Stick with me on this one. It’s circuitous, perhaps slightly educational, and (most likely) somewhat entertaining. Enjoy.
Have you ever had a string of random musical experiences that leave you so completely wrung-out-but-satisfied that you need to tell someone about it? Well, welcome to my past ninety minutes.
First Movement: Worship in the Shower
I love to practice my performances in the shower. Don’t judge me. Singing freely in the shower is awesome for singers and non-singers alike, for a number of reasons both acoustic and non-acoustic; so you should do it, too, regularly. Moving on…
Today, I was preparing for tomorrow’s church service with four songs (not solos; singing with a team) that each have powerful lyrics and powerful movements in them that stir one both musically and spiritually. And they stirred me. By the time I’d gone through the set twice, I was sopping wet and in tears – the good kind: joyful, worshipful, humble, grateful.
Second Movement: Hi-o Silver, Away!
(And Away I go down the YouTube Rabbit Hole)
Immediately afterward, for some reason, addiction perhaps, I checked my email. There, I saw that a new vocal colleague I’d met at a conference this week, Kevin O’Connor, who is a speaker and consultant and teaches speech classes to acting students at Columbia College, had sent me an email that quickly moved me from passionate worship in music to a complete geek-out over the amazing adaptability human voice, as well as a quick and enjoyable trip down TV-memory lane.
I found that Kevin and I share this nerdy love of voice study when, in his email, he demonstrated the impact of listening intentionally to once’s voice while practicing repeatedly in order to change it. Such was the case for the long-running “The Lone Ranger” TV-show’s principle actor Clayton Moore. When tapped for the role, Moore needed to lower his speaking voice to match the pitch of the radio actor who played the role of the Lone Ranger and he did by reciting lines while speaking directly into a wall so he could hear the accuracy of his pitch. He succeeded and the rest is TV history.
To illustrate Moore’s victory, Kevin sent me a YouTube link to demonstrate Moore’s voice.
Oh dear, fire up YouTube. In for a penny, in for a pound…?
Third Movement: Alice in Zeppelin Wonderland
As you probably have experienced, YouTube can present unsuspecting, as well as fully-suspecting, viewers with an Alice-in-Wonderland-style rabbit hole of video experiences. Such was the case today.
For whatever algorithmic reason, the next suggested video for the rabbit hole following the one on Clayton Moore was one about Led Zeppelin. Huh? Well, like I said: “In for a penny…” I’m a fan of their instrumental and musical prowess, so away I went to learn more “behind-the-scenes” kinds of things about them. I washed away in that storm for a little while, then landed on the shores of “What Makes John Bonham [Zeppelin’s drummer] Such a Good Drummer?” Well, clearly I needed to know; so back under the waves I went, awash with the musical brilliance of those long-haired, sweaty, skinny rock-and-roll musicians who changed music history.
And, ok, I had no idea John Bonham was such a musical genius.
The video pointed out how Bonham changed the drumming landscape of rock and roll, and by changing the drumming landscape, he changed the entire landscape. Combine his complex, instinctive drumming with the complex riffs and patterns of guitarist Jimmy Page and you get sheer polyrhythmic brilliance.
I’ve admired the group Rush for decades for the same reasons, but was largely ignorant of Zeppelin’s contributions to amazing musicality in rock music. When I was a kid in church, both bands were a bit frowned upon; so my understanding of their musical excellence came later as I grew in my own musicality.
Above the tapestry of interwoven complex instrumentals and rhythms, of course, soared Robert Plant’s voice, which was always, to me, simultaneously really weird, constantly-exploratory, and amazing.
After that video was “The Kennedy Center Honors” and, of course, it was the episode for honoring Led Zeppelin. Well, by now, I was so impressed with their mad skills that I had to watch it. In large part, I was moved by the fact that Bonham’s son, Jason Bonham, who’d been playing drums with his dad pretty much since diapers, would honor his dad on the drummer’s stool. But also, the Wilson sisters, Ann & Nancy, rock legends themselves from their group Heart, were going to do the honors with Jason and the performance band.
But another attractive part of this rabbit hole was the happy surprise to hear Ann Wilson’s vocals on this performance. Wow, what a perfect choice to honor Plant’s iconic performance of Zeppelin’s iconic song, “Stairway to Heaven.” I believe she’s always been an underrated vocalist, even though she did achieved stardom in the rock world.
Getting Emotional…
On top of getting to enjoy this musical celebration (now 9 years old, but still going strong thanks to YT), I’m a complete sucker for people who work really hard to do something really well and get recognized for it, whether sooner or later. It’s not unheard of for me to cry more than once during a “Kennedy Center Honors.” And it could not be helped today, either, for the contributions these guys made while just going along making their music better and better. And also, considering both Ann and Nancy Wilson’s personal struggles despite their incredible talent, this performance honored them as well as Led Zeppelin.
The Culmination
After a powerful shower-worship occasion, a truly pleasurable vocal-pedagogical geek-out moment, learning why Zeppelin’s songs were always so musically and rhythmically compelling, and then experiencing the whole spectacle of this “Stairway…” performance – with a large choir popping up on an ascending riser behind a full studio orchestra, no less, and then with Robert Plant tearing up the whole time…??
Well I was just done in. The whole 90-some-odd minutes was so satisfying. I was smiling and crying, then writing this to share the moment with you.
Be Careful, You Might Fall In, Too.
And, by the way, the guy who creates videos on the Polyphonic YouTube Channel makes some interesting, succinct, music-rich video essays on musicians, music as it shapes pop culture, and even some music theory.
Careful, though, watch out for rabbit holes. You might not emerge until next year. But in the hopes that you, too, will shed happy tears and experience katharsis along the way, I guess I will simply wish you a good journey.
0 Comments