# Operatic Voice Types: An Introduction



## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

before we begin, here's a short list of terminology I will be using
*vocal weight:* the perceived "lightness" or "heaviness" of a voice. lyric voices tend to be lighter, dramatic voices tend to be heavier.
*timbre:* the sound quality or "color" of an instrument. in this case, the human voice. to give an example, a flute has a "bright" or sweet timbre while a clarinet has a "dark", more sensuous timbre. 
*tessitura:* the general range in which a piece or role "sits", though it might go higher or lower at certain moments. 
*coloratura:* elaborate vocal runs which show off the singer's technique and flexibility. can either refer to type of singing technique, or a type of voice

now then, let's start off with sopranos, going (roughly) from highest to lowest. 

*lyric coloratura soprano:* a bright, flexible soprano voice capable of singing comfortably in the highest territory of the soprano voice. lyric coloraturas have easy, spinning top notes and typically portray ingenues, young girls or damsels in distress. the term "soubrette" refers to a specific role for this type of voice, but while, soubrette roles tend to be a little bit lower on average, they are, imo, more or less the same type of voice. 

let's start things off with an Ingaborg Hallstein. imo, the quintessential lyric coloratura soprano voice. notice the crystalline timbre and way she easily plays around in the highest tessituras of the soprano voice.

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an example of a "stronger" lyric coloratura soprano voice: June Anderson, who is generally listed as a dramatic coloratura soprano, but lacks the vocal weight and large volume. she displays the same ease in the upper register and a pure timbre, but there is a bit more heroic force to the voice than seen above.

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*dramatic coloratura soprano:* like the lyric coloratura, the dramatic coloratura is a flexible high-lying, flexible soprano voice, but with greater weight, and a more heroic, often somewhat darker timbre. this is an extremely rare type of voice and many of the singers who identify a such are, in fact, mistyped (you could think of them as the INTJs or 8s of the classical singing world lmao!) in general, this is a versatile voice, capable of alternating between powerful, dramatic singing and more lyrical, feminine singing (in that regard, it is a more "in between" voice, similar in weight to the spinto soprano, but generally singing in a higher tessitura). 

our first example is my favorite singer of all time: Dame Joan Sutherland. note the heroic timbre and the way she switches between heavier, Statue of Liberty-esque singing and easy, spinning top notes. 

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another renowned dramatic coloratura soprano is Edda Moser. note the darker, more menacing timbre which she takes all the way up to the highest reaches of the soprano voice

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

next up we have the lyric soprano

*lyric soprano:* somewhat lower and less flexible than the coloratura soprano, the lyric soprano is a warm, feminine voice, ranging from more full and a bit darker (full lyric soprano), to a brighter voice more similar in timbre to a lyric coloratura soprano (light lyric soprano). this voice is the most common among female singers, but also one of the most versatile and diverse, with many singers taking on roles with which they share certain characteristics (many lyric sopranos have respectable coloratura facility and solid high notes and take on roles for coloratura soprano while others have a bit more weight and can dip into roles for spinto soprano on occasion, provided the orchestra is not over-amplified).

full lyric soprano example: Renee Fleming, a remarkably versatile singer who is a case study in dipping into different kinds of roles and styles without jumping into repertoire which could damage her voice

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light lyric soprano example: Annick Massis, another of my favorite singers. note the smooth legato, elegant phrasing and bell-like timbre 

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*spinto soprano:* Italian for "pushed lyric", a spinto soprano is a soprano with a medium to heavy weight, combining the smooth legato and expressive phrasing of a lyric soprano, but with the necessary power to push into dramatic climaxes and sing repertoire requiring greater weight and gravitas. in general (but not always), this voice is somewhat darker than the lyric soprano and may even be confused with the mezzo. 

example 1, Martina Arroyo: one of the most underrated sopranos of the 20th century, note the contrast between more epic, authoritative singing, with more delicate, feminine moments.

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example 2, Leontyne Price: an example of a spinto soprano with a darker, "thicker" voice (her speaking voice is like a dramatic mezzo lol), but with surprisingly bright high notes. 

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

last but not least of the soprano types, we have the dramatic soprano
*dramatic soprano:* an extremely heavy, usually dark soprano voice, generally liable to sing more "serious" roles such as mothers, tragic figures and, in the German repertoire, mythic heroines. dramatic sopranos are generally sub-divided into Italian dramatic sopranos and Wagnerian sopranos, the latter of which are expected to sing over extremely large orchestras for prolonged periods.

Italian dramatic soprano example: Eva Marton

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Wagnerian soprano example: Kirsten Flagstad

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as a bonus, the *assoluta* voice: a "vocal duck billed platypus" of sorts which combines the range and flexibility of a coloratura soprano, the weight of a dramatic soprano and the dark, menacing timbre and lower register of a contralto/dramatic mezzo. to my knowledge, only two have existed in the post-war era. 

Maria Callas, perhaps the most legendary opera singer of all time. (she is NOT a coloratura soprano, as everyone keeps trying to pedal)

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Marisa Galvany, like Martina Arroyo, she is another of the great underrated singers of her generation. notice how she has even stronger low notes than the tenor, yet soars all the way up to Eb above high C at the end!

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## DeductiveReasoner (Feb 25, 2011)

Are you a vocalist?

I just started taking vocal lessons this semester. It has been fun


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## Glenda Gnome Starr (May 12, 2011)

I am a mezzo soprano!


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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

walking tourist said:


> I am a mezzo soprano!


mezzos are next =)


*coloratura mezzo:* like her cousin the coloratura soprano, this is an agile, flexible voice, usually a little bit higher than the other mezzos. this voice can often be confused for a soprano

Joyce Didonato

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Cecilia Bartoli. she is a bit of an anomaly, also possessing the timbre of a contralto and the range of a high soprano with notes well above high C.

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*lyric mezzo:* similar to the coloratura mezzo, but lusher, creamier and, in general, a bit darker. this voice type plays a number of roles from mothers and older sisters to sultry seductresses and even young boys!

Elina Garanca

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Jennifer Larmore

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

*dramatic mezzo:* a powerful mezzo voice with a deep, dark, formidable timbre. similar to the dramatic soprano, but lower and with a more cavernous chest voice. 

Elena Obraztsova, another one of my favorites =P

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Christel Lindstat (she is also the lead singer of the symphonic metal group Opus Doria!)

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## Glenda Gnome Starr (May 12, 2011)

Whoops! I asked my choir director about my voice and she said that I am a soprano, not a mezzo soprano. I have an odd voice, though; it is light in weight but, in timbre, a little darker. I am really good at singing depressing songs, lol. Definitely not coloratura. All of those fast notes make my head spin.


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## Innogen (Oct 22, 2014)

I was a choir nerd in high school, and man, I am loving this thread so far. Such beautiful, powerful, angelic voices, making me nostalgic about singing stuff among the likes of Palestrina's music, the Carmina Burana, etc. This is heaven on PerC.

I'm not sure what my voice type is exactly, but I'm on the higher end of the tenor spectrum. My modal range doesn't sound very "full;" it's light and sweet but rather breathy. I'm horrid with low notes. However my falsetto is strong, wide, and resonant. I kid you not, I can sing like a soprano, but not exactly. Perhaps I'm a countertenor?


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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

last but not least of the female voice types
*contralto:* an exceptionally low female voice with a dark, smoky timbre and a long, powerful chest register (some contraltos sound almost like tenors at the bottom of their range). the sound is often similar to a dramatic mezzo, but the tessitura tends to be lower and more chest voice heavy, with less low notes. since contraltos don't have as clear cut subtypes as the other voice types, I will include more examples 


Ewa Podles, probably my favorite contralto voice. note the ridiculously low extension and rich, smoky timbre. she is also a remarkably versatile singer, able to sing with tremendous agility over 3.5 octaves (up to soprano high Eb!) and down to a 

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Claramae Turner 

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the haunting voice of Maureen Forrester

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Kathleen Ferrier

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walking tourist said:


> Whoops! I asked my choir director about my voice and she said that I am a soprano, not a mezzo soprano. I have an odd voice, though; it is light in weight but, in timbre, a little darker. I am really good at singing depressing songs, lol. Definitely not coloratura. All of those fast notes make my head spin.


personally, I would trust a voice teacher's opinion over a choir director's, especially because young female voices tend to sound very similar in general (the keys are the biggest difference)
PS: coloratura sopranos are overrated as fuck. give me a rich, expressive spinto soprano or baritone voice over that any day of the week XD


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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

now on to the male voice types. first off, countertenors

*countertenor:* a male voice who sings in the range of either a soprano, mezzo or contralto

Phillipe Jarrousky

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David Hansen 

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next up, tenors

*tenor leggiero:* the male answer to the lyric coloratura soprano, this is a light, agile tenor voice with an exceedingly bright timbre and easy notes above high C. surprisingly, it may be accompanied by a lower range which takes on a baritonal color. 

Juan Diego Flores

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John McCormick

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

*lyric tenor:* a bright, youthful tenor voice, often cast as the hero/protagonist or lovesick youth of the opera

Jussi Bjorling

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Nicolai Gedda

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*spinto tenor:* similar to the lyric tenor, but with a larger, weightier, more piercing voice and, in general, a more manly timbre.

Anatolii Solovyanenko, my all time favorite tenor. pristine yet manly timbre combined with vocal elegance and controlled intensity. 

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Jonas Kaufmann, one of the today's best singers imo, combining strong, spinning top notes with a formidable middle/lower register and a low range similar to a baritone. 

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

*dramatic tenor:* a large, weighty tenor voice. like dramatic sopranos, they are subdivided into Italian dramatic tenors and heldentenors (the male equivalent to the Wagnerian soprano)

Giuseppe Giacomini

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heldentenor Lauritz Melchior. note the baritonal middle register and comfort in the lower tessistura (heldentenors often posses many of the vocal qualities of baritones) 

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

*lyric baritone:* a more mild, often brighter voice

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, a very high lyric baritone voice. in some points, he sounds more like a tenor and uses an unusual amount of head voice in his high notes for a baritone.

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Peter Mattei, another of my favorite current singers. 

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*kavalierbariton:* I like to refer to this voice as a "spinto baritone". typically, they possess a darker, more manly color than the lighter lyric baritone and can sing both lyric and dramatic passages.

Dmitri Hvorostovsky, another of my favorite Eastern European opera singers

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Robert Merrill delivers one of the most commanding renditions of this classic Christmas carol

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

*Verdi baritone:* a high, dramatic baritone voice combining a dark, weighty chest voice with ease of singing in the highest tessituras of the baritone range and spinning, metallic high notes

Cornel MacNeil (also an excuse to put in another clip of Dame Joan Sutherland lol)

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Sherrill Milnes, he sings almost as high as a tenor, but with the dark timbre and more thrilling vocal weight of a baritone

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*dramatic baritone:* a large, commanding baritone voice, sitting a little bit lower than then Verdi baritone

George London

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Tito Gobbi

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

*bass-baritone:* a voice with a range and color between that of a bass and baritone

Willard White

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Hans Hotter

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.....and entering true bass territory

*basso cantante:* often referred to as a "lyric bass", but I prefer the term basso cantante because this is generally a very weighty voice, despite being on the lighter end of the bass range

my favorite male singer: Samuel Ramey, whom I often refer to as a "dramatic coloratura bass" :laughing: 

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Nicolai Ghiaurov

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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

and last but not least
*basso profondo:* an exceptionally deep, dark bass voice with the lowest tessitura of the human voice. they are frequently utilized in Russian Orthodox music as well as in barbershop quartets

Boris Shtokolov

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Paul Robeson

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## SunClef (May 7, 2013)

Are you a singer? What is your voice type?


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## Jakuri (Sep 7, 2015)

Lovely. My alma mater's art centre is one of the independent theatres participating in the Live in HD series offered by the Met Opera. There was also a student discount on concerts and Live transmissions. So I attended a lot of classical music concerts and HD transmissions. I was one of the few young people in operas in the midst of lots of elderly people, lol.

Beautiful voices...and brings me good memories. I remember going into the building at 11 in the morning for Götterdämmerung to leave there when it was dark (February it was, and considering how long that one is...). That was a long marathon.

Nowadays I listen to different genres of music (non-classical), but this makes me want to go back to operas, and classical music in general. Thanks for this thread


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## Swordsman of Mana (Jan 7, 2011)

SunClef said:


> Are you a singer? What is your voice type?


an out-of-practice singer, yes. I've been told I'm a (maturing) dramatic baritone. certain somewhere in the bass-baritone/dramatic baritone territory.


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## Popinjay (Sep 19, 2011)

@Swordsman of Mana

This is an awesome thread.


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