uced many beautiful voices: has she all at once
become incapable of doing any thing right?

We will, then, simply return to the _three trifles_ above-mentioned;
and in these we will live and work "with all our heart, with all our
soul, and with all our mind."

[A] Reference is here made to Robert Schumann, who, in order to
facilitate the use of the weaker fingers, employed a machine for raising
the fingers artificially, which resulted in loss of power over them, and
necessitated the abandonment of piano-playing.--_Tr._

CHAPTER IX.

THOUGHTS ON SINGING.

Our vocal composers, followed by many singing-teachers and singing
institutions, have almost banished from music the true art of singing;
or, at least, have introduced an unnatural, faulty, and always
disagreeable mode of delivery, by which the voice has been destroyed,
even before it has attained its full development. The consideration of
this fact induces me to communicate some portions from my journal, and
to unite with them a few opinions of the noted singing-master, Teschner,
of Berlin.

* * * * *

Must we again and again explain to German composers that, though we do
not require them to compose in Italian, they ought, at least, to learn
to write in German in a manner suited for singing? otherwise, in their
amazing ignorance and infatuation, they will wear out the powers of
opera singers, and torture the public, apparently without a suspicion
that it is possible to write both grand and light operas with true,
characteristic German thoroughness. Even German opera requires a
constant attention to the right use of the voice, and a methodical,
effective mode of singing. It tolerates no murderous attacks on single
male and female voices, or on the full opera company; it is opposed to
that eager searching after superficial effect, which every sincere
friend of the opera must lament.

Is it, then, so difficult to obtain the requisite knowledge of the human
voice, and to study the scores of Gluck, Haydn, Mozart, Rossini,
Bellini, and Donizetti with a special regard to this? Do our vocal
composers make too great a sacrifice to their creative genius in making
a study of those things which are essential? You consider it mortifying
to inquire of those who understand singing, and you are sensitive about
any disturbance of your vain over-estimate of your own powers; but you
are not ashamed to cause the destruction of man's noblest