Learn How to Sing in the Fastest and Easiest Way

Types of voices can be classified by using different criteria such as vocal range, tessitura, timbre, etc.

Timbre

Timbre distinguishes the color and quality of one sound to another and is formed by several harmonics (a distinct number of frequencies).

Remember that the size of your vocal range doesn’t determine if you are a good singer or not. There are many excellent singers with limited or small vocal ranges.

Tessitura

There is another way to classify the voice called tessitura. Tessitura, in singing, refers to the range in which a singer presents the best sound, where they feel the most comfortable singing, and where a good timbre and volume can be heard. This is a smaller group of notes than the whole vocal range.

There are basically three types of male voices and three types of female voices that are the most common.

Male voices:

Tenor
Baritone
Bass

Female voices:

Soprano
Mezzo soprano
Contralto

As we have explained before, we can use the piano keyboard to find the notes that correspond with our vocal range. For example, the middle C note is in the middle of the keyboard, the fourth C, and is called C4.

Tenor is the highest voice of a male. Their vocal range can be between C3 and C5.

Baritone is the most common type of male voice and can be found between the notes of G2 to G4.

Bass is the deepest voice for a male and the vocal range is approximately E2 to E4. This is not a very common type of voice for a man.

Soprano is the highest female voice, their typical vocal range lies between A3 and F6.

Mezzo soprano probably is the most common type of voice in a woman and the vocal range is usually between the notes G3 and A5.

Contralto is the deepest female voice and is not very typical. Their vocal range can rest between the notes of E3 and G5.

As you can see, there are many different ways to classify different kinds of voices. The quality of our voice depends upon many factors and our vocal range is merely a way to measure the spectrum of notes which we can sing.

We would like to note that you can always improve the quality of your voice and extend your vocal range when learning how to sing with the appropriate vocal training and practice.

Related posts:

1. How to Sing: Learning About the Vocal Range