who has no particular ambitions in the direction of solo
singing (the extensive use of the falsetto voice is detrimental to the
lower tones); who is a good reader; and who is willing to vocalize in
his falsetto voice a half hour a day for a few months. The chief
obstacle that is likely to be encountered in training male altos is
the fact that the men are apt to regard falsetto singing as
effeminate.]

[Sidenote: THE NECESSITY OF BEING A VOICE TRAINER]

There is one difference between the mixed choir of adult voices and
the boy choir that should be noted at the outset by the amateur. It is
that, in the former, the choir leader is working with mature men and
women, most of whom have probably learned to use their voices as well
as they ever will; but in directing a boy choir, the sopranos must be
taught not only the actual music to be sung at the church service,
but, what is much more difficult, they must be trained in the
essentials of correct breathing, tone placement, _et cetera_, from the
ground up. Hence the absolute necessity of the choirmaster being a
voice specialist. He need not have a fine solo voice, but he must know
the essentials of good singing, and must be able to demonstrate with
his own voice what he means by purity of vowel, clearness of
enunciation, _et cetera_. These things are probably always best taught
by imitation, even in the case of adults; but when dealing with a
crowd of lively American boys, imitation is practically the only
method that _can_ be used successfully. We shall not attempt to give
information regarding this highly important matter in the present
volume, because it is far too complex and difficult to be taken up in
anything short of a treatise and because, moreover, the art of singing
cannot be taught in a book. The student who is ambitious to become the
director of a boy choir is advised, first, to study singing for a
period of years, and second, to read several good books upon the
training of children's voices. There are a number of books of this
character, some of the best ones being included in the reference list
in Appendix A (p. 164).

[Sidenote: THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE VOICES OF BOYS AND GIRLS]

The child's larynx grows steadily up to the age of about six, but at
this time growth ceases, and until puberty the vocal cords, larynx,
and throat muscles develop in strength and flexibility, without
increasing appreciably in size. This means that from six until the
beginning