Alto vs. Contralto
Altonoun
A musical part or section higher than tenor and lower than soprano, formerly the part that performed a countermelody above the tenor or main melody.
Altonoun
A person or musical instrument that performs the alto part.
Altonoun
An alto saxophone
Altonoun
Formerly the part sung by the highest male, or counter-tenor, voices; now the part sung by the lowest female, or contralto, voices, between in tenor and soprano. In instrumental music it now signifies the tenor.
Altonoun
An alto singer.
Altonoun
a singer whose voice lies in the alto clef
Altonoun
the lowest female singing voice
Altonoun
the highest adult male singing voice
Altonoun
the pitch range of the lowest female voice
Altoadjective
of or being the lowest female voice
Altoadjective
of or being the highest male voice; having a range above that of tenor
Altoadjective
(of a musical instrument) second highest member of a group;
Alto
The musical term alto, meaning in Italian (Latin: altus), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second highest part, sung in choruses by either low women's or high men's voices.
Contraltonoun
(music) The lowest female voice or voice part, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. The terms contralto and alto refer to a similar musical pitch, but among singers, the term contralto is reserved for female singers; the equivalent male form is counter-tenor. Originally the contratenor altus was a high countermelody sung against the tenor or main melody.
Contraltonoun
The part sung by the highest male or lowest female voices; the alto or counter tenor.
Contraltoadjective
Of or pertaining to a contralto, or to the part in music called contralto; as, a contralto voice.
Contraltonoun
a woman singer having a contralto voice
Contraltonoun
the lowest female singing voice
Contraltoadjective
of or being the lowest female voice
Contraltonoun
the lowest female singing voice
Contraltonoun
a singer with a contralto voice.
Contraltonoun
a part written for a contralto voice.
Contralto
A contralto (Italian pronunciation: [konˈtralto]) is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type.The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typically between the F below middle C (F3 in scientific pitch notation) to the second F above middle C (F5), although, at the extremes, some voices can reach the D below middle C (D3) or the second B♭ above middle C (B♭5). The contralto voice type is generally divided into the coloratura, lyric, and dramatic contralto.
