KENT GUSTAVSON :: BLUEGRASS SINGING
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A Historical and Practical Introduction to Bluegrass Singing!
Just read below about bluegrass singing, and then forget about it, and sing your heart out whichever way you feel best!
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BLUEGRASS SINGING is thought of in several different ways. Bill Monroe, the father of 'true' bluegrass, talked about 'the high lonesome sound', a nasal, very pure-pitched tenor voice, cutting easily through the other driving and loud instruments. Singers in this style often look very non-chalant, though the sound coming out of their lungs is piercing and pure...
Ralph Stanley, another 'bluegrass' pioneer, brought his background in the Primitive Baptist Church with him when he and his brother Carter Stanley first started singing. Ralph Stanley continued to develop his style, and developed a very unique four-part gospel sound that stems very much out of the Sacred Harp-style singing. Sing at the top of your lungs, and with all of your emotion... that is Ralph Stanley's style. He calls his style 'mountain' singing... and it is face-twisting, gritty and passionate.
So -- how to sing bluegrass with a church choir, with beginners or professionals? This is where a workshop with a folk or bluegrass player might come in handy... but it isn't necessary. Sing with all of your strength! Sing with passion, and with lots of volume. I grew up in a Lutheran church in Minnesota, and this would have been like pulling teeth with my church choir... but there are leaders, and if you can get those leaders to sing out, other people will follow.
Encourage the choir (and also the instrumentalists) not to be afraid of a wrong note -- this isn't classical music... it is okay if it is full of mistakes -- this is for the joy of singing, opening up the lungs and singing out.
Alright, so, realistically, how can you work with your choir to get this kind of sound? I guess it would entail several excercises, not only to loosen up the vocal cords, but to lose the fear that everyone has of singing publicly, and especially to lose the fear of singing louder than your neighbor. A good way to begin is by shouting -- if you can get them to do that, they will have no problem with the rest. Have them all stand up and talk with one another, ask one another how their weeks have been -- it is important that they feel comfortable with each other... And work on them opening up their mouths, and singing out!
Enjoy this service... it is meant to be fun, and to roll off the tongue. Sing the fast songs fast, and sing the slow songs slow... The emotion of the voices is what is important, not the perfect pitches or the right sounds. Have a good time!
For more information on bluegrass singing, google it here!