Vocal range
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Human voices may be classified according to their vocal range — the highest and lowest pitches that they can produce.
| Vocal ranges |
| Female ranges
Male ranges |
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[edit] Vocal range defined
Despite its intuitive clarity, vocal range is not easy to define, nor is it easy to compare the vocal ranges of singers in different genres. The tonal quality of the voice is as important in determining voice type as the range of notes themselves.
The broadest definition of vocal range, given above, is simply the span from the highest to the lowest note a particular voice can produce. This broad definition, however, is quite often not the one meant when someone speaks of "vocal range." This is because some of the notes a voice can produce may not be considered "musically useful" for a particular purpose. For example, when speaking of the vocal range of a male opera singer, one usually excludes falsetto pitches, which are not used in most opera. A male doo-wop singer, on the other hand, might quite regularly deploy his falsetto pitches in performance and thus include them in determining his range.
For this reason, it is important to clearly define what is meant when discussing a vocal range. For example, one might say of a man that he has a two and one-half octave range in full voice and an additional one half octave in falsetto. Similarly, when discussing the range of a woman one might say that she has a "useful" two octave range with an additional major third on the bottom that is only audible with amplification. Unfortunately, there is no standardization in this nomenclature outside of classical, non-amplified singing.
[edit] Vocal range in classical music
Vocal range is generally very important in classical music. In opera, two considerations are paramount in determining vocal range: consistency of timbre across the vocal range, and ability to project the pitches (that is, to be heard clearly over an orchestra without amplification). Thus the vocal range for a man is generally determined by the pitches that he can produce in full voice - that is, excluding falsetto, which sounds too harshly different from lower notes in most men's voices. Vocal range for women is only slightly more freely determined: The same criteria broadly apply, but women of the highest voice type (soprano) can on occasion deploy their flageolet register to reach very high notes despite a typically noticeable difference in timbre. Of course, if any pitch cannot be properly projected, it is not considered part of the range.
Choral music is somewhat less stringent. In contrast to opera, the large number of voices that can be deployed in each group make it somewhat less important that each individual voice be flawlessly produced and completely audible. Thus, for example, choirs can often deploy notes that are lower than those that might be deployed in an operatic performance - no single member of the choir might be able to project such a low note individually, but taken together the note might be quite audible.
In much choral music the vocal ranges are often divided not into the three parts per sex as they are in operatic solo music but into only two parts per gender - Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass - or into four parts per sex - Soprano I, Soprano II, Alto I, Alto II, Tenor I, Tenor II, Bass I (or baritone), Bass II. For example see the Mass in B Minor. There is therefore some ambiguity in mapping the solo baritone voice defined in the three way solo system to the four way choral system. Many high baritone soloists like Sherill Milnes might have sung Second Tenor in a chorus, (usually not a preferred compromise) whereas other baritones such as Bryn Terfel might have sung First Bass. They would have had to choose one or the other as any baritone part is labeled in that manner.
[edit] Classification of vocal range in classical solo music
| Common vocal ranges represented on a musical keyboard |
The following vocal range classifications are typically used in classical music (from highest to lowest). The ranges listed are prototypical but actual vocal range differs from person to person. Those listed below should not be taken as a restrictive category but as a general guide. Vocal teachers may be able to tell you your exact vocal range in warm-ups. (source: [1]):
- Soprano: C4 - A5
- Mezzo-soprano: A3 - F5
- Contralto (often abbreviated to Alto): F3 - D5
- Tenor: B3 - A5
- Baritone: G2 - E4
- Bass: E2 - D4
The first three ranges are usually sung by women, and the last three are sung by men. Males which possess high ranges are referred to as countertenors and possess ranges equivalent to those of the three female ranges, alto, mezzo-soprano and soprano (a male soprano is specifically referred to as sopranist and many times has a range far higher that of a female soprano). Contraltos have been known to sing Tenor (although this is often discouraged among younger contraltos), and occasionally men will sing in the upper three ranges.
In addition to these general classifications, additional subdivisions are very commonly deployed in opera and other classical music for solo voice. There are a number of such detailed classification schemes, many of which are country-specific. See, for example, the articles on individual voice types above or the article on Fach.
[edit] Induced vocal range
Where the above are largely achieved through practice and natural aptitude, adult vocal ranges can be obtained by means of physiological modification. The most notable example of this would be castrato singers, although modern examples include the lowering of the voice through Tobacco smoking. It is commonly believed that Russian bassi profundi get their abnormal low range as a result of routinely drinking vodka for many years.
[edit] Singer's voice-type and classification of roles in opera
Mezzo-sopranos occasionally sing roles intended for sopranos (Lady Macbeth, Santuzza, Isolde) and vice versa (Carmen, Rosina, Marina), resulting in ambiguity between voice-types. Usually the composer mentions the appropriate voice-type for a given role, but things aren't always so simple - Verdi, for example, used "mezzo-soprano" to include altos as well. Earlier composers (such as Mozart) haven't distinguished mezzos from sopranos. Another way to determine the appropriate voice-type is by the ensembles: three-part female choir include a soprano (first soprano), a mezzo (or second soprano) and an alto (or a mezzo). Carmen, for example, sings the lowest part in the Frasquita-Mercedes-Carmen trio, hence Bizet obviously haven't intended it for a soprano to sing, but for either a mezzo or an alto. Still, there are many sopranos who sang this role quite effectively, so were they really sopranos? The voice-type of a singer depends on the dominant category of the singer’s repertoire. In Maria Callas' case, although she sang Rosina and recorded Carmen the major part of her repertoire included soprano roles, therefore she was a soprano. Fiorenza Cossotto, on the other hand, was a mezzo, although she sang Adalgisa and Santuzza and recorded Lady Macbeth.
[edit] Vocal range in popular music
Vocal range in popular music is usually more generously defined than in classical. Because of the use of amplification it is possible for singers to produce musically useful pitches that are much lower than might be possible for classical singers. Similarly, consistency of timbre is much less important in popular music. Thus in many popular genres falsetto is acceptable for men, deep growling pitches can be deployed, and flageolet notes (commonly referred to as the whistle register in popular music) can be freely used by any female or male who can produce them.
The importance of vocal range varies in popular music. At one extreme, to choose a well known example, genres such as punk show little concern for technical proficiency of any sort and thus no particular concern for vocal range. Similarly, many roles in the musical theater, while requiring rather more skill, call for only vaguely determined voice types. At the other extreme, vocal range is considered extremely important by many singers and fans of Heavy Metal music. There is often intense discussion among fans of precisely what a particular singer's vocal range is, and singers often show extremely wide ranges.
For these various reasons, it is extremely difficult to speak of vocal range in music generally. For more information, see the articles on individual genres.
[edit] World records and extremes of vocal range
As noted above, claims of exceptionally wide vocal ranges are not uncommon among some singers. Fortunately, in 2006 the Guinness Book of Records published several categories relating to extremes of "Human vocal range.", although it is highly controversial. It stated the following:
Females
- Greatest range: Eight octaves G2-G10, Georgia Brown, Brazil
- Highest vocal note: G10, Georgia Brown, Brazil
Males
- Greatest range: Six octaves, Tim Storms, USA
- Highest vocal note: C#8 Adam Lopez, Australia
- Lowest vocal note: B-2 (minus 2, two octaves below the grand staff), Tim Storms, USA
Guinness also lists the highest demanded note in the classical repertoire as G6 in 'Popoli di Tessaglia,' a concert aria by W. A. Mozart and the lowest demanded note in the classical repertoire as a "Low D" (two Ds below Middle C) in Osmin's aria in Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail."
Although Osmin's note is the lowest demanded and commonly performed in the operatic repertoire, Mahler's second symphony contains an optional Bb1 in the choral section at the end of the piece: basses who cannot reach it are requested to remain silent rather than sing a Bb2. Leonard Bernstein's Candide has an optional low B (a minor third below the low D) in a bass aria of its opera house version. Some choral works and songs also call for notes lower than the low D. Similarly, at the upper end several little-known works call for pitches higher than G6. For example, the soprano Mado Robin, who was known for her exceptionally high voice, sang a number of compositions created especially to exploit her highest notes, reaching C7 according to the Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera (edited by Harold Rosenthal).
Meriting special mention, as it is more well-known than any of those works, is another by Mozart, the aria "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen" (sometimes called "The Queen of the Night's aria," though this character actually has two arias) from the opera Die Zauberflöte. It calls for an F6 and is often cited as the highest note in classical music. This is of course not strictly true, but it is the highest note demanded in the standard operatic repertoire, unless you count "Ombre Legere" from the 19th century comic opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer, Dinorah.
