The Ontario Readers: The High School Reader, 1886Ontario. Department of Education
General
The Ontario Readers: The High School Reader, 1886
Ontario. Department of Education
Readers (Secondary)
=Natural Quality= may be described as a head tone to which some degree
of resonance is given by the chest; but the brilliancy of its resonance
is produced by its reverberation against the bony arch of the mouth. It
may, of course, vary in pitch, but tones of low pitch that are intended
to be impressive are most suitably rendered in orotund quality. In its
perfect manifestations, the natural quality should be clear, ringing,
light, and sparkling,--if it be possible to describe its characteristics
by such metaphorical words.
=Orotund Quality= is the result only of cultivation, but no speaker or
reader can produce those finer effects which are the appropriate symbols
of strong and deep emotion, whose voice cannot assume this mode at will.
It differs from the natural mode in obtaining from the chest a greater
supply of air, and a deeper and fuller resonance, and the reverberations
seem to be against the walls of the pharynx, or posterior regions of the
mouth, rather than against the palate, or upper part of the mouth. In
fulness, strength, and ringing quality, it is superior to the natural
mode, but not distinct from it; in clearness and smoothness it should be
equal to it. As it befits a chest tone rather than a head tone, it is
natural to utterances in medium and low pitch; but it must not be
confounded with low pitch simply, nor must its characteristic fulness be
taken for loudness simply. With the orotund, as well as with the natural
quality, all the voice modes previously described may be conjoined.
EXERCISE.--1. With the syllable _haeh_, make an expiration in the
voice of whisper, forcing slowly all air out from the chest.
Then give to this expiration vocality, producing the
reverberation far back in the mouth: the resulting utterance is
a _hoarse exemplification of the orotund_. With the mouth in the
position of a yawn, making the cavity of reverberation as large
as possible, repeat the exercise until the utterance can be
produced smoothly and without hoarseness. 2. Form similar
syllables containing other tonic elements, and make similar
exercises, taking care to produce a smooth, effusive utterance.
3. Select a sentence such as "_Roll on thou deep and dark blue
ocean, roll_," abounding in long open vowels and indefinite
syllables, and using suitable intonations read it in low pitch,
with full, resonant chest tones. Then gradually raise the pitch,
still obtaining the tones from the chest and uttering them with
full resonance. 4. With such syllables as _haeh_, _you_, _now_,
_man_, _war_, _hail_, _fool_, practise in orotund voice the
various exercises for pitch, concrete intervals, waves, stress,
etc., previously suggested. 5. Read with feeling and appropriate
intonations selected sentences from compositions of elevated or
impassioned diction, as "Solomons's Prayer" (p. 35), "The Hymn"
(p. 68), "France" (p. 205).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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