THE CONDUCTOR AS VOICE TRAINER
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In conclusion, let us enumerate the main points involved in what is called good singing—these points applying to choral music as directly as to solo performance.
- The intonation must be perfect; i.e., the tones produced must be neither sharp nor flat, but exactly true to pitch.
- The tone must be attacked and released exactly at the right pitch; i.e., the voice must not begin on some indefinite lower tone and slide up, or on a higher tone and slide down, but must begin on precisely the right pitch.
- The tone must be absolutely steady, and there must be no wavering, no tremolo, no uncertainty. This means absolute breath control.
- The tones must follow one another without break, unless the character of the music demands detached effects; in other words, there must be a perfect legato. The tones must also follow each other cleanly, unless the character of the music makes the use of portamento desirable.
- The singer must feel the mood of each song, and must sing as he feels, if he is to perform with real expression. This is a much more vital matter in song interpretation than the mere mechanical observation of tempo and dynamic indications.
- The text must be enunciated with sufficient clarity to enable the audience to catch at least the most important ideas presented. This involves not only the complete pronunciation of each syllable instead of the slovenly half-pronunciation so commonly heard; but implies as well that the sounds be formed well forward in the mouth instead of back in the throat.
If the singing of a soloist or a chorus can meet the test of these requirements, the singing may be called good.
