Tina wrote: shouldn't child singers get
training before they do damage on their own??>>>>>
Hi Tina,
I totally agree with you and I'm sure most on this list also do. Your
initial post asking about opera arias just pushed a few buttons. ! Most
of us (I'm assuming) work with children and all ages and the old
fashioned admonition "wait until age 18, or wait until after
menstruation" is not what most teachers hold to these days.
I work with a number kids and when the few ask "can I sing something
from an opera?" I give them an Italian art song because if it's in
Italian and it's sung in head voice, it's "opera" (thinks the student)!
A few years ago I had a talented 11 year old come to me who had already
been singing in public, performing the Celine Dion type big belting
ballad songs with background cd's and sometimes with a live band. Her
parents brought her to me for 'polish' (as they said) because a local
producer had Nashville contacts and wanted to send her there to cut a
demo cd of country songs. The girl sounded like an adult woman but was
getting the tone by doing a lot of neck and jaw flexing. Even though
she sounded 'professional', I could hear vocal chord swelling and tried
to explain my concern to the parents. I was able to get her to release
some of the tension but the producer would tell the parents "don't take
her to a voice teacher! Lessons will change her voice!" She did end up
going to Nashville and recorded three really great country songs that
were brand new, yet-to-be recorded, lyrics suited for a child singer.
The parents brought her back to me wanting me to "work on her diction"
on these new songs to polish them for a live performance for some
record producer.. and the stories the girl told me about the recording
engineers wanting her to belt the songs in keys far too high and how she
was sick with the flu but still had to go into the studio... singing
hour after hour!!! horrible!! I did what I could but still admonished
the parents to please take the girl to an ENT to just have a peek, at
least. Then off they went as their schedules got too busy for regular
lessons and I've wondered how the girl is doing, I guess she would be
about 14 now. I should call and just find out, just to appease my
curiosity.
The point of the story, I guess, is that of course kids ought to have
vocal training if they are going to go out there and sing.
Deanna Who Rambles
---
|
