Kinda meta voice thoughts

[oloriel]

Okay, by now we've all seen the Hobbit trailer and squeed at the Dwarf song, right?

Recently, fileg linked to a video where a lady sings the whole 27-stanza thing to the tune from the trailer.

This should, in principle, be a wonderful thing, but somehow I can't enjoy it.

One issue is probably the recording software or otherwise the sound system of my computer - either way, it sounds kind of overdone and overdriven, particularly the pseudo-ethereal background vocal.

Which brings us to issue #2: The vocals. I don't know enough about singing to be able to judge the quality of her singing as such, so I'll leave that judgement to more able minds and ears. Suffice it to say that they just don't fit the song. I'm unsure about the lead vocals, but I'm damn sure I don't like the background wail. (In this context, mind you. There surely are contexts where it would fit, but it is not Far over the Misty Mountains cold.)

I mean, everything about this lovely lady - from the dress to the voice - screams Elf/Faery. (1990s Elf/Faery, what's more, but that's a different kettle of fish.) This is a dwarf song. It should not sound pseudo-Elvish/Elfin.

At which point I must realise that I'm being kind of sexist, here, because of course Dwarves come in two sexes, too (although, at least if you take the Pterry view of them, they traditionally only come in one gender...). As Gimli so kindly reminds us in the movie adaptation, they don't crawl out of the earth. Neither should the Uruk-haî, technically, but that's yet another topic...
However, even granting that Dwarf-women might sing this song, as likely they would, I can't hear it sounding like that.
Which brings us to the question of: What do Dwarf-women sound like, really? Considering that they have beards, I've kind of been assuming that they'd also show other signs of heightened testosterone levels - such as deep voices. Even if we assume that this is fantasy and doesn't do the whole RL hormone thing, I'd just instinctively assume that Dwarf-women are Altoes at the very least.
And that's where, for me, the linked video goes wrong. Because even if I'm ok with the lead vocals (about which, as I said, I am uncertain), that high-pitched background vocal ruins it. Maybe a Dwarf-child might have such a high voice, but this is not a childish voice singing (don't ask me to explain, as I said, I have no idea about the technique, but you DO hear it).
Which brings us to yet another question, namely, the question of sharing things. I mean, I like to sing, for instance. I like to sing songs that were never written for my (pathetic) vocal range. Many of the songs I sing to Felix aren't meant to be sung by an unschooled mezzo-soprano. Shanties, for instance. That's ok, because Felix is not (yet) particularly picky and doesn't know the originals, anyway.

I would NOT, however, record myself and share it on a large scale, even if I thought I could sing well enough to pull that off, if my voice just doesn't fit the song. Because even if a gap exists - as in the case of this song - that just doesn't fill the gap. To my mind.

Does this post have a point? I dunno. I guess so. What do you think? Am I just being weird here? Or would you, too, prefer to have a recording of this song sung by a couple of Altos or guys? What do Dwarf-women sound like in your head? Talk to me!

(brought to you by Work Replacement Activity #24601)

ETA: Just to make that clear, I don't mean to bash the good lady. I'm just analysing and discussing my reaction to her video and her musical choices. Completely subjective. Mind you, my subjective reaction to people's music is very often weird. For instance, I still don't get what's supposed to be great about Adele: I listen to her and think "Ok, yeah, I guess she's got a powerful voice, but... what else?". Clearly I'm clueless!

Comments

[shadowbrides.livejournal.com]

Hah! You had that show over there as well? Those things are like a virus! They seem to be everywhere when really there is some more interesting folklore out there! The main activity of kabouters these days is..existing in your garden. In earlier folklore, they used to live in hollow hills, sometimes rob livestock, sometimes help and mostly hate being seen. That is the main thing everyone agrees on, from children's books like the Pinkeltje series and Kabouter Plop to to older actual folklore like that about their king Kyrië (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gnome_King_Kyri%C3%AB).

I also have a longstanding plotbunny running around about Gimli actually being female, but not saying so because human/Elvish cultures have a gender bias. I'm sure it's been done before, but... :P

This could have possible weird consequences for his/her relationship with Legolas which I at this point REFUSE to think about. xD

[oloriel.livejournal.com]

Of course! And I could only catch it if we were on holidays somewhere or if I was staying at a friends' place, because in my parents' home we only got RTL when it was REALLY cold outside. Don't ask me. But that made it special, and thus awesome...

I think I've heard discussion that Fili and Kili are secretly female but don't want to bother with explaining Dwarvish culture and gender roles to outsiders, so they just go with the flow. Gimli, of course, is more popular XD

LOL!

[shadowbrides.livejournal.com]

RLT and cold? How odd. The only German channel we get here is Arte, but that doesn't really change with the temperature. :P Oh! And really hilarious dubbed, obviously originally German commercials. The funny thing is that somehow it is always obvious when the original was German, even if it's synchronized really well. There's just...idk. A difference in style (everything from way of filming to clothes to facial expressions) that screams "THIS WAS ORIGINALLY GERMAN!!". Not so with originally English/French commercials. I don't know why, but they are very recognizable and always make me laugh.

Do you perhaps have any links to good female!Gimli stories?

[oloriel.livejournal.com]

Nah, it had something to do with our antenna. ^^ These days everything is digital anyway. Another Dutch friend of mine religiously watches some German soap operas, but then she lives very close to the German border - maybe that's why she gets more German channels.

Sorry, I meant Gimli as a character is more popular - not that female!Gimli is common. I can't say I've ever come across that one, althogh it's bound to exist somewhere...