Women Singing Tenor
  • madorganist
    Posts: 906
    The title is slightly misleading because it's not about choral singing. I have a very dependable and enthusiastic alto in my choir who's great as a choral singer but whose voice is really sticking out on the congregational hymns and chants. I don't think she can control it and am considering asking her to try singing down in the men's octave except when the choir is singing in parts. Has anyone else here dealt with this particular problem? This woman also happens to be a very active and dedicated parishioner apart from her service in the choir and I certainly wouldn't want to offend her or say anything that could be taken the wrong way. If this topic has already been discussed on the forum, could somebody please provide a link to the thread? Thanks in advance!
  • JesJes
    Posts: 574
    Hmm, I'd do a number of things.
    1. If she can control it in choral then in hymns and chants she should be able to blend. Take some personal time to ask her if she can blend a bit more and talk diplomatically or pick more than just her to talk to. Or "without looking at anyone" mention to the choir the importance of blend in chant and hymn singing just before starting.
    2. Try ask her if she'd be willing to help the men out by singing some tenor to even up the balance.
    3. Use the straw method and see if it works. (Search titze and straw, might just help.)

    I have a similar problem but the reverse, I have a Nigerian man who has a huge amount of resonance and tries to sing too high with the women but he's actually a bass, he just can't hear the lower notes. He has a great solo tone but in choir/hymns/chant it is too much and the vowels are too different. I had another rehearsal last night and he really is settling, helped to have more blokes his age gathered closely around him.
  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 392
    There is no "men's octave". I am woman and I sing hymns and chant down the octave. If I don't, I am, for the most part, singing in my head voice entirely, and it's very difficult and tiring to do it in an audible volume.

    There are women whose range falls well below what people who don't know better call "the female range". Unfortunately, this stigma is so ingrained in the minds of people that women who do have a much lower range, think they're supposed to sing up where the rest of the women are singing.

    Have you ever done a range test on her? See how low she can go and listen to where here vocal registers change.
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  • a_f_hawkins
    Posts: 3,371
    In London we had a Nigerian lady in the congregation whose voice was certainly strong around e2-c3. And here a lady tenor whose contribution to our community choir was highly valued.
  • Liam
    Posts: 4,944
    And if you were fortunate to have have a woman who can sing like Ysaye Maria Barnwell, she would likely be the foundation of your bass section.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ysaye_Maria_Barnwell

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  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 392
    What exactly do you mean by not blending? If it's a vocal range thing, it would make sense that choral music is fine, because it's written in ranges. Most altos in choirs are mezzo soprano, not contralto.
  • madorganist
    Posts: 906
    SponsaChristi, that's exactly the issue. I don't think this woman needs to be singing tenor (or bass) in the choir, although I have had her and other altos sing first tenor on a seven-part motet. She's fine as an alto on polyphonic music, but for unison singing, where the range is slightly higher, her voice sounds forced and strident.
  • SponsaChristi
    Posts: 392
    I sing tenor and baritone, mostly. I sing the odd low alto part when needed, or when the tenor part is written quite high. I can comfortably sing down to A2.

    First and foremost, don't ask her to "sing in the male octave". No woman wants her voice to be equated with that of a male. She probably doesn't realize that it's perfectly acceptable (and more healthy for her vocal cords if she's straining and forcing it), for her, as a woman, to sing down the octave. I always just did it naturally and I couldn't figure out why guys at Mass would turn around and stare at me while singing Hail Holy Queen, which is already somewhat lower than many other hymns until I checked my voice against a piano.

    You could easily pull her aside and talk to her about it. It's not a musical failing on her part. She just falls into the 5-6% of women who have a contralto vocal fach rather than a mezzo piano (which is the most common for women). She'd probably be relieved to not have to use so much force to sing higher. You would want her standing next to one of the men, though when singing in unison.

    Thanked by 1madorganist
  • ChapmanGonzalez
    Posts: 31
    (Male) tenors sing in the high register of their voices and women who are singing tenor are using almost all chest voice. There is no way you can achieve any kind of blend here.
  • madorganist
    Posts: 906
    I would say I'm not terribly concerned about blend on unison congregational singing, but that was kind of the point of the post to start with. I don't think an alto singing in the lower octave, however, is as likely to draw attention to herself as someone singing in the upper octave.
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