Nico (5,313 views)

[Holsety]

Christa Päffgen (October 16, 1938 - July 18, 1988)
Vocal Range: G2 – A5

Significant High Notes:
A5 ("It Was a Pleasure Then")
E5 ("It Was a Pleasure Then")
D5 ("Chelsea Girls")
A4 ("It Has Not Taken Long", "It Was a Pleasure Then")
G♯4 ("The End", "The Falconer", "Heroes" live Preston 1982, "Janitor of Lunacy", "Tananore", "Valley of the Kings", "You Forget to Answer")
G4 ("All That Is My Own", "Ari's Song", "The End", "Femme Fatale", "Genghis Khan", "Hanging Gardens", "I'll Keep It With Mine", "It Has Not Taken Long", "No One Is There", "Roses In The Snow", "Secret Side", "The Sound", "Tananore", "There She Goes Again" The Factory Rehearsal, "Valley of the Kings", "Winter Song")
F♯4 ("Abschied", "Eulogy to Lenny Bruce", "Evening Of Light", "Facing the Wind", "The Fairest of the Seasons", "I'll Be Your Mirror", "I'll Keep It With Mine", "Julius Caesar (Memento Hodié)", "Mütterlein", "My Only Child", "Nibelungen", "The Sound", "Your Voice", "Your Word Against Mine")

Significant Low Notes:
G3 ("Chelsea Girls", "Femme Fatale", "Frozen Warnings", "I'll Be Your Mirror", "Into the Arena", "Innocent and Vain", "König", "Little Sister", "My Heart Is Empty", "Nibelungen", "Somewhere There's a Feather", "Tananore", "These Days", "Winter Song", "Valley of the Kings", "We've Got the Gold", "You Forget to Answer")
F♯3 ("Afraid", "Eulogy to Lenny Bruce", "The Fairest of the Seasons", "I'll Keep It With Mine", "It Has Not Taken Long", "It Was a Pleasure Then", "Janitor of Lunacy", "Mütterlein", "My Only Child", "Sixty/Forty", "Your Voice", "Your Word Against Mine")
F3 ("Ari's Song", "Das Lied der Deutschen", "The End", "Fearfully in Danger", "Genghis Khan", "Janitor of Lunacy" live Tokyo 1986, "Little Sister", "My Heart Is Empty", "No One Is There", "Orly Flight", "Purple Lips", "The Sphinx", "These Days", "Winter Song")
E3 ("Afraid", "All Tomorrow's Parties", "Das Lied der Deutschen", "Das Lied vom einsamen Mädchen", "Hanging Gardens", "Heroes", "I Will Be Seven", "I'm Waiting for the Man", "It Has Not Taken Long", "Julius Caesar (Memento Hodié)", "Lawns of Dawns", "The Line", "Orly Flight", "Sãeta", "Secret Side", "Sixty/Forty", "Vegas", "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams", "Your Voice")
E♭3 ("Evening Of Light", "Hanging Gardens", "Henry Hudson", "My Funny Valentine", "We've Got the Gold")
D3 ("All Tomorrow's Parties", "Das Lied vom einsamen Mädchen", "Fearfully in Danger", "I'll Be Your Mirror", "I'll Keep It With Mine", "It Was a Pleasure Then", "The Line", "My Heart Is Empty", "No One Is There", "One More Chance", "Orly Flight", "Sãeta", "Secret Side", "These Days" live VPRO Radio Session 1983, "Vegas", "Win a Few", "Your Word Against Mine")
C♯3 ("Vegas")
C3 ("Das Lied der Deutschen", "I Will Be Seven", "My Funny Valentine", "One More Chance", "We've Got the Gold", "Win a Few", "Your Kisses Burn")
B2 ("I'll Be Your Mirror" live Le Bataclan 1972)
G2 ("Your Kisses Burn")
..................................................................
• Underlines mark notes that are obscured in the song mix.
• Italics mark non-melodic notes.
• Bold marks moments where you're like, oh damn that was nice, or it was in a good song so you were like, yeah good song so the singing was cool because it was a good song (know what I mean?).

SPOILER: Click to show

{Notewatching Credits, Special Thanks & Other Info}Alex61
Solo
Chelsea Girl (1967): D3 – A5
Desert Shore (1970): E3 – G♯4
The End... (1974): C3 – A4
Drama of Exile (1981): C3 – G4
Camera Obscura (1985): C3 – G♯4
Hanging Gardens (1990): C3 – G4

Holsety (and casually re-checked by Alex61 for one extra note)
Solo
The Marble Index (1968): D3 – G4

Nico and The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967): D3 – G4

Discography Notes
• Hanging Gardens is something of a compilation album, comprised of live performances and unreleased studio sessions. Though released in 1990, its tracks were recorded either in 1982 or 1988.

[Alex61]

Potential super faint/breathy B2s at 1:52 and 2:52, strong C♯3 at 2:06.

[fallenalien]

Would anyone consider Nico to be anything other than the lowest female voice type?

I've seen her described as a mezzo on this forum and think that's kinda absurd.

Keep in mind that in much of her earlier stuff she was asked to sing in a lighter tone. "I'll Be Your Mirror" being an example. Something that's mentioned in documentaries about the Velvet Underground.

She pretty much stood out, even back in the 60's, for having a lower, darker and more androgynous voice than usual.

Also, it seems like the F#4 in "I'll Be Your Mirror" already required some effort, even though that's likely in part the result of a lack of training. Meanwhile the third octave was pretty much her comfort zone, even back then.

I really want to hear an argument for why she could possibly be a mezzo.

[Steingrim]

Everyone wants to be a baritone instead of a bass or a mezzo instead of a contralto ? Singers for hire that I know of here claim to be a mezzo if they can sing a non-falsetto G5. At all. If they don't, they might be considered somewhat limited.

[Macca]

There's C3's Sung by Which I Believe Is Her in Sunday Morning