Harmonising whilst singing happy birthday

[NCParanoia]

Caveat: I know there's bigger and worse things going on in the world that I should be annoyed at, but here we are.

Does this make anyone else totally cringe? I have a family member who always harmonises when we sing happy birthday, especially the last bit. I find it so cringey.. its a bit me me me when the point of singing happy birthday is for the birthday person to be in the limelight. Also isn't it something awful we all sing just because we have to, not because we want to?

Am I alone in this? Do you harmonise when singing happy birthday? If so - why?!

(I promise I'm also a happy, fun person who likes to have a good time. I appreciate i sound like a massive birthday grinch)

@Justmuddlingalong

My mother still sings the "you look like a monkey and live in a zoo" version and then cackles manickly at her hilarity. I'm 50 FFS. 🙄

I love your mother @Justmuddlingalong

I have nothing against singing joloky or people singing together. Its the 'listen to me doing my harmony cos I'm amazing' bit that makes me cringe.

Ha! Just read the comment about the harmonising nursery rhymer. Now that is toe curlingly cringetastic. And potentially my family member...

You're not alone picklemewalnuts. My family all do it, and I love it. We're all wankers musicians, and it's just second-nature.

It's as natural as breathing- I'd have to really concentrate and try hard not to.

It's really not that hard to just sing the plain, unadorned melody. Two close friends are opera singers and are capable of restraining themselves at church weddings. You don't have to sing 'Jerusalem' as Tosca. In fact, I was once at a Christmas carol service with one of them, and he was rolling his eyes at the wannabe diva in the row in front who could not refrain from doing a solo descant to the refrain of 'Hark the Herald Angels Sing'.

As someone who is not at all musical, I don't understand why people would sing different notes/a different tune to happy birthday. Surely the big thing about happy birthday is that pretty much everyone knows and recognises the tune, even if it's sung in a different language? To me it just sounds wrong with the harmonies in that video clip.

I can understand harmonising in carols, as I assume the harmonies are written down somewhere as part of the music for the song? Does happy birthday have written down harmonies which musical people know? Or when people harmonise are they just making it up and singing what sounds good to them? Is anyone who says it's natural and instinctive able to explain a bit more why it's instinctive?

When you harmonise you're essentially singing above or below the melody, often in thirds or sixths, and making a chord with it. It's certainly an instinctively easy thing to do in straightforward melodies -- you don't need to be 'taught' the harmonies.

I don't know about anyone else, but when I listen to music, I can hear the harmonics, and I've been able to harmonise since I was a small child.

I'm a professional musician now, and teach other people to harmonise.

It's just natural: like people who are naturally good at sport/ art/ maths.

I really like it! I can't do it but I like when others do.

I don't diva it up at weddings though: I'm not THAT much of a wanker.

@NCParanoia

I have nothing against singing joloky or people singing together. Its the 'listen to me doing my harmony cos I'm amazing' bit that makes me cringe.

But don't you think you're projecting a bit here? I mean... Why would someone who sings think that was amazing? It's hardly the Queen of the Night. It's just a simple tune we all know.

Is a French person showing off when they speak French to their baby? Or when they switch back to English to carry on your conversation I am not bilingual in the least but I think they are probably just living their life quite normally doing things they are used to doing, even though I don't do that.

Pickle - but surely harmonisation isn’t the equivalent to a first language is it? I mean it may be effortless, but if you are musical enough to harmonise you are also musical enough to distinguish and sing the main melodic line and that’s the obvious thing to do.

If someone asked you how a song went, you’d surely hum or sing the melody?

This thread is so brilliant. All these people coming on to assure us it isn’t at all attention seeking but is so natural that they can’t even help themselves doing it

Ah give over. I used to do Irish dancing to a pretty high level and yet I manage to walk down the road perfectly easily without finding myself having covered 100m all the while doing a jaunty jig cos it just comes so naturally to me

Come on @ShirleyPhallus, admit it, you go all Michael 'Feet of Flames' Flatley waiting in line at the post office. Preferably wearing a headband and giant blouson sleeves.

(What happened to Irish dancing where no arms moved, ever, and most exciting costume element was the weirdly elaborate Shirley Temple wigs?)

jolikay there’s a really good reason to talk to your baby in French in that situation and it isn’t equivalent.
Equivalent would be a native English person talking to native English speaking friends but dipping into their fluent French for apposite (if you speak French) phrases, like an orthodox Del Boy.

@Knocka

Come on *@ShirleyPhallus*, admit it, you go all Michael 'Feet of Flames' Flatley waiting in line at the post office. Preferably wearing a headband and giant blouson sleeves.

(What happened to Irish dancing where no arms moved, ever, and most exciting costume element was the weirdly elaborate Shirley Temple wigs?)

You’re right, what’s exactly what I do. I just don’t realise I’m doing it until someone tells me. To me, it comes as naturally as breathing. I’ve even woken up to discover I’ve been sleep jogging again. As natural as breathing I tell ya.

@Knocka

When you harmonise you're essentially singing above or below the melody, often in thirds or sixths, and making a chord with it. It's certainly an instinctively easy thing to do in straightforward melodies -- you don't need to be 'taught' the harmonies.

I understand literally none of this.

To use Shirley's example of dancing, it's more like rocking the trolley while deciding what to buy, despite your child now being 5 and at school rather than a baby that needs to be jiggled constantly.

Or accidentally letting an Irish dancing step slip in while your dancing in a nightclub.

It's like tapping your foot when you hear music. It's not to draw attention to the fact you have rhythm, it's just how you respond to music.

If it was about impressing people, then I wouldn't be singing harmonies in the kitchen while I'm sorting out the dinner.

And to the PP who said if I'm musical, I must know the tune- well, that depends. Some Christmas carols I would need sheet music to stick to the tune. I've only ever harmonised. I just don't think one line at a time. I don't sing a regular harmony either. It's made up as you go along, I probably couldn't repeat it if I tried.

@RichardMarxisinnocent, try this perky duo:

@RichardMarxisinnocent think of a doorbell chime. You can copy that pattern starting on lots of different notes. Or when people sing 'Frère Jacque' in a round. The first line 'fits' under the second line. That 'fitting' is a harmony. It's a matching tune, if you like.

It's the musical equivalent to matching colours, some colours look good together, others don't. But you can't explain that to my husband!

I've just read the 'harmonising at toddler group' thread and it's SO GOOD. The vehement defences of singing harmonies to the wheels on the bus. The poster who claims her DC struggled at toddler music group because they had such perfect pitch it was upsetting to hear others sing. The poster who says that harmonising is such a central part of their family culture and life that her children simply wouldn't recognise a song without it. It's all gold.

You're all just JEALOUS.

^

Oh this post is soooo funny! I just woke my sleeping daughter up bursting out laughing!

I just woke up my baby by laughing too topsy!
I'm so glad I started this thread.

@LightDrizzle

jolikay there’s a really good reason to talk to your baby in French in that situation and it isn’t equivalent. Equivalent would be a native English person talking to native English speaking friends but dipping into their fluent French for apposite (if you speak French) phrases, like an orthodox Del Boy.

/me shrugs

Okay! I don't personally have any dog in this fight tbh. I just think it's a weird thing to think is showy offy when it's such a mundane thing to do.