Definition of countertenor Countertenor

/kawˈntɚtɛˌnɚ/ - [kawntertener] - coun•ter•ten•or

We found 7 definitions of countertenor from 4 different sources.

What does countertenor mean?

Noun Plural: countertenors
countertenor - the highest adult male singing voice
		alto
		singing voice the musical quality of the voice while singing
countertenor - a male singer with a voice above that of a tenor
Adjective
countertenor - of or being the highest male voice; having a range above that of tenor
		alto
		high-pitched, high set at a sharp or high angle or slant; "a high-pitched roof"

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countertenor (Noun)
Older a part or section performing a countermelody against the tenor or main part.
countertenor (Noun)
Adult male singer who uses head tone or falsetto to sing far higher than the typical male vocal range.

A countertenor is a male singer who uses a falsetto voice to sing high notes like a female contralto or mezzo-soprano.

Countertenors were used a lot in the Renaissance and Baroque periods when females were not allowed to sing in church choirs. They did not have big, dramatic voices like castrati, so they were not normally used in opera. People forgot about this way of singing in the 18th and 19th centuries, although male altos continued to sing in English cathedral and church choirs. In the 20th century an English countertenor called Alfred Deller became very famous. He sang many songs from the Baroque period that had been written for the countertenor voice, for example songs by Henry Purcell who sang countertenor himself. Today there is a lot of interest again in using this type of voice for performing early music like Renaissance and Baroque music.