The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-10-15
CHOIR BOrs HERE AND IN ENGLAND
Better Supply of Singers and Larger Ops
Portunitics for Practice Acro,st the Wnter.

portupitiesfor Practice Across the Water.
The choir master Of q church in one Of the largest
cities Of this country has just returned from a
visit To England. during which he listened 10
choral services in seventeen Cathcdrals and learned
for the first time that there Is no uniform method
Of ira ming the boy choi i'll England of teach
The question Of producing the tones in the hest
way is no more settled there than in the United
home Of the boy choir. Some masters teach tho
youthful singers that their voices should como
from the head, while others say that chest tones
produce the hest effects
=, This American choir master found that tho
three best Choirs in England were at Megdncn
College. oxford: at 81 Paul's Cathedral in Lon
are said to represent in their services tho mcst
and boys voices The choir of Magdaien College
consists Of sixteen boys and ten men There
are two daily. services and rehearsal also daily
for the boys in the choir school The music ia
without accompaniment e and was praised by Tho
OF the boys voices This is said 10 be the result
OF the choir master s method which insists on the
ing, by tho observance Of this second rule, tho
harshncss likely to come into a boys voice, when
he forces II, may be avoided, and one Of tho most
serious drawbacks To the enjoyment Of the average
boy choir Is overcome. No more painful Use ~
music in divine service can be- mag ined than
ing as hard as th"y can, with no apparent idea II
anything but volume Of tone and zeal Of excCu-
tiOn.
ST Paul's in London has a choir Of thirty boys
and eighteen men The enormous building de-
mhnNS tnht the maximum Ol Tone SIhll re pro-
duCcd. but that Is never accomplished at the cost
Of good music. The Choriscrg are made 10 sing.
They not allowed 10 shout, whatever the Ie-
quired volume Of sound may be. The boys and
men rehcSrse daily, and AS in other cathedral
chOirs there is n school especially for them. Such
an advantage exists in none Of the churches hero
which have boy Choirs Head tones are also IN
sisted upon AT the ST Paul's
The choir at King : College, Cambridge. con-
sists Of sixteen boys and ten men. aud they arc
trained by their masters to use their head tones
exclusively and never 10 sing from their chest.
The singing of these boys in its deliCacy, shad-
ing and attack is said TO I've superior to that ~
any choir in England. These CholTs possess
adv antages for rehearsal never found in this
country, and their skill is never Likely TO lie
equallcd here In most Of the English cholfs
| the countrc tenor Is sung by the men, ms there
are said 10 bc only two boys in England who sing
alto They are AT Pctcrhoro and at v ellis Tho
St Pauls Cathedral choir rtiolCes in the posses
sion Of two solDstS who said Ia possess tho
! finest voices in England
The choir al Westminster Abbey is said 10 he
inferior, in view Of tie position Of the church.
| although some Of the smaller churches in LONDON
possess the most highly trained ChOiTs Il b ,i"ad
10 he tho opinion of this authority that the test
! results were obtained from the use 81 the head
| tones Here the number o! boys available for
such Choirs 10 small and there choir schools
| In England there are not only plenty 81 singers
| ~ train them BY daily IShAAIsA4A