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Scholar, songwriter, and dramatist Masi Asare explores the singing practice of Black women singers in US musical theatre between 1900 and 1970, showing how singers such as Bessie Smith, Ethel Waters, and Lena Horne possessed highly trained voices who fell in a lineage of singers and teachers.
List of contents
Warming Up ix
Note on the Phonetic Transcription xi
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction. Citing the Vocal-Possible 1
1. Vocal Color in Blue: Learning the Song with Blueswomen, Shouters, and Belters 24
2. Beyond the Weary-Bluesy Mammy: Listening Better with Midcentury Character Divas 64
3. "A Little Singer on Broadway": Exercising American Glamour with Golden Age Starlets 106
4. Secrets of Vocal Health: Voice Teachers and Pop Vocal Technique 162
Playoff 202
Appendix: More Exercises for Voice Practice 211
Notes 215
Bibliography 253
Index 271
About the author
Masi Asare
Summary
Scholar, songwriter, and dramatist Masi Asare explores the singing practice of Black women singers in US musical theatre between 1900 and 1970, showing how singers such as Bessie Smith, Ethel Waters, and Lena Horne possessed highly trained voices who fell in a lineage of singers and teachers.
