Comments on: Barbara Cook's Master Class

Barbara Cook's Master Class

adrober — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 23:54:54 -0800

You can keep your Simon, Randy and Paula, I'll take Barbara Cook any day. Here is the Broadway legend's two hour master class (it's a REALTIME video from The New York Public Library) and it'll teach you more about singing, phrasing and music than every moment of American Idol combined. At least watch the first 20 minutes, you'll be amazed.

By: wsg

wsg — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 01:17:07 -0800

Excellent post. She is a master.

By: zardoz

zardoz — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 01:29:30 -0800

Yeah, very interesting. I know nothing about singing other than some cheesy karaoke numbers, but this was quite interesting. That blonde singer is really annoying, imho, always agreeing with what Cook is saying but not really listening. She just wants to get back to showing off. That "conversational singing" lesson should be mandatory for R and B and soul "singers" in the Mariah Carey/Whitney Houston vein.

By: PeterMcDermott

PeterMcDermott — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 03:48:59 -0800

You can keep your Simon, Randy and Paula To be fair, nobody watches American Idol for trenchant music criticism. We watch it to see people having their dreams and aspirations crushed.

By: the sobsister

the sobsister — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 06:28:05 -0800

Au contraire, mon frere. We watch AI to see how people willingly sacrifice their dreams and aspirations by having any trace of artistic individuality sanded and blown right off them in pursuit of that contract which will allow them to sing faceless, formulaic dreck to millions of undemanding consumers who, in turn, will turn the dreck into landfill once they've forgotten why they bought it to begin with once they've proceeded to buy something equally insipid but, you know, new. All that said, Barbara Cook rules the roost. And that giggling twit should do less pro forma agreeing and more touching of the stage with her forehead simply to be taught by such a master.

By: storybored

storybored — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 10:55:14 -0800

The giggly blonde is a tad annoying though she does seem to get it in the end. Nice post, Cook seems to be a very good teacher.

By: booksandlibretti

booksandlibretti — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 13:34:13 -0800

We also watch AI to see vapid wannabes do disastrous covers of songs that were good the first time around. I'm especially looking forward to tonight -- Queen covers! This blonde girl makes me want to kill her. I'm fifteen minutes in and she still hasn't gotten the big, bold, blinking "Drop the vibrato and unnatural shaping" message. I don't want to miss any of the class, but I sure wish quicker students had been picked.

By: soyjoy

soyjoy — Wed, 12 Apr 2006 08:54:16 -0800

America eternally owes Barbara Cook for indelibly creating the character of Marian the Librarian (on Broadway).