December 2000

In the main, of course, White's-Technique teachers simply continue to exercise their vocations, and most neglect to tell us about it. I do not sit down to telephone round because this would oblige me to collate from scribbled notes, rather than individually prepared essays! I urge all teachers, therefore, to bear in mind that the society needs to know how things are going, and hereby ask them to put something succinct in writing and send it to me ready for the Report in the next Journal.

Such dispatches from the Front, as it were, bolster confidence that White's work and aims are being perpetuated properly. Judging by my occasional conversations with some teachers, we should feel confident anyway; for they are armed with White's Technique. There can be no doubt that they are working on to extend to their pupils the boon which Ernest George White bequeathed to us all.

Members will long have been aware of the unfailing expertise and infectious enthusiasm which Gwen Methley, one of our senior teachers, has brought to her excellent work over many years. Though she teaches singing, too, she specialises in applying white's Technique to the spoken word. On several occasions, we have had the pleasure of her pupils performing to us during our meetings in Bloomsbury. Like them, she is based in Cornwall, and comes to London for most EGWS Council meetings---all of which is perhaps a humbling example to all who plead long distance as an excuse for not attending our always carefully-planned events! Gwen's successes have been notable, and despite recent ill-health, she continues with a schedule which would probably exhaust many younger people. We can all learn much from her, myself included, and I welcome this opportunity to commend her warmly.

In her letter, she writes in amazing detail of her pupils past and present. Clearly, her past pupils have maintained the confidence, vocal presence and effectiveness bestowed by White's Technique. More specifically, her various drama students have proceeded to further successes; and more specifically still, her ex-stammering young man continues to be relieved of this problem (from which he had suffered for eight years before she began work with him), and his free flow of speech is now remarkable.

I quote directly from her account of one past pupil, Rosie Hughes (her mother, Josie Hughes, herself one of Gwen's pupils, is now one of our teachers) Gwen, describing Rosie, who has a BA in Drama and English Literature, writes that she

...has become a professional actress. For almost three years she and her boyfriend have run a [small] company of players. Their most recent production. ..was presented at The Arts Theatre, Falmouth. I have seen Macbeth several times, but not a better production than this. ...each player took on [several] different characters they were all convincing... The audience became completely involved Rosie...herself...played five contrasting people. The company's name is The Cornish Theatre Collective, and it will be presenting the play at nine other theatres, finally opening in London.

Other pupils, past and present, are working for Bronze medals for LAMDA in sung entertainment. All are immersed in vocal matters. I quote Gwen on a second pupil, because it seems of special interest:

Jan is a recent pupil, middle-aged, with vocal problems. For some time, she has supported the male section in her choir, resulting in the loss of her soprano notes. Of course, as with most people, Jan thought that sound was made in the throat. We are taking things gently. Each lesson has its difficulties, and Jan gets upset because she cannot sing her natural soprano, except at odd times.

One week she decided to call off her tuition. She was very low-spirited and frustrated. After the lesson she changed her mind, and will continue. She knew I was presenting a report and intended to write about her. The few times she sings without effort are very encouraging.

The implications behind such a case would be rewarding to discuss in depth. I am sure that Gwen would be pleased to do this, with teachers and other members, at one of our London meetings.

From conversations with Jane Ashley and Seamus Brennan, I understand that they are continuing to attract pupils and are obtaining good results. Jane is musical director of a church choir; while Seamus directs a boys' choir at the school in which he teaches. (We greatly enjoyed their concert a year or two ago, when they came over from Ireland and sang at our summer meeting in St Mary's, Somers Town, Euston). We may therefore be assured that White's Technique is being established in these choral spheres.

Stephen Cox is to be the vocal tutor for a term - levels 1, 2, 3 Open House Singing - at the Nottingham Arts in Education adult courses. He is looking forward to the courses and hopes the pupils will enjoy and benefit from their study of White's Technique. He has an adult pupil who works in voice therapy and is appreciative and understanding of White's Technique.

My own pupils continue to proliferate, and, as usual, range from serious singing students of every age and persuasion, who possess myriad agendas, problems and ambitions; through spoken-word/public speaking students; to 'wanna-be' 'hard-rockers'!

As always with White's Technique, the promise is to provide a holistic approach to vocal production which bestows one-hundred-per-cent efficiency (and except in the case of the hard-rockers, tonal beauty!) with the least amount of physical effort, and which offers absolute safety to the voice. My workshops for speakers, or singers and choirs, have continued---including a week as resident vocal tutor to an excellent choir of men and boys (St. James the Greater, Leicester) on the Isle of Wight, back in August. More workshops are booked for 2001.

My writing on matters vocal continues apace, including the articles on Countertenor and Falsetto for The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, due out even as this account is being written, as is the English edition of my latest book, Les Contre-tenors (originally published in November 1999, by the recording company, Harmonia Mundi, and including two CDs, all tracks of which were selected by me).

Recently I attained my PhD. Though the basis for it is both wider and more specialised than White's Technique---in that the doctorate is for my published work on the male high-voice family---it has been assisted mightily by the insights gained from studying, practising, and teaching EG White's methods; and in different ways by Arthur Hewlett and Charles Cleall: to whom I here record my great thanks.

I look forward to a wider, more rounded account of the work of White's Technique teachers next year!