Dear Katherine and List,
Although I have never been a student of Cornelius Reid, I have found his
rather encyclopedic "A Dictionary of Vocal Terminology" to be always
instructive and stimulating. In that volume there is an eight-page
article on "Falsetto" which I would recommend to all. Nowhere in the
eight pages does he use the word "between" with reference to falsetto.
His article, of course, is too long to quote in its entirety, but here is
one short excerpt:
"Historically, falsetto tone quality had succeeded in gaining the
attention of theorists as early as the fourteenth century, when [it] was
referred to as the 'vox ficta.' In later centuries, owing to the rapid
development of vocal skills and the popularity of the castrati, it was
apparent that this mechanism was capable, when trained correctly, of
taking on new dimensions. By joining it 'imperceptibly' to the chest
register in a coordinate relationship, its quality could be modified, its
range, flexibility and power increased, and its 'falseness' transformed
into a thoroughly legitimate tone quality." (p. 113)
Reid's whole article is very much worth reading, even if you are
skeptical about some of his pedagogical positions (which I am not.)
Carl Rogers
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