Who's who: the different voices in opera

Know your contralto from your lirico-spinto? We explain the qualities and roles of opera's many talented voices• Soprano The highest female voice, usually representing the leading female character. Subdivisions include soubrette or light soprano (roles such as Susanna in Figaro); coloratura, possessing facility in rapid passagework and high notes (the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute); lyric soprano (Mimì in La Bohème); the spinto (literally "pushed") soprano (Tosca, Aida), heavier in ...

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