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My local PBS channel recently had on Diana Ross' 1983 Central Park concert. I have always liked her music, but was never really a fan. Watching her concert, I was surprised at how well she sang. Even the best of performers have difficulty singing live, since synchronizing their voice with the orchestra and with electronic devices can be difficult. But it looks like Diana had some control over the volume at which the orchestra played, and could thus "hear" herself sing. She kept instructing the orchestra to lower the volume, or increase the volume, according to her needs. It worked, and the crowd didn't mind their Diana issuing orders from her stage to make sure the music reached them fine. "Can you hear me back there?" she would shout out.
She sang perfectly in tune, which is difficult even for experienced pop stars. But, I think she comes from a different era than the Britney Spears and Justin Biebers. She is a perfectionist, but she is also an intelligent performer. Her voice is weak (we are used these days to bombastic black singers) but she uses it extremely well, and musically. I didn't think she could have the kind of volume she maintained in some of her songs, but she did. A lot had to do with how she was able to control her voice. She must have learned over time how to make the best of her limited voice. She is also a performer, and gets emotionally into the music, which helps her deliver high quality singing.
The Central Park show was rained out (stormed out, more like) the first night, but she returned the following day to give a full performance.
She showed her emphatic nature, and her intelligence, as she managed the crowd the night of the storm. Most news coverage the next day praised her steadfast ability to direct the thousands of fans out of the park without a single act of vandalism or violence. The PBS program showed looking at the crowd, silent for a while, as she tried to assess the best way to handle this potential catastrophe. We could see her thinking. In the end, all she could offer was her presence, which was enough for the crowd. "I'm not going anywhere," she kept saying. And she softened her firm directions for the crowd to leave the park with "I love you guys," which I'm sure she meant. She saw these people as vulnerable children, who were at the mercy of her lucidity. She stayed as long as she could, singing to the crowd as is it quietly left.
Below are images of her with her fiery red scarf blowing in the storm, like some fire goddess fighting the torrential waters. I got the images from this video. At times the wind and rain push back her slight frame, but she stays as long as she could. Around the 3:07 point, she shouts out, "Alright, if anybody wants to leave I want you to quietly kinda try to go to your left, my right, and this way. Slowly leave if you want to." Soon after, she carefully says that everyone has to leave, making it clear that it was no longer a matter of "wanting to."
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