The Article Of The Singing Features Of The Countertenor

Countertenor, or the falsetto tenor, is a special kind of tenor singing by the falsetto beyond the normal range of adult males, sounding like the alto, the mezzo-soprano or the soprano. Records shows that the countertenor first appeared in the6th century and fell into decline after the rise of the castrato in the17th,18th centuries. After the Second World War, along with the prevalence of the Period Instruments Movements in Europe, the countertenor turned to perform the vocals and stepped on to the stage of the classical music.Taking the singing features of the countertenor as a basis, the thesis would explore the aesthetic and artistic values of the countertenor through the development and the research situation as well as the musical and sound materials at home and abroad. The thesis consists of three chapters, expect for the introduction. The introductory part is involved with the significance of the subject, the review of the related researches, the research methods and purpose and so on. Chapter One intends to trace the changing history of the countertenor in which its origins, its development and some of the world-famous countertenors in modern times. Through analyzing the physical and musical conditions of the countertenors, the singing features would be explored in Chapter Two. Meanwhile, the aesthetic and artistic values of the countertenor could be detected by virtue of the singing methods and techniques, the role shaping, the artistic practice and the artistic appeal of the countertenor at home and broad. Chapter Three further discusses the development of the singing features of the countertenor, mainly in China. Involving with the specialty of the national cultures in our country, the developments and influences of the tenors in our country would be presented, which includes the combination of the ancient Chinese music based on the ancient poems with the countertenor repertoire, the connection between Chinese drama and the countertenors’ singing as well as the integration of the various musical elements into the countertenors’ performance.