Why does it seem that all foreign accents disappear when people sing?

Question

I can understand Shirley Manson perfectly when she sings but I can't understand a damn word when she speaks.

From the perspective of a goofy American like me, anyway. Also does it seem like American accents disappear to other people when we sing?

Kevin M has a good point. Some groups let their accents shine through. Pink Floyd is another band that comes to mind. But bands like this seem more like the exception than the rule.

Answer 1

When singing, in order to get good vocal tone, singers pronounce the vowels differently. All trained singers are taught to make vowels in the same way, regardless of their typical pronunciation. These vowels are also different from the vowels of many American accents, so your perception that they aren't singing with an accent might just be that you're used to the sound of sung English.

Answer 2

Absolutely. My husband always remarks on it. I have heard people who retain their accents when they sing, but most become instant Americans!

I don't really know why though.

But I decided to google it, and came up with this:

How come when people with a strong regional accent (i.e., Southern) or stuttering problem don't manifest it when they sing?
When people speak with an accent, they produce the vowel sounds differently than the person identifying them as having an accent. When singing, the vowels are prolonged and those differences are minimized.

People who stutter may have an easier time singing because of several possible reasons:

The support required in singing keeps the continuous voicing and airflow components moving easily.
Words are provided in singing, so the challenge of deciding what words to use isn't present.
Some feel that stuttering is a neurological disorder; the neural pathways involved in speech are disrupted somehow. Singing involves more right-hemisphere brain functions as compared to speaking, which is left-hemisphere dominated. Thus, singing may be easier to initiate and sustain than speech.

Answer 3

i got this from the blog site of stuart buck and i pretty much agree with what he says....


One thing that I’ve noticed about British singers is that their accents seem much more pronounced when talking than when singing. I’ve noticed this with U2, Sting, Elton John, Keane, Garbage, and others. Especially Oasis – I never have any trouble understanding Oasis when Liam Gallagher is singing, but whenever I’ve seen him interviewed, I can barely understand a word that he (or his brother) says.

By contrast, it seems to me that plenty of country singers are able to sing with heavy Southern accents.

Here are two theories as to why this would be:

1. British singers make a particular effort to erase their accents when singing so as to be more palatable to the American market. But they don’t take such care when talking in a mere interview. Country singers, by contrast, don’t try to hide their accents when singing; that’s part of their whole act.

2. Speaking with any type of British accent requires that your mouth and tongue maintain a certain closed or tight position, whereas singing requires a open mouth/throat that naturally lessens the British accent. By contrast, a Southern accent is typically uttered with a wider mouth, and hence works better in singing.

Those are just wild guesses, of course; I have no idea what the answer is. Anyone have a clue?

posted by Stuart Buck at 1:27 PM

Answer 4

Actually, accents do not disappear when one sings. It is a matter of good vocal coaching in the area of "diction". Most singers have little coaching in this area. It's obvious when you hear one that does, and they can usually sing in multiple languages without being able to speak the language. Also, singers with better diction tend to sing in a healthier manner and last longer than those who don't.

Answer 5

Singing demands that a person speak and enunciate in a certain manner perfectly, so being a decent singer shows your potential to be a fluent speaker.

Although, unfortunately, it's not the other way around. Fluent speakers are not always great singers. LOL

Answer 6

Not only foreign accents, but stuttering as well. That is because God gave all people the right to worship Him in Spirit and in truth.
God is a God of harmony and order. So, the "gift of worship" given by God for His purpose is a gift we corrupt. That is why when you play some heavy metal records backwards, you can hear the words" I Love Satan."
Boaz.

Answer 7

The reason is because any good musicians, that is, those who make it big (with several exceptions, sadly), when singing every accent disappears. It's a mark of a good vocalist.

Answer 8

this is only true of records that are release in the southern portions of the US where the records companies have signed a waiver that allows the southern states accent purity commission to review and if necessary cleanse records of any foreign accents before release to the public

Answer 9

OK this is true in most cases, but i got to thinking... remember Oasis from the mid 90's alternative erra? They have noticable accents when they sang... whats up with that?

Answer 10

it variety of feels that maximum British singers sing in American accents. i think of particularly via fact human beings have longer vowel sounds and the words are not so clipped. different than for the certainty that maximum usual music writers are American.