User Vocal Ranges (24,004 views)

[huzaifa96]

Hi - long time lurker first time poster.

I'm untrained but roughly a standard (boring!) lyric tenor. Secondo passaggio at G4 (i started off being unable to sing this in M1) and about E flat 4 for primo. I found the ability to mix/M2 up to G5 using sirens but unusable due to lack of training.

I start bottoming out around at D#3 and can push the semi-operatic formation down to (C#3), and can bark down to A2 which is probably my choir bottom. Going down the scale, F# or G2 is the M1 bottom, but pushing (with buzz, often some fry-ish involvement at the bottom) I can get a decent sounding E or E flat 2. Near unusable C#2. I've been told it's mostly M1 but it gets worse the lower it gets which leads me to believe it's chest fry.

Warmed up and everything I have reliable A#4, pushed it's B or sometimes C. Highest I've been able to "belt" in M2 (is it called false chord scream? it's technically falsetto I've distorted by resonating against false chords) is A#5. Using other falsetto and screaming techniques I can eek out B5-C#6 sometimes

Throat singing - (F)G1-F2 (exactly an octave below my comfortable M1 bottom)
Growl (my preferred lower technique) I can do reliably from D2 to A1 or (G1) sometimes.
I don't use fry much but with it and lip buzz I can access the lower end of my M0, roughly (C#1) or reliably E1. Exactly an octave below my hard M1 bottom. Interesting pattern there.

I haven't used M3 outside of accidentally yet.

But roughly:
Fry/lip buzz: (C#1)E1
Throat singing: (F1)G1
Growl -(G1)A1
Chest-fry (?): (C#2)D#2
Chest: (F#2)G2-A#4(B4)
M2: D#3-A#5(C#6)

I think as in the typical M1-2-3 format (i've never seen them include M0 for some reason) it'd be like (F#2)G2-A#4(B4)-A#5(C#6).

Not coincidentally this is also MJ's accepted overall range on this site.

[Steingrim]

huzaifa96

Michael Jackson was certainly able to sing much higher than B4 in his chest voice. He sings easy C#5s along with Paul McCartney in "The girl is mine". With a secondo passaggio at G4 you should be able to reach a C5 easily, the quality of the note may be a different matter. Maybe you've been too focused on applying all sorts of techniques to get notes in the fifth octave ?

I had the opposite problem originally. At 18 I found that I was able to reach low octave 5 notes without any problems, in my chest voice. Anything below C3 was more difficult. When I started to actually train my voice 1 1/2 years ago, I discovered that I was able to develop a lot more low notes, but it took a lot of practice to find them.

[huzaifa96]

Steingrim

yes, I said the overall range i.e. F#2-C#6

But my reason is I don't have any training and am pretty inconsistent. For years I just wanted to develop a deeper voice (which i essentially developed a growl in my normal voice for), vs a lot of voice teachers teaching Neutral or M2 singing (& they certainly wouldnt teach me to sing below G2 or anything remotely difficult) who always sounded weak to me.

And so, since I could never find someone to teach me to sing high notes with weight (I've managed to mask a growl up to A4 once or twice on my own, straight up sounded like a baritone, not sure if people do this) I've never really developed that high end.

[Steingrim]

You've managed to acquire some knowledge and to figure out your passaggi, so it should merely be a matter of practice. Why not unlock your natural potential, and not just special techniques ?

[huzaifa96]

May 18, 2023 6:01:49 GMT Steingrim said:

You've managed to acquire some knowledge and to figure out your passaggi, so it should merely be a matter of practice. Why not unlock your natural potential, and not just special techniques ?

I guess I'm trying to find a teacher or set information about what I want to do because I'm not so creative or dedicated to it. And what I want to do is much more difficult than what most voice teachers teach.

CVT is much better (& I could tremendously improve by practicing off of the PDF for sure) but few people will teach you to growl into your mask (or *anything* false fold related for that matter) for more weight etc.

[Steingrim]

D2 and C#2 without trying hard. C2 requires some muscle gymnastics, the note has a tendency to want to land on a C#.

My lowest possible chest note is a Bb1, which is nothing more than a soft hum. I've done that several times, one of them was slightly flat. There is no future in octave 1 notes for me, though.

[brutalism]

My range is moving downwards. Not expanding per se, just moving downwards a lot this last year or two. I could belt a E4 or F4 with ease 3-4 yeas ago when I had singing classes. Sometimes belting a G4!

Now I can only go beyond C4 using a strained ''dying-man belting'', or straight up falsetto this is what 10 years of smoking all kinds of stuff every single day does to your voice.

If I were to sing in a band or do a music project or whatever, I'd have no high range whatsoever to work with.

My 2013 range: C2-G4
My 2023 range: F1-C4
(not counting neither falsetto, whistle, fry etc.)

I'm starting to feel kinda like Leonard Cohen, and I'm not sure if it's a good thing anymore.

[Steingrim]

Jul 9, 2023 10:48:15 GMT brutalism said:

My range is moving downwards. Not expanding per se, just moving downwards a lot this last year or two. I could belt a E4 or F4 with ease 3-4 yeas ago when I had singing classes. Sometimes belting a G4!

Now I can only go beyond C4 using a strained ''dying-man belting'', or straight up falsetto this is what 10 years of smoking all kinds of stuff every single day does to your voice.

If I were to sing in a band or do a music project or whatever, I'd have no high range whatsoever to work with.

My 2013 range: C2-G4
My 2023 range: F1-C4
(not counting neither falsetto, whistle, fry etc.)

I'm starting to feel kinda like Leonard Cohen, and I'm not sure if it's a good thing anymore.

Now you've made me curious as to what that sounds like. Care to share a clip ? 

[brutalism]

(…) what that sounds like. Care to share a clip ? 

Sorry I don’t log in often and hasn’t had the motivation for recording whole songs from almost a year now.

I will see if I upload my most recent song or sing some melody(ies) a capella.

But will share . Just a moment

edit: vocaroo.com/18vJztuALR0z

This one was done 4 years ago. Whenever I record a new song, if anyone shows interest still in hearing my voice as of today, I will gladly share.

[Steingrim]

Sept 9, 2023 12:12:31 GMT brutalism said:

(…) what that sounds like. Care to share a clip ? 

Sorry I don’t log in often and hasn’t had the motivation for recording whole songs from almost a year now.

I will see if I upload my most recent song or sing some melody(ies) a capella.

But will share . Just a moment

edit: vocaroo.com/18vJztuALR0z

This one was done 4 years ago. Whenever I record a new song, if anyone shows interest still in hearing my voice as of today, I will gladly share.

The C#2s fit your voice. I heard a B1 in there, but it didn't sound easy.

[brutalism]

Sept 9, 2023 16:01:10 GMT Steingrim said:

Sept 9, 2023 12:12:31 GMT brutalism said:

Yes, in 2019 I was barely starting to explore octave 1. 

Many other things happened in these last few years apart from smoking which deformed my vocal tract.

An extubation after a coma , badly done I guess, damaged many parts of my larynx. I was mute for some time but my vocal apparatus has regrown in a different way after that.

I suspect that the regrown tissues may have led to this whole change in the last 1 year following this coma.

[contraltoqueen]

I'm a contralto and my vocal range is A2-A5. My chest range is A2-A4 and my head range is A4-A5. However, I feel most comfortable and sound best singing in the D3-D5 range (D3-D4 is even better).

[Homelander]

I used to be able to go down to D2 / C♯2 without any issues. Now I can barely execute a solid E2. I guess my upper register is getting more developed though. I used to be able to only go up to around C4 without switching to falsetto. Now I can hit D4 and maybe a note or two above without switching. Ironically, my speaking voice has gotten slightly lower and much more gravelly over the past year or two.

[Steingrim]

Nov 21, 2023 0:42:55 GMT contraltoqueen said:

I'm a contralto and my vocal range is A2-A5. My chest range is A2-A4 and my head range is A4-A5. However, I feel most comfortable and sound best singing in the D3-D5 range (D3-D4 is even better).

D5, is that where your head voice will break slightly going up to the next semitone ? I have a break (or accoustic shift) between B4 and C5, in head voice. Which means that notes up to about Bb4 or B4 are easy to sing well but I have the most natural power in the C5-D5 area. 

[kuyashii]

The only song I ever released is an instrumental

[contraltoqueen]

Nov 21, 2023 12:01:25 GMT Steingrim said:

Nov 21, 2023 0:42:55 GMT contraltoqueen said:

I'm a contralto and my vocal range is A2-A5. My chest range is A2-A4 and my head range is A4-A5. However, I feel most comfortable and sound best singing in the D3-D5 range (D3-D4 is even better).

D5, is that where your head voice will break slightly going up to the next semitone ? I have a break (or accoustic shift) between B4 and C5, in head voice. Which means that notes up to about Bb4 or B4 are easy to sing well but I have the most natural power in the C5-D5 area. 

No, the only places my voice breaks are A4 and A5.

[Steingrim]

Nov 22, 2023 2:59:17 GMT contraltoqueen said:

Nov 21, 2023 12:01:25 GMT Steingrim said:

D5, is that where your head voice will break slightly going up to the next semitone ? I have a break (or accoustic shift) between B4 and C5, in head voice. Which means that notes up to about Bb4 or B4 are easy to sing well but I have the most natural power in the C5-D5 area. 

No, the only places my voice breaks are A4 and A5.

Yeah, that setup makes things simple, unless you want to belt higher. A4 in chest voice must be easy for you. Overall it seems like a great range to have, for a dark female voice.

[burak27]

My vocal type is baritone (probably a low one) with my range being:

Lowest chest-only note: E2 or F2 on most days
Highest chest note is where it starts to confuse me because I can hit an E4 regularly, but then a couple of times I recall hitting up to a G4. However, after around C4-D4 I have to get really loud to project well, and living in an apartment I couldn't experiment much with my 4th octave notes.
Highest falsetto/head voice: A5

[Steingrim]

Feb 7, 2024 19:03:25 GMT burak27 said:

My vocal type is baritone (probably a low one) with my range being:

Lowest chest-only note: E2 or F2 on most days
Highest chest note is where it starts to confuse me because I can hit an E4 regularly, but then a couple of times I recall hitting up to a G4. However, after around C4-D4 I have to get really loud to project well, and living in an apartment I couldn't experiment much with my 4th octave notes.
Highest falsetto/head voice: A5

Maybe you're straining too much for the higher notes. You could practice singing more relaxed. Just not too softly above the area you mentioned, that puts a different kind of strain on the voice. 

[PerhapsXarb]

Yaaaay procrastination time:

Idk how to fry-sing well, sure I could probably could get to like C −20 or something
Lowest chest note ever: Eb2 (like 2 or 3 times; I want to say I hit a D2 once but it might have been a dream)
Lowest note usually: E2-F2 in morning, F#2 later/as I type this (a bit strained below A2 tho)
Passagios: Maybe somewhere around B3-D4 and F#4-A4? Not well versed in this tbh, I start cracking around C#4-E4 if I'm really quiet but generally ok to F#4 (can do lighter chest mix, à la Elliott Smith) and have to be a little louder/more difficult to hold G4-A4 but nowadays I'm pretty fine around there
Above A4 I really have to belt loudly, and recently I recorded vocals for a song that's like 50% B4s so I'm improving, but it's pretty strained
I think my highest pure chest notes so far are around C5-D5, but that area needs a lot of work before I can use it effectively, I've tried to mix in that area or higher and it sounds pretty shit still
Falsetto caps around A5 to B5, not sure I've ever been able to hit C6; whistle goes higher but it's only easily accessible if I blow out my voice lol

In a live setting I'd be most comfortable singing A2-A4 in chest but G2-B4 would be doable with a little practice. I've never taken a single vocal lesson of any sort (might change that soon) so my technique is still meh but noticeably improving.
Voice types are kinda arbitrary but I'm probably maybe like a low-ish tenor? High range naturally thin and a bit whiny at times, mid-upper 2nd octave can sound decent but kind of hurts my throat and it's below my regular speaking voice.

[Steingrim]

You shouldn't try to determine your passaggi based on how high you can possibly sing softly. I can sing a C5 without much volume but it's not a good note and it puts a lot of strain on my voice. My cousin who is a regular tenor can do so more easily, I hit that key on my piano and he sang it idly while sitting in the sofa without knowing which note it was. The highest I can sing softly without effort, is an F#4. With the same technique as D,E or F. That works because the note is either within my passaggi, or very close. It's possible to push that, which again is not a good idea.

[PerhapsXarb]

Feb 10, 2024 9:01:12 GMT Steingrim said:

You shouldn't try to determine your passaggi based on how high you can possibly sing softly. I can sing a C5 without much volume but it's not a good note and it puts a lot of strain on my voice. My cousin who is a regular tenor can do so more easily, I hit that key on my piano and he sang it idly while sitting in the sofa without knowing which note it was. The highest I can sing softly without effort, is an F#4. With the same technique as D,E or F. That works because the note is either within my passaggi, or very close. It's possible to push that, which again is not a good idea.

Yeah idk much about passagios I haven't properly tested them, people seemed to be posting about them here though

[Yojojo]

Ah fuck it I'll bite

Lows: Typically, chest range bottoms out at D2. Sometimes C2 with morning vois, one time I even got it down to Bb1. I can also do a weird throat singing thing that can get down to A1. Vocal fry can get down to Bb0 but it sounds like a door that needs WD40, and is not countable by any stretch of the imagination.

Highs: Comfortable head range is up to D4, but as I practised more I unlocked a belting range that I can get up to G4, but I usually give it too much power and it goes all pear-shaped. Falsetto is surprisingly solid, getting up to a decent A5 and can get pushed up to C6 and sound like a goddamn train.

[Steingrim]

Feb 10, 2024 20:39:18 GMT PerhapsXarb said:

Feb 10, 2024 9:01:12 GMT Steingrim said:

You shouldn't try to determine your passaggi based on how high you can possibly sing softly. I can sing a C5 without much volume but it's not a good note and it puts a lot of strain on my voice. My cousin who is a regular tenor can do so more easily, I hit that key on my piano and he sang it idly while sitting in the sofa without knowing which note it was. The highest I can sing softly without effort, is an F#4. With the same technique as D,E or F. That works because the note is either within my passaggi, or very close. It's possible to push that, which again is not a good idea.

Yeah idk much about passagios I haven't properly tested them, people seemed to be posting about them here though

If you sing songs back and forth in that area, let's say C4-A4, then you'll notice approximately where the transition points are as you get used to how to negotiate them. For me F4 is below, G4 is above and F#4 is uncertain. The first point isn't equally important, experts disagree on its value. There's a corresponding break point in head voice somewhere further up too. Not that the voice breaks over into something else, it's more of an acoustic shift or gear shift.

[Steingrim]

Feb 22, 2022 20:24:43 GMT Steingrim said:

(E1) Bb1 - F#5 (Bb5)

I'm some kind of baritone. I can sing a C5 fairly easily but D5 is difficult to phrase. Singing F5s drains energy quickly. I'm the most comfortable between about G2-C4. My primo passaggio is just above there.

The E1 is strohbass, meaning the vocal fry is still producing a reasonably musical note. I've also managed an F1 in subharmonics, with no consistency at all. For me falsetto is mainly useful for softening high notes. John Farnham makes good use of it to soften some A4s in "You're the voice", even though the refrain goes up to C5.  

After two more years of practice, the extreme edges of my range are of course less interesting. In chest voice I can project and sustain a C2 on a good day, and an ugly F5. D2-C5 seems more useful for singing, I keep getting better at filling that out.