Seth Rudetsky deconstructs Gavin Creel's GOING DOWN

This is in response to a letter at my website (www.SethRudetsky.com). She wanted to know why I loved vibrato. Also, I've had requests sent to my site for GOING DOWN so here 'tis!

[@healthyholemealbread]

I just love how he whips out his violin to prove his point

[@Spencerleexo]

totally agree! vibrato makes everything more interesting, and the tone changes and it makes it 100% more satisfying!

[@shawnag84]

" I don't want acting on a CD recording!" LMAO

[@murfslk230]

Seth, thank you SO much for setting the record straight! Keep the vlogs coming because you are so incredibly refreshing and really break the monotony of my day!

[@netipothead]

Just discovered your channel. This is great stuff! It's so great to have someone really highlight all the nuances of vocal performance, thank you!

[@bethanyirene7120]

My favorite version of the “Lu lu lu” section is where he blends the rougher, gravelly start of the “awful version,” but then spins the last “lu” with beautiful vibrato. Like the best of both worlds 😂

[@BeadleBelfry]

Thanks a lot mate. Got an audition tomorrow for Berger, and this helped. Now if my voice doesn't die on me before then, we can all be happy. Bloody flu season.

[@garylibra]

Seth Rudetsky knows his stuff! Your deconstruction vids are addictive. I know these are a few years old - but still great. Your musical ear is amazing!

[@randalllaue4042]

Masterclass.

[@charliethegent]

I love your videos, its enjoyable and educational!

[@lucynaribola]

ok, first, I adoooore this song!! I really hope that you keep deconstructing this cd, because every song is a gem. Second, I completely agree about the delicious vibrato, tehehe This video just made me really happy :)

[@edwforlifee]

Ahh, yet another fabulous deconstruction. I just adore your use of the word "delicious". It makes me want to use it more often.

[@AlexVB622]

I'm so happy you pulled out a VIOLIN. This made my day!

[@theatreandfriends]

Ha, I love how you just whip out the violin. I love how you call them the "awful" versions. GAVIN CREEL CANNOT BE AWFUL.

[@hellohaze]

This is amazing! Gavin's amazing! YOU are amazing!

[@EmbraceThis]

Seth, your violin made my freakin' day.

[@broadwaystar2011]

AHH!!!!! GAVIN!!! How is he SO AMAZING!!!!

[@broadwayboy29]

I appreciate everything Seth says about vocal technique. I am a senior music education major and I wish there were more musicians out there that actually knew what they were talking about.

[@carly3592]

So funny when you just whip out the violin. I love you Seth!

[@seandunavant]

i looove this to death you're amazing

[@AlexKaufman92092]

this made my day!!

[@winglessxxx]

i looove this song! This is great

[@florianblaschke6571]

I've never understood the widespread hate of vibrato, I've always considered it normal. (Looking back, even in pop music, my favourite singers - from as early as my childhood - regularly have big voices, usually with formal training; seems I'm just naturally attracted to them. That said, I've also always found liking classical music normal, even though I haven't grown up in an upper-class environment.) Actually, it IS simply natural to produce vibrato when holding a note - suppressing it is just as unnatural as artificially adding vibrato (like when untrained singers imitate trained singers). I bet those baroque singers didn't suppress all vibrato either but let it happen, at least on sustained notes, similar to skilled pop singers. Their technique may have been somewhat different from a modern operatic technique, but avoiding vibrato altogether appears excessive to me, throwing out the baby with the bathwater. Wikipedia agrees that the "no vibrato at all" view is unproven and even unlikely for historical periods and it was probably only the overuse of strong, excessive, artificial vibrato that was eschewed, not radically different from today. Unfortunately, I cannot comment on what Seth is saying here because he talks so fast that I find it impossible to follow him. Not being a native speaker of English, reading and writing is generally far easier for me than listening and speaking. If somebody could summarise his argument for me, I would be deeply grateful. I've found this video by searching for "operatic" on TVTropes. Puzzingly, the name Seth Rudetsky sounded familiar to me but I could not tell why, and it seems the reason is because I have already been here and on his website in June 2011, even though I cannot remember seeing this video before. I'm not joking. My memory sucks.

[@littlecorinthian]

I don't know who I love more, Seth or Gavin. Pretty sure it's a flat out tie. :0) Love these vids!

[@PetitChouPumpkin]

I sense a new game... Sexpot or Alcoholic?

[@mtbwaylover]

I love you Seth. I wish we were friends. I would love to listen to you just talk about this type of stuff. and you are so right about vibrato.

[@Javaisreve]

I think that because he was the music director for the Actor's Fund Performance and recording of Hair, he has copies of the different "takes" of each song. So, Gavin probably did one take in which he did not put vibrato on the "lu" and then when Seth told him to he changed it, and that was the "take" they used

[@bfw1017]

I love you Seth!

[@LazEstrada]

Yes and Yes!

[@Spencerleexo]

Oh Seth, I aslo love good vibrato!

[@jemb2000]

The song and singing sound really good - be great if someone posted the complete track.

[@broadwaystar2011]

i agree! and i luv gavin creel so much..it's true...it has become an obsession with me too...only the first song i have heare him sing was i turned the corner from MILLIE..it was actually a seth video too! lol

[@stpears3846]

I love vibrato too, but I understand what the letter writer meant. When I studied jazz voice in college, we we taught to use more straight tone, partly because a good straight tone has an edge to it that works well with jazz, and partly because--especially in ensemble singing--straight tone makes the dissonances crisper (think of the Puerling arrangement of A Nightingale Sang in Berkley Square and the climactic minor 2nd on the word "affair"--The Manhattan Transfer nail that!). It's more challenging because any variation in pitch gets noticed immediately, especially over a mic. I prefer vibrato myself (Ella Fitzgerald!!!), but I understand why people say straight tone is more impressive--it's harder to do well.

[@tauryboy1]

thanks :)

[@Blendre]

I love vibrato! I agree with Seth!

[@scottishphotographer]

Mr Rudetsky, I love your insightful deconstructions. Will somebody PLEASE employ you to audition and/or coach and/or judge the 'talent' that appears on American Idol / X Factor. I despair at most of the vocalising I hear on these shows.

[@justdolphy2814]

Love this! Btw - I credit hard R's to Bette Midler... yes, Babs sings through her consonants - particularly L's, but it's Bette who reeeally sings on them R's.

[@rockkinstilettos]

Straight tone to vibratto all the way!

[@IjeomaThePlantMama]

@Manderson1730 this isn't the cast recording, it was for the actors fund cd featuring Hair songs. Shoshanna Bean sings I Believe in Love, and she's not even in the show...

[@GlennMagusHarvey]

Yeah, I was feeling a bit argumentative at the time, and I could have worded my comment less sarcastically. Sorry about that.

[@Feathersandploom]

thepayt18 you can buy the entire album or just particular songs on Amazondotcom search "Hair - The Actors Fund Of America Benefit Recording" Althought it is more economical to buy the entire album for 9.99 rather than the 31 individual songs for .99 each! :-)

[@mavjade]

Love this video. I've never had any formal vocal lessons but this really pointed out to me a few things I've been doing wrong! Thanks! Love Hair, love Gavin Creel who is definitely a sex pot!

[@thepayt18]

Is there any place to get this version of Goin' Down? If you tell me, I promise I'll love you forever.

[@bwaygirl234]

oy, AGREEE with point 2 girls in my choir at school (mainly these 2 sopranos who fought with each other all of high school for parts/solos/etc) would have so much vibrato, that when you listen to them sing, it was all you could hear! just the soprano vibrato overpowering the very meager tenor/bass section and the tone deaf altos...

[@broadwaystar2011]

GAVIN CREEL!! AHH! I love him!! :D

[@jobloomers]

love you gav:)

[@Shelley_D]

Seth, could you please vibrato when you say "heyyy" at the end of the video? Just kidding, love you Seth. PS, you should deconstruct Cher. :-D

[@bryaanrox]

if you haven't seen the closeup of gavin creel singing 'do you remember', you haven't LIVED. love you, gavin creel! love you seth, even though i just met you! ;)

[@Chelslem2009]

i love it...you're like..shazzam violin...

[@broadwaystar2011]

i dont get how someone thinks straight tone is better than vibrato! i luv vibrato!

[@Javaisreve]

one more thing, one think I actually like about the first take, is the repeated "l" Gavin puts in- "lu lu lu lu l-l-l-lu". But its definitely true that the second is much more aesthetically pleasing

[@broadwaywes]

is this version higher than the original?

[@scorwitz]

Yes, please do. You may exit stage left.

[@asyncasync]

I'm starting to think that the human voice is just inherently inaccurate in regards to pitch and vibrato is used to mask this.

[@tauryboy1]

wait so what album is this song with Gavin on ?.. I can;t find it.. hm

[@onethousandsteps]

another fantastic deconstruction! I absolutely adore gavin creel. he is one of my favorites. shoot, gavin could be sexy no matter how inebriated he was.

[@petenyc12]

:( I accidentally rated it a 2 while i was trying to push the play button!!!! :( sorry, seth! If i could, i would have rated it a 48!!! this helped soooooo much!!! i've been working on this song, cuz it was going to be the next one im dong, and i've never heard this version before. (omg!! this is sooo much better!! lol!) so i bought it from iTunes, and i'm practicing it!! i'll post it sometime soon as a reply to this, and maybe you could take a look at it and tell me what you think???

[@natalie7397]

i've never seen anything more me

[@okeydokeyjones27]

hahaha "that's delicious!"

[@ngotmichelle]

I think the straight tone comment was from someone who likes pure tone sopranos. Like when a choir does some eric whitacre.

[@Sedraen]

This is an old comment, but I feel I MUST point this out: Saying that classical "opera-singing levels" of vibrato = never singing the note is a HUGE disrespect to any classical vocalist because it's just flat-out wrong. I understand you probably didn't mean it that way, but that wording should have been different.

[@going2NY]

omg was that person deaf? vibrato is so yummy for the ears seth-amahzing xo

[@ItsMandaGomes]

Seth can you be my vocal teacher please

[@violetcloud6517]

YES, I was about to say the same thing. It's like *BAM* violin, sucka! AND what! and yes, it is delicious.

[@mattro1000]

this is off a cd that broadway did for aids i think... this is before he took the roll for 'Hair'

[@amy.n.newman]

IT DOES!!! Hahaha :)

[@msscott73]

jazz and blues artist would call what Gavin did is improvisation.

[@scorwitz]

Don't worry about it. Go on to something else in your life. I was not at all making a case against Seth. Just sharing my thoughts. Maybe you should try and add something to conversation that has something to do with singing?

[@HikariDragonRyuu]

@punkrokr526 You aren't linking to the right times...

[@msscott73]

I agree with you. However, Gavin does this intentionally.

[@LPM12]

I Love Gavin Creel, I want to have his kids, even though Im a guy... FABULOUS!

[@bwaygirl234]

seth, i completely agree with you about vibrato. but what pisses me off the most about vibrato, is that girls (and guys probably too) put tension in their jaws and necks to get "vibrato", or worse, they shake their heads! oy vey... i say, get it naturally, and dont try to force it.

[@cricketbrn]

Seth, you certainly prove your point, but I don't think that's what the writer was talking about. In your deconstruction on Norm Lewis you praise him for his str8 tone and then vibratoing. This is the kind of str8 tone that is impressive.

[@leilanihanaike]

I do actually have some issues with vibrato depending on the song. Jeremy Jordan's voice is amazing because it is so pure with a slight tough of vibrato at the end. Too much vibrato makes me want to strangle some one because it sounds like they are trying to over sing it. When I saw Next to Normal and Alice Ripley was singing by the end of the show my entire class and most of the audience wanted to strangle her because she sounded like she was in pain the entire show.

[@js59695]

Lmao.

[@scorwitz]

I can understand the what this person was saying about straight tone singing. As a trained singer, who was trained properly, of course producing natural vibrato, I find it a challenge to sing straight tone, for instance in early music or on the last held note of a musical theater song where you hold.....then vibrato at the last minute. I mean, I can do it, it's just not what I do naturally, so that makes it a challenge.

[@CareBlaire]

drunk AND sexy!!!!! lol

[@RemyLebeauIAm]

Um, they teach vibrato, not straight tone. Love the perfect violin example and "delicious" Gavin Creel example

[@GlennMagusHarvey]

No, straight tone is as much a valid musical technique as vibrato is. The only question is whether it's musically more appropriate, and that is a judgement call left up to the opinions of the performers and listeners. There's a baseline minimal level of vibrato in singing, thanks to the beating of our hearts. Vibrato up to a certain amount is nice, though when it gets to classical opera singing levels (i.e. "I never actually singing the note I'm supposed to be singing") then it's annoying.

[@RyeLady99]

Is he a sexpot or an alcoholic??? HaHaHa LOL!!!!

[@AtLastOnTheGround]

Uh... If vibratto is the result of good vocals... then wouldn't vibratto be more impressive than straight tone? duh. lol I agree, good vibratto is orgasmic.

[@scorwitz]

Umm... 1. I can't help that you don't understand. That's on you. 2. I wasn't proofreading. This isn't an essay, it's a KZbin Comment. 3. Take a look at your punctuation before you criticize mine.