Bell Ringer 12/3/12

• How would you describe your voice?

Chapter 6

Section 1

Quote

• “The voice is an instrument which the artist must learn to use with suppleness and sureness, as if it were a limb.”

- Sarah Bernhardt French Actor (1845-1923)

The Uniqueness of Voice

• Musical instruments have timbre or tone color.• These help us identify the source of the musical

sound.• Your voice is part of your personality.• This helps you to identify a speaker without

even seeing the person• This type of identification includes timbre,

register, and range.

Voice

• Timbre describes the tone quality of a voice or instrument. (Chapter 2)

• Registers- vocal ranges• These are usually high, low, or medium in

pitch.• Range- the distance between the lowest and

highest pitches of the voice.

Listening

• CD 4 # 13 “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”• Try to identify the variety of sounds and tone

colors that he makes.

• CD 4 # 14 Interview with Bobby McFerrin• Listen as Bobby McFerrin tells you about his

unique style of vocal performance

Characterize the Voice

• Listen to these recordings and identify their voices in terms of timbre and register.

• CD 4 # 15-20• Bright, dark, harsh, heavy, hoarse, husky, light,

mellow, melodious, nasal, rich, rough, shrill, smooth, strained, sweet, tense, warm

• High, Medium, low

Bell Ringer 12/5/12

• What is the register? What levels are there?

Operatic Voices• The system of classifying the voice uses soprano, alto,

tenor and bass which was developed in the 17th century.

• Operatic voices are categorized according to range:• Range Male Female• Highest Countertenor Coloratura

soprano• High Tenor Soprano• Mid Baritone Mezzo-Soprano• Low Bass Contralto

Female Voices

• Coloratura- the soprano voice that is light and flexible enough to perform rapid scales and trills

• Soprano- the high female register• Mezzo-Soprano- the intermediate female voice

that sings in the lower part of the soprano range

• Contralto- the low female register with a full, rich, dark, and powerful quality

Listen

• Identify these voices using the 4 female voice types.

• CD 4 #21 “Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben” from Zaide, Beverly Sills

• CD 4 #22 “Quand je vous aimerai?” from Carmen, Denyce Graves

• CD4 #23 “Oh, What a Beautiful City,” Marian Anderson

Marian Anderson

• 1902-1993• American Operatic

Singer• Contralto• Found many doors

“closed” to her because she was African American

Male Voices

• Countertenor- the highest male voice with a falsetto range and quality and a register in the female alto range

• Tenor- the high male range with a powerful, ringing quality

• Baritone- the intermediate male voice• Bass- a lower male register with a rich,

robust, resonant, and full quality

Listening

• CD 4 # 24 “Venti, turbine” from Rinaldo, David Daniels

• CD 4 # 25 “ Che Gelida Manina” from La Boheme from Luciano Pavarotti

• CD 4 # 26 “Shall We Gather At the River” Sherrill Milnes

• CD 4 # 27 “Oh, chi piange?” from Nabucco, Samuel Ramey

Bell Ringer 12/6/12

• Why wasn’t Marian Anderson famous at the beginning of her career?

Andrea Bocelli

• Born 1958• Italian Operatic Singer• Tenor• Became completely

blind at 12 years old• Career got a boost

when tenors Corelli and Pavarotti gave their approval

Crossovers• Singers like Bocelli and Charlotte

Church crossed over from Classical to Pop

• Church’s record sales topped 10 million albums

• By age 14, she had already performed for former president Clinton and Queen Elisabeth of England.

• Listen to her sing “The Last Rose of Summer” CD 4 # 28

Quiz 12/6/12

• 1. What is the highest female voice?• 2. What is a register?• 3. What is the medium male voice?• 4. Who was a famous female opera star?• 5. What is the distance between the highest

and lowest pitches of the voice?