Voice & Vocal Concepts

1. Voice & Vocal Concepts Revision

2. Main types of voice: • MALE • Counter Tenor – • Very High (choir boy) • Tenor – High • Baritone • (in between Tenor & Bass) • Bass - Low • FEMALE • Soprano – High • Mezzo Soprano • (in between soprano & alto) • Alto - Low

3. Voice Uses • Solo • Duet • Choir • Unison • Harmony • A Cappella • Accompanied • Descant

4. SOLO – one voice • DUET – Two people singing together • CHOIR – A group of people singing together (SATB = Soprano, alto tenor & bass voices) • UNISON – two or more voices sounding at the same pitch or an octave (8 notes) apart • HARMONY – the sound of two or more notes made at the same time • A CAPELLA – unaccompanied singing • ACCOMPANIED – when instruments are played along with the singing • DESCANT – a melody above the main tune, mainly in vocal music e.g. (Hark the Herald)

5. Songs • Recitative • Aria • Chorus • Round

6. RECITATIVE – a type of vocal writing where the music follows the rhythm of SPEECH (think KFC advert!!), bare accompaniment • ARIA – a SOLO song in an opera, oratorio or cantata, lots of decoration in the melody, orchestral accompaniment • CHORUS – 1. a GROUP of singers with several people to each part (SATB) 2. the refrain between verses of a song • ROUND – each part sings the same melody entering one after the other. When they reach the end they start again, eg Frere Jacques

7. Styles • Musical • Opera • Chorale • Passion • Oratorio • Cantata

8. MUSICAL – singing (solo, duet, chorus), speech, costumes/scenery, band accompaniment, modern • OPERA – singing (recitative, aria, duet, chorus), NO SPEAKING, costumes/scenery, orchestral accompaniment, often in a foreign language, old(er) • CHORALE - a German hymn tune usually homophonic in texture written for SATB • PASSION – tellsthe story of the crucifixion from the GOSPEL, singing (recitative, aria, duet, chorus), NO SPEAKING, NO COSTUMES/SCENERY, orchestral accompaniment • ORATORIO– tells a story from the bible, singing (recitative, aria, duet, chorus), NO SPEAKING, NO COSTUMES/SCENERY, orchestral accompaniment (smaller group of players) • CANTATA– as oratorio but on a smaller scale

9. Styles • Strophic • Through Composed • Scat Singing • Homophony • Polyphony • Syllabic • Melismatic

10. STROPHIC – a vocal/choral composition where the same music is repeated throughout (verse-chorus-verse-chorus) • THROUGH-COMPOSED– a vocal/choral composition in which there is little or no repetition of the music • SCAT SINGING – nonsense words, syllables and sounds are improvised by the singer (doobie-doobie-shop-shoo-wap) • HOMOPHONY – all parts move together at the same time • POLYPHONY – 2 or more parts moving independently • SYLLABIC – each syllable gets one note • MELISMATIC – many notes are sung to one syllable

11. Scots Songs • Waulking Song • Bothy Ballad • Scots Ballad • Gaelic Psalm • Mouth Music

12. WAULKING SONG – a working song sung in Gaelic by women while they ‘waulked’ woollen cloth to soften and shrink it, led by a soloist with a response from the rest of the women (call & response), strophic • BOTHY BALLAD– a folk song with many verses, tells a story of rural or farming life, usually sung by men, led by a soloist with a response from the rest of the group (call & response), strophic • SCOTS BALLAD – a slow song which tells a story of love/an event/death, strophic • GAELIC PSALM – sung in church, led by a precentor with a response sung by the congregation (call & response), sounds untidy • MOUTH MUSIC – Gaelic nonsense words sung in imitation of the sound of bagpipes as an accompaniment to dancing