Re: Kurt Hummel Snark & Bark Thread--Part 8

[coxfire]

If Chris *did* smoke, it would be a disaster . . . his voice is his signature, and while it might be tempting to "lower" his speaking voice by smoking (a reason given to me by a famous actress who was afraid to quit and lose her signature "raspiness"), it would be a terrible idea to mar his singing voice. He'd lose his high notes pretty fast, I bet.

I wonder if smoking is part of why Chord has aged so much during this past year. It's remarkable.

Oh I really doubt Chris even envisaged smoking, he doesn't strike me as the smoking type at all. I do smoke, so I don't judge those who do, but when your voice is your main work instrument, it sure isn't the best choice (even if I'm not sure the impact on the voice is as important for rock singers than it is for opera or musical-oriented singers, if you know what I mean), but everyone is entitled to make his own choice, as stupid as they are (I know, smoking is stupid, I really should quit, but...)

[brisallie]

If Chris *did* smoke, it would be a disaster . . . his voice is his signature, and while it might be tempting to "lower" his speaking voice by smoking (a reason given to me by a famous actress who was afraid to quit and lose her signature "raspiness"), it would be a terrible idea to mar his singing voice. He'd lose his high notes pretty fast, I bet.

I wonder if smoking is part of why Chord has aged so much during this past year. It's remarkable.

Smoking actually help you to 'improve' your lower register? I know people who have smoked for years, my grandma for instance, has a sort of raspy voice, and once,Santana mentioned she got her raspiness due to smoking, but I believe she was joking. So that why it takes me by surprise this information, and unless you don't smoke 'properly', it will hurt your lungs.

And as regards Chris, I'm wondering if he ever was tempted to smoke when a teenager, but as the years passed, he probably started to be more aware of how important is to keep his voice healthy, so I don't think so he smokes.

[AnneNeville]

If Chris *did* smoke, it would be a disaster . . . his voice is his signature, and while it might be tempting to "lower" his speaking voice by smoking (a reason given to me by a famous actress who was afraid to quit and lose her signature "raspiness"), it would be a terrible idea to mar his singing voice. He'd lose his high notes pretty fast, I bet.

I wonder if smoking is part of why Chord has aged so much during this past year. It's remarkable.

Smoking actually help you to 'improve' your lower register? I know people who have smoked for years, my grandma for instance, has a sort of raspy voice, and once,Santana mentioned  she got her raspiness due to smoking, but I believe she was joking. So that why it takes me by surprise this information, and unless you don't smoke 'properly', it will hurt your lungs.

And as regards Chris, I'm wondering if he ever was tempted to smoke when a teenager, but as the years passed, he probably started to be more aware of how important is to keep his voice healthy, so I don't think so he smokes.

I think that I put that badly. Smoking tends to lower the voice and can make it raspier. Having a lower (speaking) voice for a woman can be very distinctive, even read as "sexy," and for an actress (like the one who was afraid to quit smoking), the voice can become tied to type and marketability. The woman I'm referring to is well known, and I think she started to smoke young. She wanted to stay thin, but her smoking had also lowered her speaking voice to a very distinctive sound. She was afraid that, if she quit, her voice would go back to it's original register and she'd lose that "distinguishing" quality.

I was definitely not trying to say that smoking "improves" your voice. Quite the opposite--it was damaging her voice, but in a way that made her stand out from the crowd. That "signature" sound made it hard for her to quit (just like fear of weight gain can make quitting smoking hard). I'll also note that she was an actress, not a singer . . . it was her speaking voice that she was concerned about.

[fantastica]

i don't know if naya smokes. santana smokes cigar (off screen) but naya maybe born w/ a smoky voice. not everybody has crystal smooth voice.

[Glorfindel]

I like Nayas voice just fine, I just don't think she's as amazing as all her stans claim she is. To be honest, Jenna and Dianna are my 2 favorite voices and also the most underrated. Jenna's range is huge and her voice is incredibly versatile. She hits some really low notes in Bad Romance and Born This Way and she could probably go higher than Lea. Dianna is the only alto of the originals, and her voice is like melted butter. Her problem is that the writers have given her songs that have been too high such as Keep Me Hangin On. But she sounds absolutely amazing on the lower notes like in Never Can Say Goodbye.

Chris, Kevin, Matt, and Cory are the best male singers in my opinion, just because they have very distinctive voices from the others.

I couldn't agree more.
I know that Lea and Amber are 'better' singers than Dianna, but I really love Dianna's old style voice. And Jenna can sing almost anything they give her. Her voice is not as powerful as Lea, but she is just as trained and I like that she has a little softer approach in her voice, although when needed she can bring the power too.

As for the males: Kevin is a really strong singer with an incredible range. Matt is an excellent old-fashioned Broadway singer and does best in that style of songs imo. Cory was so underrated in his singing: he really learned a lot the past few years. Plus his voice always touched me personally. E.g.: Mark has a similar voice as Cory, but his singing never 'did' anything for me, although he also sings quite well and usually did good covers on Glee.
Chris is Chris of course.  

I thought Julie Andrews lost her singing voice after a botched surgery, though it may have been more complicated than that.

That's what I heard too: they damaged her vocal chords during surgery. But I don't know if that surgery was on her vocal chords to begin with or if they damaged them with the breathing tubes used during most surgeries, which is a common risk. (I had 2 surgical operations myself and asked both times if they could sedate me without a breathing tube, which they granted 1 time)

Smoking actually help you to 'improve' your lower register?

No, it does not. It only takes some high notes away from you and makes it more difficult to speak or sing higher. That's why smokers use their lower part of their voices more, but that lower part does not 'improve': it just gets to be the easiest part of the voice to speak/sing in, as the higher register gets abandoned more.



.[/quote]

[MoviesAreLife]

I appriciate Naya's dark tone too, to be exact any female that has to/can sing low alto. I have a low alto and sometimes it feels all the modern female singers have to sing so high inorder to sound feminine. I like that "old" hazy female voice where you can still hear the beautiful vibrato and difficult, long breaths. A'la Ella Fitzgerald in lets say Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered. (7 minutes of female voice heaven Btw!) That is one of the most difficult songs even though you can't really hear it.

I am exactly the same, I prefer women with lower voices, like PJ Harvey, Shirley Manson from Garbage, or Sarah Bettens from K's choice. But more generally, in a matter of singing, I don't really care if the voice sounds "perfect" or very neat, I rather focus on the emotion the singer is able to vehicle, if that makes sense. Most of the bands I listen to are rock bands, and rock singers are not necessarily trained ones, but I couldn't imagine anyone else singing their song.

What do you think of Melissa's voice?

[MoviesAreLife]

I appriciate Naya's dark tone too, to be exact any female that has to/can sing low alto. I have a low alto and sometimes it feels all the modern female singers have to sing so high inorder to sound feminine. I like that "old" hazy female voice where you can still hear the beautiful vibrato and difficult, long breaths.

Yeah, that mentality is really stupid. Women shouldn't have to sound like children in order to be considered feminine. Take Dianna, for example. She has one of the lowest female voices in the cast and she can't reach high notes. But I would never say that she sounds like a boy...she doesn't. Dianna (along with her voice) is one of the most graceful, elegant and feminine modern girls I can think of.

It's interesting that they made Santana a tomboy when she was younger. Her voice...that rougher edge, the rasp...does sound like what I'd expect a tomboy to sound like. It has nothing to do with pitch. When voice over actresses are called upon to voice little boy characters, their pitch is high because they are voicing a child, but they almost always seem to add in a slight rasp to their voices for the character. Something about a rasp makes people think of a boy...it's interesting. I'm not saying Santana is butch at all, but I can buy she was a tomboy once upon a time. Even now, she's never completely femme, at least, not to me. Too aggressive.

But yes, feminine voices come in all pitches. The higher ones (Lea) as well as the lower ones (Dianna). People say that Chris' singing voice sounds feminine...but compared to the girls of the Glee cast? I'm not so sure.

What I love about Naya's voice is that she has range. Her natural range is that of an alto (I think?) and of course, she can go very low. But I love how high she can go as well...she impressed with singing the high harmony in "River Deep, Mountain High" and with the high ending note in "Nutbush City Limits". It's cool how she can adapt her voice to with in with her duet partner: supporting Lea's higher voice in "So Emotional", but taking the high harmony in "Take My Breath Away" with Dianna.

[MoviesAreLife]

For those who are wondering: Naya was not born with that lower, raspy trademark voice of hers. I think she got it through smoking, and they were making fun of this when Santana said she got her singing voice through smoking.

This is a clip of her from a Disney show called "Even Stevens". This is from 2002, making her 15. She looks like a child because she is so thin, but she is a teenager. She sounds like a child too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajZSGzeVNZ0

If this was a 15 year old boy we were talking about, that would explain things. But girls do not go through a massive vocal change in their mid teens, do they? For them, it's gradual.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOTiJD_qqr4 (2003, age 16...still childlike)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5T9DqE75jU (shows a voice change from 2002 to 2006) By 2004, her voice pretty much sounded like it does now: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQu0TD_RRyM

So, I don't know. I think around 17, she started smoking to get that "sexy" voice that her fans keep going on and on about. Of course, there are healthier ways to manipulate your voice without damaging it...voice actors are masters at changing their voices without doing something physically harmful to it. They can manipulate pitch, they can add a rasp that wasn't there, or smooth out a natural rasp...it's amazing.

[Buenos]

Could it be Naya had the lower range but simply didn't use it as much until Glee?

[MoviesAreLife]

Could it be Naya had the lower range but simply didn't use it as much until Glee?

Maybe. She made herself speak lower because it fit the character, unlike past shows. But where did the rasp come from?

[AnneNeville]

Quiet here. . .

[fantastica]

i will bring a new puppy dog and have him bark here. how's that?

woof woof woof!

[AnneNeville]

i will bring a new puppy dog and have him bark here. how's that?

woof woof woof!

And my cat replies: Meow meow!

[Lottie2303]

I have no musical ear nor any knowledge. But the discussion about voices, Lea's 'weaknesses' and how smoking can change a voice is very interesting. Thanks all for sharing.

[brisallie]

I appriciate Naya's dark tone too, to be exact any female that has to/can sing low alto. I have a low alto and sometimes it feels all the modern female singers have to sing so high inorder to sound feminine. I like that "old" hazy female voice where you can still hear the beautiful vibrato and difficult, long breaths. A'la Ella Fitzgerald in lets say Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered. (7 minutes of female voice heaven Btw!) That is one of the most difficult songs even though you can't really hear it.

I am exactly the same, I prefer women with lower voices, like PJ Harvey, Shirley Manson from Garbage, or Sarah Bettens from K's choice. But more generally, in a matter of singing, I don't really care if the voice sounds "perfect" or very neat, I rather focus on the emotion the singer is able to vehicle, if that makes sense. Most of the bands I listen to are rock bands, and rock singers are not necessarily trained ones, but I couldn't imagine anyone else singing their song.

What do you think of Melissa's voice?

Who Melissa are you talking about?

And I saw those old Naya clips, and I was shocked how higher her voice was o.o, but then I think that probably she had that voice because she was still a teenager.

[MoviesAreLife]

Who Melissa are you talking about?

Melissa Benoist.  Personally, I love her voice!

And welcome back, Anne!

[brisallie]

Who Melissa are you talking about?

Melissa Benoist.  Personally, I love her voice!

And welcome back, Anne!

I thought you were talking about Melissa Etheridge, as we were speaking about women with a sort of deep voice, she came to my mind.

Agree. I also like Melissa Benoist voice and since the beginning I like she has a different voice from Lea to stop the comparisons. Actually, my only problem with her, is her plain character.

[Lottie2303]

I actually think Melissa has a great voice and could happily listen to when she is on the radio. Her voice is one of the factors I think she is too harshly judged for by the fans. However her acting choices, background moments (other actors got promoted because they used those) and overall presence is an entire different story.

[ColdFlame96]

I actually think Melissa has a great voice and could happily listen to when she is on the radio. Her voice is one of the factors I think she is too harshly judged for by the fans. However her acting choices, background moments (other actors got promoted because they used those) and overall presence is an entire different story.

Yeah I would say she's a pretty mediocre actress overall. She just doesn't leap out at me from the screen at all. None of the newbies really did except Becca and maybe Blake. Alex stood out but not in a good way.

[fantastica]

she is pleasant, but "boring". she sings well but her vocal is generic. she is very pretty but you will soon forget her. she is a good "filler".

[tanita_mors]

idk, i find melissa's voice to be rather generic in tone and range. heard it all before. she is glee's katharine mcphee. in more ways then one.

[Glorfindel]

^Agreed. Melissa's got a nice voice with good vocal techniques. but she doesn't bring much personality to her singing, and the result is not that interesting and bland, same as her acting.

Of the newbies I only like Becca, although I really don't like Kitty, and Jacob Artist, mostly because of his dancing and because his singing voice is at least different from the other generic dime-a-dozen male voices in the new ND.

Blake is okay, but he's nothing special, and he can't sell the nice but dumb white jock character as well as Cory did. Boring.
I would like Alex as Unique more if he could act, but he really can't.

[ColdFlame96]

^Agreed. Melissa's got a nice voice with good vocal techniques. but she doesn't bring much personality to her singing, and the result is not that interesting and bland, same as her acting.

Of the newbies I only like Becca, although I really don't like Kitty, and Jacob Artist, mostly because of his dancing and because his singing voice is at least different from the other generic dime-a-dozen male voices in the new ND.

Blake is okay, but he's nothing special, and he can't sell the nice but dumb white jock character as well as Cory did. Boring.
I would like Alex as Unique more if he could act, but he really can't.

Ryder really is a boring character, but at least Blake's a decent enough actor to sell all the crap they give him. Same thing with Becca. I've always found Unique really grating and obnoxious. He's an example of how bad Kurt could've been if he was played by a lesser actor. A good example of a trans character is Adam from Degrassi. She was a good actress and she wasn't stereotypical.

[MoviesAreLife]

I love the fact that after we had Rachel leading the club for three years, we have a new leading lady with a different voice type. I find her voice to be so soothing. Have any of you head of Sarah McLachlan? I think her voice would be perfect for her music.

I agree about Becca. She's probably the best newbie they've got. Versatile singing voice, talented dancer, good comedic actress and good at drama as well, as well as a strong presence....she's got that spark and charisma...that "It" factor. I just hate her character so much....

[Glorfindel]

This is a rant about crisscolfers, and Darren being tacked unto everything that Chris does.
(prompted by Chris and Darren being rumored to have been at the same concert last night).


Ever since Darren confirmed his relationship with Mia, and Chris and Will were handholding in Paris, the crisscolfer tinhatters have been 'demanding' to "See the horse", meaning to see Chris and Darren interacting together more. Their theory is that since their precious cupcakes are both in a relationship now with other people there would be no objection anymore to them being seen hanging out together, photographed together, doing interviews together, etc., as noone would assume they are together romantically. (yeah right)
But every time Darren and Chris are allegedly both in the same place or even the same quadrant of the universe, these tinhatters freak out over that anyway and make it all about their delusional RL ship again. So nothing has changed really.

What they don't realize is that one of the reasons Chris and Darren are not seen together a lot is because of their (crisscolfers') own stupid RL ship behaviour (complete with their tinhatter conspiracy theories and all) whenever Chris and Darren might be seen together by chance.
(One of the other reasons being that Chris and Darren just don't hang out together outside of work much, if at all.)


The best solution to not be irritated by these..... irritating people anymore would be to not read what they are saying and just let them worship bananas and avocados (don't ask ) in their own little delusional corner. But the trouble is that some of them don't tag right and shove Darren/Klaine/crisscolfer into our faces All. The. Freaking. Time.  
The Chris Colfer tag is always flooded with "Crisscolfer is on!!!11!!!" posts and Darren pics, and it's very irritating (although the ignore button does ease the pain). And it's not just the hardcore crisscolfers, but the 'normal' Klainers and Darren stans flooding the CC tag as well.

They would get a lot less flak and ridicule from the rest of the fandom if they would not be so obnoxiously loud and visible, and especially if they simply would just stay in their own tag, not make everything of Chris about Darren (really: if I read one more time that Froggy was based on Darren I will tear out my hair), and not swarm everywhere like irritating little bugs.

 

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