The Standardization of Human Expression
My Personal Quest To Find A Way To Allow Humans To Fully Commit To Themselves
Writing about singing entails delving into subjective sensations while attempting to explain phenomena (and I'm obviously referring to singing and singers) that, in my experience, generally occur naturally. From our desire for understanding arises our tendency to seek explanations for the things that surround us, particularly the wonder of human vocal expression.
Every culture develops its own way of understanding and explaining its view of the world. In singing, the sounds that move us and that we consider beautiful might seem bland in other cultures. However, there are singers and singing styles that manage to transcend cultural barriers and gain universal recognition.
It is natural to want to replicate something that is successful or that moves us. Singing is a profoundly human expression, but I believe that by treating the teaching of singing solely as a mechanical act, we disrupt the essence of communication—the desire and the need to express. Since the beginning of my journey as a singer, I have been interested in the history of how we teach singing.
One fact that catches my attention is how we have managed to create virtuoso singers and instrumentalists in large quantities. However, that virtuosity does not necessarily translate into transcendent art. Today, we find a very high refinement of vocal expression, yet, in that refinement, the personality of the artist is often missed.
Where lies the magic of Pavarotti? I always remember a session I had with a teacher while working on a well-known aria (an operatic song). I was singing, and I felt uncomfortable with the writing of that piece; I wanted to find a way to make it flow in my voice, in my throat. But the teacher was frustrated because I was not following the rhythm exactly as written. And yes, it is important to have the musical part learned correctly, but at that moment in my vocal development, my need, what I was looking for was something different.
When I returned home and listened to Pavarotti singing that same piece, I found that he was not only not singing the correct rhythm, but the notes were not perfect either. However, it was a delight to listen to him. At that moment, I understood that there is something beyond singing perfect notes, that the pursuit of perfection can become a blockage, an obstacle, an interruption in the flow of the voice.
When I listen to Pavarotti, I can perceive the human being with all the imperfections that it shows as it is. I do not feel the posture of an "opera singer" that I always perceive in other artists. Apart from the obvious technical preparation he went through, which he describes countless times in books and videos, he was an artist who managed to maintain the natural essence of his sound. More gifted artists, with spectacular, pyrotechnic voices, do not manage to touch the fiber, to move us. That germ, that soul of a voice is lost under the cloak that offers manipulation of the throat to produce manufactured sounds, aesthetically beautiful but lacking light, candor, pulsating flesh.
There I was, finding myself wanting to let my throat emit real sounds, but stuck trying to unravel the knot that years of manipulating my voice, my body to create those perfect sounds that taste like nothing have created. To reach the ideals that I had in my head without understanding that those ideal sounds were produced by real, imperfect beings, who allowed themselves to be.
These ideals occur in all styles; many generations were marked by the recorded sounds of Freddie Mercury. Everyone wanted to imitate his vocal power. But we always forget that they are recordings. Many takes are made. The best one is chosen and retouched. Or the best fragments are chosen and pasted together to create the illusion, the reference, the ideal.
Everyone pursues the ideal, and in the pursuit, we become machines imitating and forgetting our essence. Imitating is part of learning, yes, but what happens when everyone starts to sound the same? What happens when voices have to conform to a "standardized sound"? Opera singers, musical theater singers, pop singers, all sound good, even impressive. But something is lost. The personality is no longer seen, heard.
These days I was talking to a very close friend who is a psychologist about education. About how in the end, educating is providing an environment where the artist finds the confidence to show their being as it is, and thus, they themselves can remove the knots, blocks, mental obstacles that obstruct their expression as a human being.
That is, in my opinion, the essence of vocal education. When the person is able to show their individuality without reservations, without regrets, they become a reference. Then we can all see ourselves in that artist. That's why Freddie Mercury, Adele, Luciano Pavarotti, Taylor Swift, are universal, they transcended.
Thank you for reading! Consider sharing or if you have questions send me a line.
Fabián Arciniegas