The Head Voice and Other Problems | Page 9

the passage through the nose. On the other side it is argued,
and rightly, that the soft palate can be trained to remain low in singing
high tones. But whether the soft palate is high or low does not settle the
matter. It is not at all necessary that breath should pass through the
nasal cavities in order to make them act as resonators. In fact it is
necessary that it should not. It is the air that is already in the cavities
that vibrates. All who are acquainted with resonating tubes understand
this. Neither is it necessary that the vibrations should be transmitted to
the head cavities by way of the pharynx and over the soft palate. They
may be transmitted through the bones of the head. John Howard proved
this, to his satisfaction at least, many years ago.
I recall that in working with Emil Behnke he used an exercise to raise
the soft palate and completely close the channel, yet no one can deny
that his pupils had head resonance. There are certain facts in connection
with this that are hard to side-step. Plunket Greene once told me that at
one time he lost the resonance in the upper part of his voice, and on
consulting a specialist he found a considerable growth on the septum.
He had it removed and at once the resonance returned. Other equally
strong arguments could be offered in support of the claim that the head
cavities do act as resonators. At any rate the high or low palate is not
the deciding factor.
Too much cannot be said on the subject of interference, or resistance.
So long as there is any of it in evidence it has its effect on tone quality.
It is the result of tension, and tension is a mental impulse of a certain
kind. Its antidote is relaxation, which is a mental impulse of an opposite
nature. It is necessary for most singers to work at this until long after

they think they have it.
In preparing the head voice the student must begin with a tone that is
entirely free from resistance and build from that. In a large majority of
voices it means practicing with a light, soft tone. A voice that cannot
sing softly is not rightly produced. While the student is working for the
freedom which will give him a good half voice he is preparing the
conditions for a good full voice. The conditions are not right for the
practice of full voice until the last vestige of resistance has disappeared.
The light voice is as necessary to artistic success as the full voice. The
singer must have both, but he must never sacrifice quality for power.
In the female voice the readjustments of the mechanism known as
changes of register usually occur at about [Illustration: Figure B].
In many lyric soprano voices I have found the same readjustment at the
B and C above the staff [Illustration: Figure C].
I have also noted in many bass voices a similar change of adjustment at
the E and F below the bass clef [Illustration: Figure D].
It would seem therefore, that in a majority of voices until an even scale
has been developed, that these readjustments appear at about the E and
F and B and C throughout the vocal compass. The exceptions to this
rule are so numerous however, that it can scarcely be called a rule.
Some voices will have but one noticeable readjustment, and it may be
any one of the three.
In some voices the changes are all imperceptible. In others, due to
wrong usage, they are abrupt breaks. In every instance the teacher must
give the voice what it needs to perfect an even scale. There should be
no more evidence of register changes in the vocal scale than in the
piano scale.
Leaving the lower two changes for the moment, let us consider the one
at the upper E and F. This one is so common among sopranos that there
are few who have not one, two, or three weak tones at this point. To
avoid these weak tones many are taught to carry the thicker tones of the

middle register up as far as they can force them in order to get the "big
tone" which seems to be the sole aim of much modern voice teaching.
The victims of this manner of teaching never use the real head voice,
and one thing happens to them all. As time goes on the upper voice
grows more and more difficult, the high tones disappear one by one,
and at the time when they should be doing their best singing they find
themselves vocal wrecks. Some of them change from soprano to alto
and end by that route.
Now these