contralto
Other forms: contraltos
A contralto is the very deepest female voice in opera. A contralto generally sings the harmony when she's singing with another woman.
While it's mainly classical music that uses the term contralto, it's also occasionally used in jazz to describe a very low female singing voice. If a man is singing the same notes and range as a contralto, he's called a countertenor. Like most musical terms, contralto is an Italian word. Its roots are contra-, "against or opposite," and alto, a slightly higher voice — in other words, "the next voice after alto."
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the lowest female singing voicesynonyms: altotype of:singing voicethe musical quality of the voice while singing
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a woman singer having a contralto voiceexamples:Marian AndersonUnited States contralto noted for her performance of spirituals (1902-1993)Ernestine Schumann-HeinkUnited States operatic contralto (1861-1936)
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of or being the lowest female voicesynonyms: alto
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Vocabulary lists containing contralto
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