Chapter XVI: Caruso’s Method of Singing as Explained by Himself

The personal opinion of Caruso regarding his vocal method and
his point of view on singing in general, besides being of the
utmost interest to singers and students of singing, constitutes
so great a moral support for this book that the author feels
justified in presenting it to the readers before entering into
the illustration of the second part of this book.

In 1919, Caruso was requested by a musical paper to give some
personal views on singing. The following are the principal
points which he explained in the interview and which he
represented as the guiding principles of his voice and vocal
art:

“The question ‘How is it done?’ as applied to the art of singing
brings up so many different points that it is difficult to know
where to begin or how to give a concise idea of the principles
controlling the production of the voice and their application to
vocal art.

“Every singer or singing master is popularly supposed to have a
method by following out which he has come to fame. Yet, if asked
to describe the method, many an artist would be at a loss to do
so, or would deny that he had any specific method, such a subtle
and peculiarly individual matter it is that constitutes the
technical part of singing. Most singers—in fact, all of them—do
many things in singing habitually, yet so inconspicuously that
they could not describe how or why they did them.... For
instance, a singer will know from trials and experience just the
proper position of the tongue and larynx to produce most
effectively a certain note on the scale; yet he will have come
by this knowledge, not by theory and reasoning, but simply by
oft-repeated attempts, and the knowledge he has attained will be
valuable to him only, for somebody else would produce the same
note equally well, but in quite a different way.

“So one may see that there are actually as many methods as there
are singers, and any particular method, even if accurately set
forth, might be useless to the person who tried it. This is what
I really would reply to any one putting this question to me—that
my own particular way of singing, if I have any, is, after all,
peculiarly suited to me only, as I have above described.

“However, there are many interesting and valuable things to be
said about the voice in a general way....

“It may be well to speak now of a very important point in
singing—what is called the ‘attack’ of the tone. In general this
may be described as the relative position of the throat and
tongue and the quality of voice as the tone is begun. The most
serious fault of many singers is that they attack the tone
either from the chest or the throat. Even with robust health the
finest voice cannot resist this. This is the reason one sees so
many artists who have made a brilliant début disappear from
sight very soon, or later on wind up a mediocre career. Singers
who use their voices properly should be at the height of their
talents at forty-five, and keep their voices in full strength
and virility up to at least fifty. At this latter age, or close
after, it would seem well to have earned the right to close
one’s career.

“A great artist ought to have the dignity to say farewell to his
public when still in full possession of his powers, and never
let the world apprise him of his decadence.

“To have the attack true and pure one must consciously try to
open the throat not only in front, but from behind, for the
throat is the door through which the voice must pass, and if it
is not sufficiently open it is useless to attempt to get out a
full round tone; also the throat is the outlet and inlet for the
breath, and if it is closed the voice will seek other channels
or return stifled within.

“It must not be imagined that to open the mouth wide will do the
same for the throat. If one is well versed in the art, one can
open the throat perfectly without a perceptible opening of the
mouth, merely by the power of respiration.

“It is necessary to open the sides of the mouth, at the same
time dropping the chin well, to obtain a good throat opening. In
taking higher notes, of course, one must open the mouth a little
wider, but for the most part the position of the mouth is that
assumed when smiling. It is a good idea to practice opening the
throat before a mirror and try to see the palate, as when you
show your throat to a doctor....

“The tone once launched, one must think how it may be properly
sustained, and this is where the art of breathing is most
concerned. The lungs, in the first place, should be thoroughly
filled. A tone begun with only half-filled lungs loses half its
authority and is very apt to be false in pitch. To take a full
breath properly, the chest must be raised at the same moment
that the abdomen sinks in. Then with the gradual expulsion of
the breath, a contrary movement takes place.... It is this
ability to take in an adequate supply of breath and to retain it
until required that makes, or the contrary, mars, all singing. A
singer with a perfect sense of pitch and all the good intentions
possible will often sing off the key and bring forth a tone with
no vitality to it, distressing to hear, simply for lack of
breath control.

“This art of respiration, once acquired, the student has gone a
considerable step on the road to Parnassus....

“In the matter of taking high notes one should remember that
their purity and ease of production depend very much on the way
the preceding notes leading up to them are sung....

“Singers, especially tenors, are very apt to throw the head
forward in producing the high notes, and consequently get that
throaty, strained voice, which is so disagreeable. To avoid this
one should try to keep the supply of breath down as far toward
the abdomen as possible, thus maintaining the upper passages to
the head quite free for the emission of the voice.”[4]

In these few personal remarks on singing, expressed by Caruso,
there is more precious advice condensed to help students and
singers in their art than could be found in many a book on voice
culture filled with abstruse doctrines and complicated rules.

Here the great singer, in a simple and practical form, puts down
the fundamental principles of voice production which control the
art of singing. By saying that many artists would be at a loss
to describe their methods, if they have any, and by emphasizing
that most singers do many things through mere force of habit and
so spontaneously that they cannot describe how, Caruso has given
the clearest possible explanation of his marvelous singing. In
his statement that there is no one method of singing, but that
there are as many methods as there are singers, and that his own
particular way of singing was peculiarly suited to himself, he
established the real truth about methods of singing in general.
As a matter of fact no two persons can follow precisely the same
routine in singing, and not even two pupils can be taught the
same method in exactly the same way. This also shows clearly
that to try and imitate Caruso’s singing was futile and perhaps
dangerous, as has been proven practically by the attempts made
by some tenors, to the great injury of their own voices.

Nevertheless, if Caruso’s method of singing could not be readily
adopted by any one else, as Caruso himself stated, the practical
illustration of the physiological rules of voice production
which he followed and on which his singing was naturally molded
are undoubtedly of inestimable value to students and singers.

Caruso said that, although he could not explain his method of
singing, there were many interesting and valuable things he
could say about singing in general. In describing them as he
did, he reinforced the scientific truth which he advocated by
natural intuition.

As a matter of fact, many of the personal impressions of great
singers are often the very fundamental principles of voice
production, based on physiological laws, which they follow
through mere instinct. The physiological rules which control the
production of all voices are like the rules of proportion and
perspective governing the drawing of a painting or the modeling
of clay. They establish the correct fundamental basis for every
individual vocal method. Therefore, while Caruso could not
illustrate for others his own method of singing, he almost
unconsciously laid down the physiological principles of voice
production by deduction from his own experience.

The author had the rare opportunity of assisting Caruso in
teaching the only pupil he ever had—a person with a superb
voice, but too advanced in years to be influenced by any
training. By closely observing the method by which Caruso taught
this man, the author saw the application by the master himself
of the correct physiological rules of voice production as
propounded in this work.

These rules coincided exactly with the principles presented by
the author in this book; thus Caruso’s opinions constitute their
most valuable confirmation. The laws of natural singing which
he, the typical model of natural singing, felt and followed by
natural instinct and inspiration, are those that the author
claims must be adopted in voice culture. It was not in Caruso’s
power to formulate his instinctive feelings into practical
rules, as he did not have the support of scientific knowledge
about voice production, and naturally he was rather at a loss
when asked to explain his method of singing.

He was, however, deeply interested in the problems of human
voice, and in the many years of friendly association with the
author much was discussed on this subject between the great
singer, from his personal point of view and experience, and the
author from the standpoint of his researches on human voice.

Caruso was also much attracted by the analysis of his own voice,
and his vocal apparatus. His own experience and the author’s
scientific knowledge coöperated in studying him as a vocal
phenomenon, trying to find the link that so closely related his
art to natural laws.