what does coloratura mean

[musicaltheatreman]

Posted: 1/10/05 at 2:01am

i was reading a interview about kristin chenowith and she said that she has to sing in coloratura range or something like that. thanks:)

[MusicSnob22]

Posted: 1/10/05 at 2:17am

Taken from the Grove Music Dictionary:

"The term is widely used to denote passages of florid vocal music, operatic roles of which such passages are a prominent part and singers who specialize in them. Most frequently coloratura singers are those with high, light voices since these are the most readily flexible type."

I'm assuming since you are asking, you are familiar with Kristin's music...so put on her cd and listen to The Girl in 14G. When she is singing about the opera singer, she sings a rather arpeggiated run that is taken from one of the quintessential coloratura roles, The Queen of the Night. So, if you listen to that, you will hear her singing in her coloratura range...and that's that!

Hope it helped!

[MusicMan]

Posted: 1/10/05 at 10:55am

Colora Tura is Tessie Tura's half-sister.

[WOSQ]

Posted: 1/10/05 at 4:10pm

A coloratura will throw things at you in an attempt to do bodily harm. Often if you are not quick, the thrown objects will find their mark, that is to say you.

A dramatic soprano throws things merely to scare you. If you stand stock still, the object will at most graze an ear.

Sopranos have very good aim no matter what their voice type. Always be on guard.

A tenor throws everything (including their not inconsiderable weight) around, but their aim is so bad they rarely hit anything.

Mezzos and Baritones and Basses are having too much fun dishing the sopranos and tenors to throw things. Unless of course, the object is thrown at them and then it gets heaved back in the general direction from whence it came.

[LilMiZBroADwaY23]

Posted: 1/10/05 at 4:41pm

A Coloratura is a light, floaty soprano. Who's voice doesn't have much weight. Just very light, usually with trills, but they can still hit the very, very high notes.

Then you have the Lyric Coloraturas, who can also hit all the high notes but can do such with great force. You will find that most of the Christine's and Carlotta's in Phantom, are generally 'Lyric Coloratura's'.

[Chloe]

Posted: 1/10/05 at 5:48pm

Strictly speaking, coloratura doesn't refer to a range, but a type of music, or singer of that music. Definition from an online musical dictionary:

1. Intricate vocal music, containing many fast-moving notes and musical ornaments. 2. A voice that is capable of singing this type of music.

Practically speaking, a lot of this kind of music is for high sopranos, so the word has become associated with that range too.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 1/10/05 at 5:51pm

So Kristin would probably be a lyric coloratura then, right? When I saw her sing at Carnegie Hall, she was hitting those notes in "Glitter and Be Gay" with enormous power.