I can answer that with ease

Exceptional players have no need to sing, their skill shines through their play..

Secondly, when you are a great player, there is more involved then playing 2-5 chords, or following tracks.

They have mastered their skills..

I believe I have only really known one great player that sang .. He was also an average singer.. (Brent).

I do know many "singers" in the next group that play to back themselves... I don't believe many if any are great players..

Personally I rather listen to a great instrumentalist ( and appreciate the skill level, then a "pop" type singer. The exception would be throwback to old groups that I grew up with)

Let me add this: part of being a complete musician is the ability to sing. In college besides music theory we also did sight singing ( solege) and ear training.

I hear too many players complain they had years of piano but can’t sing or play by ear. That tells me their training was incomplete. It’s not too late. Music is a life long study. There’s always something new to learn or improve.

Donny one of the points I was trying to make in an earlier post..

An accomplished player that plays rhythmic style in the left hand with moving bass notes and chord structure in the right hand that goes beyond a basic 1-2-5 .. A player with a much higher skill level, and to be fluent as a singer is very rare ( sure Barry Manilow)..

The arranger keyboards cover up the ability to excel as a player, but when you have relied as an instrumentalist and developed your skill, it is much harder to sing or even want to sing. Nor is it a necessity.

Just as an example, comfort zone counts... You prefer to play in the key of "C", Play your material in C# or B, does it effect your vocal?

It surly will, because you are not in your comfort zone, and the added awareness and thinking about the different key.

Now for let's say a accomplished piano player that takes much more skill, the concentration to add vocals is much harder to obtain..

Not an excuse but a fact..

Donny one of the points I was trying to make in an earlier post..

An accomplished player that plays rhythmic style in the left hand with moving bass notes and chord structure in the right hand that goes beyond a basic 1-2-5 .. A player with a much higher skill level, and to be fluent as a singer is very rare ( sure Barry Manilow)..

The arranger keyboards cover up the ability to excel as a player, but when you have relied as an instrumentalist and developed your skill, it is much harder to sing or even want to sing. Nor is it a necessity.

Just as an example, comfort zone counts... You prefer to play in the key of "C", Play your material in C# or B, does it effect your vocal?

It surly will, because you are not in your comfort zone, and the added awareness and thinking about the different key.

Now for let's say a accomplished piano player that takes much more skill, the concentration to add vocals is much harder to obtain..

Not an excuse but a fact..


PS: Here is my personal example...when our brain power is pushed to limits Also a pet peeve.. When someone insist on having a conversation with you while you are playing "live".. especially when you are backing someone else... you can not play a turn around and hold a chord, to answer a stupid question

This thread has me going now. Whereas, I see where Fran is coming from, I am looking at this as an attainable skill set at this late date. Donny, your explanation, coupled with your examples, has shown me the added excitement that can be added. Maybe simple at first, but I see what can be done with impromptu embellishments. As long as I stick to proper timing and chord structure, I know I can add something meaningful to my performance. Thank you.

Believe me I can't sing. Helen Keller asked me to stop singing.

Singing is the expression of the inner soul.

I think that once again many are confusing arranger playing with piano playing. They are two different instruments and require different skill sets, even though of course the arrangement of the keys are the same.
But that's another feature of arrangers, you CAN play them like a piano, to a degree.
Having never really played piano, I think more like a guitar player or other instrumentalist.
I don't think good musicianship can be determined solely by whether you play good piano.
This of course even relates to what we regard as "good feel" or "a great key bed". Having fully weighted keys can be a deterrent to good arranger playing, while being somewhat essential to good piano playing.
I somewhat envy those who can play good left hand bass while singing and playing with the right,because it opens up avenues for using the arranger that I don't have. I can play left hand bass, even bass guitar, but it contradicts the way I basically play arrangers. I haven't developed that particular skill set to a degree where it would enhance anything, and at this point I don't have a desire to do that.
The one reason I keep looking to replace the excellent Korg PA4X is because the semi-weighted keys hurt my fingers after a few hours. So far nothing else has filled the bill completely.
As far as singing, I started trying to do that when the singer quit the band and I wanted to keep getting paid. I was AWFUL and it took years to become adequate. I'm only in the past few years starting to think of myself as a decent singer, with many limitations. Maybe 50 years of doing it every night helps one learn. I'm still learning things...such as how to determine which keys sound best for me, experimenting with playing in different keys. The transpose button works in many cases, but the "licks" you play in one key can be much more difficult to achieve in another key. Actually playing in other keys often sounds different than just transposing everything. But, again, that's another great feature of arrangers; you don't have to play in keys that are difficult for you if you don't choose to invest the time and effort to do that. I can play in any key, but am much more comfortable in "white" keys, such as C,D,E,F,G,A and even Bb. Many good players are more comfortable in Eb, F#, B, but I only use them when I have to. That might be required on the rare occasions when I use music or a lead line.
Sorry for all this rambling, and it's only meant to convey thoughts that relate to the way I use arrangers, in case anyone is interested. It isn't necessarily the way anyone else should. There is no right or wrong way, as long as it brings pleasure to the player and/or the audience, if any.

EX. Diana Krall-started out as a pretty good jazz pianist but what do people know her for, her silky vocals. Check out some of her vids on You Tube.

I sing but when I started customers suggested I stop. Not everyone can sing. I'll go even further and state there are some folks here who believe they are great singers who really shouldn't embarrass themselves. At the least they need to work on getting a good pa and a good mike. Using inferior equipment for vocals is a huge problem with the bulk of local entertainers.

VERY few people like the sound of their own voices, at least at first.
When I first started I used so much reverb and bass e.q. that it must have sounded like I was in a deep tunnel somewhere. Gradually got used to hearing it and listening to advice as to how to e.q. I had (still have) a blind friend who would set my e.q. and threaten me with bodily harm if I touched a knob.
To this day though, I don't sing without a little E.Q. and effects, as I can't stand the sound of it.

When I first saw Diana Krall in concert, I knew her as a fine vocalist ... Walking out of the concert hall I said to my wife "I love her vocals, but she is a really good piano player" ... The next day the music critic for the local paper said almost the exact same thing ...

If you can talk, you can sing!

Pitch is a gift, and some got it, and some ain't.

As far as " I can't " yes you can it may just take more work than someone else.....find a teacher or youtube some lessons and take some time to work on it every day. It will happen.

Pitch can also be learned (if you ain't got it).

Can't agree with that. Maybe "some" can learn, but the initial gift has to be there. Singing is like floating. Not everyone can float.

But they still show up on Kareoke nights and drown !!!

Good for him. Singing is a great mental stress reliever and fun. No harm no foul