coloratura soprano
The highest and most agile type of soprano voice, specializing in rapid vocal ornamentation, trills, and high-register passages.
In Depth
The Queen of the Night's famous aria in The Magic Flute requires the singer to hit F above high C — a note so extreme that Mozart's sister-in-law Josepha Hofer, who premiered the role, was one of the few singers who could manage it.
Related Terms
More in Theory
Browse allA sharp, flat, or natural sign that alters a note from the prevailing key signature.
Symbols placed before notes to raise or lower their pitch by a semitone or return them to their natural state
Relating to sound or the properties of sound, especially music produced without electronic amplification.
The natural minor scale, with the pattern W-H-W-W-H-W-W, producing the most common minor tonality in Western music.
Music in which some element of the composition is left to chance or to the performer's discretion.
The second-highest voice type, or an instrument pitched between soprano and tenor.
The measure of a sound wave's intensity, perceived as loudness or volume.
One or more notes before the first full bar of a piece, also called a pickup or upbeat.