Quote:
Originally Posted by Crystal_Ageha
I'm not trying to say anything specifically against you or anything, but I hate whenever people assume that just because somebody's voice deepens and they can't sing as many high notes anymore, that means she is losing her range or even her voice in general.
For Ayumi - and many other people - she has gotten many years older, and her voice has changed drastically since her debut. No, she can't sing as high as she once could, but she can also hit more of the lower notes. This is the case with most people who's voices change later in life. Their ranges aren't necessarily getting worse (sometimes they do, but that's not usually the case), it's just that it's changing. It's normal, and it's not bad at all, let alone an indication of a singer's voice getting worse.
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Certainly, that may be the case; however, the quality of the notes she is projecting is not as clear as it was perhaps 10 years ago. I'm certainly not suggesting that she cannot sing, nor am I criticizing her as an artist or performer. Please don't misunderstand: I'm very much a fan of Ms. Hamasaki's. However, I think that if you listen to performances of her songs from certain periods in her career (e.g. Ayumi Hamasaki Concert Tour 2000 Vol.1, Ayumi Hamasaki Countdown Live 2002-2003 A, Countdown TV Toshi-koshi LIVE 2002-2003), you can hear that her voice is not in good condition. She even commented on it during the 2002-2003 live, saying something to the effect of "I had no voice left, but I was singing in my heart." This is not a criticism of Hamasaki herself; it is a suggestion that what has happened as a result of her being made to sing during bouts with colds, bronchitis, and other illnesses is that her vocal range has narrowed. Even when singing under the best of conditions, singers lose some of their range if they continue to sing for long periods of time without rest.
Mochida Kaori is another singer who has clearly lost some range in her voice. She has even commented on the changes in her own voice because they have been brought to her attention. She came down with bronchitis during a tour and continued to sing. She has difficulties hitting high notes now that is very visible in the way she sings (and the expressions she makes while singing). Onitsuka Chihiro has to take time off from her career to heal after having a polyp removed from her throat; her voice has largely recovered but has been criticized by some, which is unfortunate because a) It is not her fault and b) She is a very talented vocal musician and songwriter. Celine Deon has faced the prospect of damage to her voice in the past as well as have a number of professionals who continue to sing today.
You are certainly entitled to your opinion in this matter. I do not profess any professional credentials in voice training or other musical or medical professions. However, I have a background in music and have heard enough from singers and musicians I know to understand something about the phenomena to which I have been referring. Certainly, people's voices can and often do deepen with age. Should this be the origin of the shifts in key in most of Hamasaki's repertoire, that is great news. However, considering the hoarse quality of her voice in some performances during highly active times of the year (e.g. sometimes during the end of the year), it is completely defensible to put forward the hypothesis that a burden has been placed on her vocal cords due to overwork. This is not a criticism of the singer; if anything, it is the concern of a fan and perhaps an indictment of Avex.