider it necessary to
explain, in a few words, the production of sound in general, in order
to make clear to the pupil the theory which establishes the existence
of the three registers.
Moreover, as all the tones belonging to one resister are of the same
nature, the modifications of intensity and quality which they can
undergo are of little moment.

Sound is a property of the air, as colour is of light, for there can be
no sound without air, any more than there can be colour without light.
At the present day, the immediate causes of effects in these great
phenomena of nature are well known, but the principles underlying
these causes are yet to be discovered.
The special organisation, interior and exterior, of a body, which by
its oscillations sets the air vibrating, or by its surface reflects
light in a particular manner, decides the nature of the sound or the
shade of the colour.

Three things are needed for the production of a sound;
namely, a \emph{Motor}, which acts either by sending a column of air
against a vibration body, or by immediate friction with this body;
a \emph{Vibrator}, which executes a certain number of regular
(isochronous) or irregular vibrations in a given time when set in
motion by the \emph{Motor};
and finally, a \emph{Resonator} (because of its function, it would be
more correct to call it the cooperating element), which receives the
sounding column of air that escapes from the vibrating body to imbue
it with the character of its own sound by reverberations.
These three elements, indispensable for the production of sound, are
found in all wind, stringed, or percussion instruments.
It is, therefore, only logical to admit that they should also exist in
the vocal organs.

Upon examination, it will be found that the tone of most of these
instruments is of a similar nature throughout their compass, and that
they are free from those sudden changes in the quality of the sound
that we are met with in the human voice.
This is because the three generating elements of sound, in these
instruments, are unalterable in their functions as well as in their
shapes and sizes.

If we examine these three elements in the vocal organs, we find that
the \emph{Motor} (the lungs and the parts connected with them) may
possess greater or lesser activity, more or less power and elasticity,
according to its physiological or pathological state, but the nature
of its functions never changes, neither does its organic form alter.
The \emph{Vibrator} (the glottis) in its normal state is susceptible
of innumerable degrees of tension and contractions, but is unalterable
in its function.
The glottis can, indeed, augment or diminish th intensity of the
sound, by a corresponding increase or decrease in the amplitude of
vibration of the \emph{Vocal Cords}, according to the force of the
concussion caused by the air in \emph{Expiration}; it can also raise
or lower the pitch, by shortening or lengthening the \emph{Vocal
  Cords}, in combination with the modifications of the shape of the
resonance tube; but no alteration can be discovered in its functional
activity as a \emph{Vibrating body} that would account for the
different nature of the tone in the change of register.
It is evident, therefore, that the secret of the phenomenon met with
in passing from one register to another is to be found in the
\emph{Resonator} of the vocal organs.
It is the \emph{Larynx} which, by change of position, directs the
column of air escaping from the \emph{Vibrator} (the glottis) toward
the three resonant walls alternately.

Since, then, each register of the voice consists of a series of
consecutive and homogeneous tones, of a kind essentially different
from those of the other registers, it follows that the vocal apparatus
should contain three quite distinct resonance chambers (walls.)
These three \emph{Resonators}, formed of different organic tissues,
impart, by reason of their special physiological properties, a
distinct character to each series of tones contained within the
limits of each register.

After many years' successful experience, I am convinced that
scientific knowledge is indispensable to teachers of singing, because
it enables them to treat the vocal instrument in a natural and
rational manner and with greater certainty; also, by showing them the
causes of the defects, it helps them in training difficult voices and
in correcting the numerous faults of emission that each pupil brings,
the result either of bad habits or inferior training.

If we do not teach the elements of the anatomy and physiology of the
human voice, we needlessly deprive the pupil of the means of becoming
acquainted with the physical phenomena of the vocal organs.
Each pupil should, therefore, at least be taught how to manage and
preserve the voice in its career, and should understand the exact
meaning of the words \emph{Larynx, Glottis, Vocal Cords}, etc., words
which the antagonists of the physiology of the voice are themselves
obliged to use continually in speaking of the art of singing.
                                   
I most emphatically maintain that the female voice possesses
\emph{tree} registers, and not \emph{two}, and I strongly impress upon
my pupils this undeniable fact, which, moreover their own experience
teaches them after a few lessons.

The three registers of the female voice are the \emph{Chest}, the
\emph{Medium} and the \emph{Head}.
I use the term \emph{Medium} and not \emph{Falsetto} (the word used
for the middle register by some teachers of singing), firstly,
because the word \emph{Medium} (middle) precisely and logically
explains the position that this register occupies in the compass of
the voice, and, secondly, to avoid all confusion that might be caused
by the term \emph{Falsetto}, which belongs exclusively to men's
voices.
\emph{Falsetto}, which signifies \emph{Falso} (false), that is,
\emph{in place of the true}, is a term that has been used in Italy
from the earliest period in the history of the art of singing, to
indicate certain \emph{piano} effects in the high tones of the Tenor
voice.

Empiricism, which in these days appears to struggle more than ever
against the incessant progress made by all the sciences connected with
the phenomena of the voice, as well as against all rules of modern
pedagogy, has put in circulation, among other absurdities, the
assertion that the female voice possesses only \emph{two} registers,
Chest and Falsetto.
This grave error has also been endorsed by several eminent modern
physiologists, who have persuaded themselves that they have established
this theory, after their observation with the laryngoscope, but who
are incapable of making comparative experiments with their own vocal
organs.
                                   
Nevertheless, the female voice most certainly does possess
\emph{three} registers.
But for defining the special nature of the tone of each of them, for
determining their respective limits, and for blending the three
registers and establishing homogeneity of tone throughout the compass
of the voice, theoretical and practical knowledge is needed.

Unfortunately, it is owing to this ignorance of the limits and the
treatment of these three registers of the female voice that there are
so many imperfectly trained singers, who struggle against the faults
and difficulties of a mechanism wrongly used, and so many unequal
voices, which possess sets of weak and heterogeneous tones, commonly
called \emph{breaks}.
These \emph{breaks}, however, are only tones wrongly placed and
produced.

When commencing to study, the lowest notes of a register, in most
voices, have not so much power as the highest notes of the register
next below.
The theoretical and practical explanation that I give to pupils of
this phenomenon soon convinces them that here lie difficulties,
inherent to the physical construction of the vocal organs, which are
easily conquered when the causes are understood.
Therefore, in using the exercises designed for developing, in the
Larynx or Glottis, those faculties that are necessary for removing
this imperfection of the vocal compass, the homogeneity in the nature
of the tone throughout the particular compass of each register, as
well as the blending of the three registers, depends, above all, upon
the ability of the teacher, the patience and assiduity of the pupil,
and the method of practising.
                                   
Female voices are divided into \emph{Contralto}, \emph{Mezzo-Soprano},
\emph{Dramatic Soprano}, and \emph{Light Soprano} (sfogato).
The highest note in the chest-register of all female voices varies
between the notes \INL{op31_fig1.eps}

Contralto and Mezzo-Soprano differ from Soprano voices in having
generally a chest-register of much greater compass, which extends more
or less to the lower tones.

To equalise and blend the \emph{Chest} and \emph{Medium} registers,
the pupil must slightly close the last two notes of the former in
ascending, and open them in descending.
Every effort expended upon the highest notes of a register increases
the difficulty of developing the power of the lower tones in the next
register, and therefore of blending the two registers, until
eventually it becomes impossible.

When the limits of the registers are not fixed, there is always a
series of tones that are uncertain, weak, and out of tune, when
singing a scale with full voice, or a sustained phrase.
According to modern pitch, the highest \emph{chest}-note of nearly all
Contralto and Mezzo-Soprano voices varies from \INL{op31_fig2.eps};
Soprano voices from \INL{op31_fig3.eps}

There are \emph{Contralto} voices which, by reason of an exceptional
position of the Larynx, never succeed in developing a
\emph{Head}-voice.
Theses \emph{short} voices, which consist merely of the \emph{Chest}
and \emph{Medium} registers, are very rare, and they can aspire only
to a career as concert-singers.

The limit of the \emph{Medium} register in all female voices varies
from \INL{op31_fig4.eps}; as a general rule, however,
\INL{op31_fig5.eps} should be looked as the highest note.

As the \emph{Head}-voice is very rarely used for speaking in ordinary
circumstances, the tones of this register are but little developed,
and, on commencing the study of singing, they present a great
contrast, in intensity and volume, to the highest notes of the
\emph{Medium} register.
More time is needed, therefore, for the development of the
\emph{Head}-register than for the other registers.

The same instructions that we have given for the change and blending
of the \emph{Chest} and \emph{Medium} registers apply also to those of
the \emph{Medium} and \emph{Head}.

\section*{METHOD OF STUDY}

A rational and progressive course of vocal gymnastics will develop
great elasticity as well as a great power of contraction in the
muscles of the vocal organs, without ever causing fatigue; while the
least excess in practising causes exhaustion.
On commencing study, the pupil should not continue singing too long at
a time, and, at first, practice should not last longer than five or
ten minutes, repeated after long intervals, three or four times a day.
The time devoted to practice may be gradually increased five minutes
at a time to half an hour.
A conscientious teacher will never allow the lesson to last longer
than half an hour.

If, as very frequently happens, the pupil disregards these instructions
and practises at home longer than the teacher advises, that
distressing result, fatigue of the voice, will soon follow.
In this case the \emph{Vocal Cords}, the most delicate and important
part of the vocal organs, are the first to be affected, and it will be
necessary to stop practice for a time.
This interruption of study, at the beginning, is sufficient to undo
all the work that has already been done.
Besides the loss of precious time, the pupil has also to regret the
loss of the progress that has been made by the muscles of the vocal
organs.
It is of the greatest importance that the pupil should always commence,
when practising at home, with the emission of the voice, and continue
the exercises in the order appointed by the teacher.
In order to develop the power, compass and equality of the voice, and
to succeed in blending the registers, the scales should be practised
with full voice, but without forcing; and avoid shouting.

\section*{ANALYSIS}

Most pupils who learn singing have very little knowledge of music.
They commence, consequently, by singing the exercises and scales
mechanically, guided entirely by ear, paying no attention to the
length and rhythmical division of each measure, or the particular
value of each note.
This method of singing by ear is most pernicious, and wastes much of
the pupil's time; besides, when studying in this manner, the pupil is
obliged to repeat the same passage over and over again, which, instead
of aiding progress, tends only to tire the vocal organs.
Therefore, the pupil should, from the very first lesson, cultivate a
habit of analysing, or mentally preparing, the exercises, etc., before
commencing to sing them.
It is only by finding out the exact motive of the task in hand that
pupils can so grasp the teacher's ideas as to make them guide their
studies and lead on to the road of independence.

If this analytical method is adopted by the pupil from the very
beginning, it will be of great assistance in all the different periods
of study, as well as in his or her professional career, when new works
have to be studied.
It will also prove of great service when, in passing to the second
part of my method (the Elementary and Graduated Vocalises), new
difficulties are encountered, such as the different kinds of time
(duple, triple, etc.), the various modulations, the multi-form
divisions of each measure, the very varied rhythmical accents, and,
finally, the new combinations of intervals constantly occurring.

When the time, the division of each measure, and the accentuation of
the phrase are understood, the pupil may commence to sing with full
voice, because then attention need be given only to the intonation,
and a successful result will be obtained before fatigue sets in.

After finishing the course of Vocalises, the pupil should pass on to
the third part of my Method, which contains Vocalises with words, and
where still further purely mechanical difficulties will be found.

In accordance with my system (explained in the Preface of this work),
which consists of presenting to the pupil only a single obstacle at a
time, I have composed Vocalises with words, for blending pronunciation
with vocalisation; that is to say, for accustoming the pupil to
pronounce the words distinctly, without affecting the emission of the
voice, and not neglecting to correct faults of pronunciation; and this
should be done before commencing to sing Airs, and before giving
thought to sentiment or expression.
For this purpose I have chosen the Italian language, because it is the
only one that is free from the guttural vowels of Teutonic languages,
and the closed and nasal ones of the French language; without
mentioning certain consonants produced by the root of the tongue in
the former languages, or the
``\emph{grasseyement}''\footnote{``Grasseyerment,'' defective
  pronunciation of the letter R} generally met with among the French.

It is impossible to give rules for correcting the very many faults of
pronunciation that one meets with in pupils.
They must be left to the skill and experience of the teacher.
Not only do these faults or pronunciation of the various nationalities
differ among themselves, but they vary very considerably even among
pupils of the same country, being the result either of a special
organisation, bad habits, or the particular dialect spoken in each of
the provincial towns of the different countries.

Equality in the emission of tone upon the five simple Italian vowels,
\emph{a, e, i, o, u;} the correction of defective articulation of the
consonants by the means best adapted to each individual; and the
formation of a habit of good pronunciation --- these are the tasks for
the pupil commencing the third part of my Method.

The closed E and O, that one would willingly receive into the Italian
language, do not, however, exist in it, although the sentiment, sad or
cheerful, of a word or a phrase impels the orator, actor or singer to
close or open the vowels.
So, too, words are frequently met with that express alternately grief
and terror, or joy and sarcasm.

In order to properly render the sense of the situation, it is
necessary, therefore, to close or open the vowel of a word in
accordance with the sentiment to be expressed.
As to the consonants, it is the linguals \emph{l, d, t, s, z, r, n, c,
  g, k, q, x,} that interfere with the emission of tone when
commencing to sing words, because the root of the tongue is so closely
attached to the larynx.
They alter the equilibrium of the tension and the regularity of the
vibrations of the vocal cords, because the movements of the tongue
jerk the larynx.
After a time, practice will render these movements independent of the
operations of the larynx.

The pupil should look upon the studies in the third part as belonging
exclusively to the mechanism of the art of singing, since expression
or sentiment has yet to be dealt with.
Nevertheless, as the different melodies have been inspired by the
sense of the words, they commence to develop the taste and sentiment
of the pupil with regard to phrasing and style.

In commencing this part of my Method, pupils who have hitherto
followed the system of analysis adopted at the beginning of their
studies will be quite competent to decipher the musical part of the
\emph{Vocalises with Words}, by reading them, at first, without the
text, in the manner indicated above.
The next thing to do, before commencing to sing the Vocalises, is to
distribute the syllables to their notes.

When once complete mastery has been obtained over the mechanism of the
voice, as well as over all the degrees of power, expression, and of
quality and colour of sound that the vocal organs can produce, and
when the movements of the tongue and lips are thoroughly under
control, then the pupil can easily learn to sing in any language,
without sacrificing beauty of tone to clear pronunciation of each
syllable, or distinct pronunciation to beauty of tone.

When all mechanical difficulties have been overcome, from the
formation of tone up to pronunciation, the pupil may pass on to the
study of the Air with Recitative, and so enter upon the æsthetics of
the art of singing without being arrested every moment by vocal or
musical faults, or by a badly pronounced word or syllable.
Pupils can now give their attention exclusively to the sentiment and
expression, and commence to acquire a knowledge of the different
styles found in the many kinds of vocal music.

In studying an Air, pupils should always employ the same analytical
system they have used hitherto.
They should commence, therefore, by reading and translating the text,
trying to get an idea of the character they have to represent,
studying, at the same time, the dramatic situation in which this
character is placed at the moment of singing the particular Air.
At this psychological moment, so important for the development of the
sentiment and mode of expression, the pupil should obtain from the
teacher every explanation that can facilitate the task.

Later, when the studies in singing, elocution, and acting have come to
an end, and pupils in the course of their careers as singers are
called upon to learn new works, they will find that this system of
analysing the measure, text, character, and dramatic situation, before
commencing to sing, will give them a great advantage over other
vocalists.
Both voice and time will be saved, and the spirit of a new piece or
\emph{r\^ole} will be more quickly seized by them than by others.

\section*{STYLE}

People often speak of the Italian, French, or German \emph{School} or
\emph{Style} of singing.
Having resided for many years in the different centres of these three
nationalities, I can safely say that, with the exception of national
songs of a popular and local character, peculiar to each nation, there
are only two Vocal Schools in the whole world: the \emph{good}, from
which the best results are obtained, and the \emph{bad}, in which the
reverse is the case.
The same can be said with regard to style.
It is, therefore, quite a mistake to speak of a German, English,
French, or Italian Vocal School or Style.

There have always been many great singers of booth sexes belonging to
different European nations who have been received with the same degree
of enthusiasm at Paris as at Rome, London, St. Petersburg, etc.

Before bringing this \emph{Practical Guide} to conclusion, I must
again call the attention of pupils to a serious error, disseminated in
these days by empiricism.
It is argued, that because modern vocal music consists of long and
declaimed phrases, without florid passages or embellishments, is is
unnecessary (so it is said) for the singer to cultivate the mechanism
of the voice, as it tires the vocal organs and causes loss of time to
the pupil.

As regards the fatigue of the vocal organs caused by practice, that
depends entirely upon the ability of the teacher and the intelligent
docility of the pupil.
As to all that concerns the technical requirement of the long and
declaimed phrases of modern vocal music, the true facts are quite at
variance with these statements.

A singer who has learned how to breathe well, and who has equalised
the voice, neatly blended the registers, and developed the activity of
the larynx and the elasticity of the glottis and resonant tube in a
rational manner, so that all possible shades of tone, power, and
expression can be produced by the vocal organs, would most assuredly
be able to sing well, and without fatigue or effort (that is,
without exaggeration or shouting), the long and declaimed modern
phrases.
While a singer whose respiration is badly managed, and who lacks
control over the vocal organs, and, consequently, exaggerates and
distorts the modern musical phrase, will very soon tire the voice.

Every art consists of a technico-mechanical part and an æsthetical
part.
A singer who cannot overcome the difficulties of the first part can
never attain perfection in the second, not even a genius.

\newpage

The Marchesi Vocal Method.

First Part.

Elementary and Progressive Exercises for the Development of the
Voice.

%%
Emission of the Voice (\emph{Attack}).

Open the mouth naturally, keep it quite still, and draw in breath
slowly; then attack the tones neatly on the broad Italian vowel A
(\emph{ah}), by a resolute articulation or stroke of the glottis
(\emph{coup de glotte}), avoiding all jerkiness as well as effort.
