Eileen Strempel walks us through the history of vibrato in
her article, The Shifting Aesthetics of Vibrato. Vibrato style has
changed over the last 600 years (go figure), which means your Handel aria
should not carry the same amount of vibrato as your Schubert lied. Vibrato needs to change as the style
does.
Vibrato is considered 6.2-6.6 pitch pulsations a second.
Tremolo (ew!) is 12 pitch pulsations a second. Men are generally lower in pps
than women, but only by a few decimal points. Scientifically, vibrato is caused by the laryngeal
musculature, mainly the cricothyroid muscles and breathing systems. No one in
this article knows why vibrato happens, but we do know that it’s developed as
the singer grows in skill.
But what type of vibrato should be used for each era?
The Baroque Era: Opera began, and everybody who was anybody
wanted to watch it. Some theaters constructed during this period were built to
hold 5000 people (that’s right, five thousand!). The vocal style that echoed best
in these giant theaters, which is very little vibrato, came into style. Composers used a ton of terms to
describe it, so it’s hard to know exactly what Baroque ears were used to
hearing. One we do know for sure
is the Voce bianca, literally white
voice, meaning no vibrato. Chamber music used much more vibrato, since it was
performed in smaller spaces. For
the most part, Baroque singers shied away from using immense amounts of
vibrato, since it was out of vogue.
The Classical Era: Smaller performance areas were made, more
instruments are added. Vibrato was
encouraged, and ‘voce bianca’ was not desired. A “pleasantly vibrating” voice
was popular. Mozart complained about a singer who forced his vibrato (Mozart
hated posers).
Romantic Era: The difference between light and heavy voices
is marked. Voices needed to be
powerful, technically able and stylistic. Vibrato meant drama, involvement, and
emotion in the music. The word ‘vibrato’ was written in scores of Donizetti and
Meyerbeer, and regions of Europe developed their own taste for vibrato. Italians
sang vibrato on every note while Germans and English singers preferred narrow
vibrato that would be almost undetectable. Russians liked quick, flickering
vibrato. Some recordings from the
1800’s still exist today of singers using these techniques.
Today: We use a deeper vibrato today than we did even 100
years ago. Mostly, that means we
need to weigh the historical preference against our preference today.
Lesson we learned: Do your research so your students don’t get
marked down at NATS when they use too much vibrato on their Purcell piece.
This is so interesting! It totally makes sense that vibrato would differ by venues and of course different eras, but isn't something I hear talked about much. This is a great guideline, thanks Kimber!
ReplyDeleteWow! Who knew vibrato changed with each era! Actually, now that I think about it, that really does make sense, I think that's why I struggle singing a lot of the Bach and Handel music. Thanks Kimber!
ReplyDeleteI think it is a common misconception that all opera or classical music is sung with vibrato and especially in opera, you only hear the big, loud sound filled with vibrato. After learning about this, that is not the case. Of course styles go in and out and vibrato is one of them.
ReplyDeleteHahahaha. I don't even know vibrato changed each era, it is very interesting. But now, I am getting more information to help me make my vibrato better. Thanks
ReplyDeleteMozart was awesome! This was really interesting information and definitely something to take into account when singing pieces in different eras. I think it's important to sing in the style of the era of your piece so long as you can do it in a healthy way. :)
ReplyDeleteI kind of knew there were some subtle differences in the way vibrato was used throughout the eras, but I didn't realize it was that much! I have to agree with Lindsay in regards to using the vibrato related to each era, as long as it can be healthy. That will be something to take to the classroom!
ReplyDeleteEverything has its "15 minutes of fame" in history and styles and preferences change all the time. That being said, I think we should keep in mind that vibrato is only a result of controlling breath and phonation. We should always try to sing our pieces stylistically correct, but if it is at the expense of vocal health then maybe not the most important piece of the puzzle. A more experienced singer can control their styles in a healthy way, but I would probably not urge my young students to try and change their vibrato early on in their singing career.
ReplyDeleteI'm right there with Olivia - vocal health is your highest priority as a teacher of singing. Start really paying attention to Z in Chamber Choir - he has stylistic knowledge down pat, and he'll ask for specific sounds depending on the piece we're doing.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that there are/were different amounts, and styles, of vibrato that were used in each era, and area, of singing. While it makes sense (as things come in and out of vogue and each teacher has a different style of training their students), it always surprises me how stark the contrasts can be between eras, and even singer interpretation. You've piqued my interest, I think I'll be doing a little extra research over the break.
ReplyDeleteWhile it's true that vibrato shouldn't be used at the same level in baroque opera as in classical or romantic opera, you really shouldn't ever sing with no vibrato for extended periods. It simply puts too much stress on the voice for it to be healthy outside of sparing use. I can sing with a lighter tone that uses a lower amplitude of vibrato, and maybe that could work for some early music, but if a director is really harping on you to sing straight tone I think you should avoid working with them in the future.
ReplyDeleteThat makes so much sense! I had heard that the baroque period viewed vibrato, as we view it today, as an ornament. I had no idea it was different in other eras too!
ReplyDeleteJust like science and other smart things, it's so amazing to hear how our sense of good vibrato has changed over the years!
ReplyDeleteFascinating that Mozart writes about it. I wouldn't have guessed. Although my mother tells me that Handel was famous for saying to a soprano "Where are you going with that melisma, Ms. Smith?"
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