whole vocal gamut,--youth. A
voice without vibrancy is an _old_ voice. The magic of youth,
freshness, is given by the overtones that sound with every tone.

So to utilize the head voice (resonance of the head cavities) that
every tone shall be able to "carry" and shall remain high enough to
reach higher tones easily, is a difficult art, without which, however,
the singer cannot reckon upon the durability of his voice. Often
employed unconsciously, it is lost through heedlessness, mistaken
method, or ignorance; and it can hardly ever be regained, or, if at
all, only through the greatest sacrifice of time, trouble, and
patience.

The _pure_ head voice (the third register) is, on account of the
thinness that it has by nature, the neglected step-child of almost all
singers, male and female; its step-parents, in the worst significance
of the word, are most singing teachers, male and female. It is
produced by the complete lowering of the pillars of the fauces, while
the softest point of the palate--behind the nose--is thrown up very
high, seemingly, almost into the head; in the highest position, as it
were, above the head.

The rear of the tongue stands high, but is formed into a furrow, in
order that the mass of the tongue may not be in the way, either in the
throat or in the mouth. In the very highest falsetto and head tones
the furrow is pretty well filled out, and then no more breath at all
reaches the palatal resonance.

The larynx stands high--mine leans over to one side. (See plates of
larynx.)

[Illustration:

A

Normal position of the larynx.

B

The position of my larynx in the high range.]

The vocal cords, which we cannot feel, now approach very near each
other. The pupil should not read about them until he has learned to
hear correctly. I do not intend to write a physiological work, but
simply to attempt to examine certain infallible vocal sensations of
the singer; point out ways to cure evils, and show how to gain a
correct understanding of that which we lack.

Up to a certain pitch, with tenors as well as with sopranos, the head
tones should be mixed with palatal resonance. With tenors this will be
a matter of course, though with them the chest tones are much abused;
with sopranos, however, a judicious mixture may be recommended because
more expression is required (since the influence of Wagner has become
paramount in interpreting the meaning of a composition, especially of
the words) than in