when a singer raises the level of voice

[alpacinou]

I'm trying to describe a singing performance. In songs, at some point the music soars to high pitch and the singer raises her voice and shouts while using vibratos. Sometimes they don't use vibratos. But my focus is on raising the level and intensity.

How can I describe that? Is there a specific term or idiom for it?

 

[Rover_KE]

Singers don't shout.

The increase in volume is a crescendo, at the end of which the song reaches reaches a climax.

 

[alpacinou]

Singers don't shout.

The increase in volume is a crescendo, at the end of which the song reaches reaches a climax.

Thanks. The examples I found usually start with music:

The music reached a crescendo.

How do you use it with "singer"?

The singer raised her voice to crescendo and did an excellent job?

 

[GoesStation]

Crescendo is the act of making something louder. Being very loud is fortissimo (written "ff") or, if it's extremely loud, fortississimo ("fff"). For completeness, I guess I should include merely loud, which is forte ("f").

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

What styles of singing are you talking about? What artists? A lot of singers do, indeed, shout. Tell us more.

Vibrato is always singular. It's not countable.

 

[alpacinou]

What styles of singing are you talking about? What artists? A lot of singers do, indeed, shout. Tell us more.

Vibrato is always singular. It's not countable.

I mean generally. I want to describe a pop song. But not a specific song. I want a sentence which has "singer" as the subject.

The singer does a tremendous job in the part when the music soars and he raises the level and intensity of singing very powerfully.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

I mean generally. I want to describe a pop song. But not a specific song. I want a sentence which has "singer" as the subject.

The singer does a tremendous job in the part when the music soars and he raises the level and intensity of singing very powerfully.

Well, some singers are belters. They belt out their songs. Examples: Joe Cocker, Judy Garland.

Some heavy metal singers are screamers: Mitch Luker, Oliver Sykes.

Some shout: Koko Taylor, James Brown, Bruce Springsteen, Janis Joplin.

 

[alpacinou]

Well, some singers are belters. They belt out their songs. Examples: Joe Cocker, Judy Garland.

Some heavy metal singers are screamers: Mitch Luker, Oliver Sykes.

Some shout: Koko Taylor, James Brown, Bruce Springsteen, Janis Joplin.

But all singers do this. Look at this video please:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zABLecsR5UE

At 01:53, the singer raises the level and intensity of singing.

 

[GoesStation]

At 01:53, the singer raises the level and intensity of singing.

He executes a gradual crescendo, which reaches a climax around 01:53. At that point, he's singing fortississimo; he could probably get even louder, to fff or forte fortississimo, but he's near the maximum his voice can sustain.

By the way, crescendo is pronounced like "kruh-SHEN-doe". It's borrowed from the Italian.

 

[alpacinou]

He executes a gradual crescendo, which reaches a climax around 01:53. At that point, he's singing fortississimo; he could probably get even louder, to fff or forte fortississimo, but he's near the maximum his voice can sustain.

By the way, crescendo is pronounced like "kruh-SHEN-doe". It's borrowed from the Italian.

Aha! So, can I say this?

He executes crescendos with great skill and his singing power is on display when he reaches the climax of the song.

 

[GoesStation]

Aha! So, can I say this?

He executes crescendos with great skill and his singing power is on display when he reaches the climax of the song.

Yes, that's okay. Some people might prefer that you use the Italian plural crescendi. I wouldn't, and I don't recommend it.

 

[alpacinou]

Thanks Goesstattion! This is a great sentence and I like it!

He executes crescendos with great skill and his singing power is on display when he reaches the climax of the song.


Any suggestions on how to make it even better and more dramatic? Is there another verb that goes with crescendo other than "execute"?

 

[GoesStation]

You can use crescendo as a verb to avoid the technical-sounding "executes". You'd have to use something like his voice or the song as the subject.

I'm a drama minimalist. I often criticize films when they contain what I see as gratuitous drama, wondering why the director thinks I'm unable to appreciate a situation without being clubbed over the head with it. So I'm not a good source for the last part of your question.

 

[alpacinou]

You can use crescendo as a verb to avoid the technical-sounding "executes". You'd have to use something like his voice or the song as the subject.

I'm a drama minimalist. I often criticize films when they contain what I see as gratuitous drama, wondering why the director thinks I'm unable to appreciate a situation without being clubbed over the head with it. So I'm not a good source for the last part of your question.

His voice crescendos with great skill?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

His voice crescendos with great skill?

His voice peaks flawlessly.

 

[GoesStation]

His voice crescendos with great skill?

I'd use the adverb skillfully, but I don't like the phrase much either way. It sounds like you're describing a regular occurrence, and I can't imagine anyone describing a singer's skills that way. It might work better if you talk about the skills that he has mastered exceptionally well.

 

[alpacinou]

Can I use "crescendo" for musical instruments?

The pianist executed the crescendo very skillfully.

 

[GoesStation]

Can I use "crescendo" for musical instruments?

The pianist executed the crescendo very skillfully.

Yes. In Western musical scores, the word crescendo or a symbol like a stretched-out left angle bracket means "gradually get louder". Most scores use the symbol rather than the word, but musicians call it a "crescendo" in either case. The opposite instruction is a diminuendo. Scores that use these symbols generally indicate how loud the musician should be at the end by using a whole range of Italian initialisms. The usual range is ppp, pp, p, mp, mf, f, ff, and finally fff. This Wikipedia article explains the subject thoroughly.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Can I use "crescendo" for musical instruments?

The pianist executed the crescendo very skillfully.

Yes. But I think it's most useful in describing what the entire orchestra is doing: The fourth movement came to a breathtaking crescendo.

Also, keep in mind whom you're talking to. Most people don't use crescendo conversationally. It's mainly used by musicians and fans of classical music and opera.

So it's a very good word in that company, but in other situations it can sound too high-brow. In those cases, there are plenty of other words for climaxes. Your thesaurus will be handy.

 

[alpacinou]

So it's a very good word in that company, but in other situations it can sound too high-brow. In those cases, there are plenty of other words for climaxes. Your thesaurus will be handy.

Can I say this?

Her husky voice is really powerful/captivating (any adj) when she soars to climax.

If this sentence doesn't work, what can be done to fix it?