Part 4
A good tone should have =resonance=, or what we call "vibration," but not "tremolo." Many young singers confuse these two. Undoubtedly it is just as bad to sing with a straight, cold, unmusical tone as it is to produce an exaggerated "vibrato" or "tremolo."
If you are unable to make the distinction between these two, do not fail to consult someone who can do so, that you may not enter the pitfalls, which it takes months to overcome.
You cannot realize =how little breath= is necessary =on the tone=; we sing with a great amount of =pressure=, but with =very little breath=. Have you ever taken a covered head tone without scarcely taking any breath, and found that you could sustain it for a practically unlimited period?
I found one of my pupils who had elsewhere taken a course in =breathing=, in taking a tone, would push her breath out so hard that you heard more =breath= than =tone=. In singing a tone or short sentence, her chest would collapse and she would become, as she termed it, "All out of breath." She would give me all kinds of wonderful breath demonstrations, but could not connect the =breath= and =tone=.
I requested her to speak in a natural way the sentence, "This is a very beautiful day." I asked her if she could hear a lot of escaping breath? She answered, "No." I then asked her to place one hand across the ribs and one across the chest and center her thoughts directly at these two points to see if she could ascertain what was taking place there, while once again in a natural speaking voice she repeated the sentence. She did so, and found she was =not= "out of breath," and that her chest did =not= collapse and she did not feel any discomfort. I then asked her to repeat the sentence on the medium tone "E" above middle "C," then on "F," then on "G," directing her each time to think she was merely =speaking= the sentence, and then for the first time in her life she was able to understand =control of breath=. During the next lesson we were able to begin "tone placing" without the least trouble in connecting the breath and tone. =Try it yourself.=
All kinds of athletics, breathing lessons or exercises in moderation are beneficial, but they are not voice culture. As your breath plays a most important part in =tone placing=, the breath and tone should start together, hand in hand, from the very beginning. In the following chapter I shall give some practical exercises that will give the BREATH and =tone= a chance to become acquainted with each other.
A FEW PRACTICAL EXERCISES AND ILLUSTRATIONS.
Stand erect, but not in a strained position. Place the palm of your hands over your ribs, pointing the fingers forward. (See Figure 1.)
=Exhale= by blowing slowly through the closed lips, very much as though you were blowing on embers to make them burn. In doing this, you will find that your finger tips will almost meet in front. (See Figure 2.)
Keep your hands in the same position and =inhale= through the nose. You will notice a large space in front between your hands. (See Figure 3.)
Keeping your hands in the same position, repeat this exercise five times; then drop your arms to your sides, relax and rest a few moments, repeating this exercise several times until it comes easy.
Go before an open window every morning, place your hands as in figure 4, inhale through the nose, (don't raise the shoulders) see that the expansion is as great under the left hand as under the right hand (as in figure 5) while holding the breath count 5 (aloud) then exhale while holding the hands in same position, repeat this exercise 5 times in succession. A positive cure for all forms of nervousness.]
Be sure when =inhaling= you do not use enough muscular exertion to take enough breath to cause lifting of the shoulders, which is decidedly wrong.
Place your hands as in the first position, exhale, then inhale and, while you keep the ribs extended against your hands, which is done by holding the breath and by muscular tension, speak the sentence, "This is a beautiful day," then exhale, inhale again, holding the breath while you repeat the sentence. Repeat this several times, then drop your arms to the sides and rest.
It is better at the beginning to take =too little= breath than to take =too much=. Most beginners take too much breath, which makes it impossible to control it. Until you understand control of the breath, it is better to only take enough to extend your ribs against your hand as far as they will go =without discomfort=.
Don't let anyone tell you that "diaphragmatic," "intercostal" or "abdominal" breathing =alone= is the only safe course; perfect breathing is a =combination= of these and more.
By practicing the above exercises you will find in a short time all the organs that nature intended to be used for breathing will be in play.
The reason the beginner is instructed to place the hands on the ribs is to work from the =central= point, and as the student progresses, by continuation of the exercises it will be found that the costal, intercostal, dorsal, diaphragmatic and abdominal muscles are all doing their share.
Place your hands as in the first position. =Exhale--inhale.= Sustain the syllable "saw" on an easy medium tone. As you attack the tone do not let the ribs collapse, but as you sustain it, let the ribs very slowly collapse under the palm of your hands. Try to resist so as to not let too much breath escape. Don't let your chest collapse any more than is absolutely necessary. The lower the tones you sing the =less= resistance you need, while the higher tones you sing the =more= resistance you need. In order to sustain a high tone, =draw in= slightly under the ribs, leaving the chest extended. Singing the tone, now takes the place of the =exhaling= exercise.
The word "saw," besides giving you the vowel "ä," also gives you the correct sound of the Italian "ah" and what the "ah" should be in singing.
The average beginner sings too much on the tone color of "a" as in =hat=, which, as you ascend the scale, would finally land the tone in the region of the back of your neck.
In learning to sing the "ah" or Italian "ä," always use words like "saw," "raw," "law," "paw," "daw," "gnaw," sustaining the tone.
THE VOWELS
a e i o u
Pronounced: a as ä in saw
e as a in fate
i as ee in meet
o as o in note
u as oo in moon
Example--
In ascending the scale, you should cover the tone. To cover the tone simply put a little more "o" in your "ah," so that by the time you are up near your high limit tone you should almost be singing "so," "lo," "dough." This enables you to find your head tone. It will not be "low" or "dough" but a good "ah." If you do =not gradually curve the "ah" into an "o"= toward your high tones, you will find them turning into the "a" as in hat.
In producing head tones there are two valuable exercises I would suggest.
Positions of the mouth in pronouncing the vowels.] Drop your jaw as in singing "saw"; leave the jaw dropped singing "saw," but curving your lips into an "o." You will find an "oh" with fine head resonance and an open relaxed throat.
Example--
Sing this exercise in all the keys within your range.
Some find their head tones first by humming through the nose, while to some this suggestion would be of no value.
If you have a break or any trouble going from your high to low tones, practice the exercise from the high tone down instead of from the low tone up.
Example--
If you have trouble rolling your "r's", which is absolutely necessary, practice the following words in two syllables, not, however, dropping the tone.
Example--
Tree as tau-ree.
Trust as tau-rust.
True as tau-rue
Breeze as b-reeze.
Train as tau-rain.
Bright as b-right.
Brown as b-rown.
=After= you have mastered the rolled "r" through the above exercises, pronounce them in one syllable as they should be.
Next, take up your consonants before the vowel
until you have covered all the consonants.
Then your final consonants, as in "late," "date," "light," "bright."
In the word "date," make your "d" and your "a" distinct and =on the tone=, but as you pronounce your "t," which must also be distinct, drop the tone so as not to leave an "after-tone." This must be done in all words except those ending with "m" and "n."
Next build sentences from words which seem most difficult to you and sing the entire sentence on one sustained tone.
Example--
In a song where some particular phrase or sentence seems difficult to you, sing the entire phrase or sentence on one sustained tone, pronouncing the words distinctly until you have gone down several tones =below= and several tones =above= the pitch in which it is written, singing it over and over on the one sustained tone in all the keys of your range. I cannot tell you of the benefit you will derive from mastering a difficult phrase or sentence in this manner.
For the hardness and muscular contraction under the chin, which has undoubtedly been brought about by "methods" advocating the placing of the tip of the tongue against the back of the lower teeth, put your thumb well up under your chin and see that there is no contraction (hardness). Leave your tongue perfectly limp, and hum first through the nose, gradually turning the humming into an "äo," "äo," "äo," then to "oä," "oä," "oä," sustaining the tone and keeping the thumb pushed well up under the chin to feel that there is no contraction. By using this exercise you will be able to overcome this common fault in a very short time, but you must go at it systematically.
In singing songs pronounce your words perfectly and distinctly, letting the palate, glottis and larynx take care of themselves. If your method of singing is good, =nothing= can injure your voice.
As this book voices the sentiment of some of the most brilliant lights in the profession, and contains facts based on years of actual experience, it is not egotistical for me to say that its careful, thoughtful and conscientious perusal will give to the student of voice culture assistance that will be of =inestimable value= in reaching his goal.
Start with ease and naturalness and the chances are excellent for your pathway to be illumned with =success=.
THE AUTHOR.
End of Project Gutenberg's What Every Singer Should Know, by Millie Ryan