Opera is mysterious, impressive, and confusing because it relies on something everyone has, a human voice, which can produce specialized sounds without any additional equipment or tools. The main mystique surrounding opera singers is that there is no amplification, relying instead on precise technique to harness natural resonance.
When phrased that way, opera singing sounds simple. Master the technique of resonance, and you’ll have a powerful operatic voice. Of course, as an opera singer, I’ve discovered that there’s a lot more to opera than producing the right kind of sound. Musicality, foreign languages, acting, and stagecraft are skills that a singer must master to become an accomplished opera singer. Add the right temperament, focus, and a highly trained memory.
The Singers
“Great Singers on Great Singing” was published in 1982. It’s not a step-by-step instruction manual or a do-it-yourself guide on singing, organized by categories and techniques. Instead, it’s a collection of interviews with 40 of the greatest opera singers of the 20th century, as well as a speech therapist and a throat specialist for medical advice.Among the included singers are still-famous names, like Plácido Domingo, Beverly Sills, Marilyn Horne, and Luciano Pavarotti. Other singers in the collection will likely be recognized and admired only by opera aficionados. From Licia Albanese to Bill Zakariasen, each singer’s feature includes a fascinating background on their training, career, and singing techniques.
The Interviews
Each singer’s section begins with a concise single paragraph summarizing that artist’s career. Then, Hines jumps right into the interview. Sometimes he recounts the experience of visiting the singer’s home or hotel room, and other times he begins with a memorable quote from the interview.Rather than giving an overview of the singer’s training and technique based on their answers to his questions, he recounts the detailed questions and answers of the conversation. This brings individual performers’ personalities to life, helping readers understand who they were as people and how their backgrounds and characters shaped their onstage personas.
In some cases, it is necessary to give the reader an idea of what a certain singer had in mind, since many of the subjects were, according to Hines, infuriatingly reluctant to answer with specific words rather than demonstrations and hand gestures.
Hines usually starts the interview with questions about a singer’s training before delving into questions about technique, singing concepts, and preparation rituals before performances. If a singer was a personal friend, he would provide a memory of some history they had together. Although he had known most of the singers for years, he recounted the experience of meeting the great soprano Rosa Ponselle as she was in her last years. Some singers mentioned vocal exercises they used, which he provided for replication. Each interview generally spans four pages.
What complicates classical singing is the fact that there isn’t one method for mastering any of its techniques, particularly sound production. Nothing illustrates this more clearly than this book. It features 40 great singers with 40 different approaches to singing.
On basic topics like breath support, two singers of equal prestige, experience, and beauty of sound offer stubbornly opposing opinions.
While soprano Martina Arroyo enthusiastically endorsed the method of breathing low, mezzo-soprano Fiorenza Cossotto insisted that breathing low is dangerous to the female anatomy. Bass Paul Plishka admitted that he doesn’t think much about support, since breathing always came naturally to him. Tenor John Alexander said, “We should sing as we speak,” while soprano Rita Shane said, “I speak the same way as I sing.”
Can You Learn Singing From a Book?
After the letter of acknowledgement and table of contents on the first few pages, this book features a warning: “This book may be injurious to your vocal health.” Contrary to what you might guess, this warning isn’t from a laryngologist, voice therapist, or opera board. It’s from Cornell MacNeil (known as Mac), an American baritone who sang at the Met.Mr. MacNeil wins the prize for the most stubborn subject of all 40 singers. His section begins with the quote, “I want to go on record that I don’t think this book should be written! It’s a mistake! It will be more harm than good!”
Although Mac was an undeniably difficult person, Hines acknowledged his point. In the book’s preface, Hines wrote, “You may have derived a chuckle from Cornell MacNeil’s dire warning on the opening pages of this book, but it bears serious consideration. The truth of the matter is that to learn to sing from a book alone is an utter impossibility.”
Although this book, or any other book, can’t “miraculously transform you into a vocal superstar,” it offers invaluable insight into what made the greatest opera singers of the last century so excellent. While a young singer probably can’t master complex vocal techniques simply by reading about them, he or she can be inspired and motivated by the singers’ success stories and educated by their disciplined diets, schedules, and regimes, while perhaps picking up a few very useful tips.
For instance, Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti, probably the most recognizable name in opera, described his interesting regime on a performance day:
“I sleep until eleven or twelve the day of the performance. I trust very much in rest for the voice. The moment I get up I vocalize about two minutes, and then, I don’t care how it goes, I stop. Then I eat. I vocalize two hours after breakfast … a quarter of an hour. Then five minutes of scales a half an hour before I go to the theater. Then, in the theater, another five minutes and I sing through the first romanza of my performance, full voice.”
Anyone who enjoys opera will find this an incredibly informative and entertaining book. The stories are rich and amusing. Best of all, every singer is recent enough that there is a wealth of recordings on YouTube, demonstrating their talent and technique. I recommend listening to each singer while reading about his or her interview, and noticing anything mentioned in the book.
