As I understand it, since you came to read this article, you are specifically concerned about the definition of your voice or the definition of the voice of your student. This topic, as you understand, is very long and I will not now delve into the differences in voices in terms of their spin or magnitude, which I already wrote about in the article "". I think you are wondering, namely the definition of voice by type, i.e.:, etc. By the way, no matter what you write here about the characteristics of various voices, you can familiarize yourself with them in detail in the "" section, that information, I hope, will also help you. I think it's hard to overestimate.

I must say right away that it is impossible to read the text and get up because of computer desk or removing the phone from which you are reading this from your field of vision, find out how, without having a vocal school, you can simply take and determine your type of voice. I can only help those who are somehow educated, who have guesses, etc. In general, no matter what to dissemble, I will simply explain the ways in which teachers determine the voice of the student, and you decide for yourself, and if after this information you remain unsure, then the road to music school or to a private singing teacher you have ordered.

So. Now the actual set of features by which the type of voice is determined:

1. 1. Timbre. Well, of course, the first thing they look at is the sound, color, density of the chest and head registers of the voice, what can I say, if Magomayev, for example, was a baritone, then this purely baritone timbre cannot be confused with anything, of course, some tenors can portray low baritone notes, but it will be clamped, little sonorous, not colored. And vice versa, the baritone will not be able to portray the lightness and flight of the upper formant, which the tenor will demonstrate. The same story with soprano and mezzo, and in principle with any voices. But in general, experienced teachers determine the timbre of the student's voice, simply by inner feelings and intuition, because so many voices have already been heard in life that it is almost impossible to deceive their ears.
2. 2. Transition notes. Each voice has transitional notes, "bridges" between registers, head and chest. There is also a theory that there are 3 registers in each voice and disputes on this topic have been dragging on for centuries, now is not about that. One way or another, there are these adapters, and having felt them, it is also possible, although not with 100% certainty, to still determine the type of voice, for example, the tenor has transitional notes mi-fa # of the first octave, the baritone has re-mi flat first octaves, mezzo transitional notes: D-flat of the second octave, in the soprano mi-fa # of the second octave, etc. That's good idea for the next article, I found about transitional tones. But it should be remembered that experienced singers of transitional tones do not feel and simply forget about them.
3. 3. Range. This is probably the most flexible criterion on this list. On initial stage teaching singing, the range is mostly small for everyone and does not tell anyone anything, and as for opera singers, their ranges are often 2.5 - 3 octaves, which means this is not a criterion. Many mezzos sing in the Soprano tessitura, and vice versa, contraltos can hit the high notes of mezzos, tenors can hit the notes of baritones, basses can sing in the tessitura of baritones, and so on. Of course, not everyone has these abilities, but still they are. Good singers always have a big range and you can't get away from it.
4. The structure of the larynx and ligaments. There were once rumors that phoniatrics supposedly could, by looking at the ligaments, predict the singer's voice or do the same in terms of the size and shape of the Adam's apple. Allegedly, tenors have a small and barely noticeable Adam's apple, while basses have a large one, etc. But having examined at least a couple of dozen singers, you will immediately realize that this is far from the case and the type of voice does not depend on the structure of the larynx, and as for the ligaments, this criterion cannot mean anything either. In the end, if the structure of the ligaments plays a role, then you need to evaluate their size, thickness, strength, elasticity, mobility, etc.
5. Body type. The myth that mezzo-sopranos and tenors are necessarily full, and basses and coloratura are necessarily skinny, just as does not hold true as a well-founded and proven theory of voice definition, because according to statistics, there will be more than half of the exceptions in this theory, which means that the theory is not makes sense.
6. Ability to withstand tessitura. As for this ability, everything is clear here, it means the singer's ability to sing for a long time in a uniformly high or low tessitura.

For example, if a baritone is able to take tenor notes, and even in timbre is similar to a dramatic tenor, this does not mean that he is a tenor, because, whatever one may say. But for a tenor, sometimes, the tessitura of the entire work is so high that the ability to hit a high note once will not save, but the tenor is arranged in such a way that it can withstand a high tessitura throughout the entire opera, etc. Although of course, I already wrote about the singer , which could give odds to many tenors and he got up to # 2 octaves, which seems simply incredible.

Is it worth it to conclude from the above that each person makes his own voice from scratch? - "Not! certainly". Because even despite the fact that individually all these factors are not significant, in the aggregate they give rise to the whole science of “defining the voice”. Nature, after all, has invested in each of us a special list of abilities and it is best to reveal what is already there and even this may not be enough life, not that it would be for the transformation of oneself.

How to understand the voice of a person? The voice is the first thing we get to know in a person at the beginning of communication. The voice can tell a lot about him. The timbre of the voice, its height and strength play important role when communicating. Knowledge of these simple rules Politicians, psychologists, and businessmen are very skillfully using it.

Properties and characteristics of the human voice

If a person begins to stutter, blush, look away, his palms begin to sweat, then this a clear sign that he is lying. But sometimes you have to deal with the fact that with some people the opposite happens: they are quite confident when they lie, and begin to stutter when they tell the truth.

It is also important to pay attention to the tone of the interlocutor, as he can express different thoughts. For example, a high-pitched and lively tone can indicate both acceptance of your words with enthusiasm, and distrust of what you said.

It is important to listen to the words of the interlocutor and notice all the changes in his voice. If a voice changed from joyful to dull and quiet, then you probably offended the person with something.

With people who are trusted and sympathized with, they usually talk a little quieter, as in the case if they say something that is not intended for outsiders.

By the voice of a person, one can determine his character, mood, and even spiritual properties. The timbre of the voice, like the unique pattern of fingerprints, is strictly individual, and in the USA, England and Italy, voice recording is considered an indisputable legal document that cannot be forged.

Someone is genetically given pleasant voice, and someone has to live with the "nasty". But there is always a way out - you can work on your voice. With skillful use, speech and voice become powerful psychological weapons that act on the subconscious of the interlocutor.

Psychologists have identified the main emotional reactions person to various variations in the pitch and timbre of the interlocutor's voice.

A high and sonorous voice is associated with youth, energy and, alas, with immaturity and inexperience. According to statistics, women and (especially) men with such a voice are much less likely to be appointed to solid posts. Made interesting observation the higher the vote, the lower the position.

Moreover, a piercing, high-pitched sound is read by the subconscious mind as an alarm signal. Thus, a long-sounding high voice causes an involuntary feeling of discomfort in the interlocutor and reduces the degree of confidence in the words. The owner of a very high voice should, more than anyone else, pay attention to the content and intonation of his speech.

The owners of a low voice are much more fortunate: it is associated with self-sufficiency, confidence, and intelligence. A person with such a voice is perceived by others as knowledgeable, and, therefore, more authoritative. The lower the voice of a man, the stronger and more reliable he looks in the eyes of a woman. By the way, statistics also do not deny the influence of voice on success with the opposite sex. You have probably noted the emergence of romantic thoughts while talking on the phone with an unfamiliar man with a pleasant timbre of voice.

The low, velvety voice of a person we have never seen alone can evoke the strongest feeling of love. This is due to the subconscious reading of the interlocutor's genetic code. The fact is that low voice due to an increased content of male sex hormones in the blood, therefore, the owner of such a voice is more temperamental. That is why a woman with a low, chest voice, rich in intonations, seems to men more sexual than the owner of a monotonous-sounding thin voice.

But in order to convince or seduce an interlocutor, a woman does not have to have a beautiful low voice by nature, it is enough to arm herself with her own voice (any that is), mind (enough worldly) and patience. First, work on your voice: the sound of the voice is affected not only by the hormonal component of the blood, but also by the structure vocal cords, mental attitude and breathing patterns.

Watch your posture - with good posture, the respiratory organs are located correctly, which allows it to be light and free. The sound should come out of the chest. To check the correctness of the exercise, put your hand on your chest, if it vibrates, you are on the right track.

Strengthens breathing and improves the sound of the voice by singing. Left alone in the apartment with yourself and household chores, try to sing something loudly enough. inflate air balloons- it is very strengthening respiratory system, advises "Goroscope.ru".

Diversify your speech with intonations, especially if you tend to present information “on one note”. Read aloud a small segment of the text several times (preferably a poem), filling it with new intonations with each new reading. Learn to clearly formulate the idea that you want to convey to the listener. This will save you from the treacherous "mooing" in the pauses between semantic segments speech. Stock up on arguments in favor of your opinion, place accents correctly. It is impossible to convince someone of something by quietly chewing phrases. Remember that information given only half a decibel louder is much more successful in persuading the listener and is better absorbed by him. Set the optimal “volume level” for your voice. Count out loud, from one to ten, gradually raising your voice, when you hear the sound that suits you, remember it, and then try to follow it.

Phonograms recorded using digital voice recorders "Gnom R" and "Gnom 2M" meet the requirements for phonograms received for phonoscopic examinations, and are suitable for identifying a person by voice and speech ...

First Deputy Chief

Dictaphone "Gnome 2M" has been repeatedly used to record conferences and seminars in a difficult acoustic environment, the recorded soundtracks are of high quality. The built-in noise reduction function allows you to improve the quality of playback of phonograms ...

Leading engineer IPK BNTU

Institute for Advanced Studies and Retraining of Personnel of BNTU

Over the period of operation, "Gnome R" has established itself with positive side. High quality recording with minimal dimensions, long duration of sound recording, prompt transfer of accumulated information from the built-in memory of the recorder to the PC...

Senior officer of the 3rd division of the seventh directorate

General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus

Phonograms recorded using the Forget-Me-Not II system meet the requirements for multi-channel digital registration complexes voice messages over telephone channels, and are suitable for identifying a person by voice and speech ...

Head of the center

State Forensic Expertise Center

An unlimited number of notified subscribers, a large number of simultaneously processed tasks will make Rupor an indispensable assistant in the work of employees of the credit department of the branch No. 524 of Belarusbank ASB...

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Branch No. 524 JSC "ASB Belarusbank"

The Rupor automatic notification system worked on analog telephone lines and was tested for the purpose of alerting personnel. The system served 100 subscribers, worked stably and did not require constant maintenance...

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Military Commissariat of Minsk

The Forget-Me-Not II recording system ensures the reception of voice messages from residents, their high-quality recording on a computer, the ability to listen to recorded messages and enter information into a text database. The Rupor notification system automatically notifies debtors...

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UE "ZhREO of the Soviet district of Minsk"

The Rupor system provides notification a large number subscribers in a short time in accordance with the established parameters with the provision of a report on the carried out notification, it works reliably, fully complies with the requirements for it ...

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The mobile system for recording and documenting speech "Protocol" includes a digital voice recorder "Gnome 2M" and a computer transcriber "Caesar". Dictaphone "Gnome 2M" allows you to get high-quality recording of meetings and sessions, and the transcriber "Caesar" significantly increases the speed of translating audio information into a text document...

Leading Specialist

Institute of State and Law of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Belarus

Identification by voice

AT modern world there is a growing interest in biometric technologies and biometric personal identification systems, and this interest is quite understandable.

Biometric identification is based on the principle of recognition and comparison of unique characteristics human body. The main sources of biometric characteristics of a person are fingerprints, iris and retina, voice, face, signature, gait, etc. These biometric identifiers belong to a person and are an integral part of him. They cannot be forgotten, left, lost somewhere.

Can be used for biometric identification various characteristics and human traits. This article gives short review how biometric technologies work on the example of a voice recognition system.

The value of voice technology for biometrics has been repeatedly proven. However, only high quality implementation automatic systems speaker recognition can actually put such technologies into practice. Similar systems already exist. They are used in security systems, banking technology, e-commerce, law enforcement.

The use of speaker recognition systems is the most natural and economical way to solve the problems of unauthorized access to a computer or information transmission systems, as well as problems of multi-level access control to network or information resources.

Speaker recognition systems can solve two problems: identify a person from a given, limited list of people (identity identification) or confirm the identity of the speaker (identity verification). Identification and verification of a person by voice are the directions of development of speech processing technology.

Rice. 1 - Speaker recognition

Speech is a signal resulting from transformations occurring on several various levels: semantic, linguistic, articulatory and acoustic. As you know, the source of the speech signal is the vocal tract, which excites sound waves in the elastic air environment. The vocal tract usually refers to the organ of speech production, located above the vocal cords. As can be seen from Figure 2, the vocal tract consists of the laryngopharynx, oropharynx, oral cavity, nasopharynx and nasal cavity.

Rice. 2 - The structure of the human vocal tract

A person's voice occurs when air passes from the lungs through the trachea into the larynx, past the vocal cords, and then into the pharynx and mouth and nasal cavity. When sound wave passes through the vocal tract, its frequency spectrum changes under the influence of vibrations of the vocal tract. The vibrations of the vocal tract are called formants. Speaker verification systems usually recognize features speech signal that reflect individual feature muscle activity of the vocal tract of the individual.

Let us consider the speaker verification system in more detail. Verification of identity by voice is the determination of whether talking to those who he appears to be. A user previously registered in the system pronounces his identifier, which is a registration number, password or phrase. With text-based recognition, the system knows the password and "asks" the user to say it. The password is displayed on the screen and the person speaks it into the microphone. With text-independent recognition, the password spoken by the user does not match the reference word, i.e. as a password, the user can pronounce an arbitrary word or phrase. The verification system receives the speech signal, processes it and decides whether to accept or reject the identifier presented by the user. The system can inform the user about the insufficient degree of coincidence of his voice with the existing standard and ask him to pronounce Additional information to make a final decision.

Rice. 3 - Human interaction with the system

The scheme of human interaction with the system of personality verification by voice is shown in Figure 3. The user pronounces the number offered to him by the system into the microphone in order for the system to check whether his voice corresponds to the standard stored in the system database. As a rule, there is a trade-off between the accuracy of voice recognition and the size of the speech sample, i.e. the longer speech pattern, the higher the recognition accuracy. In addition to the voice, echo and extraneous noise can get into the microphone.

There are a number of factors that can contribute to the occurrence of verification and identification errors, for example:

• incorrect pronunciation or reading of a password word or phrase;
• emotional state of the announcer (stress, uttering a passphrase under duress, etc.);
• difficult acoustic environment (noise, interference, radio waves, etc.);
• different communication channels (use of different microphones during speaker registration and verification);
• colds;
• natural voice changes.

Some of them can be eliminated, for example, by using better microphones.

The process of verifying the identity by voice consists of 5 stages: receiving a speech signal, parameterization, or highlighting the distinctive features of the voice, comparing the received voice sample with a previously established standard, making a decision "tolerance / refusal", training, or updating reference model. The verification scheme is shown in Figure 4.

Rice. 4 - Verification scheme

During registration, the new user enters their ID and then says several times keyword or a phrase, thus patterns are created. Number of repetitions key phrase may vary for each user, and may be constant for all.

In order for the computer to process the speech signal, the sound wave is converted to an analog signal and then to a digital signal.

At the stage of extracting voice features, the speech signal is divided into separate sound frames, which are subsequently converted into a digital model. These models are called "voice prints". The newly received "voice print" is compared with the previously established standard. For the recognition of the identity of the speaker, the most important distinguishing features of the voice are the most important, which would allow the system to accurately recognize the voice of each individual user.

Finally, the system makes a decision to admit or deny the user access, depending on the match or mismatch of his voice with the established standard. If the system incorrectly compared the voice presented to it with the standard, then a “false tolerance” (FA) error occurs. If the system did not recognize the biometric feature that corresponds to the standard available in it, then they say about the “false rejection” (FR) error. A false acceptance error creates a security hole, and a false rejection error leads to a reduced usability of the system, which sometimes does not recognize a person the first time. Trying to reduce the chance of a single error will result in more frequent occurrence the other, therefore, depending on the requirements for the system, a certain compromise is chosen, i.e. decision threshold is set.

Conclusion

Voice identification methods are also used in practice. The technology of identification by the company's voice allows organizing regulated access of users by a given passphrase to enterprise resources, telephone and WEB services. The use of technology can significantly increase the security of systems and, at the same time, simplify the process of user identification. Voice Key technology will provide high reliability and stability of the system, as well as help improve the quality of customer service.

All materials posted on this site are allowed to be published and printed on other resources and printed publications only with the written permission of Speech Technologies LLC

Each voice is unique and inimitable in its sound. Thanks to these features, we can easily recognize the voices of our friends even on the phone. Singing voices differ not only in timbre, but also in the height of the opening of the voice, range, and individual coloring. And in this article you will learn how to correctly determine the type of voice of a child or an adult. Also, how to determine your comfortable range.

Singing voices always fit one of the vocal characteristics that came up in the Italian opera school. They were compared in sound to the musical instruments of a string quartet. As a rule, the sound of the violin was compared with female voice soprano, alto - with mezzo. The lowest voices - contralto - were compared with the sound of a horn (like the tenor timbre), and low bass timbres - with a double bass.

This is how the classification of voices, close to choral, appeared. Unlike, in which only men sang, the Italian opera school expanded the possibilities of singing and made it possible to create a classification of female and male voices. After all, in church choir female parts were performed by treble (soprano) or tenor-altino. This characteristic of voices has been preserved today not only in opera, but also in pop singing, however, in the stage, the sound delivery is different. Some criteria:

4 criteria for determining the vote

AT professional singing have their own criteria. While listening, the teacher pays attention to:

1. Voice timbre . This is the name of the unique coloring of the voice, which can be light and dark, rich and soft, lyrical tender. The timbre is made up of the individual coloring of the voice, which each person has. One voice sounds soft, subtle, even a little childish, the other already in early years has a rich chest color. There are head, chest and mixed timbres, soft and sharp. It is the main color characteristic. There are voices whose harsh timbre sounds very repulsive and unpleasant to the point that they are not recommended to practice vocals. Timbre, like range, is distinctive feature singer, and the voice of outstanding singers and singers is distinguished by a bright individuality and recognizability. In vocals, a soft, beautiful and pleasant timbre is appreciated.
2. Range. Each type of voice has not only its own characteristic sound, but also a range. It can be determined while singing or by asking a person to sing a song in a key that is convenient for him. Usually singing voices have certain range, which allows you to accurately determine its type. Distinguish between working and non-working voice range. Professional singers have a wide working range, which allows them not only to replace colleagues with other voices, but also to beautifully perform opera arias for other parts.
3. Key . Any voice has its own key, in which it is convenient for the performer to sing. It will be different for each type.
4. Tessitura. So called certain area the range in which the performer is comfortable singing. There is one for every voice. The wider this area, the better. It is often said that there is a comfortable and uncomfortable tessitura for a voice or a performer. This means that a song or part in a choir may be comfortable for one performer to sing and uncomfortable for another, although their ranges may be the same. So you can determine the features of the voice.

howcorrectly determine the type of voice in children

Children's voices do not yet have a formed timbre, but already at this time it is possible to determine their type in adulthood. Usually they are divided into high and low, both in boys and girls. In the choir they are called soprano and alto or treble and bass. Mixed choirs have 1st and 2nd sopranos, as well as 1st and 2nd altos. After transitional age they will acquire a brighter color and after 16-18 years it will be possible to determine the adult type of voice.

Most often, tenors and baritones are obtained from trebles, dramatic baritones and basses are obtained from altos.. The low voices of girls can turn into mezzo-soprano or contralto, and the soprano can become a little higher and lower and acquire its own unique timbre. But it happens that low voices become high and vice versa.

The treble is well recognizable by its sonorous high sound. Some of them can even sing parts for girls. They have a well-developed high register and range.

Violas both boys and girls have a chest sound. They have better low notes than high ones. Sopranos - the highest voices among girls - sound better high notes, starting from the first octave G, than low ones. If you determine their tessitura, then you can understand how it will develop. That is, how to determine the range of this voice in adulthood.

howcorrectly identify your voice type

There are currently 3 types of female and male voices. Each type has its own differences.

Soprano is the most sonorous, light high female voice. It has a bright feminine timbre and can sound high, resonant and piercing. It is more convenient for him to sing at the end of the first octave and in the second, and some coloratura sopranos easily sing high notes in the third. In men similar sound has a tenor.

Mezzo-soprano is a juicy and rich medium female voice. Most often, it has a beautiful deep timbre and a range that opens up beautifully in the first octave and at the beginning of the second. The low notes of this voice sound full, juicy, with a beautiful chest sound. It is similar to the sound of a baritone.

Contralto is a deep, sensual, velvety and the lowest voice in women. It has a sound reminiscent of a cello in timbre, and can take low notes of a small octave. And the lowest male voice is a bass profundo, which is very rare in nature. Most often, the lowest parts in the choir are sung by basses.

After listening to the outstanding singers of your gender, you can easily understand how to determine your type by color.

How to determine accurately the tonality of the voice? You can do it at home if you have musical instrument. Choose a song that you like and sing it in a comfortable key. She must have wide range to cover at least one and a half octaves. Then try to pick up its melody. In what range do you like to sing it? Then lift it up and down.

Where is your voice best revealed? This is the most comfortable part of your working range. The soprano will be comfortable singing at the end of the first and the beginning of the second octave and above, the mezzo in the first, and the contralto sounds brightest in the last tetrachord of the small octave and in the first sixth of the first. This is good way correctly determine the tone of your voice.

Here is another way how to determine what kind of natural voice you have. You need to take a chant in the range of an octave (for example, do - mi - la - do (up) to -mi - la (down), and sing it in different keys, which will differ by a second. If the voice opens when you sing the top, it means that his type is soprano, and if it fades and loses its expressiveness - mezzo or contralto.

Now do the same from top to bottom. In what key did you find it most comfortable to sing? Did the voice begin to lose its timbre and become dull? When moving down, sopranos lose their timbre at low notes, it is inconvenient for them to sing them, unlike mezzo and contralto. So you can determine not only the timbre of the voice, but also the most convenient area for singing, that is, the working range.

How to determine what kind of voice you have in the studio? Choose several backing tracks of your favorite song in different keys and sing them. Where the voice is best revealed, and it is worth singing in the future. Well, at the same time, you will know how to determine your timbre by listening to the recording several times. And while you may not recognize your voice out of habit, sometimes a recording can most accurately define its sound. So if you want to define your voice and understand how to work with it, go to the studio. Good luck!