Songs for an Alto

[My Fair Lady]

Posted: 11/15/05 at 9:07pm

Her upper range is a bit weak, and she has an untraditional voice. Her best songs are (she's 15, by the way) "What Would You Do" (Cabaret) and One Song Glory (Rent). She can belt up to C5 (octave above middle C) and her pitch is...not great. but her voice is good and she really wants to find a few songs to work.

[GClef2]

Posted: 11/15/05 at 9:16pm

"Come to your senses" sounds perfect for the range. It's in E flat, so it's pretty easy to stay in tune.

"The Road ends here" from john and jen moves and resonates the same way.

let me know if those are good...

[My Fair Lady]

Posted: 11/15/05 at 9:25pm

She LOVES tick...tick...BOOM!

[GClef2]

Posted: 11/15/05 at 9:31pm

I have the music..it's everywhere--that's such a good song. Also, if you say she's a high belter, maybe "The Story Goes On" from baby. That's gorgeous, it will show off her range and, it's in c major, so it's easy to stay in tune.

[TheatreSlave]

Posted: 11/15/05 at 9:31pm

As a contralto/tenor (and yes, I am female) with so-so pitch, here are my suggestions:

"Tomorrow Belongs to Me (Reprise)"- Cabaret (the one sung by Fr. Kost)
"Hold On"- Secret Garden (this one is a bit tricky, but with some work is a great alto piece)
"I Waltz Alone" -Grand Hotel (in the show, a guy sings this, but it can work for an alto with an obliging voice teacher)
"SOmeone Else's Story"- Chess
"Papa Can You Hear Me"- Yentl (fairly high in original key, but transpose it down and octave and it's great)
"All for You"- Seussical

That's all I can think of off the top of my head for a 15-year old. Look for anything categorized as "character" or "patter" songs- pitch isn't very important, so long as you can "sell" the song.
ALso- Look for "The Singer's Musical Theatre Anthology", each volume is separated by vocal type.

I wish her luck, it's hard having an odd alto voice when the world is in love with sopranos.

[Wayman_Wong]

Posted: 11/16/05 at 2:21am

A hilarious song is Marcy Heisler and Zina Goldrich's 'The Alto's Lament.' It's a comedy number in which an alto pours out her woes because she never gets to sing the melody. She then demonstrates what classic showtunes sound like, sung by an alto. Alas, the sheet music isn't available in their songbook of vocal selections yet, but they're working on it. Still, I've heard it sung in various cabaret acts, so the music must be around.
Marcy Heisler and Zina Goldrich's web site

[Shay Jericho]

Posted: 11/16/05 at 4:38pm

If she has a really low voice, it seems like "Till We Reach That Day" from Ragtime might be appropriate. Also, "On My Own" doesn't go any higher than C5.

I have a similar student, and it's kinda frustrating to find music for altos. Oh well.

[Kitzarina]

Posted: 11/16/05 at 6:26pm

That's why we altos either have to extend our range and learn how to belt high notes or stick to the chorus. I hate that altos with a high range are always passed over in favor of sopranos or mezzos. At least that's how it is at my school. :/