Declining voices: What's a Diva To Do?

Decline is an inevitability for all of us and everything. Physics even has a theory for it: The second law of thermodynamics. And our Divas, as magical as they are, are no exception to this.

[Discuss] Which Song Gives You Pain In The Throat Just Thinking About?

We all a love sing song on DivaDevotee- whether we're any good at it is of course up for debate!

Still, even if we aren't vocalists of any merit, that doesn't make much difference to how difficult or easy we perceive a piece to be. Sure, range is going to be an issue for most of us- particularly those of us of the male persuasion- when covering a Minnie Ripperton song. But excluding rangy vocals, what song has melisma too complex to copy, belts too intense to bear, or dynamics too difficult to deliver?

[Discuss] Which Singer Has The Most Beautiful Falsetto?

I know, I know! There are many vocal teachers out there that insist the female falsetto doesn't exist and that it's the head voice producing that particular timbre. But science has proven this to be untrue, so I am going ahead with the post. Take that, (more informed than me) teachers!!

[Discuss] Overrated Singers

We've all had that experience where someone (or usually at the time, seemingly everyone) is going on and on about a singer, and you're just not getting the fuss. Bad times.

This isn't really about a singer being out and out bad, mind. For example Britney Spears can't really sing well. But since she's  never been billed as a vocalist of any sort, to call her "overrated" (vocally) would be untrue. So what do I mean? Let me give you una example.

[Duelling Divas] "Lady Marmalade"

Lady Marmalade was a smash hit for LaBelle in 1975 and featured the scandalously suggestive chorus of "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi (ce soir)?". At the time of release, Patti Labelle -who handled the lead- claimed she never really understood the français, saying: "I didn't know what it was about. Nobody, I swear this is God's truth, nobody told me what I'd just sung a song about."

[Discuss] Favourite Part of A Vocal Range?

This is a toughy, I know.

Each part of the range has its pluses and negatives. Not only that, but they also sound different depending on the singer. But in general, what part of the voice do you find yourself most easily impressed by?

[Discuss] Singers That Didn't "Blow-Up" Like They Should Have

With my music on random, I chanced upon an old song by Canadian singer-songwriter Tamia.

Perhaps most well known for her only solo top-ten Billboard hit Stranger in My House, it was actually her Grammy-nominated You Put a Move On My Heart that my MP3 player stumbled upon today. Although attempting a comeback, with sensual song Sandwich And A Soda, I always felt this Diva didn't hit the big time like she should have.

[Quiz] Which Diva "Whistled" What?

The highest part of the voice- AKA the "whistle" register- is often thought of as nothing more than a freakish extension of a person's range. So devoid of character and individuality that it adds precious little to a vocal, bar a chance for showboating. Blasphemy, I say!!

We here at DivaDevotee are a (mostly) proud bunch of flageolet lovers (hehehe), who I'm sure think can attribute a whistle tone to a particular singer with relative ease. (Me included!) But let's find out if this is true, with the 9 question quiz below!

Simply listen to each example, check the Diva's name and submit your answer to find out if you were correct or not. It would be cool if you could tot up your score and post it, along with any other whistle-related discussion, in the comments.

So watcha waiting for. Give your ears a workout.

[Discuss] What Makes A Good/Bad Head Voice ?

Charlotte Church's four EP's are on heavy rotation at the moment, and they got me to thinking.

One of the (many) things I love about this particular Diva is her glorious head voice. Rich, full and operatic, its versatility is shown repeatedly throughout the four releases by an artistic and sparing application of it. Of course, the quality of her top notes are hardly surprising when you consider Church's beginnings in the classical arena.

[Disuss] Biggest Turn Off In A Voice

We often discuss what we like about a singer's voice. However, let's today flip the table and talk about the qualities that displease our refined ears.

For me, there's never been a single thing that would totally turn me off a singer. After all, my tolerance for Marmite-timbred artists (Rihanna and Kesha, for example) has always been quite high.

[Discussion] Who Is The Voice Of THIS Generation?

Christina Aguilera has been called the "Voice of a generation" by various media outlets and award ceremonies--but do we know why? It's all well and good giving a title to someone, but I've always felt it to be kind of redundant when no accompanying explanation was ever offered as to why they chose the singer they did.

With that in mind, I've been wanting, for the longest time (seriously, it's been so long in the making that my original title was going to be "Which Diva under 30 is the voice of our generation?"- and that was when Beyonce and Christina fell within that catchment age), to create a post that delved a little deeper into what exactly makes a singer worthy of such a title; all while offering up some other singers as potential contenders for the crown.

Duelling Divas: "O Holy Night". Which Diva Sang It Best

What better way to celebrate this festive and cosy time of year then by pitting Diva against Diva in a deadly O Holy Night Sing off! Okay, so this isn't a new thing, having done the same thing last year with Silent Night, and it isn't that deadly really, but its still fun for me to do! Besides this year's post features the added bonuses of my comments about the versions, as well as- more importantly- the chance for you to express your opinion via the poll at the bottom!

Some fun facts about the Christmas carol, courtesy of Wikipedia of course, before we begin. O Holy Night was written by French Poet Placide Cappeau and was composed by Adolphe Adam in 1847! The words to the carol have been changed somewhat since then, and for anyone wanting to sing along as they listen, they are as follows;

Duelling Divas "At Last" Christina Aguilera Vs Beyonce: Who sang it best?

Etta james first covered At Last in 1960 and as far as I am concerned her rendition will always be the best. Not because it's the most well known version, or the one that brought the song to the worlds attention, but because of Etta James' masterful and impassioned delivery.

Etta James utilised her contralto range perfectly, never becoming self-indulgent, showy or overwrought. Instead her voice coexisted with the beautiful lyrics and captivating  instrumentation harmoniously, giving us the resulting classic we know and love today. But how does the renditions of fellow Divas, Beyonce and Christina Aguilera, fare in comparison.

Duelling Divas: "Star Spangled Banner" Sing off!!

Today is the fourth of July, a federal holiday in America that commemorates the singing and adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and thus the creation of the United States of America.(Don't say you never learn anything!)

Our American friends should be out celebrating and enjoying themselves, but we'll mark the day here at DivaDevotee with a tribute to the American National anthem, the Star Spangled Banner- an anthem that is renowned for its difficulty due to the octave and half range it calls for but that's something that shouldn't be no problem for our Divas! Below is a compilation of various Divas putting their own twist on every patriot's favourite song. If you manage to get through them all please vote below as to which was your favourite rendition! Happy Fourth of July!

psst, if you know of any other holiday/s a country celebrates coming up, and can think of a good way for me to honour it via a Diva related post, please email me at divadevotee@gmail.com!