“Should classical singers sing pop – and vice versa, or should they stick to one genre?”

I am blogging on this topic because I feel it relates to me and I have a lot of questions that I’d like to find answers to!  For example, I’d like to know how different singing techniques could harm a singer, what people perceive as good singing, what stereotypical conventions of singing genres there are and whether there are existing singers that sing more than one genre of music.

As a classically trained singer I have been advised not to sing pop or rock because these genres generally require a belting voice, which is believed to be vocally damaging. Similarly, popular music tutors have told me I am more suited to blues or pop and that they believe a classical sound is weak and feeble. I have found that generally people put you into either a classical or contemporary stereotype and I would like to find out whether being able to perform both of these opposite genre’s is a skill or a hindrance.  

When I first started to sing, before engaging in singing lessons, I only used my belting voice. This was the only way I knew how to sing and I only sang Pop, Rock and Show tunes. I struggled with high notes, which was a great hindrance and I couldn’t possibly sing classical music. When I tried to sing high notes, I felt tightness in my throat and I often felt pain. I also struggled with singing for long periods of time and often lost my voice. As I was young, I did not have any knowledge or worries about the damage I could cause to my voice, but just enjoyed singing. Now that I have grown up and will rely on my voice as part of my career, I think it’s important that I know the limits and strengths of my voice and how to not damage it for the future. The subject of belting is a matter that causes controversy among singers, singing teachers and methodologies.

The ‘Belting’ voice was initially a way of female singers to use their low- middle range and to be heard over instruments before microphones were used or available. It is also known as the ‘Broadway belt’; however, belting is no longer needed because of the amplification used today. Therefore, it is assumed that belting is still used today in the ‘non-classical’ singing world because there is a quality in the sound that the audience likes and now expects to hear.

It seems that there is a misconception that belting needs to be constantly performed at 110% power and volume, this is what I believe causes the hype about vocal damage. From speaking to a popular music vocal teacher, I was told that it isn’t the style of music that damages the voice, but rather how it is sung.

Modifying the natural open voice by tensing the throat, tongue and jaw and shortening the vocal tract creates belting.  As a classically trained singer, this idea of ‘tensing’ any muscle apart from my diaphragm seems like it would be a hindrance to the quality of sound produced.  I have known belting to be described as a ‘soft yell’, which, in itself causes me to worry. I notice that singers that sing with a belting technique often tense their shoulders and neck, thinking this is giving them some support to higher notes. However, I believe this is one of the main contributing factors to vocal damage. 

As I previously stated, I only ever used this belting technique when I was younger. I desperately wanted to be able to sing higher, and at the age of 16, I starting singing lessons. This enabled me to begin to correct any self-taught bad techniques.

As I learnt to sing in a classical style, I noticed no pain or tension in my throat. The loss of my voice was less frequent and I could sing notes that were over an octave higher than I had ever sang before. I did however still prefer the ‘sound’ of my contemporary voice, to my classical voice.  This was partly down to the type of music I wanted to sing at this age and I also felt my contemporary voice had a more powerful sound.

At this early stage of learning classical singing, however much I was told that it sounded good, I still felt my voice sounded ‘harsh’. My music teacher explained that although it sounded shrill in my head, it did not sound the same to others and she was right. I now use the analogy of a guitar when explaining this to others. For example, a guitar sounds pleasant to most people and the guitarist, but imagine if you were inside the guitar. If you were inside a guitar it would sound shrill and harsh because of the resonance that was happening within the instrument. This is exactly how the voice works within your body. Singers have a disadvantage in the fact that they cant hear the ‘true sound’ of their instrument. Once I had become accustomed to my voice and accepted this fact, I started to enjoy and love singing classical music.

            I completely agree that a classical approach to singing is far less damaging and comfortable to sing. I do however still use a belting technique, when it is needed. I know my limits and avoid singing in this way for prolonged amounts of time and if I feel any pain or tension, I stop straight away. I think some people probably feel more comfortable when belting than others and it is important to know the limits of your natural voice.

Through listening to and reading various musicians’ opinions, I have got the impression that most musicians approach my initial question from a “Classical vs. Pop” point of view. When talking to classically trained singers, they talk about classical music being “angelic” and “spiritual”. Similarly rock and pop singers describe the songs they like to be “emotional” and “pleasant to listen to”.

            The very fact that people describe their preferred music as “emotional” or “spiritual” shows they believe this genre of music or singing has something that another genre does not.

           It is common knowledge that the general pubic listen to contemporary music more than classical. To me this shows that although I believe contemporary singing to be, at times, damaging for the voice, the sound created must be desirable to most people.  I wrote an essay about this topic for university, in which I conducted a survey for. I asked people to list a singer they believed to be talented. The list contained the following artists:

·      Christina Aguilera

·      Adele

·      Robert Plant

·      Florence Welch

·      Lady Gaga

·      Jessie J

·      Olly Murs

·      Paolo Nutini

·      Ed Sheeran

·      Jared Leto

·      Tom Delonge

Christina Aguilera was a repeated choice six times and Adele five, so I decided to focus on the techniques these two artists used and what people find admirable in their voice.  

When first listening to Christina Aguilera’s voice, I noticed that she is great at vocal runs and jumping between different parts of her range. Her voice sounds at the most comfortable when she is in her mid range and using her belting ‘chest voice’, however she does have a good ‘head voice’ ability. On her recorded songs I thought the transition between her head and chest voice was fluent and the break between the two voices was hardly noticeable. I also thought her head voice was fantastic, but unusually strong.

However, when I listened to live recordings of her voice, I noticed that the un-edited version of her voice had a less fluent break and that her head voice was not as strong as her recorded version. I also noticed that although she has a head voice ability, she often sings high notes in her chest voice that, at times, sounds forced and unhealthy. I found a lot of performances where she missed out the high-recorded parts completely, or sang an alternative lower version.

I found a list of all the performances she had cancelled due to ‘vocal strain’ and there were plenty. In most of these cases it is reported that she was purely told not to sing for six weeks and then to carry on as normal. This strikes me as alarming because I would assume that repeatedly straining your voice would cause some kind of long-term damage. In an interview I had read, Christina Aguilera said:

 “I’ve had vocal strain in the past because I do sing live.”

This is a worrying statement because it seems she believes vocal strain is something that every 'live' singer suffers from, which is not the case.

Christina Aguilera uses a lot of melisma within her singing and this is what I think draws people to like it.  The actual tone and effect created with her voice is desirable and the recorded versions of her songs sound seamless. However, I think without the aid of technology her records would be less pleasant to listen to and it will be interesting to see if she is still singing in 20 years time.

The second vocalist that was repeatedly chosen was Adele. She, again, uses the belting technique and has a strong chest voice. The lower part of her voice is thick and resonant, however this strength deteriorates in the higher register.  

One song she is famous for is the song ‘Someone like you’. In the recorded version of this song, she sings the high notes in a belting voice and they stand out with an emotional impact. However, I noticed that when singing live, she sometimes misses this part of the song out completely and sings an alternative lower version. On the performances where she did choose to sing the higher notes, they sounded strained and forced, but this is hidden by the emotional edge the notes are given.

Adele’s vocal damage has been widely reported in the media. MTV.com’s report said she had suffered hemorrhaged vocal chords and that she has had surgery. They reported that Dr. Young, who specializes in working with professional singers, said

“He's seen plenty of artists who have dealt with the same sort of issues Adele is suffering through, and usually, the path that led to their injury is the same.”

He believes that her vocal damage started with her acquiring laryngitis and not resting her voice during this period.

TheNational.ae asked the question:

“So how was one of the great musical hopes of the decade reduced to a state where her greatest asset was almost ruined?”

They again reported that she contracted laryngitis and did not rest her voice for the required period. They also reported that other famous singers such as Elton John, Steve Tyler and Julie Andrews had undergone a similar surgery to the one she will receive.

Despite the fact that I believe she is a prime example of how this over singing belting technique is unsafe, I do like the sound she produces and I believe she is more of an emotional singer than a technically perfect one, which draws audiences to listen. When watching a reality Television show (not entirely sure which one) I remember hearing someone say:

“In contemporary music it is often the imperfections in a voice that make it perfect to listen to”

There are so many cases where vocal damage has been in the media and I have found that when researching, this is normally documented in contemporary style vocalists. Despite this, there are many contemporary singers that do not suffer from any vocal issues.

The fact that there are less classical style singers reported with vocal damage could simply be because classical singers are not in the media as much as pop singers. In the same survey I conducted for Uni, I questioned those who participated to name a classical style singer they thought was talented. There was a limited response and the list contained the following artists:

·      Katherine Jenkins

·      Russell Watson

·      Susan Boyle

·      Tarja Turunen

·      Sarah Brightman

·      Hayley Westenra

·      Charlotte Church

The two vocalists that were repeatedly listed were Susan Boyle and Katherine Jenkins. The first, Susan Boyle, rose to fame on the reality Television show ‘Britain’s got talent’.  I would personally put her in the classical cross over genre because the songs she performs are normally show tunes or well-popularized classical anthems. The fact that she was a top choice shows that the people that took my survey do not have a good knowledge of classical music, or have much interest in it. She is automatically classed as a classical singer because she uses a classical technique and does not use the belting chest voice.

            Similarly, Katherine Jenkins is of the classical cross over genre and performs operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre and hymns. She rose to fame through modeling along side a musical career, in which it could be assumed her image helped her to be noticed by the general public. She again, does not use a belting voice and is therefore associated with ‘classical’ music. She has also taken part in various reality television shows such as ‘Pop Star To Opera Star’ and “Dancing With The Stars”.

‘Pop Star To Opera Star’ has caused controversy in the operatic singing world. Katherine Jenkins and Meat loaf are amongst the judges, which have resulted in opera singers complaining that these vocalists are not qualified to be discussing opera techniques. People have noted that calling these artists ‘opera’ singers on a widely viewed television show gives out the wrong impression and will add to the myth that anyone who sings without a belting technique, is automatically an opera singer. Rebecca Evans, who appears regularly with the Welsh National Opera and the Royal Opera said:

"They will be calling more people opera singers when they are not opera singers – it's television gone mad. Being an opera star is working in an opera house where you spend six weeks in a rehearsal room planning for the production. Opera singers are like athletes – you have to have stamina. It takes years of hard graft and dedication to become an opera singer. The series will give the wrong impression."

It’s interesting to note that most of the people that took my survey were musicians or music students themselves and could not name a single classical singer. I personally do not enjoy listening to this cross over genre of singing, as I find the songs to be slightly garish and corny. I do however love true classical music and I think if more people were exposed to classical arias and operas, they would be more appreciated.

The last question on the survey was asking the reader to name a singer that crosses two different genres. The list of artists that were mentioned is as follows:

·      Charlotte Church

·      Serj Tankian

·      Gareth Gates

As you can see, this list is rather sparse and shows how most people struggle to think of such artists.

Charlotte Church rose to fame in her childhood as a classical cross over singer. ‘Voice of an Angel’ was the name of her first album, which contained arias, sacred songs, and traditional pieces. She was the youngest artist with a No. 1 album on the British classical crossover charts at that time. After her success as a classical singer, she then decided to perform pop music. 

Charlotte’s classical voice is that of a soprano and has a light crisp tone. It is a simple sound with not much vibrato and most of the recordings of her singing in this genre are of her at a young age. Her pop voice however, is quite the opposite and she uses her belting voice with an airy tone. The opposite voice she has acquired may have been the result of her getting older, but I would suspect that she could still sing in a classical style if she chose to do so. Unfortunately there is less of an audience for classical music, which I assume is the reason for her changing to popular music. I have also read reports that have suggested her classically trained voice has now gone due to smoking and belting. Whether this is true or not, I am not entirely sure.

A singer that was mentioned previously (in the list of talented vocalists) my survey produced, was Tarja Turunen. Before the survey I had previously not been aware of her or her existence. Tarja is a classically trained, strong sounding soprano and has the vocal range of three octaves.  However, she is the lead singer of a metal band, Nightwish. 

When reading this, I was intrigued to find out what this collaboration sounded like and whether it ‘worked’ or not. My first thoughts would be that she would use a head voice in a contemporary style, however I was wrong. She uses a classical technique and style, which results in her having a very strong head voice. Surprisingly, her lower notes are also strong and well supported.

In regards to the music genre, I believe her voice fitted well. The tone and high register of her voice allowed it to soar above the distorted guitars and rock instruments, which enabled her to be heard. The use of her high thick sounding soprano, teamed with the powerful sounds of a metal band seems to go together very well. I think these two unsuspecting musical techniques team up to provide an emotional and interesting musical partnership. I personally enjoy Nightwish’s cover of ‘Phantom Of The Opera’:

Through my investigation I believe that classical singers should sing contemporary music if they choose to do so, as long as they do this safely. I think it is important to remember contemporary singing does not have to be belted all of the time and to avoid straining to higher notes is a necessity. Ideally a mixture of a head and chest voice can be used, but to disguise the break in the voice takes a lot of practice and training. I also think contemporary singers should try classical singing because it enables a singer to learn precise technique, especially when it comes to articulation and breathing. Voice placement is an on going musical issue and will continue to cause controversy.  I think overall is it important to know what is safe for the individual and to sing what comes naturally.

I would love to hear peoples views on this topic!