THE DRAMATIC BARITONE

Dramatic baritone

• Common Range: From the G half an octave below low C to the G above middle C (G2 to G4).
• Description: A voice that is richer and fuller, and sometimes harsher, than a lyric baritone and with a darker quality. This category corresponds roughly to the Heldenbariton in the German fach system except that some Verdi baritone roles are not included. The primo passaggio and secondo passaggio of both the Verdi and Dramatic Baritone are at Bb and Eb respectively, hence the differentiation is based more heavily on timbre and tessitura. Accordingly, roles that fall into this category tend to have a slightly lower tessitura than typical Verdi baritone roles, only rising above an F at the moments of greatest intensity. Many of the Puccini roles fall into this category. However, it is important to note, that for all intents and purposes, a Verdi Baritone is simply a Dramatic Baritone with greater ease in the upper tessitura (Verdi Baritone roles center approximately a minor third higher). Because the Verdi Baritone is sometimes seen as subset of the Dramatic Baritone, some singers perform roles from both sets of repertoire. Similarly, the lower tessitura of these roles allow them frequently to be sung by bass-baritones.

• Role
  • Jack Rance, La fanciulla del West (Giacomo Puccini)
  • Scarpia, Tosca (Giacomo Puccini)
  • Nabucco, Nabucco (Giuseppe Verdi)
  • Iago, Otello (Giuseppe Verdi)
  • Escamillo, Carmen (Bizet)
• Singers:
  • Norman Bailey
  • Peter Kajlinger
  • Sergei Leiferkus
  • Juan Pons
  • Tom Krause

UNDER CONSTRUCTION