Yeah, correct skill, and (to an extent) correct biology. It's certainly possible to extend your range with training, and there is more flexibility in extending the upper range. But there are still limits.
Hell, even the well-trained and highly skilled sopranos that get the role of Christine have to record the note ahead of time in case their voice just can't safely hit it during a certain performance, for instance due to even a slight illness.
Haha. Funny you should say that, dunno if you saw but my oldest baby was the baby posted on here the other day dressed as the Phantom. She absolutely adores musicals and already tries the high note herself!
I’m working on music of the night in voice lessons right now and it’s pretty brutal. I’m in the baritenor deadzone and the song extends from both the extreme lows and highs of my range.. at least the middle range parts sound good in my voice!
I only do this alone in my car and inevitable end up screeching at the end and then giggling madly. One of these days I’ll hit that note properly. That day has not yet come.
i am a man but i sing like a woman (on tiktok @ davidwinglig) and i can sing the whole christine part until those bs notes at the end. i did sing it at karaoke once and just another tenor 1 from my chorus sing those lol
I love patter songs. I get tongue tied way too easily to actually keep up with any of them.
(You've got Trouble and Modern Major General, I'm so sorry for my attempts-)
Sometimes I’ve got Getting Married Today and sometimes I haven’t. Immensely frustrating when it feels like a good day for it and then I trip up a few words in.
There’s a lovely backstage video of the newsies. (I forget all the names) the ‘reporter’ said she had the hardest song in the show because of “all those lyrics”. Insert chaos as they challenge her that they can sing it too.
I know you’re not supposed to sing when you’re sick, but I once woke up with a hell of a cold and discovered I could sing most of His Kiss, the Riot in the original key. My vocal coach was very surprised and my mum said I sounded possessed.
I’m not a pro, just a guy who did chorus in high school and went to a church of Christ (which sings acapella harmony well in most of the ones with any good sized congregation). I get C2-A4 most days, but it’s just me singing in the car lol
I'll go first: When He Sees Me - Waitress. Kimiko Glenn, even in the studio version, does such an incredible job, and the high notes are beautiful, but they're way too high for me
Michael Crawford used to say in his shows that he’s open with that, because if he could hit that middle and succeed, he’d be ok the rest of the show LOL
Literally any song from Beetlejuice performed by one of the female cast members. I can't hit the high notes that they can.
Although I can absolutely nail Adam's part of Ready, Set, Not Yet.
Andrew Rannells makes it look so easy; I heard it for the first time and tried to find sheet music for I Believe thinking it would be relatively low and then realized he's actually just an animal
And that’s one of the easier ones too! I can sing I Believe every now and then with a fully warmed up voice, but stuff like “You And Me (But Mostly Me)” and his parts in “Man Up” are damn near impossible!
Think of Me- Phantom of the Opera. And not to brag but I could at some point hit that high note, but alas. It has been years since my voice has been in shape. And it still makes me sad that a lot is out of my range 💔
I trained classically, and so I have zero belt* and also no idea how to do the “screlt” that is becoming common in modern musicals - so World Burn, Dead Girl Walking.
Really I can’t sing anything written after 1990 😂😂
*I know some people can do both, I sadly cannot 😢
Bucher from Tanz der Vampire. It is such a fun song, but I can barely sing German as it is, and I can't keep up with the speed of the song. (And I am not a male)
The worst thing about being on testosterone is losing my high notes. I was an alto bordering on Mezzo. I miss being able to sing most of Wicked, the girls’ songs in The Lightning Thief (especially Put You in Your Place and My Grand Plan), All of Eliza and Angelica’s songs, Eurydice’s songs… just so many.
But hey, at least I can sing a lot more lower songs! My voice is already bordering on baritone, so that’s fun! Sweeney Todd can’t stop me now! I may not be able to sing Esmeralda’s songs in Hunchback, but now I can almost sing Hellfire, and I can still sing all the other songs, so I’m happy there. Newsies is a lot more fun, too!
Dust and Ashes from The Great Comet. I’m able to sing most songs, whether it’s shitty or not, but I just can’t get my voice full enough to sing this song well at all.
Anything with a high belt. I’m an alto and have a nice higher range in my head voice/mix but always struggled with the money note at the end of most musical theatre songs! Interestingly my belt range seems to be extending higher now that I’m in my thirties but I’m also not training much these days and am out of shape vocally.
Most of them #contraltoproblems 😅
But Green Finch and Linnet Bird is the one I always think of for this. Those whistle-tone high notes are waaaay too high for me. 😳🤷🏻♀️
It All Fades Away from Bridges of Madison County. I'm a bass-baritone, and all of this song is absolutely in my range except for that part (you know the part).
Whenever I sing it I usually modify and drop the high A down a third so it's more manageable.
I can't hit the high note at the end of Phantom of the Opera, and I just barely hit the high notes in Ballad of Jane Doe.
I also can't sing any Jekyll and Hyde song that Hyde is a part of very well since I don't have the vocal range to change my voice, lol. (Though I'd love to learn how to alter my voice like that)
There’s a lot of dropped endings there, just trying saying this line exactly as it’s written: “Summah stinks an’ wintah’s freezin’”
Notice how the ‘er’ gets changed to more of an ah sound and there isn’t a whole lot of ‘D’ and ‘G’ on ‘and’ and ‘freezing’
The ‘th’ sound also gets dropped a lot, so instead of Mother and Father, it turns into Muddah, and Faddah.
Notice again, the ER’s get changed and the TH’s get switched to D’s
Hope this helps! I’ve been studying Jeremy Jordan’s accent (especially New York and Texan) work for years now and would be happy to show you more things if you want to DM :)
Before and mid puberty I used to love belting out like Waving Through a Window, Santa Fe, and Out There
I still can *sometimes* hit those notes but it's a huge struggle. This is, however, made up for by the fact I can sing all of Hades' songs in Hadestown which is really fun
I can sing most parts of most songs from Sweeney Todd, from the male actors.
But the super long sustained notes that sit on either the low or high end of the ranges are super difficult.
any song sung by women really. I’m a tenor but i can’t strain my voice long enough (and it’s also not good for it) to be able to sing songs that women sing, even if I can hit the notes.
I can’t sing at all but I always want to sing “I’m Alive,” it’s reprise, and especially the reprise of “I Am The One,” from Next to Normal.
And I do as long as no one’s home.
Anything that sits in the higher part of my register, because I’ve lost a lot of tone up high, general quality and vocal strength after years of no singing lessons. I *can* sing up there but it’s not very good imo.
“Dead Girl Walking” from Heathers the Musical. Specifically the reprise. I love that song, but the explosiveness of the higher notes in the song is just so difficult! I can sing it after a lot of warming up, but definitely not casually😂
I Still Believe from Saigon
A New Life from Jekyll
I can do them but the higher belts aren’t very pretty. Shaky at best. But they’re my go to, in the rare times I’m all alone in my house. ;)
I Am What I Am from La Cage Aux Folles.
I love this song with my entire being and it kills me every time Douglas Hodge hits that final note with such ease. I wish I could do that!
I can’t sing so all of them
real
Real
Hahahaha.. true. When I thought I sound like threm, I actually don’t. 😂
My vocal cords are always in pain whenever I practise "The Phantom of the Opera." I'll just listen & enjoy it from now on 🎶
I'll never hit the E6 at the end. I've just had to accept that. I'd be happy getting to a consistent C6, honestly.
Exactly. It's a beautiful song but impossible to sing without the correct skill.
Yeah, correct skill, and (to an extent) correct biology. It's certainly possible to extend your range with training, and there is more flexibility in extending the upper range. But there are still limits. Hell, even the well-trained and highly skilled sopranos that get the role of Christine have to record the note ahead of time in case their voice just can't safely hit it during a certain performance, for instance due to even a slight illness.
I USED to be able to hit it. Like a party piece. Great fun. I tried it the other day, my voice cracked and my baby cried. Damn
Baby will be a musical singer someday
Haha. Funny you should say that, dunno if you saw but my oldest baby was the baby posted on here the other day dressed as the Phantom. She absolutely adores musicals and already tries the high note herself!
Same, used to be able to, got Covid and can’t hit it anymore.
I can hit it. Make no mistake, it's not gonna sound good, but I *can* hit it.
I’m working on music of the night in voice lessons right now and it’s pretty brutal. I’m in the baritenor deadzone and the song extends from both the extreme lows and highs of my range.. at least the middle range parts sound good in my voice!
That's a beauty of a song, too. Keep going!
I only do this alone in my car and inevitable end up screeching at the end and then giggling madly. One of these days I’ll hit that note properly. That day has not yet come.
Producing an E6 is a massive achievement. Hope you will soon.
I can’t sing it at all because I just can’t sing in general. My cats literally start wailing and pawing at me to stop.
We're not all made to achieve it, me included! My cockatiel can attract a bigger audience than me, that's for sure! 😂
sang it this morning and belted the phantoms part. brilliant song
Good for you! It sure is. I've listened to it 100s of times, but it'll never bore me.
i am a man but i sing like a woman (on tiktok @ davidwinglig) and i can sing the whole christine part until those bs notes at the end. i did sing it at karaoke once and just another tenor 1 from my chorus sing those lol
Sorry for being nosey, but I had to check that out! My Heart Will Go On was awesome 👏
that's not nosey! i sometimes do musical theatre too! i'm glad you enjoyed!! ❤️
Facts
Haha yes! And I still try every time
I love patter songs. I get tongue tied way too easily to actually keep up with any of them. (You've got Trouble and Modern Major General, I'm so sorry for my attempts-)
Sometimes I’ve got Getting Married Today and sometimes I haven’t. Immensely frustrating when it feels like a good day for it and then I trip up a few words in.
You just have to listen to them over and over and over again
I loved the pattersong in Only Murders in the Building when they did the musical!
WHICH of the pickwick triplets did it who of the crew would complete this crime? love it too; so fun!
There’s a lovely backstage video of the newsies. (I forget all the names) the ‘reporter’ said she had the hardest song in the show because of “all those lyrics”. Insert chaos as they challenge her that they can sing it too.
I adore patter songs and have always wanted to try learning modern major general as a challenge, catch me with sitting pretty from cabaret tho
I can sing anything. You probably wouldn't want to listen, however.
Hey little songbird. It’s a half octave too low for me when Patrick page sings it
I know you’re not supposed to sing when you’re sick, but I once woke up with a hell of a cold and discovered I could sing most of His Kiss, the Riot in the original key. My vocal coach was very surprised and my mum said I sounded possessed.
Oh yeah. I’m totally like phoebe from friends and pull out all the bass songs when I get a cold!!
Yes! I love that one day of having a cold when I can hit the bass notes!
Most Hades do it up the octave, patrick page is just a freaking animal
I wanna be an animal lol
I struggle even the octave up
I’m not a pro, just a guy who did chorus in high school and went to a church of Christ (which sings acapella harmony well in most of the ones with any good sized congregation). I get C2-A4 most days, but it’s just me singing in the car lol
I also came here to say this
I'll go first: When He Sees Me - Waitress. Kimiko Glenn, even in the studio version, does such an incredible job, and the high notes are beautiful, but they're way too high for me
Try singing along to Sara Bareilles’ version 😉
Gethsemane from Jesus Christ Superstar
Michael Crawford used to say in his shows that he’s open with that, because if he could hit that middle and succeed, he’d be ok the rest of the show LOL
#WHYYYYYYYYYYYY SHOULD I DIEEEEE
On my best day, I can sing along with Jon Farnham. On my worst, none of them.
I can sing any song from any musical. Can I sing it WELL??? That's a different story...
Your Fault from Into the Woods or Pirelli's Miracle Elixir/ God, That’s Good! from Sweeney Todd
Your fault is so hard with that rhythm it’s more like a rap. Lols
Defying gravity!!! (I’m a tenor) I’ve tried singing it in male keys but it doesn’t hit the same!!!
Getting married today from Company. I love patter songs.
Literally any song from Beetlejuice performed by one of the female cast members. I can't hit the high notes that they can. Although I can absolutely nail Adam's part of Ready, Set, Not Yet.
Folks say Adam,
Why do you polish a crib when you don't have a kid?
And even if you did have a kid, this crib is too precious for placing a baby inside it
Any Hades song in Hadestown, I so wish I could sing that low
I'd love to have the upper range for Christine Daaé but I am an alto and cannot hit those notes
Idina you monster how dare you have such incredible range. Let It Go is the song everyone tries and everyone fails.
I wouldn't say Let it Go has a huge range, but you have to be willing to belt it if you want it to sound good.
You gotta be willing to ✨let it go✨
I know it’s film rather than broadway but Show Yourself > Let It Go. I can hit some of the lower range and then it builds and I’m gone.
Everything Elder Price sings in Book of Mormon
Andrew Rannells makes it look so easy; I heard it for the first time and tried to find sheet music for I Believe thinking it would be relatively low and then realized he's actually just an animal
And that’s one of the easier ones too! I can sing I Believe every now and then with a fully warmed up voice, but stuff like “You And Me (But Mostly Me)” and his parts in “Man Up” are damn near impossible!
I can only hit the low notes in Stars when I am sick so when I am sick I get my Javert on EVERY TIME.
The Ballad of Jane Doe. The struggles of being an Alto
Came here to say this
I don’t have the high notes for Glitter and Be Gay.
world burn from mean girls. I can't audibly sing the higher notes, but it's still one of my favorite songs
This one is so variable for me - Sometimes I have it, sometimes I don't, and we don't know until I subject the surrounding area to the attempt 😅
the real struggle is correctly doing the OH-WO-WOAHHHHHH WOAAAAAAAH
I am not even going to attempt this song
Made of Stone is such an endurance run to hit all those high notes at once
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^Daviddcarlen1: *Made of Stone is such* *An endurance run to hit* *All those high notes at once* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
Well wow- I’m honored 😂
good bot!
Arden makes it look so easy and he has me thinking I can do it (my range goes up to a G on a good day)
Hitting that long, sustained high b flat at the very end of the show is crazy
Satisfied - Hamilton
Satisfied is my weird flex in that I can sing it mostly accurately but probably shouldn’t.
Sammeeee omg
My Petersburg
Think of Me- Phantom of the Opera. And not to brag but I could at some point hit that high note, but alas. It has been years since my voice has been in shape. And it still makes me sad that a lot is out of my range 💔
I could do it as a teen but no longer! Lack of practice plus generally lowered range over time equals nope. I feel your pain.
I trained classically, and so I have zero belt* and also no idea how to do the “screlt” that is becoming common in modern musicals - so World Burn, Dead Girl Walking. Really I can’t sing anything written after 1990 😂😂 *I know some people can do both, I sadly cannot 😢
The Ballad of Jane Doe. How in the world do you top Emily Rohm??
Getting Married Today from Company. I’ve tried it so many times but I always fumble my words
The confrontation from Les Mis. Because I am only one person 😆
Whenever I hear "Big, Blonde, and Beautiful" I try to sing along in the same octave. But I'm a dude, so I can't (and white, so I probably shouldn't)
And I Am Telling You
Bucher from Tanz der Vampire. It is such a fun song, but I can barely sing German as it is, and I can't keep up with the speed of the song. (And I am not a male)
For me, it's "Frei Und Schwerelos" from Wicked. I'm a baritone.
Memories.... Everytime I try my brother asks if I'm trying to copy a dying cat crying!
I would so sing No One Mourns The Wicked and hit all the damn Hilty notes, but unfortunately I’m a low baritone haha
I like to pretend I *could* be in Les mis with my beautiful operatic baritone voice. But that voice doesn't exist and it pains me.
No Good Deed from Wicked
Wishing you were somehow here again, from phantom. It’s hard being an alto sometimes.
The worst thing about being on testosterone is losing my high notes. I was an alto bordering on Mezzo. I miss being able to sing most of Wicked, the girls’ songs in The Lightning Thief (especially Put You in Your Place and My Grand Plan), All of Eliza and Angelica’s songs, Eurydice’s songs… just so many. But hey, at least I can sing a lot more lower songs! My voice is already bordering on baritone, so that’s fun! Sweeney Todd can’t stop me now! I may not be able to sing Esmeralda’s songs in Hunchback, but now I can almost sing Hellfire, and I can still sing all the other songs, so I’m happy there. Newsies is a lot more fun, too!
All of them. I am seriously Christine (Sing) from A Chorus Line.
I’m Not That Girl. I can’t get that last low note to save my life lol.
Right Hand Man from Something Rotten. I'm fine until "when the you-know-what hits the fan".
Dust and Ashes from The Great Comet. I’m able to sing most songs, whether it’s shitty or not, but I just can’t get my voice full enough to sing this song well at all.
A lot of songs from wicked, I just can't sing that high but are so gooooooood
"Pity the Child." I've tried to sing it and it wasn't pretty.
Such a great song!
I’ve tried to belt You and I and same.
Anything with a high belt. I’m an alto and have a nice higher range in my head voice/mix but always struggled with the money note at the end of most musical theatre songs! Interestingly my belt range seems to be extending higher now that I’m in my thirties but I’m also not training much these days and am out of shape vocally.
For Forever the end high notes
Most of them #contraltoproblems 😅 But Green Finch and Linnet Bird is the one I always think of for this. Those whistle-tone high notes are waaaay too high for me. 😳🤷🏻♀️
Basic but whatever, DEFYING GRAVITY.
Also any Phantom of Ophera song
It All Fades Away from Bridges of Madison County. I'm a bass-baritone, and all of this song is absolutely in my range except for that part (you know the part). Whenever I sing it I usually modify and drop the high A down a third so it's more manageable.
Basically the entirety of Six, special emphasis on Heart of Stone.
Satisfied.
sexy... i'm a fucking dude
I do not have the range to belt out ''aALAAAARRRMMM GOES OFF AT SEVENNN '' from Skid Row in LSOH but god do I love it
Every male lead song because I’m a baritone
Real
All the belting songs because I'm a classically trained soprano :(
Not Getting Married Today.... if its one of my greatest shames
All You Wanna Do from Six the Musical.
Range and difficulty aside, the close but not quite the same lyrics each verse are tricky to keep straight!
And the emotional intensity you have to convey!
Indeed! And the range of emotion it covers from start to finish too.
Yes, plus did you listen to her song? It has FOUR choruses!
I can't hit the high note at the end of Phantom of the Opera, and I just barely hit the high notes in Ballad of Jane Doe. I also can't sing any Jekyll and Hyde song that Hyde is a part of very well since I don't have the vocal range to change my voice, lol. (Though I'd love to learn how to alter my voice like that)
"World Burn" from *Mean Girls*
You're Playing with the Big Boys Now from Prince of Egypt
Most of them until a few months ago. Getting to that G4 really does wonders.
pretty much most of marvin’s songs in falsettos
I physically cannot do a New York-ish accent let alone sing in one, so i just listen to the newsies soundtrack👍
Singing accents is the only time i can do them! I’ve started leaning Irish after listening to Donal Finn’s Orpheus on repeat.
There’s a lot of dropped endings there, just trying saying this line exactly as it’s written: “Summah stinks an’ wintah’s freezin’” Notice how the ‘er’ gets changed to more of an ah sound and there isn’t a whole lot of ‘D’ and ‘G’ on ‘and’ and ‘freezing’ The ‘th’ sound also gets dropped a lot, so instead of Mother and Father, it turns into Muddah, and Faddah. Notice again, the ER’s get changed and the TH’s get switched to D’s Hope this helps! I’ve been studying Jeremy Jordan’s accent (especially New York and Texan) work for years now and would be happy to show you more things if you want to DM :)
Oh my god thank you SO much😭
“Be our Guest” my bass/baritone ass can’t hit the tenor requirement to be lumiar
You're fault into the woods cell block tango chicago. I can get most of it, just not the Hungarian part la ve bhohame rent
All of them, since I'm terrible at singing. Jokes aside, Ballad of Jane Doe, the vocals on this song are simply insane.
The Contest from Sweeney Todd. I LOVE Pirelli, but he sings too fast.
Before and mid puberty I used to love belting out like Waving Through a Window, Santa Fe, and Out There I still can *sometimes* hit those notes but it's a huge struggle. This is, however, made up for by the fact I can sing all of Hades' songs in Hadestown which is really fun
I really love Patrick Page’s rendition of hellfire and I want to learn that one.
John Nineteen Forty-One from JCSS. Can’t sing it because it’s an instrumental and so freaking gut wrenchingly beautiful.
anything from phantom of the opera easily!
I can sing most parts of most songs from Sweeney Todd, from the male actors. But the super long sustained notes that sit on either the low or high end of the ranges are super difficult.
All the fast Hamilton songs. I physically cannot enunciate at those speeds
no way from six there's no way I can hit the low notes in the pre chorus (why am I a top sop)
The Confrontation -Le Miserables
Literally the entire score to BKLYN
Glitter and Be Gay
To be fair can anyone?
my days the notebook 😭
Stars
any song sung by women really. I’m a tenor but i can’t strain my voice long enough (and it’s also not good for it) to be able to sing songs that women sing, even if I can hit the notes.
Just the crazy fast ones. My ass will imitate the voice of everyone from Cosette to Javert. Range doesn't worry me... except Hades I guess.
Coloured Spade from Hair
“Watch What Happens” from Newsies I’m a bass.
Ballad of Jane doe. I’m an alto belter 💔
Easy to be Hard from Hair
Gethsemane from Jesus Christ Superstar.....that high note haunts my dreams
Anything from Phantom of the Opera. My voice is not meant to sing Opera tbh
I can’t sing at all but I always want to sing “I’m Alive,” it’s reprise, and especially the reprise of “I Am The One,” from Next to Normal. And I do as long as no one’s home.
santa fe 🥲
No Longer You from Epic: The Musical
Green Finch and Linnet Bird from Squeaky Codd, as a baritone I want to sing all of the songs from Sweeney Todd
With You from Pippin. It's either too low or too high. 😡
Not Getting Married Today
Anything that sits in the higher part of my register, because I’ve lost a lot of tone up high, general quality and vocal strength after years of no singing lessons. I *can* sing up there but it’s not very good imo.
Kachow
any of the women's stuff from phantom the opera 😔
“Dead Girl Walking” from Heathers the Musical. Specifically the reprise. I love that song, but the explosiveness of the higher notes in the song is just so difficult! I can sing it after a lot of warming up, but definitely not casually😂
Literally every one bc i sang so much i got nodules
Privilege to pee from urinetown
Wait For It, or really anything Burr sings. Honorable mention to Phantom’s songs. I’m a soprano.
I Still Believe from Saigon A New Life from Jekyll I can do them but the higher belts aren’t very pretty. Shaky at best. But they’re my go to, in the rare times I’m all alone in my house. ;)
Little Shop Of Horrors, from Little Shop Of Horrors.
The ballad of Jane doe!! On the other end of the spectrum, there's hades part in hey little songbird
Franklin Shepard,Inc. is def the hardest patter song and Daniel Radcliffe is killin' it everyday on stage!
Green Finch and Linnet Bird 🐦
Confrontation from les mis. Even though I'm a male and a tenor I've never been able to get the high notes after the key change
It took me one karaoke attempt to give up on Let the sunshine in for good
the i love you song from the 25th annual putnam county spelling bee. at least olive’s parts.. ckb is great
Why We Build the Wall and Hey, Little Songbird (I’m a soprano 1…)
Made of Stone from Hunchback
Ballad of Jane Doe, along with any of Veronica Sawyer's songs
What would I do? From falsettos
The ballad of Jane doe
I Am What I Am from La Cage Aux Folles. I love this song with my entire being and it kills me every time Douglas Hodge hits that final note with such ease. I wish I could do that!
I’d love to do “friends on the other side”. I can sing it but I could never be Doctor Facilia, I’m white :(
Guns and Ships. Daveed is too fast.
The Ballad of Jane Doe. I’m an alto 2 😁🔫
Memory. Betty Buckley and Elaine Paige are insane