The Melofonetica Method: A complete guide to clear and expressive Italian diction for singers (Hardback or Cased Book)

“I urge everyone remotely interested in bel canto to embrace this book and dive in!” – Sir Mark Elder, conductor

The Melofonetica Method™ is a transformative approach to Italian diction in opera and classical music, based on the phonetics of sung Italian. The product of over a decade of research and coaching, and with proven results on high profile productions and recordings, the Melofonetica Method helps singers of all levels and language backgrounds to:

• Get a clear vision of the building blocks of excellent sung Italian
• Cut through complexities to rapidly achieve incisive, idiomatic sung Italian diction
• Enhance vocal quality and breath support through the correct use of consonants
• Strengthen dramatic expression and deliver a convincing performance
• Sing in Italian with greater command, confidence and ease

This book provides a structured approach to teaching and learning Italian lyric diction and will be an invaluable resource for singers, coaches, accompanists, conductors and directors. It includes: 180+ notation examples, 120 vocalising exercises, 4 transcribed arias, access to 340+ audio recordings and fascinating insight into the evolution of Italian as a language built to be sung.

“It’s absolutely wonderful to have the Melofonetica Method to work with.” – Lise Davidsen, soprano
“Matteo’s method of coaching creates fantastic energy and expression.” – Sir John Eliot Gardiner, conductor
“Invaluable for all singers looking to achieve an authentic Italian sound.” – Ramón Vargas, tenor
“The Melofonetica Method is clear, concise and consistent – and it works wonders.” – Philip White, Head of Opera, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

About the author
Matteo Dalle Fratte is a leading Italian language coach, musicologist and tenor who has been conducting research into the phonetics of sung Italian since 2009. He coaches at world-renowned UK opera companies, conservatoires and record labels including the Royal Opera House, Royal College of Music, National Opera Studio, Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama and Universal Music.

Dr. Matteo Dalle Fratte is an Italian language coach, musicologist and tenor. He studied singing in Italy with Paolo Badoer, a pupil of Gilda Dalla Rizza, Puccini's favourite soprano. Since 2009, Matteo has conducted extensiveresearch into sung Italian diction, including a research fellowship in Italian phonetics for opera at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama (GSMD) in London. He founded Melofonetica in 2014 to provide training in sung Italian and is Artistic Director of Melofonetica's Veneto Opera Summer School and Arte Lirica Festival in Italy.Matteo teaches at UK conservatoires including the Royal College of Music, GSMD, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama and Morley College, and on the Global Talent Programme at the National Opera Studio and Jette Parker Artists Programme at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.Matteo also coaches for the UK's leading opera companies and record labels including the Royal Opera House, Opera North, Welsh National Opera, Sir John Eliot Gardiner's Monteverdi Choir & Orchestras, Grange Park Opera, Opera Rara, The English Concert, The Mozartists, Nevill Holt Opera, The Grange Festival and Universal Music.His musicological work includes publishing Giovanni Lunardi: un tenore drammatico fra Tamagno e Caruso in 2004 and Il Teatro Sociale di Bassano in 2005. He has collaborated with the Fondazione Monteverdi on critical editions of Monteverdi and Bellini operas and previously worked as a music critic for Rassegna Melodrammatica and Gazzettino in Italy.Matteo achieved a degree in Italian Literature and Musicology with distinction from the University of Padua in 2003, with a thesis on Gilda Dalla Rizza and Giacomo Puccini, and a master's degree in Music in Performance from GSMD in 2009.

Sir Mark Elder has been Music Director of the Hallé since September 2000, and became Principal Guest Conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra in September 2022. He was Music Director of English National Opera (1979-1993), Principal Guest Conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1992 - 1995) and Music Director of Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, USA (1989 - 1994). He has held positions as Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the London Mozart Players.He has worked with many of the world's leading symphony orchestras including the Berlin Philharmonic, Orchestre de Paris, Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, Royal Concertgebouw, Budapest Festival Orchestra and London Philharmonic. He is a Principal Artist of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and works regularly with the London Symphony Orchestra. He has appeared annually at the Proms for many years, including in 1987 and 2006, the internationally televised Last Night of the Proms and from 2003 with the Hallé Orchestra.He works regularly in the most prominent international opera houses, including the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Metropolitan Opera New York, Opéra National de Paris, Lyric Opera Chicago, Glyndebourne Festival Opera. Other guest engagements have taken him to the Bayreuth Festival (where he was the first English conductor to conduct a new production), Munich, Amsterdam, Zürich, Geneva, Berlin, and the Bregenz Festival.Sir Mark Elder has made many recordings with orchestras including the Hallé, London Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony, the OAE, Orchestra of the Royal Opera House and ENO, in repertoire ranging from Verdi, Strauss and Wagner to contemporary music. In 2003 the Hallé launched its own CD label and releases have met with universal critical acclaim culminating in Gramophone Awards for The Dream of Gerontius in 2009 and Götterdämmerung and Elgar's Violin Concerto in 2010, and The Apostles won Recording of the Year in the 2013 BBC Music Magazine Awards. The recent release of Siegfried has completed his RING Cycle on disc with the Hallé and the complete cycle of Vaughan Williams symphonies is now available. A live recording of Lohengrin has released by the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.TV appearances include a two-part film on the life and music of Verdi for BBC TV in 1994 and a similar project on Donizetti for German television in 1996. In November 2011 he co-presented BBCTV's four part series Symphony, and in 2012 fronted BBC2's TV series Maestro at the Opera. He presented a series of TV programmes on BBC4 during the 2015 Proms in which he talked about eight symphonies ranging from Beethoven to MacMillan featuring performances from the season's concerts.He was Artistic Director of Opera Rara from 2011 - 2019 for whom his many recordings included for whom recording projects have included Donizetti's Dom Sebastien, Imelda di Lambertazzi, Linda di Chamounix, Maria di Rohan, a multi award winning release of Les Martyrs and, most recently, Rossini's Semiramide.Sir Mark Elder was appointed a Companion of Honour in the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours, was knighted in 2008 and awarded the CBE in 1989. He won an Olivier Award in 1991 for his outstanding work at ENO and in May 2006 he was named Conductor of the Year by the Royal Philharmonic Society. He was awarded Honorary Membership of the Royal Philharmonic Society in 2011.