INTRO TO LESSONS PLANS

Included in each lesson plan under procedure are techniques and sugges¬tions that may be helpful in solving a particular problem. Additional ones may be found following

Lesson Plan No. 25.

If the teacher is unable to demonstrate the procedures suggested, he should select one or more students who can be drilled beforehand to demonstrate them under his direction. It is not to be expected that these techniques, devices and suggestions will be successful or even partly successful in all cases. As most teachers of singing are aware, what will work for one student may not work for another.

Needless to say, they should be presented with a minimum of explanation. As the saying goes "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing" may be particularly true when applied to a student of singing. Filmstrips and records suitable for class work are now available. They cover basic theories of quality, lip position, loud and soft singing, open vowel production and diction; posture, breathing, vocalization, agility, and range development. Address Indiana University Book Store, Bloomington, Indiana, for information.

VOICE CLASSES
Most teachers will question the teaching of singing in classes. They are of the opinion that each student is a separate entity and must be taught as such. The basis for this opinion is the theory of individual differences.

In contrast to this theory is the theory of individual similarities, which is, that every normal individual child, adolescent, or adult, male or female is vocally the same in part and tends to function in the same way. Voice classes have many advantages, the most important of which is that they can cover the whole field of singing.

Their weakness lies in the lack of individual attention. In contrast, the strength of the small classes or private lessons lies in individual instruction; their weakness, in the narrowness of their approach. To function to best advantage classes in singing must operate on a basis of fundamental theories of voice production which can be applied to all types of voices. From this standpoint it is necessary to establish generalizations on the different aspects involved, such as voice classification, the basic quality to sing, the approach to a singing diction, a basic theory for range development, how to exercise the voice, where to breathe and the basis for breath support and breath control, and vocal hygiene.

In addition to what may be called the technical approach to singing, class procedures can be adapted to the study of stage deportment, interpretation and repertoire; to the study of phonetics applied to singing in foreign languages; to practice in sight singing; to the study of records of all types of singers as to technique and style; and last, but not least, to the use of much singing in unison.

Class lessons in singing afford an inexpensive way for an individual to determine whether he has sufficient talent to warrant making an investment in private lessons. They also establish a background for students who are preparing to teach in the vocal field either as private teachers or as directors or choral groups. They also prepare students for the teacher of private lessons, who is limited in how much he can teach in the usual one or two half-hour lessons per week.