sults to the reading of any
selected passage, first by analysis ascertain what are the emotional
states which it involves, what are its prevailing drifts, then in
respect to each property of the voice choose the suitable mode for the
interpretation of these several states or drifts, conjoin the selected
modes into appropriate vocal signs, and with these form the vocal
expression that suitably interprets the whole passage. _The teacher, or
the teacher and student together, should select from the_ READER, _or
elsewhere, sentences or passages that fitly exemplify the different
modes; these should be written upon a black-board, or in some other way
preserved, and be referred to frequently for practice both in voice
culture and in vocal interpretation._

I. PITCH. Pitch must be considered under three heads: first, as
referring to the prevailing elevation of tone assumed by the voice in
the reading of a whole sentence, passage, or selection, called _general_
or _sentential pitch_; second, as referring to the degree of elevation
assumed by the voice in the utterance of the opening, or radical, of any
syllable, called _initial_ or _radical pitch_; third, as referring to
the tone-width of the intervals in the utterance of the syllable
concrete.

=Sentential Pitch= in its various modes is descriptive of the general
position in the scale taken by the tones of the voice in uttering a
sentence or passage. It may be spoken of as _medium_, _high_, and _low_.
=Medium Pitch= should correspond with the _normal pitch of discourse_
previously described. It is natural to the expression of all
unimpassioned thought, and also of all emotions, except the livelier,
and the deeper and more intense. =High Pitch= and =Low Pitch= are only
relative terms. They do not represent fixed and definite modes of
utterance; and all that can be said is, that for the interpretation of
what may be called the lighter feelings and emotions, such as
cheerfulness, joy, exultation, interest, and so on, also for the
expression of raillery, facetiousness, humorous conversation, laughter,
and the like, sentential pitch of a degree somewhat higher than normal
pitch is appropriate; and, on the other hand, for the interpretation of
what may be called the graver and deeper feelings, such as awe,
reverence, humility, grief, and melancholy, and the more impassioned
emotions, as disgust, loathing, horror, rage, despair, as well as for
the expression of all very serious an