Soprano
- This article is about singers. For the popular HBO television drama series about the Italian-American mafia, see The Sopranos.
In music, a soprano is a singer with a voice that ranges from, approximately, the A below middle C to "high C", two octaves above middle C (i.e. A3-C6). Some sopranos can go much higher, up to F6. In four part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody.
The word "soprano" generally refers to a female singer of this highest vocal range and to her voice. Male singers whose voices have not yet changed are known either as "boy sopranos" or, in the Anglican and Roman Catholic traditions, as trebles. Some adult male singers use a special technique without using falsetto in order to sing in this high range, and they are known as sopranists.
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Historically, women were not allowed to sing in the Church, so the soprano roles were given to young boys, and later to castrati, who were men whose larynxes had been fixed in a pre-adolescent state through the process of castration.
More generally, a soprano is a relatively high-pitched member of a group of similar instruments (for example, the soprano saxophone).
Types of soprano and soprano roles in operas
In opera, the character and timbre of soprano voices are often categorized according to the German Fach system. However, several roles are regularly sung by sopranos who are considered to belong to another "Fach". For example, Lyric Coloratura Sopranos and Full Lyrics often sing Lucia (Lucia di Lammermoor). Sopranos usually play the heroine in opera. The soprano Fächer, with examples of respective roles, are:
- Soubrette: A sweet, lightweight voice whose range is mostly in middle voice. Plays comedic, saucy, but likable characters.
- Adele (Die Fledermaus)
- Amor (Orfeo Ed Euridice)
- Ännchen (Der Freischütz)
- Barbarina (Le Nozze Di Figaro)
- Belinda (Dido And Aeneas)
- Despina (Così Fan Tutte)
- Lisa (La Sonnambula)
- Marzellina (Fidelio)
- Musetta (La Bohème)
- Nannetta (Falstaff)
- Olympia (Les Contes D'Hoffmann)
- Servilia (La Clemenza Di Tito)
- Susanna (Le Nozze Di Figaro)
- Tamyris (Il Re Pastore)
- Zerlina (Don Giovanni)
- Lyric Coloratura: A light, acrobatic voice, with a range into the 6th octave.
- Adina (L'Elisir D'Amore)
- Agrippina (Agrippina)
- Alcina (Alcina)
- Alminera (Rinaldo)
- Amina (La Sonnambula)
- Blondchen (Die Entführung Aus Dem Serail)
- Celia (Lucio Silla)
- Elisa (Il Re Pastore)
- Elvira (I Puritani)
- Gilda (Rigoletto)
- Ilia (Idomeneo)
- Lakmé (Lakmé)
- Lucia (Lucia Di Lammermoor)
- Magda (La Rondine)
- Norina (Don Pasquale)
- Ophélie (Hamlet)
- Oskar (Un Ballo In Maschera)
- Queen of the Night (Die Zauberflöte)
- Sofie (Der Rosenkavalier)
- Zerbinetta (Ariadne Auf Naxos)
- Dramatic Coloratura: An acrobatic voice with powerful dramatic qualities, with a range up to F6.
- Anne (The Rake's Progress)
- Cleopatra (Giulio Cesare)
- Donna Anna (Don Giovanni)
- Fiordiligi (Così Fan Tutte)
- Königin der Nacht (Queen of the Night) (Die Zauberflöte)
- Konstanze (Die Entführung aus dem Serail)
- Lady Macbeth (Macbeth)
- Leonora (Il Trovatore)
- Lucrezia (Lucrezia Borgia)
- Mathilde (Guillaume Tell)
- Norma (Norma)
- Rosalinda (Die Fledermaus)
- Violetta (La Traviata)
- Full Lyric Soprano: A sweet, graceful voice, with range similar to that of the soubrette but with a stronger quality, and stronger upper register. Reserved for ingenues and other sympathetic characters.
- Agathe (Der Freischütz)
- Antonia (Les Contes D'Hoffmann)
- Contessa (Figaro)
- Euridice (Orfeo Ed Euridice)
- Juliette (Roméo Et Juliette)
- Liù (Turandot)
- Manon (Manon)
- Marie (The Daughter Of The Regiment)
- Marguerite (Faust)
- Martha (Martha)
- Micaëla (Carmen)
- Mimi (La Bohème)
- Nedda (Pagliacci)
- Pamina (Die Zauberflöte)
- Zaide (Zaide)
- Spinto Soprano: A full lyric voice that can be pushed to dramatic climaxes.
- Agathe (Der Freischütz)
- Aida (Aïda)
- Alice Ford (Falstaff)
- Butterfly (Madama Butterfly)
- Desdemona (Othello)
- Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni)
- Elisabetta (Don Carlos)
- Manon (Manon Lescaut)
- Margherita (Mefistofele)
- Rusalka (Rusalka)
- Tatajana (Eugene Onegin)
- The Marschallin (Der Rosenkavalier)
- Wally (La Wally)
- Dramatic soprano: A powerful, rich, emotive voice. Used for the heroic, tragic, and/or victimized women of opera. Range from Bb3 or A3 to C6. (Note: The listed range is not correct for all of the below roles; some exceed the listed range.)
- Abgaille (Nabucco)
- Amelia (Un Ballo In Maschera)
- Ariadne (Ariadne Auf Naxos)
- Cio-Cio-San (Butterfly) (Madama Butterfly)
- Elsa (Lohengrin)
- Gioconda (La Gioconda)
- Kundry (Parsifal)
- Leonora (La Forza Del Destino)
- Leonore (Fidelio)
- Santuzza (Cavalleria Rusticana)
- Sieglinde (Die Walküre)
- Tosca (Tosca)
- Wagnerian soprano (Hochdramatischer sopran): A dramatic voice that can assert itself as an instrument over a large orchestra (over eighty pieces). Usually a mythic heroine.
- Brünnhilde (Die Walküre, Siegfried, Götterdämmerung)
- Elektra (Elektra)
- Elizabeth (Tannhäuser)
- Isolde (Tristan Und Isolde)
- Salome (Salome)
- Senta (Der Fliegende Holländer)
- Turandot (Turandot)
Two types of soprano especially dear to the French are the Dugazon and the Falcon, which are intermediate voice types between the soprano and the mezzo soprano: a Dugazon is a darker-colored soubrette, a Falcon a darker-colored soprano drammatico.
Soprano roles in operettas and musicals
- Adele (Die Fledermaus)
- Aline (The Sorcerer)
- Beggar Woman/Lucy Barker (Sweeney Todd)
- Belle (Beauty And The Beast)
- Bess (Porgy And Bess)
- Bloody Mary (South Pacific)
- Carlotta Giudicelli (The Phantom Of The Opera)
- Casilda (The Gondoliers)
- Christine Daaé (The Phantom Of The Opera)
- Cinderella (Cinderella)
- Cinderella (Into The Woods)
- Clara (Porgy And Bess)
- Clara (The Light In The Piazza)
- Cosette (Les Misérables)
- Cristiane (The King's Rhapsody)
- Cunegonde (Candide)
- Eileen (Wonderful Town)
- Eliza (My Fair Lady)
- Elsie (The Yeomen Of The Guard)
- Emma (Jekyll & Hyde)
- Erzulie (Once On This Island)
- Franca (The Light In The Piazza)
- Gianetta (The Gondoliers)
- Glinda (Wicked)
- Grace (Annie)
- Hanna (Die Lustige Witwe)
- Hodel (Fiddler On The Roof)
- Hope (Anything Goes)
- Ida (Princess Ida)
- Jack's Mother (Into The Woods)
- Jemima (Cats)
- Johanna (Swenney Todd)
- Josephine (H.M.S. Pinafore)
- Julie (Show Boat)
- Julie Jordan (Carousel)
- Kate (Kiss Me, Kate)
- Laurey (Oklahoma!)
- Lily St Regis (Annie)
- Linda (Gay's The Word)
- Laura (The Woman In White)
- Mabel (The Pirates Of Penzance)
- Maria (The Sound Of Music)
- Margaret (The Light In The Piazza)
- Maria (West Side Story)
- Marian Paroo (The Music Man)
- Melony (Pirates: A Romeo And Juliet Story)
- Mina (The Enchantress)
- Miss Gibbs (Our Miss Gibbs)
- Nina (Song Of Norway)
- Patience (Patience)
- Peep-Bo (The Mikado) - this role could also be played by a mezzo-soprano
- Phyllis (Iolanthe)
- Rapunzel (Into The Woods)
- Rosa Bud (The Mystery Of Edwin Drood)
- Rose Maybud (Ruddigore)
- Rose Vibert (Aspects Of Love)
- Rosaline (Pirates: A Romeo And Juliet Story)
- Rosalinda (Die Fledermaus)
- Saffi (Der Zigeunerbaron)
- Sarah (The Maid Of The Mountains)
- Sarah (Guys And Dolls)
- Signora Naccarelli (The Light In The Piazza)
- Sombra (The Arcadians)
- Teresa (The Maid Of The Mountains)
- TupTim (The King And I)
- Violet (House Of Flowers)
- Yum-Yum (The Mikado)
- Janet Weiss (The Rocky Horror Show)
Famous sopranos
Classical music
- Aino Ackté
- Elly Ameling
- June Anderson
- Victoria de los Angeles
- Isobel Baillie
- Josephine Barstow
- Kathleen Battle
- Hildegard Behrens
- Gabriela Beňačková
- Erna Berger
- Barbara Bonney
- Inge Borkh
- Tatiana Borodina
- Catherine Bott
- Fabiana Bravo
- June Bronhill
- Gré Brouwenstijn
- Montserrat Caballé
- Maria Callas
- Lina Cavalieri
- Patrizia Ciofi
- Ileana Cotrubaş
- Régine Crespin
- Suzanne Danco
- Barbara Daniels
- Lisa Della Casa
- Mireille Delunsch
- Helge Dernesch
- Natalie Dessay
- Daniela Dessì
- Emmy Destinn
- Cristina Deutekom
- Ghena Dimitrova
- Jane Eaglen
- Emma Eames
- Nikki Einfeld
- Agam Englard
- Anne Evans
- Marie-Cornélie Falcon
- Geraldine Farrar
- Eileen Farrell
- Kirsten Flagstad
- Renée Fleming
- Nuccia Focile
- Mirella Freni
- Barbara Frittoli
- Inessa Galante
- Amelita Galli-Curci
- Mary Garden
- Lesley Garrett
- Leyla Gencer
- Véronique Gens
- Angela Gheorghiu
- Reri Grist
- Edita Gruberová
- Elisabeth Grümmer
- Hilde Gueden
- Ingeborg Hallstein
- Heather Harper
- Barbara Hendricks
- Ruth Holton
- Rita Hunter
- Soile Isokoski
- Maria Ivogün
- Gundula Janowitz
- Florence Foster Jenkins
- Maria Jeritza
- Sumi Jo
- Gwyneth Jones
- Jessica Jones
- Sena Jurinac
- Raina Kabaivanska
- Sophie Karthäuser
- Maria Cristina Kiehr
- Emma Kirkby
- Miliza Korjus
- Erika Koth
- Juanita Lascarro
- Marjorie Lawrence
- Evelyn Lear
- Louise-Rosalie Lefebvre
- Lotte Lehmann
- Jenny Lind
- Pilar Lorengar
- Felicity Lott
- Malvina Major
- Catherine Malfitano
- Maria Malibran
- Ewa Mallas-Godlewska
- Ana María Martínez
- Eva Marton
- Valerie Masterson
- Edith Mathis
- Karita Mattila
- Sylvia McNair
- Nellie Melba
- Mady Mesplé
- Zinka Milanov
- Yvonne Minton
- Nelly Miricioiu
- Anna Moffo
- Carmen Monarcha
- Inva Mula-Tchako
- Rosanna Murphy
- Herva Nelli
- Anna Netrebko
- Mariana Nicolesco
- Birgit Nilsson
- Jessye Norman
- Magda Olivero
- Luba Orgonasova
- Hasmik Papian
- Giuditta Pasta
- Adelina Patti
- Maria Pellegrini
- Roberta Peters
- Patricia Petibon
- Sandrine Piau
- Nicola Piovani
- Lily Pons
- Rosa Ponselle
- Lucia Popp
- Isabelle Poulenard
- Leontyne Price
- Ema Pukšec (Ilma De Murska)
- Marijana Radev
- Elisabeth Rethberg
- Katia Ricciarelli
- Amanda Roocroft
- Andrea Rost
- Anneliese Rothenberger
- Leonie Rysanek
- Sylvia Sass
- Bidu Sayão
- Elisabeth Schumann
- Elisabeth Schwarzkopf
- Graziella Sciutti
- Renata Scotto
- Irmgard Seefried
- Meta Seinemeyer
- Luciana Serra
- Anja Silja
- Beverly Sills
- Elisabeth Söderström
- Teresa Stratas
- Rita Streich
- Cheryl Studer
- Joan Sutherland
- Ruth Ann Swenson
- Renata Tebaldi
- Kiri Te Kanawa
- Luisa Tetrazzini
- Maggie Teyte
- Milka Trnina
- Eva Turner
- Dawn Upshaw
- Julia Varady
- Astrid Varnay
- Maria Cristina Viguilla-Navarro
- Veronica Villarroel
- Galina Vishnevskaya
- Deborah Voigt
- Cheryl Boyd Waddell
- Meghan Wagner
- Christine Weidinger
- Ljuba Welitsch
Cross-over and popular music
- Sharon den Adel
- Christina Aguilera
- Julie Andrews
- Jo Appleby
- Joan Baez
- Jodi Benson
- Björk
- Tamar Braxton
- Sarah Brightman
- Mariah Carey
- Eva Cassidy
- Kristin Chenoweth
- Charlotte Church
- Judy Collins
- Allison Crowe
- Rachel Dear
- Céline Dion
- Linda Eder
- Terry Ellis
- Sertab Erener
- Susanna Foster
- Nina Girado
- Delta Goodrem
- Susaye Greene
- Cissy Houston
- Floor Jansen
- Liv Kristine
- Kyla
- Amel Larrieux
- Patti LaBelle
- CoCo Lee
- Ute Lemper
- Martina McBride
- Loreena McKennitt
- Joni Mitchell
- Chante Moore
- Melba Moore
- Debelah Morgan
- Anne Nurmi
- Laura Pausini
- Sheryn Regis
- Minnie Riperton
- Linda Ronstadt
- Dawn Robinson
- Lea Salonga
- Selena
- Karen Clark Sheard
- Jake Shears
- Vonzell Solomon
- Vibeke Stene
- Jean Terrell
- Sylvie Valayre
- Regine Velasquez
- Hayley Westenra
- Deniece Williams
- Shanice Wilson