Ornamentation in Baroque singing

Ornamentation has two functions in Baroque singing: to enhance the affect of the text, and to display the accomplishments—the good taste and the virtuosity — of the singer. Bacilly, Playford, and Galliard all devote considerable attention to ornamentation. The myriad embellishments (Bacilly spends nearly eighteen pages on ports de voix alone) and the conflicting nomenclature in different traditions can be overwhelming at first; it is a good idea to use ornaments sparingly until you have spent some time familiarizing yourself with the examples and practicing them. Ornaments should be used in ensemble singing, especially in an opera scene or dialogue where distinct characters join in song. But if your singers do not yet have the technique — if they cannot handily deliver an extended trill or rapid diminutions—do not require it. The result will be the opposite of stylish Baroque ornamentation, labored instead of apparently effortless, planned instead of extemporized, worrisome instead of joyful.

In time, with good models to emulate (recordings, if not you yourself), those singers with an improvisatory bent will emerge as leaders in the game and others will be emboldened to follow them.

Where there are several singers on the same part, added embellishment is rarely appropriate — excepting routine cadential ornaments that lend themselves to group execution (appoggiaturas, for example, are easier than trills to coordinate). Galliard goes so far as to say, “All Compositions for more than one Voice ought to be sung strictly as they are written; nor do they require any other Art but a noble Simplicity.”


There is a useful rule of thumb for Baroque music that says that one never does anything exactly the same way twice in a row. If a musical phrase is repeated exactly, with the same text, the second appearance should be louder, or softer, or more embellished, or less embellished (senza vibrato the first time and con vibrato the second is an effective contrast), or more emphatic, or more reflective — and the director’s interpretation of the text will determine those choices. In ensemble singing, variation on repetition can also be achieved simply by allowing a different voice to emerge in the foreground.

This rule of thumb has a corollary that says that second and successive stanzas in strophic works, and reprises in da capo arias, should be embellished, not sung exactly the same way over again.

The two most popular styles of Baroque ornamentation, Italian and French, are described elsewhere in this volume. English music was mainly under Italian influence in the first half of the seventeenth century; the Restoration of the monarchy (1660) brought a wave of French influence, since Charles II had spent his exile at the French court; then, toward the end of the century (beginning in the 1680s), the French vogue was tempered by a return of Italian influence. Decisions about ornamentation must take this into account.

Vibrato, One Kind of Ornament

Vibrato was viewed as an embellishment in Baroque music. Its use and misuse in early music has become a highly charged topic, still capable of eliciting raised voices in otherwise polite discussions. Suffice it to say that for vocal music of the seventeenth century, an unvarying straight tone is as inappropriate as an unvarying vibrato.

One needs to remember that the rich vibrato now cultivated in most vocal studios and heard in most concert-hall singing is a direct result of the need for loudness, to stand out against large orchestras of modern instruments and to fill large halls. Contrast in your imagination the singing of a professional “classical” singer with the singing of a professional jazz vocalist. Why is the jazz voice so much more agile and flexible, how does it produce such an array of vocal colors? Quite simply, because the microphone takes care of loudness, leaving the singer free to explore a wider palette of expression. Jazz singing also provides examples of the use of vibrato as an expressive device, to say nothing of examples of improvised embellishment on reprises and second stanzas.

Encourage your singers to experiment with focused, well-supported singing that is not loud. Be clear on the fact that a straight tone requires more support, not less. Try to find performance venues for chamber music that are appropriately intimate. In small ensembles, where each singer is expected to display some individuality as well as some subordination to the artistic whole, vibrato is out of place only if (1) it interferes with intonation, (2) contradicts the affect of the text, or (3) never goes away.