Singing Master (1961)

M/S of singing teacher Arnold Rose sitting at the piano in his studio in Holland Park, London; two women stand either side of him, one watches while the other sings a scale (natural sound). On the second go the top note is a bit forced and Arnold says they must test her breath pressure. He brings out a contraption with a long rubber tube on the end that the girl blows into, while Arnold puts his hand firmly on her diaphragm and pushes it in. We see some liquid move in the spirit level to give a reading; Arnold says “Not very good! Exercises for you my girl!“ M/S of a group of singers sitting around watching while a girl lying on her back in the centre of the room lifts her legs up and down; she has small weights attached to her feet. Commentator tells us this is some of the physical training he incorporates for the strengthening of stomach muscles for resonance and breath control. The girl gets up and the original girl we saw lies down on two stools and lifts a barbell over her head under Arnold’s s