My understanding is that when singing, one should do nothing to create, encourage, discourage, or affect vibrato - that if the voice is produced correctly the vibrato will be correct,
Yes and no. The Zen paradox hidden in this statement centers on the phrase "if the voice is produced correctly..." I have been studying voice for almost three decades, with countless dollars and hours of effort directed toward one goal: To sing effortlessly. All the elements of vocal production - - vibrato included -- are subject to manipulation in one way or another within the process of honing one's vocal technique. But this technique must remain transparent to the listener, and an "effortless vibrato" that is not too fast or slow is indeed one sign of having achieved the goal.
if the vibrato is too fast or otherwise "funny" there's something wrong with vocal production.
Maybe in a theoretical sense, but not necessarily "wrong" for that person at that point in her singing career. Children, for instance, will tend to sing with little or no vibrato, while old people tend to have slow vibratos. Humans are not machines that can be "tweaked" at will. A fast or wobbly vibrato may be an unavoidable element in the entire singing "package" or a culturally encouraged artifact of a particular singing style.
So discussion of vibrato from the diaphragm, throat, etc. would be moot.
While the "effortlessly beautiful" vibrato does seem to emanate "from the vocal folds themselves," this is merely an illusion resulting from a "correct" balance of complex muscular and aerodynamic forces. Nevertheless, it is indeed best to remain unconscious of these forces.
Weigh against this that I was taught to sing choral, folk and early music without vibrato.
Just as the type of vibrato can be culturally determined, so can its near-total absence. I'm very curious, however, if discouraging vibrato in early music is stylistically "authentic" (how would one "know" ?) or merely a projection of our notion of "simplicity." Discouraging vibrato among choral singers is one way of insuring better intonation in the section. Seems to work the same way with orchestral vs. solo instrumentalists. (I would welcome input on this point from orchestral violinists on this list.)
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Cantor Sam Weiss === Jewish Community Center of Paramus, NJ
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