Why do most singers seem to have big operatic voices? They always get picked for things because they have big voices, even if they don't sing that well. Is having a small voice such a bad thing? I have a small voice but I just can't compete with some of the big voiced altos I have to compete against. I auditioned for region choir today and some of those girls have so much vibrato "you could jump rope to it" as my teacher would say. My teacher says my voice is best suited for early music because I have a "boy choir" sound. I feel like I'm always struggling for volume. Does anyone else struggle with a small voice?

I'm a singing teacher, and I guess it's best to have all possibilities available in your voice to use as you wish.

I've seen lots of my pupils start with smaller voices, and as they relax and open the throat, yawn before singing (part of the warm up), and do long, relaxed notes in the lower chest register, then they gain the possibilities of a relaxed full voice, as well as, hopefully, the concentrated, focussed voice which it sounds as if you do so well. Just a matter of time, patience, thinking of a sound you'd like, and letting the golden long notes pour out - relaxing, and with good breathing technique.

Yes, vibrato is not so good at all when it is wider than the tone/the note. But within the width of the sound, it can be very pleasing to the ear, of course.

Best wishes with gaining all possibilities in your singing!

QUOTE (Sotto Voce @ Oct 17 2004, 03:01 AM)

Why do most singers seem to have big operatic voices? They always get picked for things because they have big voices, even if they don't sing that well. Is having a small voice such a bad thing? I have a small voice but I just can't compete with some of the big voiced altos I have to compete against. I auditioned for region choir today and some of those girls have so much vibrato "you could jump rope to it" as my teacher would say. [...]

Operatic singers use lots of vibrato legitimately because it helps to project the sound over the loud orchestras we have nowadays and some of them, less respectably, because it partly conceals their poor tuning. In 1910, vibrato was still an ornament, as it had been for centuries, but the 20th century lost that concept, both in string playing and in vocal production. For the last 25 years or so, some performers have been recovering the older tradition, and these include the singers to whom I listen. I rarely listened to singing before 1980, partly because vibrato was so often used to cover tuning deficiencies; then Emma Kirkby burst upon the scene, and nowadays we have a plethora of solo singers and choirs who can sing the right note and nothing but the note. Please keep your vibrato under control and use it sparingly when it is appropriate. Your voice will grow.

I used to have a "boy choir" sound, until I was about 15, and then it became LOUD. I really miss sounding angelic though!

Thanks DomRUK!

I've been in lessons for 4 years and I'm 16 now. My teacher thought my voice would eventually grow, but it hasn't really. Its gotten better, of course, but I don't sound like most singers.

BTW, I don't have anything against vibrato or opera singers. I was a little perturbed when I posted because the judges for region choir marked me way down for no apparent reason other than the size of my voice.

Don't worry if you have a quite voice!

I remember last year in GSC (Girls Select Choir) we had a BRILLIANT alto, her name was Rachel. She had a really loud voice, but it was really nice, our choir teacher loved her! She moved, but we have her youger sister in the choir, Hannah, who is loud, but amamnzing. Then there are many other frequent soloists who are quite soft.
In our chior its a really big thing to get a solo, even more so if you are a 6th grader. We have just had a concert, and when we sang the song 'I am a Small Part of the World', three 6th graders had solos. It depends on the song, but if you have a quite and more angelic voice, you have lots of potential to be chosen for solos. Thats why these 6th graders were chosen!

I have a fairly loud voice when I open up. I have just started vocal lessions, and have already learn't a lot. So my teacher spent a whole lesson talking to me about volume. She explained something about an egg. But she gives me all these visuals to think about. Like theres and egg in my throat and I need to curve the air stream around that. Try it, and just don't be afarid to open up. Sing with friends, or sing where ever makes you most comfortable! It helps, if you stop worrying about tone for ONE second, you can think about voulme!

-Amethyst

QUOTE (Sotto Voce @ Oct 19 2004, 09:49 PM)

Thanks DomRUK! I've been in lessons for 4 years and I'm 16 now. My teacher thought my voice would eventually grow, but it hasn't really. Its gotten better, of course, but I don't sound like most singers.   BTW, I don't have anything against vibrato or opera singers. I was a little perturbed when I posted because the judges for region choir marked me way down for no apparent reason other than the size of my voice.

Emma Kirkby was interviewed on Radio 3 some time ago, and described her first professional gigs shortly after she left Oxford, where she had sung Renaissance music as an amateur. She said her colleagues, who were experienced singers with much bigger voices than hers, kindly sang at much reduced volume, so as to get the balance right. Over the next few years, she took voice lessons and her voice enlarged to a level that is satisfactory for the sort of work she does. This does not include grand opera, but there is plenty of other repertoire.

Even the singers with naturally large voices, who are much in demand for 19th century operas, usually leave the more demanding roles, such as Siegfried or Brunnhilde, to their late twenties or early thirties, so as to have the strength to tackle them without doing harm to their voices.

QUOTE (Sotto Voce @ Oct 19 2004, 09:49 PM)

I've been in lessons for 4 years and I'm 16 now. My teacher thought my voice would eventually grow, but it hasn't really.

In terms of the physical development and maturity of the voice 16 is still pretty early days. Did you ever ask your teacher what (s)he meant by "eventually"? I would expect your voice to continue growing for many years yet if you treat it gently and let it develop naturally without ever forcing it. There's plenty of repertoire suitable for a small voice, and you may like to work on one or more foreign languages if you aren't already, to broaden the repertoire further.

Good luck!