They permit soprano voices to sing scales in all the five vowels at once; begin with _c_ instead of _f_; allow a long holding of the notes, "in order to bring out the voice," until the poor victim rolls her eyes and grows dizzy.
They talk only of the fine chest-tones which must be elicited, will have nothing to do with the head-tones, will not even listen to them, recognize them, or learn to distinguish them.

Their highest principle is: "Fudge! we don't want any rubbish of Teschner, Miksch, and Wieck.
Sing in your own plain way: what is the use of this murmuring without taking breath?
For what do you have lungs if you are not to use them?
Come, try this aria: 'Grace,' 'grace!' Produce an effect! Down on your knees!" There are again others who allow screaming,--"the more the better,"-- in order to produce power and expression in the voice, and to make it serviceable for public performances.

They may, indeed, require the singing of _solfeggio_, and prattle about the requisite equality of the tones; and they consequently make the pupil practise diligently and strongly on the two-lined _a_, _b_ flat, _b_, where kind Nature does not at first place the voice, because she has reserved for herself the slow and careful development of it.

As for the unfortunate gasping medium voices, which are still less docile, and which sigh in the throat, and after all can only speak, such teachers postpone the cultivation of these to the future, or else they exclaim in a satisfied way, "Now we will sing at sight! Hit the notes! Let us have classical music!" Of these, also, I forbear to speak.
And as for the singing-teachers, whose business it is to educate the voice for "the opera of the future," I am really unable to write about them.

In the first place, I know nothing about "the future," the unborn; and, in the second place, I have more than enough to do with the present.
And now I come to those who honestly wish to teach better, and who in a measure do so.