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Soprano vs Tenor - What's the difference?

soprano | tenor |

Tenor is a coordinate term of soprano.



As nouns the difference between soprano and tenor

is that soprano is musical part or section higher in pitch than alto and other sections while tenor is musical part or section that holds or performs the main melody, as opposed to the contratenor bassus and contratenor altus, who perform countermelodies.

As an adjective tenor is

of or pertaining to the tenor part or range.

soprano

English

Noun

  • Musical part or section higher in pitch than alto and other sections.
  • Person or instrument that performs the soprano part.
  • *{{quote-book, year=2008, author=(Denis Norden), title=Chips from a Life, chapter=8, isbn=978-0-00-727796-4
    • , passage=I was only once faced with the task of auditioning a nimiety of sopranos .}}

    Synonyms

    * (person) sopranist

    Coordinate terms

    * (voice types) soprano, mezzo-soprano, alto, contralto (female); countertenor, tenor, baritone, bass (male)

    Derived terms

    * lyric soprano * mezzo-soprano * sing soprano * sopranino * sopranist * spinto soprano

    See also

    * ("soprano" on Wikipedia)

    Anagrams

    * English nouns with irregular plurals ----

    tenor

    English

    Alternative forms

    * (l)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (archaic, music) Musical part or section that holds or performs the main melody, as opposed to the contratenor bassus'' and ''contratenor altus , who perform countermelodies.
  • (obsolete) duration; continuance; a state of holding on in a continuous course; general tendency; career.
  • * Gray
    • Along the cool sequestered vale of life / They kept the noiseless tenor of their way.
  • (music) Musical range or section higher than bass and lower than alto.
  • A person, instrument or group that performs in the tenor (higher than bass and lower than alto) range.
  • Tone, as of a conversation.
  • *
  • (linguistics) The subject in a metaphor to which attributes are ascribed.
  • (finance) Time to maturity of a bond.
  • Stamp; character; nature.
  • * Dryden
    • This success would look like chance, if it were perpetual, and always of the same tenor .
  • (legal) An exact copy of a writing, set forth in the words and figures of it. It differs from purport , which is only the substance or general import of the instrument.
    • (Bouvier)
  • That course of thought which holds on through a discourse; the general drift or course of thought; purport; intent; meaning; understanding.
  • * Shakespeare
    • When it [the bond] is paid according to the tenor .
  • * Spart
    • Does not the whole tenor of the divine law positively require humility and meekness to all men?

    Derived terms

    * Old Tenor, Middle Tenor, New Tenor

    Coordinate terms

    * (voice types) soprano, mezzo-soprano, alto, contralto (female); countertenor, tenor, baritone, bass (male)

    See also

    * ("tenor" on Wikipedia)

    Adjective

    (-)
  • of or pertaining to the tenor part or range
    • He has a tenor voice.

    Anagrams

    * ----