Voice Classification in practice: An exploratory study

Voice classification happens to be a problematic issue. In this exploratory study private singing teachers and singing teachers of two types of conservatory (classical and musical theatre) were asked by means of three questionnaires how they deal with voice classification and which criteria they use for voice classification. Their singing students were asked what they think about their voice classification by their singing teachers. For some private singing teachers, voice classification was an unimportant issue while for all singing teachers of classical and musical theatre conservatories voice classification was found to be an important issue. However, each singing teacher reported a varying individual set of voice classification criteria, depending on the singing student and on the type of conservatory. Most criteria used for voice classification were frequency/tessitura, voice quality/timbre, volume, and register transition. Many conservatory singing students reported having no idea about their voice category. Musical Theatre singing students weremostly classified in the middle voice categories, while the highest voices were more present in the classical conservatory. The results of this study show that there is no consensus among temporary singing teachers on the need for voice classification and different criteria for voice classification are used. There are persistent feelings of uncertainty about voice classification among singing teachers and their students. Neglecting a careful watch on the physiological limits of the voice carries a potential risk. Further research is needed to understand the present trends in the singing world which will have important implications for future clinical practice. © 2013 Groningen University Press.

Publication year:2013