Template talk:Voice type

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Could someone explain why bass-baritone has been removed? Thanks. -- Kleinzach 03:33, 8 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I believe that both sopranist and bass-baritone were moved as these voice types are traditionlly regulated as sub-types under other voice classifications. Sopranists are a specific kind of countertenor and bass-baritones are usually grouped as a sub-type under the bass classification. If you feel this a problem and that we should include them under this voice type area I would love to hear your reasoning. Nrswanson (talk) 17:24, 28 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Sopranists have a different range to counter-tenors, it is not a sub-type. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.86.14.169 (talk) 13:40, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Incorrect. Countertenor as defined by the Harvard Dictionary of Music, Grove Encyclopedia of Music, and numerous other sources defines a countertenor as a person who sings in the range of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contalto vocal ranges using falsetto vocal production and having a tessitural top note in between G4 and B4,while an Contraltist,mezzist and sopranist are sub-categories to describe if they are a counter tenor with the range of a Soprano,Mezzo or Contralto. A sopranist is also described as a sub type of countertenor in Stark's Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy.Nrswanson (talk) 14:40, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I was wrong in explaining my corrections to the template. However, it still somewhat judgmental to classify what is female or male voices. There should be some sort of charts as assigning the names to female or male voices is too vague. Aleksandr Grigoryev (talk) 17:26, 28 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

There are several problems with the changes you made. First, the vocal ranges given in the visual are not exactly the same as those given in the article. Second, it removes the countertenor voice type. Third, it over-emphasizes vocal range which is not the only factor (and in my oppinion not the most important) in determining voice type. Vocal tessitura (ie. where the voice is most comfortable singing) is much more important. The template is fine as is in my opinion. Also, any book on voice classification divides the voice types along sex lines as this chart does. It's not descrimanatory, just a fact. Sex is one of the factors in determining voice type. It's always been that way, and no book on voice classification will tell you differently. FYI, the German Fach system is also a sex divided system, although the wikipedia article does a poor job at explaining that.

Here are some things to consider, a low female solo voice that overlap the male vocal range is called contralto, not a tenor or baritone. Actually they could also be a mezzo-soprano as well depending on the tessitura and vocal color because range is only one factor in voice typing. Regaurdless, female soloists are never refered to as "tenors" or "baritones". That's standard practice. Of course that doesn't prevent women from say singing in the tenor section of a choir. But in that case they would be a contralto singing in the "tenor section". Likewise some countertenors frequently sing in the alto section of a chorus, as do mezzo-sopranos and contraltos. In that case you have three voice types all singing the alto part. 4meter4 (talk) 20:04, 28 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Well put. I fully concur. -- Michael Bednarek (talk) 02:54, 29 August 2010 (UTC)[reply]

A discussion is taking place at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Opera#Is Alto a voice type? (where I thought it would have some good visibility); please drop by to lend your "voice". Cheers, all. Prhartcom (talk) 19:12, 20 May 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Shouldn't they also be there? I know castrati don't exist anymore but it's definitely a voice type in western classical music that music has been written for. Sheila1988 (talk) 15:55, 6 March 2023 (UTC)[reply]