Download - Chapter Eight
Chapter Eight
The Voice and Opera
The Vocal Mechanism
Three Elements:1) Energy Source- Lungs
2) Vibrating Element- Vocal cords
3) Resonating Chamber- Head
A) Laryngeal prominence (Adam's Apple)
B) Larynx (voice box; vocal cords inside)
C) Trachea (wind pipe)
D) Esophagus (swallowing tube)
Vocal Mechanism--Larynx
Vocal Mechanism--Larynx
Vocal Mechanism Types
The Head Voice(Head Register)
(Light Mechanism)(Falsetto)
The Chest Voice(Chest Register)
(Heavy Mechanism)
“Vernacular” Voice Characteristics
• Uses microphone as part of technique
• Uses slap back echo and other enhancements
• Exploits timbral differences between registers
• Generally has less than two octave range
Trained Voice in Western Art Music
Middle Ages (all male) Modern (male and female)
Superius Soprano
Altisimus Alto
Tenore Tenor
Bassus Bass
Trained Voice Characteristics
Trained voices are considered acoustic instruments
• Project in large concert halls
• Project over large instrumental groups
• Suppress timbral differences betweenregisters
Further modern divisions of voices
SopranoColoratureLyricDramatic
Mezzo-sopranos
LyricDramatic
Contralto
TenorCountertenorLyric
Dramatic(Heldentenor)
BaritonesLyricBass Baritone
BassBasso CantanteBasso Profundo
Other Vocal Types
Contra-Bass (Russian Bass)Lowest and Rarest of Voices
Growl RegisterThroat Singers from Tuva
Multiphonics
Whistle RegisterChinese (Beijing) Opera Soprano
Early forms were religious festivals with dancing and singing.
“Incantation,” “charm,” “chant” and “enchant” all came from words having to do with singing.
Music and Drama
• Bali-Java (Indonesia) Gamelan Orchestra Puppet Theater
• JapanNoh DramaKabuki Theater
• ChinaChinese (Beijing) Opera
Non- Western Examples
Noh Theatre
The Noh theatre has a place in Japanese society similar to the place Shakespearean drama has in the West.
•600 years old•Highly stylized•Ritualistic--influenced by Zen Buddhism•Performers wear masks•All male actors and chorus•Accompanied by flute and three drums
Kabuki
• The word Kabuki literally means
song,
dance, and technique.
• 400 years old
• Folk production--very popular
• Combines dancing with lots of
melodrama
• Very elaborate costumes and
scenery
• Dance theatre--very stylized
• Accompanied by flute, drums,
shamison
• 600 years old• Started by the Florentine
Camerata in late 1500’s • Attempted to rival Greek
tragedy• Text of opera is called libretto• Singers train their voices to extend range
and agility• Melodic style resembles instrumental
melodies
Western European Opera
Quick History of Opera
1500-1600’s-•Produced at court for small aristocratic audiences
1700’s•Became highly popular form of entertainment•Tended to be comedies, spectacles, and dramas•Singers began to be “stars’•Some operas were written to show off a particular star•First public opera houses started
•Continued as popular form of entertainment
•Productions became bigger with more elaborate sets and costumes
•Plots were like “soap” operas (get it?)
•Two most famous opera composers ever•Giacomo Puccini•Guiseppe Verdi
•Wagner began experimenting with Gesamtkunstwerk
•Cities all over US welcomed travelling opera companies
1800’s--Grand Opera
As orchestras got bigger, singers needed to train more in order to project their voices over the orchestra--this led to more agility which then led to fancier melodies.
– Giaccomo Rossini--Barber of Seville
The Age of Bel Canto
Plots and characters became more
“everyday,” that is, more realistic.
• Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924) Tosca Madama Butterfly Turandot Il Trittico La Bohème [1896]
Georges Bizet (1838 - 1875) Carmen
Verismo (Realism)
Character Voice TypesMimi––lyric sopranoMusetta––coloratura sopranoRodolfo––lyric tenorMarcello––lyric baritioneSchaunard––baritoneColline––bassAlcindoro––bass
La Boheme
Early 1900’s•WW I slowed opera production
•Radio and movies gave people cheap way of escaping the Great Depression
•Grand Opera was temporarily replaced by Broadway and movie musicals
Late 1900’s
•Musicals became more like operas (Cats, Evita, Les Mis, Miss Saigon, Phantom, Rent)
•Opera experienced a big revival
•Most US cities now have opera houses
Operettas and musicals are operas with spoken dialogue. All dialogue is sung in an opera.
• William S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan
The Mikado The Pirates of Penzance
• Franz Lehar• Johannes Strauss• Scott Joplin
Operettas and Musicals