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From:  chosdad@c...
Date:  Tue Aug 22, 2000  3:25 am
Subject:  Re: Girls who sing like guys


Dear List:

Tracey Jones wondered what we thought of women who sing tenor in a
choral setting, and mentioned some of the negative comments she has
received. For me this is an interesting topic - I sang in the tenor
section of a vocal jazz ensemble with a lovely and talented young
woman "tenor" named Kristin and remember her also getting some funny
comments. We tenors were delighted to have Kristin helping us out...

Some general comments:

There seems to be a prevalent bias that singing low is harmful. I
think it is a matter of how one sings. I have a medium high male
voice (many would consider me a tenor) and can sing bass all day
without tiring. No I can't hit all the notes for certain music - if
it goes too low, I just fade away.

Without having heard you it is hard to say, but I doubt that you
sound "like a tenor." In some group settings, that is fine, but not
in others. For the vocal jazz group I was in, having a female tenor
worked perfectly.

As far as vocal classification goes, I think there is too much
emphasis on the idea of a "true vocal classification" - as in,
"you're a mezzo, therefore you shouldn't sing x", where x is
say tenor. To the extent that singing may be a hobby, I think it even
more important to have fun and sing what you like. Perhaps you
like/prefer singing tenor, and if you are not straining I think
that's fine. And at the present time, and given your present vocal
abilities, it might even be the best for you. I would however be
inclined to guess that that (with further maturation and
practice/training) singing tenor is probably not the range where your
voice really "shines," and perhaps that explains some of the negative
comments you have received.

Cheers,

Michael Gordon



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3650 Re: Girls who sing like guys Tako Oda   Wed  8/23/2000   3 KB

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