Paths to Duet Singing – A German “Vaccai” for Two

Duet singing offers an excellent opportunity to explore the facets of spontaneous, joint music-making and to develop sensitivity and musicality. When two people sing together, a special interaction develops: joint breathing, listening to each other, feeling each other. Categories such as energy arising during joint resonating help to give life and contour to the interpretation.

Singers face a variety of challenges in their training and professional practice. Intonation, phrasing, pronunciation and dynamics are just a few. Eventually, many come across Nicola Vaccai's Metodo pratico, which addresses central themes of singing lessons such as intervals, runs, suspensions, trills, the portamento and declamation in the recitative, in the form of a small, melodious composition. An ingenious artistic device that combines technique with real music and makes practicing a lot of fun. In 2016, Steffen Wolf adapted the concept for singing in German in “Wege zum Liedgesang”. What was missing, however, was an edition dealing with the special aspects of duet singing. Until today, because "Wege zum Duettgesang" now fills this gap.

Steffen Wolf has composed 24 song duets based on texts by Heinrich Heine, enabling beginners and advanced singers alike to practice the special demands of duet singing in a lively way. Heine's words, with their sonority, intensity and wit, also make the treatment of language a pleasure. Each piece is dedicated to a fundamental aspect and is accompanied by brief pedagogical comments. The relatively easy piano part also allows the accompanying teacher to concentrate fully on the singing. The compositions are varied and are equally suitable for practicing and music-making as well as performing in a cyclic form. The stylistic reference to the Romantic period allows easy access to the musical level and facilitates concentration on the respective learning aspect. The edition is supplemented by audio tracks in MP3 format, which can be downloaded using a QR code: While the concert versions offer pure listening pleasure, the tracks with a quiet first and second voice are a reliable practice and performance partner.

Wege zum Duettgesang is published in an edition for mid voice that allows for performance in all conceivable combinations. The recordings offer numerous examples of this.