Vocal Mastery - Talks with Master Singers and Teachers

Harriette Brower

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• Publié par: suil
• Publié le: 08 décembre 2010
• Nombre de lectures: 36
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

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The Project Gutenberg EBook of Vocal Mastery, by Harriette Brower
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Title: Vocal Mastery
Talks with Master Singers and Teachers
Author: Harriette Brower
Release Date: March 23, 2005 [EBook #15446]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK VOCAL MASTERY ***
Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed
Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net).
{Frontispiece}
Enrico CarusoVOCAL MASTERY
TALKS WITH MASTER SINGERS AND
TEACHERS
COMPRISING INTERVIEWS WITH CARUSO,
FARRAR, MAUREL, LEHMANN, AND OTHERS
BY
HARRIETTE BROWER
Author of "Piano Mastery, First and Second Series,"
"Home-Help in Music Study,"
"Self-Help in Piano Study"
WITH TWENTY PORTRAITS
FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY PUBLISHERS 1917, by OLIVER DITSON COMPANY NEW YORK
1918, 1919, by THE MUSICAL OBSERVER COMPANY
1920, by FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY
CONTENTS
FOREWORD BY THE AUTHOR iii
I. ENRICO CARUSO The Value of Work 1
The Will to Succeed a
II. GERALDINE FARRAR 10
Compelling Force
III. VICTOR MAUREL Mind Is Everything 24IV . A VISIT TO MME. LILLI
36
LEHMANN
Self-teaching the Great
V. AMELITA GALLI-CURCI 48
Essential
Ceaseless Effort Necessary
VI. GIUSEPPE DE LUCA 60for Artistic Perfection
VII. LUISA TETRAZZINI The Coloratura Voice 70
Training American Singers for
VIII. ANTONIO SCOTTI 80
Opera
Patience and Perseverance
IX. ROSA RAISA 88
Win Results
The Requirements of a
X . LOUISE HOMER 98
Musical Career
"Let Us Have Plenty of Opera
XI. GIOVANNI MARTINELLI 110
in America"
XII. ANNA CASE Inspired Interpretation 118
Problems Confronting theXIII. FLORENCE EASTON 127
Young Singer
XIV. MARGUERITE D'ALVAREZ The Message of the Singer 139
XV . MARIA BARRIENTOS Be Your Own Critic 147
XVI. CLAUDIA MUZIO A Child of the Opera 156
XVII . EDWARD JOHNSON The Evolution of an Opera
165
(EDOUARDO DI GIOVANNI) Star
Achieving Success on the
XVIII. REINALD WERRENRATH 175Concert Stage
XIX. SOPHIE BRASLAU Making a Career in America 185
The Spiritual Side of the
XX. MORGAN KINGSTON 193
Singer's Art
XXI. FRIEDA HEMPEL A Lesson with a Prima Donna 202

WITH THE MASTER TEACHERS
XXII . DAVID BISPHAM The Making of Artist Singers 213
XXIII. OSCAR SAENGER Use of Records in Vocal Study225
XXIV. HERBERT WITHERSPOON Memory, Imagination, Analysis238
XXV. YEATMAN GRIFFITH Causation 249Some Secrets of Beautiful
XXVI. J.H. DUVAL 258Singing
XXVII. THE CODA A Resumé 266
ILLUSTRATIONS
Enrico Caruso Frontispiece
FACING PAGE
Geraldine Farrar 10
Victor Maurel 24
Amelita Galli-Curci Page 48
Giuseppe de Luca 60
Luisa Tetrazzini 70
Antonio Scotti 80
Rosa Raisa 88
Louise Homer 98
Giovanni Martinelli 110
Anna Case 118
Florence Easton 128
Marguerite d'Alvarez 140
Maria Barrientos 148
Claudia Muzio 156
Edward Johnson 166
Reinald Werrenrath 176
Sophie Braslau 186
Morgan Kingston 194
Frieda Hempel 202
FOREWORDIt has long been a cherished desire to prepare a series of Talks with famous
Singers, which should have an equal aim with Talks with Master Pianists,
namely, to obtain from the artists their personal ideas concerning their art and
its mastery, and, when possible, some inkling as to the methods by which they
themselves have arrived at the goal.
There have been unexpected and untold difficulties in the way of such an
undertaking. The greater the artist the more numerous the body-guard which
surrounds him—or her; the more stringent the watch over the artist's time and
movements. If one is able to penetrate this barrier and is permitted to see the
artist, one finds usually an affable gentleman, a charming woman, with simple
manners and kindly intentions.
However, when one is fortunate enough to come in touch with great singers,
one finds it difficult to draw from them a definite idea of the process by which
they have achieved victory. A pianist can describe his manner of tone
production, methods of touch, fingering, pedaling; the violinist can discourse on
the bow arm, use of left hand, on staccato and pizzicati; but the singer is loath
to describe his own instrument. And even if singers could analyze, the
description might not fit any case but their own. For the art of singing is an
individual art, the perfecting an instrument hidden from sight. Each artist must
achieve mastery by overcoming difficulties which beset his own personal path.
Despite these obstacles, every effort has been put forth to induce artists to
speak from an educational standpoint. It is hoped the various hints and
precepts they have given, may prove of benefit to singers and teachers.
Limitations of space prevent the inclusion of many other artists and teachers.
HARRIETTE BROWER.
150 West 80 Street, New York City.
VOCAL MASTERY
I
{1}ENRICO CARUSO
THE VALUE OF WORK
Enrico Caruso! The very name itself calls up visions of the greatest operatic
tenor of the present generation, to those who have both heard and seen him in
some of his many rôles. Or, to those who have only listened to his records,
again visions of the wonderful voice, with its penetrating, vibrant, ringing
quality, the impassioned delivery, which stamps every note he sings with the
hall mark of genius, the tremendous, unforgettable climaxes. Not to have heardCaruso sing is to have missed something out of life; not to have seen him act in
some of his best parts is to have missed the inspiration of great acting. As Mr.
Huneker once wrote: "The artistic career of Caruso is as well known as that of
any great general or statesman; he is a national figure. He is a great artist, and,
what is rarer, a genuine man."
{2}And how we have seen his art grow and ripen, since he first began to sing for
us. The date of his first appearance at the Metropolitan Opera House, New
York, was November 23rd, 1903. Then the voice was marvelous in its
freshness and beauty, but histrionic development lagged far behind. The singer
seemed unable to make us visualize the characters he endeavored to portray. It
was always Caruso who sang a certain part; we could never forget that. But
constant study and experience have eliminated even this defect, so that to-day
the singer and actor are justly balanced; both are superlatively great. Can any
one who hears and sees Caruso in the rôle of Samson, listen unmoved to the
throbbing wail of that glorious voice and the unutterable woe of the blind man's
poignant impersonation?
IN EARLY DAYS
Enrico Caruso was born in Naples, the youngest of nineteen children. His
father was an engineer and the boy was taught the trade in his father's shop,
and was expected to follow in his father's footsteps. But destiny decreed
otherwise. As he himself said, to one listener:
"I had always sung as far back as I can remember, for the pure love of it. My
{3}voice was contralto, and I sang in a church in Naples from fourteen till I was
eighteen. Then I had to go into the army for awhile. I had never learned how to
sing, for I had never been taught. One day a young officer of my company said
to me: 'You will spoil your voice if you keep on singing like that'—for I suppose I
was fond of shouting in those days. 'You should learn how to sing,' he said to
me; 'you must study.' He introduced me to a young man who at once took an
interest in me and brought me to a singing master named Vergine. I sang for
him, but he was very discouraging. His verdict was it would be hopeless to try
to make a singer out of me. As it was, I might possibly earn a few lire a night
with my voice, but according to his idea I had far better stick to my father's trade,
in which I could at least earn forty cents a day.
"But my young friend would not give up so easily. He begged Vergine to hear
m e again. Things went a little better with me the second time and Vergine
consented to teach me.
RIGID DISCIPLINE
"And now began a period of rigid discipline. In Vergine's idea I had been
{4}singing too loud; I must reverse this and sing everything softly. I felt as though
in a strait-jacket; all my efforts at expression were most carefully repressed; I
was never allowed to let out my voice. At last came a chance to try my wings in
opera, at ten lire a night ($2.00). In spite of the régime of repression to which Ihad been subjected for the past three years, there were still a few traces of my
natural feeling left. The people were kind to me and I got a few engagements.
Vergine had so long trained me to sing softly, never permitting me to sing out,
that people began to call me the Broken Tenor.
THE FIRST REAL CHANCE
"A better chance came before long. In 1896 the Opera House in Salerno
decided to produce I Puritani. At the last moment the tenor they had engaged to
sing the leading rôle became ill, and there was no one to sing the part.
Lombardi, conductor of the orchestra, told the directors there was a young