JONE$TOWN, THE VOCAL CULT OF OUR TIME
One of the things that history has taught us is that people have an inbuilt propensity to follow the wrong leader. This inherent trait ensures that the majority of people get it wrong the majority of the time. So reliable is this truism that people even use it as an investment strategy. The contrarian investor has learnt that not following the crowd is almost always the smart way to go. The world of vocal pedagogy, far from being immune from this phenomenon, seems to attract it. The abstract nature of teaching has allowed it to become a bastion of charlatanism; there always seems to be a new vocal messiah who is creating a stir. The formula is always the same, a lot of excitement, a lot of money, a new book, a great marketing plan and very little substance. Recently our latest incarnation of the celebrity super teacher has had a Wizard of Oz style unveiling. Now that the dust is settling, the landscape is revealing a sea of red faces. Many of these people should have known better. In this article I am going to explore the reasons why I think so many people became devout followers of Jonestown, the vocal cult of our time.
STUPIDITY
While it’s not the nicest thing to say it is
the truth. Part of the brilliance behind Jones' marketing
plan is his ability to produce content that is dumbed down in order for it to
be digested by the lowest common denominator. Many of his followers would
have had past attempts at reading other material on vocal pedagogy only to find
that they were unable to comprehend it. This is not uncommon for people
of any intelligence level because vocal pedagogy is a scientific subject which contains
a lot of jargon, deals with
anatomy, and describes functions which we
cannot see. All of these facts make it difficult to digest. In
Jones' content the readers found a simple pseudo-scientific
description of some vocal function related through some five-minute success
story from a fictional lesson. This formula is a hallmark of Jones' content and
reads something like this:
(EXAMPLE)
I was travelling to my satellite office in Berlin when I received a call from a famous mezzo who was having trouble singing Jezibaba at the Bastille. I immediately cleared my schedule and flew to Paris. Upon hearing the mezzo sing I immediately identified the problem. The mezzo was making the mistake of [insert technical fault]. This resulted in [insert pseudo-scientific explanation], which was causing the voice to [insert problem with the voice]. I immediately brought this to her attention and asked her to [insert technical correction]. After five minutes she exhibited a youthful silvery tone with an immaculate vibrato rate. The mezzo completed the run with great acclaim and is continuing to dazzle audiences in the twilight of her career.
Sadly, Jones' followers would simply memorise different
variations of this formula with the belief that their new-found
understanding has led to them inheriting his messianic ability to fix any vocal problem in a
few minutes.
LAZINESS
Vocal knowledge is acquired over decades and can only be the
bounty of a critical and inquisitive mind. Many of the answers people
seek can only be attained through years of experience, research, hard work and
dedication. Most people are too lazy to pay this price, for such people
the convenience of everything being handed to them on a plate in one single
source is what they want. Jones
understands this very well and once again his content is
brilliantly constructed in that it is designed as a starter kit for teaching.
This cookie-cutter franchise complete with terminology, exercises, tonal ideals
and historic name-dropping quickly gives a sense of being upskilled to the
uninitiated who feel that they have found something which they can latch onto.
By defining teachers as part of his target audience, Jones has created
a network through which he disseminates his information, thereby
reaching more students, which in turn has led to more
money. Jones sees himself as a teacher of teachers, who for a fee will
hand out an accreditation through his mentorship programme. Having
completed this programme is considered something akin to a badge of honour
amongst his following, confirming their status as bona fide
instructors of the Swedish-Italian school.
POLITICS
Jones' understanding of politics is nothing short of genius.
Every move he makes is politically calculated. This calculation extends not only to the wider concepts of
political correctness but also the vocal terminology and concepts themselves.
Any traditional terms that have fallen out of favour in some groups have
been replaced with new terms invented by Jones. One example of this
is "cover" which has become somewhat maligned within vocal
pedagogy over the last
thirty years. Some people like the term and
others don’t. By replacing this term with his own "acoustic
protection", Jones was able to avoid part of his audience from becoming
ideologically alienated, thereby maintaining agreeableness
with everyone. This tactic of creating "high
agreeableness" both in regard to his content and wider message is the
hallmark of his trade. En vogue terms such as "creating a false
colour through depressing the larynx" or "tension in the root of the tongue"
make regular appearances only because they have become fashionable and therefore have political value. In defining his own
stance on the correct position of the larynx, Jones will
say things like "the larynx should not be too high" and "the
larynx should not be too low". This is all by design, the result of this calculated
strategy is that nobody is able to
disagree, because nothing has really been said to begin
with.
In regards to political correctness in the wider context, Jones
does not disappoint. His business model is centred around another progressive ideal
which is being "non-exclusionary". This message
of love and acceptance knows no bounds. Even if a person was
deaf, dumb and had one vocal cord they would still not only be welcome to
participate but also could become an accredited instructor of the method.
Both Jones and his clique of acolyte teachers talk
about bringing the joy of sound-making to people’s lives as
if the purpose of the lesson was some type of pseudo-emotional
therapy. While these might
be the ideals we would all want in our local childcare centre they have nothing
to do with the training of elite opera singers.
In addition to vocal damage and pseudo-emotional therapy, Jonestown
members are also experts in vocalising through menopause which has become a
lucrative money-spinner in its own right. If people
had looked slightly below the surface they would not only have found
a web of lies complete with an invented lineage, but the real
reason for the politicisation of both Jones' material and marketing strategy: money.
Content which has "high agreeableness" and a business
model which is "all-inclusionary" have the same thing
in common. They both play to the widest possible demographic. Add
to this the teaching of pop singing, voice therapy, pseudo-emotional
therapy and menopausal services and you have a massive revenue base from which
to draw from. In this day and age, society has become so dumbed
down that not only do people hand over small fortunes to those that are
deceiving them, but they sing the moral virtues of their recipient due to the
politicised nature of his language. Resultingly, the "kindness industry " has become extremely lucrative. David Jones is indeed
an extremely kind man and he has made an absolute fortune
from spreading a beautiful and all-inclusive message.
LOW SELF-ESTEEM
This is not directed towards singers who were seeking answers but
it is directed towards teachers who are promoting the method.
Again this is not the nicest thing to say but the accusation holds
water. Some people feel like they need to be a part of something
bigger. Singing teachers are no exception. All singing teachers
have the opportunity to draw from the vast written legacy of history's great
teachers, singers and voice scientists. Add to
this their own experiences and knowledge that they have attained from other sources and they should have
something which they feel is worthy of offering a student. Nobody is
forced to become a singing teacher and it isn’t something which should be done
before a certain degree of knowledge and experience has been attained. If
the best a teacher can do is rehash someone else’s fabricated information
then they shouldn’t be a teacher to begin with. For those
of you who think I am being harsh I would remind you to consider all those
who have parted with their money. These people
deserved better. Furthermore, when I hear about the sums
of money that Jones and some of those promoting the Swedish-Italian
school are charging it disgusts me, because there is nothing anybody can
do over the course of one lesson which can justify those prices.
HATEFUL
TROLLS VS BEAUTIFUL SOULS
When
confronted with the inconvenient truth, Jonestown disciples are in general
unable to construct any type of logical defence. If any response is
forthcoming it is always emotionally based. Attestations
such as "he is a kind and beautiful man" seem to be the
intellectual limitation of their argument and this is currently the
front-running response. Other popular responses such as "I
feel that he has helped me" and "Jones has saved my voice "
round out the top three. In light of these
responses it is clear that Jonestown disciples do not excel in the arena of
apologetic debate. But then why defend when you can attack? It
is far easier to declare anyone who questions the legitimacy of Jones' claims
to be a hateful person or a troll. In addition to this, those
who dared to ask questions find themselves unwelcome in many places where they
were welcome before. This blacklisting can also include the subjects
of the “troll hunts” becoming the target of smear campaigns, sending a clear
message to anyone else who might dare to ask questions.
A SLIPPERY SLOPE
What David Jones has done is profit from committing fraud. In
any other field he would most definitely be facing criminal charges. Jones, like anyone who engages in this type of fraud, unfortunately
chose the wrong path. As a teacher he felt that his ability, knowledge
and experience was not enough to be successful. To make up for his own
perceived shortcomings he fabricated a story so that his services would be more
marketable. The main issue lies in the fact that most of the people who
paid money only did so because of a perceived credibility which stemmed from
numerous fraudulent claims he has made. Given these facts it is reasonable to assume that there may be
grounds for legal proceedings which could possibly culminate in a class
action. At the time of publishing this article he continues in this deceit
as does his network of teachers who similarly profit from promoting these
fabrications.
HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF
If
you are one of those who jumped on the Jonestown bandwagon you are not
alone. In contradiction with mainstream pop psychology I would advise
you to beat yourself up a little (but not forever). Sometimes these things can be difficult to see, particularly
for young people who have less experience. People have a
tendency to give others the benefit of the doubt. This trait comes
from a good place but it is a factor in our predisposition to follow the wrong
leader. A healthy sense of scepticism is not a bad thing and will put you in good stead next time you are faced with a similar
choice. To learn more about the details of Jones' intentional acts
of fraud you should visit the YouTube channel Mister Opera, where
you will find a series which exposes the truth behind this scam. Most
revealing is the interview between the channel’s creator Philippe Castagner and Leif Lundberg. Mr Jones has gone on the record stating that Leif Lundberg
is the ultimate authority on the lineage and techniques which are behind the
Swedish Italian School. However, in this interview Mr Lundberg
exposes the truth, which is that the lineage is a complete
fabrication, that the concepts that Jones promotes are not
historical, and that they have their basis in post-World War
II American pedagogy. Mr Lundberg also reveals a more nasty
side to Mr Jones in recounting some of the things he is partial to saying
behind closed doors. This interview is something which anybody
connected to the Swedish Italian School has a
responsibility to watch. Perhaps the highlight of the series is
the quote from Mr Lundberg where he states:
"Little
did he know that elderly people can use Skype!"
WHEN WE GO LOW THEY GO HIGH!
Honest people who are falsely accused tend to want to clear their
name. Accordingly
you should not expect any response from David
Jones or those who promote the Swedish-Italian School. Their modus operandi
is to try to rise above it all while
continuing to profit from the deception. That being said there
is a comment section below where anybody wanting to express any view can leave
a comment here. This can be done by either using your real name or
using a pseudonym. It takes only one minute to create a blogger
handle.
CONCLUSION
For many this cautionary tale will not be enough. History
repeats itself and some things never change. For those of you who never
learn and are determined to rush out and ordain the next vocal messiah I will
end by asking one simple favour.
Next time, can we choose someone who actually
sings?
Copyright Brett
Goulding 2020
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