<p>Hi everyone. I'm a sophomore in high school with an interest of majoring in musical theatre (or acting) in college. I've been taking voice lessons for a little less than a yeaer and I think that my voice is has come a long way and will continue to get better. Here's my problem. I have a strong bass voice and can go very low (C2 or below). I think that my lower range is very resonant and rich. However, my upper register is a little less solid at the moment. I really can't go that high at all (to be specific, to about E or Eb4), and this greatly limits the range of musical characters that I am able to play. I'm really interested in getting just a few more notes in my upper register, but I know that that really isn't something I can just will myself to. My question is, Would it not be worth it to major in musical theatre considering my range? Thanks</p>
<p>Being a young person, especially male, you voice will most certainly go through many changes. It is very common for a young man who sings in the low ranges to move up quite a bit. It would be unusual for your voice to remain as it is. In other word many who start as baritone/basses become tenors. The male voice is said to mature at around 35 years of age!</p>
<p>My son was where you are with his voice around age 15-16…He is now 18 and his range has grown tremendously and now he is a baritenor/tenor. And I expect he will change over the next 4 years in college as he starts in a BFA MT program (still deciding between a few options). Keep up with the lessons, and if you love MT, go for it!</p>
<p>No - I’d say it was an asset to be a true bass when it comes to auditioning for post high school programs. Most programs want to get great talent in the door - but they are mindful of getting “types” as well - and I feel pretty secure in saying there are way too many tenors auditioning and and good bass singer is hard to find. Now, it is true that, especially in the more modern musicals, that there are not as many bari-bass parts written as there once were - so in some sense a bass could be a limiting factor. But, overall, I would say be happy you can hit those notes!</p>
<p>My son is a freshman MT major and in HS he was always placed as a bass 2 because he was the only one who could hit the low notes. He played roles in his HS play that were Baritone and now his voice teacher at school calls him a tenor?? He thinks voice lessons have expanded his range significantly.</p>
<p>Last week at the LAST AUDITION I was chatting with a bunch of young men who were VP or MT majors at this school known for great voice instruction, and to a man I think they all confessed to changing voice types during their time there. I imagine schools have to be very flexible when they accept men, not knowing really what’s to become of them. Or perhaps they do know what they can do with that hunk of raw talent! :)</p>
<p>my son was a low bass in all of his show choir stuff, added a good baritone range during high school, and now finishing his first year of college MT is easily hitting those high notes you dream of…that was the first order of business in his voice lessons at college. don’t let where you are stop you…just keep working on it! eventually you will should have a GIANT range!</p>
<p>Not a guy…but range is a fascinating thing – in the h.s. musicals, d was always put as a Soprano 1 because she could reliably and pleasantly hit and hold that “high C” …in her other singing MT group, she is often placed as an alto…and has performed the baritone line, because the group is (imagine that!) girl-heavy. Her range has grown exponentially since her sophomore year of h.s…and although I’m not a singer myself, it has been fascinating to watch her voice mature. I think yours will continue to do amazing things as you grow and study with an excellent, careful voice teacher!</p>
<p>My son is a baritone bass (he played the role of Caiaphus in Jesus Christ Superstar his sophomore year of HS). During the last several years he has worked on his upper register and has played several bari/tenor and straight tenor roles. Being able to hit the low notes has helped him get some roles in High school and community theater. There is always a need for a good bass. That being said I agree with others that you should work to develop your range. Especially since many of the younger male roles are written for tenors or bari/tenors.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your comments. I was just wondering if there is something that I could be doing to work on my upper register, or is that really not in my control at all. I have a private voice teacher, and she says that I really can’t do anything to change my range now (meaning it would have to happen by itself). Is this true? And I would not be the person to try and strain my voice to sing higher because I know that that could lead to problems.</p>
<p>Im a junior in HS and last year i couldn’t get much higher than an F. Ive been training, and in the past year I have increased my range to beyond an A. I believe it is actually like you said, it sort of just “happens”. Its magical how a private voice instructor can transform your voice. Good luck! The world needs more strong basses, haha.</p>