Making vocals work in drum corps...

[MikeD]

For any of this to work, we are going to need real vocalists. We have plenty of high school and college horn players and drummer trying out on their instruments in drum corps. Corps are going to need to go after true vocalists to set the same standards. That means no more pit or horn members being the vocalists. It just sounds bad. I would hate to see the soprano soloist or some guard chick start trying to rip notes on a marching snare drum for part of the show. Corps will need to audition specifically for vocal musicians with real vocal instructors to make the cuts and teach throughout the summer. If the whole corps is going to do those non-word vocal sounds for anything more than a quick effect, they need to have a professional teaching them how to do it as well.

How do you know the featured vocalists are NOT trained? Just because they also play in the pit, spin a flag, or play a brass instrument? In the band I arrange for, we always have choir members in the MB...one who went on to become a voice major at Wesminster became one of the DM's her senior year.

I think just about any use a designer wants to create can work well, if the show is put together properly. Crown 2004 is a prime example, IMO. Cascades narration last year...Cadets use of voice (once they got the technical kinks worked out)...all good, IMO.

There are lots of good ideas in this thread that will hopefully work their way onto the field at some point.

[Morgoth Bauglir]

Even if they start the season with skill or experiance in 2 sections, they should not be splitting their rehearsal time in the season between the 2.

[ScribeToo]

For any of this to work, we are going to need real vocalists. We have plenty of high school and college horn players and drummer trying out on their instruments in drum corps. Corps are going to need to go after true vocalists to set the same standards. That means no more pit or horn members being the vocalists. It just sounds bad. I would hate to see the soprano soloist or some guard chick start trying to rip notes on a marching snare drum for part of the show. Corps will need to audition specifically for vocal musicians with real vocal instructors to make the cuts and teach throughout the summer. If the whole corps is going to do those non-word vocal sounds for anything more than a quick effect, they need to have a professional teaching them how to do it as well.

You might be surprised how many of those kids in the corps are already trained singers.. here's the deal (from a student singer perspective). If you're main "instrument" is voice.. and you want to become a music teacher, you have to learn all those other instruments well enough to teach them.. Likewise a kid who's main instrument is keyboard must become a trained singer .. and do well enough to teach voice.

When I was growing up, I wanted to be a conductor.. and was asked, "what's your mastered instrument?" I said, "voice." I was told, "well you need to master an instrument as well as voice in order to go into the field" -- by then it was out of the question for many reasons.. even though the guidance counsellor has since been proved wrong.

What I'm getting at is just because a kid steps out of the line to sing doesn't mean they aren't trained. I don't think it would require any more staff and there's an interesting reason why. As a singer, watching hornline instructors teach the hornline, I was surprised to find that the exact same technical rules applied to brass playing as they do to singing. Placement, breath control, relaxation, resonance, etc.. so you've already got built in staff -- not to mention most of the DI corps are employing college instructors now so they already have to be able to teach voice..

So, you already have the kids.. you already have the staff.. now we just have to get to the point where we're utilizing it well.

Honestly, we're not far from it being done well. I would not like to see an opera aria sung on field.. because that's a different level of vocal requirement. You can't just pull any voice out of all the soprano singing women in the group you've got and tell her to sing Vissi d'Arte.. she has to be of a certain voice fach -- in other words, you would never hear Beverly Sills singing it.. it's not in her fach.. and if you don't have the right fach in your corps to do it (with the right level of maturity), it WILL sound bad. Then what do you do? Pick another aria? Plug in Una voce poco fa?

mmm.. I'm thinkin, no.

If you're going to incorporate voice as a texture within the music.. then a student singer could easily be taught the style needed with the correct support and perform it so that it sounds GOOD -- even GREAT.. and it could be a wonderful moment.. but it doesn't need to be a spotlight on the singer.. In fact, I'd prefer it not be.

Stef

[MikeD]

Even if they start the season with skill or experiance in 2 sections, they should not be splitting their rehearsal time in the season between the 2.

Why not, if the show calls for it? Cadets had the guard all play horns almost 30 years ago.

I've seen hornlines use what we'd call guard equipment during percussion features.

I've seen corps use singing.

Etc....

If a person has a number of years of voice training, and is playing part of the show on pit percussion when they are not singing, I fail to see the issue with that.

[PCOP_trumpet04]

Like Stef said, voice only works effectively (IMHO) if it's used as part of the ensemble. Seemless integration is the key, whether it be vocal solos, narration, or even drum speak. Bluecoats are really the only corps I can think of that made vocals seem like a genuine part of the show, and not something "gimmicky" for lack of a better word. All of the vocal usage in the past has seemed sorta tacked on, like they're trying to feature something that, in essence, isn't up to the level of performance and attention to detail as the rest of the shows. It always seems awkward really...

Drum corps people are picky. We're trained to notice things that stick out and it bothers us to no end when they do. Vocals are the same as anything else in drum corps. If you choose to use them, make it seemless, make it effective, and make it #### good.

I'm trying to think of an example that many people have heard, and the only thing I can come up with would be something like the music of Enya or from the soundtracks of Titanic and the Lord of the Rings Trilogy (namely Fellowship).

I think anyone that was at BOA Grand Nationals this year can vouch for me when I say that vocals used like Richland HS would work WONDERFULLY on the field. That show had me from beginning to end on a level that only a few drum corps shows have done for me. The vocal soloist (actually a duet) was mindboggling. Man could that girl sing; had me nearly in tears.

Honestly, has anyone else seen this show? I think that Richland's use of vocals within the ensemble were impeccable. I actually LIKED the narration, and was in absolute AWE of the vocal solos. This band seriously changed my perception of what vocal use in marching pageantry can do. If you have the chance to view this show, DO IT, and see what you think of vocals after.

[rut-roh]

Wordless vocals...the more I think about it, the more it could be a nice enhancement.

That's one of the reasons I dug that clip of Richland HS so much. I've only listened to it a couple times and couldn't discern any distinguishable lyrics to it (maybe there was?), but was instantly mesmerized by the "sound" of that chorale-like tone (duet) above the rest of the ensemble, as an added harmonic color I have never heard before on a football field. The fact that the rest of the musical ensemble contributed equally to a great degree and were not left as "background" made it that much cooler for me. I thought the whole thing was just extremely well integrated and coordinated. As you put it, a nice enhancement.

[Nex]

You might be surprised how many of those kids in the corps are already trained singers..

I think people may be confusing training with talent. I think what we need are talented singers, not necessarily trained ones.

[liebot]

Cascades narration last year...Cadets use of voice (once they got the technical kinks worked out)...all good, IMO.

You thought that was good?

I don't know. The speaker just had no emotion or resonant tone in his voice, and it sounded more like he was focusing on delivering his lines in time with the music than actually "performing" his part. I would liken it to Lawrence Welk's attempt at playing jazz. Just wasn't convincing.

I thought that BD's narration was much more effective from a performance standpoint. As much as people like to make fun of the "Yowza's" I felt like the performer got into the character well.

All in all, I would say most of the attempts at vocals have been "shallow and pedantic" thus far.

[rut-roh]

I thought that BD's narration was much more effective from a performance standpoint. As much as people like to make fun of the "Yowza's" I felt like the performer got into the character well.

Agreed. He was going for that kind of Al Jolson 1920's ragtime scratchy record through a megaphone type of voice, and I thought he pulled it off well.

If the Cadets' first speaker had tried to emulate the Rod Serling delivery of that Twilight Zone intro...a distinctive style that we have all heard and know very well...it would have come off a lot better, IMO.

[ScribeToo]

I think people may be confusing training with talent. I think what we need are talented singers, not necessarily trained ones.

singing is 99% training. 1% talent.

Look at American Idol.. what YOU think is talent, may not necessarily agree with what I think is talent.. and for this idiom and this use of voice, what you need is TRAINED singers.

IMO of course.

Stef