Information AboutSoubrette |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT SOUBRETTE | |
| french words and phrases | |
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| musical terminology | |
| singing | |
| vocal music | |
| vocal ranges | |
| opera terminology | |
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SOUBRETTES IN THEATER The term "soubrette" originated to name a sort of character in French comedy. It describes a comic female character who is young and girlish, constantly coquettish and gossipy, and usually a chambermaid. The earliest examples are perhaps to be found in the works of certainly fits the description. A more famous example, though a hundred years later, is the role of Suzanne in Beaumarchais ' ''Le Mariage de Figaro''. SOUBRETTES IN OPERA Opera , being a theatrical art form, has a number of typical soubrette roles. In opera, however, "soubrette" can refer not only to a comic role of the sort described above, but also to a particular type of singing voice. Soubrette roles in opera are performed usually by leggiero sopranos such as Kathleen Battle and Lily Pons . The soubrette voice type in opera might reasonably be described as a sort of lyric soprano distinguished by a notably light, youthful, even girlish Timbre . It shares the brightness of timbre with the lyric coloratura soprano, but unlike the coloratura, the soubrette voice is also expected to have warmth in her middle voice. The soubrette is not expected to sing as elaborately as the coloratura, nor is she called upon to reach the heights of the soprano range as frequently. Soubrette Vocal Range , however, is the same as for any lyric soprano. A typical soubrette role in opera is that of Zerlina in Don Giovanni . SOUBRETTES IN POPULAR MUSIC As is typical for popular music voice types, the soubrette is much less sharply defined outside of classical singing. The term refers to a woman with a light, youthful voice, probably not capable of extensive Coloratura , and a youthful personality. Because of the use of amplification and pitch correction technology and because of the wider range of vocal techniques considered acceptable in popular music, it is very difficult to characterize a popular soubrette's typical vocal range. Because of this, the voice type should probably not be applied to pop singers. |
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