Jimmy Scott and the problem of gender in singing

The voice of jazz performer Jimmy Scott raises interesting questions of how gender is marked (or not marked) in singing voice. Scott was born with Kallman’s Syndrome, which affects male hormonal levels and prevents the onset of puberty. Although he self-identified as a “regular guy,” in his career h...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 2016-04, Vol.139 (4), p.2107-2107
Main Authors: Eidsheim, Nina, Kreiman, Jody E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The voice of jazz performer Jimmy Scott raises interesting questions of how gender is marked (or not marked) in singing voice. Scott was born with Kallman’s Syndrome, which affects male hormonal levels and prevents the onset of puberty. Although he self-identified as a “regular guy,” in his career he was presented as a novelty act—a boy who sounded like an adult woman—or paired with gender-ambiguous images. This paper explores Scott’s voice in comparison to male and female peers, with emphasis on the paradoxical role of falsetto in creating a male vocal image.
ISSN:0001-4966
1520-8524
DOI:10.1121/1.4950262