#fachsystem

Voice Type: Light-Lyric Tenor

Range: E2-E5-G#5

Chris Brown rose to fame in the 2000′s, with his light voice and R&B jams. He is known for being a performer and skilled dancer. More recently, Chris Brown has been in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. 

Tenor

Chris’ voice sits high up. He has comfort in the 5th octave (Yeah 3x, This Christmas, Crawl). The strain actually makes it harder for him to sing there, yet he doesn’t have much of an issue. He also sings in the E4-G4 range with too much ease to be a baritone. 

Spinto

Not really sure where this comes from, but I have seen it quite a few times before. A spinto will have a dark, heavy and warm voice. Chris’ voice is far too bright and light to be a spinto. Compare Chris to a real spinto (take a listen), and the lyric quality of his voice will be obvious.

Light-Lyric

Chris has a thin and light voice. His voice is also remarkably youthful meaning he must be a light-lyric tenor. Furthermore, he has good agility, another trait of a lyric voice. 

Voice Type: Lyric Baritone

Range: G2-G4-G#5

Onto the beatboxer of the Pentatonix. While not often thought of as a singer, Kevin has shown the ability to do some damn good singing. While he is often overlooked, Kevin is extremely talented, being able to sing, beatbox, play the cello, rap and write songs. 

Tenor

Kevin is most often called a tenor. Kevin just doesn’t have the comfort in the upper 4th and lower 5th octave that a tenor should. He’s great in the mid 4th octave (What Do You Mean?, The First Noel, FourFiveSeconds) but when he ascends past E4 there is a noticeable difference in his voice, as he starts to become uncomfortable (F4, G4). A tenor would not have such discomfort in the F4-G4 range. Kevin’s lows are also quite easy for him (Love Lockdown). Its quite hard to classify Kevin’s voice as it is underused, it is possible that he is a tenor but from what we have been shown so far, he fits the baritone fach better. 

Voice Type: Light-Lyric Soprano

Range: C3-G5-G5

Taylor Swift is one of the biggest pop stars of the 21st century. From Fearless to Red and the immensely popular 1984, Taylor has seen great success. 

Alto

I have seen Taylor called an alto a countless number of times. Alto is a part one sings in a choir, so you can sing it, but you can’t be it. When classifying voices we use the fach system, which alto isn’t a part of (alto is for choral work only), so no one can be an alto.

Mezzo-Soprano

Its easy to see why people call Taylor a mezzo, considering she makes use of her lows quite frequently and barely ventures into the upper 5th octave. Despite using them often, her lows are weak and foggy (For example). She uses them often as it is easier for her to sing lower than higher, due to her voice’s lack of development. A mezzo would sound more comfortable down low. 

Soprano

While she doesn’t sing right up to F5s and G5s often, her songs actually sit quite high. Although her technique does everything to hinder her comfort in her belts, she still has some comfort there (22, I Knew You Were Trouble, Out Of The Woods). Taylor’s timbre is youthful and bright, meaning she must be a light-lyric. 

Voice Type: Light-Lyric Tenor

Range: D3-A4 (Not sure of his full vocal range)

You may not of heard of Brett Dennen, but his unique voice makes him stand out. Brett is a folk singer, so while he’s not what you may hear on the radio, he is still worth a listen!

Tenor

Brett possesses a light and high voice. Despite his lack of training he still ventures quite high into the 4th octave with ease (Make You Crazy, Wild Child). His songs tend to sit quite high despite not venturing right up to B4s, C5s, etc. So while he does not sing well into the 5th octave, his high tessitura means he must be a tenor.

Light-Lyric

With such a unique voice some may not think Brett belongs to such a common fach, but his timbre is undeniably bright and youthful. A light-lyric tenor is defined by his light, warm and youthful voice. As Brett matches these characteristics, he would be classified as a light-lyric. 

Voice Type: Lyric Baritone

Range: Eb2-Bb4-G5

People tend to get it right when it comes to Chris Martin’s voice. With his warm and masculine timbre, Chris is a great example of his fach. 

Baritone

Chris Martin’s voice clearly sits within a baritone’s tessitura. He has nice comfort down low (Something Just Like This, Princess of China, Paradise) and often sings there. Big belts for Chris tend to be F4s, F#4s and G4s. Above there he looses a lot of comfort. This indicates Chris is a baritone. 

Lyric

Chris has a very warm timbre. For baritones there is two main distinctions: lyric and dramatic. A lyric voice will be warm, while a dramatic is the exact opposite. Lyric baritones are characterized by their warm, light and masculine voices. These characteristics, most importantly the warmth, makes Chris a lyric.

Most seem to misunderstand the full-lyric fach. As the name suggests, full-lyrics have bigger and fuller voices than light-lyrics. This does not mean that any chesty or loud lyric voice is a full-lyric (eg. Demi Lovato, Perrie Edwards). Full-lyrics will have mature voices. This womanly/manly timbre is the main distinction between a light and full lyric. In addition, the timbre of a full-lyric is less bright and piercing than a light-lyric. This trait often gets them confused for spintos. The voice of a full-lyric is not nearly large or dark enough to be a spinto, so try not to confuse them. Due to the maturity of their voice, full-lyrics are often misclassified as mezzo-sopranos/baritones, but remember to look at their tessitura. Possessing light voices, full-lyrics will have natural agility. Full-lyrics are not as common as light-lyrics. Examples of full-lyrics include: Celine Dion, Lara Fabian, Barbra Streisand, Peabo Bryson, John Farnham and Jacob Lusk. The full-lyric fach includes:

Full-Lyric Soprano

For sopranos and tenors (only), the lyric fach is broken down in light and full lyric. People often only look at the weight of the voice to categorize light-lyrics. They believe that only really small voices can be light-lyrics (eg. Ariana Grande, Ellie Goulding). We must remember to look at timbre (like always). Light-lyrics will have youthful voices. This means that those we may associate with ‘big’ voices can be light-lyrics, due to their youthfulness (eg. Charice, Kelly Clarkson, Bruno Mars). On top of this, light-lyrics will have some of the brightest voices. Due to their lighter-weight they are naturally agile voices. Light-lyrics are more common than full-lyrics and there really are no shortage of them. Examples include: Zara Larsson, Taylor Swift, Lea Michele, Demi Lovato, Mitch Grassi, The Weeknd, Justin Bieber and Sam Smith. The light-lyric fach includes:

Light-Lyric Soprano 

Lyric is the most common fach and is found throughout all voices (soprano, mezzo-soprano, contralto, tenor, baritone, bass). The lyric voice is characterized by it’s lightness and smaller output, but most of all warmth. The lyric voice is also the brightest. Having a ‘small’ output and ‘lightness’ does not mean lyric voices are tiny. They are simply the smallest voices, not necessarily small voices. Lyric voices can be very powerful and resonant (eg. Mariah Carey). The lighter weight of the voice lends itself to melisma/runs/riffs. This skill does need to be developed, but naturally the lyric voice is well suited towards them. Unfortunately, as the lightest voices, lyrics are the most prone to damage if misused. The thinner folds cannot withstand as much damage as a spinto or dramatic. The warmth of the timbre makes the voice less harsh and intense as some other fachs (dramatic). The lyric voice can range from very bright (Tori Kelly, Michael Buble), to a darker sound (Nicole Scherzinger, John Legend). For sopranos and tenors the lyric fach is broken down into light-lyric and full-lyric. Lyric fachs include:

Lyric Coloratura Soprano

Light-Lyric Soprano

Full-Lyric Soprano

Lyric Mezzo-Soprano

Lyric Contralto

Light-Lyric Tenor

Full-Lyric Tenor

Lyric Baritone