Sprechstimme
Speech-song, introduced by Schoenberg.
What it means
Sprechstimme designates a manner of performance between speaking and singing: the notated pitch is indicated but not held — the voice touches it and leaves it again immediately, so that the intonation remains speech-like. Rhythm and dynamics, by contrast, are to be executed exactly. The technique was used in the early twentieth century by Arnold Schoenberg in several works and provided with explanations of his own; its exact execution has since been a matter of differing views.
In the notation
It is usually notated with crosses in place of noteheads or with a cross-stroke on the stem, within the usual rhythmic notation. The score's preface usually explains how the signs are meant; relying on habits easily loses the composer's intent.
Musical use
The Sprechstimme allows text to be treated with the precision of music, without the sonority of singing. This creates an expressive domain of its own: urgent, fractured, sometimes ghostly. It appears in melodramas, in stage works, and in chamber music with voice, and has a fixed place in the repertoire of the twentieth century. It differs from parlando in that there the pitches remain sung and only the gesture is speech-like; it differs from plain speech through the notated pitch movement.
Performance practice
Read the score's preface first and clarify how precisely the pitches are to be hit. Practise the rhythm exactly, with a metronome if necessary, because it is not left to free speech. Keep the voice supported, so that the performance carries and the throat does not suffer — pressed speaking over longer stretches is harmful. Work on clarity of text and on characterization, for both carry the effect here. Coordinate the balance with the accompaniment, because a spoken voice projects less well than a sung one.
Bear in mind that the execution has always been disputed: the composer's indications leave latitude, and interpretations range from almost sung pitch to free speech. Read the preface and decide deliberately, instead of following a habit. Coordinate the balance with the accompaniment.