Dear Michael, thanks a lot for what u have said on the list.True enough,our voices cannot really be fit into just one voice category most of the time since there are cases where a student can be classified as another voice type with good training and age.Indeed lower voices are rare to find especially more ppl are found to be higher in voice classification.I guess that's one of the reasons why u find that tenors and sopranos are easier to find.Well frankly speaking,I have heard both voices of true bass and contralto who are both my friends.And they have the voice qualities which few have in this world.Although I never really heard them sing before,their speaking voices are already good to convice me.Well I am not anxious to know exactly what my voice type lies in for voices can change or remain the same throughout the years.It's just that I am interested to know more about this voice type of bass-baritone.Bryn Terfal???Well I have heard of his name but never heard him sung before.So how do u find his voice???Anyway my voice teacher have classified me as a bass- baritone at the moment.We are still exploring so he does what he thinks my comfort zone is.Regarding about opera,I am still considering whether to go into opera cos I don't really know how to appreciate opera and don't know if I would like it in the future.
From a baritone who also sings in the choir Weijie
--- In vocalist-temporary@y..., "Michael" <chosdad@y...> wrote: > Dear List and Weijie: > > Wiejie stated and then asked, "Frankly speaking, baritones are the > most common among the male voice...just wondering if bass-baritones > are considered rare among the different types of baritone voice." > > Short answer: I don't really know, but I would guess that the lower > baritone and bass voices are more rare than the medium ones. The > label "bass-baritone" means different things to different people, and > some have argued that there is no such thing - that "bass-baritone" > is (like "bari-tenor") a voice that doesn't have the low notes of one > category and lacks the higher notes of another, and therefore means a > voice that is not properly used/developed. > > I think there is no reason > to believe our voices all neatly fit into one category or another - > the physical determinants of voice do not have "quantum" dimensions > that would lead to being either type a or type b. I further believe > that physical characteristics like the length, thickness etc. of the > vocal folds follows a normal distribution, meaning that most people > have "medium" voices, > and lower and higher voices are rarer. Similarly, "medium" weight > voices and "medium" color are most common. The question, though, is > what does "medium" really mean? It is possible for a mis-match > between the "medium" of a population and the "medium" of music. To > keep this short, "medium" for men might be baritone, or it might be > somewhat higher, more like "bari-tenor". I don't have statistical > data - it seems to me that "true" tenors are not so common, but > also "true" lower voices. > > It is too bad that I don't know how to refer you to the archives of > the original Vocalist out of Finland. At one point, Ron Land gave a > lengthy and seemingly authoritative set of posts describing all the > various opera vocal categories and roles etc. > > There are many labels put on voices, so here is one link > that discusses the bass-baritone: > http://www.su.edu/conservatory/opera/auditioning/MUPP425/Documents/Per > formances/Fach/Bass.htm. For what it's worth, when I think of bass- > baritone I think of a voice like Bryn Terfal. > > I'm guessing, perhaps incorrectly, that you are a young man trying to > figure out your own voice type. If you are a serious opera voice > student, I suppose the issue of proper classification is important, > and you will work this out over time by exploring different > repertoire and seeing what works best for your voice. If you are say > 21, your voice is probably not mature and it would be hard to give > a "true" opera classification. In general, men have a tendancy to > think their voices are larger and deeper than they are. > > Hope this helps somewhat. > > Cheers, > > Michael
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