...countertenor

"Interesting"

"We are looking for a voice that can sell records, which means I am the only one here who hasn't understood anything about what we are looking for"

Annuccia wrote:

What do you think about this subject who appeared on X Factor and was defined as a countertenor?

http://www.melty.it/...ra-a108226.html

He sings in falsetto (and not very well...). There is a big difference.

I had a suspicion, does anyone have any examples of a "real" countertenor?

Marzapane wrote:

"Interesting"

"We are looking for a voice that can sell records, which means I am the only one here who hasn't understood anything about what we are looking for”

I imagine the program is centered on searching for a subject that enriches record labels... so it doesn't surprise me. What surprised me more, however, was the "technical" issue of that subject and the unusual choice to pass them off as genre... but also as the "nobility" of the voice.

Frankly, it left me a bit indifferent

Same here... Let's hear from Thallo too

Annuccia wrote:

I had a suspicion, does anyone have any examples of a "real" countertenor?

Alfred Deller

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I am in a hurry and giving a quick first response.

1) a countertenor is a man who sings in head-falsetto register. People kill themselves today trying to understand if they also existed in antiquity, and what and how they sang. But the countertenor as we know it today is a vocal type introduced in the early 1900s as the "ideal substitute" for the castrato.

2) countertenors do not have a natural voice, just as no one has a natural voice. They develop a vocal register that we all have. In short, you just have to study.

3) Avetik is a countertenor, in the sense that he sings in falsetto, just as much as that guy from the country cousins or the Kymera on X Factor... with one fundamental difference: Avetik is out of tune

But hell no! Avetik and that guy with the country cousins sing from the throat, my goodness...

This is a countertenor through and through, that's for sure! And don't tell me you don't hear the difference...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WX83BSR0mug

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I don't like Jarousky very much, musically... and they say he is an
'absolute jerk' live :-)

W Deller

thallo wrote:

i don't like Jarousky very much, musically... and they say he is an
'absolute asshole' live :-)

W Deller

But who cares?!! I was talking about the voice!

I will undoubtedly be wrong, Thallo; but, as far as I know, the countertenor does not sing in falsetto; I have heard of "falsettists," instead.

Croma-Marco, I have a bit more time now and I will explain the perennial issue of falsetto. Perhaps I have already explained it somewhere, but who cares...

According to the traditional school of singing, every voice possesses different registers. Registers are vulgarly zones of range (low, middle, high, super-high...), but, in the traditional school of singing, each one is paired with a specific use of the voice and resonances. This is the reason why, by extension, people speak of "registers" even when talking about resonances or colors. Hence, one speaks of chest register or head register. Chest and head are, in reality, resonances, which are present throughout the entire range of every voice (every vocal "type") and are used differently each time, arriving at an ideal that would be an overall "mixed" register, in which the amount of one resonance or another changes from time to time. Falsetto is a "technique" that seeks to use a very clear mix, therefore with a great deal of head and very little chest, and it is generally used in high and super-high ranges, especially (but not only) by male voices.

At the beginning of the 1900s, the rediscovery of ancient repertoires led to the performance problem of castrato repertoire. Also thanks to Alfred Deller, a tradition was brought out (which seems to have been more typical of England than continental Europe) that saw some castrato parts sung, instead of by castrati, by falsetto specialists. These new vocal types were called in various ways. Generically, falsettists; specifically, contraltists and sopranists. In reality, Deller himself, and subsequent scholar-musicians, claimed the tradition of this vocal type by calling it "countertenor," which today is considered the correct name to give, especially to those who sing castrato roles or explicitly countertenor roles (which exist in both ancient and modern music).

A countertenor today sings in high mix, i.e., "in head voice." It can also be considered falsetto, but in reality the term "falsetto," besides being derogatory in itself (falsetto stands for false voice, but every voice different from the speaking voice should be false), refers to a specific use of the head voice: a pure and timbre-less head voice, meaning without a recognizable color, diaphanous. Today, countertenors flee falsetto understood in this way; instead, they seek to "color" the voice as much as possible. This is especially noticeable in some pieces where the range breaks into the low register (there are many, in truth). Going from E3 (fourth space in tenorized treble clef) downwards, a male voice can no longer sing in falsetto; one enters the so-called speaking register (which is always mixed). Old school countertenors tried at all costs to lighten the voice even in this register, in order to obtain a uniformity of timbre with the "clear" high notes. Today, uniformity of timbre is less sought after, and instead, power in the speaking register and the introduction of chest resonances are sought. For this reason, a countertenor today does not sing only in falsetto. He sings using different registers in different parts of his range.

If some technical things are not clear, tell me

Annuccia wrote:

What do you think about this subject who appeared on X Factor and was defined as a countertenor?

http://www.melty.it/...ra-a108226.html

...fortunately they just rejected him

I am very fond of this aria by Bach and I want to share it with you.

In my opinion, this interpretation is very beautiful...

Open content (youtube)

sisifo1987 wrote:

i am very attached to this Bach aria and I want to share it with you.

In my opinion, this interpretation is very beautiful...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlAwKNRMdEk

I'm more than attached, I'm obsessed with this aria; I will have proposed it 20,000 times to as many people as possible, they must know it otherwise I'll get pissed off.

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ahahahah exaggerated! beautiful things are made for those who know how to appreciate them... at most we can stimulate those who are distracted. This one is excellent

You are right Piccinesco, but I also appreciate Umberto's common sense. It is superb!