Quite simply this is good and grown. Take care of the instrument and you will be able to sing for decades. That’s worth repeating: Take care of the instrument and you will be able to sing for decades. That means rest and exercise and always careful consideration about all things vocal. What Dame Shirley Bassey did last evening shouldn’t be surprising, it should simply be the standard. We should all stop giving anyone a pass who cannot reach the baseline of the standard. Preachers preach, teachers teach and at a very bare minimum singers should be able to sing.
Ivan Orr is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, performer, and writer. A native of Charlottesville, Virginia Ivan was involved with the forming and nascent days of The Music Resource Center as its first Program Director. A graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Department of Music, Ivan currently resides in Richmond, VA where he maintains an active performance and production schedule while serving as the Music Editor for Grown Folks Music, a position he has held since 2010.