What to do with you? I think that is the question on any competition judge’s mind any time I walk into the room to sing. When I open my mouth it isn’t always the sound they expect. Many more questions flood the judges’ minds.
What to do with you?
What to do with a mezzo-soprano singing in the men’s division of this competition?
How do you judge this voice that is so vastly different than the rest that we’ve heard in the past few auditions?
Countertenors cause massive headaches in the competitive singing world, and even seasoned judges are unsure of how to properly handle such a voice when it is presented to them. This has created a sort of dilemma. Where do countertenors fit into any of this? Do they compete with tenors, baritones and basses because they are men as well, or do they move to the female divisions because they are singing similar repertoire and in the same register?
I feel that this dilemma has been avoided for far too long. It has led to confusion amongst professional voice teachers and potential for bias against countertenors.
I’m not claiming this is what has happened to me in the past, because I really cannot ever know what was on a judge’s mind. Moreover, I do not have the answers to the problems, I just think somebody has to get the conversation started. Once the conversation starts about how to handle and judge a countertenor voice, then the answers shall be made clear to singers and teachers.
Similar criterion should be used when critiquing ANY voice:
Is the singer singing in tune?
Are the correct rhythms and pitches being sung?
How musically is the singer singing?
Is this voice technically sound and at the proper maturity level for this singer’s age?
Simple standards such as these should serve as a guide when looking at any voice, including the countertenor voice. The biggest problem comes when looking at categorization of the countertenor voice. That’s what needs attention from the musical community. The discussion needs to commence and solutions need to be reached.
I feel I cannot sit idly by, allowing this general confusion and ignorance to continue. Somebody has to work this out and figure out what to do with me.
mattymanchi 
That’s rubbish if you are finding people unsure how to judge you. If it were me, I would end up pre-judging how I would do before I walked into the competition (even more than I currently do).
On a smaller scale I have felt similar things when I’ve been in masterclasses – they ask me what voice type I am (and I answer somewhere between bass and baritone depending on when they asked me, what I was singing and how I was feeling that day) and immediately they are judging me against what a ‘bass’ or a ‘bass-baritone’ or a ‘baritone’ should sound like. Which I know people will do, and is sometimes useful to do, but sometimes people have just seen me physically and decided I’m a baritone, rather than consider properly that my low range has a lot of power.
Anyway, rant over. I sympathize, and can relate to this post, even though my situations have not been quite the same. Who do you think counter-tenors should be judged alongside if they are to be judged alongside men or women?
This is a very interesting eye hole into the world you live in. I wouldn’t think that it would be that difficult to judge that kind of timbre from others. I believe i someone is going to allow counter tenors to perform at their competitions, they should have professional countertenors hired as judges for them.
Wow….I can only imagine the frustrations you face when going into competitions. Being unique or even the guinea pig for such situations can leave you questioning the validity of the system. I agree with Tanner though, it might be helpful to have other countertenors in the mix of judges to give their opinions. I also think that truly standardizing the criteria for any voice would greatly cut down on some unfair treatment.
Matthew, countertenors are wonderful contributions to the world of music. And if you’re good, there will always be a need to fill such a niche role. Good luck as you continue to develop as a musician.