Contralto

Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C (F₃ in scientific pitch notation) to the second G above middle C (G₅), although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C (E₃) or the second BTemplate:Music above middle C (BTemplate:Music₅).

Terminology

"Contralto" is meaningful only in reference to classical and operatic singing, as other genres lack a system of vocal categorization comparable to that generally accepted in the classical context. Even within current operatic practice, contraltos are often classed as mezzo-sopranos, because singers in each range can cover for those in the other. When appearing separately, the term "contralto" applies only to female singers; men whose voices fall in the same range or higher are known as "countertenors." The terms "contralto" and "alto" are not synonymous, the latter technically denoting a specific vocal range in choral singing without regard to factors like tessitura, vocal timbre, vocal facility, and vocal weight.

Within the category of contraltos are three generally recognized subcategories—coloratura contralto, lyric contralto, and dramatic contralto—that usefully describe the voice type in general terms. Note, however, that they do not always apply with precision to individual singers; some exceptional dramatic contraltos, such as Ernestine Schumann-Heink and Sigrid Onégin, were technically equipped to perform not only heavy, dramatic music by the likes of Wagner but also florid compositions by Donizetti.

Coloratura contralto

Coloratura contraltos—who have light, agile voices ranging very high for the classification and atypically extensive coloratura and high sustaining notes—specialize in florid passages and leaps. Given its deviations from the classification's norms, this voice type is quite rare.

Lyric contralto

A lyric contralto voice is lighter than a dramatic contralto but not capable of the ornamentation and leaps of a coloratura contralto. This class of contralto, lighter in timbre than the others, is the most common today and usually ranges from the G below middle C (G₃) to the G two octaves above middle C (G₅).

Dramatic contralto

The dramatic is the deepest, darkest, and heaviest contralto voice, usually having a heavier tone and more power than the others. Singers in this class, like the coloratura contraltos, are rare. They typically sing in a range from the G below middle C (G₃) to the A above middle C (A₅).

Contralto roles in opera

True operatic contraltos are rare, and the operatic literature contains few roles written specifically for them. Contraltos sometimes are assigned feminine roles like Angelina in La Cenerentola, Rosina in The Barber of Seville, and Olga in Eugene Onegin, but more frequently they play female villains or assume trouser roles originally written for castrati. A common saying among contraltos is that they may play only "witches, bitches, or britches."

Examples of contralto roles in the standard operatic repertoire include the following:.

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• Angelina^*, La Cenerentola (Rossini)
• Art Banker, Facing Goya (Michael Nyman)
• Auntie^*, landlady of The Boar, Peter Grimes (Britten)
• Azucena^*, Il trovatore (Verdi)
• The Baroness, Vanessa (Barber)
• La Cieca, La Gioconda (Ponchielli)
• Erda, Das Rheingold, Siegfried (Wagner)
• Madame Flora, The Medium (Gian Carlo Menotti)
• Fides, Le prophète (Giacomo Meyerbeer)
• Katisha, The Mikado (Gilbert and Sullivan)
• Klytemnestra^*, Elektra (Strauss)
• Maddalena^*, Rigoletto (Verdi)
• Mama Lucia, Cavalleria rusticana (Mascagni)
• Malcolm^*, La donna del lago (Rossini)
• Margret, Wozzeck (Berg)
• Mary, Der fliegende Holländer (Wagner)

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• Mother, The Consul (Menotti)
• Mother Goose, The Rake's Progress (Stravinsky)
• Olga^*, Eugene Onegin (Tchaikovsky)
• Orfeo, Orfeo ed Euridice (Gluck)
• Lel, The Snow Maiden (Rimsky-Korsakov)
• Little Buttercup, H.M.S. Pinafore (Gilbert and Sullivan)
• Lucretia, The Rape of Lucretia (Britten)
• Didone, Egisto (Cavalli)
• Pauline, The Queen of Spades (Tchaikovsky)
• La Principessa, Suor Angelica (Puccini)
• Rosina^*, The Barber of Seville (Rossini)
• Ruth The Pirates of Penzance (Gilbert and Sullivan)
• Orsini Lucrezia Borgia (Donizetti)
• Ulrica, Un ballo in maschera (Verdi)
• Widow Begbick^*, Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny (Kurt Weill)
• Cornelia Giulio Cesare (Handel)
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^* indicates a role that may also be sung by a mezzo-soprano.

See also

• Fach
• List of contraltos in non-classical music
• List of operatic contraltos

Further reading

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