Countertenor, altino and falsetto are the names of the timbres of the male voice. Such a classification exists only in academic music; these varieties are not distinguished among pop performers.
What is a countertenor
Countertenor, or, as it is also called, countertenor is the voice of an academic vocalist who specializes in performing alto and / or soprano parts.
The countertenor is sometimes called the male soprano.
Initially, in European polyphonic music of the XIV-XVI centuries. the countertenor was called the side vocal part, complementing the parts of the tenor and treble. Beginning in the middle of the 16th century, with the spread of the four-part part, the counterrenor part split in two: one was sung below the tenor and was called contratenor-bassus, the second - above and was called contratenor altus. Soon the term was no longer used in its original meaning, instead in Italy contratenor-bassus began to be called simply bass, contratenor-altus - alto, in France the term haute-contre was fixed, and in Great Britain - countertenor.
For a long time, there is a widespread myth that men who have a countertenor and are able to sing in a female tessiture suffer from a certain anomaly, and that their vocal apparatus is structured according to the female type. It's a delusion. In fact, the ability to sing in a high voice is achieved by developing the upper vocal register.
Differences between countertenor and altino and falsetto
The tenor altino conceived is confused with the countertenor. Altino is a type of lyric tenor with a high tessitation, which differs from the countertenor primarily in that it is uniquely identified as a high male voice, while the countertenor sounds effeminate. The altino vocalist has a range of up to E notes of the second octave.
Tenor altino is a rarity, the owners of such a voice sing with a full-sounding closing of the vocal cords.
Finally, falsetto, or, as it is sometimes called, fistula, has nothing to do with the classification of vocalists' timbres, but is the upper head register: the owner of any singing voice can sing in falsetto. In essence, falsetto is achieved by specific sound production.
To sing in falsetto, it is necessary to put the vocal cords in such a mode in which only the layers of Mucosa tissue closest to the slit will vibrate. Fistula is used in exceptional cases to give the sound a special color, however, some composers use it to create a certain image. Thus, Figaro's part is played in falsetto in the episode where he imitates Rosina's voice.
