QAL WWTLF analysis

youtu.be/mhXijNJm45s

Sept 3, 2014 10:59:19 GMT -4 counselor said:
Has Cassie weighed in on the WWTLF new high note? Cassie makes understanding music fun and interesting.

Awwww, thanks, counselor.

Another stellar rendition. I know that many consider the iHeart version the gold standard, but I prefer how he has been singing it more recently (even tho I miss the D5 glory note he has eliminated at the end). Listening to the version tonight, these are some of the nuances I love.

* He is singing the first verse with great delicacy. When he sings "what is this THING..." the word THING is on a G4, which is precisely where one of the natural breaks is in his range. (It is also the top note that most choral tenors can sing in full voice) In order to sing that G4 and insure that it doesn't crack, it is natural to use a little more push or oomph, which will make the note sound more powerful and strong as opposed to the light notes before it. But Adam does not add the power there. He lightly floats that G4 while still in chest voice. Most tenors who wanted to keep that note light and pure, would have had to switch to their head voices to do that, but Adam has such great control.

Going on, "who wants to live forever, who wants to live forevER, ooooo" he starts light, then gradually builds in intensity as he moves up the scale to another G4. In the past, he has hit that final syllable in his powerful, ringing chest voice, finishing the build up. More recently, he has opted, instead to build, build, and then, surprise, caress that final syllable G4. Difficult to do, but an interesting interpretation. Instead of being "angry" about living forEVER, it sounds pensive and a bit melancholy.

You will notice that on the second verse, he starts with the same delicate voice, but this time, he lets it build to the G4s on "ONLY" and "FOREVER", singing them with the strength and emphasis we are accustomed to. As an interpretation, this works to build the song's arc, and also the convey the singer's change from pensiveness to frustration and a little anger.

* Recently, Adam has been adding an almost operatic little ornamentation or flourish on the word "us" in "It's all decided for US."
This rendition was the most embellished. Not sure why he has decided to add that recently, but it thrills me to hear it. And, yes, that is partly because it is very difficult to sing accurately because it moves between notes so quickly and the notes are so close together. A lesser singer would slur the notes or make them sound muddy. Not Adam.

* The "new high note"? I think you are talking about the D5 right before "when love must die!" He has been sneaking that one in recently, but this time he hit it and sustained it, even breaking the rhythm of the song to hold onto it a bit longer than fits into the beat. The musicians are very in tune with him, and hold off playing the subsequent down beat until he finishes "showing off." But, as per usual, Adam "shows off" at the right time, for the right interpretive reasons that enhance the song. Many "show offs" insert glory notes and riffs with no rhyme or reason, just because they can, which irritates me. In my world, everything needs to be in service to the song's meaning and intent, not the singer's ego.

While we are talking about D5s, people gasp whenever Adam hits fifth octave notes, which he does with great frequency. Why? Because they are pretty much impossible for most male singers to hit, not to mention sustain with richness and power, and in full voice. Yes, a lot of guys sing fifth octave notes ---- in falsetto. Easy peasy. Full voice, pleasing, powerful, and matching the other parts of their range? Nope. Almost NONE. I am not just talking about untrained male singers here. I am talking about classically trained tenors. They would just about kill to be able to have any notes reliably in their repertoire that end in a "5". A C5, the first of the fifth octave notes, is considered the benchmark for excellence in an elite tenor soloist. The rest of the fifth octave, is almost never even written into the opera repertoire, it is so rare to have someone able to sing it in full voice.

And, if you are wondering, those fifth octave notes are difficult for untrained FEMALE singers to hit, too. Those are the huge belting notes that the divas hit, that also doom their voices to injury and destruction later in their careers. Trained female singers switch to head voice for the fifth octave, even sopranos. (Of course, Adam can sing well into the fifth octave in head voice, too. Not only does he have a black woman inside him somewhere, he also has an operatic mezzo soprano!)

In all fairness, to prove my objectivity (hahaha) the last D5 he hit in this rendition was a bit flat. j/s. He is only, tho' just barely, human.

* Finally, I like the little extra pause he added to "who waits forever..........anyway." Like an afterthought. You know, how you add, "whatever" or "anyway" when you maybe got a little too personal or deep and there is this slight awkwardness in the conversation? Yeah, that.

Thanks for this really great explication of that WWTLF performance. From what I've gleaned from twitter, etc., is that Adam was sick for the two Auckland concerts (ambulance/doctor) - saw him indicate something after the last concert where he touched his nose to show he might be contagious. How would something like that impact, say, that last slightly flat D5, I wonder. Thanks again!