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contralto

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Acronyms, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.03 sec.
contralto (kəntrăl`tō), female voice of lowest pitch. Originally, the term denoted a second voice set against (contra) a high voice (alto); thus, a second high voice. Since most second parts were for a high male voice or a low woman's voice, the term came to mean a low woman's voice, pitched about a fifth below the soprano. See also alto alto, singing voice the range of which is lower than the soprano by the interval of a fifth. More generally, the term refers to the register in which this voice sings, i.e.
..... Click the link for more information. ; countertenor countertenor, a male singing voice in the alto range. Singing in this range requires either a special vocal technique called falsetto, or a high extension of the tenor range.
..... Click the link for more information. ; voice voice, sound produced by living beings. The source of the sound in human speaking and singing is the vibration of the vocal cords, which are inside the larynx , and the production of the sounds is called phonation.
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the Bass and Tenor of the Man and the Soprano and Contralto of the two Women?
Flatland by Abbott, Edwin View in context
All I know is that one evening, entering incautiously the salon of the little house just after the news of a considerable Carlist success had reached the faithful, I was seized round the neck and waist and whirled recklessly three times round the room, to the crash of upsetting furniture and the humming of a valse tune in a warm contralto voice.
The Mirror of the Sea by Conrad, Joseph View in context
All at once he heard, not far from the edge of the wood, the sound of Varenka's contralto voice, calling Grisha, and a smile of delight passed over Sergey Ivanovitch's face.
Anna Karenina by Tolstoy, Leo View in context
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