Which singers had a bass singing voice? Why does a singer need to know what his vocal range is? Types of female voices

Desdemona and Salome, the Shamakhan Queen and Yaroslavna, Aida and Chio-chio-san, as well as many other opera roles were written for soprano vocalists. This is the highest female singing range of two to three octaves. However, it can be so different! Let's try to figure out what this high female voice is like and its features.

What are the different types of female singing voices?

• contralto;
• mezzo-soprano;
• soprano.

Their main difference is the sound range, as well as timbre coloring, which includes such properties as richness, lightness and strength of the voice, individual for each performer.

Kinds

In the traditions of the Russian music school, it is customary to distinguish the following three main types of soprano voices:

• coloratura;
• dramatic;
• lyrical.

In addition, there are two intermediate types of soprano - lyric-coloratura and lyric-dramatic. Let's figure out what the difference is between all these types.

Voice with "decorations"

This is exactly what can be called the highest female voice - coloratura soprano. It got its name due to the ability to easily perform coloraturas - special vocal embellishments. An example of coloratura performance is Alyabiev’s romance “The Nightingale”, where they played with the main theme of the work.

Thanks to the coloratura soprano, such capricious and playful characters appear on stage as Zerlina in Mozart’s Don Giovanni or Lyudmila from Glinka’s Ruslan and Lyudmila. The extraordinary capabilities of this voice are often used to create fairy-tale and fantasy characters, such as the Swan Princess, the Snow Maiden and the Shamakhan Queen in the operas of N. Rimsky-Korsakov or the Dolls from “The Tales of Hoffmann” by Jacques Offenbach. The disadvantage of such a soprano voice is that female vocalists cannot perform choral parts. The most prominent owners of such vocals are Diana Damrau, Christina Deitekom, Cecilia Bartoli, Olga Pudova.

Dramatic soprano

A very rare voice, highly valued in the musical world, as singers can perform almost any repertoire - from coloratura to mezzo-soprano. The voice is strong, “huge” in volume and richness of overtones, which allows it to easily break through the choir and orchestra. An unaware person can easily confuse him with a mezzo-soprano. The downside of this beautiful and rich voice is that not all performers can produce works (due to the tragic coloring of the voice). You can hear the dramatic soprano in the following opera roles:

• Abigail from “Nabucco” by G. Verdi;
• Hades and Traviata from the operas of the same name;
• Yaroslavna from “Prince Igor” by Borodin and others.

Today, dramatic soprano can be heard performed by Galina Gorchakova, Anna Shafazhinskaya, Irina Gordey, Eva Marton, Leontyne Price, Eva Genser.

This soft-sounding voice is more compact and agile than a dramatic soprano. They use the lyric soprano in operatic roles where it is necessary to show warmth, affection and tenderness, for example, in the part of Natasha Rostova from Prokofiev’s “War and Peace” or Tatyana Larina from P. Tchaikovsky’s “Eugene Onegin”. This gentle timbre is possessed by Kiri Te Kanawa, Renee Fleming, Daniel DeNise, Amanda Roocroft, Cullen Esperian.

A lyric-coloratura soprano is a voice with a working range from C of the first to F of the third octave, characterized by transparency of timbre. Unlike the coloratura, this soprano has a denser sound, which can be heard in the role of Princess Volkhova from Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Sadko” or Antonina from Glinka’s “Ivan Susanin”. Performers with such a voice are given the roles of cheerful and playful young heroines, since dramatic “colors” are practically inaccessible to them and they express grief, pain, suffering or cruelty through lyrical means. Antonina Nezhdanova, Diana Petrinenko, Elizaveta Shumskaya, Galina Oleinichenko, Lyudmila Zlatova were famous for their lyric-coloratura soprano. Today Monserat Caballe, Dilbar Yunus, Elena Terentyeva, A. Solenkova perform parts for this voice.

The lyric-dramatic soprano, depending on the personal characteristics of the performer, can be either dramatic or lyrical. The images embodied on stage by singers with such voices are, as a rule, filled with passions and deep feelings. As a rule, these are young women or girls, whose breadth of character can be shown by the powerful voice of the vocalist, such as Kuma from Tchaikovsky’s “The Enchantress” or Tamara from Rubinstein’s “The Demon”. Quite rarely, the lyric-dramatic soprano is used to create images of elderly women or characteristically comic roles. Raina Kabaivanska, Galina Gorchakova, Teresa Stratas, Lidia Abramova and others have this.

Singing or vocals, like any other type of music-making, can be classified in various ways. The voice is an instrument that can be divided into several parameters. What types of voices exist in singing and what is the vocal range?

The most common classification is by gender and range. Thus, we highlight the main types:

Also, there is a classification of children's voices in the high and middle register, there are only two types of them, since children's ligaments are much smaller, then the children's voices are much higher - these are treble and alto. For now, we will not delve into this topic, since children's vocals require special attention - unlike an adult, a child and his apparatus are growing - the cords are constantly changing, which requires a special approach and a special methodology for developing the voice and learning to sing.

Soprano.

Soprano is the highest female voice. The range is approximately 2 octaves (the entire first and second octave). This type can be characterized by lightness, tenderness, and transparency of sound. Singers with this type of voice are characterized by an open, sonorous, mobile sound. The most famous operatic female roles are written specifically for soprano. Also, soprano has subtypes - lyric-dramatic and lyric-coloratura soprano.

This is a lower timbre. The range is approximately from A of the small octave to A of the second. Such a voice is characterized by a rich, thick, deep sound. Singers with such characteristics are assigned the roles of middle-aged women or dramatic, and often negative, characters.

Contralto.

Tenor.

This is a high type of male voice. Tenors are divided into lyric, dramatic and lyric-dramatic. There are also characteristic tenors, they are distinguished by some timbral feature, for example, rattling or sonority. The range varies from the small octave to the notes of the first octave. There are also varieties of tenor, these are Tenor-altino and countertenor, which can easily perform the parts of female voices.

Similar to the characteristics in female voices, the baritone, as an intermediate between tenor and bass, is distinguished by density, richness, extraordinary softness and depth of sound. Range from A of the major octave to A of the first octave. Singers with such voices are often assigned dramatic, patriotic or lyrical-love roles.

The lowest male voice, and indeed the lowest of all voices in general. The range varies from F of the major octave to F of the first. This timbre has buzzing, booming, and sometimes very harsh characteristics. And the lowest male voice is called bass profundo; singers with such a voice can sing counter-octave notes, which in itself is extraordinary.

- (song holidays) are traditional in the USSR. mass performances by amateurs. and prof. chorus groups, often timed to coincide with the date of a certain society. or political events. The P. p. program is usually designed for several. days and includes production. choir... ... Music Encyclopedia

- (Italian falsetto from falso (Italian) false) or fistula is the upper head register of a male singing voice, poor in overtones, timbrally simpler than the performer’s main chest voice. Anatomically, falsetto is born... ... Wikipedia

This term has other meanings, see Tenor (meanings). Basic vocal ranges ... Wikipedia

Basic vocal ranges ... Wikipedia

This term has other meanings, see Baritone (meanings). Basic vocal ranges ... Wikipedia

Main article: Bass ... Wikipedia

- (Italian Castrato) performers of vocal parts who were subjected to castration at an early age and, as a result, had a high, effeminate voice. Usually the voices of castrati are soprano and alto. Farinelli, famous singer... ... Wikipedia

Basic vocal ranges ... Wikipedia

Basic vocal ranges ... Wikipedia

Books

• Krambambuli. Drinking songs for voice accompanied by piano (guitar), . The compilers of the collection decided to collect singing musical works in which the Bacchic theme was touched upon in one way or another. This collection includes songs, romances, arias that were created...
• Lessons in musical literature. First year of study, O. K. Ermakova. The Music Literature Textbook contains six main sections of the first year course that fully meet the program requirements. Historical and theoretical material...

Italian opera singer was born on October 28, 1798. She had an amazing voice range: from high soprano to contralto, with a range of 2.5 octaves. We decided to figure out how opera voices differ from each other.

Giudita Pasta. Reproduction from a portrait

Soprano

The highest female voice, usually the first and second octaves are subject to it. Moreover, the second one is often not completely. There are different sopranos: there is coloratura (bearers of such a voice easily make complex passages in the entire second octave and even reach the middle of the third), dramatic (a dense, heavy voice that easily takes notes up to the middle of the second octave), lyric (soft, soulful, tender , silver on high notes).

Parts for soprano are among the most common. The main heroines of the operas are young girls and young women with certain life experiences. The most striking examples: the role of Tatiana from P. I. Tchaikovsky’s opera “Eugene Onegin” (lyrical), The Snow Maiden from Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera of the same name (coloratura), Lisa from Tchaikovsky’s “The Queen of Spades” (dramatic).

One of the best soprano singers in the world - Anna Netrebko.

The Snow Maiden's aria “Walking for berries with friends” from the opera by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov. Performs

Mezzo-soprano

A beautiful velvety, rich voice. The operating range is from the middle of the small octave to the middle of the second (of course, not in all cases). Singers with such a voice often perform parts for contralto and can also replace soprano. The parts for mezzo-soprano are passionate, rich, and sometimes somewhat ponderous, which in no way detracts from their beauty. Mezzo is divided into three subtypes, like soprano: coloratura, lyric and dramatic.

Famous roles: Amneris in “Aida” by G. Verdi, Carmen in Bizet’s opera, Marina Mnishek from “Boris Godunov” by M. P. Mussorgsky.

One of the most striking Russian examples of mezzo-soprano is Elena Obraztsova, for many years the former prima singer of the Bolshoi Theater.

Habanera from the opera “Carmen” by J. Bizet. Performed by Svetlana Lanskaya

Contralto

The rarest and deepest female voice. Unfortunately, even in large theaters there is not always a contralto singer. Such singers work in a low chest register, in the range from F of the small octave to the first notes of the second octave. It is the low notes that are most beautiful when performed by a contralto; the upper ones sound short and tense. In operas, the parts of boys and young men are often written for contralto. For example, Orpheus from the opera “Orpheus and Eurydice” by K. V. Gluck, Lel from “The Snow Maiden” by N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov, but there are also female characters, of course: Olga from “Eugene Onegin” by P. I. Tchaikovsky.

Unfortunately, contralto singers are rare and not very well known. But as an example, we can recall the voices of pop singers: Tina Turner, Sofia Rotaru, Edita Piekha.

Olga's scene and aria from the opera “Eugene Onegin” by P. I. Tchaikovsky. Performed by Tamara Sinyavskaya

Countertenor

A very rare voice. The highest of male operatic voices, ranging from the beginning of the small octave to (sometimes) the end of the second. The art of such singing was revived in the middle of the 20th century. And as a rule, countertenor singers perform parts written for castrati singers in the Baroque era (boys were subjected to castration surgery before their voices broke and they reached puberty, due to which their voices remained high, and they performed female parts in operas, and initially in sacred works, in choirs).

Examples of such roles can be cited both from baroque and modern opera; now the countertenor is becoming more and more popular, although it has not yet lost its exoticism, which shocks the audience. You can listen to Handel’s opera “Julius Caesar,” where the title role is written for a countertenor, or you can listen to the opera “Zurich 1916” by Christopher Butterfield, where V. I. Lenin sings as a countertenor.

Tenor

Male high singing voice. Its range is from the beginning of the minor to the beginning of the second octave. The ability to play the top notes is especially valued. If the highs are weak, then such a tenor is unlikely to become a famous soloist. Like female voices, like sopranos, tenors are divided into lyric and dramatic voices. There is also an altino tenor, which is distinguished by particularly high and sonorous notes.

There are a lot of famous and beautiful tenors. For example, Luciano Pavarotti(lyric tenor) or Placido Domingo(lyric-dramatic tenor).

A lot of parts have been written for tenors. Often the main character in Italian operas sings as a tenor. The Duke in Verdi's opera "Rigoletto", Faust in Gounod's opera of the same name, from the Russians: Lensky in "Eugene Onegin", Don Juan in Dargomyzhsky's "The Stone Guest".

The Duke's song from G. Verdi's opera "Rigoletto". Performed by Alexander Bogdanov

Baritone

Average male voice, range from A major octave to the middle of the first octave. This voice is strong, rich, velvety, it can be softer and more mobile, it can be close to a tenor, in which case it is called a tenor-baritone. If a baritone is stronger on low notes, but has fairly free upper notes, then it is more of a bass-baritone. Like other voices, there are also lyrical and dramatic varieties of this voice.

Perhaps the most famous baritone in the world - Dmitry Hvorostovsky, in Moscow it makes sense to listen Vasily Ladyuka from the New Opera.

There are a lot of parts for baritone; composers often entrust them with the most important characters in the work. For example, written for baritone Mozart's Don Juan, Mizgir in The Snow Maiden, Tchaikovsky's Mazepa.

Aria of Georges Germont from the opera La Traviata by G. Verdi, performed by Vasily Ladyuk

Bass

Low, deep, strong, bewitching voice. The range can range from E-F of the major octave to F-sharp of the first octave. Bass varies both in pitch and timbre. There is a high bass cantanto, and the lowest bass is profundo; it can be used in choirs even up to the counteroctave. In terms of timbre, along with the deep profundo bass, comic bass and bass buffo are also distinguished.

The most famous bass in the world - Fyodor Chaliapin. Widely famous and Evgeniy Nesterenko, who, unfortunately, does not sing on stage now.

The bass is an extremely expressive and rich voice; unfortunately, there are not many singers, as well as parts. The roles of Bartolo in “The Barber of Seville” by Rossini, Kochubey from “Mazepa” by Tchaikovsky, and Ruslan in M. Glinka’s opera “Ruslan and Lyudmila” were written for bass.

Mephistopheles' aria from the opera "Faust" by Charles Gounod, performed by Fyodor Chaliapin

Currently, professional voices have a very widely developed classification. Meanwhile, in the early periods of the development of vocal art, this was very simple. There were two types of male and two types of female voices - a classification that has been preserved to this day in choirs. As the vocal repertoire became more complex, this classification became more and more differentiated. In the men's group, an intermediate voice first emerged - the baritone. Then there was further division in each of the groups. The highest male tenor voice has a working range from C to the second octave.

Male voices:

Female voices:

Tenor altino, which has particularly high notes, sounds transparent and light. Usually these voices are not particularly strong, but they are capable of reaching D second octave. The role of the Astrologer in Rimsky-Korsakov's The Golden Cockerel is usually entrusted to this kind of voice.

Lyric tenor is a tenor with a warm, gentle, silvery timbre, capable of expressing the entire lyrical range of feelings. It can be quite large and rich in sound. Sobinov and Lemeshev, for example, had a typical lyric tenor.

Characteristic tenor. A tenor who has a characteristic timbre, but does not have the beauty and warmth of a lyrical voice or the richness, richness and power of a dramatic one.

A lyric-dramatic tenor is a voice capable of performing a wide range of roles, both lyrical and dramatic. However, it cannot achieve the power and drama of a purely dramatic voice. These include the voices of Gigli, Nelepp, Uzunov.

A dramatic tenor is a large voice with a large dynamic range, capable of expressing the most powerful dramatic situations. The range of the dramatic voice may be shorter, not including high C. For example, the part of Othello in the opera Otello by Verdi was written for the dramatic voice. Dramatic tenors include, for example, the voice of Tamagno, Caruso, Monaco.

The lyric baritone, sounding light and lyrical, is close in character to the tenor timbre, but still always has a typical baritone tint. Parts written for this voice have the highest tessitura. Typical roles for this type of voice are Georges Germont, Onegin, Yeletsky. Lyric baritones - Battistini, Rodents, Becky, Migai, Gamrekeli, Lisitsian, Nortsov.

A lyric-dramatic baritone with a light, bright timbre and significant strength, he is capable of performing both lyrical and dramatic roles. Such voices include, for example, Khokhlova, Gobbi, Kherlya, Konya, Gnatyuk, Gulyaev. The roles of Demon, Mazepa, Valentin, and Renato are most often performed by voices of this character.

A dramatic baritone is a darker-sounding voice of great power, capable of powerful sounding in the central and upper range of the voice. The dramatic baritone parts are lower in tessitura, but at the moments of climax they rise to the highest notes. Typical roles are Iago, Scarpia, Rigoletto, Amonastro, Gryaznoy, Prince Igor. For example, Titta Ruffo Warren, Savransky, Golovin, Politkovsky, London had a dramatic baritone.

Bass, the lowest and most powerful male voice, has a working range from fa big octaves to F first. Among this type of voice, there are high bass, central (singing, cantante) and low bass. In addition, octavist basses are considered a very valuable voice in choirs, capable of taking on the lowest sounds of the large octave and even some sounds of the counter-octave.

Bass range

High bass, melodious bass (cantante), has a working range of up to F first octaves at the top. This is a voice with a light, bright sound, reminiscent of a baritone timbre. Sometimes some such voices are called baritone basses. Baritone basses perform the roles of Tomsky, Prince Igor, Mephistopheles, Count Almaviva in Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro”, and Nilakanta in Delibes’ “Lakmé”. Such basses include the voices of Chaliapin, Ognivtsev, and Hristov.

The central bass has a wider range and has a pronounced bass timbre. These voices can play not only high tessitura parts, but also lower ones, including lower notes C F major octave, such as Gremin, Konchak, Ramfis, Zorastro, Sparafucil. The central basses include the voices of G. and A. Pirogov, Reisen, I. Petrov, Pints, V. R. Petrov, Gyaurov.

The low bass, in addition to a particularly thick bass color and shorter in the upper part of the voice range, has deep, powerful, low notes. This is the so-called profunda bass. Such basses include the voices of Mikhailov and Paul Robeson.

Octavist basses who find a place in choirs can sometimes take a range of counter-octave sounds, reaching astonishingly low sounds. There are cases when the voice could descend to F counter octaves.
There are also a number of different types in processed female voices.