"Lloyd W. Hanson" wrote:
Amplification makes it possible for singers with very > limited vocal skills to not only be heard but heard to such an extent > that qualities we usually associate with the singing art are replaced > with qualities that have little to do with singing. I do not > consider yelling to be singing. Both forms of vocalization may be > closely related but one is not the other.
I think a symptom of the disease Dr. Lloyd describes (and perhaps also a result of the demise of basic music education in the public schools) is the inability of the average person of the younger generations to do even basic singing - I go to a restaurant like Outback, where the wait-staff sing "Happy Birthday" to customers. Maybe one time in 25 have I heard a Happy Birthday rendition that is sung by all the wait-staff on a single pitch. There's not even an attempt to sing the same notes. This certainly wasn't the case when I'd go to Farrell's int he 70's, and heard Happy Birthday sung by the staff 10 times an evening!
Natural abilities to match pitch surely haven't changed to that extent in 25 years - what has changed is training in basic singing and musical skills during childhood. Plus the abysmal vocal models young people hear everyday on the radio. It may be a art that requires a certain level of a certain type of skill, and it may be enjoyed by the paying customers. But pitch and melody have little to do with today's Pop music aesthetic that fill kids' ears.
-- Margaret Harrison, Alexandria, Virginia, USA "Music for a While Shall All Your Cares Beguile" mailto:peggyh@i...
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