The larynx must not be pressed either too high or too low, but must work freely…The larynx must rise and descend unimpeded by the tongue…The matter of chief importance is the position of the tongue in the throat [and the tongue must remain flexible], that it shall not be in the way of the larynx, which must be able to move up or down, even though very slightly, without hindrance.

Lilli Lehmann (1848-1929)