The following extract is taken from Arthur Hewlett's book Think Afresh About The Voice, London: Thames Publishing, 1987

Foreword

The human voice is a very strange instrument. We use it very early in life and continue to make use of it until the end. Yet each voice is unique and often widely different from the next, and we are not sure how it works. It is only slowly that a sure knowledge of the mechanics of the voice is being compounded. And in different 'schools' a different emphasis is put on a certain sound, or a certain part of the vocal machine.

When I was young the emphasis seemed to be almost exclusively on the raising of the soft palate and the lowering of the larynx. Indeed, at my very first lesson I was encouraged to press the Adam's Apple down with my finger.

I had heard of Ernest White's books but was told not to bother about them. That, unhappily, was the attitude towards White's pioneer work in those days. Since then, quite recently, I have read them, and found them most interesting and helpful. The sinuses can be seen in their true perspective, more particularly since the revision of White's books and Mr. Hewlett's own contributions.

- Sir Peter Pears, C.B.E.