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Sing It!: Diction

Resources for Singers, Choral Directors, and Vocal Music Researchers

Comprehensive Diction Books & Recordings

Diction for Singers by Joan Wall; Robert Caldwell; Gavilanes; Allen
Call Number: MT 872 .D43 1990 TEXT
ISBN: 1877761516
Publication Date: 1990-05-01
Diction: Italian, Latin, French, German: The Sounds and 81 Exercises for Singing Them by John Moriarty
Call Number: MT 872 .M67
Publication Date: 1975
A Handbook of Diction for Singers: Italian, German, French by David Adams
Call Number: MT 883 .A23 1999
ISBN: 0195125673
Publication Date: 1999
Phonetic Readings of Songs and Arias: Authentic Pronunciation of 413 Italian, German, and French Lyrics from "The Singer's Repertoire" in International Phonetic Alphabet Transcription by Berton Coffin, et al.
Call Number: MT 883 .P5 1964
Publication Date: 1964
Pronunciation for Singers, with Especial Reference to the English, German, Italian, and French Language by Alexander John Ellis
Call Number: MT 883 .E55
Publication Date: 1877
Singing Early Music by A. G. Rigg; Timothy J. McGee; David N. Klausner
Call Number: MT 883 .S56 1996
ISBN: 0253329612
Publication Date: 1996

Diction Websites

Diction Domain
Language diction-related resources. This site offers diction and language links, print resources...etc.
Forvo: The Pronunication Guide
All the words in the world. Pronounced.
IPA Source
The web's largest library of International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) transcriptions and literal translations of opera arias and art song texts.
Languageguide.org
Excellent primers for various languages. Includes audio pronunciation feature.

English Diction

The Singer's Manual of English Diction by Madeleine Forell Marshall
Call Number: MT 883 .M3 1953
Publication Date: 1953

French Diction

The Poetic Debussy: A Collection of His Song Texts and Selected Letters by Margaret G. Cobb (Editor)
Call Number: ML54.6.D42 C62 1982
ISBN: 0930350286
Publication Date: 1982
This completely revised second edition contains the most recent discoveries in the composer's oeuvre, including a number of hitherto unknown songs. The texts of all Debussy's songs, both in the original French and with revised English translations on the facing page, are collected in chronological order, with notes and location of sources.
Singer's Manual of German and French Diction by Richard G. Cox
Call Number: MT 883 .C69 1996x
ISBN: 0028706501
Publication Date: 1995
Sing French: Diction for Singers by Eileen Davis
Call Number: MT 883 .D38 2003
ISBN: 9780971087927
Publication Date: 2003

German Diction

Deutsche Aussprache: Reine und gemassigte Hochlautung mit Ausspracheworterbuch by Theodor Siebs
Call Number: PF 3137 .S46 1969
Publication Date: 1969
Duden Aussprachewörterbuch: Wörterbuch der Deutschen Standardaussprache
Call Number: REF PF 3137 .D8 1974 (3rd floor)
Publication Date: 1974
German for Singers: A Textbook of Diction and Phonetics by William Odom; Benno Schollum
Call Number: MT 883 .O35 1997
ISBN: 0028646010
Publication Date: 1997
The Singer's Manual of German and French Diction by Richard G. Cox
Call Number: MT 883 .C69 1996x
ISBN: 0028706501
Publication Date: 1995

Italian Diction

Coffin's Overtones of Bel Canto by Berton Coffin
Call Number: OVERSIZE MT 883 .C6
ISBN: 081081370X
Publication Date: 1980
Italian Diction for Singers: A Treatment of Methods and Means of Pronouncing Italian Correctly in Singing According to Phonetic Principles and with Special Attention to the Necessary Difference Between Spoken Sounds and Those that Are Sung by Ralph Errolle
Call Number: MT 872 .E7 1963
Publication Date: 1963
Singers' Italian by Evelina Colorni
Call Number: MT 883 .C64 1996x
ISBN: 002870620X
Publication Date: 1996

Latin Diction

The Choral Director's Latin by Ivan Trusler
Call Number: MT 883 .T8 1987
Publication Date: 1987

Russian Diction

The 19th-Century Russian Operatic Anthology: Twenty-Four Arias for Soprano, with International Phonetic Alphabet Transcriptions and Word-for-Word Translations, Including a Guide to the IPA and Russian lyric diction by Anton Belov
Call Number: OVERSIZE M 1507 .A13 2005
Publication Date: 2005
Russian Songs and Arias by Jean Piatak; Regina Avrashov
Call Number: ML54.6.P57 R8 1991
ISBN: 1877761524
Publication Date: 1991-09-01

Spanish Diction

Poesía lírica y cancionero musical by Juan del Encina
Call Number: ML 54.6 .E7 J69 1975
Publication Date: 1975