Singing like Callas and Caruso: Belcanto Voice and Body Training

"Singing like Callas and Caruso – Belcanto Voice & Body Training" is not an academic code for Opera singers, even if it introduces you into all secrets of your authentic voice. Dr. Karin Wettig started as a pilgrim to the Rome of Singers after her divorce: not her heart, but her voice broke. The irony of fate sent her to a radio station to become a speaker. Whatever she tried with her voice, nothing really worked. Instead of taking the highway, she felt like creeping on her knees to Rome, where she arrived as a secret pupil of the Papal chapel in Renaissance, staring through a Judas hole to observe how the young castratos studied singing. Fascinated with Belcanto since 1600, her personal vocal studies ended constantly in disasters: she fell asleep in classes of an empathetic lady; a Japanese piano professor shouted encouragement and pushed her through old Italian arias until her voice had broken into two: a rough alto and a squeaking soprano and nearly nothing but a throaty flow of air in between. The next teacher, a tenor offered her a male shoulder when she broke into tears trying to sing Mozart arias for 4 months. Finally when she got it “waterlessly”, he left for a better career. Another tenor put her into a zoo of animals voices, forbidding her to sing for two years. Musically starving , she ran away to secret classes with a conductor who helped her study a repertoire. Night for night, she sat in spooky dimlight churches training arias. Then Ann Reynolds Italian method fascinated her in a masterclass. The result was her first inspired book about Italian Singing. Exploring the theory behind her practice then became a pleasure for her musicological brain. But suddenly she stopped to use only awareness she had trained in years of body therapy with Alexandertechniqe, Rolfing, Feldenkrais, Linklater, Cantieni, Hatha Yoga and various spiritual breathing methods. Analizing videos from the best divas of all times - Maria Callas, Joan Sutherland, Luisa Tetrazzini and others – followed. Observing minuscule body and throat movements brought her a breakthrough. After two decades she discovered her authentic Coloratura Soprano and finally became the boss of her rigid tongue. “Behind every weakness hides a talent!” is her motto now. For her own voice training she developed amusing exercises, easy to do for the cure of all typical singers’ faults around passaggio, Avanti, front positioning, messa di voce, vowel balance, the attack of the tone and legato. That was the moment the Book and Method “Singing like Callas and Caruso” were born, when she finally reached not only to find her authentic Belcanto voice, but to change singers’ voices during her classes within ten minutes of training. As a vocal coach and Personality Styling Coach Dr. A.S. Karin Wettig lives and teaches in Munich. For training, videos, book information and classes you can meet her on her website. "Behind every weakness hides a talent!" is Dr. Karin Wettig's personal revelation. With her divorce came an almost total loss of her speaking voice. When voice therapy didn't heal her, she decided to look for a cure in singing. Mozart Arias & her passion for Belcanto, Maria Callas, Adelina Patti and the divas of Caruso's time found a home in her heart, never to depart. She left her home, her career, her husband, her friends and her business in northern Germany to pursue her dream to be a Belcanto singer. Once settled in Munich, her adventurous journey from a lost speaking voice to becoming a coloratura soprano began. Personal voice trainers, Belcanto teachers & Opera Schools from all over Europe were as disillusioning as her experience in a famous local choir. An inspiring master class with Ann Reynolds gave her the impulse to write her first Belcanto Guide for singing. Still not satisfied with her voice, she started modeling Maria Callas and exploring body therapies such as Alexander Technique, Rolfing, Cantieni and Yoga