Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

In this, the third and final volume in a trilogy on the development of vocal science since 1562, Joseph Talia, noted tenor, teacher, researcher, and operatic director, critically evaluates the modern Italian School of bel canto, its connection to the past, and challenges for the future.

Lucie Manén, one of the most influential and admired vocal teachers of our time, presents the history of Bel Canto singing and details the physiological aspects of voice production, including posture, breathing, messa di voce, and coloratura. Illustrated with exercises from original Bel Canto manuals, this book is an invaluable guide for singers who wish to master this important style.

In this well documented and highly readable book, James Stark provides a history of vocal pedagogy from the beginning of the bel canto tradition of solo singing in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries to the present. Using a nineteenth-century treatise by Manuel Garcia as his point of reference, Stark analyses the many sources that discuss singing techniques and selects a number of primary vocal 'problems' for detailed investigation. He also presents data from a series of laboratory experiments carried out to demonstrate the techniques of bel canto. The discussion deals extensively with such topics as the emergence of virtuoso singing, the castrato phenomenon, national differences in singing styles, controversies regarding the perennial decline in the art of singing, and the so-called secrets of bel canto. Stark offers a new definition of bel canto which reconciles historical and scientific descriptions of good singing. His is a refreshing and profound discussion of issues important to all singers and voice teachers.