A playback singer, as they are usually known in South Asian cinema, or ghost singer in Western cinema, is a singer whose performance is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for , and the performers lip-sync the songs for cameras; the actual singer does not appear on the screen. Generally, to synchronize with the emotional situation of the song or complete movie, the playback singer is given the idea of all those so that the singer can interpret by taking the right moves in their vocals.
South Asia
South Asian films produced in the Indian subcontinent frequently use this technique. A majority of Indian films as well as Pakistani films typically include six or seven songs. After
Alam Ara (1931), the first Indian
talkie film, for many years singers made dual recordings for a film, one during the shoot, and later in the recording studio, until 1952 or 1953. Popular playback singers in India enjoy the same status as popular actors and music directors
and receive wide public admiration. Most of the playback singers are initially trained in classical music, but they later often expand their range.
Mohammed Rafi and Ahmed Rushdi[*
] The sisters Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle, who have mainly worked in Hindi films, are two of the best-known and most prolific playback singers in India.[*
] In 2011, Guinness officially acknowledged Bhosle as the most recorded artist in music history.
Hollywood
The practice is also employed in Hollywood musicals, where such performers are known as
ghost singers, though less frequently in other genres. Notable Hollywood performances include Anita Ellis as the voice of
Rita Hayworth's title character in
Gilda (1946). Both Ellis's and Hayworth's performances were so impressive that audiences did not know that the latter's voice had been dubbed. Called "the sexiest voice of 1946", Ellis's identity was not publicized; Hayworth was instead credited on the soundtrack.
There have been other uses of ghost singing in Hollywood, including Marni Nixon in West Side Story for Natalie Wood portrayal of Maria, in The King and I for Deborah Kerr Anna Leonowens, and for Audrey Hepburn Eliza in My Fair Lady; Bill Lee singing for John Kerr's Lieutenant Cable in South Pacific and for Christopher Plummer's Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music,[Earl J. Hess and Pratibha A. Dabholkar, Singin' in the Rain: The Making of an American Masterpiece (Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas, 2009), p145.] a film in which ghost singing is a major plot point.
Examples
Known playback or ghost singers include:
-
India Adams, who dubbed for Cyd Charisse in The Band Wagon (1953).
[ Thomson, David (2008) Have You Seen...?': a Personal Introduction to 1,000 Films including masterpieces, oddities and guilty pleasures (with just a few disasters). Penguin UK At Google Books. Retrieved 13 June 2013.] That same year, she also dubbed for Joan Crawford in Torch Song.[ Quirk, Lawrence J. and William Schoell (2013) Joan Crawford: The Essential Biography, p. 170. University Press of Kentucky At Google Books. Retrieved 13 June 2013.]
-
Bill Shirley, who dubbed for Jeremy Brett in Warner Bros. My Fair Lady
-
Jo Ann Greer, who dubbed for Rita Hayworth, Kim Novak, and Dorothy Malone
[ "Obituary: Joan Greer "Jo Ann" McMahan" Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 13 June 2013.]
-
Marni Nixon, who dubbed for Ingrid Bergman in Joan of Arc, Deborah Kerr in The King and I and An Affair To Remember, for Natalie Wood in West Side Story, for Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady (1963), and for Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
[ "Ghost singer India Adams appears" Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 13 June 2013.]
-
Betty Wand, who dubbed for Leslie Caron in Gigi
-
Betty Noyes, who dubbed for Debbie Reynolds in Singin' in the Rain
-
Annette Warren, who dubbed for Ava Gardner in Show Boat
[ Server, Lee (2007) Ava Gardner: "Love Is Nothing", p. 218. Macmillan, Apr 1, 2007 – At Google Books. Retrieved 13 June 2013.] and Lucille Ball in both Fancy Pants and Sorrowful Jones
-
Darlene Love ghost sang for girl group The Crystals, as acknowledged in the documentary 20 Feet From Stardom
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Bill Lee provided the singing voice for Matt Mattox as Caleb Pontipee in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, John Kerr as Lieutenant Cable in South Pacific and for Christopher Plummer as Captain von Trapp in the film of The Sound of Music
-
Thurl Ravenscroft provided the singing voice for Ken Clark as Stewpot in South Pacific and Fred Astaire in Daddy Long Legs
-
John Wallace provided the singing voice for Paul L. Smith as Bluto in Popeye
-
Diana Coupland provided the singing voice for Ursula Andress in the first official James Bond movie, Dr. No
-
Yang Peiyi, who dubbed for Lin Miaoke at the 2008 Olympics opening ceremony in Beijing
-
Drew Seeley, an actor, dancer and singer provided the vocals for Zac Efron in the 2006 Disney musical film High School Musical
-
Tsin Ting, who is perhaps best known as the Marni Nixon of Hong Kong cinema.
-
Andrea Robinson, who provided the vocals for Wendy Makkena in the Sister Act franchise.
See also
External links
