Just had to print this extract from an email I received today from my friend who I'm going to visit tomorrow night. She's a semi professional jazz singer, and she's determined to "convert" me. She's going to show me how to use a microphone apparently!


Yep, bring anything you think might be fun to sing - haven't heard of any of your fancy pantsy songs but I'm game anyway! I've got loads of modern bluesy songbooks so you can just have a play around and see what suits your voice. Get you away from all this old fashioned stuff!


So now we have it, official. Classical songs are FANCY PANTSY. Well, according to my friend anyway!

Oh dear, I think it's going to be a long night.........!



Amber
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I wonder if that applies to all classical music!

Hehehe! I am sure you will have a lot of fun, Ambs! Fancy pantsy - is that a technical term?

I think it must be! I'm not holding out a lot of hope that we'll be singing classical music tonight!
In fact I'm not sure we'll be singing anything tonight.... just had a phonecall from Nils' school to say he's poorly and can we go and pick him up. David's en route there now.

Amber
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Awww I hope Nils isn't too bad *sending feel-better vibes*

Thinking of you!

Thank you for your well wishes. He's just got back and I've tucked him up in bed. I think he's already feeling better knowing he doesn't have to play in his rugby match this afternoon. That's tough enough for a stick insect like him anyway, without feeling poorly as well.

He doesn't have a temperature, so that's one good thing.




Amber
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As someone who's passionate about jazz, my two pennorth worth.

I love jazz. I very much appreciate and enjoy listening to classical music, I think that the edges often blur between contemporary classical and modern European jazz.

If I'm listening to a classical singer I want to listen to them singing classical songs. I don't want to hear (eg) Lesley Garrett singing jazz, she is never going to sound as good as a good jazz singer and always like a classical singer singing "in a jazz style". I'd far rather listen to Ella Fitzgerald / Nina Simone / Dinah Washington / Billie Holliday / Norma Winstone etc

I hope he is on the mend soon, Ambs. Glad that not having to play rugby is a relief!

TSax: I agree to an extent, but it does depend on the singer - some singers are very versatile and able to sing in both genres, others are not! And hey, it's fun to play around in different styles even if one will never perform in those styles

I quite agree Tsax, Lesley Garrett singing songs from musicals is awful. Its one of the reasons that when I teach, despite being classically trained, I've learn't about other styles of singing and apply the right style to the right song!

Totally agree that it's fun to play around in different styles and do it myself quite regularly. I've heard some great jazz performances by predominantly classical musicians, but they're not quite up there with the jazzers (which they readily admit). My sax teacher is a superb jazz player, about classical she says "I can play the right notes in the right places, but it just doesn't sound right".

If I'm going to a classical concert, or buying a classical CD I want to listen to classical musicians, and likewise with jazz. If it's more informal, or a jam session then lets mix it up. I also think that there's a lot each type of musician can learn from the other if they keep an open mind and try it. Good musical skills should be appreciated by good musicians whatever the genre.

Jam sessions - now you're talking. I love'm

When I lighten up my voice it sounds quite "folky" and I do a mean Danny-boy! I love it too when I have the opportunity to improvise harmony parts. Mine normally float over the top, or hover below the melody in thirds.

Its great when musicians from different traditions just get together and play/sing

I agree that classical singers singing other styles in a really classical way is horrible... Another one I can remember was Dame Kiri singing showsongs which just sounded SO wrong! As long as you can apply the right style then that's fine but it can sound manky otherwise.

jod: I LOVE improvising harmonies - sung or played. I play off the cuff harmonies pretty much every week at chapel.

I wish I was better at harmonies.

I agree with people's coments about different voices suiting different styles. My friend has such a gorgeous voice which totally suits the jazz and blues songs she sings. I know she hopes to convert me tonight, but I know I just haven't got that sort of voice.

I'm taking along Simon & Garfunkel's Scarborough Fair with the Canticle as a meet-you-somewhere-in-the-middle song.


In fact, just seen the time - we need to be leaving in 3 minutes! Nils is much, much better now and feels up to coming, which is good news. David looks about as knackered as I feel, but still, it should be fun.

Will let you know how it goes.......

Amber
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Practice! Start trying to make harmonies to whatever music you are listening to, you will probably surprise yourself... don't think too hard, fit the harmony in with what you can hear and let it naturally flow. With practice it will become second nature and you might find, like me, that you sing harmonies when you don't intend to...

Sounds like you'll have fun tonight - that S&G song is beautiful!

The combination of very different voices can work surprisingly well... I recall a couple of girls at school who did a duet and could NOT have been more contrasting: Monique was black, and I mean she had really really dark skin, quite a curvy girl, with that amazing lush voice that the best black singers have, and very deep voice for a girl - lots of depth and texture, like treacle... Isobelle was skinny as a rake with amazingly fair skin and white blonde hair, with a very light, pure, almost hayley westernra-esque sound to her very high voice. Could not be more different in *every* way, they even looked like an exercise in contrasts, and totally different voices, but the duet they sang sounded gorgeous!