I've just heard an interview with the famous American opera singer, Jessye Norman, who has come to the UK to give performances of popular songs of the non-operatic kind.
Somehow, I just hate to hear trained, world-class classical singers belting out covers of middle-of-the-road tunes - it's a bit like putting a race-horse between the shafts of a hay cart and watching it struggle down a farm track.
My German friends tell me that they heard Ms Norman in a version of Wagner or whatever, and her accent was absolutely perfect, despite the fact that she does not actually understand the language. She has such control over her own voice, that she has instant mastery over any language, dealing with it as she does - as pure sound.
So to hear her giving a poor and insincere rendition of, say, an Aretha Franklin or Liza Minnelli number just makes me cringe. And why do classical singers feel the need to put extended vibrato on the end of each and every line, when the original called for one clear and sustained note? It's not as if they cannot hit any note they want at will, and usually in about 2 more octaves than anyone else. The end result is pretty much the same as if you had gone into a sheltered home for the elderly and asked a 95 year-old woman to sing 'Oh Danny Boy' in quarter-time.
I suppose these singers make quite a lot of money from sell-out concerts of 'popular' music, and they have reached such heights in their careers that to do so does not detract from their credibility, but I don't think that is any excuse.
It is a shame that - like race-horses - classical singers are not put out to stud when they have peaked at their chosen profession, rather than being put out to grass or worse. I have a great image of Willard White being lead around various fee-paying music schools and being left alone in a private room with young and promising female students, just to see if another Jessye Norman can be raised and trained. N.F.N.F. I bet Willard wouldn't mind the idea either.
I wonder if the same would work for extremely gifted, handsome and talented (if somewhat elderly) stone-carvers?
And why is it that so many famous (male) tenors sing slightly flat? It seems as if they all MUST.
ReplyDeleteI must say that I haven't noticed that, but I would guess it's all part of being 'relaxed' - a bit like saying, "I could hit the note if I wanted to, but... I don't know... I'm having such a nice time in the bath that I really can't be bothered".
Deletehahahahaha!!!!!
DeleteI think I agree with you Tom, especially if the singer in question takes themselves very seriously..... mind you watching someone like Montserrat Caballé , dressed in a circus tent belting out a rock Ballard with Freddie Mercury was a cracking watch!
ReplyDeleteYes - most classically trained singers are so vain that they do not know the kitsch value enjoyment that those performances give to a wider audience.
DeleteHimself was watching a talk show where someone was being interviewed (either Phil Collins or Bono), and they mentioned the 'embroidery singers'. That's what i think of when i overdose on verbrato, and it doesn't take much for me to OD.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Cro as to the flat singers out there. There's one group i can't stand listening to because the lead singer is nearly always flat. I'm also not a great fan of their music in general, but i can't abide an entire song when he sings a lot.
Vibrato - that's the word I was searching for. I meant to change it this morning, but got side-tracked by the notion of Monserat (Monsterat) Caballe in a circus tent.
DeleteP.S. - Phil bloddy Collins and bloody Bono can talk - Divas both.
DeleteMs Norman's rendition of R Strauss' "Four Last Songs" has never been surpassed and probably won't be in our lifetime. Sadly, singers usually don't know when to quit due to aging and voice.
ReplyDeleteI watched an interview of a vocal coach who was hired to work with Whitney Houston, to help her make a come back. He said she didn't even have an octave in her! Very sad.
BTW, Ms Norman's gowns are referred to as "murals" here, because of the slimming black panels on each side.
I believe she has the same reputation as Ms Ross when it comes to her rider list, and how she wants to be treated back stage, but that may just be gossip and jealousy.
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