Musical Library
A musical library should be a possession of every singer. There are less
than two hundred books on music printed in English, on subjects directly
connected with music and singing. These contain all which has been
printed which has any great value. Many are books for reference and a
few contain direct practical instruction. Each teacher and all earnest
students should see how many of these they now possess and plan to<
develop the library. All the books need not be purchased at once, nor is
it wise to obtain books and put them away on the shelves just for mere
ownership. Get one book at a time, one a month perhaps, and read it
carefully enough to allow you to know what is in it. Then put it away
for reference. It takes but a few minutes to refresh the mind on what is
read. A dozen books a year added in this way will, in a dozen years,
give a valuable library. What is more valuable to the owner is that he
has lodged in his own mind for every day use more than a hundred good
ideas. Books taken from the public library and returned to it do not
have the lasting value that one's own books have. The sense of ownership
is worth something.
More
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Ambition
The very first question to ask of an applicant for vocal lessons is "what is your ambition?" By that, I mean, the teacher should know at the very start what purpose the pupil has in study, or if he has any purpose. The intention of the pupil shoul... Analyze Songs
Every song or other vocal composition should be analyzed as the first step in its study. The first theme noted, and the second also, if such there be; the connecting bars; the points which are descriptive or which contain contrasts; the phrases wh... Assert Individuality
Personal freedom of action must for a time be surrendered by pupil to teacher but it should be for limited time only. The impress of the teacher's mind can be made upon the pupil in two seasons of study if it can be at all. Perhaps most pupils recei... Associates
Singers cannot afford to miss the chance to be among great men. As a class, musicians are narrow and that arises from the necessity of giving so much time to technical study. When the chance to meet and associate with men of broad minds comes, take ... Be Perfect
Do not be content to merely make progress. (If one feels that he is at a standstill, or worse, going backward, he should stop all study till he can go forward). Merely making progress means that to reach great result, a long time must elapse. To mak... Before An Audience
When singing before an audience in a hall, do not look on the music. A glance at it may be made from time to time but keep the eyes off. A singer appears very ridiculous if he looks on the page. A song is a story told by the singer in the singing vo... Care Of The Body
Singers seem to think but little of the tools with which they carry on their life work. That is the rule. Now and then a singer takes the opposite course and becomes unreasonably careful of his tools. In that case he is worse off than the careless. ... Change Opinions
In these days of invention, discovery and progress, no one need be ashamed of changing his opinions. In vocal music the ideas most commonly held twenty years ago are being exchanged for something new. The man who has made a change is often sneered a... Come Up Higher
The man makes the musician as does the musician make the man. The rules of life which make men better make the musician better. There is a constant call in life to "Come up higher!" He who has lost the sound of that call is at a standstill, or rathe... Criticism
The phraseology of newspaper criticism often disturbs musicians, especially those who are very sensitive, and sometimes arouses their ire so that they make reply. In doing so they make a mistake. They place a weapon for further attack in the hands o... Crude Voices Express No Emotion
An untrained voice can never have correct emotion expressed in it. The voice responds as truly to the thought which passes in the mind as does the leaf bend before the breeze. The singing voice is an extension of the speaking voice, and since nature... Desultory Voice Practice
European schools and teachers stand aghast at what American pupils demand and at their expectations. Accustomed to the years of attention to detail and to seeing their own students willing to wait long years before good results are achieved, they ... Educing
Educing is bringing out or causing to appear. Teachers impart and call that educating. The reverse of the common way is best. Instead of imparting all the time to the pupil seek to draw out from the pupil that which is in him. Cause it to appear. In... Everyone Can Sing
The culture of the voice has come to be looked upon as a great and serious undertaking, and of such magnitude that but few have time for it, and those only should attempt it who have exceptionally fine voices. This is a mistake. Nearly everyone ca... Experience
A very good reason, but one which individuals can attend to, why we have so few artists among singers, is that so few take time to gain experience. There must be many appearances before audiences before the amateurishness is worn off. Singers often ... Fault Finding
Pupils may be sure that teachers do not find fault with them merely for the purpose of finding fault. If the teacher is worthy [of] that respect which leads pupils to study with him, he doesn't find fault except when it is necessary, and then he doe... Friends Can Help
Advice of friends is a source of value or injury to the singing student. Advice has its influence. Every word spoken about one's voice and singing helps or injures. If placed in a circle which condemns every effort we make we are held back by that v... Heart And Intellect
Let not the heart be the ruling power all the time. If it is, art sinks into sentimentality. Allow the head to rule alternately with the heart. Intellect must be applied if any satisfying musical result is to be obtained. Emotion is good, but it nee... Little Things Effect
Every shade of tone has a meaning which is either artistic or inartistic and one who has developed his appreciation of artistic rendition can so use his tone that just the right effect will be produced with his tone. A noted cartoonist recently show... Mannerisms Show Character
Mannerisms give knowledge to the observing person of our character and intellectuality, and, on that account, are to be studied and used to our advantage. Such as would prepossess our hearers in our favor should be retained and such as would be unpl... Mental Recovery
A teacher cannot do better for himself and his work than to occasionally close the office door and sit quietly by himself for a half-hour. At such time crowd out the thought of all work, all planning, all worries, and all demands. Bring the mind as ... Music And Longevity
Perhaps no one chooses to question the statement that length of human life is greater in our generation than it was in the last, and much greater than it was one or two centuries ago, in the face of statistics which the medical profession puts for... Musical Library
A musical library should be a possession of every singer. There are less than two hundred books on music printed in English, on subjects directly connected with music and singing. These contain all which has been printed which has any great value.... Nature Seldom Jumps
Nature seldom moves by jumps, and a student who reaches the best use of his voice learns that he must do that through natural laws. In other words, that he must acquire all things through naturalness. What wrongs have been done to students under the... Perfect Voice Method
A teacher of voice and singing who does not believe his way is the best in the world is in one of two positions:--either he is a scamp, passing off spurious goods for real worth, or he is doing the best he can in his knowledge and present situatio... Power Of Thought
The power of thought to exert influence is only in our day being understood. How to utilize it is not yet in such degree of comprehension that it can be told so that all are able to use the force which they contain. Thought is a tangible essence pas... Preparation For Teaching
There are many who become teachers of singing without knowing what they are doing. No one who wishes to enter the profession should be kept out of it. There is room in it for many times the number engaged. It is to be earnestly recommended, however,... Profession Or Trade
An item recently seen reads, "we would rather be a music teacher in an obscure town than be a prosperous tradesman in a large city." That has the sound of enthusiasm, and is the feeling of one who has the good of his fellowmen at heart. Every man wh... Provide For The Young
Parents see the necessity of providing the means for their children to learn to take care of themselves. A fortune left to a son frequently, if not generally, proves a curse. A "good match" may turn out badly for a daughter. A few hundred, or even o... Purity Of Method
Purity of vocal method must not be departed from by teachers. The introduction of new ideas is at best a hazardous undertaking. In the routine of teaching week after week and month after month the teacher finds himself casting about for a new idea. ... Recover From Mistakes
Next to him who makes no mistakes, is he who recovers from and disguises the errors. At best a performance full of errors of pitch, word, tone and quality is but a patched garment. Apply the mind to eradicating every error. Perhaps the most common t... Regularity
"It is the regularity of the laws of nature which leads us to put confidence in them and enables us to use them." Thus writes Dr. McCosh and he was a keen observer of men and things. His remark suggests that teachers can and will be trusted and used... Renew Thought
The teacher who does not live in high thought, and who does not attempt to attain a high ideal, does poorer work than he thinks he does. It is an easy matter to settle into a rut and to follow certain lines. These wear themselves out. New ways of im... Reputation Comes Slowly
Reputation which will last comes only by slow degrees. Man may spring into notoriety at a bound because of some fortuitous circumstance and he may hold the prominence which he gains by his strength of manhood, but the cases of this kind are rare. It... Songs For Beginners
When selecting songs for study for beginners, only those which have smooth and well defined melodies should be selected. Modern composers seek by the strangest harmonies, following each other without coming to points of definite rest, to do things d... Speaking And Singing
The basis of good singing is good speaking. The speaking voice in common use during conversation covers a range of five or six notes. Frequently lower and higher notes are called into use, but the high and low notes of the singing voice are seldom u... Study Poetry
Every singer should be an earnest student of poetry. There are minds to which poetry does not appeal as does the practical prose. But in all minds there is enough of latent love of poetry which can be developed until poetry appeals with even stronge... Success
A few decades ago a clumsy, lank, raw-boned boy roamed over the hills of the State of Ohio. He was not marked with the talent of many, nor was he noted for anything in particular except, perhaps, an aptness in "doing sums." Bare-footed, and with s... Sustain Perfectly
Sustaining perfectly the reservoir of air is the greatest desideratum in using the voice. Acquiring ability to do so is a puzzle often to students. The reason is in the fact that no muscles which are directly under the control of the will can be cau... There Are No Mistakes
How often does every one of us make the "mistake of a lifetime?" Probably everyone has made that remark many times regarding himself. The circumstances of life have seemed to point out a certain path. We have followed it. Later we felt it to be wron... Time Ends Not
We may say with Emerson that "Time has his own work to do and we have ours," and with Wood, "Labor is normal; idleness, abnormal," but in music there must be times of cessation from labor. Call it change of work, if you choose rather than admit that... True Art Is Delicate
All true art is delicate. Music is the most delicate of all arts. Music is expressed through thought and emotion. In this, music has much the advantage over sister arts. The sculptor can chisel his thoughts into marble, and there they can imperishab... Vocal Tone
All vocal tone used in singing when produced at the vocal bands is small and probably always about alike. The tone which we hear is "colored", "re-inforced" etc., on the way from the vocal bands to the outer air. In order that the tone shall carry... Wait For Results
Some of us are slow to learn the lesson, waiting for results. We feel that at one bound we must and will achieve the great success which is our ideal. Youth is enthusiastic and believes in itself. Nothing daunts it, save the realization of limited s...