ly 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 one; also the throat is
the outlet and inlet for the breath, and if it is closed the voice will
seek other channels or return quenched 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 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.

In pronouncing the sound "ah" one must always attack it in the back part
of the throat, taking care, however, before uttering the syllable, to
have the throat well open; otherwise what is called "stroke of the
glottis" occurs and the tone formed is hard and disagreeable. If you
ever hear this stroke of glottis on the attack, you may know that the
singer did not attack far enough back in the throat.

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 the abdomen sinks in. Then with the gradual expulsion of
the breath a contrary movement takes place. The diaphragm and elastic
tissue surrounding and containing the stomach and vital organs and the
muscles surrounding, by practice acquire great strength and assist
considerably in this process of respiration and are vital factors in
the matter of controlling the supply which supports the tone. The
diaphragm is really like a pair of bellows and serves exactly the same
purpose. It is this ability to take in an adequate supply of breath and
to retain it until required that makes or, by contrary, mars all
singing. A singer with a perfect sense of pitch and all the good
intentions possible will often sing off the key an