with sound illustrations
The aim of this small glossary is to present a few terms of singing with sound illustrations taken from the Nightingale Classics recordings of Edita Gruberova.
All music examples are in .ra (Real Audio) format. You
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If you want to know how (some of) these terms should be pronounced, consult the Acoustic Digest Musical Terms Glossary.
Sliding from one note to another. In the stricter sense, it requires hitting all the notes in between (unlike in portamento).
Example: Bellini: Beatrice di Tenda -
excerpt from the final cabaletta (from the CD NC
70560-2)
The context: Beatrice, innocently condemned to death, goes to her
execution. She asks her friends not to weep for her and says that for her
death is triumph and not suffering, she is leaving all pain behind.
This sound excerpt contains 3 downward glissandi.
A sung note which is originally not written in the score, or a note
sung at a quite different pitch (usually higher) than written.
See also: puntatura
Example: Donizetti: Anna Bolena - excerpt
from the Anna-Percy duet in Act I (from the CD NC
070565-2)
The context: King Henry VIII does not love his wife Anna. She is
unhappy. She secretly meets her former admirer Percy who tries to persuade
her to leave the king for him. She is torn between duty (as wife and queen)
and her re-born love for Percy, but refuses Percy's advances. Percy asks,
"Doesn't the king loathe you?" Anna answers, "He
loathes me, it's true." In the original Italian, "Mi abborre,
e vero." The interpolated high note is on the "o"
in "abborre" ("loathes"). It conveys
Anna's horror of the king, her disgust and desperation.
A series of notes that are closely bound together - as opposed to notes that are staccato, or, detached from one another.
Example: Donizetti: Anna Bolena - the
beginning of the aria "Al dolce guidami" from the Mad Scene
(from the CD NC 070565-2)
The context: Before her execution, Anna, in her mad state, mentally
returns to her childhood and remembers her first love.
Here Gruberova shows the flexibility of her legato: she varies the dynamic
level totally to her command, drawing an ardent, sustained line that conveys
the dream-like reverie in which Anna exists at that moment.
A tone begun softly, which is then swelled into a crescendo, and then
back in a descrescendo. (Not to be confused with mezza voce, or, half voice.)
In the 19th century it was a "must" for singers of Italian bel
canto operas. Nowadays it is not so common - few singers have the technique
to do it. It requires complete control over the dynamics of the voice.
You can read more about the technical aspects of the messa di voce at
La Scena Musicale
.
Example: Bellini: I Puritani - excerpt
from Elvira's "Vieni al tempio" aria in Act I
(from the CD NC 170562-2)
The context: Elvira has just discovered that her fiancé has
left her, minutes before the wedding ceremony. She loses her reason because
of the shock. In the aria she fantasizes about the wedding ceremony.
The messa di voce toward the end conveys the great pain felt by the abandoned
young woman.
A means of carrying the voice from one note to the next, without break (see also: glissando).
Example: Bellini: I Puritani - excerpt
from the Mad Scene in Act II (from the CD NC
170562-2)
The context: Elvira has gone mad. Her madness is an extension of
depression.
In this example, Edita Gruberova as Elvira portaments from 'lascia'
up to 'temi [morir]', i.e. "let me die". to convey
Elvira's utter despair. The portamento is used for deep expressive intent.
Golden Age singers were noted for their use of portamenti, often frowned
upon by today's so-called purists: the portamento is an essential, vital
effect for vocal expression.
An interpolated high note at the end of an aria or other vocal piece.
Example: Donizetti: Roberto Devereux -
the very end of the opera (from the CD NC
070563-2)
The context: Queen Elisabeth has just had her unfaithful lover Roberto
executed. She now regrets her decision and, totally devastated, resigns
from the throne.
The closing high note is the final demented cry of a queen who has lost
the game of life both as a monarch and as a woman.
(See the definition at legato.)
Example: Délibes: Lakmé - excerpt from the "Bell Song" (from the CD NC 090560-2)
Singing a note and the note above in rapid alternation.
Example 1: Verdi: Rigoletto - the end
of Gilda's aria "Caro nome" (from
the CD NC 170560-2)
The context: The girl Gilda has fallen in love with a young man
(whom she believes to be a poor student, but in reality he is the Duke
of Mantua, a womanizer). She has just met the man secretly, and he has
told her that his name is Gualtier Malde. After he leaves, Gilda repeats
the name again and again.
The trill at the end of the aria expresses Gilda's ecstatic joy.
Example 2: Richard Strauss: Ariadne auf
Naxos - excerpt from Zerbinetta's aria (from the
CD NC 170560-2)
The context: Zerbinetta sings about her "adventures" with
men, and the sexual ecstasy she experienced with them.
There are several trills in this part of the aria. Note the erotic softness
in the trill on the word "Stirn".
Musical excerpts © Nightingale Classics
Text & selection of excerpts by Niel Rishoi & Katalin Szabó.
The authors are indebted to Mike
Richter for inspiration and advice.
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