Vocalist.org archive


From:  Margaret Harrison <peggyh@i...>
Date:  Fri Nov 15, 2002  3:37 am
Subject:  Re: [vocalist] amplification

"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...



emusic.com