• Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The IPA Source Blog

We are the web's largest library of International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) transcriptions and literal translations of opera arias and art song texts.

Search

Become a guest poster
Visit our site and catalog

THE FACH SYSTEM: The Soprano Voice, part one

April 11, 2017 By Bard Suverkrop Leave a Comment

There are eight different categories for the soprano voice in the Fach system separated into two main divisions, the Spiel- and Charakterfächer and the Seriöserfächer. Follow the links to both sound examples and an extensive listing of typical roles and audition arias.

Part one: Spiel- and Charakterfächer: [ʃpi:l ʊnt ka.’ʁak.tɐ  ‘fɛ:.çɐ]

Spielsopran (Deutsche Soubrette) [‘ʃpi:l.so.’pʁa:n  ‘dɔ:ʏ.ʧə  zu.’brɛ.tə] (c’ to c”’)

  • A light, supple voice; petite physical appearance; a versatile actress.

The Soubrette is the operatic equivalent of the Broadway ingénue. It is important that a singer of this category have an excellent command of language since many of the roles for this voice include extensive dialogue and/or recitative in both operetta and opera. Her voice must be flexible but it is not necessary to have the extreme high notes. The voice should be fairly full in the middle since she generally sings the middle voice in ensembles. The most typical role for the Deutsche Soubrette is Ännchen in Der Freischütz. She must look like a younger sister and have a lively personality, yet her voice must be strong enough to balance Agathe’s in the ensembles. Other typical roles for the Soubrette include Marzelline in Fidelio, Despina in Così fan tutte, and Musetta in La bohème. She might also sing many of the roles which are listed in the Lyrischer Koloratursopran Fach, provided her voice as the high notes and enough flexibility.

Example:  Ileana Cotrubas in La Calisto.
Spielsopran (Soubrette) roles and arias

Lyrischer Koloratursopran (Kolortursoubrette) [‘ly:.ʁɪ.ʃɐ  ko.lo.ʁa.’tu:ɐ̯.zo.’pʁa:n  ko.lo.ʁa.’tu:ɐ.zu.’bʁɛ.tə] (c’-f'”)

  • Very flexible, mellow voice with an extended top voice.

The main difference between the Koloratursopran and the Deutsche Soubrette is the ability to sing extremely high notes, fast coloratura passages, and to have a somewhat brighter sound. Her temperament, language facility, and acting ability are identical to that of the Deutsche Soubrette. Typical roles for this Fach are Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, Blonde in Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Norina in Don Pasquale, and Olympia in Les contes d’Hoffmann.

Singers: Lilly Pons, Roberta Peters, Kathleen Battle

Example: Beverly Sills in Capuletti ed i Montecchi.
Lyrischer Koloratursopran roles and arias

Charaktersopran [ka.’ʁak.tɐ.so.’pʁa:n] (b-c”‘)

  • Zwischenfach voice; able to achieve sensitive characterization.

The Charaktersopran is a specialty Fach that one very seldom encounters in all but the largest opera houses in Europe. The term Zwischenfach means the voice combines the lyric (singing) qualities of the Lyrischersopran and the dramatic ability of the Jugendlich-dramatischer voice. While she sings all the great Puccini soprano roles: Manon, Mimi, Tosca, Angelica and Butterfly, she may also take on some traditional mezzo roles such as Carmen and the Komponist in Ariadne auf Naxos. It is often the case that the Charaktersopran may have started her career as a mezzo and moved up to the soprano roles. Her German repertoire demands the dramatic intensity of a Salome or the Färberin in Die Frau ohne Schatten, her French repertoire includes such roles as Melisande and Mignon that require sensitivity and a fine sense of characterization. This is not a beginner’s Fach but is arrived at only after many years of professional singing.

Singers: Mezzos: Shirley Verrett, Grace Bumbry, and Maria Ewing. Sopranos: Regina Resnik, Helga Dernesch

Charaktersopran roles

______________________________________

Helmholz notation:

 

(This article is the third part in the series on the German Fach System and is based on information derived from Rudolf Kloiber’s “Handbuch der Oper”, 9th edition, Deutschen Taschenbuch Verlag. Read the first part of this series here.)

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Voice Classification Tagged With: fach, fach system, voice, voice classification, voice type

About Bard Suverkrop

IPA Source is written and maintained by Bard Suverkrop who holds degrees in voice and opera from the University of Cincinnati where he was the pupil of the Italian bass, Italo Tajo. Mr. Suverkrop received his advanced vocal training in Europe from Hans Hotter and Josef Metternich. After an extensive European career in opera at such opera houses as Berlin, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Hannover, and Heidelberg, he returned to the United States where he has taught voice, vocal pedagogy, diction, and opera at Butler University, Shenandoah University, Miami University, and the University of Southern California. He was a long-time member of the faculty of the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria and has acted as stage director and the Director of Theatre Arts at the Bay View Music Festival. An active recitalist, Mr. Suverkrop has been heard in concert in Europe, the United States and Asia where he has twice represented the United States in the International Friendship Concerts in Tokyo, Japan.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Tweets by IPASource

Footer

  • Home
  • About IPA Source
  • Contact us
  • Guest Post Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Visit our site and catalog

Copyright © 2019 IPA Source, LLC Log in