What is this musicial technique called?

[gaffa]

There is a trend in music that I find so annoying - putting a huge number of grace notes in songs. For instance, during the Inauguration concert, Beyonce Knowles managed to cram something like 12 different notes into the single syllable word "sea" during "America The Beautiful".

This is not pretty, and frankly it is not impressive. It requires more skill to hold one pure note well than to jump all over the place. But American Idol seems to have made this stuff the default.

I'm sure there must be a proper, technical term for this other than "cramming an excessive number of notes into a place where the writer only put one". What is it?

[jovan]

Melisma. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melisma)

[gaffa]

Cool, thank you. I quite like the fact that it sounds like a terrible disease that one would want to give money to help wipe out. "Please give so we can defeat Melisma in our lifetime".

[Windwalker]

Melisma is a disease of the soul.

[Vox Imperatoris]

That wiki link has now got that "Glo-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-oria" tune stuck in my head. Worse because that's the only word of that song I remember. AHHHHHHH!

Valete,
Vox Imperatoris

[outlierrn]

in eggshells this day-ay-o





why yes, I was a choirboy, why do you ask?

[Sam Stone]

The technical term for it is 'crap'.

[Mixolydian]

Vocal Gymnastics

[lobotomyboy63]

Much as I love the song, I wish Stevie would have cut it out with the technique:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUP8OoF5EDU

[Roland Orzabal]

But, but, if it weren't for melisma, how would we ever have learned that "I-I-I-EEEE-I-I will always love YOOO-OOO-OO-OOOO-OO-OOO-OOO-OO-OO-OOOOOO-OO-OOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUAAAAAH will always lo --"

*gunshot*

THANK you. Anyway, where would we as a society be without that particular masterpiece, hmm?

[well he's back]

Gads I hate this style of singing!!! How did it ever become popular??

(FWIW - Last year "American Idol", a show that seems to just lurve melisma, was won by David Cook, a good singer & the finalist who DIDN'T sing this way. This is truly a hopeful time in our nation's history).

[tim-n-va]

Is this one of those things where the problem isn't melisma but the overuse of melisma? In other words, is there a popular song where the occasional, restrained use of this technique is effective?

[Sparrow]

"Amazing Grace" seems to be a particular candidate for murdering in this way.

[Musicat]

It's a stylistic concept used heavily in soul music. Contrast the straight-arrow performance of the spiritual, Soon it will be done as sung by this high school choir (at about 3:25), followed by a soulful free-form rendition of the same song by Hervy Hodges (at about 6:40), who claims to be channeling Mahalia Jackson:

http://doorbell.net/video/12-18-08.wmv

[WhyNot]

Is this one of those things where the problem isn't melisma but the overuse of melisma? In other words, is there a popular song where the occasional, restrained use of this technique is effective?
Yes, as mentioned, "Angels We Have Heard on High," better known as "the one that goes, 'Glo-o-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-o-O-ri-a in Ex-cel-sis De-o!'" The difference being that it's not screeching improvisation and warbling that can't settle on a goddamn note, it's very distinct and solid notes meant to be sung sequentially over the same elongated syllable. Every choir or singer can to it and do it well and sound good at it because it's mathematical and makes sense.

Now get off my laaaaa-aaaaw-aaaaaw-aaaaaahhhhh-AAAAAAAH-AWN!

[Suse]

Thank you for bringing this up. I thought I was the only one that hated it! I think it started with Whitney Houston (or at least I choose to blame her). And I haven't been able to listen to any of these so-called divas since without wanting to strangle them. The SINGER is supposed to showcase the SONG!

[Le Ministre de l'au-delà]

It's one of those things that comes and goes in terms of fashion. Sometimes the composer uses it deliberately to great effect. In "Messiah", there are many instances in both the solo parts and in the choral parts where it is used to reflect the words that are being sung - 'Thus saith the Lord - the Lord of hosts: Yet once, a little while, and I will sha-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ake the Heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land - and I will sha-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ake;' etc. giving the aural effect of shaking. Or 'All we like sheep have gone astra-a-a-a-a-a-ay.', with the lines going off in different directions. Tasteful, beautiful, sanctioned by the composer.

And then there are times where it gets too ornate and starts to piss people off...

It's a chance for the singer to show off their vocal ability and their taste. And when it gets to be too much, the singer gets reactions like the above, and the taste starts to change back to "just sing the f!@#$g tune!", which it does for a while until people start to find that a little dry, and then somebody does a decorative flourish that people find cool and the cycle starts all over again...

[WordMan]

So true - melisma is a spice best used sparingly so it doesn't spoil the entree, if you will.

If you ever get a chance, find VH-1's first Divas tribute - divas like Carey and Dion (I think it was those two) were nauseatingly melismatic ;-). Then the Queen of Soul was introduced - now THERE is melisma done right - itty-bitty flourished to sting a phrase

[Cisco]

I think it should be called Girl, You Ain't Mariah.

[outlierrn]

I agree that it can be quite lovely when done right, it's the bebop I can sing like Charlie Parker played stuff that grates.

[LurkMeister]

Now I'm having flashbacks to one time when they decided to broadcast the Christmas concert over the intercom at work. One of the performances was someone who sang "Silent Night" like this, dragging out almost every damn note as if she was doing opera.

[Cat Fight]

I was asking just this question when Aguilera burst onto the scene a few years ago. I thanked the lords of language that there was a word for it. Now I know what to complain about during American Idol. Hold a goddamn note, fer chrissakes!

[NoCoolUserName]

...nauseatingly melismatic...Whee! I may have found my new user name!

Hmm..."Hi, I'm Nauseatingly Melismatic!"

Maybe not.

[SpoilerVirgin]

But, but, if it weren't for melisma, how would we ever have learned that "I-I-I-EEEE-I-I will always love YOOO-OOO-OO-OOOO-OO-OOO-OOO-OO-OO-OOOOOO-OO-OOOOUUUUUUUUUUUUUAAAAAH will always lo --"

*gunshot*

THANK you. Anyway, where would we as a society be without that particular masterpiece, hmm?I agree that Whitney Houston's version of this song is a melismatic abomination. I recommend listening to the original version sung by its author, one of the great American songwriters, Dolly Parton. It's a beautiful song, with only minimal and appropriate melisma.

[WordMan]

Whee! I may have found my new user name!

Hmm..."Hi, I'm Nauseatingly Melismatic!"

Maybe not.

It does roll trippingly off the tongue, don' it? Wonder how it would sound sung?? ;)

[ZipperJJ]

I find that a lot of artists do this with Christmas songs these days. I figure it's just to do "something different" or give the songs their own "style." Personally, I hate it and it makes these nice songs too long and too overly dramatic.

[NoCoolUserName]

It does roll trippingly off the tongue, don' it? Wonder how it would sound sung?? ;)Nauseatingly MelismaaaAAaaaAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAaaaa-<gasp>-aaaatic.

[Euryphaessa]

It's called diarrhea of the vowels.

[WordMan]

Nauseatingly MelismaaaAAaaaAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAaaaa-<gasp>-aaaatic.

ExACTly!!

[GargoyleWB]

Even more annoying is the affectation of hand gestures following the gymnastics and the phantom-studio-ear-monitor-syndrome. It's like they just walked into a spider web.

[Nzinga, Seated]

Yes, as mentioned, "Angels We Have Heard on High," better known as "the one that goes, 'Glo-o-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-o-O-ri-a in Ex-cel-sis De-o!'" The difference being that it's not screeching improvisation and warbling that can't settle on a goddamn note, it's very distinct and solid notes meant to be sung sequentially over the same elongated syllable. Every choir or singer can to it and do it well and sound good at it because it's mathematical and makes sense.

Now get off my laaaaa-aaaaw-aaaaaw-aaaaaahhhhh-AAAAAAAH-AWN!

And, isn't it quite different with 'Angels We Have Heard on High'? I mean, aren't those choirs trained to do some serious stuff with their throats, where as Beyonce is doing some silly stuff with her lips and tongue and jaw?

I mean when I watch Denyce Graves sing, I never see her lips wobbling all over the place. When her voice wavers, it is clear and strong, coming from her throat.

ETA: Gargoyle, I'm cracking up. You describe it perfectly.

[Starving Artist]

Now get off my laaaaa-aaaaw-aaaaaw-aaaaaahhhhh-AAAAAAAH-AWN!:D

[WordMan]

And, isn't it quite different with 'Angels We Have Heard on High'? I mean, aren't those choirs trained to do some serious stuff with their throats, where as Beyonce is doing some silly stuff with her lips and tongue and jaw?

I am the crudest of rock singers, but to my knowledge, all parts of the vocal system come into play based on where the singer is in their register, moving low to high - so Mariah's warbling and choir melisma is produced vocally the same way (but that is my WAG based on my observations). I also believe that melisma, as a technique in the Western canon, first emerged in Gregorian Chants - as chants moved from single melody to complex harmonies, they also added melisma and other flourishes - as with any genre of music, that is part of the evolution - start off with a new style, codify the rules of the style, then add rococco flourishes and such...in this, choral singing moved through Gospel, where Aretha-style melisma, used for "spiritual punctuation" was innovated. But then it got a bit too over the top...

[robardin]

Melisma. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melisma)

Huh! Now I know the "real" term for it. And all this time I'd privately coined the word "rococoboca".

[Nzinga, Seated]

I am the crudest of rock singers, but to my knowledge, all parts of the vocal system come into play based on where the singer is in their register, moving low to high - so Mariah's warbling and choir melisma is produced vocally the same way (but that is my WAG based on my observations). I also believe that melisma, as a technique in the Western canon, first emerged in Gregorian Chants - as chants moved from single melody to complex harmonies, they also added melisma and other flourishes - as with any genre of music, that is part of the evolution - start off with a new style, codify the rules of the style, then add rococco flourishes and such...in this, choral singing moved through Gospel, where Aretha-style melisma, used for "spiritual punctuation" was innovated. But then it got a bit too over the top...

Consider me educated! Thanks.

[GorillaMan]

I am the crudest of rock singers, but to my knowledge, all parts of the vocal system come into play based on where the singer is in their register, moving low to high - so Mariah's warbling and choir melisma is produced vocally the same way (but that is my WAG based on my observations). I also believe that melisma, as a technique in the Western canon, first emerged in Gregorian Chants - as chants moved from single melody to complex harmonies, they also added melisma and other flourishes - as with any genre of music, that is part of the evolution - start off with a new style, codify the rules of the style, then add rococco flourishes and such...in this, choral singing moved through Gospel, where Aretha-style melisma, used for "spiritual punctuation" was innovated. But then it got a bit too over the top...
There's also the entirely separate line of influence, also via gospel and blues, leading back to African vocal traditions.

[WordMan]

There's also the entirely separate line of influence, also via gospel and blues, leading back to African vocal traditions.

Thanks for including that; of course you are correct - once again leading to that great convergence within the Gospel tradition, which is the most direct progenitor to the R&B we are hearing today, replete with way too much melisma...

[thwartme]

It's one of those things that comes and goes in terms of fashion. Sometimes the composer uses it deliberately to great effect. In "Messiah", there are many instances in both the solo parts and in the choral parts where it is used to reflect the words that are being sung - 'Thus saith the Lord - the Lord of hosts: Yet once, a little while, and I will sha-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ake the Heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land - and I will sha-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-ake;' etc. giving the aural effect of shaking. Or 'All we like sheep have gone astra-a-a-a-a-a-ay.', with the lines going off in different directions. Tasteful, beautiful, sanctioned by the composer.

And then there are times where it gets too ornate and starts to piss people off...

It's a chance for the singer to show off their vocal ability and their taste. And when it gets to be too much, the singer gets reactions like the above, and the taste starts to change back to "just sing the f!@#$g tune!", which it does for a while until people start to find that a little dry, and then somebody does a decorative flourish that people find cool and the cycle starts all over again...

These two aspects of Melisma are so different, that I really wish there two separate words. One can be great, one is almost always unlistenable.

thwartme

[WhyNot]

These two aspects of Melisma are so different, that I really wish there two separate words. One can be great, one is almost always unlistenable.
Well, you need just a pinch of salt for great chocolate chip cookies, after all. But mix up the salt jar with the sugar jar and see how you like them cookies! :eek:

[gaffa]

I've heard wonderful examples of the technique, but to use it well requires a lot more taste than most of the singers who use it possess. Usually it's a cheap display of pyrotechnics that covers up weakness in real singing ability.

But a great example of it being used well, check out Kay Starr's immortal "Wheel of Fortune". (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAG59n8dFLE)