5.19.13 80's Talk Show (China) + more Chinese & Amer Idol

I had to laugh when I saw that Chinese Idol audition video -- only Adam would get a Chinese hippy as a contestant to judge -- LOL!!! And of course, he would make an excellent judge.

Think about Keith and Adam and how they respond to music viscerally--it would be really entertaining just to watch them (both of their faces and bodies react when they like music).

Is that Adam's music teacher, I do not remember from which the show, but I remember it, that she really loves Adam, and she then saw how he is special. Perhaps as early as then she saw Adam today, loved by millions, an International Superstar.

 

She's a good little singer. I'm always a bit squiggy about kids this young being on these big shows--personal bias. Curly, good observation about her need to switch her voice on the high notes. If you or anyone else is interested, it's actually called "head" voice instead of falsetto (a term usually reserved for men when they go even higher than their head voice). She sings most of the song in her chest voice. Chest voice is similar to a speaking voice but with changing pitches. Chest voice will only let you sing so high comfortably before you need to switch to head voice. With young and untrained singers, this change can be very abrupt, as is this girl's. With training, singers learn to blend the two voices so that there is not discernable "break" between them. This is one of the things Adam does so beautifully. A couple weeks back I posted a video where Michael Orland (from AI) said that one amazing thing about Adam is he has no break. 

I think in the past year I've made only one comment on the whole Adam + Idol judge issue, and that was: "I have mixed feelings."   One thing that has always confused me a little is how much constructive influence the judges actually have on the contestants' progress.   I mean, the judges are not mentors... they're not spending time with the contestants during the week, helping them choose songs, working on arrangements and stage presence, doing vocal classes with them, teaching them choreography.   Right? Am I wrong about this?  Is there behind-the-scenes stuff going on that we never see?

After Adam's season, I pretty much stopped watching Idol, so I'm not really "current" about what goes on every week, but from my murky memories, it seems that all the judges do, week after week, is spend a few seconds giving their opinion about a performance.  Like, Adam's comments on the beautiful Chinese girl were kind of typical in terms of what we hear from judges, right?   Not more than about 10-15 seconds --->  "It was so angelic... You're so grounded... and your energy and focus... it was beautiful... I loved it!"

Or, if you're Randy, it's like "Gurrrrl... you're in it to win it!!"  

I guess I'm just wondering how much the judges actually help the contestants when they're confined to making a few brief comments just once a week.  Has Adam ever been asked the question: "How much did the judges help/guide you during your stint on Idol?  How much influence did they have on you, week to week?"

I dunno... Adam was already a seasoned consummate professional when he first showed up on the Idol stage, so he doesn't really count! LOL    But for some of the other kids who've been "plucked" out of a coffee shop or off the farm, I really wonder if and how the judges brief comments actually help them, as opposed to the mentors/technical people/vocal coaches/choreographers, etc, behind the scenes.

I dunno... does any of this make sense?  I was just thinking of the difference between the The Voice and Idol... On The Voice, we see the judges working with the contestants as mentors.  I kind of wish Idol was like this, too.