wer teeth and its sides upon the molars, it forms
a floor to the cavity of the mouth. If the tip turns toward the roof of
the mouth, or if it is drawn back and under, so as to arch the tongue,
tone is seriously interfered with, while if the root of the tongue is
drawn backward, the tone is shut in.

If the soft-palate is not raised in singing, the tone is diverted into
the cavities of the nose, and that color given to the tone called nasal.
If the lower jaw is held too high, the tone is again forced through the
nose. A nasal quality can be modified by opening the mouth. The muffled
voice is sometimes the result of the tongue's unruly behavior. The
throaty, pinched voice, due to a stiff and pinched throat, will hardly
appear if good conditions as regards position, breathing, soft tone,
open mouth, etc., are maintained. The tone should not be swallowed nor,
on the other hand, blown out of the mouth. It should be formed in the
mouth and kept vibrating within it. When the right conditions are hit
upon, the tone seems to sing itself. Whether soft or loud, the tone
should fill the mouth, so to speak.

It must now be remembered that beauty of tone improves along with growth
of thought and feeling. Encourage discrimination in tone-quality and
help in any way advisable the growth of good ideals, and verily shalt
thou be rewarded.

CHAPTER VI.

VOWELS, CONSONANTS, ARTICULATION.

Sound-vibrations generated at the larynx are modified as to their form,
by the size and shape of the resonating cavities of the mouth and
pharynx. Through the movements of the soft-palate, tongue, lower jaw and
lips, the shape and size of the mouth can, within certain limits, be
changed at will. As every vowel-sound requires a peculiar form of the
resonating cavity for its production, it will be easily understood that
each vowel-sound of which the human voice is capable can be made by a
proper adjustment of the movable parts of the vocal organs. As all
singing-tone is vocal or vowel in its character, the production of the
various vowel-sounds takes precedence in the study of vocal music. Just
how much of this study can be carried on in school music will depend
upon circumstances, the chief of which is the time assigned for music.
It is very easy to suggest that if the time given is not enough, that
longer lesson periods be demanded; but it is quite probable that, owing
to the pressure of elaborate courses of study, the request would be
seldo