Jerry Nelson's vocal range

[MrsPepper]

Ah, Gorgon heap, I understand now. Being a girl, I don't have a falsetto. Or however would be the gramatically proper way to use that word.
But now I understand the head voice vs chest voice vs falsetto. Yay!

 

[Gorgon Heap]

Forgot something- big!

I knew I forgot something.

I had thought there was a number that Jerry sang that indicated his voice went even higher than I listed above. Now I remember what it was, and am a bit surprised no one else has mentioned it.

It was "Dance", the opening number on the Twiggy episode of TMS. In this song, Jerry has the lead vocal as the singing feather creature, and the song continually changes key, modulating up, and at the end of each verse, Jerry hits the high keynote. It starts in F Major, goes to F# Major, and ends in G Major. Jerry hits a high G (which is like Leo Sayer high, he ends on a high F# in "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing"). Add to that just two weeks later, in the Kaye Ballard episode, he hits the low low B flat (a good half an octave or more below what most men can sing) in "Oh Babe, What Would You Say?" with Kaye Ballard.

So with what we know, the 3rd B flat below middle C up to the 2nd G above middle C, that's just TWO NOTES short of a full FOUR OCTAVES! I'm willing to bet that he had two more notes up or down (probably down), but I don't know of any examples where he hits notes any higher or lower than what I just mentioned.

I'm tempted to write him a letter and ask if he knows what his full vocal range was back then. I'm betting it was a full four, maybe more.

David "Gorgon Heap" Ebersole

 

[Frogster]

I really don't understand the musical notes you're all talking about, but I gotta say, when I was little and I found out that Jerry Nelson did Floyd AND Robin, I was surprised! How can someone like that have such a great vocal range? And now, I find myself being able to do just about all the voices he does. It's amazing he can go from Lew Zealand to Pa Gorg. Hats off to ya, bud.

 

[BEAR]

Ah, Gorgon heap, I understand now. Being a girl, I don't have a falsetto. Or however would be the gramatically proper way to use that word.
But now I understand the head voice vs chest voice vs falsetto. Yay!

Yeah, I think for a woman it could be compared to Fran Brill's Zoe vs. Prairie. Prairie is in a much higher place in the voice which I guess you could call falsetto of head voice for a girl. I'm not sure. And Zoe's is more on voice.

 

[BEAR]

I really don't understand the musical notes you're all talking about, but I gotta say, when I was little and I found out that Jerry Nelson did Floyd AND Robin, I was surprised! How can someone like that have such a great vocal range? And now, I find myself being able to do just about all the voices he does. It's amazing he can go from Lew Zealand to Pa Gorg. Hats off to ya, bud.

Yeah me too. I have just recently started to be able to do some of Jerry's characters. Maybe its cuz I have a new appreciation for him as a performer. Not that I didn't like him before but I do more now. I find myself working more on Sherlock Hemlock, Pops, and Floyd.

 

[MrsPepper]

Yeah me too. I have just recently started to be able to do some of Jerry's characters. Maybe its cuz I have a new appreciation for him as a performer. Not that I didn't like him before but I do more now. I find myself working more on Sherlock Hemlock, Pops, and Floyd.

Yup, it's the head voice vs cheast voice thing. ^_^

Okay, just have to add. I watched the new fraggle interviews. Watch the one called "Finding a Voice". Jerry Nelson talks about the voices of his characters and how they are similar and different. He goes from Robin and slides down to Gobo, then does a Pa Gorg voice. It was so cool! I loved it. What a talented guy, eh?

 

[Gorgon Heap]

Frogster,

Do you have the TMS Season One set yet? If so, you'll probably hear what I'm talking about and have a general idea. Listen to Jerry singing really high throughout the opening # on the Twiggy episode (and getting higher throughout), and then check out Kaye Ballard's # with Thog, esp. the part after the instrumental 'dance break' when Thog sings "And I know that I could make you love me too-"

In terms of what four octaves means, let's just say it means he can sing higher and also a lot lower than most men. Four octaves is about the most that any trained singer can have, though there are a tiny few in the world who have even more.

David "Gorgon Heap" Ebersole

 

[BEAR]

Yup, it's the head voice vs cheast voice thing. ^_^

Okay, just have to add. I watched the new fraggle interviews. Watch the one called "Finding a Voice". Jerry Nelson talks about the voices of his characters and how they are similar and different. He goes from Robin and slides down to Gobo, then does a Pa Gorg voice. It was so cool! I loved it. What a talented guy, eh?

Many of his characters do have a similar vocal quality, but they are still distinctively different i guess, as with many of the others. Kermit and Ernie, and Fozzie and Bert are good examples of this. If I listed to the voice without seeing who it was, i could probably pick it out.