Alto

The musical term alto, meaning "high" 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. In vocal classification these are usually called contralto and male alto or countertenor.

For other uses, see Alto (disambiguation).

Etymology[edit]

In choral music for mixed voices, "alto" describes the lowest part commonly sung by women. The explanation for the anomaly of this name is to be found not in the use of adult falsettists in choirs of men and boys but further back in innovations in composition during the mid-15th century. Before this time it was usual to write a melodic cantus or superius against a tenor (from Latin tenere, to hold) or 'held' part, to which might be added a contratenor, which was in counterpoint with (in other words, against = contra) the tenor. The composers of Ockeghem's generation wrote two contratenor parts and designated them as contratenor altus and contratenor bassus; they were respectively higher and lower than the tenor part. From these derive both the modern terms "alto" (and contralto) and "bass".

Voice classification in non-classical music

Smith, Brenda (2005). Choral Pedagogy. Plural Publishing. 978-1-59756-043-6.

ISBN

Stark, James (2003). Bel Canto: A History of Vocal Pedagogy. University of Toronto Press. 978-0-8020-8614-3.

ISBN

Appelman, D. Ralph (1986). The Science of Vocal Pedagogy: Theory and Application. Indiana University Press. 978-0-253-20378-6.

ISBN

Boldrey, Richard (1994). Guide to Operatic Roles and Arias. Caldwell Publishing Company. 978-1-877761-64-5.

ISBN

Coffin, Berton (1960). . Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. ISBN 978-0-8108-0188-2.

Coloratura, Lyric and Dramatic Soprano, Vol. 1

Peckham, Anne (2005). . Berklee Press Publications. ISBN 978-0-87639-047-4.

Vocal Workouts for the Contemporary Singer

The dictionary definition of Alto at Wiktionary