Greypins@a... wrote:
Greypins@a... wrote:
> oh, duh! billy gilman does not sound at all like a counter-
> tenor. he sings up to the D just above tenor high C in what
> is basically a chest based mix. he is eleven and his voice
> has not changed yet. obviously, he sings differently from
> the hooty boys' choir soloists as they sing in falsetto.
Perhaps if we extrapolate gilman's sound *and* registrational
strategy to an adult physique but without lowering the range much,
you could come up with a natural high tenor with a great extension,
like Robert Plant. A pop countertenor. Just as if you extrapolate a
Vienna Boys' Choir soloist, you end up with Andreas Scholl.
The trick is that it's a lot easier to have a "classical" CT than it
is a "pop" CT, since pop is so chest driven, and most men's chest
voices drop too far to allow that Michael Jackson/Stevie
Wonder/Robert Plant sort of singing into adulthood. Since most CT are
head-centric, the lower chest range doesn't affect things much
(though I must say I tend to prefer tenor-based CTs from a pure
timbral standpoint).
> So the question remains, did castrati sing in falsetto or some
> kind of mix? if they sang in a mix, i strongly doubt they sounded
> anything like counter-tenors.
Anything like "classical" countertenors, anyway. Maybe they sounded
more like progressive rock or metal frontmen, just with a
more "refined" and resonant sound. I can't get over thinking the
castrati altos sounded a lot like Russell Oberlin. Oberlin carries
his tenor voice to Bb4 or so before switching smoothly to what you
would call falsetto (and what most women would call head, I think).
I am sure even the highest castrati did not take pure chest to the
tops of their ranges - at some point Farinelli had to switch to reach
those F6s for which he was famous.
> and once again, i find more similarity in timbre between counter-
> tenors (particularly daniels) and female opera singers than either
> one has to billy gilman.
If Handel was OK with using female sopranos for male roles (and vice
versa), one would think he would be open to casting a man who looked
like a man but sounded like a woman (Daniels) for a male role. (phew)
Though I still maintain Daniels sounds like a man, just not
necessarily like a castrato!
Tako Oda
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