如何演唱巴洛克音樂-解讀《彌賽亞》(三之三：實務篇)

上兩期本專題分別闡述了神劇《彌賽亞》的作曲背景、樂曲結構、並對全曲的三大部分作了較詳細的分析。本其麥克萊瑞教授特別針對巴洛克時期合唱曲的演唱技巧，作深入的說明，非常的「務實」，對於準確掌握韓德爾以至巴洛克時期合唱曲的風格，有很大的助益。

許多運用在巴洛克合唱音樂上的演唱技巧，其實在本質上與演唱任何形式音樂的技巧，道理都是相通的。所有平常練唱時對體態、呼吸以及發聲的要求，在演唱巴洛克音樂時都是必須做到的。至於巴洛克音樂特有的音質和音色，則和節奏、咬字以及動機的塑造密切相關。因此，成功地表現巴洛克合唱音樂最重要的技巧之一，便是花腔演唱的能力。在《彌賽亞》的合唱部份中眾多由對位主題構成的音樂內容，都有速度極快的花腔樂段，清晰的咬字與精微的樂劇表達因此極為重要。一個合唱團要能夠把花腔唱好，紮實的提胸發聲 ( appoggio ) 基本功絕對不可或缺。

簡要地說，「提胸發聲」的概念就是將正確的體態姿勢做好 ( 提高胸骨位置並將肋骨擴張 ) ，而且能夠在演唱的過程中一以貫之。這個字是從義大利文中動詞appoggiare演化而來，意思是「靠在……之上」。如果歌者受過訓練，懂得如何將胸骨提高 ( 肋骨會因此自然擴張 ) ，或者懂得體會兩塊肩胛骨幾乎相觸 ( 胸骨會因此自然提高 ) 的感覺，則腹部的肌肉組織自會以正確的方式運作。對歌者而言，最大的挑戰是能夠在任何樂句當中從頭到尾保持這種姿勢，同時在樂句結束短暫放鬆後，在吸氣準備下一個樂句時又馬上回復到這種姿勢。歌者也應有足夠的訓練，能夠感覺到吸氣時身體的「橫向擴張」。將食指置於最後一根肋骨之下，拇指置於後背，小指在坐骨之上，如此可以讓歌者在吸氣時感到身體的橫向動作。使用提胸發聲法，可使歌者的音色更加穩定、運氣更有效率，對花腔演唱有極大的助益。有意深入了解提胸發聲法的發聲學理及教學方法的讀者，可以參見米勒所著，於1986年出版的《歌唱結構》 ( Richard Miller, The Structure of Singing, 1986 ) 一書。

唱好花腔樂段要靠勤練
在學習花腔樂段的過程中，有三個基本原則絕對不容忽視：
    一、先將譜在心中默練到熟。
    在唱出一個樂段之前，最好能坐在鋼琴旁，慢慢地將該樂段彈奏一遍。這麼做的目的，是給歌者一個熟悉樂段中行進模式、重複部份以及線條變化的機會，同時讓歌者在唱出樂段之前，能夠先將其了然於心。
    二、分析樂句線條的輪廓。
    在默習樂段的過程中，歌者可在樂曲的行進模式中找到自己的切入位置、樂曲線條中的側重點，以及主要及次要音符的區別，同時也可以瞭解樂曲線條前進與休止的時機。
    三、用無意義的重複音節將音符緩慢唱出。
    在唱出音符中的母音或歌詞中的字之前，歌者應使用自然的發聲單元，例如一串音節或一串數字，將音符緩緩唱出。如此可讓歌者從一開始便能將音符乾淨、清楚地唱出，同時也可適當地塑造樂曲的線條。如果這個部份已不成問題，歌者才可開始用歌詞裡的母音將樂段唱出。再次聲明，歌者一定要有耐性在一開始使用較慢的節奏，然後慢慢加快到正常速度，這個動作至關緊要。如果能夠每日固定練習，技巧與流暢性很快就可以獲得進展。

巴洛克音樂的節奏特性

巴洛克音樂的另一特性，是對附點節奏和有固定行進模式節奏群的表現手法。幾乎在所有的情況下，只要在演唱巴洛克音樂時遇到附點音符後面緊跟一個短音符的節奏模式 ( 例如一個附點八分音符後面緊跟一個十六分音符 ) ，這個短音符的節奏都得往上「抬一抬」，或者用特別清晰的咬字，使其與之前的附點音符分開來，而與其後的長音符合為一組。同理，在有固定行進模式的節奏群內 ( 例如反覆演奏一個八分音符加兩個十六分音符 ) 將咬字重點放在次要音符 ( 十六分音符 ) 上，也是基本的原則。如此可使節拍保持穩定，樂句的輪廓也能得到適當的塑造。

最後，為了能唱好巴洛克音樂，歌者必須對各樂段的構成有所瞭解。也就是說，歌者必須時時清楚自己在整個大織度裏是主要還是次要聲部，如果自己是次要聲部，要搞清楚哪些聲部才是主要聲部，自己又是以何種方式烘托這些主要聲部。這種各聲部對自己所處地位的理解能力，在韓德爾的音樂中十分重要，必須加強磨練。因為富於彈性的織度，正是韓德爾音樂最引人入勝的特性之一。在任何一個樂句或樂段中，某一聲部在整個大織度中的重要性可以變換數次之多。每一個歌者都應該在熟習自己的聲部之外，也盡力熟習其他的聲部，同時也要能夠在唱時不斷聆聽周圍其他歌者的動靜。多聽唱片對歌者在這方面的準備工作，此時就能發揮極大的效益。

不過在此必須強調，聽唱片並不能取代歌者自己對樂譜的研讀，但的確是一個掌握作品整體脈絡的好方法，同時也能提供一個讓歌者更加瞭解作品整體音響效果的機會，這是一般排練時不一定能做到的。無庸贅言，市面上的《彌賽亞》錄音幾乎可以說比任何其他主要合唱作品都來得多，在如此眾多的版本之中，非要挑出一個最好的，於我而言，未免有些不自量力。不過晚近一些錄音版本 ( 過去十五年內 )，由於會將近年來所增加有關正確表現巴洛克音樂風格手法的知識列入參考，聆賞的價值可能可能會是最高的。

Many of the techniques foe successful singing of Baroque choral music are naturally, the same techniques that apply to beautiful singing in any style of music. All the basic tenets of posture, breath, and vowel that we work on every day in our ensembles are necessary for singing in this style. The qualities of tone and color that are specific to Baroque music have much to do with rhythm, articulation, and shaping of motives. Therefore, one of the most important skills necessary for success is the ability to sing coloratura. So many of the contrapuntal themes that make up the musical content of the choruses in Messiah are comprised of fast moving coloratura passages that require clean articulation and subtle musical phrasing. The choir that can sing coloratura well is one that will have been trained to apply the principle of the appoggio as the basis for their technique.

Briefly stated the concept of appoggio is the establishment and maintenance of correct posture (raised chest, expanded ribs) throughout the singing process. The term derives from the Italian verb appoggiare, meaning 'to lean against'. When the singers are trained to keep their sternums raised (which will expand the ribs) or to feel that their shoulder blades are trying to touch one another (which will raise the sternum), the abdominal musculature works in the proper manner automatically. The challenge for singers is to maintain this posture throughout the length of any phrase and during the inspiration of breath for the next phrase. Singers should also be trained to feel that the inspiration of their breath is to fill themselves 'sideways'. Putting their hands in such a way that their index fingers are under the bottom ribs with their thumbs on their back and the little fingers are on the hip bones will allow them to feel a sideways movement during inhalation. The appoggio position will enable your singers to acquire a steadiness of tone and an efficiency of airflow that will help them to sing coloratura more successfully. For a fuller discussion of the vocal science and pedagogy of appoggio, please refer to the excellent textbook by Richard Miller, The Structure of Singing, 1986.

 As far as the learning process of coloratura passages are concerned there are three basic principles that are crucial to success.
    1)Learn the notes silently first. It is most beneficial to sit at a keyboard and slowly play through a given passage before attempting to sing it. It provides the singer an opportunity to detect patterns, repetitions, and changes in the line and also puts the notes in his inner ear before attempting to reproduce them vocally.
    2)Analyze the shape of the line. As the singer plays through the passage and notes the patterns, he can discover the points of arrival and emphasis in the line, differentiate the primary notes from the subsidiary notes and discover the place where the line moves forward and where it seeks repose.
    3)Sing the notes slowly using a repeated nonsense syllable. Before the singer starts to sing the notes on the vowel(s) or the word(s) in the text, he should sing them slowly using a natural articulator, such as syllables or numbers. This will enable the singer to sound the notes cleanly and clearly from the very beginning as well allowing one to give the line its proper shape. Once the singer is able to accomplish this successfully he is ready to vocalize the passage on the vowel(s) of the text. Again, it is important to be willing to go slowly at first and then eventually work up to tempo. If daily practice is adhered to, skill and fluency will develop quite rapidly.

Another important characteristic of Baroque singing is the manner in which dotted rhythms and patterned rhythmic groups are performed. It is almost always the case that in Baroque singing when one encounters a rhythmic pattern of a dotted note followed by a short note (i.e., a dotted eighth followed by a sixteenth), that the short note should be set off from the dotted note by a 'lift' or articulation and the short note should align itself with the next long value, not with the preceding dotted note. Likewise, it is a basic principal for patterned rhythmic groups (i.e., a repeated series of an eighth note followed by two sixteenths) that the emphasis of articulation needs to be placed on the secondary notes in the grouping (the sixteenths) so that the tempo remains steady and the phrase can properly shaped.

Finally, to be successful in Baroque singing, one must always be aware of the structure of the particular musical passage. By this I mean singers should always understand whether they are the principal or the subsidiary voice in the texture and  if one is the subsidiary voice, what other voice(s) one is accompanying and what manner. In Handel's music this awareness must be well honed because one of its greatest characteristics is its flexibility of texture. Within any given phrase or period one voice part can change in overall importance to the texture several times. To the best of one's abilities, a singer should know the other parts as well as his own and be able to listen to what the other surrounding singers are doing. This is where listening to recordings can actually be of significant use in a singer's preparation. Let me emphasize that it is not a substitute for learning the notes on one's own. However, it is a way to gain a sense of the entire context of the work and to give some insight into the overall sound that might not be available within the rehearsal. Needless to say, there are some recordings of Messiah available than of almost any other major choral masterwork. It would be presumptuous of me to choose one of these recordings over any of the others as being the best. Each has something of value to offer. I will say that it is probably best to listen to recordings made more recently (within the last 15 years) that have taken into account the increased knowledge of what constitutes stylistically appropriate Baroque performance practice.