A sopranist (also known as male soprano) is a male singer who is able to sing in vocal tessitura of a soprano, usually through falsetto or head voice technique. This voice type is a specific kind of countertenor.

In rare cases an adult man may be able to sing in the soprano range using his normal or modal voice (high chest voice) and not falsetto due to endocrinological reasons, like Radu Marian, or as a result of a larynx that has not completely developed, as is allegedly the case with Michael Maniaci.

Voice

A sopranist is able to sing in the soprano vocal range which is approximately between C<sub>4</sub> and C<sub>6</sub>, though at times may expand somewhat higher or lower. Men of all voice types can possess the wide-ranged and effective falsetto or head voice needed to produce the contralto, mezzo-soprano and soprano vocal ranges. Some countertenors can sing up into the female vocal tessituras using the modal register (normal singing production) and need not employ any falsetto.

Controversy over the term "male soprano"

Typically, the term "soprano" refers to female singers, but at times the term "male soprano" has been used by men who sing in the soprano vocal range using falsetto vocal production instead of the modal voice. This practice is most commonly found in the context of choral music in England. However, these men are more commonly referred to as countertenors or sopranists. The practice of referring to countertenors as "male sopranos" is somewhat controversial within vocal pedagogical circles, as these men do not produce sound in the same physiological way that female sopranos do.

  • Simone Bartolini
  • Aris Christofellis
  • Edson Cordeiro (opera, pop, gospel)
  • Robert Crowe
  • David Hansen
  • Russell Hitchcock
  • JJ (born Johannes Pietsch)
  • Vyatcheslav Kagan-Paley
  • Dimash Kudaibergen
  • Adam Lopez (pop, opera, Latin)
  • Radu Marian
  • Samuel Mariño
  • Tomotaka Okamoto
  • Brian Charles Rooney (musical theatre)
  • Bruno de Sá
  • Tonex (gospel)
  • André Vásáry (opera, pop)
  • Vitas
  • Zhou Shen
  • Maayan Licht

See also

  • Superius
  • Farinelli

References

  • The Male Soprano
  • The World of the Castrati and Male Soprano