The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-02-15

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ping of some other branch and taking IN
the training of the voice in its place. Mr.
Hall though the difficulty in doing this
would be the selection of the branch
which should be dropped. And even II
one branch was selected and dropped from
the curriculum of the schools there would
be many protests made at once. The
tendency in the schools today is to in
crease rather than diminish the mum Der
of branches. There are those who advocate
the teaching of cooking, sewing, manual
training and other things and the i'm
portance of teaching all of these branches
is supported by many arguments. Mr..
Hall suggested thas 1t might be
practicable to use a part Of the time now
occupied in the teaching of music in the
cultivation of the speaking voice.
Mr.. Robert T. Whitehouse of the Port
land school board also discussed the sub
jeot briefly. He said in part: do not
know why I should be called upon to dis
ouss this question of voice culture unless
it is because of my connection with the
school committee, and / am without in
terest in the subject. My attention was
particularly called to the addition of
voice culture last spring and pertaining
to the various systems for teaching music
competing for in our public schools. At
that time attended an exhibit Of repre-
sentative classes and teachers of the
different methods in Boston. I went to
Manchester to examine the work done
there under the method which made q
specially of voice culture, and went about
considerably here in the Portland schools,
and as a result of this examination 1 be-
came convinced that no system for teach
ing music in public schools can be q per-
manent success which does not include in
its scope careful instruction in the funda-
mental principles of voice culture. But
this need of voice culture is not confined
to the singing voice. There is not one
public speaker out of five, nor one person
out Of five who is not hampered either by
weak, undeveloped voice or careless i'm
proper use of the voice. 1t is a matter
which affects not merely those whose pro.
fession requires frequent public speaking,
but it enters into every branch of our
social intercourse. The business friends
in the future are all largely Influenced
by the persons voice or manner of speak
ing. The application of voice culture to
our public schools is not perhaps, as Mr..
Gone has suggested, met with as en-
thusiastic reception as it deserved here
tofore, since. the term voice culture is as
ISOLATED with the word elocution, which
has unnecessarily and unfortunately been
used as a synonym for affectation and
flourish in oratory.
Voice culture, if understand 1T proper
ly, in its correct Specification, means
simply the physiological development of
the voice just as any other delicate organ
is developed to Its utmost efficiency,
power and beauty. The question is, can
we apply voice culture to public school
work with any practical beneficiary re-
Suits Upon this practical side of the
question have made some investigation.
In Boston and Manchester I found that
the application of the simple devices neces-
sary to accomplish the elementary re-
quirements of voice culture produced dis
tinct and pleasing results. From my per-
sonal observation going about among
classes in Portland and putting the chill
dren through voice exercises. l am con-
WINGED that children, even of very tender
years, can grasp them and use them with
great practical benefit. believe that the
general subject of voice culture for both
the speaking and singing voice, should be
introduced into our schools as a part of
the work done in that branch. Since the
fundamental principles for the speaking
and singing voice are the same, the latter
being merely deviation from the former,
and this special drill should he co.relative
with all the other branches of study where
the speaking voice is used, carefully
watching the pronunciation and tone in
reading and ROTATIONS. But the price of
success in this field is, in my opinion,
careful individual work with each scholar
on the part of the teacher and eternal
vigilance by this method; also believe
| that on the musical side of the question
monotones on children whose ears are not
sufficiently delicate to tell one tone from
another can be entirely eliminated.
Mr.. Whitehouse said he thought voice
culture should be introduced In the
curriculum of the public schools under
| the head OF music.
Hon, Charles F. Libby of Portland
closed the discussion by one Of his
characteristic addresses full of eloquence,
wit and telling points in favor of the in
PRODUCTION of voice culture in the public
schools.
Following the exercises one of the
famous dinners was served in the large
dining hall, after which bright remarks
were made Mayor Charles FL. Randall
Judge William P. Whitehouse Of the Su.
preine bench and Mr.. W. II. Brownsor
of the Portl and school board.