By Robert W. Overman

All of us as singers want to be good musicians. A significant part of musicianship as a singer is attention to the interpretive aspects of music such as dynamics. But is our musicianship "getting across" to our audience?

When a singer vocalizes there are a few unwritten rules that apply. Generally speaking, the higher you sing, the louder you sound - all other things being equal. In other words, when a baritone (for instance) sings the opening line in the Faust aria Avant de quitter ces lieux, the notes ascend as follows: E-flat (below middle C), F, G, B-flat and then descending to the C an octave below middle C. In order to keep the sound of this musical line consistent and even, one must begin at a dynamic level that takes into account the coming lower C. Otherwise, if a singer sings all the notes with equal volume and support, the line will crescendo until the C where the audience will perceive a sudden diminuendo.

What does this mean to us as singers? In plain language, it means that we need an objective standard to determine how our sung dynamics are perceived by the audience. On a musical line that descends and is marked diminuendo, you might not need to change the volume with which you sing in order to achieve the effect of getting softer. Chances are you can use the natural diminuendo of the descending line to give the impression of getting softer without changing anything else. Likewise, when an ascending line is marked crescendo, the naturally occurring effect of the sound getting louder as you ascend might take care of the crescendo effect.

This phenomenon is also true in reverse. When a musical line should get louder as it descends, or even stay at the same dynamic level, it is generally necessary to increase the singing volume as you descend in order to create the impression of either getting louder or remaining at the same dynamic level. When the musical line ascends while a diminuendo is indicated, it might be necessary to reduce the volume of singing even more in order to achieve the desired effect.

When preparing a song, the singer must consider the overall dynamic shape of the piece before deciding how softly or loudly to begin. If you begin too softly, and then have to make a diminuendo, you might very well find yourself unable to be heard or "singing beneath the voice". Likewise, if you begin too loudly and the music calls for a crescendo, you might "over-sing" or push the voice, which almost always has a detrimental effect on your sound and vocal health.

As a young professional singer I was constantly surprised that what I thought I was doing dynamically wasn't necessarily what the audience was hearing. As a teacher, I always suggest that a student place a high quality recording device (such as a Mini Disc recorder) in the auditorium about halfway back in the house and listen to their voice as a third party. Students are often surprised that their soft singing is either not soft enough or too soft. The correlative effect is true of their loud singing.

What does this mean to us as performers? It means that our musical dynamics should be based on what the audience hears and not what we hear or feel as we sing. In order not to under-sing or over-sing, it is also often necessary to reduce the parameters from our softest to our loudest tones. As a teacher, I would much prefer to hear a singer with somewhat less contrast in their absolute dynamics than a singer whose voice suffers in quality and health because they attempt to make their dynamic range too great. I always advise students to be careful never to sing under the voice or to push the voice. Both of these extremes hurt rather than help the cause of musicianship.

Recipe for success: Purchase a high quality recorder, such as an MD recorder, and use it to record voice lessons, rehearsals, practices and performances. Listen to these recordings frequently and objectively note how your dynamics translate to the listener. Make your adjustments based on what you hear.