Kate's Voice

Years ago, I studied voice with Seth Riggs, a teacher who had a profound impact on my teaching.  He taught me that the voice is the same instrument whether you are singing or speaking.  Today, when I teach singing, I teach people to find their “speech level.”  When I work with speakers, I listen for dynamics, tone, and phrasing, just as I would if they were singing.: The same physiology with slightly different applications.

This is why I was fascinated to read about Brian Eno’s latest project.  The composer’s new album is poetry read and set to music. ” ‘We are all singing. We call it speech, but we’re singing to each other,” Eno said (sang?) from London .’I thought, as soon as you put spoken word onto music, you start to hear it like singing anyway. You start to develop musical value and musical weight, and you start to notice how this word falls on that beat, and so on.’ ”

About a year ago, this relationship between singing and speaking was discussed in an article in Scientific American.  There is evidence that humans learned to speak because of music, and that we love music because it reminds us of speech.  Or is it the other way around?  My own experience is that whichever it is,  music and speaking are connected.  Now, I ask you, my readers, how is your speaking voice like your singing voice and vice versa?  Have you ever thought of this?  If you have, I would love to hear from you.  If you haven’t, here are some ideas to start the exploration:

As a speaker, consider that your voice is a musical instrument.  As a musician, you can apply dynamics, tone, expression, phrasing, and pitch, volume, and many other aspects of sound production and expression to what you are doing.  If you play an instrument already, you are already trained to take this approach.  Try it.

As a singer, your speaking voice is a guide for your singing voice.  Try speaking phrases before singing them.  Notice how your production is similar and how it is different.  Strive to speak on pitch and to be aware of how you may be affecting the sound to create a pretty voice, or a pop voice, or a “legit” voice.  Style is closely related to registration.  Basic vocal production as a singer is akin to “Xtreme” speech.  If you want to know more about this, let me know.

To read more about Brian Eno’s project, Drum Between the Bells, please see this Los Angeles Times’ article .

And for more thoughts on this topic, please see The Eloquent Woman.  (Great minds think alike!)

It’s Saint Paddy’s day and I thought it was a good time to resurrect an earlier post as my gift to all pub crawlers. There’s nothing worse than someone singing at a bar who has no idea what they are doing.  In an effort to contribute to the masses in honor of my Irish heritage, here you go.

Years ago, I was sitting in a bar on the Champs Elysee, listening to a great jazz group and enjoying a glass of wine.  Because they were playing a lot of songs from the Great American Songbook, we struck up a conversation with the piano player.  He was a real piano player, with a great sense of style and the songs he played from the Great American Songbook were quite wonderful but he spoke mostly French.  That was a struggle, but it was fun and after awhile, he figured out I was a singer and asked if I’d like to sing something from the Great American Songbook.  That’s when I got nervous.

Now, really, that doesn’t make any sense.  I am a singer and have been singing all my life, but as a classical singer, I wasn’t really prepared to sing in a bar!  I didn’t even know the best songs for singing in a bar!  For years, the only experience I had with piano bar songs was when I sang opera in a piano bar, and I am sure those songs were not among the most popular piano bar songs!  So I have determined that the reason I got nervous was the same reason I get nervous in other situations:  A lack of preparation.

Since then, I have learned a lot of songs that are perfect for singing in a piano bar, and know the best songs for singing in a bar, and even the best karaoke songs.  So here’s how to sing in a bar with a real piano player, how to find the best songs for singing in a bar, what are the most popular piano bar songs, and the difference between karaoke songs and piano bar songs and the Great American Songbook.

1.  Be prepared with your voice.  Practice singing every day. Take lessons or a voice class if you like.  That would certainly help.

2.  Be prepared with your songs.  First place to start is by picking songs you like to sing and practicing them. Next, you can find discussions on line about what songs are best to sing in a bar, and even what songs are best to sing when you are intoxicated…always good to be prepared with that one!!  Most people agree that the best songs to sing in a piano bar are standards.  however, not everyone agrees on what a standard is!!! For an Irish standard, check out this list, “Whiskey in the Jar,” and “The Irish Rover” are the top two picks.

3.  Be prepared with a standard.  For a more in-depth look at what a standard is, try the Great American Songbook.  That is really every song written in America, but tradition dictates that it points to songs written between 1920 and 1960, more than anything else.  Other standards are whatever people are singing in the bars you visit and almost any famous song!!

4.  Be prepared to tell the real piano player the name of your song and the key in which you sing it.  Singing live in a piano bar is not the same as singing Karaoke songs!

5.  Be prepared to sing Karaoke songs.  Listen to a top forty station on the radio or to an oldies station.  Find the songs that you like and learn them just like the artist on the radio.  Then join the crowd at a Karaoke bar and have fun!!  Singing Karaoke songs gives you practice with your voice and in front of others who are drinking, which is important!!

In general, singing in a bar is all about sharing your gift with others.  People who study singing or sing professionally are often nervous about singing in front of others when they are not prepared because what they sound like matters more to them than it does to others.  Chances are, if you have an interest in singing, you have a gift to share.  Enjoy it!

Related posts and links:

Top Ten Irish Pub Songs

Digital Downloads of Irish Music