Much has been said and written about vocal blend, but very little has been said about how to obtain it. We have all known groups through the years, who have a wonderful harmony and blend, and there are others we can recall, who have little blend at all. And then, there are those who claim that a family group has a better blend than does a group made up of non-family members. There may be a grain of truth to that, but probably not for the reasons one might think, more on that later.
Some of the great groups with tight vocal harmonies and blend, are groups like the Jordanaires from the 1950’s, the Plainsmen, the Imperials, (especially with members Jim Murray, Terry Blackwood, Roger Wiles and Armond Morales). And more recently, groups such as the Booth Brothers, the Ruppes and the Gaither Vocal Band, could all be said to have a great blend. But, how do they achieve that great blend? Ah, that is the million-dollar question.
The single one ingredient that begins the process of obtaining a great vocal blend is having everyone on the same stylistic page. In other words, everyone must be in agreement on the approach for a certain song and/or the arrangement. From there, the vocal blend can begin to come together. But even still, it is a long way from actually blending well.
DYNAMICS
I hear many gospel singers today sing full throttle, 100% of the time. They don’t have a clue how to back off and sing easy. You see when you sing very hard, your vocal chords not only produce the desired note, but they also produce odd harmonics that show up as sounds out of tune with the key, or with the harmonic centers of that key. It is very much like a trumpet played hard, when one begins to hear the bell of the horn break up, or distort. Your vocal chords can distort as well, and when this occurs, you produce harmonics that are not pleasing to the ear. Having three or four singers all singing to the top of their lungs will give the audience a full set of odd harmonics, none having any relationship to the other. When the audience hears this kind of performance it is often referred to as being “hard”, “harsh” or “edgy”. My own group calls this “hard as a brick”. This is the very artifact we are referring to. Learning to back off the power and sing with great dynamics can not only tighten the blend, but it can also give your performance a greater depth. As a test for yourself, try singing a line in a song with you face toward a wall. At first sing the line easy, and then sing the same line with as much force as you can muster. You will readily hear the difference in well-rounded tones and those that are in fact, distorted. The least amount of these odd harmonics you can inject into the total, the better. Beside, saving the loud and proud sections for the times they are needed, gives you a place to go. Many groups don’t sing dynamically very well at all. That is a shame for they shorten their singing careers as well as give a one-dimensional performance to their audience.
PARTS are PARTS
So often I hear Southern Gospel groups singing the wrong notes to the chords being played, and the inverse of that is a piano player or a band playing a different chord than what the singers are singing. You may say, that sounds like the same set of problems presented in two different ways. Maybe, but not always. Lets say the band, or the track is playing in the Key of C and there is a transition chord from the first chorus to the second verse that the group is singing across. This chord in this case is an F with a G bass, or expressed in Nashville numbers as a 4/5. So many times I hear Southern Gospel groups make the mistake of having the bass singer sing the low F, when instead he should be singing the G. or the 5 to the chord. The note is not technically wrong, since the F is in the chord. But musically, the 5 or the G, would be the better choice, and would tighten the blend. You see the F the bass singer is singing, is in the wrong octave and it rubs against the G or the 5 that the band is playing in the lower octaves. The result is a strident transition from chorus to verse rather than the far more musical approach.
WARBLE or WOBBLE
Another problem I hear that simply drives me crazy is groups with one singer using far more vibrato than another in the group. Or worse yet, one singer who sings with no vibrato at all while the other two or three sing each with different intensities of vibrato. With these conditions in a group, the vocal blend will never jell. This gets back to having each member on the same stylistic page. Blending together is as much art form as science, and some singers can naturally find the best balance of vibrato or straight tones, while others never understand the vast differences in human voices.
For instance, I sang in the studio a few years ago with Terry Blackwood. He had an incredible knack for knowing how to place a note in his throat or mouth, and what vibrato to use, or not use as the case might be, to close the blend. He is the finest example I know of a singer who knows how to blend. In my humble opinion, he is the best I have ever worked with in this regard, bar none.
Having vibrato in your voice is not a bad thing, as long as the average center is in pitch. Jake Hess once told me about a particular singer, “He sings in the middle of the note very well”, and I think this was what he was talking about. Having a vibrato that is non-uniform in pitch deviation, or speed, is a disaster. You cannot blend with a singer who does not have strict control of his vibrato. Having variations in cycle speed and pitch while holding a note, will make blending with that person virtually impossible. Controlling your vibrato is a huge part of having voice control. Knowing when to change from a pure sustained note to a slight vibrato is however, an art form. However, having no vibrato can sometimes be almost as bad. For example, I worked for some 14 years for Ronnie Milsap as his chief engineer. Ronnie is one very fine musician and singer, who could sing virtually any style and do it well. However, his voice, having no vibrato at all, would make any shaded note, either flat or sharp, stand out like no other voice I have ever worked with. Lets face the facts, a little vibrato can cover for slight pitch deviation, whether that be vibrato from a human voice or a violin.
Now we all know the operatic style voices with huge, wide vibrato, and many of these singers are the most trained singers in the world. Is it no wonder they all sing solos? Rarely does one hear a duo or trio, or heaven forbid, a quartet with these style voices. Aunt Martha singing in the church choir is another type of this very wide, intense vibrato….and we will leave that to your imagination.
FAMILY BLEND
Alright, now we get to that elusive quality called family blend. We have all heard “You simply cannot beat that family blend”. There is some truth to that. In families we most often have individuals who have similar sounding voices, all raised in the same household, who sing very much alike from a stylistic point of view. Even the tone of their voices has similar attributes. But, even so, they must be together both musically and phrasing to have a great blend. I work occasionally with a mixed group out of Kentucky who I personally think is the best, mixed group on the planet. This is the Childress Family. The group is made up of Mom, two sisters, one daughter and the husband of one of the girls. Their harmony and blend is the best I have heard since the days of Armond, Terry, Roger and Jim of the Imperials. But is their family blend a function of family or talent? I grant you family has its benefits, as they all live close together, and it is a simple thing for them to rehearse together. But, I tell you this, they are very talented, and know music inside and out, and they know how to sing. The one non-blood related member is Jamie, and he blends with them like he was a brother rather than a husband. So how do they manage to obtain that great blend with a non-related member? It is talent above and beyond all else.
I don’t care how tight your family is, if you sing the wrong musical parts, pronounce your words differently, and sing with differing styles, you will not blend regardless of blood ties. In other words, family will not overcome lack of musical knowledge and talent. Whereas, great musical knowledge and talent can very well overcome the lack of family similarities. The Imperials I mentioned above are a prime example. There has never been a group before nor since that had that kind of blend.
SO….HOW DO WE GET THERE
The old adage practice, practice, practice is a good place to start. You might add to that, study, study, study as well. For nothing fixes bad habits like good old-fashioned training and hard work. Groups that come to me for advise I tell to stop practicing with a sound system, and each time I get the blank, eyes blinking response that I am sure many of the readers are giving me right now. Standing around in a circle, listening and singing together is the quickest way I know to iron out vocal differences in a group. And never, never, practice with ear monitors, unless that practice is for the sole purpose of getting accustomed to using the things on stage. It is a terrible way to learn to sing together. It is a great way to learn how not to sing together.
Now, while you are standing in that circle, facing each other, and singing together, take the time to have each member sing their part by themselves. Take notice of the subtle differences in phrasing and accents from member to member. Take the sentence, “George just bought a new car.” Now say that line over to yourself again and again, each time accenting a different word. The implied intent of the sentence changes with each word chosen to emphasize. If you can get everyone in your group to phrase and accent together, you will go a long way down the road to achieving that elusive vocal blend.
Until next time,
Ben Harris
http://www.southernsoundquartet.com
Author: Ben Harris
| Author's Website: www.southernsoundquartet.com
Written: 01/01/2009
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Category: Sound Advice
Comments: 7
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Ben practices what he preaches.
His group "Southern Sound" is one of the finest blends I've ever heard in my life.
In my solo keyboard concerts, I often play one of their CD's as pre-concert music. People have literally walked into the venue and said "Wow! That's a tight sound!"
Keep up the good work gentlemen!
Brian Hanson
One of my fondest SG memories was seeing the Statesmen in 1977 and 78 when they were a trio, because they sang "I Want to Know"-- a song that originally featured Big Chief -- but Rosie, Jake, and Doy were able to pull off that song's whisper to a scream dynamics so well that you forgot that it wasn't a full quartet. Plus, their harmonies were flawless. I later heard a latter day Statesmen line-up with Tommy Thompson, Ed Hill, Buddy Burton, and Rosie Rozell do the same song and, once again, it was perfect. Much of that was because of Rosie... many, including Jake Hess, have stated that Crump was the best Statesmen tenor ever, and Crmp was amazing, but even Denver Crumpler didn't have the power that Rosie did.
Chris J. Becker
Cedar Rapids, IA
One of my fondest SG memories was seeing the Statesmen in 1977 and 78 when they were a trio, because they sang "I Want to Know"-- a song that originally featured Big Chief -- but Rosie, Jake, and Doy were able to pull off that song's whisper to a scream dynamics so well that you forgot that it wasn't a full quartet. Plus, their harmonies were flawless. I later heard a latter day Statesmen line-up with Tommy Thompson, Ed Hill, Buddy Burton, and Rosie Rozell do the same song and, once again, it was perfect. Much of that was because of Rosie... many, including Jake Hess, have stated that Crump was the best Statesmen tenor ever, and Crump was amazing, but even Denver Crumpler didn't have the power that Rosie did.
Chris J. Becker
Cedar Rapids, IA
Oops. Please delete my first post. I was trying to correct a typo and I accidentally double posted.
Chris J. Becker
Cedar Rapids, IA
Great instructional article!! For a great example of precision, check out the Perry's on Joel Lindsey's "I Wish I Coulda Been There". Amazing! Janice Crow
Fascinating subject, and VERY WELL written! I have many favorites, one of which is "Over The Moon" by the Blackwoods of James, JD, Bill & Cecil on their "Give The World A Smile" album. The most incredible lineup of ranges at a time when their voices were young and at their peak.
I guess my favorite album for a group that had great harmonic blend is "In The Garden" by The Weatherford Qt.
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