Table of Contents

Foreword
1 Introduction 2 The Organs of Voice Natural Singing: Correct vs. Habitual 3 Vocal Control Direct Control Control Through Self-Awareness Conceptual Control and Its Limitations 4 The Vocal Registers Mechanics of the Registers 'Pure' Registration Registers and Intensity The 'Break' 'Mixed' Registration A Coordinated or 'Blended' Registration The 'Two-Voiced' Singer Segmentation of the Registers Register Rotation Parallel Relationships Registers and Interpretation 5 Aesthetic Judgment Vowel Quality Vowel Adaptation Common Factors The Legato The Attack
Vocal Limitations
Voice 'Building' 6 Conceptual Evaluations Textural Properties of the Vowel, Registration and Resonance Temperament, Anatomical Structure and Emotional Identification 7 Vocal Exercises Exercising the Registers Exercises for Separating the Registers, Female Voice Exercises for Separating the Registers, Male Voice Exercises for Register Mutation Preparatory Exercises for Combining the Registers, Female Voice Preparatory Exercises for Combining the Registers, Male Voice The Messa di Voce Messa di Voce-Female Voice Messa di Voce-Male Voice Practice Repertoire and Interpretation 8 Breathing Breath 'Control' Feeling and Emotion 9 Characteristic Voice Movements The Vibrato The Tremolo The Wobble 10 Attitudes Toward Teaching and Learning Self-Perception Freedom and Intuition Spontaneity Stimulus Control Tangible Control Energy and Movement The Conditioned Reflex Theory APPENDIX
The Composition of Vocal Tone Pitch Intensity Resonance Duration Quality-The Vowel-Timbre Index

About the Author

Cornelius L. Reid (1911-2008) began his studies in music at Trinity Church Choir School in New York City as a boy soprano in 1920. His teaching career began as assistant to Dr. Douglas Stanley from 1934 to 1937. From that point on, he developed his own school of functional vocal training based on Italian methods of the pre-scientific era, combined with insights afforded by modern concepts of physiology, acoustics, and psychology.

Reviews

"Mr. Reid's technical concepts and methods of bel canto singing and healthy vocal production have been the foundation of my own work as a performer. His technique has sustained my vocal health over the thirty-plus years of my career, and it continues to inform the way I teach my students today." -- Grant Youngblood, Baritone
"Cornelius Reid's advocacy of vocal health is based on a simple but solid foundation: the play of opposing forces within the vocal mechanism. The Free Voice abounds in probing insights and constructive advice of use to all enterprising singers. A joy to read and re-read!" -- Pedro de Alcantara, musician and author, Visiting Professor at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Glasgow