Sprechstimme
A vocal technique between singing and speaking, where the performer approximates the indicated pitches with heightened, dramatic speech.
In Depth
Sprechstimme (German for "speaking voice"), also called Sprechgesang ("speech-song"), occupies a territory between sung melody and dramatic speech. The performer begins each note at the indicated pitch but then allows the voice to rise or fall away from it, following the natural inflections of speech while maintaining the notated rhythm. The result is an eerily expressive sound — more musical than speech, more raw than singing. Arnold Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire (1912) is the landmark work for Sprechstimme, setting 21 expressionist poems for a vocalist using this technique alongside a chamber ensemble. The exact realization of Sprechstimme remains debated — some performers stay closer to the written pitches, others treat them as approximate guides. The technique has influenced everything from musical theater (Rex Harrison's "singing" in My Fair Lady is essentially Sprechstimme) to rock (David Bowie, Scott Walker) and contemporary opera.
Rex Harrison won a Tony Award and an Oscar for My Fair Lady essentially by performing Sprechstimme — he could not sing conventionally and spoke-sang all his numbers.