Good Female Vocalist as Inspiration for Budding Young Singer

default -- Thu, 12/10/2009 - 11:16

I am not sure if this is the correct forum, but....
I have a 6-year old daughter who loves to sing (performs, sings in a choir, etc.). Does anyone have suggestions for recordings to buy / play for her?
Diana Krahl comes to mind as outstanding vocals well-recorded, butI don't know much about her.

TIA
SA

Tom Martin -- Fri, 12/11/2009 - 19:00

Of course you have to find what she likes. Diana Krall seems a little "old" in the sense of singing music with rather mature themes. But I wouldn't claim to know the mind of the six year old!

That said, I'd consider:

Broadway collections -- Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables

"World's Greatest Audiophile Vocal Recordings"

Some opera -- La Grande Passion is a nice sampler

Lorraine Hunt Lieberson -- anything, but Bach and Handel recordings are great examples of the vocal art

Eva Cassidy -- Songbird is a good choice

Susan Boyle -- I Dreamed A Dream

Something County -- Taylor Swift perhaps (I'm out of my depth here)

Something from the '60s/70s -- Linda Ronstadt perhaps

That's enough variety to give you an idea of what catches her ear.

CEO and Editorial Director, Nextscreen LLC

Jobsdone -- Tue, 03/30/2010 - 00:17

Off hand I'd heartily recommend the obvious: Michael Jackson and the Jacksons. He wasn't the ultimate Pied Piper - Peter Pan for nothing.

Regards,
Jobsdone

Cemil Gandur -- Sun, 12/13/2009 - 13:50

Not wishing to pick a fight here, but I'd hardly call Diana Krall an outstanding vocalist. :)
I would go for some of the show tunes -my kids were really partial to Cats at that age. They liked the songs, the topic and so on. They had the DVDs and later they participated in the school musical version of it.

sheepherder -- Tue, 12/29/2009 - 10:08

I would also check out Shirley Horn and Cassandra Wilson along with Ms Krall. And Aretha and introduce to soul and R&B from 60's. No Beyonce maybe Alicia Keys although she is to whitebread. And yeah I am trying to start a fight. And along with DC's own Shirley Horn I would check out DC's Denyce Graves. Forget Diana Ross. Also have check out Allison Krauss with Union Station and Robert Plant. And finally Nadirah Shakoor.

Sheepherder
Shenandoah Valley, VA

Bob Bubeck -- Wed, 03/10/2010 - 23:27

Start her off with the best -- Ella Fitzgerald. The classic Song Books (e.g., the Gershwins) are a good point of entry. The early Streisand albums are still very impressive.

Given her age, the original Broadway version of "The Music Man", which features the incomparable Barbara Cook (and the Buffalo Bills) might catch her ear because many of the songs are fun, well-crafted, and comprehended by folks of all ages. The original "Peter Pan" with Mary Martin seems like a natural for a 6 year old.

The Morman Tabernacle Choir sounds great on their Telarc recordings.

Bob Bubeck

Hughbaun (not verified) -- Thu, 04/01/2010 - 14:31

I'd add Greta Matassa to the list. Her "Favorites From a Long Walk" is a pleasure to listen to....

Hughbaun (not verified) -- Thu, 04/01/2010 - 14:32

Here's a link to the online album, where you can listen to sample tracks;

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000QZUYX2/sr=8-3/qid=1270150295/ref=sr...

Not-Anonymous (not verified) -- Thu, 04/01/2010 - 17:26

I have a 5 year old and here is what I feed her, in no particular order:
Jonatha Brooke, Laura Nyro, Sarah McLachlan, Patty Griffin, Alison Krauss, Chaka Khan, Whitney Huston, Anita Baker, Aretha Franklin, Linda Ronstadt, Celine Dion, Christina Aguilera, Bonnie Raitt........