Back from SMT with recharged research batteries. My paper was well received and I got some good ideas on how to expand it.
Jonathan Dunsby was on the same panel that I was and he read a paper on Barthes' discussion of Panzera and Fischer-Dieskau in "The grain of the voice." As I understood it, Barthes favored Panzera as a result of his idiosyncratic singing style. Many people evidently did not care for Panzera: it was precisely this that endeared him to Barthes. Fischer-Dieskau, on the other hand, was a technically gifted singer but sung too honestly: he was liked by too many people as a result of his unwillingness to take musical risks.
I heard this morning on the radio a performance by Josh Groban of "I'll be home for Christmas," complete with recorded messages from soldiers stationed in the Middle East (talk about tugging on the heart strings). I don't much care for Josh Groban and I could never quite figure out why. He's got an OK voice--not great by any means. His usual choice of repertoire does not appeal to me, but that's my problem, not his. I think the following analogy best describes my early-morning revelation:
Panzera:Fischer-Dieskau::Fischer-Dieskau:Groban
For me, Fischer-Dieskau is the more interesting singer for precisely the reasons that Barthes likes Panzera. In Groban's voice, I hear some classical training, a little country twang, an unnatural vibrato, popular production, and a variety of other influences ("traces" might be a better word). In an effort to cater to the largest possible audience, Groban has absorbed a wide variety of styles, in effect sterilizing his voice. I would happily extend my theory to the Michael Bubles and Helmut Lottis of the world, too, as well as the Andre Rieus, etc.
Another thing that jumped out at me about this performance was the almost shameless appeal to the emotions. This was evident also in the next song, "Christmas shoes" by a group called NewSong.* This trend towards such overt sentimentality creeps me out a little bit, probably in the same way that Josh Groban's voice does. This type of expression requires almost no interpretive work on the part of the listener. How can you not choke up when you hear a little boy say that they're saving a present for daddy under the tree (in Groban's "I'll be home...")?
It's interesting, too, that it seems to be the non-musical aspects of the song--the recorded voices of soldiers--that will likely evoke the strongest emotions. Evidently, the song was initially associated with soldiers that were fighting in World War II. Bing Crosby's recording of the song in 1943 didn't rely on recordings of soldiers to tug on the heartstrings--it was simply understood.
I'm tempted to revisit Christopher Butler's book, Pleasure and the arts where he unpacks this kind of sentimentality...
Incidentally, the announcers mentioned that Oprah, on her wish list show, said that if you buy one album all year it should be Groban's...
*The Wikipedia entry on the song is interesting. Apparently, it originated as an e-mail forward of dubious veracity. Tom Reynolds chronicle of the 52 most depressing songs ever named the song "the most depressing song in modern recorded musical history."
Jonathan Dunsby was on the same panel that I was and he read a paper on Barthes' discussion of Panzera and Fischer-Dieskau in "The grain of the voice." As I understood it, Barthes favored Panzera as a result of his idiosyncratic singing style. Many people evidently did not care for Panzera: it was precisely this that endeared him to Barthes. Fischer-Dieskau, on the other hand, was a technically gifted singer but sung too honestly: he was liked by too many people as a result of his unwillingness to take musical risks.
I heard this morning on the radio a performance by Josh Groban of "I'll be home for Christmas," complete with recorded messages from soldiers stationed in the Middle East (talk about tugging on the heart strings). I don't much care for Josh Groban and I could never quite figure out why. He's got an OK voice--not great by any means. His usual choice of repertoire does not appeal to me, but that's my problem, not his. I think the following analogy best describes my early-morning revelation:
Panzera:Fischer-Dieskau::Fischer-Dieskau:Groban
For me, Fischer-Dieskau is the more interesting singer for precisely the reasons that Barthes likes Panzera. In Groban's voice, I hear some classical training, a little country twang, an unnatural vibrato, popular production, and a variety of other influences ("traces" might be a better word). In an effort to cater to the largest possible audience, Groban has absorbed a wide variety of styles, in effect sterilizing his voice. I would happily extend my theory to the Michael Bubles and Helmut Lottis of the world, too, as well as the Andre Rieus, etc.
Another thing that jumped out at me about this performance was the almost shameless appeal to the emotions. This was evident also in the next song, "Christmas shoes" by a group called NewSong.* This trend towards such overt sentimentality creeps me out a little bit, probably in the same way that Josh Groban's voice does. This type of expression requires almost no interpretive work on the part of the listener. How can you not choke up when you hear a little boy say that they're saving a present for daddy under the tree (in Groban's "I'll be home...")?
It's interesting, too, that it seems to be the non-musical aspects of the song--the recorded voices of soldiers--that will likely evoke the strongest emotions. Evidently, the song was initially associated with soldiers that were fighting in World War II. Bing Crosby's recording of the song in 1943 didn't rely on recordings of soldiers to tug on the heartstrings--it was simply understood.
I'm tempted to revisit Christopher Butler's book, Pleasure and the arts where he unpacks this kind of sentimentality...
Incidentally, the announcers mentioned that Oprah, on her wish list show, said that if you buy one album all year it should be Groban's...
*The Wikipedia entry on the song is interesting. Apparently, it originated as an e-mail forward of dubious veracity. Tom Reynolds chronicle of the 52 most depressing songs ever named the song "the most depressing song in modern recorded musical history."