# Singing in the street/in public



## emma42

I hope this has not been discussed before - I have searched, but not that comprehensively.

What do people think about people singing or humming in the street or in public places?  I am talking about the sort of tuneless humming I hear in shops and streets from people walking along, alone, oblivious to the irritation and crimes against music they are causing and committing.  Far be it from me to be elitist in these matters, but, really, do they not know how appalling they sound?  I just can't understand it.  Now if someone were singing, for example, the soprano part of the duet from Bach's Cantata 78 in pure and perfect pitch, that would be a different matter.

What do people think and is this sort of thing acceptable in your country, and, if not, what penalties should be imposed upon these merchants of cringe?


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## nichec

emma42 said:


> I hope this has not been discussed before - I have searched, but not that comprehensively.
> 
> What do people think about people singing or humming in the street or in public places? I am talking about the sort of tuneless humming I hear in shops and streets from people walking along, alone, oblivious to the irritation and crimes against music they are causing and committing. Far be it from me to be elitist in these matters, but, really, do they not know how appalling they sound? I just can't understand it. Now if someone were singing, for example, the soprano part of the duet from Bach's Cantata 78 in pure and perfect pitch, that would be a different matter.
> 
> What do people think and is this sort of thing acceptable in your country, and, if not, what penalties should be imposed upon these merchants of cringe?


 
Hmmmmmm......Let me see....

People don't sing in the streets of Paris, actually, sometimes I doubt that they breathe  And if you do sing out loud off-key in public places, everyone will just pretend that they didn't hear a thing.

People sing in Rome, but they usually sing very well.

Young girls in America like to sing together, so it's kind of loud, but it's charming in a childish sort of way, they usually end up laughing all together and forgetting about everything else.

People don't sing in Taipei, and I am almost sure you will get some very nasty looks if you dare


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## emma42

Thanks, nichec,  most enlightening.  Yes, I can imagine some wonderful opera being sung in the streets of Rome.  I don't mind young girls singing pop songs together (they do that a lot here too) - I also think it's rather sweet.  It's these tuneless humming merchants who really annoy me.


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## Solbrillante

One of the fondest memories I have of Europe, was the singing in the street at night, raining, usually drunk men.  I absolutely loved that sound and fell asleep to it  every night during a 3 week stay. I was in Europe on a budget, so maybe the fact that I was staying in cheap hotels had something to do with the neighborhood atmosphere but , honestly the only exception was during my stay in Cannes in the south of France-there I did not experience this ( maybe because I did splurge for a nicer place there).
This is a sound I have never, once experienced here in the US.   The memory of this actually makes me smile.  Maybe I'm just weird though!


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## emma42

No, I can see why the whole experience left you with happy memories.  I wasn't thinking of drunk singers (that can either make me smile or really annoy me, depending on mood).


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## Bonjules

Hi there,
I suppose, Emma, you're a bit tongue-in cheek about this. Bach's Nr. 78, no less, huh. And what is 'tuneless humming'?
Many people are offended by any publicly uttered sound by any other human. I would suggest to those to re-direct their ire towards those who take the liberty to blast their fellow man with 50 (100? whatever) watt speakers out of their cars - you have to fear for you hearing, if not your life.
In a very nice suburban part of Stuttgart where I used to live there were regularly people (well, men, if I think about it), usually drunk, to be heard at night, walking by, singing at the top of....Sometimes, actually often, the singing was quite impressive. Ok, so occasionally it woke you up; the thing
is: It had a certain charm that I never experienced again in other parts of the world.
greetings


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## divisortheory

emma42 said:


> I hope this has not been discussed before - I have searched, but not that comprehensively.
> 
> What do people think about people singing or humming in the street or in public places? I am talking about the sort of tuneless humming I hear in shops and streets from people walking along, alone, oblivious to the irritation and crimes against music they are causing and committing. Far be it from me to be elitist in these matters, but, really, do they not know how appalling they sound? I just can't understand it. Now if someone were singing, for example, the soprano part of the duet from Bach's Cantata 78 in pure and perfect pitch, that would be a different matter.
> 
> What do people think and is this sort of thing acceptable in your country, and, if not, what penalties should be imposed upon these merchants of cringe?


 
When I was a college student, there were a few occasions where people were actually singing very loud to their headphones.  They would just be casually walking along and in crowds of a few hundred be singing loud enough that anyone could easily hear them from 10-20 feet away.  It was fairly awkward.


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## emma42

Hi Bonjules.  Yes, a little bit "tongue-in-cheek", although I _do_ find it irritating.  I am playing "the grumpy old woman" to a certain extent.  "What is tuneless humming"?  Well, it's humming that is tuneless.

Oh, yes, divisortheory, people singing to their headphones - awful!  Immediate incarceration is the only answer.


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## Sarasaki

People and headphones are quite funny actually. When all is quiet and suddenly they sing out loud and very off-tune. I have always laughed when that happened!!!! Even imagining it makes me laugh! My 5 year old son sang the chorus of the christmas song "dashing through the snow" for 18 days non-stop while we were in Germany....in the month of May....we got a lot of amused looks!!!


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## emma42

That is really sweet, Sarasaki.


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## Chaska Ñawi

In Ontario humming and singing just don't happen.  You do hear the odd person whistling, though, and nobody gives them a second look.

I frequently whistle (mostly jigs and reels, but sometimes cuecas and caporales) when I'm walking, either in the country or in the downtown.  The only people who react are my teenaged children, who demand that I quit embarassing them.  

In Bolivia I whistled all the time too, and was delighted to find that people would spontaneously join in if they knew the tune.  This even included one of the passenger agents for American Airlines.  (And yes, it was very common for people to sing together after a few bottles of beer.... they didn't have to be falling-down drunk to start singing.)


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## Kajjo

No public singing in Germany. It just doesn't happen, but I believe it would be seen as inappropriate and disturbing.

Kajjo


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## TraductoraPobleSec

I sing and hum very quietly if I am walking alone at night and I don't care if other people notice it  In fact, they can see that I am feeling happy, and that is a good thing! 

One of my favorite songs when walking alone is _Days_, by the Kinks. Don't ask me why!


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## Benjy

emma42 said:


> .  Now if someone were singing, for example, the soprano part of the duet from Bach's Cantata 78 in pure and perfect pitch, that would be a different matter.



You're 100% right. It would be a totally different matter. In England everyone would be giving said female dirty looks and muttering "bleedin' show-off" or worse to themselves. 

Remember the cult of the amateur! It's OK to do anything in public as long as you're crap at it! But heaven help those who try to aim for excellence or have (please forgive me for using such a *dirty* word).... _ambition_.


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## Bonjules

Kajjo said:


> No public singing in Germany. It just doesn't happen, but I believe it would be seen as inappropriate and disturbing.
> 
> Kajjo


 
Sorry to disagree with you, Kajjo.
Not only the formerly decribed individuals; among students, singing in public, mostly in the market squares of small, traditional university towns in the dead of night - is very popular. The 'Saengerschein' that is the ticket/fine the police will give you (it roughly translates as 'singing certificate') is a MUST in some places.


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## Dempsey

I don't think it happens here. I cannot remember being in a public place anywhere and hearing someone humming or singing a tune. I'm guessing most people will just see it as annoying, just like those who play their car stereos incredibly loud (that was outlawed in this state a few years ago).


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## elizabeth_b

At Mexico city if you get the Subway or bus you will hear this "public singers" that usually sings awfully and at the end will ask for your "cooperation" (money) for helping them.   I lived there more than 20 years and in all that time I just heard three really good singers.  In this cases they were so good, and sang so well that all the passengers happily gave a "cooperation" for them.

For the bad singers, sometimes I thought on paying them in order for stop them for "singing" .  They really destroy beautiful songs. 

As for the people who spontaneouslly sings low or whistles a melody, personally I find it something tender.  It seems to me that they are having a little happy moment, and that seems to me beautiful.  

Personally, I prefer not to expose myself to critics, as I'm not a very good singer.  So, I prefer to be a "shower singer".  That's the only place in which I can excercise my lungs and my vocal chords.


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## emma42

Bonjules said:


> Sorry to disagree with you, Kajjo.
> Not only the formerly decribed individuals; among students, singing in public, mostly in the market squares of small, traditional university towns in the dead of night - is very popular. The 'Saengerschein' that is the ticket/fine the police will give you (it roughly translates as 'singing certificate') is a MUST in some places.



Wow!  Is there really a specific fine with its own name for singing in public?  How marvellous! Is one fined more for singing execrable earache such as Britney Spears or less for, say, classic Elvis Costello?

I am finding all your posts very interesting!


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## Bonjules

emma42 said:


> Wow! Is there really a specific fine with its own name for singing in public? How marvellous! Is one fined more for singing execrable earache such as Britney Spears or less for, say, classic Elvis Costello?
> 
> I am finding all your posts very interesting!


 
Sorry, Emma, if my post was confusing. This is what WE, the students, called it. The ticket/fine was probably a generic one (for disturbing the peace and so on... although it might have had a space for writing in
'singing' or such);  unfortunately police/public order forces rarely have that sense of humor...


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## emma42

Oh!  Thanks, Bonjules.  I am a bit disappointed, but no longer confused.


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## mally pense

Hey, Emma, you should know you can't sing anywhere without a license in the UK (or is it just England?). Next time you hear some tuneless humming, report it to the authorities!

_(che-tongue-ek)_


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## emma42

I jolly well will, mally pense.  

_(all-in-seriousness)_.


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## ronanpoirier

OMG! I sing aaaaaaallllllllllllllllll the time! In any language. Lol, people usually give me a strange look but the nthey realize I'm singing and not talking to myself. (But it doesn't mean I don't do that too).

Today when I was getting back home from TechSchool I was at the bus and I received a SMS that made me really happy and the song I was listening to that moment was perfect and I started to sing it. Then someone said to me: you know, we are getting back from work and we are pretty tired. Can you stop singing, please? 
And I was like: OK, I'm sorry. xD
But I kept on moving my mouth 

I am a happy person.


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## mally pense

Being a little more serious for a moment, your post, ronanpoirier, echoes exactly my feelings. I too sing all the time when I'm out an about, ditto when I'm not talking to myself (in English or French). I used to be particularly circumspect about this activity, but recently have become a bit more trigger-happy and less wary of what other people think, though this does depend a little on my mood and the precise circumstances. I did find myself singing perhaps a little too obviously in the local shop, and this became suddenly obvious to me when I realised that everyone else in the shop was suddenly looking in my direction! I'm also particularly taken to standing under the bridges on the local canal and letting loose, though I do tend to reign it back in if I see someone approaching along the footpath. But I keep moving my mouth... 

Tuneless humming though? Without being judgemental _(one person's tuneless humming is another person's operatic aria perhaps?)_, I can't help feeling there's a distinction to be made between the "Singing" in the title of this thread and vague under-the-breath refrains of the typical taboo-restrained would-be _chanteur/se_ or with the the blissfully unaware sympathetic utterences of the headphone-wearing _ipodian_.


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## Kajjo

Bonjules said:


> Sorry to disagree with you, Kajjo. Not only the formerly decribed individuals; among students, singing in public, mostly in the market squares of small, traditional university towns in the dead of night - is very popular. The 'Saengerschein' that is the ticket/fine the police will give you (it roughly translates as 'singing certificate') is a MUST in some places.


First at all, this is intentional breaking the law with the intention of nothing other than doing so. It is a student's joke, so to say.

Secondly, as you say, it is even fined, so that supports my idea of it being inacceptable. 

Thirdly, I have heard of this practice, but it is _very rare_ and limited to _few occasions_ in only a very few _small university towns_. Compared to the whole everyday life in Germany, it is an absolutely exception and extremely rare. Most German have never even heard about this practice. 

So, I believe there is not much contradiction left, sorry, Bonjules.

Kajjo


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## Solbrillante

Hello!  Kajjo, I experienced late night street singing in both Bernkastel-kues and Trier during a brief stay in Germany.  I didn't find it a nuisance though, it was rather charming.  Maybe one's proximity to the local tavern has something to do with this!


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## Kajjo

Solbrillante said:


> Hello!  Kajjo, I experienced late night street singing in both Bernkastel-kues and Trier during a brief stay in Germany.  I didn't find it a nuisance though, it was rather charming.  Maybe one's proximity to the local tavern has something to do with this!


Yes, probably it has. I understood Emma42's question in the sense of normal, not drunken people singing or humming while doing every business like shopping, waiting at a bus stop and so on.

I guess drunken singing and related nuisance is common everywhere.

Kajjo


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## emma42

Quite right, Kajjo.

Mally pense, you are one of "those singers"!  Thanks for explaining yourself a bit - very enlightening.  

I don't know whether the fact that I used to be a professional singer has anything to do with my feelings.  It's not elitism on my part (at least, I don't think it is), as I think that everyone should sing, whether it sounds awful or not (I think karaokes are very democratic and love the concept, despite the neverending renditions of "I Will Survive".  I just can't understand why people would sing or hum in public when alone.  Do they not know they are doing it?  Do they not think about what others will think of them?  Do they want attention?  Do they just love doing it so much that they are simply lost in joy?


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## EmilyD

I am dating myself, but there was a VERY popular movie in the US, _"Singin' In_ _The Rain" _with Gene Kelly, Donald O' Connor, Debbie Reynolds, and Cyd Charisse, that encouraged a generation of us to *sing and Dance in public and in puddles.  *I hope this movie is available in other countries with or without subtitles...

More seriously, the movie, *"M"*, with Peter Lorre (directed I believe by Fritz Lang) makes use of public *whistling*. For those who haven't seen it ( and I do recommend it, but NOT for children), I will say no more. It may be in German. It is considered a classic.


Fondly,  _Nomi_


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## fenixpollo

TraductoraPobleSec said:


> I sing and hum very quietly if I am walking alone at night and I don't care if other people notice it. In fact, they can see that I am feeling happy, and that is a good thing!


 Count me, along with Traductora, ronan and mally, as someone who hums tunefully in the shower, in the car, at work, at home... wherever a tune comes to me. And since I always have a song playing in my head, it just happens spontaneously everywhere. I don't think consciously, "I think that this crowded bus is a good place to hum this Kinks song that's in my head"... I just start humming it. After people start looking at me out of the corner of their eye and giving me nonverbal signs of irritation, I suddenly realize that I've been humming.  It's totally involuntary and autonomic, like breathing 





elizabeth_b said:


> In Mexico City if you get on the Subway or bus you will hear these "public singers" that usually sing awfully and at the end will ask for your "cooperation" (money) for helping them. I lived there more than 20 years and in all that time I heard just three really good singers. In these cases they were so good, and sang so well that all the passengers happily gave a "cooperation" to them.
> 
> For the bad singers, sometimes I thought on think about paying them in order for to stop them for from "singing" . They really destroy beautiful songs.
> 
> As for the people who spontaneouslly sing low or whistle a melody, personally I find it something tender sweet. It seems to me that they are having a little happy moment, and that seems to me beautiful to me.
> 
> Personally, I prefer not to expose myself to critics, as I'm not a very good singer. So, I prefer to be a "shower singer". That's the only place in which I can excercise my lungs and my vocal chords.


 I'm with elizabeth -- our tuneful humming is sweet, not annoying.


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## emma42

Alright, now I am beginning to understand you folk, I am beginning to feel more tolerant, especially as you say your humming is "tuneful".


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## heidita

Bonjules said:


> The 'Saengerschein' that is the ticket/fine the police will give you (it roughly translates as 'singing certificate') is a MUST in some places.


Never heard of this before. People do sing when they are drunk. But they have to be very drunk. People don't even sing inside bars. As Kajjo said: simply not done.

Here is Spain everybody sings. Well, just part of the noise common in Spain, I suppose.

I have looked for this "Sängeschein". Apparently this was something that happened around 1954. And only Marburg is mentioned. 
Actually, in one of the articles it is called a legend.
So, we might add, this simply doesn't exist. 

*



			Legenden
		
Click to expand...

*


> *Sängerschein.* Den Sängerschein erwarb man sich, indem man sich von der Polizei ein Bußgeld aufbrummen ließ, weil man immerzu singend um einen (bestimmten?) Marburger Brunnen herumlief. Ebenfalls qualifizierend für den Sängerschein war es, wenn man ein Denkmal, die sog. »Lahnziege«, bestieg.


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## Bonjules

heidita said:


> Never heard of this before. People do sing when they are drunk. But they have to be very drunk. People don't even sing inside bars. As Kajjo said: simply not done.
> 
> Here is Spain everybody sings. Well, just part of the noise common in Spain, I suppose.
> 
> I have looked for this "Sängeschein". Apparently this was something that happened around 1954. And only Marburg is mentioned.
> Actually, in one of the articles it is called a legend.
> So, we might add, this simply doesn't exist.


*

Well, I know little about Marburg and was certainly not thinking of it when I described the practice that I know first-hand exists in other places (unfortunately not everything is in books or on the internet). 
Kajjo, shall we argue over where a 'prank' ends and a time-honored tradition begins?

It is also true that most folks -in any country-will abide by the majority-imposed societal convention, no matter how humorless, boring or even stifling it may be; few want to 'stick their head out'.
Will all? Of course not, fortunately. 
Which is why it is a good idea to be careful with categorical statements
like the ones made.
saludos*


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## heidita

Kajjo said:


> Most German have never even heard about this practice.


 
Count me in!



> So, I believe there is not much contradiction left, sorry, Bonjules.


 
Neither do I, Bonjules.



Bonjules said:


> Well, I know little about Marburg


 
As Kajjo mentioned before, I suppose this is one of the very exceptional places where this happens, as Marburg is a University town.



> a time-honored tradition begins?


 
I suppose if it were a "time honourd tradition" as you put it, it should at least be _known_ by native Germans, don't you think? Kajjo mentions he has _heard _about this very rare practice, but even he doesn't know much about it as it seems. 

I mean, there is a village in Spain where the _time-honoured tradition_ was to throw a goat from the church tower. Now, I do not think we can say, listen, the tradition in Spain is to throw animals from towers. 


> It is also true that most folks -in any country-will abide by the majority-imposed societal convention, no matter how humorless, boring or even stifling it may be; few want to 'stick their head out'.


 
Sorry, possibly I am misunderstanding: are you implying that the people who do not know or never practised this "tradition" are humorless?


> Which is why it is a good idea to be careful with categorical statements like the ones made.
> saludos


 
Indeed, Bonjules. 

I agree that not everything has to be on internet. The "Sängeschein" is mentioned though on the web. I also agree that Kajjo and I are not precisely representative of the Germans as a whole, but at least, if it were a _tradition_, one should "know" about it, don't you think?
I on my part have never even _heard_ about it. 

To mention here also, that Germans do seem to sing when they are abroad. Here in Spain, Mallorca, we are widely known as _noisy drunkyards._ My husband on the other hand is always surprised when we enter a bar in Germany, at how low people even_ talk_. And singing, by no means, is acceptable there.

In Spain, though, singing is done even in restaurants. There is a very nice restaurant, I have heard, and for music lovers it might be a treat, where the waiters are opera singers. In the middle of the meal, at around 11, the waiters start to sing. I have never been, as this would really bother me. Imagine a table just beside the singers! Well out of my scope of imagination. For me a horrible thought.

*



Restaurante La Favorita
This restaurant specialises in dishes from Navarra served to opera. It is a real fun night out with serving staff singing opera as they deliver the meals. 

Click to expand...

*


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## ernest_

You don't see many people singing in the street (unless they're having a party or something late at night) round here. What I noticed is people singing when they ride motorbikes, because with a helmet on and the roar of the engine no one can hear you, so it's safe. I thought I was the only one, until one day some chap mentioned that he used to sing while driving his motorbike, and everybody round said they did as well.


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## mally pense

There was a woman who entered a singing competition on TV, sang really well, except *without moving her lips*! When asked why, she said she liked singing in the car, but was too embarrassed to be seen doing so at traffic lights etc., so she had taught herself to sing ventriloquist-style! Really spooky to watch actually, but it shows the degree to which our need to confirm and fit in overrides such basic desires as 'giving voice'.

_(Maybe she'd have been better off riding a bike?)_


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## mirx

I love singing but have a horrendous voice, I´ve been told more than once to shut my mouth up. I too walk alone late at night, the circumstances are too tempting for me so I do sing everyday while having a walk. 

I am embarrased of poeple knowing that I am singing, so I grab my mobile phone and make it seem like I am talking, or when I see a car coming down the road I cover my lower face with a kleenex and make it seem like I am blowing my nose.

I love singing people, be it alone, in the shower, in the bus, anywhere. I wish I could help it but I can't. Oh and just for the record, it has nothing to do with my being happy.

And about the perspective of my society of the matter, in México it is not very common and people don't see it as something annoying, if anything it is regarded as funny.


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## shoobydoowap

I just got back from Wal-Mart and what did I see there? A group of teenage girls skipping down the aisles singing a song from the 70s in their worst singing voices very loudly. And I thought of this thread. So I guess it's a bit more common than I thought it was.

(mally_pense, the song was "It's Raining Men" by the Weather Girls which I just realized was released in 1982--my mistake. It was an... interesting rendition.)


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## emma42

Mirx, what a lovely and honest post!

Yes, Shoobydoo, which song from the 70s?


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## roseruf

heidita said:


> In Spain, though, singing is done even in restaurants. There is a very nice restaurant, I have heard, and for music lovers it might be a treat, where the waiters are opera singers. In the middle of the meal, at around 11, the waiters start to sing. I have never been, as this would really bother me. Imagine a table just beside the singers! Well out of my scope of imagination. For me a horrible thought.



  Hi everyone
   Heidita, I think it is more usual in the basque  country than in other parts of Spain, very common in San Sabastian, very rare in Barcelona!  My father family is from San Sabastian and in the family meetings all the big meals ends with everybody singing, except for the small part of the family coming from Barcelona, we always feel very embarrassed! (they sing very well!!) Usually, the singing goes together with the expression: “¡esto no lo hace el agua!”
   What I miss from my childhood is building workers (¿albañiles?) singing at work. Now they use the radio... and it is a pity!
  I think is not usual to hear someone singing, whistling... in the street, but if he/she does loud enough (not shouting) none is going to be disgusted... I hope!
  And I agree with heidita, not singing at the street doesn’t means you are in bad mood! I never sing (sure the planet thanks me), but I usually smile! 
  Funny threat!
  Roser


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## Vanda

I think people sing in the streets because they are happy with themselves, to begin with. Out of tune?! Why not? If they are not singing aloud or yelling, they'll bring a smile to my face and as I have observed to the faces of the ones passing by.

Quoting Sarasaki:"_People and headphones are quite funny actually. When all is quiet and suddenly they sing out loud and very off-tune"_
That's true. I think they don't realize they are singing aloud and they always make me laugh.



> Now if someone were singing, for example, the soprano part of the duet from Bach's Cantata 78 in pure and perfect pitch, that would be a different matter.


So people can sing a duet from Bach but not a - let's say- focklore or a popular song. Why, this sounds elitist!  

So far, in general, I gathered from this thread that Latino people  (the ones I read in this thread) and people who lives/d in Latino countries -like Chaska - find it natural and people from other cultures don't. Maybe this is just another trait of culture that makes this world so diverse and colorful.


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## Etcetera

Hello Emma.



emma42 said:


> What do people think and is this sort of thing acceptable in your country, and, if not, what penalties should be imposed upon these merchants of cringe?


No, people normally don't sing in the streets in Russia. There are street musicians, of course, and some of them can be just as nasty, but that's another matter.


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## emma42

There's no reason for Bach to be elitist.  Baroque CDs are the same price as pop CDs.  And while we're about it - why are my ears constantly blasted by people's car stereos subjecting everyone to their awful shouty hiphop, and never a nice bit of Elgar?


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## luis masci

mally pense said:


> There was a woman who entered a singing competition on TV, sang really well, except *without moving her lips*! When asked why, she said she liked singing in the car, but was too embarrassed to be seen doing so at traffic lights etc., so she had taught herself to sing ventriloquist-style!


I think in that case, getting dark glasses for the car's windows would be easier than learning to sing ventriloquist style. Don't you think?


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## mally pense

luis masci said:


> I think in that case, getting dark glasses for the car's windows would be easier than learning to sing ventriloquist style. Don't you think?


 
Good point! Next time I see a car with darkened windows I'll know it's because the occupants are secretly singing at the lights


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## TraductoraPobleSec

emma42 said:


> There's no reason for Bach to be elitist. Baroque CDs are the same price as pop CDs. And while we're about it - why are my ears constantly blasted by people's car stereos subjecting everyone to their awful shouty hiphop, and never a nice bit of Elgar?


 
That's a good point, Emma.

And then let me add that I've also noticed that I start singing and humming to myself when I am walking in an area that is not that safe, such big parks, certain streets here in big cities, when it's dark or when waiting at bus stops or subway stations. Songs and music definitely make good company even if you're not that much of a great singer.


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## elizabeth_b

emma42 said:


> There's no reason for Bach to be elitist. Baroque CDs are the same price as pop CDs. And while we're about it - why are my ears constantly blasted by people's car stereos subjecting everyone to their awful shouty hiphop, and never a nice bit of Elgar?


 
Well, maybe the reason is that people isn't so familiar with classical music as they are with pop music. There aren't so much radio stations that play classics, at least were I live there are just two of them. And well, it's a pity, because you can't love what you don't know. You can't appreciate Bach if you don't know the elements he handles in his music, his contributions, or simply if you're not sensible when hearing it. I think it's just a matter of not being used to hear that kind of music. So I think we'll hear hip hop in car stereos for a long time instead of Mozart, Wagner or Tchaikovsky.
I love some Opera Arias, but I wouldn't dare to sing them. No way! I know that you would kill me if you hear me trying to sing or hum them  So, as Ringo Starr use to sing "What would you say if I sang out of tune, will you stand up and walk out on me?" 

P.S. Sorry for my english, if I commited any mistakes plesae correct me. You help me a lot when you do it!


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## emma42

elizabeth_b said:


> Well, maybe the reason is that people isn't aren't so familiar with classical music as they are with pop music. There aren't so much many radio stations that play classics, at least were whereI live there are just two of them. And well, it's a pity, because you can't love what you don't know. You can't appreciate Bach if you don't know the elements he handles in his music, his contributions, or simply if you're not sensible sensitive? when hearing it. I think it's just a matter of not being used to hearing that kind of music. So I think we'll hear hip hop in from car stereos for a long time instead of Mozart, Wagner or Tchaikovsky.
> I love some Opera Arias, but I wouldn't dare to sing them. No way! I know that you would kill me if you heard me trying to sing or hum them  So, as Ringo Starr used to sing "What would you say if I sang out of tune, will you stand up and walk out on me?"
> 
> P.S. Sorry for my Eenglish, if I commited made any mistakes plesae correct me. You help me a lot when you do it!



Just a few corrections, elizabeth.  Your English is very good.

Yes, I agree that pop music is more pervasive than other forms.

Traductora, you make such a sweet and honest case for singing in the street alone that I have no choice but to allow you to continue!


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## TraductoraPobleSec

emma42 said:


> Just a few corrections, elizabeth. Your English is very good.
> 
> Yes, I agree that pop music is more pervasive than other forms.
> 
> Traductora, you make such a sweet and honest case for singing in the street alone that I have no choice but to allow you to continue!


 
Thanks, my dear! I will!


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## mally pense

elizabeth_b said:


> P.S. Sorry for my Eenglish, if I commited made any mistakes plesae please correct me. You help me a lot when you do it!


 
Just a couple more very minor corrections Elizabeth, but as Emma says, your English is very good.

Regarding your observations on the appreciation of Bach vs Hip Hop, the case could just as easily be made the other way round: You can't appreciate Hip Hop if you don't know the elements in the music, or simply if you're not sensible/sensitive _(or whatever)_ when hearing it. Maybe it's just a matter of not being used to hearing that kind of music?  Bach is without doubt one of the most outstanding musical genius's of all time, but at the same time, it's important to realise that all musical cultures have their relevance and value, even if that's not all that apparent when all you can hear/feel from them is the sub-bass emanating from a passing car.


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## elizabeth_b

mally pense said:


> Just a couple more very minor corrections Elizabeth, but as Emma says, your English is very good.
> 
> Regarding your observations on the appreciation of Bach vs Hip Hop, the case could just as easily be made the other way round: You can't appreciate Hip Hop if you don't know the elements in the music, or simply if you're not sensible/sensitive _(or whatever)_ when hearing it. Maybe it's just a matter of not being used to hearing that kind of music?  Bach is without doubt one of the most outstanding musical genius's of all time, but at the same time, it's important to realise that all musical cultures have their relevance and value, even if that's not all that apparent when all you can hear/feel from them is the sub-bass emanating from a passing car.


 
Yes, you're quite right.  Personally I don't understand hip hop, that's why I don't appreciate it very much.  But of course I suppose that it has interesting musical elements, which as you can see, I don't know.  But I also think that it's acceptance amongst the masive public has much to do with the fact that music companies supports ,this and other kinds of music such as pop, doing a lot of marketing.  I'm not saying that hip hop, rap or pop are good or bad, what I'm trying to say is that we hear more of this kind of music because there's a need to stimulate the market to buy it and because it's what currently is being produced 
My point is that maybe, if there were more classical music playing in the radio, people would be humming, whistling or singing this kind of music and not ... hip hop?
But then, we would be "out of our time" (is this the expresion?),right?anachronistic?  

Regards
E.B.


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## mally pense

elizabeth_b said:


> Yes, you're quite right. Personally I don't understand hip hop, that's why I don't appreciate it very much. But of course I suppose that it has interesting musical elements, which as you can see, I don't know. But I also think that it's acceptance amongst the massive mass public has much to do with the fact that music companies supports ,this and other kinds of music such as pop, doing a lot of marketing. I'm not saying that hip hop, rap or pop are good or bad, what I'm trying to say is that we hear more of this kind of music because there's a need to stimulate the market to buy it and because it's what currently is being produced.
> My point is that maybe, if there were more classical music playing in on the radio, people would be humming, whistling or singing this kind of music and not ... hip hop?
> But then, we would be "out of our time" (is this the expression?) [I don't know], right? anachronistic?
> 
> Regards
> E.B.


 
People generally whistle or hum whatever they hear (or listen to) most, so if there were more classical music playing on the radio, I guess the answer would be yes.


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## alexacohen

fenixpollo said:


> Count me, along with Traductora, ronan and mally, as someone who hums tunefully in the shower, in the car, at work, at home...


 
I plead guilty, too. I sing all the time (except in the shower, I would end up swallowing soap). 
Anything from Lou Reed to Verdi. But not aloud, of course. I don't do it because I want to attract attention, but because I like it. I don't care, either, what people may think.
And it's useful. I made my daughters and nieces go up a very long flight of stairs without moaning simply by taking the lead and singing aloud "Following the leader, the leader, the leader, following the leader wherever she may go". 
Why should we be put into prison?
And please, any Spaniard who has not heard "un elefante se balanceaba sobre la cuerda de una araña, y como veía que no se caía fue a llamar a otro elefante. Dos elefantes..." sung in the streets is not living in Spain.


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## TraductoraPobleSec

alexacohen said:


> And please, any Spaniard who has not heard "un elefante se balanceaba sobre la cuerda de una araña, y como veía que no se caía fue a llamar a otro elefante. Dos elefantes..." sung in the streets is not living in Spain.


 
We Catalans are more into the Peter, Paul & Mary and P. Seeger covers into our language! (Puff era un drac màgic and so on)  Wonderful stuff! I thought that shower singing was international: I myself sing a lot in the shower and when doing chores at home; and yes, like sister Alexa, my repertoire covers both Lou Reed (preferably Velvet Underground!) to Verdi, though lately I've found myself singing Diego el Cigala!

I believe singing is a very natural act over here and all my life I've heard my neighbours doing it. As for singing in the street, which is the topic here, it is not so common, maybe because people are not at home and do not feel at ease. Singing is a sign of happiness and just because of this it deserves to be respected and admired. I rather hear someone singing (even if he or she does a bad job!) than seeing dull faces!


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## alexacohen

TraductoraPobleSec said:


> We Catalans are more into the Peter, Paul & Mary and P. Seeger covers into our language! (Puff era un drac màgic and so on)  Wonderful stuff!


 
I never heard "Puff the magic dragon lives by the sea" sung in the streets of Granada or La Coruña... but I heard "Venceremos nos". Yes, wonderful stuff.
I forgot "When the saints go marching in". I would not say the lyrics that are sung are accurate, though: Oh philishave, oh westinghouse, oh philishave oh westinghouse, la lavadora del futuro, oh philishave oh westinghouse.


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## Encolpius

I have no idea what people think about that phenomenon because haven't read any statistics or newspaper articles about it at all. I can't remember any event when someone sang in Prague, I haven't even met a drunken singing alone here, kissing in public is far more common and excellently tolerated, so I doubt singing would cause any special reactions here.


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## The Machine of Zhu

I don't know what the situation is in Belgium. I'm usually singing or humming when I'm out in public, so I can't hear whether or not people sing or hum. I have an excellent taste in music and the voice of an angel, though.


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## Jasmine_Chila

I want to grab the bottles of every singing drunk on the street and smash it over their own heads.


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