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From:  "Michael <chosdad@y...
Date:  Fri Feb 28, 2003  7:27 pm
Subject:  [vocalist] Re: Church Choir Alto Issue: i.e. Short-Ranged Sopranos Aren't Altos...

Dear Ed:


--- In vocalist-temporary@yahoogroups.com, Edward Norton
<belcantist2003@y...> wrote:
> Bingo, Michael! You win! These ARE topless sopranos (NOT the kind
you see at the Cha-Cha Club out by the Interstate, but rather these
ladies have no idea what to do with their upper passagio!)!!

I'm not sure whether you had more fun writing your response or I had
more fun reading it...Hey - where are you located? Anywhere near San
Francisco? Let's meet sometime at the Cha-Cha Club to talk about
vocal technique....I'll buy you a brownie with whipped cream on
top. :)

> Not a dense question. Tone quality, lack of tone on the part,
incorrect "shape" of the voicese singing the part (i.e., altos have
big bottoms (We're NOT back at the Cha-Cha Club, Michael!) and their
voices traditionally get lighter at the top. When you need the tone
on the bottom, there isn't one.

Ok - thanks for the clarification. I think the primary issue is
however not that the woman are "sopranos" but that they are less
skilled vocalists. True, an alto section should have women whose
voices function best singing that part, rather than women who are
hiding to avoid high notes. But some sopranos, particularly richer
and heavier ones, may be well suited (and even best suited) for the
choral alto part.

Regardless of classification, the women can develop a nice rich lower
range, although I would not want to see them encouraged to
artificially darken their sound.

> I've never heard "tweenie"! The term I've heard is "bariten"!

Yeah - sounds kind of like "teenie" - probably not a good choice.
Or, even less flattering, "barely tenor" or even "tenibar"
or "tinnibar"?

>I'd imagine the voice teacher would be a bit unamused that she was
training you in one direction and you were singing in another
direction

Yes - but there's more than one point of view. A student does not
abandon, in my opinion, primary responsibility for themselves and
their voice. All my teachers have been helpful to me, but some were
better/more experienced teachers than others. This teacher was a
young woman (younger than me) who, while a talented singer, was not
so experienced as a teacher. There was no deceit - the teacher knew
that at the time I found tenor range quite uncomfortable and was
singing in the bass section of a choir - she just didn't know about
this church gig I got. To walk over to me and embarrass me in front
of my section with her public admonition that I belonged in a
different section (not possible since I was hired to replace an
absent bass singer) was unprofessional on her part, in my view.

Thanks for your comments.

Cheers,

Michael Gordon





  Replies Name/Email Yahoo! ID Date  
22988 Re: Church Choir Alto Issue: i.e. Short-Ranged Sopranos Aren't AltosEdward Nortonbelcantist2003 Fri  2/28/2003  
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