Falsetto
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Falsetto (/fɔːlˈsɛtoʊ, fɒl-/ fawl-SET-oh, fol-, Italian: [falˈsetto]; Italian diminutive of falso, "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave.
It is produced by the vibration of the
The term falsetto is most often used in the context of singing to refer to a type of vocal phonation that enables the singer to sing notes beyond the vocal range of the normal or modal voice.[1] The typical tone of falsetto register or M2, usually has a characteristic breathy[2][3] and flute-like sound relatively free of overtones[4][5]—which is more limited than its modal counterpart in both dynamic variation and tone quality.[6] However, William Vennard points out that while most untrained people can sound comparatively "breathy" or "hooty" when using falsetto production, there are in rarer cases individuals who have developed a much stronger falsetto sound production, which has more "ring" to it.[7]
Anatomical process
The modal voice, or modal register, and falsetto register differ primarily in the action of the vocal cords. Production of the normal voice involves vibration of the entire vocal cord, with the glottis opening first at the bottom and then at the top. Production of falsetto, on the other hand, vibrates only the ligamentous edges of the vocal folds while leaving each fold's body relatively relaxed.[8] Transition from modal voice to falsetto occurs when each vocal cord's main body, or vocalis muscle, relaxes, enabling the cricothyroid muscles to stretch the vocal ligaments.[6] William Vennard describes this process as follows:
With the vocalis muscles relaxed it is possible for the
In the modal register, the vocal folds (when viewed with a stroboscope) are seen to contact with each other completely during each vibration, closing the gap between them fully, if just for a very short time. This closure cuts off the escaping air. When the air pressure in the
In falsetto, however, the vocal folds are seen to be blown apart, and in untrained falsetto singers, a permanent oval orifice is left in the middle between the edges of the two folds through which a certain volume of air escapes continuously as long as the register is engaged (the singer is singing using the voice). In skilled countertenors, however, the mucous membrane of the vocal folds contact with each other completely during each vibration cycle. The arytenoid cartilages are held in firm apposition in this voice register also. The length or size of the oval orifice or separation between the folds can vary, but it is known to get bigger as the pressure of air pushed out is increased.[1]
The folds are made up of elastic and fatty tissue. The folds are covered on the surface by laryngeal mucous membrane, which is supported deeper down underneath by the innermost fibres of the thyroarytenoid muscle. In falsetto, the extreme membranous edges (i.e., the edges furthest away from the middle of the gap between the folds) appear to be the only parts vibrating. The mass corresponding to the innermost part of the thyroarytenoid muscle remains still and motionless.[1]
Some singers feel a sense of muscular relief when they change from the modal register to the falsetto register.[1]
Research has revealed that not all speakers and singers produce falsetto in exactly the same way. Some speakers and singers leave the cartilaginous portion of the glottis open (sometimes called 'mutational chink'), and only the front two-thirds of the vocal ligaments enter the vibration. The resulting sound, which is typical of many adolescents, may be pure and flutelike, but is usually soft and anemic in quality. In others, the full length of the glottis opens and closes in each cycle. In still others, a phenomenon known as damping appears, with the amount of glottal opening becoming less and less as the pitch rises, until only a tiny slit appears on the highest pitches. The mutational chink type of falsetto is considered inefficient and weak, but there is little information available about the relative strengths and weaknesses of the other two types.[6]
Female falsetto
Both sexes are physically capable of phonating in the falsetto register. Prior to research done by scientists in the 1950s and 1960s, it was widely believed that only men were able to produce falsetto. One possible explanation for this failure to recognize the female falsetto sooner is that when men phonate in the falsetto register there is a much more pronounced change in
While scientific evidence has proven that women have a falsetto register, the issue of 'female falsetto' has been met with controversy among teachers of singing.[6] This controversy does not exist within the sciences and arguments against the existence of female falsetto do not align with current physiological evidence. Some pioneers in vocal pedagogy, like Margaret Green and William Vennard, were quick to adopt current scientific research in the 1950s, and pursued capturing the biological process of female falsetto on film. They went further to incorporate their research into their pedagogical method of teaching female singers.[10] Others refused to accept the idea, and opposition to the concept of female falsetto has continued among some teachers of singing long after scientific evidence had proven the existence of female falsetto.[6] Celebrated opera singer and voice teacher Richard Miller pointed out in his 1997 publication National Schools of Singing: English, French, German, and Italian that while the German school of voice teachers had largely embraced the idea of a female falsetto into pedagogical practice, there is division within the French and English schools and a complete rejection of the idea of female falsetto in the Italian school of singing.[11] In his 2004 book, Solutions for Singers: Tools For Performers and Teachers, Miller said, "It is illogical to speak of a female falsetto, because the female is incapable of producing a timbre in the upper range that is radically different from its mezza voce or voce piena in testa qualities".[12]
However, other writers of singing have warned about the dangers of failing to recognize that women have a falsetto register. McKinney, who expressed alarm that many books on the art of singing completely ignore or gloss over the issue of female falsetto or insist that women do not have falsetto, argues that many young female singers substitute falsetto for the upper portion of the modal voice.[6] He believes that this failure to recognize the female falsetto voice has led to the misidentification of young contraltos and mezzo-sopranos as sopranos, as it is easier for these lower voice types to sing in the soprano tessitura using their falsetto register.[6]
Musical history
Use of falsetto voice in western music is very old. Its origins are difficult to trace because of ambiguities in terminology. Possibly when 13th century writers distinguished between chest,
The falsetto register is used by male countertenors to sing in the alto and occasionally the soprano range and was the standard before women sang in choirs. Falsetto is occasionally used by early music specialists today and regularly in British cathedral choirs by men who sing the alto line.[14]
There is a difference between the modern usage of the "head voice" term and its previous meaning in the renaissance as a type of falsetto, according to many singing professionals. These days, head voice is typically defined as a mix of chest and head voice, therefore created a stronger sound than falsetto.[15] The falsetto can be coloured or changed to sound different. It can be given classical styling to sound as male classical countertenors make it sound, or be sung in more contemporary musical styles.[16]
In opera, it is believed that the chest voice, middle voice and head voice occur in women.[17] The head voice of a man is, according to David A. Clippinger generally equivalent to the middle voice of a woman.[18] This may mean the head voice of a woman is a man's falsetto equivalent. Although, in contemporary teaching, some teachers no longer talk of the middle voice, choosing to call it the head voice as with men. Falsetto is not generally counted by classical purists as a part of the vocal range of anyone except countertenors. There are exceptions, however, such as the baryton-Martin which uses falsetto (see baritone article).[19]
Use in singing
Falsetto is more limited in dynamic variation and tone quality than the modal voice.[
Use in speech
The ability to speak within the falsetto register is possible for almost all men and women. The use of falsetto is considered uncommon in normal Western speech and is most often employed within the context of humor.[21] However, the use of falsetto speech varies by culture and its use has been studied in African Americans[22] and gay men[23] in certain contexts. Its use has also been noted in the U.S. South.[24] Pitch changes ranging to falsetto are also characteristic of British English.[25]
Some people who speak frequently or entirely in the falsetto register are identified by speech pathologists as suffering from a functional dysphonia.[21] Falsetto also describes the momentary, but often repeated, fluctuations in pitch emitted by both sexes while undergoing voice change during adolescence. These changes, however, are more apparent and occur with greater frequency in boys than they do in girls.[26] Failure to undergo proper voice-change is called puberphonia.
See also
References
- ^ OCLC 5676891.
- ^ Joseph C. Stemple; Leslie E. Glaze; Bernice K. Gerdeman (2000). Clinical Voice Pathology: Theory and Management. Singular. p. 359.
- ^ Gillyanne Kayes (2000). Singing and the Actor. Psychology Press. p. 156.
- ISBN 9780198040231.
- ^ Van Ambrose Christy (1975). Expressive Singing. W. C. Brown. p. 95.
- ^ ISBN 978-1565939400.
- ^ William Vennard (1967). Singing: The Mechanism and the Technic. Carl Fischer Music. p. 89.
- ^ Large, John (February–March 1972). "Towards an Integrated Physiologic-Acoustic Theory of Vocal Registers". The NATS Bulletin. 28: 30–35.
- ISBN 978-0825800559.
- ISBN 978-1861561961.
- ^ Richard Miller (1997). National Schools of Singing: English, French, German, and Italian. Scarecrow Press. p. 115.
- ^ Miller, Richard. Solutions for Singers: Tools for Performers and Teachers (Oxford University Press, 2004), page 148
- ^ ISBN 1-56159-174-2, Copyright Macmillan 1980.
- John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.
- ^ Williams, Mark (5 October 2016). "What's the Difference Between Head Voice and Falsetto". The Vocal Coach. Retrieved 11 September 2017.
- ^ Review Archived 2014-11-30 at archive.today of Justin Timberlake: FutureSex/LoveSounds - "Timberlake's falsetto layering on top of one other as the songs build to their crescendos."
- ISBN 0-19-869164-5
- ^ Clippinger, David Alva (1917). The Head Voice and Other Problems: Practical Talks on Singing. Oliver Ditson Company. p. 24.Project Gutenberg etext.
- ISBN 1-56159-174-2, Copyright Macmillan Publishers Limited 1980.
- ^ Van den Berg, J.W. (December 1963). "Vocal Ligaments versus Registers". The NATS Bulletin. 19: 18.
- ^ a b Cooper, Morton (1973). Modern Techniques of Vocal Rehabilitation. Charles C. Thomas.
- ^ Nielsen, Rasmus (2010). ""I ain't Never Been Charged with Nothing!": The Use of Falsetto Speech as a Linguistic Strategy of Indignation". University of Pennsylvania Working Papers in Linguistics. Vol. 15, no. 2, Article 13. University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
- S2CID 35856647.
- ^ Fennell, Barbara A. (2001). A History of English: A Sociolinguistic Approach. Blackwell Publishing. p. 236.
- ^ Herman, Lewis; Herman, Margaurite Shalett (1997). Foreign Dialects: A Manual for Actors, Directors and Writers. Rutledge. p. 45.
- ^ Aronson, Arnold Elvin; Bless, Diane M. (2009). Clinical Voice Disorders.
Further reading
- Appell, Thomas (1993). Can You Sing a HIGH C Without Straining?. VDP. ISBN 978-0963233974.
External links
- Glossary definition of falsetto Archived 2013-04-01 at the Wayback Machine at Virginia Tech's Web site
- Story about the falsetto in rock music in The Boston Globe
- Video: vocal coach Kevin Richards explains the difference between falsetto and head voice