Style in Singing

by W. E. Haslam

PHRASING

PHRASING is simply musical punctuation. In singing, it may be separated, like accent, into two divisions: Musical and Poetic, or Verbal, phrasing. If the following passage were performed by an instrument, it would not require any particular grouping or phrasing:

[[Listen]]

But when sung, it would fail in effect if not performed with a very slight pause after the word “nobis,” thus:

[[Listen]]

As another illustration of the excellent effect of correct phrasing may be cited the song Psyché, by Paladilhe. Its effect is heightened if the musical phrasing be judiciously combined with a change in Colour and Intensity:

[[Listen]]