Head voice
Head voice is a term used within vocal music. The use of this term varies widely within vocal pedagogical circles and there is currently no one consistent opinion among vocal music professionals in regard to this term. Head voice can be used in relation to the following:
- A particular part of the vocal range or type of vocal register
- A vocal resonance area
- A specific vocal timbre[1]
History
The term goes back at least as far as the Roman tradition of
However, as knowledge of human physiology has increased over the past two hundred years, so has the understanding of the physical process of singing and vocal production. As a result, many vocal instructors have redefined or even abandoned the use of the term head voice.
Differing views on head voice
Head voice and vocal registration
One prevailing practice within vocal pedagogy is to divide both men and women's voices into three registers. Men's voices are divided into "
Clippinger claims that males and females switch registers at the same absolute pitches. He also states that at about E♭ or E above middle C, the tenor passes from what is usually called open to covered tone, but which might better be called from chest to head voice. At the same absolute pitches, the alto or soprano passes from the chest to the middle register. According to Clippinger, there is every reason to believe that the change in the mechanism for male voices into head register is the same as that which occurs in the female voice as it goes into the middle register at the same pitches.[5]
The contemporary
In the head register (which is above the chest register), some of the bottom end leaves the voice, but it's still, according to Martin, a voice capable of much power.[9]
Explanations for the physiological mechanisms behind the head voice can alter from voice teacher to voice teacher. This is because, according to Clippinger, "In discussing the head voice it is the purpose to avoid as much as possible the mechanical construction of the instrument".[10]
However, not all vocal teachers agree with this view. Thomas Appell's 1993 book Can You Sing a HIGH C Without Straining?[11] aimed to refute the theory that all singers switch registers at the same absolute pitch. Appell defined chest voice as resonance below the vocal folds and head voice as resonance above the vocal folds. He recorded examples of male and female singers changing from chest voice to head voice at different pitches in an attempt to prove that the transition pitch is a function of the intensity of the vocal tone and is not absolute. At higher vocal cord tension (intensity of singing), Appell shows that the pitch at which a singer transitions from chest to head voice will be higher. At lower vocal cord tension (intensity of singing), Appell shows that the pitch at which a singer transitions from chest to head voice will be lower.[citation needed]
Head voice and vocal resonation
This view is that since all registers originate in laryngeal function, it is meaningless to speak of registers being produced in the head. The vibratory sensations which are felt in the head are resonance phenomena and should be described in terms related to resonance, not to registers. These vocal instructors prefer the term "head voice" over the term register and divide the human voice into four registers: the
Not falsetto
Resonances and registration aside, the term "head voice" is commonly used to mean "high notes that are not falsetto or strained".[citation needed] For example, when Pavarotti, Stevie Wonder or Bill Withers slide from chest voice to a tenor high C (C5) in full, balanced voice, this is referred to as "head voice".[citation needed] (Pavarotti's range was C♯3 to F5, but beyond D5 (E♭5 to F5) he sang in a strong or reinforced falsetto.)
Beginning singers who have difficulty controlling their
High notes that are sung with balanced physiology do tend to have better resonance than falsetto or strained notes, so this definition doesn't usually contradict the other two.
See also
- Chest voice
- Falsetto register
- Human voice
- Tessitura
- Voice organ
- Voice projection
- Vocal registration
- Vocal resonation
References
- ^ ISBN 978-1-56593-940-0.
- ISBN 1-56159-174-2, Copyright Macmillan 1980.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8020-8614-3.
- ^ Clippinger, David A. (1917). The Head Voice and Other Problems: Practical Talks on Singing. Oliver Ditson Company. p. 12.at Project Gutenberg
- ^ Clippinger, David A. (1917). The Head Voice and Other Problems: Practical Talks on Singing. Oliver Ditson Company. p. 24.
- ISBN 1-86074-437-0.
- ISBN 978-0-02-871397-7.
- ^ Pamelia S. Phillips. "Identifying the Fab Four of Singing Voices". Wiley Publishing. Archived from the original on 10 March 2007. Retrieved 18 February 2007.
Bass is the lowest of the voice types...
- ISBN 1-86074-437-0.
- ^ Clippinger, David A. (1917). The Head Voice and Other Problems: Practical Talks on Singing. Oliver Ditson Company. p. 14.
- ISBN 9780963233936.
- stroboscopy". Clinique (Paris). 28: 337–341.
- ^ Rock the Stage: Voice Training for Modern Singers