My Short List
Occasionally, I am asked what books on the download page I recommend. While the answer depends on the person asking, I have favorites written by singers who taught singing. Here is my shortlist of texts rooted in the old school that are as interesting as they are informative. The first one hails from Naples and the teaching of Cresentini, pedagogically speaking. At the same time, two are rooted in Garcia's teachings, leaving the rest to be an expression of the teachings of Lamperti.
Cirillo, Vincenzo. A Lecture on the Art of Singing (1882). He was a student of Alessandro Busti, who studied with Girolamo Crescentini.
Girard, Mary Augusta Brown. Vocal Art: How to Tune a Voice and Make It a Beautiful Instrument: Advice to Singers (1909). Student of Francesco Lamperti. The first edition was printed in 1892 and later retitled The Psychology of Vocal Art: How to Train a Voice and Make it a Beautiful Instrument for Speaking and Singing (1920).
Holtzem, L. A. Bases de L'Art du Chant (1863). Student of Manuel García and Francesco Lamperti. If you don’t read French, open the Google Translate app on your phone and hold it to your computer screen.
Klein, Herman. An Essay on the Bel Canto (1923); “The Bel Canto,” Musical Times (1924). Klein was a student of Manuel Garcia.
Marchesi, Blanche. The Singer’s Catechism and Creed (1932). Student and daughter of Mathilde Marchesi, herself a student of Manuel Garcia. Do yourself a favor and listen to Marchesi sing the Sicilian’s Cart Driver’s Song on YouTube.
Medini, Francis Roena. The What and How of Vocal Culture (1893). Student of Francesco Lamperti.
Shakespeare, William. Plain Words on Singing (1924). Student of Francesco Lamperti.
Shaw, William W. The Lost Vocal Art and Its Restoration (1914). Student of Luigi Vannuccini, William Shakespeare, and Francesco Lamperti.
Taylor, David Clark. The Psychology of Singing (1908); Self-Help for Singers: A Manual for Self-Instruction, Based on the Old Italian Method (1914); "Voice Culture Past and Present," Musical Quarterly, July 1, 1915; New Light on the Old Italian Method: an Outline of the Historical System of Vocal Culture and a Plea for its Revival (1916). These texts all have the same thesis: the old school is an ear-based proposition. One curious matter is that, despite a good deal of searching, I haven’t found out who Taylor studied with, though I do know he graduated from City College in 1880, then studied with ‘various masters” for the next six years.
Zay, William Henri. Practical Psychology of Voice and of Life (1917). A student of William Shakespeare, who was a student of Francesco Lamperti.
