Style in Singing | Page 5

as original might,
to correct taste and judgment, appear ridiculous and extravagant. A
genius is sometimes eccentric, but eccentricity is not genius. Vocal
students should hear as many good singers as possible, but actually
imitate none. A skilled teacher will always discern and strive to
develop the personality of the pupil, will be on the alert to discover
latent features of originality and character. He will respect and
encourage individuality, rather than insist upon the servile imitation of
some model--even though that model be himself. As the distinguished
artist Victor Maurel has justly observed: "Of all the bad forms of
teaching singing, that by imitation is the worst" (Un Probleme d'Art).
In singing, as in painting, a copy has never the value of the original.
Moreover, slavish imitation in any art has a deleterious influence. But
to respect irreproachable examples and fitly observe sound rules, whose
very survival often justifies their existence and testifies to their value, is

always of benefit to the artist. To imitate is to renounce one's individual
expression of an ideal and present that of another. But to observe
established and accepted laws, laws founded on Truth and consecrated
by Time, is not to imitate, when those laws are applied in an original
and individual manner that is in harmony with the personality of the
interpreter. "L'art est un coin de Nature vu a travers un temperament."
In literature, each writer has his own special style which may easily be
recognized; but all follow the same grammatical rules. A correct style
in singing consists in the careful observance of the principles of
Technique; a perfect Diction; the appropriate Colouring of each
sentiment expressed; attention to the musical and poetic Accents;
judicious and effective Phrasing (whether musical or verbal), so that the
meaning of both composer and poet may be placed in the clearest light.
* * * * *
Let us analyze Style in its three principal aspects: Colour, Accent, and
Phrasing.
COLOUR
Of all the elements of Style in singing, the most potent and
effective--the one, indeed, that is essential for the success of the lyric
artist--is the ability to vary the vocal timbre; that is, to sing with Colour.
This desideratum of varied tone-colour is sought even by
instrumentalists. Nay, the instrument itself is sometimes constructed
with this object in view. Witness the invention of the "soft" pedal,
which is intended not solely to reduce the intensity of tone in the
pianoforte--that may be accomplished by a modification of force in
striking the note--but to give the tones a darker, more sombre quality,
or colour. To vary the tone-colour, a violinist or 'cellist draws the bow
across the strings close to, or distant from, the bridge, in accordance
with his desire for a reed-like or flute-like quality of tone. Anyone who
has listened to the performance of the slow movement in Paganini's
Concerto in D, by an Ysaye or a Mischa Elman, will have remarked
how the skilful use of varied tone colour and other devices imparts a
wonderful charm to music intrinsically of but mediocre value.

A singer may have a good quality of voice; but that is normal. If he can
vary it only in degrees of loudness (Intensity) and not in differences of
timbre (Colour) he cannot be ranked as an artist. No matter how great
the natural beauty and sonority of his voice, his performance will
always be monotonous, if he has only one tint on his vocal palette. In
speech--from which the effect is borrowed--utterances of grave and
serious meaning, and those of gayer import, are not made with the same
colour of voice. A brighter quality (voix claire) is used instinctively for
an ejaculation uttered by one to whom pleasant or joyful news has been
communicated. On the contrary, should it be the cause of sorrow or
grief for the listener, he will use--should he have occasion to reply--a
darker quality of voice (voix sombre). Such phenomena are
physiological. The vocal organs are the most sensitive of any in the
human economy: they betray at once the mental condition of the
individual. Joy is a great tonic, and acts on the vocal cords and mucous
membrane as does an astringent; a brilliant and clear quality of voice is
the result. Grief or Fear, on the other hand, being depressing emotions,
lower the vitality, and the debilitating influence communicates to the
voice a dull and sombre character.
On this question of colour in the voice, the masterly writer and critic
Legouve says: "Certain particular gifts are necessary if the speech is to
possess colour. The first of these is Metal in the voice. He who has it
not will never shine as a colourist. The metal may be gold, silver or
brass; each has its individual characteristic. A golden voice is