[Vocal Profile] Stevie Wonder

Stevie Wonder

Vocal Type: Lyric Tenor
Tessitura:   2 Octaves (F3-F5)
Vocal Range: 3 Octaves 5 Notes and a semitone (F2-D#6)
Whistle Register: No
Vocal Pluses: Stevie Wonder's lower register is light in weight with a color that is nasal, which makes his lower register sound somewhat thin. It extends down to D2 with a vocal fry extension but he can hit an F2 with his modal voice. As a result, the F2 is much more healthy in its quality. Wonder exhibits a slightly smoky texture as he extends up to around the E3 mark, but his resonance is lost below G3. Overall, his lower register is achieved using decent technique.

His mid voice, spanning from G3-E4, showcases his nasal tone better. His voice is light in weight but somewhat thick in tone- most likely due to the nasal placement. In this register Wonder has plenty of freedom and agility. His falsetto, for a man breaks late at around E4 (2 notes shy that of a typical tenor) which places him in the realm of the highest tenors. Overall, this area is achieved using brilliant technique, via mixing or high nasal placement.

His belting register is the strongest and most impressive part of the range. Extending from E4 to an impressive A#5 (though the video claims a C#6 which is ridiculous) this is where his tone really shines. His E4 to B4 sounds light and thick with a slightly velvety texture, but as he hits the C5, his voice becomes brighter with mezzo-soprano like weight. His elasticity is uncanny for a male; being able to complete complex and quick vocal runs with ease. Wonder accesses these high belts with one of the most developed mix voices of all time. His technique in this area is generally phenomenal.

He generally exhibits a mix between head voice and falsetto called falsettone. It extends up to D#6, however it sounds at its most healthy at G#5. The sound itself is thick, lacking in defined resonance (though it is there as he transitions between falsettone and head voice, quite a bit above G#5) and sounds akin to a bugle in color. Any note above G#5 is not sung with the best musicianship and his technique in this register is not great.

Vocal Negatives: The head voice also needs to be improved on to strengthen its tone and connect it better to the lower range. The nasal quality of the voice is also not to everyone's taste.

[New Video] Mariah Carey & Miguel - "#Beautiful"

Okay..So..Yeah...on the positive side, I love #Beautiful even more now than when I reviewed it, here- I see some of you canny folk clocked on to the grade change * side-eyeing Mperry93*. But the accompanying video...I'm not sure I can deal with right now. I'm tempted to rip off some of the hilarious commentary occurring on the site chatbox and spin it as my own, but instead I'll leave the video here and let you guys deal with it in whatever way you see fit in the comments.....

[New Music] Christina Aguilera & Alejandro Fernandez - "Hoy Tengo Ganas De Ti"

I was going to take up a Rosetta stone* course in Spanish before I reviewed this Alejandro Fernandez and Christina Aguilera duet.You know, just so I could get the FULL picture of what was going on, lyrically. But since I'm such a perceptive fellow, i figured you'd all probably want to hear the song, Hoy Tengo Ganas De Ti, sometime before the turn of the next century. Hence, I'm posting it for you to enjoy in the present!

I did try to translate the title for you/us English speakers, but Google came back with the meaning, "Today I have Ganas De Ti". Now, I'm no expert, but I'm not convinced that that translation is a 100% accurate- unless "Ganas De Ti" has crept into the English vernacular without my knowledge. So I'll leave that mess there for one of you guys to clean up in the comments, and I'll move on to the song.

Tengo Ganas De Ti sounds like a big budget ballad with its decadent instrumentation and both singers compliment each other on the vocal front. Christina had me reminiscing about her early days with the lyrical, sweet and youthful tone she uses during the song's verse. Of course, things change when she belts, but since she stays (mostly) in her comfortable range, it's a pleasant experience on this front, too. Fans of the singer will probably most enjoy the falsetto she uses at the close of the song, so it's worth waiting till the end if you like to hear Aggie playing in the rafters.

It has a pervading melodramatic and hammy feel about it... and having just checked Wikipedia- literally after typing the start of this sentence- I found out it's the theme song for La tempestad, which is apparently a Mexican telenovela! (By this point I got tired of clicking on links, so feel free to go check out exactly what a "Mexican telenovela" is because I haven't the foggiest. My best guess: it's a soap/Drama.) So the song's mood and direction is actually pitched about right!

[New Music] Tamar Braxton - "The One"

Up the duff, Tamar Braxton is readying single number two, The One. Speaking of the song to RapUpTV, the Braxton Family Values member revealed the video has already been shot, being filmed at the Santa Monica Pier- because she loves amusement parks, no less. Other notable things gleaned from the interview include: Tamar is trying to make the word "Funners" happen, and that her unborn baby is as "ratchet" as she is! This woman is nuts, but I love her.

Getting to the song, I was a bit like "Ergh, not this sample again" when I hit play. As far as I'm concerned, Mtume's Juicy Fruit has been done to DEATH! But by the chorus I was being swayed by the track's summery groove- check me out and my weak will. There's still something lazy about the application of the sample, but the melody and Tamar's voice was doing enough that I was distracted enough to appreicate the song as a whole, concluding that it's worthy of one of these.

[Review] Listen To Mariah Carey And Miguel Make "#Beautiful" Music Together...Sorry, I Couldn't Resist...I'm Lame.

Thank God for #Beautiful! I was starting to lose faith in Mariah Carey after Triumphant (Get Em) and Almost Home failed to illicit much, if any, of the love I usually feel for an MC release. For some of you who are not so hot on her, not liking two songs might not be a big deal. But for someone like me, who can listen to her back catalogue pretty much straight through, it was more than a little disconcerting to have two strikeouts (in a row, no less) after more than a decade of consistent home runs! It was pushing me to thinking I'd fallen off the Mariah bandwagon completely, but #Beautiful has given me faith a new in Mariah! Phew!

As good as #Beautiful is, it's not perfect. But let's start with the positives. It's great to hear Mariah tackle a new sound, and though still Rnb, like most of her hits, it definitely has a more indie infusion than the Pop or Hip-hop she usually dilutes the genre with. Excitingly, it gives the singer a freshness that she hasn't enjoyed in a long while, making her sound relevant and current. Hopefully it'll help the Diva generate  the buzz needed for a hit by appealing to- and surprising- critics and non-fans alike.

Of course Mariah's voice, though more nasal, sounds stunning. Adopting an earthier/rawer timbre, the singer refrains from excess ornamentation for much of the song, adhering to a concise melody that is sensitive to the retro feel and Miguel's vocal style. Sure, she does let loose towards the end of the song, but it's totally called for, and she still manages to sound restrained (by Mariah standards) and sympathetic to the laid back air of the track- this is despite some gloriously quick melisma. Ultimately, it's a slight change in style for Mariah, but it should appeal to the current music listener who - if the success of Adele, Taylor Swift and P!nk is anything to go by- seems to have grown tired of showy vocals.

[Review] Florence + The Machine make Sweet Music On Great Gatsby Soundtrack

Wow, Florence Welch really lets her inner banshee loose on her Great Gatsby contribution, Over The Love. Okay, well strictly speaking the song is by Florence + The Machine, but still, it's that piercing voice that really steals the first half of this show. From the quiet and broody midrange that opens the song, to the effortless highs that punctuates the chorus, this is Ms.Welch doing what she does best: giving us drama and theatre, all with that stunning instrument of hers.

The "Machine" does get more vocal as the song progresses; building to a chaotic and breathtaking crescendo at the climax, as it joins its front woman up in the musical stratosphere. But it's a fleeting union, because as quickly as the two take up their embrace they drift apart, leaving us with only a choir of Florences to ease the comedown.

[New Music] Lauryn Hill Begrudgingly Releases New Song "Neurotic Society (Compulsory Mix)" And I Rejoice...Sorry, Lauryn!

It looks like a tax bill and the threat of imprisonment has put the fire under Ms. Lauryn Hill's tush and finally got her  releasing music. This isn't just speculation on my part; she's pretty much said so on her Tumblr page;

Hello All:

Here is a link to a piece that I was ‘required’ to release immediately, by virtue of the impending legal deadline. I love being able to reach people directly, but in an ideal scenario, I would not have to rush the release of new music… but the message is still there. In light of Wednesday’s tragic loss (of former label mate Chris Kelly), I am even more pressed to YELL this to a multitude that may not understand the cost of allowing today’s unhealthy paradigms to remain unchecked!

- MLH

Oh well, at least she's also managed to get her own label, Observe Creation Music, out of the new deal with Sony. One that will ultimately see the record label help to pay her tax bill on the promise she delivers a new album- notably, her first since 2002's troubled but brilliant MTV Unplugged set. With her track record of releasing music, I'm not holding my breath that this will end well.