Show CLEAR articulation IN SINGING there are numbers of superb voices among the songsters song of both sexes in our community they make eh charming arming melody but as a rule to which there are few exceptions they have a fault common to non professionals a failure to clearly and distinctly articulate words so as to enable their auditors to catch them without straining in most instances the listener finds it impossible even at short range to hear more than an occasional word of a solo this only makes the situation more unsatisfactory than if noue none of it was understood because in the mental effort to fill 1111 up the intervening spaces the charm of the music is partially lost to the listener the trainers of pi professional vocalists are aware of the importance of clear cut articulation and consequently put their pupils through a special regime for its attainment those of our readers who have had the pleasure of hearing adelina patti can recall that distinctness of utterance gave a peculiar charm to the performances of that inimitable queen of song had this not been a feature of her singing we doubt if she could ever have attained to so great an eminence in her profession as she has reached goo i articulation is we believe an aid to the singer as well as a satisfaction to his auditors to attain it he must clearly sense the purport of the words and he is thus assisted in his efforts to express the senty nent embodied earnestness and soul are essential elements in singing as they are in ors ora ory without these constituents the effect of brilliant execution is comparatively lost these remarks apply with special f roe to the singing of sacred songs in worshiping assemblies the vocal music is an essential part of the worship in which the congregation should join either actually or by mentally following those who engage in it thus according with the sentiment expressed if the audience are unable to understand the words that are sung through slurring articulation of the singer this is impossible thus so far as the assemblage is concerned what the lord has suid regarding a song of praise when sung in the spirit and meaning thereof being a prayer unto him cannot be conformed to we believe it would enhance the pleasure which our local vocalists impart by their performances if more attention were paid to the point at whish the foregoing re marks are directed |