Tenor Mass

A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C₅. The low extreme for tenors is widely defined to be B₂, though some roles include an A₂ (two As below middle C). At the highest extreme, some tenors can sing up to the second F above middle C (F₅). The tenor voice type is generally divided into the ''leggero'' tenor, lyric tenor, spinto tenor, dramatic tenor, heldentenor, and tenor buffo or .

History

The name "tenor" derives from the Latin word '' tenere'', which means "to hold". As Fallows, Jander, Forbes, Steane, Harris and Waldman note in the "Tenor" article at ''Grove Music Online'':

In polyphony between about 1250 and 1500, the enor was thestructurally fundamental (or 'holding') voice, vocal or instrumental; by the 15th century it came to signify the male voice that sang such parts.

All other voices were normally calculated in relation to the tenor, which often proceeded in longer note values and carried a borrowed Cantus firmus melody. Until the late 16th-century introduction of the contratenor singers, the tenor was usually the highest voice, assuming the role of providing a foundation. It was also in the 18th century that "tenor" came to signify the male voice that sang such parts. Thus, for earlier repertoire, a line marked 'tenor' indicated the part's role, and not the required voice type; indeed, even as late as the eighteenth century, partbooks labelled 'tenor' might contain parts for a range of voice types.

Vocal range

The vocal range of the tenor is one of the highest of the male voice types. Within opera, the lowest note in the standard tenor repertoire is widely defined to be B₂. However, the role of Rodrigo di Dhu (written for Andrea Nozzari) in Rossini's rarely performed ''La donna del lago'' is defined as a tenor but requires an A₂. Within more frequently performed repertoire, Mime and Herod both call for an A₂. A few tenor roles in the standard repertoire call for a "tenor C" (C₅, one octave above middle C). Some, if not all, of the few top Cs in the standard operatic repertoire are either optional—such as in "Che gelida manina" in Puccini's ''La bohème''—or interpolated (added) by tradition, such as in "Di quella pira" from Verdi's ''Il trovatore''); however, the highest demanded note in the standard tenor operatic repertoire is D₅, found in "Mes amis, écoutez l'histoire" from Adolphe Adam's ''Le postillon de Lonjumeau'' and "" from Fromental Halévy's ''La Juive''). In the ''leggero'' repertoire, the highest note is F₅ (Arturo in "Credeasi, misera" from Bellini's ''I puritani''), therefore, very few tenors have this role in their repertoire without transposition (given the raising of concert pitch since its composition), or resorting to falsetto.

In choral music

In SATB four-part mixed chorus, the tenor is the second lowest vocal range, above the bass and below the alto and soprano. Men's chorus usually denotes an ensemble of TTBB in which the first tenor is the highest voice. Whilst certain choral music does require the first tenors to ascend the full tenor range, the majority of choral music places the tenors in the range from approximately B₂ up to A₄. The requirements of the tenor voice in choral music are also tied to the style of music most often performed by a given choir. Orchestra choruses require tenors with fully resonant voices, but chamber or a cappella choral music (sung with no instrumental accompaniment) can sometimes rely on light baritones singing in falsetto.

Even so, one nearly ubiquitous facet of choral singing is the shortage of tenor voices. Most men tend to have baritone voices and for this reason the majority of men tend to prefer singing in the bass section of a choir (though true basses are even rarer than tenors). Some men sing tenor even if they lack the full range, and sometimes low altos sing the tenor part. In men's choruses that consist of four male vocal parts TTBB (tenor 1, tenor 2, bass 1, bass 2), tenors will often sing both in chest tone and falsetto, extending the vocal range of the choir.

Subtypes and roles in opera

Within the tenor voice type category are seven generally recognized subcategories: ''leggero'' tenor, lyric tenor, spinto