Passaggio

What it means

Passaggio designates the transitional point between the registers of the singing voice, that is, the area in which voice production changes from chest to head voice. It lies differently depending on voice type and person; tenors usually find it around F and F♯, baritones somewhat lower, women's voices at several points of the range. Untrained, this area becomes audible as a break: the voice tips, narrows, or loses sustaining power. In older literature the term also designates fast runs and ornaments.

Musical use

For vocal technique the transitional area is the central task, for whether a voice sounds even across its whole range depends on mastering it. Composers reckon with this: many parts avoid lingering in this zone or use it deliberately for expression, because the voice seems especially tense there. Knowledge of one's own transitional point also co-determines fach assignment, since it is a more reliable indicator than the highest reachable note.

Performance practice

Practise the transition in calm, bound lines, descending as well as ascending, and keep the volume the same; intensification at this point reinforces the break. Work with vowel modification — a slight change of vowel colour eases the transition without making the text unrecognizable. Avoid pressure and keep the larynx calm. Find your own transitional point with the help of a teacher and note it down, so that you can plan repertoire accordingly. Warm up the voice so that this area is included early and carefully.

Bear in mind that the transitional area lies differently for every voice and can shift over the years: determine it anew regularly and orient your repertoire choice accordingly. The position of the passaggio differs by voice type: for the tenor it lies roughly around E to G, for the soprano an octave higher. Italian singing teachers speak of coperto, the covered singing in the transitional area. Practise with sirens or lip trills, to shape the transition without a break. Record yourself, because breaks in the passaggio are often perceived differently while singing than from outside.