It’s not just singing that has
changed, I have a hard job understanding people speaking on television, when
they speak I have to switch on the subtitles. It’s as though they have a
train to catch and if they don’t hurry with their spiel they’ll miss it. Even
youngsters go at a rate of knots now.
It’s not just me, either. I thought
perhaps my brain had slowed and couldn’t keep up but I’ve been told by much
younger friends that they have the same problems.
Perhaps there’s a race in time … if
there is then there’s no hope for me.
I have noticed, though, that some
TV channels are better than others. Our main BBC (British Broadcasting Company)
seems clearer than others in that people speak a tad slower and with less
gabbling. Other stations allow prattling in a way that is difficult to understand,
consequently I miss a lot of the programme. Because of this I have resorted to
using subtitles which, of course, means I miss some of the action. On
reflection, perhaps that’s a good thing.
Normally I don’t watch what I call
rubbish which younger generations swoon or rave over. Recently, because there
was a person I knew competing in a singing contest I decided to watch it.
However, that meant having to put up with all the shrieking and screaming
not only from contestants but the whole audience. I gave up when I felt the
headache coming on.
Like I said at the start of this
post …. whatever happened to dulcet and melodious tones.
We watch so little tv, it's so icky, things discussed that make me sick. I have trouble hearing movies when the background/incidental music is too loud.
ReplyDeleteMusic is always changing as artists learn new techniques and styles. It is interesting to follow the change in the music of the Beatles from first to last. They reinvented themselves several times and still more after they broke up. Sometimes the experimenting is not so good. I am not fond of RAP today, yet sometimes my son will play something that I like a lot.
ReplyDeleteI've posted a few times on the volume thing. For some reason actors today believe that whispering is extra dramatic. They whisper in their own homes with no one around...it makes no sense and I strain so hard to hear I can't enjoy or follow the plot.
Then there are shows on cable that think using the F word is realistic and powerful. After a while it gets comical.
Janet, I spoke to a young lady today who is of the same opinion about the rubbish shown on TV. It made me feel better about being a crabby old woman. Yes, so called background music is no longer in the background, you are absolutely right about scripts being difficult to hear.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you entirely, Val. Even my own Grandson is becoming very difficult to understand and he once spoke nice and clearly.
ReplyDeleteI am rather hacked off with this era and if I could build a time nmachine I would go back to happier, more friendlt, safer, more enjoyable days when people knew how to converse and communicate in interesting ways . . . Oh dear I suppose I must be getting old or smething, but is peoples whole attitudes which have declined as well . . .
But we are still here, aren't we . . . :)
I completely agree with you on what they call music today, to me the singing is not worth listening to anymore for the most part. As for the way the younger generation talks so fast has been a problem for me, I just can't understand them most of the time. I don't watch much TV anymore.
ReplyDeleteJoeh, yes, for a brief minute I had forgotten about the excessive use of the f-word, which I hate. We have an Irish comedy show where the main character is a man playing the mother of a large family. That character used the f-word to the point where it gets past being funny. It's interesting that you mention 'whispering' ... I thought it was my hearing that was at fault.
ReplyDeleteEddie, that's interesting that your grandson has changed his style of speaking. I guess all youngsters have to keep up with new trends.
ReplyDeleteYes, we are still here, but struggling more often than we should. Did you make the tea yet?
Jimmy, I switch the television off more than I have it on. Even my favourite soaps are difficult to hear/understand to the point of me not bothering to switch on.
ReplyDeleteValerie, what bothers me most about the singers of today is that it's primarily all recorded using so much "technical enhancement" that everyone sounds practically the same because they all seem to have that same "recorded" quality. What I miss are people such as Barbra Streisand, Gladys Knight, and Patsy Cline, who could sing LIVE and sounded amazing. They had a rawness to their voices that gave them incredible power.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was an actor singing onstage, we used NO body mics. We had to rely on the practice, dedication, and strength of our own voice. Now however, all stage actors/singers have body mics.
As far as speaking, the younger generation doesn't even speak much, they just TEXT. Which is why many of them have lost the art of speaking.
Have a great week, my friend!
Hi Ron.
ReplyDelete'Barbra Streisand, Gladys Knight, and Patsy Cline'
Ooooh, now you're talking. They were the greatest. What a pity today's songsters don't have coaches who KNOW what singing is or should be.
I didn't realise body mikes were used... with the state of undress these days I'm wondering where they put them. Seriously, though, something should be done to improve the quality of singing.