This paperbound reprint of a 1989 work for teachers of singing, performing singers, and vocal pedagogy students presents the insights of great teachers from the past--insights that have been lost or diluted over the years and which the author believes to be important to the art of teaching. In 18 chapters, Berton (emeritus, music, Colorado College) discusses the writings of Tosi, Garcia, Stockhausen, Sedie, Seiler, Lamperti, Shakespeare, Witherspoon, Lilli Lehmann, Byers, and Johnstone-Douglas. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

This ambitious publication draws from the knowledge and expertise of leading international figures in voice training in order to examine the history of the voice from an interdisciplinary perspective. The book explores the historical arc of various voice training disciplines and highlights significant people and events within the field. It is written by voice specialists from a variety of backgrounds, including singing, actor training, public speaking, and voice science. These contributors explore how voice pedagogy came to be, how it has organized itself as a profession, how it has dealt with challenges, and how it can develop still. Covering a variety of voice training disciplines, this book will be of interest to those studying voice and speech, as well as researchers from the fields of rhetoric, music and performance. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Voice and Speech Review journal.

If classical singers and vocal pedagogues are to be prepared adequately for performance, teaching and co-operation in inter-professional relations, then an holistic education entailing multi-disciplinary study is essential. In this important new book, Karen Sell examines the disciplines pertinent to vocal pedagogy, tracing the lineage of views from the ancient world to the present day. In the process important diverse roots are exposed, yielding differing and even conflicting tonal ideals which have a bearing on the consideration of different singing methods and the interpretation of songs and arias. Ethics and psychology are identified as central to the entire pedagogical process along with the scientific basis of singing: encompassing acoustics, anatomy and physiology, with special reference to the bearing of the latter two upon vocal health and hygiene. A detailed consideration of singing technique is the centrepiece of the book, and an understanding of good technique and scientific awareness is shown to be fundamental to good vocal pedagogical practice. This leads to a discussion on performance and aesthetics, contributing to the education of the fully equipped singer. No study to date has demonstrated the inter-relationships between all these individual disciplines and the ways in which they influence singing pedagogy. Sell?s holistic, multi-disciplinary approach will be of particular benefit to singers and voice teachers, and will also appeal to music educationalists and professionals in cognate disciplines.

The Routledge Companion to Interdisciplinary Studies in Singing, Volume II: Education examines the many methods and motivations for vocal pedagogy, promoting singing not just as an art form arising from the musical instrument found within every individual but also as a means of communication with social, psychological, and didactic functions. Presenting research from myriad fields of study beyond music—including psychology, education, sociology, computer science, linguistics, physiology, and neuroscience—the contributors address singing in three parts: Learning to Sing Naturally Formal Teaching of Singing Using Singing to Teach In 2009, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada funded a seven-year major collaborative research initiative known as Advancing Interdisciplinary Research in Singing (AIRS). Together, global researchers from a broad range of disciplines addressed three challenging questions: How does singing develop in every human being? How should singing be taught and used to teach? How does singing impact wellbeing? Across three volumes, The Routledge Companion to Interdisciplinary Studies in Singing consolidates the findings of each of these three questions, defining the current state of theory and research in the field. Volume II: Education focuses on the second question and offers an invaluable resource for anyone who identifies as a singer, wishes to become a singer, works with singers, or is interested in the application of singing for the purposes of education.

Embodying Voice: Singing Verdi, Singing Wagner articulates the process of developing an operatic voice, explaining how and why the training of such a voice is as complex and sophisticated as it is mysterious. This book illustrates how putting together a voice, embodying a sound, and creating a character are vital to an audience’s emotional involvement and enjoyment. Moreover, it addresses an imbalance of power between the opera director and the orchestra conductor – ultimately, it is the communicative power of the singer’s voice that brings life to an opera, a fact well known by Verdi and Wagner. Embodying Voice highlights the singer’s creative agency to be co-creator of the composer’s music. It explores the ways in which vocal performance is constructed and controlled, connecting layers of mind and bodily engagement that allow operatic singers to achieve expression beyond the text itself. Further reading, listening, and performance lists are provided at the end of each chapter, complemented by musical examples throughout.

The Vocal Athlete, Third Edition is written and designed to bridge the gap between the art of contemporary commercial music (CCM) singing and the science behind voice production in this ever-growing popular vocal style. Revised and expanded, this edition is a “must have” for vocal pedagogy courses and speech-language pathologists, singing voice specialists, and voice teachers. Heavily referenced, this text is ripe with current research on singing science as it relates to the CCM voice. Anyone who trains singers will gain insight into the current research and trends regarding commercial music artists. The text distinguishes itself from other academic pedagogy texts by incorporating comprehensive chapters on the physiology of belting, current peer reviewed literature in vocal training for CCM styles, and application in the voice studio. Included is the current information on our understanding of gender affirmation treatments and potential implications for singers. New to the Third Edition: * New comprehensive chapter titled Overview of Black American Music: History, Pedagogy & Practice by Trineice Robinson-Martin and Alison Crockett * Extended and revised sections in several chapters, including: The Singer’s Body Motor Learning Exercise Physiology Laryngeal Physiology Acoustics Phonotrauma Belting Research * Reference grid depicting where specific content areas for both the proposed NATS vocal pedagogy curriculum and the PAVA-RV can be found within the text * Updated references throughout the text

The Italian singing technique Bel Canto instructs, "He who knows how to breathe and how to pronounce, knows how to sing." Singing: The First Art incorporates the techniques of Bel Canto along with those of masters like Berton Coffin and Manuel Garcia to promote and facilitate vocal excellence. Many concepts are described, from correct posture and alignment to improving and maintaining proper breathing, from good pronunciation and diction to producing an even, pure tone, and from vocal ranges to singing within and smoothly shifting between vocal registers. Mannes Vocal Faculty member Dan H. Marek effectively breaks down these complicated concepts with clear exercises, helping the vocal student to achieve freedom and complete control over his or her instrument. A primary section on the history of singing stresses the importance of understanding vocal history while inspiring and motivating the student through the experiences of opera stars such as Enrico Caruso, Maria Callas, and Jussi Björling. The second section explains vocal techniques, including the use and proper pronunciation of the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet), and provides 64 specific exercises with clearly defined goals designed to overcome faults and to develop vocal virtuosity. Complete instructions for transposing the exercises for both male and female voices are included, as well as drawings of the exercises, musical examples from vocal literature, excellent anatomical illustrations by Frank Netter, MD, and copious photographs of opera stars. Singing: The First Art is an invaluable text for students, professionals, singers, conductors, composers, and vocal medical professionals, or anyone interested in understanding and appreciating the vocal art.

Titles in the Dictionaries for the Modern Musician series offer both the novice and the advanced artist key information designed to convey the field of study and performance for a major instrument or instrument class, as well as the workings of musicians in areas from conducting to composing. Each dictionary covers topics from instrument parts to technique, major works to key figures—a must-have for any musician’s personal library! A Dictionary for the Modern Singer is an indispensable guide for students of singing, voice pedagogues, and lovers of the art of singing. In addition to classical singing, genres, and styles, musical theatre and popular and global styles are addressed. With an emphasis on contemporary practice, this work includes terms and figures that influenced modern singing styles. Topics include voice pedagogy, voice science, vocal health, styles, genres, performers, diction, and other relevant topics. The dictionary will help students to more fully understand the concepts articulated by their teachers. Matthew Hoch’s book fills a gap in the singer’s library as the only one-volume general reference geared toward today’s student of singing. An extensive bibliography is invaluable for students seeking to explore a particular subject in greater depth. Illustrations and charts further illuminate particular concepts, while appendixes address stage fright, tips on practicing, repertoire selection, audio technology, and contemporary commercial music styles. A Dictionary for the Modern Singer will appeal to students of singing at all levels. For professionals, it will serve as a quick and handy reference guide, useful in the high school or college library and the home teaching studio alike; students and amateurs will find it accessible and full of fascinating information about the world of the singing.

Singing with Your Whole Self: A Singer’s Guide to Awareness through Movement teaches performers to use the Feldenkrais Method of neuromuscular education to ameliorate problems of tension, muscle strain, and illness in order to obtain optimal vocal performance. With new lessons and chapters on kinesthetic imagination and neuroplasticity, this second edition features unique, modularized Feldenkrais lessons designed specifically to liberate function in singers and other voice professionals. The first part of the book presents the theory behind the approach in an easy-to-understand and concrete fashion. The remaining chapters explore anatomy by area and explain usage and problems, as well as how both relate to singing. Finally, an appendix allows performers to find lessons that are most effective for a specific problem. As a valuable exercise guide, the second edition of Singing with Your Whole Self is an essential resource for singers at all levels and in all styles.

The Vocal Athlete, Second Edition and the companion book The Vocal Athlete: Application and Technique for the Hybrid Singer, Second Edition are written and designed to bridge the gap between the art of contemporary commercial music (CCM) singing and the science behind voice production in this ever-growing popular vocal style. This textbook is a “must have” for vocal pedagogy courses and speech-language pathologists, singing voice specialists, and voice teachers. Heavily referenced, this text is ripe with current research on singing science as it relates to the CCM voice. In addition to general singing science, The Vocal Athlete is the first book of its kind to address the unique vocal and physiologic demands of commercial singing from a sound scientific and pedagogical standpoint. Historical review of classical vocal pedagogy is interwoven and transitioned to current pedagogy of CCM. Anyone who trains singers will gain insight into the current research and trends regarding the commercial music artist. The text distinguishes itself from other pedagogy texts by incorporating current peer reviewed literature in the area of CCM and its studio application. Also unique to this text are chapters on body alignment, traditional and holistic medicine, the lifecycle of the voice, and the physiology of belting. New to the Second Edition *New medical chapter on Common Pathologies in Vocal Athletes *New comprehensive chapter on Perception, Aesthetics, and Registration in the Commercial Vocal Athlete *Extended sections in Motor Learning and Exercise Physiology chapters *Updated references throughout Disclaimer: Please note that ancillary content (such as documents, audio, and video, etc.) may not be included as published in the original print version of this book.