1. Vocal Music
Chapter 6

2. What You Will Learn
Explain how vocal timbre and other features contribute to the uniqueness of a singer’s voice
Determine your vocal singing range
Define audiation
Explain the effects of culture and chose style on a vocal performance

3. Terms Register Range Soprano Coloratura Mezzo-soprano Contralto
Countertenor
Tenor
Baritone
Bass
Audiation
A capella
Bel canto
Blues
Blue notes

4. Musician Profiles
Andrea Bocelli
Marian Anderson

5. The Voice as a Musical Instrument
The uniqueness of the voice
Your voice is one of your most distinguishing characteristics
You can identify someone’s voice by 3 vocal properties
Timbre
Vocal quality
Register
Vocal range
Range
The distance between the lowest and highest pitches of the voice

6. Activity 1, p. 121 CD 4:13-14 Analyze vocal register and timbre
Listen to “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” by Bobby McFerrin, and identify the variety of vocal sounds in the performance

7. Characterize the voice
Singers rely on the unique qualities of their voices to differentiate themselves from other performers
Activity 2, p. 121 CD 4:15-20
Describe vocal register and timbre
Listen to these distinctive pop artists, and try to identify their voices in terms of timbre and register

8. Operatic Voices from high to low
Female
Male
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
A low female register with a full, rich , dark, and powerful quality
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

9. Activity 3. p. 122 CD 4:21-23 TRB 6-2
Beverly Sills - coloratura soprano
“Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben” from Zaide
Denyce Graves – mezzo soprano
“Quand je vous aimerai?” from Carmen
Marian Anderson – contralto
“Deep River”

10. Marian Anderson 1902-1993 Legendary operatic contralto
Grew up in Philadelphia
Studied in Europe
Renowned in Europe – “voice heard once in a century”
Not accepted in America because she was African American
In 1939 she was refused access to the most prestigious concert hall in Washington D.C.
First lady, Eleanor Roosevelt had the concert moved to the steps of the Lincoln Memorial
75,ooo people came to hear her

11. Activity 4 p. 123 CD 4:24-27 David Daniels – countertenor
“Venti, turbine” from Rinaldo
Luciano Pavarotti – tenor
“Che Gelida Manina” from La Boheme
Sherrill Milnes – baritone
“Shall We Gather (at the River)”
Samuel Ramey – bass
“Oh, chi piange?” from Nabucco

12. Andrea Bocelli (b. 1958) Italian operatic singer
As famous as some pop stars
His album, Romanza, has sold more than one million copies
Grew up in Italy
He is totally blind after being hit in the head with a soccer ball at age 12

13. Crossover-Operatic and pop
Recently many trained opera singers have found success in the pop market
Charlotte Church
International sales topping 10 million
By age 14, she had performed for the president and the queen
Activity 4, p. 125 CD 4:28 – lyrics on p.125
“The Last Rose of Summer”

14. Voices in Your School Community
Most high schools have choirs
Musical textures
The music that choirs sing is often classified by the way layers of sound are combined
Monophonic – a melody without accompaniment or harmony
Polyphonic – independent melodies that stand alone
Homophonic – accompanying harmony supports the main melody
Activity 7, p. 127 CD 4:29
“Hush, Hush, Somebody’s Callin’ Mah Name”

15. Using your voice to express yourself
Expressing yourself through music
Through music we can express ourselves and communicate with one another
Audition
The capacity to think sound
Singing a capella
Singing without instrumental accompaniment
Manhattan Transfer
Activity 10 p. 131 CD 4:30
“The Lion Sleeps Tonight”

16. The Art of Vocal Performance
Cultural influences of the voice
Every culture has its own style of singing
What is considered beautiful in some cultures may not be appealing in others
Activity 12, p. 136 CD4:31-32
Two popular singers from Bulgaria and Mali
“Homage a Baba Cissoko”
“Mamo Marie Mamo”
How do these singers differ from one another, particularly in timbre?
Which singer is from the West African nation of Mali?
What makes these voices expressive?

17. Vocal timbre and musical style
Bel canto
A style characterized by lyrical and flowing phrases, beauty of vocal color and brilliant technique
Activity 13, p. 137 CD 4:21-27
Identify Bel Canto style male & female
In your opinion, which artist’s singing is the best example of bel canto style?
What effect does the artist’s tone quality and singing range have on your answer? Explain.

18. Blues Style
Blues-
A genre of African American music that often expresses frustration, sadness, or longing
Vocal timbres reflect sadness
Vocal quality is a straghtforward, folk-like singing that dips and slides
Style comes from spirituals and work songs of enslaved Africans
W. C. Handy is considered the father of the blues and was first to popularize this jazz form
The lyrics are in verses that usually consist of 3 lines
The first two lines are the same while the last line resolves the situation.

19. Blues Improvisation 12 bar blues
Many blues songs became the basis for jazz improvisation
The chord structure provides a pattern for improvisation
12 bar blues
The blues are based on a 12 measure pattern that is repeated
Blue notes-
Selected pitches, usually on the third and seventh degrees of the scale whose intonation is altered at the discretion of the performer

20. Activity 16, p. 141 CD:34 “Emergency” by Sweet Honey in the Rock
Identify the variety of vocal sounds used in the performance. Can you determine how the sounds are created
How is the concept of emergency reflected in the sounds you hear?
From the Top – Chicago Children’s Choir CD 1:11-12

21. Review - terms Coloratura Audiation A cappella Bass Bel canto
Soprano voice that is light and flexible enough to perform rapid scales and trills
Audiation
The capacity to think sounds
A cappella
A term used to designate singing without instrumental accompaniment
Bass
A lower male register with a rich, robust, resonant, and full quality
Bel canto
A style characterized by lyrical and flowing phrases, beauty of vocal color, and brilliant technique

22. More terms Blue notes Blues Contralto Range Tenor
Selected pitches, usually on the third and seventh degrees of the scale, whose intonation is altered at the discretion of the performer
Blues
A genre of African American music that often expresses frustration, sadness, or longing
Contralto
A low female register with a full, rich, dark, and powerful quality
Range
The distance between the lowest and highest pitches of the voice
Tenor
A high male range with a powerful, ringing quality

23. Even more terms Mezzo-soprano Countertenor Baritone
The intermediate female voice that sings in the lower part of the soprano range
Countertenor
The highest male voice with a falsetto range
In the female alto range
Baritone
The intermediate male voice
Classical “crossover” singer
An opera singer who also sings popular songs

24. When did A capella singing originate?
early days of the Christian church
In Blues, what provides the basis for improvisation?
12 bar blues chord pattern
What are the three different musical textures or layers of sound heard in choral music?
monophonic
Single melody
homophonic
Melody and harmony
polyphonic
Many melodies

25. Compare the careers of American Born at the turn of the 20th century
Marian Anderson
Andrea Bocelli
American
Born at the turn of the 20th century
Began singing in church choirs
Studied and toured in Europe
Refused access to concert halls
The First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt helped her career by moving her concert to the steps of the Lincoln Memorial
Italian
Born in mid-20th century
Sang for relatives but didn’t study voice until adulthood
His career was help by famous tenors Corelli and Pavarotti

26. Discuss the factors that make one singer’s voice and performance different from another’s. Provide examples.
Factors
Register
High, medium, or low
Timbre – unique vocal quality
Bright, dark, harsh, heavy, husky, sweet, nasal
Culture
What is considered beautiful in one culture may be less appealing in another
Style
The choice of music impacts the performance
Bel canto style is heard in opera