Contreténor

In the Western music, and more precisely, the Classical music, a contreténor (or against-tenor ) is the type of male-intonated voice generally using the technique of the voice of Fausset, and whose Tessiture corresponds to little thing close to that of the High-against (of which it is the natural voice, without use of the technique of head or falsetto voice), or, with that of the female Contralto.

The contreténor knew its hours of glory during the Renaissance and during the period baroque. They make following the Castrat S. the use of this type of tessiture is partly due to the prohibition of the singers women by certain popes (Clément IX and Innocent X as private individuals). Starting from the traditional period, this vocal technique was not used practically any more. It is only in the middle of the 20th century that the contreténors were given to the honor, at the time of the redécouverte of the repertory of the “old music” (i.e., music former to the traditional period). There exists, in addition, a more contemporary repertory, in particular in the Songes one night of summer of Benjamin Britten or Large macabre the of György Ligeti.

Charles Brett, Alfred Deller, James Bowman, Paul Esswood, Rene Jacobs, Thomas Herve and Andreas Scholl as Philippe Jaroussky are examples of contreténors.

The acceptance of the term of contreténor in term of very acute voice comes rather from English. With the Rebirth, in France, the part of against-tenor indicated a line of song which sounded " contre" that of the line of tenor. It then had a tessiture rather comparable with the line of tenor. Little by little the line of against-tenor was divided into two lines of distinct tessitures: the high line of against-tenor and the low line of against-tenor, which gave the lines of contralto and basic.

In French, the voice of against-tenor can be also called " viola masculin" or " falsettist alto".

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