<p>I don’t have time to read the entire thread; I’m currently teaching at the CCM Institute at SU. I am writing this as I sit in a lecture by my colleague Dr. Wendy LeBorgne who is the resident speech therapist/singing voice specialist for Cincinnati Conservatory. She has said time and time again that singers who perform with amplification need to practice with amplification. In fact, I just wrote an entire chapter for her book “The Vocal Athlete” on the subject as well as one for “A Dictionary for the Modern Singer.” It is a commonly accepted fact among elite singing voice specialists that amplification considerations are necessary for CCM singing.</p>
<p>Jesus Christ Superstar was originally recorded as an album and after its release it was turned into a musical. That production permanently changed the audience expectations for musicals. Audience members arrived at theatre with a very specific expectation - they expected that the show would sound the same live as it did on record. That trend was accelerated by the British Invasion shows - Les Mis, Phantom, and Miss Saigon. The cast albums for those shows sold extremely well and audience members flocked to theatres. However, they expected whatever live performance they saw (West End, Broadway, Tour, etc.) to sound just like the recording. So sound engineers began using recording studio techniques to get the live performance to match the cast recording. Today we see the same phenomenon, especially with the pop/rock musicals and contemporary shows such as Wicked.</p>
<p>When a performer sings a note, there are multiple frequencies that are produced at the same time. Opera singers learn how to shape their vowels in a very specific manner in order to produce a natural boost of the frequencies between 3k and 5k for men and 5k and 7k for women. When a microphone picks up the frequency waves of a voice, it does not reproduce those frequencies at the exact same volume (unless you are using a scientific measurement mic). Each mic has an individual frequency response, which essentially boosts and cuts different frequencies in the audio spectrum it has received. Most microphones boost the signal by around 5dB between 3k and 10k. Since 5dB is a theoretical doubling of amplitude, you are theoretically doubling the volume of the forward placement in the voice. The sound engineer usually adds an additional 3-5dB of boost on the equalizer at the sound board further strengthening the forward placement of the voice. </p>
<p>There is a measurement that voice scientists use to calculate the difference between the the pitch being sung and the forward placement called the “Singing Power Ratio” (SPR). If the forward placement zone of the signal has less amplitude than the fundamental, we perceive the voice as dark or muffled (lacking power). The closer the forward placement zone comes, in amplitude, to the fundamental, the fuller or more powerful we perceive the voice (more powerful). Many singers who are trained operatically can learn to keep the amplitude of those two zones nearly the same. This is great unless you add a microphone into the mix. The result with a microphone is a forward placement zone that is significantly louder than the fundamental, which creates an unnatural quality. Sound engineers can make adjustments at the board to change this, but it can be rather difficult at times. Furthermore, if there is a weaker voice on stage next to the powerful voice, the sound engineer may have a very difficult time equalizing the two singers to make them equally loud. The engineer wants to have full control of the sound. He/she wants the audience members in the first five rows to have the same experience as the audience members in the last five rows. However, if there is one really strong singer on stage (without control) and a weaker voice singer on the stage, it will be very difficult if not impossible for the engineer to create a mix that gives an equal experience throughout the theatre. </p>
<p>There are clearly shades of gray. Are there some singers on Broadway stages that sing really loud? Absolutely. But most of them can also control it. If a casting director has the choice between two equally talented performers for the same role and all things are equal other than volume, with one singer being able to control their volume and another unable to adapt, which one do you think they will hire? </p>
<p>One final thought, opera singers do not have to perform 8 shows a week. Opera star Thomas Hampson has 7 performances in July 2014, Broadway performers have 32 performances in the same month. Loud singing necessitates a firmer vocal fold closure with a stronger vocal fold collision with each pitch. Singing everyday at loud volumes with high collision pressure can lead to vocal pathology. Not always, but it can. So if we can have a microphone that can do some of the work, which can save a singer’s voice by reducing vocal fold collision pressure, while also pleasing the sound engineer, why not do it?</p>
<p>Hope that helps.</p>
<p>~VT</p>