Another method of forcing the voice is the almost universal endeavour to acquire "top notes" which do not belong to the singer's compass. Because of the high notes in some voices exceptionally endowed by nature, it seems as though all singers, no matter what their natural range, have made it the one object of their training to strive after a vocal attainment whose rarity appears to be almost its only justification to be considered as an artistic merit. Why should these ever vanishing "top notes" be so much craved and striven for? Can it be said that, as regards each individual voice, these notes are higher in a scale of excellence than the rest? What merit does their acquisition promise as a set-off to the deterioration of the voice and its inevitable ultimate failure? A high note, per se, is not necessarily "a thing of beauty" to the listener, while the result of its attainment is often the converse of a "joy for ever" to the singer; for in those cases of forcing up the voice above its natural compass, violence is done to the throat, which in time results in some of the many ailments peculiar to singers who use faulty methods. The middle range of the voice becomes proportionately weaker and thinner as the cult of the extra "top notes" becomes greater, until the anomalous position is reached of a voice with two ends and no middle; while these superadded, artificial, high notes are wanting in timbre, in purity, in strength, and in ease. It is easily demonstrable by the laryngoscope that the forced and strained action of the vocal ligaments, and of other laryngeal and throatal muscular action, exercises an injurious influence upon the voice. The endeavour to sing notes beyond the extreme of the compass, or notes which do not naturally lie within any one register—particularly the chest register—causes great fatigue of the tensor muscles of the vocal ligaments, and serious congestion, extending to the windpipe and pharynx has, in many cases, followed this practice.

More time and energy are devoted to the acquirement of what the late Emil Behnke called "mere acrobatic skill" than is given to the purely artistic side of voice use, and it follows that we get "the survival not of the fittest" but rather of those with exceptionally strong physical organisations, instead of refined artists.

The deterioration throughout the whole compass of the voice is often painfully noticeable during an entire song, but the forcible shouting of a full, high-pitched note at its close seems to be intended to compensate for all the misery previously endured by the sensitive listener.

Now the maintenance of a healthy condition of the vocal muscles depends to a great degree upon the right use of those muscles in the formation of tone. There should never be any feeling of fatigue, strain, pricking, tightness, aching, or of pain in the throat, nor yet of huskiness after vocal practice. The method of voice use which produces such results, or any one of them, is wrong. Nature is pointing out as forcibly as possible the injury which is being done. Her warning should be heeded before conditions, getting worse, lead up to the sad ailments from which so many suffer, and which are disastrous to both voice and health.

The foregoing facts and illustrations force upon us the conclusion that the large majority of throat affections from which both speakers and singers suffer might be entirely prevented by correct methods of voice use. As prevention is proverbially better than cure, it must be infinitely more advantageous to acquire correct methods than to unlearn bad ones which exercise a deleterious influence, always recognisable even when entire voice failure has not followed their practice.



APPENDIX TO THE TENTH EDITION

DOES DIAPHRAGMATIC BREATHING APPLY EQUALLY TO WOMEN AS TO MEN?

In a kind notice of the first edition of this brochure, which appeared in The Medical Press, the editor raises the above question. He says: "The evils attending faulty methods of voice-production are pointed out both from an anatomical and from an artistic point of view, diaphragmatic breathing being especially insisted on in opposition to mere clavicular breathing. This is undoubtedly correct; but we think the advice here embodied would have been even more valuable had the authoress mentioned if from her experience she thought it applied in an equal extent to both sexes, as it is well known that nature, or we may perhaps more correctly say, the art of dress, causes women to breathe in a far more 'clavicular manner' than men."

This is a valuable criticism, and as the point indicated is likely to be of interest to many persons, I append my reply, which appeared in the next number of The Medical Press:—

"To the Editor of the Medical Press and Circular.

"SIR,—I intended the advice on breathing to apply to both sexes, diaphragmatic breathing with perfect control being the foundation of all good voice-production, whether in speaking or in singing, in men and women alike, while clavicular breathing is a potent factor in voice-failure accompanied by throat ailments. From the examination of a large number of cases, I find it exceptional for a woman, when dressed, to breathe diaphragmatically, but when the garments are unfastened, and a few simple directions followed, Nature's mode of breathing commences to re-assert itself, feebly at first, but vigorously after a little practice. Very many men also breathe clavicularly, to the great detriment of their voices, whether in speaking or in singing. I have noticed, however that whereas the majority of women always breathe clavicularly, comparatively few men adopt this pernicious habit unless when using the voice, which is, of course, the worst time for them to employ it. As a rule, men re-acquire the natural manner of breathing more easily and quickly than women; this may be partly accounted for by their greater freedom from constricting garments. After a few weeks' training of the respiratory muscles, the lung capacity frequently exceeds, in women especially, the average given in Hutchinson's tables.

"Thanking you in anticipation for your courtesy in publishing this letter,—I am, sir, yours &c.,

"K. BEHNKE

"18, Earl's Court Square, S.W."



INDEX.

Artificial female voice, Roman teachers, 2

Back ring pyramid muscles, 46, 48

Bands uniting shield and tongue-bone, 34

Belts v. braces for men, 25

Breast bone, 11

Breathing, Collar-bone, 17 ——, Curing defective, 23 —— during sleep, 28 —— exercises, 106 ——, midriff and rib combined, 17 ——, Mouth v. nostril, 26 —— neglected by teachers, 19 ——, View of larynx, 84

Breath, Singers' half-, 26

Browne, Lennox, on breathing, 18, 22

Carpenter, Dr., How tone is produced, 39

Cartilages of Santorini, 51, 54, 80 —— of Wrisberg, 51, 54, 81

Catlin on American Indian breathing, 28

Chest described, 12 —— voice used for pay, 4

Chink, Vocal, 45, 81

Clergymen's sore throat, 22

Collar-bones, 11

Composers disregarding voices, 3 ——' ignorance of harp, 3 ——, Modern, wed music and words, 3 —— to blame for vocal decline, 4

Cords, Vocal, a misleading term, 38 ——, ——, False, 60 ——, ——, origin of term, 8

Corsets for gentlemen, 26

Curwen's names for registers, 87

Czermak's test in vowel formation, 59 —— use of the laryngoscope, 75

Duprez' Chest C, 5

Eberth's case, voice-box without lid, 35

Elsberg on nose-breathing, 28 —— on wedges (posterior nodules), 55

Eustachian tubes, 58

Exercises, Ah, legato, scala, 117 ——, Breathing, 106 ——, Controlling tongue, 124 ——, glottis, check and glide, 112 —— for tone quality, 119, 121 —— in changing registers, 118 ——, Mixed-voice, 119 —— on koo, 124 —— on vowels, 116 ——, Opening mouth, 125 ——, Resonator, 119 ——, Soft palate, 121 —— to govern pitch, 115 ——, Voice production, 110

Experiment, calf's lungs, 12 ——, Czermak on vowels, 59 ——, defects in breathing, 23 ——, feeling ring-shield aperture, 72, 100 —— in telling male and female registers, 90

Experiments, Marshall on animals, 39 ——, Mueller on dissected larynges, 7, 96 ——, pressing shield to test pitch, 71 ——, Spirometer, 20 ——, Violin tone, 57 ——, whisper and feel voice-box, 70 —— with laryngoscope, 76, 92 —— with mirror, for nasal tone, 60

Falsetto register neglected, 4, 6

Female and male minstrels, 15 —— voice spoilt by tenor pattern, 2

Foulis' laryngoscope, 78

French singers subject to tremolo, 20

Garcia and the laryngoscope, 74 —— on forced registers, 96

Garrett, error in describing glottis, 45 —— on a blackbird's larynx, 40 —— on differences in larynges, 64

Glogg-ner-Castelli on chest voice, 5

Glottis, Chink of the, 45, 81 ——, Defects to avoid, 112 —— in producing sound, 46 —— in repose, 46 —— in respiration, 46 ——, Shock of the, 83 ——, sphincter muscle, 44

Heart, 11

Helmholtz on whispered vowels, 70

Horns, Upper and lower, 34, 37, 42

Human voice, four parts, 9 —— voice, incomparable, 9

Huxley's description of respiration, 14

Illingworth, Rumney, on falsetto, 39, 52

Inspiration and expiration, 14 —— of men and women, 15 ——, Three ways of, 14 —— through the mouth, 26

Isenschmid's throat apparatus, 77

Italian composers studying voices, 3

Lacing, Tight, 25

Laryngo-Phantom, Isenschmid's, 77

Laryngoscope described, 73 ——, Errors in using, 79 ——, How to use, 73 ——, What is seen, 80

Laryngoscopic images, 84, 85

Larynx generally described, 31 —— (see Voice-box)

Levers of the Pyramids, 36

Lid and its function, 32, 35, 80

Ligaments, Pocket, 50, 81 ——, ——, not tone producers, 52 ——, ——, their functions, 53, 83 ——, Vocal, described, 36, 81, 94 ——, ——, how produce tone, 32, 81 ——, ——, how stretched, 47 ——, ——, in S.C.T.B. voices, 66 ——, ——, size, movement, 41 ——, ——, Three actions of, 83 ——, ——, View of, 37

Lung gymnastics, 21

Lungs described, 9 ——, Experiment with calf's, 12 ——, their function, 12

Lunn on "Coup de glotte", 83 —— on differences in larynges, 64, 89 —— on laryngoscopic views, 82

Luschka, and term "vocal chink", 45 ——, how tone is produced, 40

Luschka's measurements of larynges, 64

Male contralti, 2 —— soprani, 1

Malrespiration, 28

Marshall, experiments on animals, 39

Merkel on male and female larynges, 90 —— on pyramids and registers, 99 —— on tension of ligaments, 67

Merkel's terms for registers, 90

Meyerbeer and the falsetto, 5

Midriff, 11 —— described, 12

Mixed voice, defined, 119

Mouth, its part in singing, 59 ——, when to keep it shut, 29

Mozart studied voice before composing, 4

Mucous membrane, 61, 80

Mueller's experiments on larynges 7, 96

Muscles, back ring pyramid, 46, 48 —— governing pitch, 113 ——, How to strengthen, 113 ——, ligament tension theory, 67 ——, Pyramid, 49

Muscles, Ring-shield, 41 ——, ——, how change registers, 97 ——, Shield-pyramid, 41 ——, Shield-pyramid, how change registers, 97 ——, Side ring-pyramid, 48 ——, Summary of uses of, 49

Nasal tone, various theories, 60

Nose cavities, 59

Nostrils best adapted for breathing, 27

Nourrit and Duprez, 5

Novello, Sabilla, how tone is produced, 39

Palate, Soft, exercising, 121 ——, ——, its movements, 59

Paris Conservatoire method of inspiration, 20

Pharynx, 58

Pitch, Mechanism affecting, 72 ——, Rise of, strains voice, 4

Pronunciation for Singers, Ellis's, 120

Pyramids, how act in registers, 99 ——, Levers of the, 36, 46 ——, side view, 37 ——, their shape and motion, 36, 82, 94

Register, Mechanism of thick, 94 ——, Thick, described, 94 ——, Thin, ", 98

Registers, Compass of the, 93 ——, Teachers' Manual on, 87 ——, definition, 86 ——, described by Mme. Seiler, 94 ——, distinguishing sex, 90 ——, Evil of straining, 101 ——, How ligaments act in, 86 ——, how small is formed, 101 ——, how upper thick formed, 95, 97 ——, Images of, 84, 85 ——, Laryngoscope and sub-division of, 91 ——, "Mixed voice", 118 ——, optional tones, 118 ——, places of break, 87, 96 ——, Straining of, 95 ——, Three female voice, 88 ——, to equalise, not expose, 116 ——, Two male voice, 138 ——, Upper and lower thick, 96 ——, —— —— —— thin, 100 ——, what laryngoscope teaches, 104

Resonator changes by vowel, 70 ——, effect of formation, 58 ——, its parts, 9, 56

Respiration described, 13

Ribs, 11

Ring cartilage, 31, 32

Ring-shield muscles, 41, 70

Roger, the French tenor's style, 4, 6

Rossini on decline of vocal art, 2

Seiler, description of the registers, 92 ——, Madame, on "wedges", 54 —— on action of vocal ligaments, 100

Shield and ring, Motion of, 34, 71

Shield cartilage, 34

Shield plates, 33, 71

Shield-pyramid muscles, 41

Singable music, 3

Singing v. speaking, 18

Snoring and keeping mouth open, 30

Sphincter muscle of the glottis, 44

Spirometer tests recommended, 19

Teaching, Hints on, 106

Tenors as teachers of female voice, 2 ——, Short vocal life of, 1 —— sing octave lower than written, 87

Tobold, how tone is produced, 40

Tone, how produced, 56 ——, loudness, 56 ——, pitch, 56 ——, quality, 56 ——, Three ways of producing, 83

Tongue-bone, 34 ——, Exercises to control, 124

Tonic Sol-fa College, Experiments, 20

Tremolo, Controlled artistic, 22 ——, Involuntary, 21 —— mars fine voices, 20 ——, Origin of, 21

Violin, Experiments for tone on a, 57

Vocal gymnastics, 114

Voce mista, 118

Voice-box, Attempts to see the, 74 —— compared with instruments, 8 ——, differences in size, 62 ——, dissecting, 7, 44, 57 ——, its parts specified, 31 —— measurements, 64 —— movements, teaching of, 70, 72 ——, visible movements, 69

Voice-breaking, Cause of, 63

Voice, Cause of high or low, 65 —— cultivation exercises, 110 ——, female, Wrong use of, 95

Voice, period of change in youth, 63 ——, quality of, exercises, 119 ——, poverty of the age, 1 —— sufferers, Cure of, 24

Vowel scale, Order of the, 116 ——, Use of palate in forming, 59

Wedges, Action in small register, 103 ——, or cuneiform cartilages, 51, 54, 81

Whispering, Voice-box movements in, 70

When to keep the mouth shut, 29

Wilson, Erasmus, on cuneiform cartilages, 54

Windpipe described, 31, 81

Witkowski on "the wedges", 55 —— on views of specialists, 8

Women in church music, 2

Words ignored by composers, 3



INDEX TO "VOICE FAILURE."

Breathing, Evils of clavicular, 128

Breathing, Lamperti on, 129

Breathing, Wrong, 127, 128

Forcing, 128

Forcing, Acquiring top notes, 137

Intonation affected by resonance, 134

Laryngoscope, Its lessons, 137, 138

Lung capacity, 128

Pronunciation, 136

Registers, Forcing, 128, 136

Resonators, Neglect, 128, 132

Shouting, 128

Singing, Loud, 128,, 131

Stammering, 130

Symptoms of faulty voice use, 139

Throat, Inflammation of, 137

Timbre, 133

Tone, Squeezing, 132

Vowels, Shaping mouth for, 134

Vowels, Scale of nature, 135



Opinions of the Press and the Medical and the Musical Professions on the Author's Book, Lectures, and Teaching.

SIGNOR GARCIA writes to the Author:—

DEAR SIR,—Very many thanks for the copy forwarded to me of your most interesting work. It will prove of an inestimable advantage to students, being, in my humble estimation, one of the clearest and most practical treatises on the subject which contemporary literature has produced. Accept also my sincere thanks for the description contained in your work of the origin of the laryngoscope, and believe me, dear sir, yours most sincerely, M. GARCIA.

THE ATHENAEUM.

Interesting, compared with those previously published, as being written by a musician and not by a medical man. Hence we are not surprised to find purely musical questions discussed here with great ability.

NATURE.

The object of this little book is to give singers a plain and comprehensible view of the musical instrument on which they perform. The author seems to have succeeded in this attempt remarkably well. He has evidently had much practical work himself, and has especially set himself the task of examining the action of the vocal organs during singing by means of the laryngoscope; and his record of his own experience in acquiring the use of that beautiful instrument is not only interesting, but of much practical value. The last section of the book is devoted to the teachings of the laryngoscope as to the action of the vocal ligaments in producing voice, with especial reference to the so-called registers. "A register consists of a series of tones which are produced by the same mechanism," is his definition (p. 86), which is new and complete, and he proceeds to explain the different mechanism of each kind of register as actually observed on singers. There are some good remarks on breathing (pp. 17-22). All information is given throughout in clear, intelligible language, and illustrated by fourteen woodcuts.... The book may be safely recommended to all singers, and others who are desirous of knowing how vocal tones are produced.

SATURDAY REVIEW.

On the important question of the different registers of the voice and their proper use, Mr. Behnke practically breaks new ground. He has carefully gone over the whole subject of the production of the voice as far as the larynx is concerned, and worked it out anew by a long and careful series of experiments and observations with the laryngoscope.... Mr. Behnke's book is clearly written, and the plates well drawn and printed; while the anatomical details are made clear to the general reader by the use of English names for the different parts.... It is a very valuable book, and ought to be read and thought over by all who have the training of young singers, and indeed by all musicians.

MEDICAL PRESS AND CIRCULAR.

In clear and untechnical language the author gives an accurate account of the construction and mode of action of the human larynx, its differences in men, women, and children, and the teachings of the laryngoscope, notably with respect to the "registers" of the voice.... M. Behnke is evidently an accurate observer and a logical reasoner, and a study of his work side by side with Witkowski's "Movable Atlas of the Throat and Tongue" must be advantageous to any one desiring to make the best use of his voice.

THE SPECIALIST.

This useful little book is the outcome of the author's large experience and careful research. It is written concisely, in clear and untechnical language, and frequent references are made to such authorities as Huxley, Lennox Browne, Eberth, Carpenter, Marshall, Luschka, &c. That Herr Behnke thoroughly understands his subject no one who reads his book can doubt, and if those who wish to know the right way to sing and avoid the wrong way will carefully study this little manual they will not go far wrong. For all who are dependent on the right use of their voices for their daily bread, Herr Behnke's book will be most opportune.

MUSICAL STANDARD.

An excellent specimen of a familiar way of putting unfamiliar truths.

MUSIC TRADES REVIEW.

There are excellent reasons why singers should possess an intimate knowledge of the structure and functions of the various organs concerned in the production of the voice, and this knowledge they are likely to gain more easily and effectually from the present treatise than from any other with which we are acquainted. Mr. Emil Behnke writes in a singularly clear and lucid manner, and if his book be not exactly light, it is very interesting reading. Much of the information conveyed is invaluable. We cannot too strongly recommend the present volume to the perusal of vocal students.

MUSICAL EDUCATION.

After carefully reading the book we are at no loss to understand how it is that there is such a demand for it amongst the members of the musical public. The style is admirably simple and lucid, and every statement made is in accordance with the latest views on the subject held by physiologists and anatomists of acknowledged eminence.

KEY BOARD.

The most reasonable, practical, and common-sense work to be found anywhere.

THE VOICE.

This book is clear and plain, and gives just the information that every singer and speaker should have. It is the ablest and most practical treatise on the voice we have seen.

THE INQUIRER.

Men have set themselves to try and ascertain the actual process by which vocal sounds are produced, and thus to form a scientific basis on which to found a way of training voices. Herr Behnke, in a singularly clear and lucid manner, brings the whole subject before the reader, and, to make it readily understood by non-scientific people, gives a translation of the Greek terms used by physiologists side by side with the originals. We cannot too strongly insist upon the necessity of forming a scientific basis for teaching singing, and, indeed, for training the voice for public speaking, &c. We congratulate Herr Behnke upon the patience and perseverance with which he has pursued his investigations with the laryngoscope.

MUSIC.

Mr. Emil Behnke has already made himself known to the leading members of the musical and medical professions by his learned lectures on "The Theory of Voice Production," and has gained the esteem of those interested in the subject by the masterly manner in which he deals with the matter, as well as his unaffected and, as far as possible, untechnical treatment of it. Mr. Behnke has done much to popularize the study of the human voice, and his book (which abounds in admirable plates) deserves to be widely known.

EDUCATIONAL TIMES.

It is but rarely that science figures as the handmaid of art, yet this book is a signal instance of it, for it is one of the first attempts, if not the very first, at an investigation, on strictly scientific principles, of the normal and the abnormal development of the voice, both in speaking and singing. Herr Behnke, who is both a musician and a physiologist, has brought to bear upon this subject his knowledge as a musician, and the results of several years of patient and careful scientific experiments. We cannot too highly commend this little work to the attention of all those interested in so important a subject.

BIRMINGHAM DAILY GAZETTE.

Since Herr Behnke's removal from Birmingham to London he has become an accepted authority on the subject of voice production, and we are glad to see the results of his studies presented in the useful way in which they are in this little volume. Earnest and conscientious students of the vocal art need not be reminded that the production of fine tone is not the all-in-all of the excellences of singing, but they will certainly know better how to employ their gifts after mastering the secrets Herr Behnke reveals.



Opinions of Mrs. Emil Behnke's Pupils.

VOICE TRAINING.

FROM AN OLD PUPIL.

GRESHAM HOTEL, DUBLIN.

DEAR MRS. BEHNKE,—It is indeed regrettable that Mr. Behnke was not spared to reap to a greater extent the reward of his wonderful work. You, I know, must have acquired an adequate knowledge of his magnificent system of teaching to enable you to continue on the same course, and so perpetuate his memory. This is a source of comfort to your many friends.

FROM A LADY LECTURER.

EDGBASTON, May 11th, 1893.

MY DEAR MRS. BEHNKE,—I feel I must write to tell you how much better I am, and how greatly indebted I am to your treatment.... I can take two or three meetings a week with ease, thanks to your training, and the deeper and fuller tone of my voice has been remarked upon by many.

LARNE, IRELAND.

I have no hesitation in saying that, under God, you were the means of curing my voice.

FROM A CLERGYMAN WHO HAD BROKEN DOWN IN VOICE.

LONDON, July, 1893.

My voice gives me no trouble now; it is indeed very much fuller and more resonant. I can fill my church without the least effort.

FROM A CLERGYMAN WHO HAD SUFFERED FROM "CLERGYMAN'S SORE THROAT."

BRIGHTON, 26th June, 1893.

DEAR MRS. BEHNKE,—I take this opportunity of thanking you very much for what you have done for my voice. I shall try to keep up your exercises, and hope to receive more lessons later on in the year.

FROM A CLERGYMAN WHO STAMMERED, AND WHOSE VOICE WAS WEAK.

"THE PARSONAGE," Feb. 7th, 1893.

DEAR MRS. BEHNKE,—I told the Rev. Mr. S. of the great benefit I had derived from your instruction. He proposes to bring the subject of your work, and the importance of it to young clergymen, before the Bishop, with a view to something being done for ordination candidates.

FROM A TEACHER OF SINGING.

SCARBOROUGH, Jan. 6th, 1894.

DEAR MRS. BEHNKE,—For some years I have been teaching successfully on the lines laid down in your late husband's publications and his own "Voice Training Exercises;" and have put into the hands of some of my pupils your "Voice Training Primer." One of them has just passed Trinity College Senior Singing Examination with honours (84 marks out of 100). My own experience is that no exercises I have ever used have so helped to produce "forward" and to cure "throaty" tone, and I have long felt I owed to Mr. Behnke a debt of gratitude for his works. May I be permitted to acknowledge it to you?



STAMMERING.

THE TIMES.

Pre-eminent success in the education and treatment of stammering and other speech defects.

THE BRITISH MEDICAL JOURNAL.

DR. F. L. NICHOLLS writes:—"This infirmity is so great a drawback to almost every walk in life, and for public speaking so complete a hindrance, that a cure is of the utmost importance. It may therefore be of interest, and possibly of some use to members of the medical profession having a case of this nature in their practice, and desiring assistance for its cure, if I mention that I have recently had the most satisfactory experience of the cure of such a case. The father, a minister, was very anxious for his son to follow in his own footsteps, while the lad stuttered so badly it was not to be thought of, unless a cure could be effected; and for this purpose he was sent to Mrs. Behnke, of Earl's Court Square, London. Mrs. Behnke was chosen from high recommendations, and very thoroughly has she proved worthy of them. The lad has just returned home, and speaks without the slightest impediment. I should state that previously to going under Mrs. Behnke's hands we had tried various rules and recommendations without the least success."

"Stammering: its Nature and Treatment." Price 1s, of Mrs. Emil Behnke.



Causes of Voice Failure.

By Mrs. EMIL BEHNKE.

Third Edition, Revised and Enlarged.

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS.

THE WEEKLY ECHO.

A very useful pamphlet by a very able teacher. It is published at sixpence, but contains many guinea fees' worth of knowledge, and hints where to procure more.

THE SHREWSBURY CHRONICLE.

Ought to be perused by all who seek distinction as vocalists.

BRISTOL TIMES.

A valuable little brochure. It is one of the most concise and practical treatises on the subject we have seen, and if only the hints contained therein were more generally observed, we should have not only less voice failure, but more good singers with strong, resonant, and lasting vocal organs. The little book should be in the hands of all singers, students especially.

HEARTH AND HOME.

Mrs. Behnke's pamphlet should be eagerly read. I advise all those who are interested in the preservation of their voices to invest sixpence in the purchase of this admirable booklet, as they cannot fail to gain much assistance from the excellent matter therein contained.

HALIFAX GUARDIAN.

The pamphlet is terse and valuable in the information it affords.

THE MEDICAL PRESS.

"Causes of Voice Failure," by Mrs. Emil Behnke, has the merit of being practical and of containing truths which must appeal forcibly not only to singers, but also to listeners.

WARRINGTON GUARDIAN.

"Causes of Voice Failure." This important subject is well treated by Mrs. Emil Behnke.

THE QUEEN.

Well worth reading for the valuable hints which it contains.

THE PRACTICAL TEACHER.

The husband of Mrs. Behnke was the greatest authority in his day upon voice-training, and, in recommending his wife's book we need only say that her knowledge of this subject is only second to what his was.

MUSICAL OPINION.

This is a small, cheap, and useful pamphlet by Mrs. Emil Behnke. The quiet, clear, convincing manner in which she writes deserves full recognition.

SUSSEX DAILY NEWS.

"Causes of Voice Failure," by Mrs. Behnke, is a useful little tract which may be confidently recommended to the notice of singers, professional and amateur, for the sound advice and cautions against common faults of training contained in it.

BRISTOL OBSERVER.

Mrs. Emil Behnke has written a little work on "Causes of Voice Failure" which deserves to be widely circulated among students of singing. It should be carefully read.

CAMBRIAN.

Excellent advice is given which must be of great value to those who contemplate adopting the vocal profession either from a pecuniary or from an artistic standpoint.

THE SCHOOLMASTER.

Mrs. Behnke goes to the root of the matter, and her proposals are urged clearly. Incidentally she touches on stammering, and we recommend those interested in the subject to give her ideas, at any rate, consideration.

THE PROFESSIONAL WORLD.

We would recommend it to all interested in the question of voice production and voice preservation.

LITERARY WORLD.

The writer of this essay is a well-known expert in her subject.

TUNBRIDGE WELLS ADVERTISER.

In a concise form Mrs. Behnke gives some valuable hints that singers would do well to note and pay attention to.

WEST SUSSEX GAZETTE.

Mrs. Behnke was well advised to consent to the publication of this valuable chapter added to the ninth edition of her husband's well-known work, "Mechanism of the Human Voice," and we are glad to note it has already run to a second edition.



THE BEHNKE VOICE-TRAINING METHOD.

Voice-Training Exercises

ALSO

Voice-Training Studies

BY

EMIL BEHNKE and Dr. C. W. PEARCE.

In separate books for Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, Contralto, Tenor, Baritone, and Bass.

Price: Paper Covers, 1s. 6d. net cash; Bound in Cloth, 3s. net cash.

Voice-Training Primer

By MRS. EMIL BEHNKE.

Price 2s. net cash; Bound in Cloth, 3s. net cash.

These works are highly recommended by the musical, medical, and general press, and by teachers.

CHAPPELL & Co., Ltd., 50 NEW BOND STREET, LONDON, W. Melbourne and New York.

And may be had of all music-sellers.



The Musical Herald.

A Journal for the Professor and Amateur.

PUBLISHED ON THE 1st OF EACH MONTH. PRICE TWOPENCE.

The Musical Herald was established in 1851; it is the most widely circulated and read of all the musical papers.

The Musical Herald gives no music; it is bought because of the importance of its articles and news.

The Musical Herald is indispensable to the up-to-date Pianoforte Teacher, Voice Trainer, Organist, and Choirmaster.

The Musical Herald freely replies to questions on musical subjects which are of general interest. In this way One Thousand enquiries are answered each year. Most of them concern matters that the ordinary text-books and manuals do not touch.

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FOOTNOTES:

[A] "The Mechanism of Voice, Speech, and Taste." Translated and edited by Mr. Lennox Browne, F.R.C.S. London: Bailliere, Tindall, and Cox.

[B] It having been proved to Mr. Behnke that the use of the term "abdominal" instead of "diaphragmatic" breathing led to misconception and misrepresentation of his views on this important subject, he discarded the words "abdominal breathing" and used only the term "diaphragmatic breathing" in his teaching and writing. Will readers kindly bear this in mind?—K. B.

[C] "Medical Hints on the Production and Management of the Singing Voice," Fifth Edition, p. 15. London: Chappell and Co.

[D] Only for the purpose of ascertaining the capacity of the lungs before commencing the exercises, and the gain acquired after some weeks of regular work.

[E] "The Throat and its Diseases," pp. 289, 290. London: Bailliere, Tindall, and Cox.

[F] "The Throat and its Functions." New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons.

[G] Sphincter is an anatomical term applied to circular muscles which constrict or close certain natural orifices.

[H] "Ueber die Compensation der physischen Kraefte am menschlichen Stimmorgan," p. 8. Berlin, 1839.

[I] "Voice in Singing," p. 189. Philadelphia, 1875.

[J] "Anatomist's Vade Mecum." By Erasmus Wilson, F.R.S. London. Eighth edition, p. 596.

[K] Helmholtz, "Sensations of Tone:" translated by Alexander J. Ellis, F.R.S., &c., p. 37.

[L] "Philosophy of Voice," 2nd edition, p. 19. Bailliere, Tindall, and Cox.

[M] A "Laryngo-Phantom" has recently been brought out by Dr. Isenschmid of Munich, which greatly facilitates this preliminary practice. It consists of an imitation of the throat, the larynx, and the mouth, and "is intended to familiarize students with as many of the details connected with the use of the laryngoscope as it is possible to learn before the application of the instrument to the living subject." A number of little paintings representing different laryngoscopic appearances may be slipped into this Phantom, unknown to the student, who has to discover what has been done by the usual process. This apparatus can therefore be strongly recommended as affording excellent and constant practice. It may be had of Messrs. Krohne & Sesemann, 8, Duke Street, Manchester Square, W., price L2 2s.

[N] "Der Kehlkopf," p. 153. Leipzig, 1873. J. J. Weber.

THE END