What is the most difficult form of singing? (ex: broadway, classical, etc...)?

Question

I was wondering which form requires the most talent and is difficult to do.

Answer 1

Well I would say Classical ... I'm graduated from the Conservatory of Music, My degree is in Voice Performance: Classical Styles like: Opera, German and french Songs from the IXI Centuries, Italian Repertory and Opera.

People think Classical means Just Opera and that is not true, there is a lot of different styles and you need to study each one and sing in every style, that is difficult, to sing classical styles you need to study Voice Technique. Teachers teach mostly "Bel Canto Style", or "bel Canto Technique" really precise and pure voice technique based on the Style of italian Opera from the IXI Century.

But is not only the technique, or to sing wiht a powerful voice, Opera singers needs to take a complete training to be able to sing any classical style. Example:

You need to study:

Languages, mostly, french, german and Italian. diction, (International Phonetic Alphabet) voice technique Lessons, Opera Workshops, vocal chamber music, solfeggio, sight and singing, ear training, acting and dancing training, piano, choir, harmony, counterpoint, Uff! ... Many different music lesson huh?

In addition you need to study your repertory, go prepared to your voice lessons, practice with your vocal coach, do recitals and concerts, and attend recitals and concerts too.

A lot of work. And the most difficult thing is: You never stop studing, if you stop practicing for a couple of months, believeme, you will need to start again to make your voce sing in the same way...

Ahhhh! and don't forget the Professional auditions and competitions...

In addition all the sacrifices Opera Singers need to do to keep their voices healthy and ready to sing at any moment.

My friend, I think to sing Classical Styles are really difficult.

And after that you don't have any guarantee to have a success in this carreer. We sing Opera because we love Opera.

Answer 2

Hmm...it really depends. When you learn to sing, no matter if it's broadway, or opera, or whatever, you always start with the basics. The correct way of singing, how to breathe correctly, the notes and scales, etc. From that, it's all the matter of what you learn. Whether you learn classical, opera, broadway, or etc. It really depends on the person and what form one chooses to sing in, I guess. But personally, opera is the most difficult for me to sing (having to carry out the notes like that >.<)

Answer 3

Another question that really warrants an answer as long as a novel. The most susinct way of illustrating the relative difficulty is mamianka's food analogy. There are different purposes to pop and rock music as compared to classical. Pop and rock is almost always driven by some catchy rhythm or simple melody. It is designed to have instant appeal - typical of the instant gratification that is symptomatic of modern life. Rather than trying to stimulate your loins, classical music attempts more to stimulate your intellect and emotional sensitivity, a whole side of human nature that is out of reach to the more primal "bump and grind" of pop / rock music. Classical music has been around for a little more than 300 years. Rock music, I feel is in steep decline and has basically run out of ideas (hence the re-cycling of the "hits" of the past). The form is inherently self limiting. Movie music is perhaps closer to classical music than pop, in fact some movie music may even classify as classical music - but certainly not all of it. At this point in the discussion we seem to arrive back at arguments over the definition of what classical music actually is. I have suggested on several occasions that there is no more classical music in the previously accepted sense. The new art music really requires a new categorization, as the classical genre was transmuted shortly after WWII into something no longer consistent with the categorization. Classical music prior to this historical milestone was fairly easy to define, but as time has gone by this has become more difficult. In the post war era, classical music has become more obscure, virtually drowned in a sea of commercially driven three minute sound bites, so transient in nature that most are forgotten in a matter of a few months. That is not to say all pop and rock music is trite, but the gems created in the genre can only be found by sifting through the sands of time and the yield is not plentiful. There are relatively few Pink Floyds, Beatles or Led Zeppelins.

Answer 4

Defnitely classical over broadway. I go to a school for musical theatre, and it can be kinda hard, but you gotta have more skills to do classical. That is a gift! Alot of people can do broadway because you pretty much belt out your voice, and in classical your voice has to be just right when you sing cuz one little thing can throw off the whole song completely. The mood goes away, and you lose focus.

Answer 5

I wouldn't say that they're all that less or more difficult, they're just... different. However, for opera, you need to have the voice for it. Other than that, I believe it's just the proper training. A friend of mine was involved in the same choir as me, where we sing/sang classical children's music and various levels of choral music (very difficult music in the top level), and we never sing pop songs. However, my friend was able to take her vocal training and apply it to the stage, and is absolutely wonderful! Singing itself is very hard until you have the proper training, because you simply do not have the support you need. And, according to one of my directors, you need to at least have a voice. It doesn't need to be God-given, but you need to have one. How did I find out she believed this? She didn't think I had one until I proved her wrong! So basically, the various styles of singing are just different. For one to be good in any style of singing, one needs to build immense abdominal support, which is a work-out in itself. For one to sing opera though, I think you need to have an operatic voice.

Answer 6

Classical is harder because it requires proper posture and breathing, good diction, and other techniques. Training your voice properly pays off, though. You will be singing beautifully when you are 70 if you care for your voice." Belting" (the current Broadway style of singing) can damage your vocal cords.

Answer 7

I know a lot of people are saying it depends, but really, it depends. On who you are and what your voice is like and so on. I can only sing opera and Classical, but I suck at Christian, country, punk, etc. I always wondered what was wrong with me growing up because I only could sing extremely low or extremely high.

Answer 8

Depends on your voice. Broadway and opera probably require the most training.

Answer 9

Opera. It requires immense voice control and body control to be able to sustain a pure note in any register. Not only the purity of the note counts but the length of time it can be sustained without distortion.

Answer 10

Some people can only sing opera, some can only elt it like Broadway musical singers... I think it just varies by person.