In a message dated 2/27/2001 11:11:26 AM Eastern Standard Time, peggyh@i... writes: peggyh@i... writes:
<< When I listened to Garland, I didn't care whether someone would call her way of singing "belting" or "mixed", or whatever. It was simply incredible singing, that communicated with the audience through the sound of the voice. You can close your eyes and hear everything she wants to communicate - even, I think, if you didn't understand English. She seemed to be able to do anything with her voice she wanted, even when it detiorated from bad health, drug abuse or personal stress.>>
peggy,
this is an excellent point. i think the reason she was able to to do exactly what she wanted with her voice, despite her best efforts to screw herself up, is that she used her voice as a medium for her vision and her vision was the song not how she wanted her voice to sound.
i think we are all capable of this. we do it everyday without thinking. when we laugh we don't stop and plan which laugh we should use, we laugh. sometimes it's a belly laugh, sometimes a nervous laugh, sometimes and embarassed snicker (either at an inappropriate joke or inapproptiate event- like a funeral). people can tell when we're sad, even when we're trying to hide it. you can tell when someone is lying to you, even on the phone, by the sound of their voice. our voices betray boredom, excitement, fear, enthusiasm, joy, etc.
if we would think about the point we are trying to make when we sing or the story we are trying to convey instead of the paint job we want people to admire, singing could be the same vehicle of expression our speaking is plus the magic of music. maybe there is a reason we can't hear ourselves as others hear us- to cut down on self-editing.
<<Every singer, of any genre, should be required to watch and listen to Judy Garland - her type of communication with an audience through her voice is what singing should always be. >>
...and james brown and jimi hendrix and maria callas and bob dylan and louis armstrong and baaba maal and djavan...
mike
|
| |