What is a SOPRANO voice in choral music or in other types of music?

Probably, even in case you do not listen to classical track very regularly, you are nonetheless familiar with the specific sound of the female soprano voice. Pop music has also featured sopranos as well as choral music. The first thing is that soprano has the highest variety of the voice types.

With their capacity to sing higher than any other kind of voice, sopranos can sing mild, but also ethereal  music and powerful even dramatic music. Therefore, many composers and songwriters have written outstanding music particularly to characteristics of the soprano voice.

The meaning of the word soprano

The word soprano refers to the highest-pitched human voice type, though it can also refer to a musician who possesses that voice type. Both women and kids (boys or girls) could be sopranos. Extracted from an Italian expression meaning 'above' the word 'soprano' could even be used to the highest-pitched variety of any music instrument, not only human voices. So, there are saxophones in many sizes, and the littlest, highest-pitched saxophone is known as the soprano saxophone.

Characteristics of soprano voice

Range of soprano voice: regularly middle C to high C despite the fact that some sopranos can vocalize above the high C and even lower than middle C. By means of definition a soprano has a higher range than a contralto or mezzo soprano, not all individual sopranos have exactly the same range: some can sing slightly higher or lower than others.
Strength of soprano voice: A soprano’s strength is a strong head voice.
Voice tone: The soprano voice is typically bright and ringing.
Weak point: Sopranos have a more difficulty to projecting in middle voice.
Subdivisions: high, higher, highest — ok, that’s maybe not exactly technically correct, but most other voice kinds have subdivisions that fill in the gaps.

Famous sopranos             

Well-known sopranos you could recognise  are Maria Callas, Dolly Parton, Olivia Newton John, Julie Andrews, Sara Brightman.

In the following articles there will be more about soprano voice as well as about other voice types.