As a jazz singer, I do a lot of vocal improv onstage. Every time I do so I think of the lengthy history of vocal improv that I'm inheriting. Here are just a few examples of vocal improv I find inspiring and astounding.
1. Ella Fitzgerald "How High The Moon"
In the case of jazz it's hard not to talk about the First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald. She transforms herself from just another singer to a fellow musician on stage. It is captivating and engaging. She performed "How High the Moon" throughout her career. It's worth watching videos of her from early on as well as renditions from when she was older. She constantly changed and shifted her interpretation, bringing fresh ideas to the bandstand up until she was no longer able to perform. Damn, lady!
2. Al Jarreau "Take Five"
Al Jarreau stormed onto the jazz scene in the 70's and brought with him a new style of scatting, one that incorporates vocal percussions. Things I love about this version: the bright sounding Rhodes keyboard, and the command Al has over this song, making it something new and interesting at every moment. It's notable that he's able to convert an instrumental tune (originally Dave Brubeck) into a vocal tune. Something I rarely enjoy in jazz, but this one stands the test of time.
3. Bobby McFerrin "Improvisation"
Bobby McFerrin picked up what Al Jarreau threw down and took it to the edge. Here, he creates a complex composition using only the human voice. He uses the audience to help orchestrate different parts. This frees him to improv widely varying ideas. He turns down melodic paths that are quite unexpected. I heard him once say that when he was a young singer he would practice scales and arpeggios much like a horn player would. Over and over again he would drill the various seven-chords and all of the modes. That kind of focus and determination is noteworthy amongst singers, but the product sings for itself.
4. Amita Sinha Mahapatra "Raga Jaunpuri"
Improvisation was not invented by jazz musicians. The idea of making new musical compositions in the moment is something that probably goes back to our cave ancestry. The traditions of Northern Indian Classical music call for a composition to be stated and then freely interpreted by the performer. Here, Amita Sinha Mahapatra elaborates upon a Raga Jaunpuri by letting herself surrender to the music itself. The effect is trancelike, yet very similar to what jazz musicians eventually also brought to the table.
5. Natalie Dessay "V'adoro Pupille"
While Northern Indian Classical is the one of the oldest currently existing forms of musical improvisation, the practice also extends back to the Baroque era. In Handel's day it was common to include da capo arias in operas. The form of the da capo aria is strikingly similar to the jazz form. The aria "V'adoro Pupille" from Handel's Guilio Cesare has an AABA form. After the aria has been sung as written in it's entirety, also referred to as the head in jazz, the singer reprises the A section but with elaborations. Here Natalie Dessay makes a wide departure from the head with many melismas and as many high notes as possible.
As singers, there is a massive library of songs to choose from. Taking the time to learn a song accurately, and with care, will help you enjoy the process of learning songs. This process is also great for songs you already know. It will refine your pitches, and help you to discover unique, personal ways of expressing the melody. This process will also tune your ears - a skill that will make learning other songs easier.
1. Listen to recordings of your song. Try to find as many versions as possible, including instrumental versions. As you listen: Pay attention to the tempo choices different musicians make, Is it swinging or Latin infused? Is it slow and rubato, or uptempo and metronomic? Are there a combination of tempos?; Notice the timbre of the singer in different parts, is the vocalist choosing to sound rich and deep, or delicate and thin?; Listen carefully to the chord progression the band is playing. Is it the same for each recording that you listen to? Do the chords sound “jazzy” and complex? Do they sound folky? Blues-ey? Rockin’? Form your own opinions about what you like and what you don’t like about the different versions
2. Tap the rhythm of the melody to a metronome. Start slowly so that you will be accurate, then work up to the tempo you want to perform the song in. Be rigid, at this point, with the rhythm. Things will loosen up once all the components are put together.
3. Play the melody only on piano or guitar, in the register that you will be singing it. Slowly, work through the phrases one at a time on “AH.”
4. Practice speaking the lyrics as though they were a poem. Pay attention to the natural cadences of the phrases. Where do you elongate vowels? What words do you put an accent on? Let the structure of your communication evolve organically. Then, speak the lyrics to the correct rhythm. This is where you will find your lyrical expression.
5. Put the lyrics, rhythm and melody together. Go slowly, working phrase by phrase, paying close attention to precision. Use a recording device to test your accuracy of pitch, rhythm and to be sure you are pronouncing words the way you want to. It’s shocking how much our own ears can mislead us. Depend upon a recording device for this stage. As you notice things you aren’t happy with, mark the adjustments in your score so that you will remember them the next time you sing that passage/note/etc. As you go through this process, work your tempo up to the speed you want.
6. Memorize your song.
7. Do complete run-throughs of the song with accompaniment, either a recorded track or a band. Continue to record yourself, evaluate, and adjust as necessary. Then, forget everything you’ve been working on and sing the song as though it were the very first time. Reconnect with the emotional aspects of the song that drew you to it initially.
8. Perform the song.After performance, reflect. Don’t be too hard on yourself and start with things you liked and were proud of. Nobody gives themselves a perfect 10 after performing, but make a list of things you would like to work on or improve and then come up with an action plan. Go over this with your voice teacher.
Joyce DiDonato is one of the most successful living opera singers in the world. I beg you to listen to her doing anything Baroque. It will melt all of your sensibilities and leave you tingling for no apparent reason. Such a visceral reaction can only occur when beauty inhibits rationale. But I digress. In addition to her busy schedule of singing with, for example, The Met, Joyce has an active video blog on YouTube. She tackles all sorts of topics from how to deal with loneliness on the road to advice on breathing technique. This is an excellent opportunity for us to receive vocal advice from a premiere performer at a reasonable rate: free. Here is her video of breathing technique:
2. The Bulletproof Musician
This is a blog focusing on practicing practices for musicians. Dr. Noa Kageyama is on the faculty of Julliard and has combined his knowledge of music with psychology to break down how we can make the most of our time in the practice room. One of the articles I particularly liked was: Why the Progress You Make in the Practice Room Seems to Disappear Overnight I've since embraced a random sequence of tasks while practicing - trust the Dr. on this one.
3. Do The Math
This is a great, all-around blog by musician Ethan Iverson. He is the pianist of The Bad Plus - a band I'm really digging these days. He writes about musicians he respects, and musical ideas or techniques he's working on. It seems as though lately he's been lamenting his poor trills. Something I wholeheartedly relate to. If he thinks trills are difficult on the piano, perhaps he should try vocal trills - an entirely different beast. Here is a video of The Bad Plus, because they're just wonderful to listen to:
4. The Talk House
A blog where musicians write about music. So obvious it's brilliant. The range of albums that are reviewed is broad and the writing superb.
5. Jessica Hopper's tumblr
Jessica Hopper is one of my favorite music journalists. She writes for Spin, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork and various other online publications. Her observations are always trenchant and she seems to know everything about music you wish you did. Her tumblr account is particularly entertaining and random, albeit somewhat colorful.
6. Music History in gifs
Exactly what is sounds like. A perfect way to waste time on the internet - when that's your goal, of course.
7. French Torch Singer Radio
This may be the only station that Pandora is unable to provide you. A 24/7 stream of classic, French torch singers singing classic French torch songs. It's makes a lazy weekend morning feel decadent. An added bonus if you can read in French are the factoids throughout the website about various French musicians.
8. Sybil Vane's Twitter Feed
Ok, an extra recommendation - my own twitter account. Follow my stage personality, Sybil Vane, on twitter @sybilvanesings . I'm figuring out this whole hashtag thing, posting about gigs, band goings-on, and other musical things of interest.
I struggle with students who use the word "pitchy" to describe their own sound because it is imprecise, and unhelpful to singers. It is my goal to help people sing better - something I believe anybody can do. These pop culture trends have generated some myths for singers, and would-be singers, and I intend to do my part to dispel them. Everyone deserves to feel like learning to sing is an opportunity available to them, especially if it's something they want to do.
Pitch Perfect
Alright, "Pitch Perfect" is just a comedy. One can't take it too seriously. That is, until singers cite it as an influence on their singing. Don't get me wrong, enjoying musical films is a great way to get turned onto the craft of singing (for me it was "Newsies"), but there are some erroneous assumptions that the movie "Pitch Perfect", in particular, enables. Let me debunk some of these myths about singing that have come into my studio:
1. Perfectly harmonized mash ups of 80's songs can be composed and performed on the spot. Good harmony and voice leading is the work of sensitive and skilled arrangers. In fact, many people have built careers upon arranging well-known songs to suit vocal harmony. These pieces are performed by well-rehearsed choirs under the tutelage of a skilled choral conductor. Sure, bluegrass bands like the Carter Family were known for whipping out pleasing 3-part harmony to old folk tunes, but they were raised to harmonize with one another and furthermore grew up singing the very songs that they later recorded beloved versions of. It just isn't possible that college students with varying backgrounds and little experience working together would do anything like this:
2. To learn a song, you really just need to sing along with the original recording a few times.Listening to a song you love and singing along can sometimes be helpful, but many young singers do not know whether they are singing the correct pitch or not. Matching pitch is not something that comes naturally to everybody, but is something that can be learned with the help of an instructor. Hearing pitch is also an underestimated skill, particularly for singers. Instrumentalists learn to hear pitches as sharp, flat, or centered early on. Guitarists, for example, must learn how to tune their instrument by ear. Singers are at a serious disadvantage because they do not need to press keys or fret strings in order to hit, say, an E. But, knowing whether your pitch is centered is key to interpreting a song well. When you learn a song only by singing along to a recording, you are highly likely to memorize inaccurate rhythms and pitches - something that is far more difficult to undo down the road than to have learned it accurately from the beginning. The movie "Pitch Perfect" never shows any character doing vocal warm-ups, looking at sheet music, or rehearsing parts and adjusting mistakes before hitting the stage. Sure, that would make for a really boring scene in what is in reality a silly movie, but many of my students have erroneously thought that they would be ready to hit the stage after having listened to a song on repeat on their iPods. Nope, real singers work real hard. We're talking about hours and hours of practice. Even your favorite pop stars maintain exhausting schedules of rehearsal and vocal coaching.
3. Great singers either just have "it" or they don't.A few of the main characters in the movie indicate that they have never sung with any kind of group before. They seem to just show up to the auditions with professional sounding voices, and "Wow!" The actors who sing in this movie have all had careers as singers, and have trained many years to be able to do what they do. Not to mention that the actors are all in their mid and late 20's. Even an extraordinarily talented teen will still have to grow into their voice. It takes time, practice, and the assistance of an instructor to discover what your unique voice can do and how you can use it. Furthermore, teens' vocal folds are not fully developed. For women, this won't happen until around the age of 30. For men, vocal folds are said to be developed in their mid 20's. Additionally, I believe that all aspiring singers can learn to sing great no matter the level of natural ability they enter the studio with. Again, time, training and practice are the keys to success.
4. The term "Perfect pitch," means you sing really well. Actually, musicians generally take "perfect pitch" to mean that a person can identify any pitch simply by hearing it, or that they could sing any pitch that is called out. For example, if I played an Eb on a piano without the person looking at my hands, they would correctly identify the pitch. Piano tuners may have perfect pitch. I have met orchestra conductors who had perfect pitch. It is a reflection of a musician so involved in their craft that they have acquired acutely sensitive hearing. To them each possible pitch has a unique and distinct quality that identifies it apart from the other pitches. I think it is important to clarify this special trait that a small number of musicians have. A singer is actually working towards having accurate pitch, meaning the pitch they are singing sits harmoniously within the harmonic framework the band, or orchestra, is laying down. In other words, when we notice that a note sung sounds very good with the notes the other musicians are playing.
"Pitch Perfect," is an entertaining, humorous film, (although, it's worth noting that the characters of color have little to no importance in the film which is a shame,) but it's not an example of the kind of trajectory one might have in their pursuit of becoming a singer. The film's central plot is to show a singing group preparing for a competition, and that becomes the central problem to aspiring singers who might take a cue from the film - the preparation depicted is nothing like the real thing.
Pitchy
TV shows like "The Voice" and "American Idol" have popularized a word I have come to disdain hearing in my studio: Pitchy. I began hearing this word about a year ago from students of all ages and wasn't sure what the students meant by it. It's not a particularly specific term and certainly isn't used by any musicians I know. Sometime after hearing this word used by students, I went to my mom's house one night. We watched several episodes of "The Voice" together and I solved the mystery.
I'm not a historian or an etymologist, but I believe the term "pitchy" was invented by Randy Jackson circa 2010.
Let me tease out the problematic implications of powerful music executives throwing this word out on TV as though is were any kind of helpful critique:
1. That the term "pitchy" is synonymous with "off-pitch."In episodes of these singing programs I have watched, judges occasionally use the term pitchy when in fact the singer is not off-pitch, and neglect using it when a singer is off-pitch. This indicates that the judges are not, in fact, helping a singer to know when they are singing slightly off-pitch. It would be helpful for the judges to identity pitch problems for a singer so that the singer could address the specific issue, but the judges seem to be referring to pitch problems only some of the time. Without clarification the singer is woefully lost in how to improve.
2. Confusing the term "pitchy" with a quality of tone production. In many cases, I believe what the judges are trying to communicate to the singer, is that their tone production is poor, or an inappropriate choice for the repertoire. For example, a singer may have an overly nasal tone. Singers on these programs tend to push, or strain, their voices in order to sound louder and this can create a "brassy" or stressed tone, which is not pleasant to the listener. A singer may want to create a different tone for a sad, country ballad than an uptempo pop song. A singer must choose carefully what sort of tone quality the song calls for. Audiences are very perceptive to these details even if they are not able to clearly articulate their tastes and preferences. If something is off, the lay person may be prone to say it sounds "pitchy," but again, this does not help the singer clearly identify the issue in order to correct it.
The solution to the term "pitchy" would beto use more specific critiques and comments with a singer.
1. Singers are frequently off-pitch - even the most famous singers today and in the past were occasionally off-pitch. The voice is a vulnerable instrument and many factors can contribute to the pitch being slightly off. A more helpful critique would be to let the singer know if they are sharp (a bit high) or flat (a bit low) so the singer can consciously raise or lower their pitch. Voice teachers are trained to recognize the causes of faulty pitch, whether it is due to breath support (the most common reason), vocal strain, a poor/closed mouth position, or even merely fatigue. By identifying clearly where the pitch is off and the probable cause, a singer can quickly and easily make adjustments.
2. Singers must discover through experience, practice, and the guidance of a vocal coach or teacher, what tones they naturally produce and how they can alter these tones. This is not only a stylistic matter, but a technical one as well. Many young singers are still developing their registers and have not learned how to blend them. This can create poor tone quality as singers try to sing high notes with too much chest, or low notes with too much head. Likewise, young singers sometimes do not trust how loud their voice actually is and can be inclined to push their vocal folds beyond their capability. Not only does this produce an unpleasant tone, but it can cause permanent damage to the delicate folds. With appropriate guidance from a teacher or coach, the singer will learn how to rely on physical sensations to create specific tones rather than what they think they hear in their head. A good teacher will make specific suggestions as to a change in posture, mouth, head, tongue, etc. A good teacher will also guide singers through the process of blending registers so that the singer has a stronger control over their own voice.
If you are an aspiring singer, I can't urge you enough to find a voice teacher that you feel compatible with. Don't fall for the modern pop singer mythology - singing takes work, practice, passion and the help of experienced instructors.
Next Steps: Make a bowl of popcorn and enjoy pop movies just for what they are - entertainment.
