> -----Original Message-----
> From: Caio Rossi [mailto:caioross@z...]
> Sent: Monday, October 02, 2000 6:37 AM
> To: vocalist-temporary@egroups.com
> Subject: Re: [vocalist-temporary] 'opera singer' was junior, church
>
>
> Popular is both: something created by the 'populace', and
> something appreciated by most people.
>
>
And therein lies the issue with it- it's lowest-common denominator.
However, it's important to remember that there are so *many* different kinds
of "pop" music out there that lumping it all into "non-classical" is really
quite unfair, as is judging it by classical standards. There is good
classical and bad, good alternative and bad, good jazz and bad...etc.
Someone who has technical skill, a feel for the music and a connection with
zir audience is going to be a wonderful performer, regardless of what type
of music they're doing.
Some of us are rather perturbed by pop singers and children (I saw Michael
Junior last night- stomach-churning) claiming to sing opera, but I'll also
complain about opera singers who attempt pop songs. Kathleen Battle and Kiri
Te Kanawa are both hugely guilty of this, for instance. Learning good sound
production techniques that are useful in unmiked stage productions with full
orchestra is a good thing, but applying every last one of those techniques
to music they aren't intended for is criminal. If I hear one more Gershwin
tune sung with classical diction, I'm going to scream.
The whole point is to *know* the music you're singing, and know your
audience, and the audience the music was intended for, and to adjust
appropriately. Just as a classical singer would change zir acting to fit
either a staged or a recital performance of an aria, so must a singer adjust
to different music and different audiences. Some people are absolutely
wonderful at certain types of music, but terrible at others. Some are
skilled at many different kinds. Some are awful no matter what they do. The
trick is to know what you're good at and *what you enjor singing* and stick
with it, unless you're incredibly flexible and can do justice to whatever
you set your hand to. Call it knowing one's fach, or whatever.
-Shawna
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