Singing like Callas and Caruso: Belcanto Voice and Body Training

“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. The way to her authentic voice was a path paved with lonely nights in dark churches, practicing Belcanto repertoire from Farinelli to Mozart, Bellini, Rossini and Verdi. Studying Belcanto videos, she dove deeply into the physical aspects of opera singing, while her musicological curiosity made her travel to the origins and sources of Belcanto in the Renaissance. Suddenly miracles started happening: Her teeth aligned, her chin and jaw movement became smoother, her stiff tongue melted. In the end, she enjoyed an upright posture, better proportions, 1.5 cm more in height, emotional balance, cured sinusitis and healthy self-esteem. Her efforts were rewarded with a brilliant coloratura soprano voice. Asked for a transcript of her voice classes, she wrote her personal method down. The result is this book: An intuitive, heartfelt, yet practical approach to achieving excellence in Belcanto through effortless singing. “Body & voice awareness is the key and achieves in minutes what years of exercises never reach. Sing and you’ll never be the same.