Using the falsetto, we can sing notes beyond our treble limits.
Voice and technique
The notion of falsetto refers to both the voice and the technique that is put into practice to produce it. Whoever uses the falsetto must know how to use the vocal cords in a special way to reach notes that are beyond their usual register.
Falsetto involves a modification of the person's natural voice tone and color . It is generally used by a man to achieve a voice with feminine characteristics, although women can also use it to transcend their register.
Coordinating the vocal folds to create the falsetto requires that they barely touch each other. In this way, the sound emitted is weak and airy .
Origin
The origin of the falsetto is said to be in the Middle Ages , when women were not allowed to sing hymns and religious songs inside churches. Faced with this reality, men were used in the choirs, who were in charge of imitating the female voice, and in this way the falsetto emerged.
It is important to note that it is not known exactly when and where the falsetto emerged, although there is evidence that it has existed for many centuries. In addition to records of the use of the falsetto in medieval music , it is known that in the ancient music of classical Greece, for example, a vocal technique similar to the falsetto, known as the chroma , was used to produce high notes and to imitate animal sounds.
However, the falsetto as an independent vocal technique was developed in baroque music, specifically in 17th-century Italian opera . Opera singers began to use this technique to produce high notes without having to use their chest voice, which allowed castrati , male singers castrated at puberty, to reach even higher notes with great sonic beauty.
Although the practice of castrating singers was banned in the late 18th century, the falsetto remained an important vocal technique and was popularized in 20th-century pop and rock music , where many singers have used it to produce high notes and to create a characteristic vocal style.
Currently
Today the falsetto is used in various musical genres, such as rock and pop . Prince , Freddie Mercury of Queen , Chris Martin of Coldplay and Bono of U2 are some of the singers who, in recent decades, have excelled with their falsetto.
Statue of Freddie Mercury, a prominent rock singer who mastered the falsetto
In the field of academic music, where opera and chamber music come in, the falsetto is used by some countertenors . This is the name of a male string that sings in naturally feminine registers , such as those of the mezzo-soprano or soprano . The repertoire of these singers usually requires great agility, to interpret very ornate passages at great speed. In choral music, the countertenor is often used as a supporting voice for the tenor and soprano, adding a unique and enriching texture to the vocal ensemble.
Not all countertenors use the falsetto to produce their high notes, as some can sing in that range naturally. Depending on the source, these artists are known as sopranists , and are characterized by having greater ease and reaching higher notes , since they do not have to learn a special technique to do so.