Chapter Eight
The Voice
and Opera
The Vocal Mechanism
Three Elements:
1) Energy Source- Lungs
2) Vibrating Element- Vocal
cords
3) Resonating Chamber- Head
A) Laryngeal prominence
(Adam's Apple)
B) Larynx (voice box; vocal
cords inside)
C) Trachea (wind pipe)
D) Esophagus (swallowing
tube)
Vocal Mechanism--Larynx
Vocal Mechanism--Larynx
Vocal Mechanism Types
The Head Voice
(Head Register)
(Light Mechanism)
(Falsetto)
The Chest Voice
(Chest Register)
(Heavy Mechanism)
“Vernacular” Voice Characteristics
• Uses microphone as part of technique
• Uses slap back echo and other
enhancements
• Exploits timbral differences between
registers
• Generally has less than two octave
range
Trained Voice in Western Art Music
Middle Ages (all male)
Superius
Modern (male and female)
Soprano
Altisimus
Alto
Tenore
Bassus
Tenor
Bass
Trained Voice Characteristics
Trained voices are considered
acoustic instruments
• Project in large concert halls
• Project over large instrumental groups
• Suppress timbral differences between
registers
Further modern divisions of voices
Soprano
Colorature
Lyric
Dramatic
Mezzo-sopranos
Lyric
Dramatic
Contralto
Tenor
Countertenor
Lyric
Dramatic(Heldentenor)
Baritones
Lyric
Bass Baritone
Bass
Basso Cantante
Basso Profundo
Other Vocal Types
Contra-Bass (Russian Bass)
Lowest and Rarest of Voices
Growl Register
Throat Singers from Tuva
Multiphonics
Whistle Register
Chinese (Beijing) Opera Soprano
Music and Drama
 Early forms were religious festivals
with dancing and singing.
 “Incantation,” “charm,” “chant” and
“enchant” all came from words having to
do with singing.
Non- Western Examples
• Bali-Java (Indonesia)
Gamelan Orchestra Puppet Theater
• Japan
Noh Drama
Kabuki Theater
• China
Chinese (Beijing) Opera
Noh Theatre
The Noh theatre has a place in Japanese society
similar to the place Shakespearean drama has in the
West.
•600 years old
•Highly stylized
•Ritualistic--influenced by Zen Buddhism
•Performers wear masks
•All male actors and chorus
•Accompanied by flute and three drums
Kabuki
• The word Kabuki literally means song,
dance, and technique.
• 400 years old
• Folk production--very popular
• Combines dancing with lots of melodrama
• Very elaborate costumes and scenery
• Dance theatre--very stylized
• Accompanied by flute, drums, shamison
Western European Opera
• 600 years old
• Started by the Florentine
Camerata in late 1500’s
• Attempted to rival Greek
tragedy
• Text of opera is called libretto
• Singers train their voices to extend range
and agility
• Melodic style resembles instrumental
melodies
Quick History of Opera
1500-1600’s•Produced at court for small aristocratic
audiences
1700’s
•Became highly popular form of
entertainment
•Tended to be comedies, spectacles, and
dramas
•Singers began to be “stars’
•Some operas were written to show off a
particular star
•First public opera houses started
1800’s--Grand Opera
•Continued as popular form of entertainment
•Productions became bigger with more
elaborate sets and costumes
•Plots were like “soap” operas (get it?)
•Two most famous opera composers ever
•Giacomo Puccini
•Guiseppe Verdi
•Wagner began experimenting with
Gesamtkunstwerk
•Cities all over US welcomed travelling opera
companies
The Age of Bel Canto
As orchestras got bigger, singers needed to
train more in order to project their voices
over the orchestra--this led to more agility
which then led to fancier melodies.
– Giaccomo Rossini--Barber of Seville
Verismo (Realism)
Plots and characters became more
“everyday,” that is, more realistic.
• Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Tosca
Madama Butterfly
Turandot
Il Trittico
La Bohème [1896]
 Georges Bizet (1838 - 1875)
Carmen
La Boheme
Character Voice Types
Mimi––lyric soprano
Musetta––coloratura
soprano
Rodolfo––lyric tenor
Marcello––lyric baritione
Schaunard––baritone
Colline––bass
Alcindoro––bass
Early 1900’s
•WW I slowed opera production
•Radio and movies gave people cheap way of
escaping the Great Depression
•Grand Opera was temporarily replaced by
Broadway and movie musicals
Late 1900’s
•Musicals became more like operas (Cats, Evita,
Les Mis, Miss Saigon, Phantom, Rent)
•Opera experienced a big revival
•Most US cities now have opera houses
Operettas and Musicals
Operettas and musicals are operas with spoken
dialogue. All dialogue is sung in an opera.
• William S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan
The Mikado
The Pirates of Penzance
• Franz Lehar
• Johannes Strauss
• Scott Joplin