30 Day Challenge - Day 3 "What is Musical Phrasing"

Back when I was learning how to play an instrument (okay, I actually play THREE instruments--violin, piano and guitar), my music teacher would harp on the concept of correctly "phrasing" a piece.  Now, as a kid/teen, that term didn't make a lot of sense to me.  After all, this was an instrument and NOT spoken words, so how exactly was a "phrase" formed without words.  But, as all kids do who desperately want to finish their music lesson to (choose one)

play outside,

watch television or 

(and this was my personal preference)

get on a phone to gossip with friends about that "cute guy" in school

I would do as I was told, form a "musical phrase" with the soft notes and loud notes and move on.  At this stage, to me a phrase was nothing more than something that started in a low volume, rose to a higher volume (crescendo or "cresc") and then fell back to a lower volume again (diminuendo or "dim").

I would have been happy to believe "phrasing" was nothing more than increases and decreases in volume for my entire life, and would have done so had it not been for a tiny mistake I made in my senior year of high school. 

As I had limited funds to go to college and had chosen a fairly expensive private college to attend, I decided to "double down" on the basic college courses by taking as many as I could at the local junior college in my senior year of high school.  To fulfill a humanities requirement and hoping for an "easy A", I took a beginning piano class from a Russian émigré and former concert pianist.  Yeah, not a good idea! When she saw I could actually play piano, I was pulled aside and found myself taking classes with "Madame P."  In my time with Ms. P, I had watched her reduce a grown man to "almost" tears (and not in a "good way") when attempting to play the second movement of Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata," so this was not a pianist or instructor with whom to trifle. 

Her greatest love was...for those pianists in the group...yep...A. Mozart.  Mozart is not only the master of musical phrasing, he is the master of contra-phrasing and the damned "devil" when it comes to voicing within a relatively simple piece.  I was assigned what appeared to be an easy Sonata from Mozart's songbook, but my poor understanding of the three concepts above (phrase, contra phrase and voice) made this one piece my "study" for the entire quarter.  Yep, it is still my best memorized and best performed piece even today...years later!

Thanks to Mozart, I learned that phrases were not just about dynamics, but also about the tiny connections between notes and between melodies on the left and right hand intended to argue or complement one another.  Further, voicing (or emphasizing one set of notes over another) created yet another opportunity to impart personality through connected phrasing or changes in volume (aka "dynamics").

Most importantly, how a pianist, violinist, guitarist or vocalist emphasizes, de-emphasizes, doubles or connects the sounds often creates a sound so unique and recognizable that a person can actually say "hey that sounds like Zuckerman" (on violin) or "swings like Ella Fitzgerald" (in vocals and song).   For vocalists--unlike musicians--we can use not only our voices to phrase (pitch, dynamics and length) but the very manner in which we speak the words can become the basis of "phrasing."  When a singer phrases a song correctly, it's can be so unique as to be a "signature" song or a "signature sound."  When done incorrectly...arghhh!!!

Thus, when I started singing swing standards (Sinatra, Fitzgerald, Martin, Crosby, et. al.) in my 30s, part of my education was listening to a wide variety of both recorded and live performances of jazz and swing songs.  As I got better at these songs, certain phrases along with specific musical runs and the manner in which I emphasized, doubled or tweaked sounds became my personal signature in performing songs.  Even today, as I am again singing a lot of the same standards years later, I find myself reaching back to pull out the phrasing that I once did for specific songs.  It's much like slipping on a comfortable pair of shoes...so comfy and so reassuring.

Now I bring up phrasing because it is one of the few things that "marks" almost every single singer's performance, and knowingly or unknowingly, there are teeny tiny bits or common threads of phrasing that run through many songs despite how different the music can be.  These threads can be as simple as the way one says a particular word or how a singer improvises on sections of music.

If you want to hear the best in phrasing and uniqueness, I proffer these two incredible singers. 

First is my "go to" jazz girl, Jasmin, who goes by the Smuletag @jazdionne. As I am late in posting my blog today, I just so happen to be posting on the 100th birthday of the incredible and unique Billie Holiday.  Never before have I heard a voice so full of the very "Holiday-esque" quality, essence and phrasing capabilities as can be heard by our gal Jasmin.  The way she uses her voice to fill the room with a sound so reminiscent of Holiday...well, to be frank, it's absolutely breathtaking.  Jasmin has told me that Billie is her idol and I think her quiet and faithful study of this jazz legend's talents have helped her mold a sound that is a tribute to--but not a mimick of--the wonderful vocal stylings of Holiday.  I have heard Jasmin sing songs that Holiday never recorded or, more correctly because of her early death in 1959, never got the chance to record, but when Jasmin sings it, it is like I know what it would have sounded like if Billie got her turn at the mic.  So if you have the time to listen to some incredible vocals and some Billie Holiday like phrasing...check out Jasmin @jazdionne.

Second on my roster of go-to musical phrasers is our Smule "chameleon" Fernando Riley whose Smule tag is @fernandoriley.  Fernando can as easily slip into "character voice" (most recently his current recordings feature Cartman and a smoking hot Barry White sizzling up the Smule-waves with our girl Neicy--oh, so naughty, but niiiicccceee--Allen whose tag is @neicyallen and with my pal, Keith @keithhill550) as he can whip out that velvet voice of his for songs.  One of the reasons that Fernando is so very successful in mimicking singers such as Barry White and Nat King Cole is not just his ability to use his own voice to sound like these singers, but his incredible "ear" in hearing and then phrasing songs EXACTLY as they would.  He'll hold the notes longer or shorter as the original singers would, and he knows to pitch or set dynamics in a manner that "hallmarks" the song as being sung by that artist.  Personally, having tried myself to make my voice sound like a specific singer, I know the difficulty in successfully pulling that off because it does mean understanding that singer's phrasing as well as the singer's vocals--an almost impossible feat!  Fernando does this difficult transition with such ease--often different voices in the same song!  So if you're looking for a phrasing "master" check out Fernando Riley @fernandoriley.

So work to develop phrasing for any song that is uniquely your own, and that makes everyone easily recognize YOU were the singer in that great duet!! 

More About the Singers Featured Today:

@Jazdionne is really Jasmin and "Dionne" is her middle name.  Most of us call her "Jaz" not just because it's short for her first name but because she embodies the very essence of the greatness that is jazz--that wonderful soulful sound and the incredible phrasing that is emotion and music all wrapped in one neat bundle with a bow on top.  Check out Jaz's site for great, jaw dropping music.

@fernandoriley is Fernando Riley, one of my best pals here on Smule and an incredible singer.  Generous to the core, funny (and I mean FUNNY), and incredibly talented, Fernando is one of the reasons "Smule" has so many participants.  Join as a follower and you'll be invited to and see some of the coolest and wildest songs here on Smule.

@neicyallen is Neicy Allen a fabulous singer with smoking HOT vocals that ooze sexy, smokey, sexy (wait did I just say that two times??) sex appeal in her songs.  She is also a sexy hot travel agent that you can call ANYWHERE IN THE COUNTRY to get you flights to far-off sexy, hot destinations.  Just hit her up on her page for hot music or hot travel deals.  I'm sure she'll help you out!!

@keithhill550 is Keith Hill from the UK.  Keith is one of my very first friends here on Smule and someone I will be highlighting in a future blog here in my 30 day (plus) challenge.  Keith has a high note range that is crazy high and a low note range--that he doesn't trot about nearly enough in my opinion--that is so incredibly melodious and wonderful you just want to hear it over and over and over! 

Me, I'm Grace and I go by the Smule tag "Pokeypal".  Join me for fun songs, fun activities and general craziness!  Thanks for reading!!