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From:  "Tako Oda" <toda@m...>
"Tako Oda" <toda@m...>
Date:  Sun Mar 18, 2001  8:11 pm
Subject:  [vocalist] Re: For those who've not had enough countertenor blather WAS:s...


Greypins@a... wrote:
Greypins@a... wrote:
> more interesting discussions relative to counter-tenors (that
> does look a lot better with the hyphen); in the light of the
> arpeggio example you provided, i'd be curious to know what
> the slsers think you are doing. whether they would call that
> 'head' or 'falsetto' or perhaps a 'very soft mix'.

It would be incredibly informative to hear from SLSers! It would be
instructive also to see terms for registers used in a different
pedagogical context.

> relative to this post, i would like to know the kind of comments
> you get after a performance and how they compare to the types
> of comments 'normal' singers get, if there is a distinction.

I live in the San Francisco area, so a lot of people know about CTs
already. Not too many weird stares :-) Of those who are new to the
CT voice, most assume it is just my natural voice, since it seems to
evolve out of the rest of my voice (I use more chest in the lower end
than most CTs, usually). I think those not too familiar classical
singers don't even blink, since they've heard pop singers use a
similar mix to mine. So far no questions about my ability to sire
children, since I already have two :-)

> i would also like to know, if, in the middle of your range, if
> you can go from your 'regular' voice to what you call 'head' and
> i call 'tomato', i mean 'falsetto' on one pitch without any
> noticeable glitch (noticeable to you, that is) and if so, at how
> high a volume level.

I can, but the higher and louder I do it (i.e. more tenoriffically),
the more I limit my top. I think most women will report the same
experience, which is why most singers who use their upper voice a lot
will switch before F4. Those that specialize in switching higher have
more of a core, but they limit their options at the top (i.e. Whitney
Houston and hautes contre.)

Tako Oda, counter%tenor



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