What Makes Frank Sinatra So Special?
Frank Sinatra started his singing career in the swing era, and went on to become a legend. He also starred in several movies throughout his career.
Despite his many ups and downs, Sinatra managed to amass a fortune. He made over $150 million from his records alone. The rest came from his acting career.
What Is Frank Sinatra Voice?
It seems inconceivable that a man who was allegedly an embezzler, draft dodger, and mobster could be one of the most beloved and highly acclaimed singers of all time. But that’s the truth. But the question is, why? What made him so special?
His voice is what makes him so unique. Frank Sinatra had a beautiful light baritone with a two octave range. He sang with such clarity and diction that it was like hearing an actor read poetry. He also knew where to hold a note and where to ghost it. Sinatra phrasing was perfect and took pop singing in new directions when most other singers were still trying to emulate Bing Crosby.
He also understood how to give the other musicians on the recording a chance to shine through. Frank Sinatra would often leave parts of the song empty so that the piano, bass, and drums could have space to fill in with their own nuances and sounds.
This approach was especially apparent in his early recordings with Harry James and Nelson Riddle. It was in these early songs that he began to show his vulnerability and the twang of insecurity that would be so prominent on later records.
How Does He Sing?
Frank Sinatra began his professional career at a time when advances in recording science and the spread of jukeboxes and home phonographs were changing how music might be experienced and preserved. Singers of the past relied on their own force of projection or a megaphone to be heard over a band’s accompaniment, but those methods pushed vocalists into high volumes and upper ranges that often sounded unnatural.
By focusing on improving his breath control and avoiding excessive compression, Sinatra allowed the microphone to bring out the natural resonance of his voice. He moved the instrument closer to his mouth during moments of romantic avowal and away from it during dramatic musical crescendos. He also learned how to hide his breathing so that the listener could not hear him taking a quick sip of air.
It would be easy to label Sinatra’s work as traditional pop, but that would limit his range too much. He sang songs right on the edge of jazz as well as outside of the genre entirely, such as the R&B tune “That’s Life” and the Cuban love song bolero “Somethin’ Stupid.” This flexibility demonstrated how he considered himself an equal part of a musical ensemble rather than a star attraction.
What Is His Style?
Unlike the majority of artists of his day, Sinatra did not stick to one genre. This may be a large part of why his music has remained so popular over the years. He seamlessly combined elements from jazz, big band, swing, classical, and traditional pop music genres. This allowed him to reach a diverse audience who could appreciate the musical arrangements of his songs and his crooning vocal style.
Sinatra’s distinctive, warm baritone voice spanned F2 to G4 and captivated listeners with its velvety richness. He evoked feelings of romance, heartbreak, and triumph with his timeless vocals. His distinctive style and effortless command of the stage made him a household name around the world. He was a spokesman for the American Dream and helped bring about a cultural shift away from European traditions to more modern styles.
He was also a well-known actor who appeared in numerous films, including the Oscar-winning From Here to Eternity. In the later parts of his career, he struggled to compete with rock and roll, which was becoming more popular than the traditional pop he had dominated. Despite his struggles, he continued to remain a critical and commercial success. He even managed to find new audiences with his classic tunes such as “That’s Life.” This song is technically a bolero, a Cuban genre that Sinatra rarely performed.
What Is His Vibrato?
Frank Sinatra’s vibrato was a vital part of his style. Without it, his vocals would sound flat and uninspired. But when used effectively, rubato can elevate a performance to a whole new level.
In 1944, he began the era that would be known to many fans as his Columbia years (1943-52). Despite a shortened career due to a musicians’ strike during World War II (a war between the Axis Powers-Italy, Germany, and Japan-and the Allies-France, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, and the United States), Sinatra produced some of the most memorable recordings in his career.
He also started a couple of popular radio shows. Rocky Fortune was a drama that ran from October to March of 1954, while The Frank Sinatra Show was a 15-minute twice-weekly music series that lasted until July of 1955.
What Is His Vowel Holding?
When he was born, little Frank Sinatra was reportedly not breathing. It was not until his grandmother came over and started cleaning him up that he began to cry. The doctor thought he was stillborn and was about to call for an ambulance. Sinatra’s father, Saverio Antonino Martino, was a Hoboken fireman and his mother, Natalina Della Garaventa, was from Northern Italy. He grew up singing with his brother and friends in local saloons, including the Rustic Cabin.
In 1942 he broke into the mainstream with an engagement at New York’s Paramount Theatre on New Year’s Eve that turned him into a phenomenon, the first real teen idol. He was surrounded by swooning “bobby-soxers.”
He made his first films that same year. A few years later he moved into the more serious world of drama and won critical respect for his role in the World War II film From Here to Eternity (1954). He also launched two successful radio series: Rocky Fortune, which ran from October to March 1954; and The Frank Sinatra Show, a 15-minute, twice-weekly musical program that ran from 1955 to 1957.
In 1958 he briefly lost his ability to sing after his vocal cords hemorrhaged, but when his voice returned it had acquired an extra dimension. His record sales slowed, but he continued to tour and recorded well-received songs like Autumn in New York, Body and Soul, and Laura.
What Is His Consonant Holding?
Frank Sinatra emerged as the greatest singer of the Swing Era (the period that began in 1935 and ended with the beginning of World War II). His musical roots were in Tin Pan Alley, the song writing center of New York City, and Italian opera. This background influenced his unique phrasing of lyrics and melody lines.
He had a strong voice with clear diction and a large repertoire of songs. He influenced popular music in the United States and around the world. His style was often compared to that of Bing Crosby, who had also dominated the era.
At the end of the ’50s, Sinatra began releasing albums less frequently. The first, Nice ‘n’ Easy, was a midtempo collection that broke his pattern of alternating fast and slow albums. It spent several weeks at number one and went gold.
In 1953 he returned to film, playing a nonsinging role in the eve-of-Pearl Harbor drama From Here to Eternity. The performance brought him critical and commercial acclaim.
In the fall of 1953 he began two radio series: Rocky Fortune, a drama that ran through March 1954, and the 15-minute, twice-a-week Songs by Sinatra. The latter would run through July 1955.
What Is His Whole Band Singing?
While his parents wanted him to become an engineer, Sinatra began singing with local bands and in nightclubs while he worked as a plasterer by day. He was influenced by his mother’s love of singing and her resentment of her husband’s drinking. Sinatra’s quick temper often tipped over into rage. On one occasion he threw a telephone at a businessman, breaking his skull.
He gained notice in Hollywood and starred in movies before beginning his solo career. He became famous as a crooner with songs like “All or Nothing at All,” and reached the top of charts with Harry James and later Tony Dorsey’s band.
In 1954, he teamed with arranger/conductor Nelson Riddle and recorded an album that reached the top of the singles and albums charts. It was the first of what would be a series of “concept” albums in which the singer focused on classics such as Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hart, and Gershwin tunes in modern arrangements that conveyed the wit and grace of the lyrics. As he grew older, Sinatra cut back on records and movies to focus on live performances in casinos and arenas around the world. He recorded his last studio album in 1974, and then retired from the music industry for six years.