How can we recognize voices which do not have point or focus? Commonest of these is the "white" or colorless voice. It is a dull, lifeless voice whose tones seem to have no "ping" or body to them. Anyone can sing with this kind of tone quality; one has only to open the mouth a little and sing without directing the tone to any of the resonance chambers of the body. Although everyone can readily see the inferiority of such singing, many otherwise interesting singers whose technique is inadequate frequently lapse into this haphazard method of tone-production without being aware of it. The only way to avoid such infantile tone quality is to train the voice to use head resonance on every tone.
Another type of incorrect tone is the muffled or booty kind. This voice contains some degree of head resonance, yet compared to a correctly produced voice it is dull in color, lacking in point, and rarely permits the singer full range or control of dynamics. High notes taken with this placement, which uses much mouth resonance but little head resonance, always sound as though the singer were striving to push the tone up in order to reach the pitch, and just barely achieving it. Such tones always sound restrained and have none of the free, floating quality that makes the correctly placed voice such a joy to hear.
Sometimes a singer who has almost, but not quite, attained correct focus will try to make his voice larger by forcing. To strain or force the voice beyond its normal limits results in immediate loss of placement, and the resultant tones will be screamed forth in shrill white tones or will become strained and muffled. A fresh young voice may indulge in such forcing for a short time, but hoarseness and fatigue will result, and if such singing is continued for any appreciable length of time it will spell finis to any hope of a career. This will be taken up in greater length in a later chapter.
The point I wish to make here is that while the voice is acquiring facility and working toward its goal of perfect head resonance in every tone, the singer must not be tempted to develop the size or volume of the tone. Perfect placement must first be attained. When this has been established the voice will of its own accord increase incredibly in power and volume. Moreover, its range will be greatly increased, and the singer will also find that he can perform easily despite fatigue, colds, and minor illnesses.
There is no end to the work of voice placement. Besides the years of constant practice to make and keep every tone smooth and even, it is necessary to continue the enlarging and developing process just as long as the career is being pursued. The actual physical act of placing the voice correctly soon becomes automatic to the properly trained singer, and he will have such command of his voice that it will respond perfectly to his needs; nevertheless he must keep the mental picture of tone placement constantly in mind, and practice it continually, in order to maintain his own high standard.
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